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A bright smile spread across Eden’s face when “The Husband” flashed on her phone’s screen. She saw her husband every day, slept with him every night, yet butterflies still filled her stomach as if she had just met him. Drying her hands, she tapped the green icon and answered the call.

“Hey Babe. How’s your day?” Eden asked as she mixed the ingredients for a vegetarian lasagna.

She refused to give up meat, but her husband refused to eat it. He hadn’t eaten any form of flesh since the age of twelve. After working more than twelve-hour days, it drained her to come home and cook two different meals, but she did what she had to because her man deserved whatever he wanted.

“My day has gotten better now that I’m talking to you,” Jermaine admitted.

Eden’s smile resembled the Cheshire Cat’s. All her pearly whites and the empty spaces where her wisdom teeth once resided were on full display. After five years of marriage, Jermaine still made her feel like a kid at Christmas .

“Jermaine, stop making me smile,” she blushed as she stirred the egg and ricotta cheese mixture.

“It’s my job to keep that smile on your pretty face. Making sure my wife is happy is how I keep the other men away,”

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that. Happy wife. Happy life. And I am very happy,” Eden admitted.

Jermaine couldn’t see it, but he knew she was smiling. A slight pain poked at his heart. He knew he had a good woman, but the world was filled with so many other women. Who was he to deny the other women the opportunity to experience a ride on the Jermaine Express.

“I love you, Eden,” Jermaine blurted truthfully.

Eden froze at the sound of her name coming from her husband’s mouth. He hadn’t called her by her birth name in so long that she didn’t think he remembered it. Truthfully, she didn’t even use her government name when conducting business. She knew now that something was wrong.

“Ok Jermaine, what’s wrong? You never call me Eden. It doesn’t even sound right coming out of your mouth. Whose ass do I have to beat for messing with my man?” Eden asked jokily, but seriously .

Jermaine laughed.

“Calm down killer. Nothing is wrong. Nothing that I can’t handle,” Jermaine joked. “I hear a lot of moving around in the background. What are you doing?” Jermaine asked as he read the incoming text messages on his iPhone.

“You know I’d never let the head of the household come home to an empty plate. I’m making you a vegetarian lasagna and a rainbow salad. By the time you get here, dinner will be ready,” Eden said as she removed the phone from her ear and put it on speaker, because for the life of her, she could never keep up with her AirPods.

“Awww Babe. You know your lasagna is my favorite, but it’s Thursday. I’ll be here at the office late as usual. I thought bringing Malcolm on as a Partner would lighten my workload, but it’s making shit worse,” Jermaine said while responding quickly to the second incoming text.

“Now I see why you called me Eden,” Eden sighed as she shook her head. “You know I love Malcolm, but he doesn’t know what being a partner means. He wants to be in control. He wants your spot. Sometimes friends and family simply can’t work together. It’s a sad fact,” Eden shrugged .

“You’re right. What are you doing now, I still hear a lot of movement?”

“I’m packing all this shit up. You know how much prep work goes into your specialty lasagna. This will be dinner for Tuesday,” Eden admitted.

As much as she loved her man. She would’ve never gone through the trouble of making a lasagna if she had remembered what the day was. Work had driven her so crazy that she had to dip into her ‘on the clock liquor stash’ more than once to calm her nerves.

“I’m sorry babe. Look, do me a favor,”

“What?”

“Go get a glass of wine and unwind. When I get home, I’ll eat the stress out of you,”

Jermaine’s third leg turned to stone at the thought of burying his face in between his wife’s legs. It amazed him how satisfying her sent him over the edge.

Eden’s clit pulsated. Jermaine made it his business to devour her to the point of unconsciousness and she loved him for that. She was more than ready for the Earth-shattering orgasm she’d receive.

“Don’t make me come to your office and spread eagle on your desk Mr. Shelton. I’m overdue for some office sex,” Eden said as she slid her fingers inside her leggings.

Jermaine’s erection instantly died. The moment he started mixing business with pleasure, he knew the days of having his wife coming to his office were over.

“Those office romp days are over. Your screaming ass almost got me fired. You refuse to be quiet,” He laughed as he thought back to a simpler time in their marriage.

“Stop blowing my back out so well and I’ll stop screaming,” Eden joked. “But seriously Babe, is the Malcom situation the only thing bothering you?” Eden asked, she knew his joking right before a meeting meant something else was going on.

Jermaine inhaled.

He had approached this topic in the past, but every time he did, Eden shot the idea down. He was hoping that this time would be different. Exhaling, he got ready to shoot his shot.

“Yeah, there is something else on my mind. I was calling to gage your temperature,”

“Gage my temperature? Why?”

“Edy, I think, know I know that we’re ready. We’ve been married for a while; our lives are stable, and I think it’s time we started our own family. Add some little Shelton’s to this large nest. I want my own legacy. Watching you take birth control pills makes me feel like you don’t want kids with me. I’m your husband, not some dude you just met,” Jermaine said truthfully.

In the beginning of their relationship, they were both enthralled with finishing their degrees and landing careers within their field. He understood that Eden didn’t want children before she was married. But they had been married for five years now. Though he had a lot of maturing to do as a man, he was positive that the only woman he wanted to bare his children was Eden Marie Merci Shelton.

Eden sighed.

She had shot this conversation down so many times. But now, she was ready.

“You’re right,” She admitted.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. Jermaine was stunned. This was the response that he wanted, but he honestly wasn’t expecting it. For years she had shot the kid talk down, but now she was all for it. He didn’t know what to say. Instead of saying anything he sat speechless.

Eden laughed. She knew her response had caught him off guard .

“Your silence says a lot. Look, you’re right. I apologize for making you feel like a boyfriend. In all actuality, I’ve always wanted children. I’m just afraid,” Eden said honestly.

“Afraid of what?”

“I’m afraid of not doing a good job. My parents raised us girls to focus on our brains and disregard our beauty. That’s why when someone compliments my looks instead of accomplishments, it angers me because I’m so much more than a pretty face.

Eve and I are extremely hardworking and giving, but Envy acts like the spawn of Satan. That bothers me. I never understood what happened to make her act the way she does. I don’t want my kid to turn out like her,” Eden admitted.

Jermaine nodded even though Eden couldn’t see him. He now understood her hesitance. Her sister, Envy, was bat shit crazy. She was only concerned with herself. She stole her parents’ identity, Eden’s debit card, and stole Eve’s car and wrecked it.

“Edy, our children will be perfect because we will raise them in a healthy household, filled with love. Throw those pills away. I got something big for you when I get home,”

Eden giggled .

“I’ll throw them in the trash. I’m about to call Eve over here to drink with me. You know how we get. So, if I’m passed out drunk when you get here; Fuck me anyway.”

Jermaine laughed.

“I love you,”

“I love you,”

She wasn’t an ‘I love you, too’ kind of woman. She loved her husband genuinely. Even if he hadn’t said it, she would have.

As soon as she dialed Eve’s number, the phone was instantly answered.

“Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in. Hey stranger,” Eve mocked. It had been over a week since she last spoke with Eden. They normally spoke every day.

“Damn, did the phone even ring? I missed you, Eve Marie!” Eden sang jovially. Eve and Eden were two years apart, but they acted as if they shared the womb together.

“I can’t tell that you missed me. It’s been nine days since our last text. Anyway, I’m hungry what did you cook?” Eve asked .

“I didn’t cook anything. I was making Jermaine a vegetarian lasagna, but he’s working late. So, I was going to eat leftovers and invite you over to get drunk with me,”

“Vegetarian lasagna? I definitely wouldn’t eat no shit like that, and I don’t want any leftovers. I want some freshly prepared food before I have my drinks,” Eve said as she pulled on a pair of ripped skinny jeans and Baby Tee.

Eden sucked her teeth.

“I should’ve known a shake down was coming with your bougee ass. Let’s go to Ribeye’s,”

“Ribeye’s! Now you’re talking my bougee ass language. I’m already dressed. Come pick me up!”

“I’m on the way,” Eden said before ending the call.

The drive to Eve’s house was done in complete silence. Though she agreed to throw her birth control away, truthfully, she was apprehensive for more than one reason. Her job was her life. She worked hard to land the position that she had, and she was filled with pride to be one of a few black women to work for such a prestigious bank.

Questions ran through Eden’s head quickly. How would her life change after becoming a mom? Would she have to stop traveling internationally? Could she travel with a newborn?

“I’m not giving up my job?” Eden said though no one was around to hear her.

She recalled her mother saying that quitting her job was the worst thing she’d ever done. By giving her husband complete control of her livelihood, she lost pieces of herself. Her father was old fashioned and didn’t want nannies or maids tending to his children. Yes, Jermaine was a great provider, but she didn’t want to lose her identity to motherhood.

By the time she pulled into Eve’s driveway she was mentally exhausted. The thoughts running through her head had her reeling. She was so deep in thought that she didn’t hear when Eve opened the car door.

“Girl, I’m starving,” Eve said as she slid in the passenger seat and closed the door.

Out of nowhere, Eden burst into tears.