Page 12 of Love Me Now: Baltimore & Madelyn
“Relax, Auntie. This won’t take long.”
The entire time court presumed, Heir and I were distracted by Gensen being frustrated with Genesis. I could barely keep up with anything that was said. Inside, I was seething.
“In the case of Baby Boy Bell, the court hereby grants guardianship to Madelyn Denise Bell. Also, the court hereby orders Baby Boy Bell’s name change to Genesis Bell effective immediately. Court will reconvene in sixty days to finalize adoption status.”
As soon as the gavel came down, I rushed over to get Genesis from Gensen. Again, neither of the Graces said a word. It was fuck them, though, as I took Genesis into my arms. For a second, his lip curled as if he wanted to cry. Seeing how wet his face was and how runny his nose was, I glared at Gensen.
“We wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for yo’ triflin’ ass husband,” Gensen quipped. With Adir, Dothan, and Cooley surrounding us, Heir and I couldn’t smack the fuck out of Gensen if we wanted to. Her young ass was pushing my buttons, though.
“Get yo’ ass out my mama’s face before I rearrange yours,” Heir warned her. “Don’t make me find you, ho. I’ll do you worse than Coco did.”
Heir’s comment caused Adir to chuckle. Shaking my head, I ignored Gensen and snuggled my face to Genesis’s. A feeling I couldn’t explain overtook me. I knew it was love, but it was something deeper.
“Hey, sweetheart,” I whispered gently. It was then I recognized that the Graces didn’t bother bringing a diaper bag, bottle, or anything. They were truly pieces of shit.
Now that I had Genesis, they didn’t matter. He would never have to worry about them again. He was in the arms of a woman who would love him unconditionally. As I snapped a photo of me and Genesis to send to my mom and sisters, I figured this was as good a time as any to announce the news. Regardless of how anyone felt about my decision, I would do whatever I could to protect Genesis from the whispers of those who wouldn’t understand. I put that on my life.
That evening, as I was on the couch talking to my sisters on a three-way call and feeding Genesis, I was surprised to get a security notification alerting me to a vehicle pulling into my driveway. Seeing my mother’s silver Mercedes on the screen caused instant knots to form inside my stomach. She hadn’t responded to my picture of me and Genesis, so I assumed she was disgusted by it.
“Hey… Mom just showed up,” I said to them.
“Bye.”
“Bitch, I know you lyin’.”
My sisters spoke at the same time. Nati, the baby, hung up before I could respond. Her mouth was too slick, sobyewas all she gave me.
Kara stayed on the line and added, “You better not let her be mean to that precious baby.”
“You know me better than that,” I replied. Already, I was willing to protect Genesis with my life.
“Call me if you need me,” Kara said.
“Will do.” I hung up and felt the weight of the world on my shoulders.
Sherma March was hard most of my life. My father wasn’t the type to put his wife in her place, so her behavior just got worse over the years. It was so bad that my younger sisters didn’t even fuck with her. As soon as they stepped into adulthood, they cut our mother off.
“Grandma’s here,” Heir stated as she came down the stairs. The sour expression on her face spoke volumes. She didn’t bother answering the door either. Instead, she took Genesis from me and went back up the stairs.
Standing from the couch, I took a fortifying breath and went to answer the door. My mother wasn’t the easiest person to get along with, and her presence here was questionable. However, unlike my sisters, I was determined to have a normal relationship with the woman who birthed us.
I opened the door to my mother standing on the other side with two suitcases beside her.
“Where’s my grandbaby?” she asked. Nohelloor anything.
“Come in,” I stated. “He’s upstairs with Heir, eating.”
She walked inside and glanced around like she hadn’t been to my house before. “Oh… Well, I’m going to put my things in the guest room.”
“Where’s Dad?” I questioned because she was alone.
“On a business trip with the church. He has several conferences over the next few weeks, so I figured coming to spend some time with Genesis would be good.” She eyed me as if I was about to tell her that she couldn’t stay. That was all she would need to cause a ruckus in my driveway.
“Okay,” I answered. “I’ll help you put your things upstairs.”
Just weeks ago, my parents were here attending Duval and DJ’s funerals. Nothing seemed odd in their world. The fact that my mother was back on Bell Estates property in such a short time gave me concern. Something was up with her, and it had nothing to do with Genesis.
CHAPTER 5