Page 19 of The Devoted Husband

“Hello, Smiley.”

“Hi. Are you busy?”

His low chuckle made her heart skip a beat. “I’m never too busy for you.”

“Can you come to Memphis? There’s something I need to talk to you about in person.”

“Of course. I’ve been waiting for you to call.” He laughed softly. “It’s been hard as hell waiting.”

“Well, you don’t have to wait anymore.”

“I’ll look up flights and tell you when I’ll be there. But you’re good, right?”

“Oh yes, I’m great. I just think this is something I should tell you face-to-face.”

“All right, Sade. Let me look into some flights, and I’ll text you.”

“Okay, thank you.”

“I love you.”

Gritting her teeth, Sade blinked back her tears. “I-I love you too, Dante.”

After disconnecting the call, she went back into the suite. Atlas was up, brushing his teeth. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, beautiful. You good?”

“Yeah. I’m actually glad you’re up.”

“You about to kick me out?”

Sade laughed softly with a shake of her head. “No. I just wanted to talk.”

“Cool. Let me take a shower, and then I’m all yours.” He paused. “You wanna join me?”

“No. I don’t trust you to keep your hands to yourself.”

“Smart woman.”

The sexy smile he gave her caused her to blush.

His locs were longer now and a dark brown color at the ends.

The scruff that usually lined his jaw had grown out into a beard.

Those syrup-brown eyes were as beautiful as they always were against his milk chocolate-brown skin.

Sade turned, not wanting to get so aroused by the sight of him that she joined him for that shower anyway.

They didn’t have sex last night, and she wanted to keep it that way.

Sex was always easy between them, but it would complicate things even more.

After Atlas finished dressing, they went to the hotel restaurant for an early lunch. They’d placed their orders, and Sade felt it was a good time to tell him what was on her heart.

“I’m going to tell Dante about the baby.

” Atlas only stared at her, so she swallowed hard and continued.

“He deserves to know, Atlas. He was a great father to the twins, and he’s my best friend.

I can’t deny him of the opportunity to be a father to our baby just because I decided I don’t want to be with him. ”

Atlas’s head tilted. He licked his lips and rolled his tongue over his teeth. “You still don’t want to be with him?”

She considered her response carefully. Things had been good between them since last night, but Atlas was still the possessive man he’d always been. The possessive man she’d need to be careful with.

Did she want to be with Dante? Absolutely. Would she tell Atlas that? Not a chance in hell.

“I want him to know about his baby and be here,” she said carefully. “I want my best friend back. My priority right now is having a healthy and stress-free pregnancy, so I’m not trying to be in a relationship with him or you.”

His head bobbed once...His jaw set. “Okay, so what do you want from me? To stay away while you work things out with him?”

“Not quite.” Sade shifted in her seat and took a sip of her water.

“I would like to keep you in my life but as a friend. I don’t want to go around your family, and I also don’t want us to have a romantic relationship because that’s what makes you get crazy.

Dante can be here for the baby...but I want you here with and for me. ”

“How will that work if you want to hide me and what we have?”

“I’m not hiding it; I’m just not making it public.

I know Dante, and he will need some time to process the fact that I knew what Adam and Imani had planned and that you and I were.

..intimate. It wouldn’t be good if I tried to bring you around him any time soon.

I’m already springing a baby on him, Atlas.

I don’t want to tell him that I was fucking the man that tried to kill him too. ”

Atlas scoffed with a shake of his head. “So, that’s all it was for you? Sex?”

Her eyes rolled as she released a tired breath. “No, but we weren’t in a relationship. The specifics don’t matter. What matters is you and I are perfect when we’re alone, and no one else is in our business.”

“I can’t argue with that.”

“So, I want it to stay like that while I’m pregnant.

If by the time I have this baby, you aren’t as violent when it comes down to other men looking at me and flirting with me, and we can trust Dante not to go crazy over you being around me and the baby, we can talk about taking things to the next level.

But I can’t make any promises, Atlas. If that’s not good enough—”

“I’m cool with that, baby,” Atlas said, and Sade hoped to God that was the truth.