Decker laughed arrogantly. “Are you jealous?”
“No,” Cane said, standing taller. “You get jealous over things that aren’t yours. She’s fucking mine.”
“You need to get out of my way,” Decker bit out, his Boston accent thick.
Cane turned a bit and I could see the side of his face as a smile spread across his lips. “You seem really angry. I would hate for something ugly to happen in front of my girl, so you better get out of here while you can.”
Decker’s eyes blazed at Cane’s words. “I don’t want any shit. Just move out of my way.”
“Don’t start shit and there won’t be shit.”
Decker took a step towards Cane, his jaw tight. “Move it, boy.”
Cane chuckled, releasing the doorframe and standing in the middle of the threshold. “This guy wasn’t even in your league, Jada,” Cane said loud enough for me to hear. “You can’t tell me that this pussy did shit for you.”
My heart leapt in my chest as Decker rushed Cane, closing the distance between them in a half a second. Cane grabbed him by both shoulders as he came in, driving towards Decker with his head in an upward motion, smashing the top of his head into Decker’s face.
Decker shot back, blood pouring from his nose, his eyes wide. He was clearly not expecting Cane’s aggression.
My entire body went stiff at the scene. I couldn’t shout, I couldn’t cry, I couldn’t do anything but watch the chaos unfold in front of me.
Cane burst forward, grabbing Decker by the shirt. Decker swung wildly at Cane, connecting with the side of his face. He stood still, shaking his head, an eerie smile on his face.
“Now you’ve fucked up,” he said as he threw a kick, knocking Decker to the concrete with a thud. The impact caused one of Kari’s aloe plants to fall off the stand by the door.
Tears began to prick my eyes, my past colliding with my future in front of my eyes in a way I never imagined.
“Stop it!” I finally choked out, my hands covering my mouth, trying to hold back the bile that threatened to spill from my gut.
Immediately, Cane’s fist was blasting into Decker’s face—once, twice, three times. Decker stopped swinging and lay still in the fetal position, his hands trying desperately to cover his face.
Cane stood up as Decker lay still, his face already swelling from the blows it was dealt. His eyes were wide with fear.
My stomach was volatile, a pit of acid. I hated everything about this situation and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
Cane stuck his foot on the side of Decker’s face, pushing his head roughly to the side, before turning to me. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me this motherfucker called you yesterday,” Cane said, his eyes wild. “Didn’t you feel that was a little fact maybe I should fucking know?”
Cane’s lips were a thin line, his jaw pulsing with anger as he looked at me.
“He sent me a box of pictures I had left behind and I burned them, Cane. The smoke? It was the smell of my life before you going up in flames.”
His face softened a bit.
“He called me and I told him to never call me again. I didn’t tell you … I should have, I guess. But I didn’t want to cause a bunch of drama for nothing.”
“Yeah, for nothing. Right,” he said, holding my gaze for a few more moments. He looked down at Decker and removed his foot from his face.
Cane peered down at my ex-husband. “I am going to let you up. I want you to get in your fucking car and get the fuck out of here. Got it? Move on with your life because her future? It’s with me.”
He shook his head as he bent down and grabbed him by the shirt, helping him to his feet. “Now get.”
Decker spit a mouthful of blood onto the porch as he looked at me. “This was your last chance.” The eyes that I once knew so well, that I once saw my life in, seemed so alien to me. “I won’t be around when you decide you’ve messed up. You are on your own.”
With that, he turned and walked to his car, got in, and backed out of the driveway.
My chest felt tight, like a band was wrapped around it, squeezing the life out of me. I bent over and put my hands on my knees, trying to get air into my lungs, trying to calm myself down.
Cane walked slowly across the room. He wrapped me in his arms and rested his cheek against the top of my head. He took a deep breath. “You will never be on your own.” He squeezed me tighter as my tears overflowed my eyelids.
I sighed as I wiped my face and sagged against him.
“You know,” he said, kissing the top of my head, “it doesn’t matter what’s in front of you as long as you know who’s behind you. And I’m always going to be behind you.”
I smiled into his chest.
“Even when you fail to tell me shit like your ex-husband called you.”
“I’m sorry. I should have told you.”