"Pizza, now why didn't I think of that?" Marla teased her son. She was happy that Jayden had met a friend that he connected with. Avery had been a good influence on her son she thought. She had been trying to get Jayden to celebrate his birthday after that time but to no avail. She got up and walked over to her son standing behind him and then suddenly took him into her arms hugging and squeezing him tightly.
"Happy fourteenth birthday," She whispered in his ear as she gingerly kissed him on the top of his head. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a couple of folded bills.
"Here, take this…" She said passing him a few tens and twenty dollar bills. "Buy yourself something…" She said with a grin.
"Thanks mom…" Jayden said standing up as he prepared to go and meet Avery.
* * * * * *
"Honey c'mon the photographer is waiting…" Louise called to Jacob who was still working at his desk in his home office. It had been a whirlwind fourteen years of marriage, but he and Louise had survived it. Although they had never succeeded in conceiving any children together, Jacob felt as though they were one big happy family and Markus and Dinah were as good as his own flesh and blood. He couldn't imagine life without his two children. He looked at the pictures that slightly cluttered his desk. Each one held a special memory in his heart and his rough porous brown face broke into an easy smile as his eyes gently touched each one- remembering and cherishing the moment. The first one was the picture taken at Sweet Georgia Brown Night Club. It was the place where he had met her while out for a night of stepping and dancing. Louise had a fluid movement to her dance that attracted a lot of male attention. She had a dark milky skin tone that glistened under the strobe lights as she seemed to glide effortlessly across the dance floor to the smooth sounds of Johnny Guitar Watson, John Legend, Mary J. Blige, R. Kelly and many other legend R&B singers. Her hair well maybe it wasn't all hers, but still the curly silky and long weave complimented her oval face the way it flowed over her shoulders cascading down her back nearly reaching her voluptuous hips, it was love at first sight for Jacob. That was the kind of woman he wanted to get with and he wouldn't let anyone get in his way; not even home-spun, dowdy Marla.