CHAPTER TWO
Mercedes sat at her desk, replying to clients emails and messages when a knock came at her office door.
"Come in." Mercedes called out, momentarily putting her typing on pause.
The office door slide open and in walked Mercedes's boss David Scott in a Tom Ford suit. David was not only Mercedes's boss but also a mentor to her since she first started out in the real estate world. Mercedes immediately stood up as a sign of respect.
"I brought you a present." The grey beard man announced, with a slight grin.
A young man probably a few years younger than Mercedes stepped from behind the door. "Brian Adler." He introduced himself. He walked over and shook hands with Mercedes.
The enthusiasm in his eyes were evident. "Mercedes Jones." She greeted.
David walked up beside Brian and patted his shoulder. "Brain is your new assistant and I have no doubt he will be a great one."
Brian nodded. "Thank you Mr. Scott. And Ms. Jones, I'm at your service for whatever you need. Day or night." Mercedes could see in his eyes that the young man was eager to work.
"I love the enthusiasm already. Welcome aboard." For months Mercedes had been requesting an assistant and she finally had one. "Let's get you right to work. I need you to do some research on this property in GreenWood and upload these bank addendums." Mercedes handed her new assistant a stack of files.
"No problem. Anything else you need, I'm here." He offered.
"Thank you, Brian." Brian thanked the two of them and quickly existed the office.
David took a seat across from Mercedes's desk, with his legs cross and a big grin on his face. "So, how's everything progressing with the Mitchell's?"
"Taking longer than I expected but don't worry, I'll get the deal done in the next few weeks." Mercedes sat back down in her leather chair. She closed her laptop giving David her full attention.
"I'm not worried. I always have complete confidence in you. I have so much confidence in you, that once you close with the Mitchell's, a promotion is coming right after."
"Wow. David, that's fantastic. Thank you, so much." Mercedes was smiling from ear to ear. She'd been working her butt off to be next in line for another promotion.
"You don't have to thank me. You've earned it. Hard work always pays off." David gave Mercedes a proud smile before getting up and heading towards the door. "It's only more hard work from here. But I know you're ready." David left the office with the look of a proud father.
Mercedes was composed on the outside but on the inside she was jumping for joy. All of her hard work was finally paying off.
M
Mercedes laid in bed with Kai cuddled next to her, as they watched The Incredibles for the second time in a row. Mercedes wasn't feeling well that day so she decided work from home. Mercedes kept checking her phone throughout the day, hoping to receive a text from Quinn but it had yet to come. Since their interaction at the restaurant, their conversations were centered around Kai. Although, she understand it would take Quinn some time. She missed their friendship.
When her phone did ring, Mercedes quickly reached for it, hoping it would be Quinn. Instead, it was her cousin Santana Lopez.
"Hi, Santana." Mercedes did best to hide the disappointment in her voice.
"Open the door, I'm outside."
Of course she is. Mercedes thought. "Are you ever going to give me a heads up, before you just show up at my front door?"
"No. Now hurry up, your creepy ass neighbor keeps staring at me." Santana ended the call.
Mercedes put the iPhone in her pocket and turned to her son. "Guess what Kai, auntie Tana is here."
"Tana! Tana!" Kai jumped up and down on the bed. Mercedes knew hearing her name would get him excited. Kai hopped off the bed and his little feet scurried out of the bedroom.
A nauseous Mercedes took her time following him downstairs. She slowly made her way down the steps and into the living room where she could hear her cousin voice.
"Good morning Santana." Mercedes said as soon as she walked in. The Afro-Latina woman sat on the couch with Kai.
"What's up, cousin?" Santana stood up with a mischievous grin on her face.
"Why are you giving me that look?" Mercedes questioned as they embraced.
"Because, I brought you a pregnancy test." Santana said in a surprisingly, nonchalant fashion.
Mercedes sighed. "For what?"
"Duh. So you can pee on it." Santana took two boxes of pregnancy tests out of her purse.
Mercedes shook her head and gently pushed the boxes away. "I'm just sick Santana, not pregnant. Besides, I haven't had S.E.X. in two months."
Santana shrugged her shoulders. "My abuelita didn't find out she was pregnant until the day my mother was born. Two months is nothing."
Mercedes knew that was true but also extremely rare.
"I'm fine Santana. Whatever I have, I'm sure I'll get over it in a few days." Mercedes flopped down on the couch as another wave of nausea washed over her.
Santana stood in front of her with her hand on her hip. "Just humor me and take the test anyway. Please."
Mercedes was positive that she wasn't pregnant and more than willing to prove Santana wrong."This is a waste of time but I'll take the test." Mercedes snatched the tests out of Santana's hand.
"See you in five minutes." Santana waved goodbye to Mercedes with that mischievous grin back on her face.
Mercedes just brushed it off. She knew it was not a chance that she was..
M.
"I'm pregnant." Mercedes sat cemented on the closed toilet seat staring at the multiple pregnancy tests on the counter.
Santana stood in front of her with a proud smile on her face. "I knew it. It's honestly scary how accurate my dreams have been lately."
While Santana was patting herself on the back. Mercedes was freaking out.
"I can't believe this is happening right now." Mercedes foot tapped anxiously against the bathroom title. "The timing, honestly couldn't be worse."
Santana sat down on the counter next to Kai. "Does that means you're not keeping it?"
Mercedes shook her head. "No. I almost had an abortion with Kai and now I can't imagine my life without him." Mercedes eyed the little boy who was sitting on the counter with his headphones on. All of his attention on the iPad in his lap.
"I want to keep this baby." Mercedes sighed. "It's just, with the way things are with Quinn and I right now, I'm not sure how she's gonna react."
Santana picked up Kai and placed him in her lap. "Quinn loves being a mom, Of course she's gonna be happy."
Mercedes knew Santana was right but there was still a small part of her that had doubt.
"I guess you're right.. I just don't know."Mercedes threw the pregnancy tests in the trash.
"My mom is going to kill me." Mercedes went to the sink to wash her hands. "She might actually disown me this time." Mercedes felt tightness in her chest as she thought about having to reveal the news to her mother. All the anxiety she remembered from the first time rushing back.
Santana put a comforting arm around Mercedes. "I'm going to keep it real with you, cousin. Auntie is going to raise hell when she finds out."
Mercedes dropped her head but Santana lifted her chin back up and stared her straight in the eyes. "But you shouldn't care. This is your life and happiness. You have to stop worrying about what she thinks. It's not worth your own happiness."
Mercedes wished it was that simple. "You know better than anyone that it's not that simple. Everything in our family is about traditional values and a wholesome image."
"So what? People are going to judge you no matter what Mercedes. That's why I am unapologetically gay. Screw anyone in our family who has a problem with it. I'm living this life for me."
Mercedes wished she could adopt the same attitude. "So, I should just accept the fact that I'll be alone and without my family?"
Santana shook her head. "You'll never be alone. You'll have me, Britt, my parents, Kai, and Quinn." Santana rested her chin on Mercedes's shoulder. "Life is short Mercedes, you have to start living for yourself."
Mercedes appreciated Santana's words of encouragement. Even though she wasn't ready to live by them.
"Kai can stay with Britt and I, tonight. You take the rest of the day to yourself to process everything and have a talk with Quinn." Santana offered.
Mercedes turned around to face her favorite cousin. "Thank you, Santana." Mercedes embraced Santana in a warm hug.
"You don't need to thank me, we're family." Santana replied.
Mercedes was grateful to have Santana in her corner. Once again, she was going through a life changing chapter in her story. And once again, Santana was right by her side.
M.
Mercedes paced back and forth in the living room, fidgeting with her nails as she waited for Quinn. She wished her current predicament didn't prohibit her from having a shot of tequila.
DING DONG
Mercedes took a few quick deep breaths in the mirror then made her way over to the front door. She opened the door to see Quinn standing before her in a oversized black hoodie.
"Hey." Quinn said as she took off the dark shades she was wearing.
"Hi." Mercedes responded, an awkward smile on her face. Despite the awkward tension between them, Mercedes was happy to see Quinn.
"Is everything okay? You sounded pretty stressed on the phone." Quinn tone was cordial.
"Yes but we definitely need to talk." Mercedes left the door open as she turned to walk back into the living room.
Quinn followed in behind her, a look of uncertainty on her face.
They made their way into the living room in silence. Quinn sat down on the couch but Mercedes remained standing.
"So, what is this about?" Quinn questioned, her hazel eyes staring up at Mercedes.
The uncertainty of Quinn's reaction caused her heart rate to speed up just a tad. "I'm not sure how you're going to take this so I'll just come right out and say it." Mercedes stated,
Quinn stood up from the couch, Mercedes's tone had her more worried than before. "Is Kai okay? Are you okay?"
Mercedes quickly shook her head."No. It's nothing like that."
Quinn let out a deep sigh of relief.
"But.." Mercedes cleared her throat. "I'm pregnant."
As soon as Mercedes broke the news, Quinn looked as if she'd seen a ghost. "You're..you're pregnant?" Quinn took a few steps back, shock written all over her face.
"Yes, I took three pregnancy tests." Mercedes proclaimed. She hoped the shocked expression on Quinn's face would soon turn into happiness.
Instead, Quinn began to pace back and forth. "I don't know what to say.." Quinn revealed as she continued to pace. "Is it Sam's?"
Mercedes's eyes almost popped out of her head as soon as the words left her lips. "What? No! I'm pregnant with your baby."
Immediate surprise and relief washed over Quinn's face. "But how is that possible? We haven't had sex in months." Quinn was bewildered.
"And you're the only person I've had sex with in the past year." Mercedes retorted.
"Wow." She covered her mouth with both hands and her hazel eyes were as they possibly could be. "This is..this is really unexpected."Quinn took a step back, her fingers pushing her blonde hair behind her ears.
"I know." Mercedes was still waiting on a sign from Quinn that she was at least slightly happy.
"How are you feeling?" Quinn questioned, gazing at her with caring eyes.
"Besides feeling nauseous, I feel fine. I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Osefo for Monday."
Quinn nodded her head. "That's good. I'll take you."
"You don't have to do that."
"But I want to."
Mercedes nibbled on her bottom lip. "Thank you." Even though she was being supportive, Quinn had yet to say how she felt.
"I know the timing isn't perfect but I want to keep this baby and I hope you're supportive of my decision."
"Mercedes, of course I am." Quinn wasted no time responding.
"Really?"
Quinn stepped closer to Mercedes. "Yes. I'm one hundred percent on board. I'll be with you every step of the way." Quinn said with a warm smile.
Mercedes felt some of the weight on her shoulders fall off.
"I just thought with everything that's going on between us tha-."
"None of that matters." Quinn cut her off before she could finish the sentence. "We're having a baby. Of course I'm happy." Quinn placed a hand on top of Mercedes stomach. The grin on her face stretched from ear to ear. "We're having a baby."
Mercedes placed her hand on top of Quinn's, with a smile of her own. All of the drama for the past two months and uncertainty Mercedes's was feeling, sailed away as she gazed into her soft hazel eyes. Before she even knew what she was doing, Mercedes pressed her lips against Quinn's. When she didn't feel Quinn push her away, she deepened the kiss. Next thing she knew, she was being carried upstairs in Quinn's arms.
Once inside the bedroom, Mercedes laid back on the bed and Quinn climbed on top. Her lips attacked Mercedes's lips, neck, and chest. Mercedes moaned and squirmed as her tongue traveled down her body. She ripped off the rest of her clothes then began to kiss, lick, and suck on her pussy. Once Mercedes was dripping wet, Quinn entered Mercedes without much effort. Mercedes gasped at the feeling of Quinn's cock, filling her up.
"Mhmm." Mercedes moaned, wrapping her arms and legs around Quinn.
"God, you feel so good." Quinn moaned in her ear as they rocked back and forth. The lust in Quinn's tone sent tingles down Mercedes's spine.
"Oh my god..don't stop!" Mercedes screamed as each of Quinn's thrust went deeper. Mercedes could feel Quinn's cock growing, harder inside her. She could feel herself dripping and once Quinn began to rub her clit at the same time. Mercedes was sent to the moon.
Mercedes's eyes crept open as the sound of the doorbell ringing woke her up. Mercedes raised her head off her pillow, to see Quinn slowly waking up from her own slumber. Mercedes leaned over and check the time on Quinn's watch.
9:27 AM
"Fuck." Mercedes jumped out of the bed. "Quinn, wake up." Mercedes pulled a fresh pair of underwear, t-shirt, and sweatpants out of the drawer.
Mercedes looked over her shoulder to see Quinn trying to fall back asleep.
"Quinn, get up!" She shouted.
Quinn lifted her head up sluggishly. "I'm up." Her blonde hair covering her eyes.
"That's probably Santana with Kai. Get dressed and meet me downstairs." Mercedes threw Quinn's clothes onto the bed.
"Okay." Quinn sat up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.
Mercedes swiftly exited the room, she almost tripped on the last step of the stairs but gracefully recovered before disaster struck. Mercedes checked her appearance in the mirror. Fixing her hair as best as she could. She then rushed to the front door open.
"Where's mama?" Kai screamed, bouncing up and down with excitement as soon as she opened the door.
"Yeah Mercedes, where's my best friend?" Santana walked in with a smirk on her face.
Mercedes rolled her eyes, wishing she had set an alarm to avoid this situation.
"She's upstairs using the bathroom, she'll be down in a minute." Mercedes said to Kai, ignoring Santana.
Mercedes helped Kai take his backpack off his shoulders. "Did you have fun with Aunt Tana and Aunt Brittany?"
"Yup! Aunt Brittany let me dance with her class!" Kai bragged.
"That's right. And he was the best dancer in the entire class. Ain't that right Kai?" Santana hyped him up.
"Mhm. I danced just like Aunt Brittany." Kai and Santana high five each other.
"I'm glad you had fun." Mercedes ran her fingers through Kai's curly light brown hair.
"And thank you Santana for keeping him."
Santana shrugged. "No problem, I love hanging out with my godson." Santana winked at Kai and he gave her a thumbs up.
She then turned to Mercedes. "Looks like Quinn took the news very well." Santana said with a sheepish grin.
Mercedes was about to respond with a clever remark but Quinn made her appearance.
"Morning." All three of them looked up to see Quinn coming down the steps. She'd managed to get herself together, no longer looking like they'd stayed up all night having sex.
"Mama!" Kai jumped into her arms as soon as she reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Hey, Bear." Quinn wrapped Kai in her arms and playful swung him around.
"Am I going to your house mama?" Kai asked once Quinn placed his small feet back on the floor.
"Not yet, Bear." Quinn ran her fingers through his thick curls.
"Then why are you here?" Santana interjected, a sneaky smile across her face.
"Mercedes needed my help with something." Quinn gave Santana the middle finger behind Kai's back so he couldn't see it.
"I'm sure she did." Santana playfully gave her the middle finger right back.
"I was about to make breakfast, should I make it for four?" Mercedes asked, hoping that Quinn would stay longer.
"We can't, we got that meeting with our investors in an hour." Santana explained.
Quinn looked down at her watch. "Fuck, you're right." Quinn and Santana owned one of the hottest clubs in the city and currently working to open a second location.
Quinn turned to Mercedes. "I'm sorry, can we talk more about this later?"
"Yeah. You can call or stop by later." Mercedes grinned. She wanted to give Quinn's lips a kiss but refrained in the presence of Kai.
Quinn lifted Kai in her arms. "I'll see you in just two days, Bears." She gave him a tight but gentle hug, then kissed him on his forehead.
"I love you." proclaimed Quinn.
"I love you, mama." Kai said in a soft spoken tone.
Quinn gave him one last squeeze before placing him back on his feet.
"Okay, we really should go now." Santana urged.
"Yeah, let's go." Quinn agreed.
They turned to leave and Mercedes followed them to the door. "Drive safe you two. Can't have anything happening to my favorite cousin and baby mama." She said as they walked to their cars.
"Sure thing, cousin." Santana yelled out as she jumped into her brand new Range Rover.
Quinn stopped before getting into her black Jeep. "Call me if you need anything. I'll be here."
Mercedes heart fluttered. "I will. Don't worry." She stared at Quinn like a teenager with a crush.
"Okay. Bye guys." Quinn waved goodbye and so did Kai. His eyes followed Quinn's car all the way down the driveway, until she was out of sight.
"Mama's gone." Kai wore a big pout on his face.
Mercedes bent down to his eye level. "She'll be back before you know it." Mercedes kissed his chubby cheek which earned her a smile from Kai.
"How does strawberry pancakes sound?"
Kai's eyes got as big as his hands "Pancakes!" Kai ran straight to the kitchen.
Mercedes watched and giggled at his excitement as she followed behind him.
M.
Mercedes laid in bed, unable to fall asleep. She'd been tossing and turning for an hour. All she wanted to do was shut her brain off and fall asleep. Unfortunately, the only thing she could think about was having to tell her mother that she was once again pregnant by Quinn. The first time around it wasn't a pleasant experience and Mercedes had no doubt that the second time around, the reaction would be far worse. A part of Mercedes wished she'd taken the proper steps to prevent another unplanned pregnancy. The other part of her couldn't help but feel excitement and joy. Mercedes loved being a mom and Quinn was a perfect co-parent. Everything just clicked.
But, none of that mattered to her mother. Quinn wasn't the rich, successful, and Christian man, Monica envisioned for her. That's how it went for Mercedes's older sisters, Brandy and Nia. The both of them married successful sons of Pastors. And for that reason, Mercedes knew that her mother would never accept Quinn. No matter how much, Mercedes wanted her to.
Mercedes's phone vibrated on the bed. She picked it up and Quinn's name appeared on the screen. She sat up in her bed and leaned back against the headboard. She started to fix her hair but stopped when she realized that Quinn couldn't see her.
Mercedes answered the call and placed it on speaker. "Hey. I wasn't expecting to hear from you tonight." Mercedes could hear hip hop music being played in the background.
"It's been a crazy night but I just wanted to call you while I had a few minutes to myself."
"I'm glad you did." Mercedes stated. Mercedes heard what sounded like a door being closed and the music became muffled.
"We should probably talk about last night."
"I'm down."
Quinn sighed. "You know how much I care about you Mercedes but last night shouldn't have happened."
Not the conversation Mercedes was expecting.
"Rachel and I are back together..Officially."
Quinn's words stung like a wasp trying to defend their nest. Once again, Quinn had ran back into Rachel's arms. Mercedes felt sick to her stomach and it wasn't from the pregnancy. "You know what, I'm not even surprised. I knew you would do this."
"You mean move on with my life after you rejected me?"
"How many times have you vented to me about Rachel's disappearing act? Mercedes was both jealous and hurt by Quinn's actions.
"It's no different from what you do to me?" Quinn sounded frustrated on the other end.
"What are you talking about? I've never disappeared on you."
"Not physically but emotionally you have." Quinn explained."One minute it feels as if this is our happy little family then the next you just treat me like just a fuck buddy who you have to keep a secret."
Mercedes couldn't believe Quinn felt this way. "You know I think of you as more than that. I care a lot about you." Mercedes explained.
"I care about you and our friendship so much, that I don't want a relationship to complicate or ruin what we have." She added.
"Mercedes, we have a son together and another child on the way. Our relationship is already complicated." Quinn expressed. "Also, can you please just admit to yourself that this has everything to do with your mom."
Mercedes knew Quinn would bring up her mother. "I..I."
"Exactly."
Mercedes didn't know what to say. Trying to lie would be pointless. Mercedes stayed silent and so did Quinn. At least twenty seconds of silence passed before Quinn spoke.
"Mercedes.." Quinn's tone softened. "I don't want to fight."
Mercedes sighed. "I don't either. It's not my place to tell you who you should date. I'm sorry." Although Mercedes couldn't understand why Quinn would go back to Rachel after all of the drama. Quinn wasn't her girlfriend. She was free to date whomever she wanted.
"And it's not my place to judge the relationship you have with your mother. I'm sorry." Quinn apologized in a genuine tone.
"Thank you." Mercedes appreciated Quinn's apology. Quinn meant a lot to her and she cherish Quinn's friendship. Arguing over her mother and Rachel wasn't worth it.
"I would also like to apologize for last night. I let things go too far and I should of told you the truth. I'm sorry."
"It's fine. We were both caught up in a lot of emotions. I hope Rachel understands." Mercedes wasn't the biggest fan of Rachel but she wasn't cold hearted enough to not have sympathy for her. Getting cheated on never feels good.
"Me too." Quinn's tone changed from apologetic to sadness.
Mercedes didn't know what else to say. The entire situation was awkward for her.
"Well, I should go." Quinn said after a few moments of awkward silence.
"Okay. I'm glad we had this talk, Quinn." Mercedes hoped that now that the air was clear, they could get back to being them again.
"Me too. Goodnight, Mercedes."
"Goodnight, Quinn."
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