Scandalous (25 page)

Chapter 21

I was just about ready for my husband to come home.

He'd only been gone for one night, but I missed him so much.
Some of it had to do with the news I'd received from Hines, but most of it had to do with the fact that I just liked having my husband around.
So I was preparing a welcome-home feast for him: all of his favorites from Yee’s, and his favorite drink.

I had the plates set out on the TV trays, our Chinese food in microwave dishes, and now all I had to do was make a pitcher of red Kool-Aid.
I had stopped at the store just to get a couple of packages and it was a good thing that I'd bought two because as I tried to tear open the first stupid little package, it ripped and all the red granules tumbled all over the counter.
This was why I hated making that stuff; the Kool-Aid always spilled on me.

I was in too good a mood to get upset about anything tonight, though.
Kenny was coming home, and with the call from Hines last night, I was free.
So
I just used my hand to swipe the wasted Kool-Aid off the counter, fixed the other package, and then poured my husband's favorite drink into our wine glasses.
I made sure that the Al Green cassette was in the stereo.
Of course, I knew that my husband would prefer just sitting down and watching TV right away, but before he did that, he was gonna dance one time with me.

The moment I heard Kenny's key turning in the lock, I cranked up the music, picked up the wineglasses, and did a little two-step to the door.

When my husband walked in, I sang with Al as my backup,
“
I'm
…
I'm so in love with you.
Whatever you want to do
…
”

Kenny laughed, dropped his garment bag at the door and took one of the glasses from my hand.

He joined in the song,
“
It's all right with me
…
.
”

It was now a duet as we danced our little hustle together and when Al got to the part of,
“
I'll never be un
…
true,
”
I raised my voice so loud you couldn't hear Kenny or Reverend Green.

We rested our glasses on the TV trays and then sang and danced like we were on stage or something, laughing because we both knew that we should only be singing in the shower, but dancing because we were just having fun as man and wife.

This was our forever.
Our for always.

When the song ended, we fell onto the couch, giggling so hard, I wondered if we would ever stop.
Finally, I caught my breath and picked up my glass.
I clicked it against Kenny's and said,
“
Welcome home, baby.
”

We both took a small sip of our Kool-Aid, and then Kenny leaned over and gave me a kiss that felt like it would stop my heart.
When he finally pulled back, I could hardly breathe.

But he was fine.
He said,
“
I'm gonna go change my clothes and be right back.
”

“
Okay,
”
I said, still gasping.
“
I'll heat up your plate.
”

I watched him strut into the bedroom and then I stood and headed into the kitchen.
By the time I came back to the living room, Kenny was already slouched back on the couch, with the television on and the remote in his hand.

I smiled.
My husband was home.

“
Would you look at this?
”
he said, pointing to the TV and taking his plate from my hand.

I sat as Kenny turned up the volume.
The television screen filled with the face of the reporter.
“
Again, I'm here on Venice Beach,
”
she said,
“
Muscle Beach actually, the place that Arnold Schwarzenegger made famous.
”

That was all I needed to hear before my head started spinning.

“
Today, one of Muscle Beach’s regulars, an unnamed body builder, was found dead, his larynx crushed in an apparent accident when a barbell fell on him as he was doing chest presses.
”

“
See,
”
Kenny said as he waved his fork in the air.
“
This is why I don't exercise
anymore
.
It's too dangerous.
”

I couldn't tell if my husband was serious or just trying to make a joke out of this sickly situation.
I couldn't tell because I couldn't breathe.
I couldn't think.
I couldn't speak.

The reporter moved now to the edge of the workout pen where I'd stood talking to Roman just a few weeks ago.
“
Strangely, the accident occurred in the middle of the day in a crowded area, and yet there are no witnesses to the incident itself.
Police are currently investigating
…
.
”

I could see the blue uniforms behind her and the yellow tape that sectioned off one part of the workout area.

“
…
for now, it is being ruled an accident. Police are withholding the name of the victim until relatives can be notified.
Back to you in the studio.
”

“
Wow,
”
Kenny said as he picked up a rib and gnawed on the bone.
He reached for the remote to turn the channel.
“
There's gotta be something else on
…
”

I couldn't even hear the rest of my husband's words.
I pushed back my tray and stood up.

“
Where you going?
”

I pointed toward the bathroom and heard Kenny grunt his
acknowledgment
.
I made it just in time to fall on my knees and wrap my arms around the toilet, just in time to spill my guts, my guilt, my grief.

They had not identified the man, but I knew who it was.

Roman.

Roman was dead.

Because of me.

When there was nothing left inside of me, I sat there and contemplated what had happened, what I had done.
I just let the minutes tick by.

Roman was dead.

The floor was cold and hard.
Finally, I pushed myself up.
It took every bit of energy I had to grab the toilet bowl, then another herculean effort to reach the sink and use that for the final push to stand.
When I rose, the first thing that I saw was my face in the mirror.

I stared at myself for a moment; I looked the same, but so much had changed.
“
Was it because of me?
”
I asked myself.

As I stood there, my reflection told me no.
Roman brought all of this on himself.
I'd told him no over and over.
Plus, he had raped me.

What was I supposed to do?

I hadn't asked Hines to kill him.
Something must've happened.
Roman must've said something, done something that pissed Hines off.
And from what I heard, you didn't want Hines Gifford upset with you in any kind of way.

Clasping my hands together, I closed my eyes.
I wanted to say a prayer or something, to pray for that man's soul, but no words came to me.
Maybe it was because I needed to say a prayer for myself first.
So all I said was,
“
I'm sorry,
”
and then stood there, giving Roman his moment of silence.

“
Babe, are you okay?
”
Kenny yelled out.
“
You didn't fall in or anything, did you?
”

I opened my eyes and once again stared at my reflection.
“
I'm fine,
”
I said keeping my eyes on the mirror.
I turned on the faucet, rubbed my hands under the water, but when I looked down I gasped.

There was blood on my hands, dripping into the sink!

I jumped away as if I could get away from my own limbs.
But my hands were still with me, red with blood.

Then as I stared at my palms, good sense came back to me.
This wasn't blood.
This was the Kool-Aid that had spilled earlier.

I fell against the sink, grabbed the soap, and scrubbed my hands until my skin felt raw.
I rinsed the sink until it was Kool-Aid free,
then turned off the light.
Standing in the darkness, I wondered what would come next.
What was I supposed to do after I'd had a man murdered?
Was I supposed to call Hines?
Thank him?
But in that instant, I knew I would never see Hines again.

“
Babe?
”

“
I'm coming,
”
I said as I stepped out from the bathroom.

My husband wanted me in the living room with him so that we could spend our Friday night watching mindless sitcoms and sharing fortune cookies.
And I was going to do that.
From now on, this was going to be my life.
No matter what, I would live it and I would love it.

This was my forever.
My for always.
Never again would trouble find me.

I strolled back into the living room as if a man being dead wasn't my fault.
But just before I took my rightful place next to my husband, words echoed in my mind.

“
We love sex too much; we love the variety.
”

Why were the words that Hines had said to me all up in my head?
No one ever had to worry about me cheating on my husband again.
Not after all I'd been through.

“
You love sex, baby; you're a freak.
And that man you're married to is never going to be able to satisfy you completely.
”

I shook those thoughts away and smiled at Kenny.

“
You okay?
”
my husband asked.

I nodded.
“
Yeah, I'm good. I'm exactly where I want to be.
”

“
Oh, yeah?
”
He grinned.

“
Yeah,
”
I said, taking his hand.
“
Forever, for always.
”

“
Handle your business, do what you have to do
…
but only go after married men.
”

Hines words continued to taunt me, and I continued to ignore them, replacing his words with my own promises never to cheat again.

But though I tried and I tried and I tried, Hines's words turned out to be much more prophetic than mine.

Here’s a sneak peek of FRIENDS & FOES by Victoria Christopher Murray and ReShonda Tate Billingsley, coming February 2013!

FRIENDS & FOES

God has a great sense of humor.

Rachel Jackson Adams could remember her mother's words as if she'd uttered them yesterday. When Rachel was growing up, it was one of the sayings Loretta Jackson loved most.

Well, God must be some kind of comedian because this had to be the biggest joke of all.

“
Why are you sitting there with your mouth wide open?
”

Rachel jumped at the sound of Lester's voice. She'd been so engrossed in the email she'd just read, she hadn’t even heard her husband come in the house.

Rachel didn’t bother to speak as she shook her head in disbelief.
“
This is unbelievable,
”
she muttered, more to herself than to him as she leaned back in the leather office chair.

Lester set down his briefcase, walked over, and kissed his wife on the head.
“
What’s unbelievable? Macy's is having a going-out-of-business sale? Dillard's is closing early?
”
he joked.
             

The evil eye she flashed at him wiped the smile right off his face. After nine years of marriage, Lester knew when his wife was about to lose it and she was definitely on the verge right now.

“
Okay, babe, what's going on? You look like you're about to explode,
”
Lester asked, all traces of laughter gone.

“
I am,
”
Rachel snapped. She spun her laptop around to face him.
“
Look at this mess.
”

Lester peered at the screen.
“
Okay, it's an email.
”

“
No kidding.
”
She jabbed a manicured nail at the screen.
“
It’s an email from Yvette.
”

“
Who is Yvette?
”

She huffed and rolled her eyes.
“
Good grief, Lester, the publicist for the American Baptist Coalition. You know, the woman we hired.
”

“
Okay, calm down,
”
Lester said as he continued reading.
“
I just didn't immediately realize who you were talking about.
”
When he got to the end of the email, a huge grin spread across Lester's face.
“
That is phenomenal.
”

Rachel popped her husband upside the back of his head.
             
“
Wow, what did you do that for?
”

“
What do you mean, it’s phenomenal?
”

He looked at her, confused.
“
Oprah isn’t phenomenal?
”
She didn't answer, just kept glaring at him like he'd done something wrong.
“
Sweetheart, I don't understand,
”
he continued.
“
The American Baptist Coalition is about to be represented on Oprah and you're upset about that?
”

“
You doggone right, I'm upset,
”
Rachel said, slamming the laptop shut.
“
Why in the world is she going on Oprah?
”

“
Lady Jasmine?
”
he asked, still bewildered.

“
Her name ain't no damn
Lady
Jasmine!
”
Rachel yelled.
“
I told you to stop calling her that. Call her
Shady
Jasmine, Jas, Jazzy, shoot, call her Pepper Pulaski after the name she used to use when she was a stripper for all I care, but stop calling her that like she's some type of royalty!
”

Lester took a deep breath, trying to stay calm in order to keep her calm.
“
Okay, let’s back up because I really don’t understand your anger.
”

Her husband really and truly could work her nerves sometimes. He could be so naïve. Granted, over the years he'd gotten a little backbone and since he'd become a popular preacher, his confidence had soared. It had gone to even greaterheights when he'd won the election for the presidency of the American Baptist Coalition six months ago. That had been a brutal fight
--
not between Lester and the man he was running against, Pastor Hosea Bush, but between Rachel and Pastor Bush's wife, Jasmine. Things had gotten downright ugly between the two of them, but at the end of the day, Rachel had emerged victorious. Just like she knew she would.

And for the first four months, Rachel had been the shining star of the ABC. She'd increased their visibility, convinced them to hire the publicist, streamlined some of their programs, introduced a few others, and had worked around the clock to make the ABC even more powerful than it already was.

So why in the world was Jasmine the one going on Oprah?

“
I’m the first lady of the American Baptist Coalition,
”
Rachel slowly said.
“
If O is gonna be talking to anybody, she needs to be talking to me.
”

Lester pointed at the email.
“
But Yvette said Jasmine will be talking about the new community center she's starting, Jacqueline’s Hope.
”

“
I don’t care what she’s talking about. It’s.
Oprah
. The only person that should be talking to Oprah on behalf of the ABC is me! I’m in the driver’s seat. Jasmine is back in the bed of the pickup truck. So why is it that every time I turn around, Jasmine don’t-nobody-wanna-say-all-them-dang-last-names is getting all the attention?
”

That brought a small smile to Lester's face.
“
Bush. Her name is Jasmine Bush.
”
He chuckled.
“
As if you didn’t know.
”

Rachel waved him off.
“
She’s been married thirty times so I can’t keep up. Why are you taking up for her, anyway?
”
The disdain Rachel held for Jasmine was no secret. The bougie, over-the-top troll had caused her enough headaches to last a lifetime.

“
Rachel, you get your fair share of press, too,
”
he said, soothingly.
“
You just did a TV appearance last week.
”

“
Yeah, on Fox 26 News. That’s local. I’m a global type of woman and I’m resigned to local press? That's unacceptable.
”

“
Oh, you’re global now.
”
He laughed.

Rachel stood, her hands plastered on her hips. Sure, this type of thing didn’t used to be her forte, particularly since she had been a reluctant first lady. But after some rough patches, she’d come to like the power that came along with being an esteemed first lady.
“
Lester Eugene Adams, I don’t see anything funny.
”

He immediately wiped the smile off his face.
“
Sweetheart,
”
he said gently,
“
this really is good news.
”

Rachel relaxed a bit, even though her anger didn't subside.
“
Why is she always trying to steal my thunder? We won this election fair and square, yet she has been the bane of my existence for the past few months. She thinks because she has Moses' mama on her side, she can just take over.
”

Lester sighed.
“
You promised to stop talking about Mae Frances like that.
”

Rachel didn't even want to get into a debate with Lester about that crazy old woman who walked around in a matted full-length mink coat that she probably got at an estate sale in 1967. The Bushes claimed that Mae Frances was just a family friend, but something about that old woman turned Rachel's stomach.

“
Lester, I don't care about that old hag
--
or Mae Frances,
”
Rachel quipped.

“
I thought you and Jasmine were getting along,
”
Lester replied.

“
No, Jasmine recognized that she lost the election fair and square. And I thought not hearing from her for four months meant that she was gracious in defeat. But she was just plotting to see how she could steal my shine.
”

After the election, Jasmine had all but disappeared
--
thankfully. She'd hadn't even bothered to reply to the email Rachel sent asking if Jasmine wanted to be her assistant. Then last month, out of the blue, she'd sent the board a press release talking about the center she was opening in honor of her little girl who’d been kidnapped. As a mother, Rachel could sympathize with not knowing where your child was. But they'd found the little girl, and still Jasmine milked sympathy every chance she could. 

Rachel felt disrespected because Jasmine hadn't even bothered to talk to her about the center. Then, she'd gone over Rachel's head and contacted the ABC ladies’ auxiliary about hosting a fundraiser. Now, she thought she was about to give the ultimate disrespect and go on Oprah? By herself? Oh, hell no. Not if Rachel had anything to say about it!

“
You do realize this is not the first time they've done something like this,
”
Rachel replied.
“
Do I need to remind you of the article about Hosea on Essence.com last week?
”

“
That was about his TV show getting syndicated.
”

“
And did they or did they not mention his role in the ABC? Yet, they didn't bother to mention your name, Mr. President, at all.
”

“
Honey, this isn’t about me. Or you. This is about the ABC. One of the things we promised to do was bring more positive coverage. I think it’s wonderful that Jasmine is helping us do that.
”

He stepped toward her and tried to take her hand. Rachel snatched it away. Sometimes she wished she could jump into her husband's body and take it over. He could be so doggone passive-aggressive. But that was okay, she thought to herself. That’s why he had her.

“
Fine, Lester. I'm going to start dinner. My dad will be back with the kids any minute now.
”

Lester grabbed her hand and stopped her.
“
Are you good?
”

“
I'm great,
”
she said, feigning a smile. Rachel left the room and instead of going right into their oversized kitchen, she went left, up the spiral staircase and into her bedroom. She grabbed her purse, pulled her credit card out of her wallet, and snatched her cell phone off the nightstand. She punched in the number she knew by heart.

“
Continental Airlines, may I help you?
”
the voice said.

“
Yes . . . I need a ticket to Chicago . . .
”
Rachel smiled as she leaned back against her headboard. She thought Jasmine had learned that she wasn't the one to be played with, but it looked like ol' Jazzy needed to be reminded of that. So, let the games begin!