Simply Complicated (20 page)

She went into the kitchen as if everything was okay.

“Good morning, beautiful,” said Jake.

“Good morning,” replied Camille.

“Are you feeling better?” Jake asked.

“Yes. What are you cooking? It smells so good.”

“I’m making your favorite omelet with toast,” said Jake, grinding pepper over his pan.

“That’s very nice of you. You can be such a sweetheart when you want to be,” she said.

“I’m a sweetheart all the time and you know it,” he replied.

“Yeah, right! You can believe that if you want to, but I know better,” she said with a smile.

“What are your plans for today? Do you want to hang out together?” Jake asked.

“I don’t have anything planned. I have a few errands to run and I need to do a little housecleaning, but that’s about it. What did you have in mind?” Camille sat at the table and contemplated how long the omelet would last in her stomach.

“I was thinking maybe a movie or the coffee house in the afternoon and a jazz club this evening,” he suggested.

“That sounds good. I just need to go home for a few hours. Maybe you can pick me up at two or I can meet at your house.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’ll take you home after breakfast and pick you up at 2:00 p.m.,” he said.

After taking Camille home, Jake called Ken. Knowing his friend had a daughter, he figured Ken would be able to advise him if Camille was pregnant.

“Hey man, what’s going on? Do you have a minute to talk?” asked Jake.

“Yeah, I have a few minutes. What’s up?”

“I think Camille is pregnant and I don’t know what to do about it,” Jake said.

Ken paused before answering, “Why do you think she’s pregnant?”

“Last night at dinner she excused herself from the table because she was feeling lightheaded and when I ordered her favorite wine she didn’t drink it.

“And then I heard her throwing up in the bathroom in the middle of the night. She doesn’t know that I heard her. I think she was sick this morning before breakfast also,” he said.

“Did you say anything to her about it?” Ken asked.

“I wanted to, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hear the answer. I mean, I love her but...I don’t think I’m ready to be a father and I damn sure am not ready to be a husband. If she is pregnant I know she’ll want to get married sooner rather than later,” he told Ken.

“If you don’t want children then you should’ve used a condom. I’m surprised you don’t use protection considering all the women you mess around with,” said Ken.

“We do use condoms. She won’t have sex with me without one. I guess it must have broken,” Jake explained.

“I don’t know what to tell you, man. You know if she is pregnant that you are going to have to do right by her?” Ken admonished.

“That’s what scares me. I’m starting to wonder if she did this on purpose. You know how women are. If they can’t get you to marry them the right way, they’ll find another way to put you on lockdown,” he said while shaking his head.

Ken rolled his eyes, “Come on, Jake. You know she’s not that type of woman. The next thing you’ll say is that you doubt the baby is yours. And you and I both know that she has been foolishly committed to you.”

“I know, man. I’m just trying to figure out how this happened. I have always been very careful. I’ve never gotten a woman pregnant. In fact, for a minute I thought I was incapable of having children,” he said distraughtly.

“It was bound to happen. You need to be glad it was with Camille and not with one of your other women. At least if you get married it will be to someone you love. Who knows, marriage may be what you need to help you grow up,” he said jokingly.

“You’re right again. This is why I needed to talk to you before asking her if she was pregnant. I had to think this thing through first before I said something stupid,” Jake said.

“So are you going to ask her?”

“I’m not sure. Knowing my lady like I do, if she is pregnant she’ll tell me,” he said.

“When is the next time you’ll see her?” Ken asked.

“I’m picking her up at 2:00 this afternoon. We’re spending the rest of the day together,” he replied.

“Please, Jake. Don’t stand her up again,” Ken warned with a chuckle.

“Don’t worry. I won’t do that again,” he said while laughing.

“All right man, I’ll talk to you later. Monica and I have lunch plans,” said Ken.

“Okay. I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” he said.

Jake felt much better after talking to Ken. He decided that he would wait for Camille to say something to him. He figured if she was pregnant that she would tell him.

Camille made it back to her apartment around noon after completing her errands. She was feeling nauseated and tired. She wanted to lie down but knew Jake would be there to pick her up in a few hours so she opted to stay awake.

She decided to do a little housework. She put on the Aretha Franklin CD that Candace suggested and skipped to the song “Chain of Fools” when her telephone rang.

Turning down her CD player, she answered, still humming the melody, “Hello.”

“Hey beautiful, how have you been?” said Paul.

“Hey baby, I’ve been good. What about you?” she replied.

“I can’t complain. I miss you and thought I would give you a call to make sure you are okay. Were you busy?” he asked.

“No I’m not busy. Just doing some light housework. I miss you too. How’s business?”

“Business has been real good. In fact, I’ll be in Chicago next week to check on my stores. I was hoping we could get together for dinner one day while I’m there,” he said.

“That shouldn’t be a problem. I’d like that.”

“You sound out-of-breath. Are you sure everything is okay?” he asked.

“I’m a little tired but nothing to worry about. I’ve been running errands all morning and just returned home about thirty minutes ago. I was listening to a CD and dancing around while cleaning up before your call,” she said.

“That sounds like fun. I’m just checking. You know if I need to come early and check on you, I will,” he said while laughing.

“I know you will. That’s one of the many reasons why I find you attractive,” replied Camille.

“You better watch it. You keeping talking like that and I may have to come to Chicago tomorrow,” Paul said jokingly.

Camille smiled into the phone, “You’re so crazy.”

“I’m crazy for you and don’t forget it,” he said.

“I won’t forget it.”

“I’m going into a meeting. I was thinking about you and wanted to hear your voice. Take care and I’ll see you next week.”

“You work too hard. It’s Saturday. Do you ever take a day off?” she asked.

“If you were here with me I would take the entire weekend off and any day you’d like,” he said.

“Now you better watch it,” she said jokingly.

“Goodbye, baby. I’ll call you a day before my trip,” he said.

“Goodbye and I’ll see you soon.”

Camille was really happy to hear from Paul. Talking to him made her cheerful and content. He always put a smile on her face. She often wondered how life with him would be. Paul was handsome, kind, and gentle. She knew that he really loved her and would never disrespect her like Jake had done.

She decided to finish cleaning her house. She turned her music back on and continued dancing around and singing as she cleaned.
“For five long years I thought you were my man. Then I found out I’m just a link in your chain. You got me where you want me. I ain’t nothin’ but your fool.

“You treating me mean hey you treating me cruel. Chain, chain, chain, chain of fool…chain, chain, chain, chain of fool,”
she sang, not
realizing how late it had gotten.

It was almost 1:00 p.m. and Jake decided he would head to Camille’s apartment early. When he arrived he could hear the music playing and her singing.

He let himself in quietly, trying to sneak up on her. When he heard the words to the song he stopped and a smirk came across his face. He could tell that she was really into the song. She didn’t notice him standing in the doorway of the living room.

After about two minutes the song finished. As she turned around to check the clock, she jumped when she saw Jake standing there.

“Jake! What’s the matter with you? Standing there not saying anything!” she exclaimed.

“I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to startle you. You were so into your song that I didn’t want to interrupt. By the way, nice song,” he said sarcastically.

“You think so? I like it too. It reminds me of two people I know,” she said snidely.

“It’s getting late. Why haven’t you started getting dressed?” he asked.

“I didn’t realize how late it had gotten. I didn’t get home until around noon. Besides, you’re early. You weren’t supposed to be here until two o’clock. It is only 1:15.” she replied, looking over at the clock.

“I finished up early and decided to come here. Is that a problem? I can leave and come back if you want me to.”

“Of course I don’t want you to leave. Don’t be silly. I’ll be ready by two o’clock just as planned,” she said as she hurried into the bathroom to shower.

It was around 2:15 p.m. when they left her apartment heading for the coffee shop. The movie did not start until 4:00 so they decided to stop there beforehand.

“This is great! I can’t remember the last time we spent an entire afternoon together. We used to do this a lot when we first started dating,” she said.

“I know. It feels good hanging with you all afternoon. I don’t know why we haven’t done this in a while,” he replied.

“Well, things have been kind of crazy between us this year. Do you think we finally figured out that we should be together?” she asked.

“I’ve always felt that we should be together,” he said.

“I mean, do you think we finally figured out that we should be married?” she pressed.

“We know we should get married some day. That’s why I proposed to you in the first place,” he said, trying to avoid a direct answer.

“Okay, Jake. You know what I’m trying to say. I hate to harp on the same issue but you have not made mention of when our engagement party has been rescheduled for nor have you brought up the wedding. Have you even given it any thought?” she asked.

“Of course I have,” he said.

“Is there more behind that statement?” she asked with a chuckle.

“Listen baby. You know I love you and want you in my life forever. Why can’t that be enough for now? I just want to enjoy you today. Enjoy us.

“Can we do that? We can talk about the engagement party and the wedding some other time, just not today. Okay?” he reached out to hold her hand.

“Okay, Jake. I can do that for today but don’t think this conversation is over. I love you too but I don’t want to keep being a fool,” she said.

“Baby, you are not a fool. Stop saying that. There’s nothing wrong with loving and trusting your man. Besides, we don’t need any papers telling us how much we love each other. As long as
we
know, that’s all that matters. Right?”

Camille did not say anything. She turned her head and started staring out of the car window. She could tell by the conversation that marriage was still not a priority for him.

“Right, baby?” he asked, gently squeezing her hand.

“If you say so, baby,” she said as she continued to gaze out the window.

He could tell that she was unhappy with what he said but he was not going to take a chance on continuing the conversation so he quickly changed the subject.

“So after the movie does my lady still want to go to the jazz club?”

“I’ll let you know after the movie. Right now it’s still a go.”

They finally arrived to the coffee shop. When they walked in they saw Ken and his wife there having lunch.

“Hey Ken, I didn’t know you would be here. Hello Monica, it’s always good to see you. You remember Camille,” said Jake.

“Hello—nice to see you again,” said Monica.

“Hello, same here,” replied Camille.

“Have a seat. You can join us if you’d like,” said Ken.

“Sounds great. Is that okay with you, sweetheart?” Jake asked Camille.

“Sure no problem.”

“So what are you two up to today?” Ken asked.

“We’re on our way to the movies to check out that new Denzel Washington flick,” said Jake.

“A movie sounds good,” he said.

“What are you up to?” he asked Ken.

“After we leave here we’re going to pick Marci up from her grandparents’ house and probably go home.”

“Sounds like fun. So Monica, how have you been? You look great,” said Jake.

“Thanks. I’ve been good. No complaints,” she said.

“Great. How are things at the loony bin?” he asked while laughing.

“Don’t say that. Those poor people can’t help it. It’s not their fault that they lost touch with reality. Besides, it’s called a Psychiatric Ward and not a loony bin,” she said shyly.

“You know Jake—crazy as ever. Camille, how are things in the world of fashion and design? Jake told me that you recently returned from Los Angeles,” said Ken.

“That’s right, over a month ago. The fashion world is amazing. I managed to pick up some great designs while I was there.” Camille smiled at the memory.

“Please don’t get her started on fashion. She can go on for hours about that stuff,” Jake joked.

“No, you did not say that,” she said nudging him and laughing.

“You know women. Get them started talking about clothes and they will go on and on,” said Ken as he laughed.

“We’re no worse than men when you talk about work and sports,” said Monica, laughing at her husband.

“I know that’s right,” said Camille, joining in on the fun.

The four of them talked and laughed for another thirty minutes before Jake and Camille had to leave for their movie.

“Well, we need to get going. We don’t want to be late for our movie. It was fun. The four of us must do this again. Next time we have to plan something,” said Jake as he stood up before helping Camille out of her seat.

“All right, man. You two take care. You’re right—we must do this again. It was nice seeing you, Camille. Jake, I’ll see you at the office on Monday,” said Ken.

“It was good seeing you again, Monica. You take care and tell Marci hello for me,” said Camille.