Eleven
Shauntae sank back onto the couch as Gary walked Darla to the door. She could barely say anything when Gary sent the girls to say good-bye to her. The little one gave her a hug, but the older girl shook her hand. She might look like her daddy, but she had an attitude like her mother.
Gary stayed in the foyer a long time saying good-bye to his girls. When Shauntae heard the front door close and heard his footsteps coming toward her, she tried to get herself back together.
Gary sat down next to her and stared her straight in the eyes. “Honey, I’m sorry about that. I’ve seen Darla at her worst but I never even imagined she’d behave that badly. As soon as this background check comes back okay, I’m going to demand that she give you a formal apology, face to face. She needs to know she can’t treat you that way.”
All Shauntae could do was nod. She knew that apology would never happen and that her game was up. She would enjoy her last two nights in Gary’s beautiful house and then Sunday night, while Gary was asleep, she’d disappear.
“You okay, honey?” Gary asked.
Shauntae forced herself to nod.
Gary looked at her like he was trying to figure out what she was thinking. “I know Darla is rude and that your first meeting with her wasn’t pleasant. I’m sorry. I promise I will have a serious talk with her. She is going to respect you as my new wife and as the mother of my child.” Gary tilted Shauntae’s chin up. “I promise, honey. Okay?”
Shauntae could only nod. She didn’t deserve him being this nice to her. What would he do when he found out the truth? He would probably be so mad that he would look at her and talk to her the same way he talked to Darla. She couldn’t handle that.
He lay back on the couch and pulled her next to him. “Don’t worry, baby. We won’t let her get to us. And did you hear what she said? We can get the girls next weekend.” Gary wrapped both his arms around her. “I’m gonna be so happy for us all to be together.”
“Me too, honey,” Shauntae said numbly. Gary squeezed her tight. She was gonna miss that feeling, like somebody finally loved her.
She’d get on the last bus on Sunday and head back to her mama’s house. No way could she stay in Atlanta, because by Monday afternoon not only would Devon and Cassandra be wanting her in jail, but Darla would too. And maybe even Gary when he realized how she had played him.
“What do you want to do with the girls next weekend? We should do something special to celebrate the beginning of our family coming together.”
“I don’t know. Whatever you know the girls like to do.” Shauntae wiggled her body until she found a comfortable spot in Gary’s side. She was going to enjoy this until the very last minute.
“Hmmmm . . . I guess it really doesn’t matter. They love being with their daddy. They’re both daddy’s girls. No matter what she’s tried to do, Darla hasn’t been able to poison them against me. Those girls know I love them more than anything.”
Shauntae had a scary thought. What if she messed things up for Gary? When Darla found out that Gary’s new baby mama had a warrant out on her for neglecting her first child, she would try to make it so he never saw his children again.
“Nobody could ever separate me from my girls. I honestly think I’d kill somebody if they did anything that would make me lose my girls.”
Shauntae buried her head in Gary’s side. Maybe she should warn him. She should’ve never written her real name on that paper. She should’ve written a fake name and then been gone before Monday morning. At least that way, Gary wouldn’t have lost his girls.
“Sorry, honey,” Gary said. “I know that’s not a very Christian thing for me to say. I guess I should let God take care of things, huh? ‘Vengeance is mine said the Lord,’ right?”
“Right.” What would God’s vengeance be against her for messing up Gary’s life?
There had to be something she could do. She had to find a way to block Darla from doing that background check. Shauntae worked her brain but couldn’t think of anything. Maybe Mama was right. Maybe she was too stupid to figure something out on her own. “Baby, I gotta go to the bathroom again.” Shauntae stood up.
Gary’s face looked concerned. “Is everything okay?” He rubbed her stomach.
She put her hand on top of his. “Everything’s okay. Just pregnant. I’ll be back down soon. Wanna catch up on CNN until I get back?”
He leaned over and kissed her belly. “Okay. Hurry back.”
Shauntae heard the TV coming on as she walked up the stairs. She found herself in another closet in the master bathroom, the one that would never be hers. Her hands shook as she called Sherice.
“That was quick. Is the ex-witch gone already?”
“Sherice, I need your help bad.”
“Aw, man. What happened?”
Shauntae could barely get the words out as she explained about Darla and the background check.
Sherice was quiet for a long time. She finally said, “You know what you gotta do, right?”
“Yeah. I gotta go.”
“What time do he go to sleep? I can be there around midnight to get you.”
“Tonight? I was gonna leave late Sunday night while he’s sleep.”
“Are you crazy? You think the ex-witch is gonna wait until Monday to check you out? As soon as she get home and put her daughters to bed, she going straight to the computer. You gotta roll out tonight. Otherwise, I promise, you’ll see those flashing lights before midnight.”
Shauntae’s heart started beating real fast. “You think she gon’—”
“I know she is. What’s your problem? You done got settled in that house and it’s gone to your brain? The game . . . is . . . up.” Sherice said it all slow like she was trying to make sure her words was sinking in. “It’s time to roll out. Pack up your stuff. I’ll be there to get you as soon as he fall asleep.”
“But—”
“But what? Why you actin’ all slow in the head? You wanna go to jail tonight?”
“No . . . but what about Gary?”
“What do you mean, what about Gary?”
Shauntae explained trying to figure out how to keep him from losing his girls because of her. “If you could help me—”
Sherice cussed real loud. “What is wrong with you? You going to jail to try to keep that man from losing his children? It’s not your problem.”
“But it’s my fault.”
“You’s a fool. You done fell in love with that man. How many times have I told you that if you gonna play, you gotta respect the game? You cain’t be falling in love. Now stop being stupid. Get up outta that closet. You need to figure out a way to make that man have sex with you so he can go to sleep early. Pack your stuff and then text me so I can come get yo’ tail before I have to get you outta jail.” Click.
Shauntae looked at the phone. Why couldn’t Sherice understand? Shauntae was about to dial her back, but she knew Sherice would probably cuss her out and then she might not be willing to fool with her no more.
And besides, Sherice was right. She did need to leave tonight.
Shauntae pulled herself up off the floor and made herself go downstairs. She put on her saddest face when she got to the family room. She might not know how to fix the problem she had made for Gary and the girls. But there was one thing she knew how to do.
“What’s wrong, baby?” Gary asked.
“Nothing. I guess I’m worried. I want us all to be a family, but it seems like Darla is bent on making trouble. You just got custody of the girls back. But what if me being here messes that up? What if she hates me so much that she tries to take your girls again? I couldn’t bear for that to happen.”
Gary pulled her down onto the couch next to him. “Baby, don’t be worried. God’s got us. There’s nothing Darla can do to separate me from my girls. Like the courts saw through her lies, they’ll see through anything else she tries to do.”
“I know, but . . . I don’t want to make things worse for you. I . . . I don’t know why she hates me. What did I do wrong?” Shauntae let a few tears roll down her cheeks.
Gary wiped the tears. “Aww, honey, don’t cry. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
Shauntae let the tears flow in full force. “Then why does she hate me? It’s like . . .” Shauntae took a few deep, dramatic breaths. “It’s like she thinks I’m not good enough for your children. She made me feel like I’m not good enough for you.”
Gary pulled her into his arms. “That’s not true, honey love. You’re perfect for me. You’re everything I want in a woman. You’re a good, solid Christian woman. You love family; that’s everything I want.”
“But you were embarrassed that I didn’t go to a fancy college or have a fancy job.”
Gary held her at arm’s length so he could look her in the face. “Darla went to Princeton and she’s a lawyer and look at how we ended up. We can’t even be in the same room without arguing. I don’t want a fancy university and a fancy job. I want you. I love you.” Gary bent to kiss her.
Shauntae kissed him back with everything in her. “You love me?”
“Yes, Shauntae, I love you.” He kissed her again. Shauntae felt the wall crumbling that Gary had put up to keep them from “falling into sexual sin.” She wrapped her arms around him to pull him closer and deeper into the kiss.
“I love you too, baby,” she whispered. Shauntae felt Gary lifting her up onto his lap. The kisses never stopped.
She had him.
Next thing she knew, he was carrying her up the stairs and they were in the bedroom. She looked at Gary’s face. It was different from most men’s faces when they was doing it. It wasn’t about him liking sex. He looked at her like . . . like she was special. Like she mattered to him. Like he really loved her. Shauntae had never seen that look on a man’s face in her life.
And so she pretended in her mind that she was an executive secretary and a good Christian girl who loved children and family. She pretended that she loved Gary and was excited to be having his baby. She pretended that when Darla did that background check, she wouldn’t find out that there was an arrest warrant out on her for being the worst mother in the world. And she pretended that she and Gary would live happily ever after in this beautiful house with a beautiful life.
It wasn’t long before Gary was good and asleep.
Pretend time was over. Shauntae wriggled out from under his arm and quietly slid out of the bed. She tiptoed down the hall as quietly as she could and went into her room and closed the door.
The suitcases were still at the foot of the bed. She hadn’t even put them inside the closet. Maybe somewhere deep down she had knew it wouldn’t last. She packed as quiet as she could.
When everything except the clothes she had left on Gary’s floor was in the suitcases, Shauntae sat down on the bed and looked around the room. She couldn’t believe it was over. What she really couldn’t believe was that she had thought it would work.
As she was about to text Sherice to come and get her, she heard Gary’s cell phone ring. They had left it downstairs, but his ring tone was so loud she was scared it would wake him up. He was in the middle of some big business deal and was always tied to the phone.
Fast as she could, Shauntae opened one of her suitcases and pulled out a big fluffy robe Gary had bought her. She stuffed both suitcases in the closet and pulled the sliding door shut. She ran down the steps to get the phone in case it started ringing again.
She got to the family room and Gary was standing there with the phone to his ear. By the look on his face, something was wrong. Really wrong.
Shauntae froze in her tracks. Was it Darla? Had she already done the background check and was calling Gary to tell on her? Were the police on the way to the house? Shauntae knew it was time to run.
“Okay . . . yes, I’ll be right there.” Gary reached out and clamped his hand around her wrist. Tight. Shauntae imagined that’s what a handcuff would feel like.
Gary dropped the phone and grabbed her other wrist. He held both her arms so tight, she was scared. Was he going to hurt her?
“It’s Darla. There was an accident. I have to get to the hospital.”