If it wasn’t one thing it was another, Charlotte thought, driving past the health club where she sometimes went to work out. Only months ago, her life had seemed better than ever, yet now, it was leaning toward uncontrollable disaster. That is, thanks to Tabitha Charles.
Naively enough, Charlotte had tried to believe that the signing of the contract, the huge checks, and the monthly child support payments would be enough, but at this very moment, she knew she’d simply been fooling herself. She’d been relaxing in fantasy land, refusing to acknowledge or deal with reality, and today she was suffering the consequences. Today, she was being forced to accept the unfortunate possibility that Curtis was not going to go much longer without seeing his child. She’d been threatening him in every way she knew how and thus far he’d been obliging her requests, but she couldn’t help wondering how long his hesitation and obedience would last. Especially since he still hadn’t laid eyes on the baby.
But whether he longed to see her or not, there was one thing Charlotte was certain of. There would be no baby invited into their household, not Curtina or otherwise, and that was that.
Charlotte drove down the lengthy two-lane road and saw rows and rows of vehicles lining the college campus parking lot. She was on her way to meet her best friend, Janine, for lunch and she could already tell all the close spots were taken. So, after entering and driving up and down a few aisles, she gave up and parked what seemed like a mile away from the building Janine taught in.
When she exited her vehicle and locked it, she headed toward her destination and had to smile at the three handsome-looking young men she was approaching.
“Mm, mm, mm,” one of them said, and Charlotte ignored him.
“Do you go here?” the taller one asked. “Can I get your number?”
“So you’re not speaking?” the third and most obnoxious one said when Charlotte didn’t respond.
“Hi. How are you boys today?”
“Boys?” Mr. Obnoxious mimicked.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said, correcting herself. “How are you gentlemen today?”
“We’re good,” the first one answered.
“I’m glad to hear it,” she said. “Now you all take care.”
“Man, wouldn’t you like to rock that all…night…long?” Mr. Obnoxious blurted out and Charlotte turned to look at him.
The others snickered but seemed almost embarrassed by their friend’s outrageous comment.
Charlotte wanted to tell him how ridiculous he sounded and how disrespectful he was but decided it wasn’t worth it. Mainly because deep down, she was flattered to know she still had it. Which had to be the case if boys who appeared to be nineteen or twenty were trying to come on to her. She knew it was silly and she would never tell a soul what she was thinking, but with her being thirty-one and pushing thirty-two, every compliment was good for her ego.
When she arrived inside the building, she took the elevator up to the third floor and walked down to Janine’s office. Her door was slightly ajar, so Charlotte knocked while opening it the rest of the way.
“Hey, girl,” Janine said, standing and hugging Charlotte.
“Hey, J. It’s so good to see you.”
“It’s been almost a week since we had lunch and you know that’s pretty unusual.”
“That it is. But I’ve had a lot going on emotionally, and I was to the point where if I didn’t see you today, I was going to explode.”
Janine closed the door and they both took a seat.
“What’s wrong?”
“Everything. You name it, and I’m probably going through it.”
“Like what?” Janine was noticeably concerned.
Charlotte sighed. “Well, first, that tramp, Tabitha, is all of a sudden calling our house again.”
“For what?”
“Guess.”
“For Curtis?”
“Exactly. And she’s got the nerve to think Curtis is going to start seeing Curtina. Actually, she’s just using the baby as a lure because I know with everything in me, that what she really wants is to sleep with Curtis again.”
“You think? After all this time?”
“I know she does.”
“Gosh, girl, I’m really sorry to hear that.”
“I’m sorry, too, but I’m not having it. I’m not putting up with Tabitha, her baby, or any more unnecessary phone calls.”
“Have you and Curtis talked about this?”
“If that’s what you want to call it, but mostly all we’ve done is argue. He claims he’s not going near them, but if you could see the look in his eyes whenever the subject comes up, you’d think otherwise.”
“I can only imagine how you must be feeling.”
“With the exception of Marissa falling to her death, I haven’t felt worse. I feel like my whole life is being ripped away from me and Tabitha and that baby are enough to make me commit murder.”
Charlotte watched Janine’s body language and saw a horrified look on her face.
“I know you’re not going to like what I’m about to say, but, Charlotte, you’re going to have to find some way to accept this situation. You’re going to have to pray for strength and understanding because if you don’t, things are going to get worse.”
Janine was right. Charlotte didn’t like what she was saying in the least, and if Janine hadn’t been her best friend, she would tell her in no uncertain terms what she thought of her ludicrous advice.
So instead she offered her the cordial version.
“Not under any circumstances will I ever accept what happened. I’ll never accept any outside baby and, truth be told, I haven’t fully forgiven Curtis either. We’ve been happy, but there’s always been that small part inside me that I can’t seem to get past. He keeps throwing up the fact that Marissa and Matthew weren’t his and how he loved them anyway, but I don’t care about any of that. All I care is that Tabitha and that baby stay as far away from us as possible.”
“It’s your call, but I just don’t want to see you and Curtis at each other’s throats over this. You’ve had a great relationship for more than a year and sometimes we have to accept things we don’t want to just to have peace.”
“You mean like the way you let Antonio lay up on you with no job and deal drugs out of a house you were paying for?”
A sadness consumed Janine’s demeanor and Charlotte immediately regretted the harsh words she’d just spoken. She was beyond remorseful because she would never purposely try to hurt Janine in any way.
“I didn’t mean that,” she finally said, resting her hand on top of Janine’s. “I’m so, so sorry. I had no right saying that to you, and even though I disagree with the way you feel, I know you’re just trying to help.”
“Don’t worry about it. I know you’re frustrated and that you’re feeling a lot of pain.”
“I am. And I don’t know what I’m going to do if this doesn’t go away. Because not only am I worried about her trying to lure Curtis back into bed, I’m worried that she’ll take her story to the tabloids and everywhere else.”
“But you and Curtis handled that legally, right?”
“I thought we did, but who’s to say what that hooker will end up doing. Desperate people do desperate things. I’m living proof of it.”
“Well, if she hasn’t said anything so far, maybe she won’t.”
“She hadn’t been calling him either, but now all of a sudden she is.”
“I understand what you’re saying, but the fact that Curtis still refuses to see her probably means she’ll eventually give up.”
“If only I could count on that. If only she would pack her bags and take that baby to a whole different state, we could get on with our lives. We could be happy and never have to think about her ever again.”
“Everything will work out. It did for me and I just believe good things can happen for anyone.”
“So how is that wonderful husband of yours? I’ve been so busy burdening you with my problems that I didn’t even think to ask about him.”
“He’s fine. Working hard, though, opening another locksmith location.”
“J, you are so blessed. You couldn’t have found a better man to marry even if you’d tried.”
“I know. I thank God every single day. For giving me such a loving and caring husband and for saving my life. It’s so hard to believe that Antonio used me the way he did and then tried to stab me to death. I mean, it’s just unimaginable but at the same time a harsh reality I had to experience.”
“It was the worst, J. There are times when I still picture you lying in that hospital bed, fighting for your life. I was so afraid we were going to lose you and then the very next day, Marissa died. At one point, I remember wishing I could just die. Anything to make the pain go away.”
“That was a terrible time, but look at us now. Life is so much better and we have a lot to be thankful for.”
Charlotte heard what Janine was saying, but she couldn’t agree with much of her sentiments. It was true that Janine and Carl were doing great and that life probably couldn’t be more perfect for them, but Charlotte didn’t feel this way at all. As a matter of fact, there was only one word to describe her current state. Miserable.
“I’m really happy for you and Carl, J,” she finally said. “Both of you are good people and you deserve to be together.”
“Thanks, girl. And hey,” Janine said, glancing at her watch. “We’d better get down to the dining area before it gets too full. In about thirty minutes, all the students who are out of class for the day will be lining up in droves.”
“Let’s go.”
“I wish we could have met at a restaurant, but my schedule is pretty tight today.”
“This is fine. I just needed to see you as soon as I could.”
“I’m glad you came by.”
When they arrived downstairs, there were only five people in line waiting for food and two others at the two checkout locations. Charlotte ordered the enchilada entrée and Janine chose the Caesar salad and chicken noodle soup. Next, they took seats over in a far corner, near the windows.
“What an amazing view of the campus grounds,” Charlotte commented.
“I know. And now that it’s fall, it’s more beautiful than ever.”
They each took bites of their food and then Janine asked, “So how’s Matthew doing?”
“He’s doing okay, but that’s the other dilemma we’re dealing with.”
“Meaning?”
“He wants to meet his real father.”
“Really?”
“Yes, and I’m just sick over it. I’m totally against him seeing David, but there’s not much I can do to stop it. Not to mention, Curtis is acting like he’s pretty much in love with the whole idea of it.”
“Have you tried to contact David?”
Charlotte took a sip of her lemonade. “I called Anise yesterday and asked her to call him.”
“Wow. How was that?”
“She was her same evil self. But she did agree to call David and then have him call us.”
“Does he know about Matthew?”
“I don’t think so. I mean, I asked Anise not to say anything so hopefully she never did.”
“Well, even though you’re not happy about them meeting, maybe this will allow Matthew to be more at peace. Because you’ve been saying how quiet he’s been and not like himself.”
“He did seem happier yesterday, but my worry is that David will reject him or disappoint him in some other crazy way.”
“Let’s hope not. Let’s just pray that this will be good for everyone involved.”
“We’ll see. But if you want to know the truth, I’m hoping David doesn’t call at all. Matthew will probably be hurt, but he’ll eventually get over it.”
“Well, either way, I think you and Curtis have done the right thing by not denying him his right to meet his father.”
Charlotte disagreed with Janine on this issue the same as she disagreed with her about Curtina, but again, she decided to keep her feelings to herself. She loved Janine, but because Janine always tried to see the positive side of even the most haphazard situations, she sometimes unnerved Charlotte. Her good-side-of-life mentality was sometimes too much for Charlotte to take but Charlotte knew she had no choice but to tolerate it. Especially since Janine loved her unconditionally and never judged her for her wrongdoings, past or present. Which was certainly far more than she could say for that cousin of hers, Anise.
“Hey, I wasn’t going to tell you this until I was sure, but guess what?” Janine said.
Charlotte smiled. “No. Are you serious?”
“Yes, I think I’m pregnant.”
“Oh my God, J. That’s truly wonderful news.”
“I haven’t told Carl yet, but I’m planning to pick up a pregnancy test after work.”
Charlotte grabbed both of Janine’s hands. “You’ll make the best mother in the world.”
“You think so? And, of course, I’ll be depending on you to teach me everything you know.”
“I’ll always be here for you. Always, and I know I get to be the godmother.”
“You should never even question that. You and Curtis are the only godparent choices for any children we have.”
“I’m so excited, and I can’t wait to head to the baby section of every department store.”
“You crack me up. But first I have to confirm it.”
“You have to call me as soon as you know.”
“I will. That is, after I tell Carl.”
“Of course. He’ll be so excited.”
“We’ve talked about children a lot lately, so I really hope I am. We both want them, and that’s why we decided not to use any birth control from the very beginning.”
Charlotte truly was elated for her friend, but there was still a tiny smidgen of envy she was feeling. Partly because she so missed Marissa and still couldn’t believe her little girl had died when she was only five, and partly because she sort of wanted her and Curtis to have a child together. She wanted them to have a child genetically of their own, but when she’d stressed her desire to Curtis, he hadn’t had a lot to say. He’d basically changed the conversation and hinted that he was too old.
Although now Charlotte wondered if his lack of interest wasn’t about age at all but had everything to do with the fact that he already had a newborn baby. He already had a daughter with another woman and didn’t see a reason to conceive another.
Charlotte became angrier by the second and while she was thrilled for Janine, she couldn’t stop thinking about that problem of hers that needed to be disposed of. She’d tried to push such unthinkable thoughts from her mind, she’d tried real hard, but she just couldn’t seem to do it. At least not for long, and she feared what the inevitable might have to be.
She feared that of all the underhanded, conniving, vicious things she’d done in her thirty-one years on this earth, they would never compare to what she was planning to do now.
When she was finished, her past actions would resemble nothing more than child’s play.
They would resemble no more than what an infant was capable of accomplishing.