Cliff and his wife’s wedding anniversary was the only thing that brought this circle of friends together every year. The couple had made it a tradition to invite everyone who was present when they started dating in college. Even Evan Simpson who lived in Washington, DC flew out here every year with his wife Belinda for this special occasion. Belinda and Alana were best friends in college. Because of the distance between them, they were no longer as close as they used to be. Evan was a dedicated republican. He thought Donald Trump could do no wrong.
“That clinic,” Fred said. “That clinic has provided me with more love than most of the women I have met in my life.”
His first girlfriend had cheated on him on a bathroom toilet in a bar with a local football player. His second had fallen for his younger brother who had ended up dumping her after just two months. Perhaps that was why he wasn’t too keen on carrying on further relationships with any woman now.
“That clinic won’t give you the companionship you need when the night is cold, and you are cooped up alone in your big house,” Jonathan said.
He was now a senior associate of Cliff’s at the law firm Brad had unceremoniously quit from. Cliff believed that it was because he had gotten married to Amanda Sandler, Roger Sandler’s daughter.
“Oh please, my clinic offers me loving during the day” Fred said. “Plus, I have books. There are tons of them in my place, so I can never get bored at night.”
“Books can’t hold you Fred,” Amanda said shaking her head and rolling her eyes. “You can’t cuddle them when you are cold.”
“I have a radiator,” Fred retorted.
“I’ll bet it’s his pillow that he cuddles,” Theodore joked. He dumped his law degree the year they finished school and took up a position at his family’s hotel business.
“You guys should leave Fred alone,” Alicia said. “Fred darling, you are okay by yourself and who knows, the right woman for you can come at any time.”
“Thank you, sweetheart,” Fred said.
“No he isn’t,” Theodore demurred. “These few days I have stayed without my wife have been hell. I can’t imagine a fellow man wanting to live all of his life that way.”
“Well…,” Alicia turned to look at Alana. “It’s better than living with someone who can’t keep herself from running after other men any time you are out of town.”
Everyone’s eyes bulged in surprise at the remark except Alana and Cliff’s. Brad looked aghast. Theodore closed his mouth then opened it again to talk and shut it again. Simpson was totally oblivious as to who that mud shot was meant for. He had been out of town for a long time. However, his wife Belinda was more observant. She heard the sharp intake of breath from Alana who was sitting beside her and figured out that there was more to the statement than met the eyes.
“Isn’t it, Fred?” Alicia asked while her gaze strayed to Alana’s position at the table.
Fred didn’t answer her. His watchful eyes turned towards Alana’s face, as he tried to read her expression. That was impossible, for her face remained blank and unreadable. Alana was not shocked by what Alicia said, so she kept her composure. Alicia never liked her. She only tolerated Alana because Cliff and Brad were friends. She anticipated something like this would have happened. Alicia’s cold smile earlier did not reach her eyes when she greeted her. The mockery in Cliff’s eyes when they welcomed her and Brad were enough warnings.
“Isn’t it, Fred?” Alicia asked again.
“Alicia don’t do this here,” Fred’s response came out apprehensively. His eyes remained on Alana’s face until her eyes met his then he lowered his gaze to his meal.
“What is that statement supposed to mean?” Brad asked Alicia finally. His voice was hard, way harder than the neutral look on his face. This surprised Alana.
“What is it not supposed to mean?” Alicia answered him.
“You shouldn’t make statements on things you don’t know about,” Brad said. Alana could sense him getting angrier.
Cliff leaned forward and patted his arm. “It’s past time someone talked about it, Bro.”
“But this is not the place and it is none of our business,” Theodore said.
“If I wanted to talk about it, I would have raised the matter!” Brad snapped.
“Talk about what?” Simpson asked. “Guys what’s going on?”
“We are your friends Brad,” Cliff said. “We are only interested in your wellbeing.”
“Like hell you are! If you were interested in my wellbeing, you wouldn’t try embarrass my wife like this.”
More than anything else, Alana wanted to get up from her chair and flee from there. But Brad placed his warm hand on hers and that connection gave her strength to remain glued to her seat. She became fascinated by his hand covering her smaller hand. Hope was bubbling in her chest despite the uncomfortable situation taking place.
“Brad, what’s up?” Simpson asked.
“I don’t know, this chandelier, the ceiling, our hosts putting their nose is matters that don’t concern them.”
The reply would have drawn raucous laughter if not for the thick tension that hung in the air right now.
“She messed up,” Alicia said. “And quite frankly, we’re surprised you just did nothing about it.”
“That’s not the Brad we know,” Theodore said.
“Messed up?” Brad asked. “Cliff you sure you want to go down this road with me?” His eyes were focused on Cliff.
“Come on Brad.”
“Seriously, let me know.”
“Okay, let’s talk about the baby,” Alicia said, ignoring the growing tension developing between her husband and Brad.
“Okay, I think this is far enough,” Theodore said. “We don’t have to go that far.”
“What about the baby?” Brad asked, ignoring Theodore. His eyes had never left Cliff’s.
“We know it’s not yours.” Alicia kept probing, ignoring the tension building between her husband and Brad.
“And who told you that?” Brad asked, getting to his feet. The connection was broken, but hope still kept bubbling inside Alana. He was defending her.
“Come on Brad,” Cliff got to his feet as well.
“The baby is mine,” Brad said in finality.
For a moment Alana wondered if her ears had heard right.
“Yours?” Cliff asked, surprised.
“That’s what I said.” Brad pushed back his chair. “Next time you and your wife want to discuss my family’s business, either you do it in your bedroom or you come to me in private and ask me questions if prying isn’t something you aren’t averse to.”
“The baby is yours?” Cliff asked again. Now his surprise was tainted with disbelief.
“That’s what I said,” Brad replied.
“You two, why are you standing?” Belinda asked them.
“Because I’m done for the night,” Brad said. “It was good to meet you all again. One thing though… Alicia, I wonder if you would be here celebrating five years of married life if you found out all the places your husband’s penis has been in. I know that’s impossible for you to figure out though, since your focus is on hating on my wife and finding ways to embarrass her.” He averted his gave in her direction and then continued. “Anyway, I lost count in your second year of marriage of the number of bimbos your husband has slept with.”
“Seriously man, that was uncalled for!” Cliff said, embarrassed.
Alicia’s eyes were bulging.
“You think I’m kidding?” Brad asked her. “Go and have a chat with the busty paralegal at the firm. She’s just the tip of the iceberg. There are many others.” Alicia bolted from the table and rushed towards where the washrooms were located. Cliff took off after her.
“Come on Brad,” Theodore got to his feet. “That was below the belt.”
“You come at my wife, then I come out swinging,” replied Brad.
“I’m still confused about what’s happening here,” Simpson said.
Brad didn’t respond.
He turned and held out his hand for Alana. Grateful for the gesture, she quickly procured his outstretched hand and got to her feet. It felt like a dream, walking out of the hotel hand in hand with him.
***
The drive back home was a quiet one. All through it, Alana kept darting glances at Brad as he drove. He had done the last thing she expected him to do; defending her and claiming the baby in order to protect her image in front of his friends.
She wanted to say something to him, perhaps thank him, or ask him why he did it. But she feared he would simply ignore her or give her some incoherent response that would only plunge her into confusion. So she kept her mouth shut and took deep breaths while relieving the dinner in her mind.
It played again and again like a video that was on repeat. The beginning was the depressing part. It was the part where Cliff and his wife treated her like some filthy thing that was only to be tolerated for their sake of their saintly friend Brad. Oh, and was that man a saint!
Fred had treated her like she was a curio, watching her the way a scientist examines a specimen under his scope. The rest were just there. Enjoying their jokes and their discussions and largely ignoring her while they ate.
Somehow Alana found herself silently thanking Alicia for bringing up the issue. If she hadn’t, it would have still been a simmering lava boiling underground, waiting to erupt in a cloud of hot ashes, a pus filled boil still waiting to break open. But then Alicia brought it up. Now it was in the open, decisively dealt with and buried by Brad, her knight in shining armor. The temptation to kiss him gripped her but she grappled with it until she was able to put it down. Now was not the time. She had no guarantee that he would be receptive to her kisses.
They got to the house in half the time it should have taken them. Brad was a careful driver, but whenever he got angry, he always drove like he had a death wish. Whizzing past other cars like they were doing twenty and swerving all over the road as he overtook them. But once he turned into their neighborhood, he reduced the car’s speed considerably. Here he had a gentleman’s reputation to maintain. Outside their home he parked his car and killed the engine with a sigh.
“Thanks for defending me out there,” Alana said finally. She could no longer hold it in.
“There is no need to,” Brad said and turned to face her. “You’re my wife and it’s my duty.”
“Thank you,” Alana said again. The temptation to kiss him came back again. It was just a simple matter of leaning forward and claiming those lips. They were looking inviting tonight. He had kept them away from her for too long. But then she dreaded a rejection and so kept her lips to herself.
“I want us to work on us. Let’s start afresh and forget everything that took place in the past year,” Brad said.
“You do? But don’t you want to know about Greg?” Alana couldn’t believe her ears.
“No.” Brad turned to look at her. “Rhea is mine. I don’t want to talk about Greg ever again.” She knew that tone. He made up his mind.
“So you no longer believe that I cheated on you?”
He pulled her close to him and brought his face down to hers. He brought his lips down upon hers. She had missed kissing him this way and being close to him. His kisses made her forget everything else.
“Rhea is mine,” he said after they had stopped kissing. She realized that he never answered her question.
It would have been so easy to move on and forget everything. It would have made everything alright. It would have wiped away the nights she spent wetting her pillow with tears. It would have wiped out the shame that had clung to her like a terrible body odor. But Alana knew that Brad still thought she was unfaithful to him. It was there in the forced lightness of his voice and the fact that he couldn’t even answer the question. He still thought she cheated on him. The only positive thing was that it seemed as though he had made his peace with the whole situation. He was ready to move on and start their lives anew. It was better than nothing.
“Thank you for accepting her,” Alana finally responded.
When she spoke, her voice was also light. It hurt her that Brad still believed she cheated on him. But she had no proof to absolve herself. She supposed what mattered was that he had stood up for her before his friends. It could only mean that he was serious about them moving on with their lives. She felt guilty for passing out in Greg’s hotel and then having Brad witness Greg dropping her off at their home. She would accept what he was offering her, until they found out the truth.
She believed he still loved her. And even if that was no longer the case, he still loved their daughter too much to be away from her.
“I love our family,” Brad said suddenly. It was as if he was reading her mind. He said he loved their family but didn’t say that he loved her specifically.
“I know,” Alana replied. She knew if he didn’t love them, he wouldn’t be willing to move forward with their marriage, with the paternity of Rhea still unknown. She used to be so sure of his love for her before everything happened. But now… She let that thought go and considered what was important and that was she loved him still. His lips hovered over hers and she could feel the warmth emitting from his body. She couldn’t stop herself from saying, “I love you. You know that right?”
He claimed her lips again, rendering her breathless and unable to form a single thought beyond the clash of their lips and the firmness of his midriff against hers.
When she finally sobered from the fervor his kisses, she realized that he never responded to her question and that hurt her, but she said it again anyway. “I love you Brad. I will always love you.”
***
Brad surprised her on Sunday when he suggested a family picnic at the park. She would get Rhea and he would get Aaryn. It seemed surreal. The last time they had been at the park together as a family was over one year ago. Then there had been just Aaryn. Then they had still been the couple who couldn’t resist displaying affection for each other even if it was in public. They kissed over Aaryn’s head as often as they could and held hands while Aaryn played.
Now it was somewhat different. There were two kids with them now, and a wall between them, albeit a thin one that kept crumbling each day.
When they got to the park Alana wasn’t surprised when Brad hurried out and came around to her side of the car to open the door for her. He then went around to get Aaryn and Rhea. She climbed out of the car with a big smile on her face.
“Thanks a lot.”
“You are welcome,” he said.
He led the way-car seat in one hand and Aaryn in the other-through the single paved avenue that led across the well-manicured lawns and all the fun rides to the other end of the park.
“That’s our spot,” Brad said pointing with the hand that held Aaryn’s.
There were people already there.
“It seems it’s already taken,” Alana said and cooed at Rhea who was beginning to scrunch up her face, a sure sign she was about to cry. She took her out from the car and held her close. She would need to be fed soon.
“I know,” Brad said with a smile. “It’s friends.”
Alana looked closely then and realized she knew the people who made up the small crowd in their spot. It was at that moment that those people left the small tent they had erected and came running toward them. Not surprisingly, her brother Johnson was at the forefront. He was followed by Belinda, her college best friend, her sisters, Liam and his wife, and every other person she knew there. Only her mother remained sitting with a smile on her face.
“Surprise!” they shouted and started dragging her towards the tent. Belinda took Rhea from her along the way, despite her protests of confusion.
It was when they started singing a happy birthday song that she remembered it was her birthday.
“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…”
Alana knew immediately who was responsible. The moment realization hit her the tears came to her face and she turned to look at him. He was singing a
long with the others with Aaryn in his arms and a big smile on his face. Brad.
Once the song ended, he came forward pumping his fists in the air enthusiastically and shouting “hip hip...”
The rest of the party screamed “Hurray!”
Then he launched into another song “For she’s a jolly good fellow…”
Alana burst into tears and hugged him. He placed Aaryn down and used his now free arms to wrap her in an embrace. This was the last thing she had expected. Now she was no longer unsure about his love. He still loved her, despite what he felt she may have done. People didn’t go to this extent to make others happy if they had no real love for them.
They clung to each other for a long time, swaying slowly to the music until her tears stopped coming. All around them, the guests cheered and clapped and whistled. Johnson’s voice was easily the loudest.
By the time her mother found enough space to bring the cake forward, Rhea was in full blown hysterics. Brad rocked and cooed Rhea while Alana quickly cut the strawberry cheesecake.
Later when she went to the back of the tent to feed the baby for a second time, she could hear the voices of her family and friends as they flew back and forth happily. Brad entered the tent and walked towards where she was seated.
“Are you okay, you need me to get you anything?”
“I’m fine for now, Rhea is getting heavier.”
“Give her to me. I’ll place her in her car seat.”
She handed the baby to Brad and admired the gentle way he held Rhea while placing her in the car seat.
“You had fun today?” Brad asked after buckling Rhea.
Today was a surprise for her. Although the dark cloud remained, she felt almost complete.
“Yes babe, thank you so much.” She placed a kiss on his lips.
28
Fred was the most persistent person on the face of the earth as far as Alana was concerned. He called her twenty-five times the next morning before she decided she could no longer ignore his calls.
The calls started early in the morning, five minutes after Brad had left with Rhea to drop her off with Alana’s mom. She ignored the phone and went into the bathroom to wash her face. She had spent most of the night crying because Brad still refrained from sharing their bed. It wouldn’t do for Aaryn to see her tear streaked face.
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