A Carol for Kent

by Hallee Bridgeman

  “And you?” Carol asked with a smile.

  “Well, now, I can’t just sit back and let him have all the fun, can I?” the older woman chuckled, causing Carol to grin. She was going to miss having them next door. They’d been good neighbors the past three years. “But, Carol, there is one thing I worry about with this move,” she added.

  “What, Gloria?” Carol asked. “Don’t do this unless you really want to.”

  “It’s not that. I just worry that we won’t be able to hear your music at night anymore. We might be too far down to hear it. It’s been such a blessing to us.”

  Carol felt touched and reached over and patted her hand. “I’ll play loudly at first, then you can just mosey on over,” she said. They laughed together, and Carol watched Ed cut across the yards.

  “They kicked me out. Actually told me I was in the way,” he complained as he sat down and mopped his forehead with a handkerchief.

  “You probably were, dear,” Gloria asserted, pouring her husband a glass of water from the pitcher on the small table next to her. Carol watched them and hoped that she would have that kind of close relationship with someone one day. She ignored the fact that Bobby popped into her head at the thought.

  “Ms. Mabry?” Amy called from the screen door.

  “What, babe?” Carol answered her.

  “May I play up in Lisa’s room? The movie’s over.”

  “Of course you may,” Carol confirmed. “Do you want a snack first?”

  “No, ma’am,” Amy hollered over her shoulder as she ran through the house.

  Gloria snickered. “That kind of energy is wasted on the young.”

  At that moment, Carol groaned out loud when Robert and Harriet Kent’s pickup pulled into her driveway. She pinched the bridge of her nose and prayed for patience.

  “What do you want, Robert?” she called out before they even reached the porch.

  “What’s all this?” he asked, waving his hand toward the two moving vans occupying the street and taking up the driveway next door.

  “My neighbors are moving,” she said. “What do you want?”

  “We just came to visit Lisa,” Harriet explained. The two stood at the base of the porch, not stepping up.

  “Lisa isn’t here. She’s out shopping with her father,” Carol replied, emphasizing the last word.

  “Ms. Mabry!” Amy exclaimed in a panicked voice. She ran out of the house and dashed onto the front porch.

  “What happened?” Carol was up and out of her chair before she finished speaking.

  “There’s a spider in Lisa’s room!” the little girl squealed.

  Ed Westbury stood and held out his hand. “Well, this is a job for a grandpa. Come with me, Amy, and I’ll see if I can save you from the wild animal,” he said, making Amy giggle. The two went inside the house.

  Robert’s face turned a dangerous looking red. He stabbed his finger at Carol and put a boot on the first step. “You’re lying. Her little friend is here playing with her. You’re just trying to keep her from us to punish us.”

  “I’m not lying, Robert. Lying is your thing, not mine. Lisa left with Bobby this morning to go shopping. Amy’s mom is sick, so she’s over here playing while I babysit.” Carol did not like the fact that she suddenly found herself on the defensive.

  “We’ll see about that,” Harriet said, stepping onto the porch and moving toward the door.

  Carol felt her temper snap, and placed her body in the older woman’s path. “If you touch that door, I will call the police and charge you with criminal trespass so fast it will make your head spin,” she announced.

  Harriet must have believed her, because she stepped back. Carol continued, “I told you on the phone last night that I have no intention of keeping Lisa from you, even though, as far as I’m concerned, you’ve lost your rights as grandparents. So, if and when she asks to see you, I’ll make sure it’s arranged.”

  “How do we know she hasn’t been asking about us all week?” Robert asked.

  “Because she didn’t call you. And, I’ll tell you one more thing. Lisa’s an intelligent child, and she’s probably already put two and two together. Don’t be surprised if it takes her a while to decide she even wants to see you,” Carol said.

  Lisa had never gone this long without wanting to see her grandparents, and if she figured out that Bobby was her dad on her own, it was entirely possible that she’d figured out a simple version of the entire story, including her grandparents’ deception.

  “How dare you soil us in her mind!” Harriet wailed.

  Carol sighed and spoke in a weary voice. “I’m going to ask you both to leave now. I don’t want to call the Sheriff so, please, just get off of my property. I don’t care where you go, but you can’t stay here.”

  “You can’t poison that child’s mind and heart against us!” Harriet declared.

  “I haven’t said a word, and I don’t intend to,” Carol stated. “But, right now, her focus is where it should be, on her father. I suggest you just stay out of it for now. Give them time, because the time they should have had was stolen from them… by you.”

  Harriet marched off the porch and grabbed her husband’s arm, as if for support. Suddenly and inexplicably, she screamed in a voice that made Carol’s hair stand up on the back of her neck. “You slept around and then got stuck with the consequences! You’re an unfit mother and have always been an unfit mother! More concerned with your career than your own daughter. Just you wait and see, Carol Mabry! You’ll pay for every foul word that’s come out of your mouth about us to our little angel!”

  Carol felt her stomach knot and a burning anger boil up her chest. Instead of reacting, she took a deep breath and pulled her cell phone out of the pocket of her shorts. “Please don’t make me call the Sheriff. He’s a friend and it would embarrass me.”

  Robert put his arm around his wife’s shoulders, and led the sobbing woman to their truck. Carol didn’t sit back down until they had driven away. She looked at Gloria, worried she would find revulsion in the woman’s eyes, but instead found indignation. “I’m sorry you had to witness that,” Carol said, a tinge of embarrassment coloring her tone.

  “Don’t be, dear,” Gloria said, patting Carol’s hand. “Oftentimes, extreme circumstances bring out extreme emotions. I’ll be praying for this to resolve itself soon.”

  THEY hit furniture stores, department stores, electronic stores, then the grocery store, all within four hours. Bobby knew exactly what he wanted, and if he hadn’t needed it in such a short time, he would have just had his secretary order everything from a catalog. But as it was, he arranged for it all to be delivered on Tuesday morning, and paid twice as much as he should have for the furniture store to give him two men to help set everything up.

  Lisa’s enthusiasm barely dimmed during the shopping spree. Initially, he’d wondered how an 8-year-old would choose to decorate a room, having no personal experience with little girls’ taste in interior design. She impressed him with her choices. The colors were bright, the patterns matched, and the furniture would convert easily as she grew up.

  He wanted to keep her with him for the entire day, but she expressed excitement about the party she planned to attend, so instead of calling Carol and begging for a few more hours, he drove her home. He looked at her as they turned onto her street and was glad he’d made that decision. After going to bed so late the night before, and walking for miles while they shopped today, she looked exhausted. She would need a nap if she planned to enjoy the party this afternoon.

  But the second they pulled into her driveway, she perked up and ran into the house, excitedly yelling to her mom about the morning they’d had. Carol met them at the door with a smile, and Bobby watched her nod and respond to what Lisa had to say, leading her into the kitchen where the neighbors made sandwiches from the offerings Carol had spread out.

  “So I decided to go with the yellow and blue colors like we talked about this morning,” Lisa chattered, appearing not to
even take a breath while she grabbed a plate and started dishing up. “I even got a new laptop that’s yellow to match, and the curtains are blue with yellow stripes to match the bedspread and the carpet that is going in on Tuesday is going to be light blue.”

  She finished dishing up her plate and pulled up a chair next to Ed Westbury. “Hi Mr. and Mrs. Westbury. Can I come swim in your pool when you get settled?”

  Carol looked up at Bobby with a sparkle in her eye while Ed entertained Lisa. “Has she been this hyped up all morning?” she asked with a laugh.

  Bobby smiled and leaned against the counter. “No. She’s actually calmed down considerably.”

  She looked over her shoulder to make sure Lisa was still occupied, and when she looked back at Bobby, the sparkle was gone. “Can you come with me a moment? I need to speak with you.”

  He straightened and followed her out of the room. She led him down the hall to her office. He briefly wondered if she’d started some legal paperwork or something.

  “Your parents came over this morning unannounced,” she said without preamble. “I’m afraid there was a bit of a scene.”

  Bobby felt a rush of anger, but put a damper on it. “How bad of a scene?”

  Carol cleared her throat and pushed her hair out of her eyes. “I had to threaten to call the police if they wouldn’t leave.” She spoke in a rush, clearly embarrassed.

  He frowned, concerned. “What exactly happened?”

  Carol smiled, but it didn’t light up her eyes. “Apparently, I’m a loose woman who slept around and got myself knocked up,” she explained.

  He stilled, a cold anger seeping through him. “Say that again.” His voice came out in an icy rasp.

  Carol held a hand up. “It’s okay, Bobby. I just thought you should know.”

  He advanced on her until she had to crane her neck to keep eye contact. “What else did they say to you?”

  She put a hand on his chest to stop him. “Never mind. Really. Never mind. I handled it.”

  He placed his hands on her shoulders. “Tell me what else was said, Carol,” he demanded through clenched teeth.

  She looked at the button on his shirt, her cheeks flushed red. “That I’m an unfit mother who’s more concerned about my career than my daughter.”

  Bobby felt horror at what his parents thought about the mother of his child. His heart hurt and his stomach clenched. He released her shoulders and stepped back. “Thank you for telling me. I promise you I’ll take care of it,” he quietly vowed.

  A worried look crossed her face and she grabbed his arm. “I already did, Bobby. Just leave it alone. There’s enough hurt feelings flying around right now to last a lifetime.”

  He looked her up and down. “No. They can’t say that kind of thing to you and get away with it. I won’t stand for it.”

  “They already did say those things, and I sent them packing. I never would have told you if I thought this was how you’d react.”

  Bobby forced himself to calm down. He stepped away from her and went to look out the window into the backyard. “Have they said things like that to you in the past?”

  He heard the hesitation in her voice. “No. They’ve always been… polite, sometimes even friendly.”

  He turned back around and stared at her for a long time. “Why did you even move to Richmond?”

  She ran a hand through her hair. “Lisa needed a family. My dad was in the Army, and my parents were in Germany. They didn’t know where they’d retire, and I wanted to go to a good law school in a state where I would enjoy practicing. I was accepted into the University of Richmond Law School and halfway through my first semester before I found out about your lack of interest.” She waved her hand to stall his interruption. “I mean, before they told me you weren’t interested. I couldn’t change anything at that point.”

  He approached her again, but this time she didn’t back away. He lifted a hand and brushed her hair off her shoulder. “I’m sorry, Carol. As little as that means at this point, I really am sorry.”

  She put a hand on his cheek. “I have a good life, Bobby. I have good friends in a good church, and Lisa goes to a good school. Don’t kick yourself over this whole thing. Let’s just enjoy what we have from now on.”

  Sunday, April 29th

  “LISA, if you continue to argue with me, you won’t be able to go over there Tuesday after school,” Carol declared.

  “But mom, it’s just next door,” Lisa whined. She took her fork and played with a green bean on her plate.

  “We’ve all already discussed it. I have to leave early in the morning and you have school,” Bobby proclaimed, backing Carol’s play.

  Carol had to admire the way he’d managed to keep Lisa from manipulating him. She imagined he would try to do anything to make Lisa like him, but he held his own pretty well.

  “Your dad can come get you day after tomorrow once school is out. One more word about it and you’ll go to bed right now and have to go to the after school program on Tuesday,” Carol threatened. She watched Lisa bite her lip and could see dozens of arguments swirling around in that little head, but even Lisa knew when she’d pushed too far.

  “Why can’t you pick me up tomorrow and bring me home?” she asked, minus the whine.

  “Sorry, Sugar. I have to go out of town tomorrow,” Bobby addressed her by looking her frankly in the eye.

  “Like Amy’s dad?”

  Bobby glanced at Carol, who nodded. “Yep, kind of like Amy’s dad.”

  “Are you going to have to be gone all the time like him?”

  Carol watched Bobby take a deep breath and slowly release it, obviously trying to find the words. “Sometimes I will. I have several months off right now, through the summer and part of the fall, but then I have to go back to work full time. I’ll come home as often as I can, though,” he said. “The good thing about what I do is that when I’m not on tour, I can take big chunks of time off if I want to take them, or work from here.”

  “Then why do you have to go away tomorrow?” Lisa whined again.

  “Lisa,” Carol cautioned, and her daughter ducked her head and let the subject drop for the rest of the meal.

  After dinner, Carol just tried to relax while Bobby helped Lisa get ready for bed. She sat on a recliner willing the aspirin she’d taken to work. She rubbed her temples, trying hard to beat back the headache that had threatened ever since her confrontation with the Kents yesterday. She must have dozed off, because she jerked awake when Bobby gently touched her shoulder.

  “She’s ready for you to tuck her in,” he announced. Carol stood and pressed hard against her temples.

  “Thanks, Bobby,” she acknowledged, walking out of the room. She went upstairs to Lisa’s room and found her lying in bed with her favorite teddy bear in the crook of her arm. “Hey there, kiddo,” Carol greeted, sitting on the side of the bed.

  “Mommy?” Lisa asked, plucking at the fabric of her bedspread.

  “What, babe?” she asked.

  “Were you and daddy ever married?”

  Carol pulled the covers tighter over her and smoothed them out. “No, honey. I didn’t even know I was pregnant with you until he was already gone to Nashville to become a big star.”

  “Are you going to marry daddy?”

  The question was simple and innocent but Carol felt her heart skip a beat.

  “Lisa Mabry, that is a grown up decision and it is between me and your father. You will not bring it up again. Understand?”

  With her eyes wide, Lisa said, “Okay.”

  “All right. Ready for prayers?”

  Lisa’s eyes filled with tears, and her lower lip quivered. “Am I unwanted?”

  “What?” Carol’s head suddenly throbbed. “Where did you even hear that?”

  Lisa answered, “There was a TV show on the other day and the mom told the little girl she was stuck being a single mom without a husband because the little girl was unwanted.”

  Carol sighed and wondered if all childre
n’s brains worked with the efficiency of Lisa’s, or if she just had a very special little girl. “You were wanted from the moment I found out about you. Don’t you ever doubt that. You know what? Your daddy loves you and wants you, too. I can tell he is really sad that he didn’t know about you. Can’t you? Sometimes, God gives us gifts we aren’t expecting. You are a gift to me and your dad.”

  The tears disappeared and Lisa sat up quickly, throwing her arms around her mom. Carol held her close for a minute, then squeezed her tight and kissed the top of her head. “Time to sleep now. You have school tomorrow.”

  Lisa lay back down and Carol helped her say her bedtime prayers. Then she rearranged the covers and kissed her one more time. “Good-night, Mommy,” Lisa said.

  “‘Night, Kiddo,” Carol answered, and turned out the light. She went back downstairs, but Bobby had already left, so she locked the doors and loaded the dishes into the dishwasher. As she was finishing up cleaning the kitchen, her doorbell rang.

  “Hi Rhonda. Thanks for meeting me here,” she said. She opened the door and let the young attorney come inside.

  “I don’t mind,” Rhonda said. “Besides, 9 a.m. Monday court kind of interferes with Sunday nights. I really like your house, though. I feel like we get more work done in your office than anywhere else.”

  “Thanks. I just put Lisa to bed, but I think she’s probably asleep already. She was pretty tired. Would you like some coffee or tea? Water?”

  Rhonda shook her head and brushed her black curls off her shoulder. “No thanks. I grabbed dinner on the way.” Then she lifted the files in her hand. “Ready to get to work?”

  “Let me grab a cup of coffee and I’ll meet you in my office.” As they walked through the foyer, Rhonda, who had been here many times over the course of the preparations for the trial, turned toward the office. “Give me just a few minutes.”