He also had to figure out what to do about Karen. She had still been at the penthouse when he’d left. Michael vowed to get rid of her, pronto. Now that his head had cleared, he admitted that Karen was a parasite, and he knew that she was about to latch on with all four claws. He could not afford for that to happen, but how could he slither out of this one?
Michael felt like a coward, but he was going to have to get out of Dodge for a few days.
Atlanta?
Hmmm . . . Michael thought. Atlanta sounded good. He had a legitimate reason to go there because he had some work he needed to get done there. He had been contracted to design the layout for a new chain, Simmonds Synthetics. He had delayed his start date, because he knew it would take a few weeks and he hadn’t wanted to be away from Gina. But now was the opportune time to go. He figured if he left now, he would kill two birds with one stone. He could get some space to think and get paid for it.
Without another moment’s hesitation, Michael called and booked his first-class flight. His fingers shook when he dialed Gina’s number. He sighed with relief when he got her voice mail. He left a brief message explaining his “sudden” trip, and hung up before he made any foolish confessions.
Chapter Seven
Colleen scurried over to where Gina waited. She’d missed the 1:08 p.m. Long Island Railroad train to Manhattan, and had had to wait fifteen minutes for another. Then, the ten-minute trek from West 4th across the park made her even later and colder. It was a good thing she’d worn her cashmere sweater. She and Gina met up by their favorite gyro and pizza shop. They’d been coming here since their college days at New York University—always crowded with limited seats but so worth it.
Gina was being her usual impatient self, tapping her feet and looking around in every direction. Colleen chuckled. She knew what was coming next.
“Late. As usual,” Gina said, as soon as she spotted Colleen. “I ordered a large pizza for us to share.”
“Sorry I’m late and thanks for ordering because I’m starved.” Colleen bent down and hugged her friend. They broke apart, looked at each other, and hugged again.
“I missed you. You look good. Seeing you is so much better than just talking on the phone,” Gina said.
“I agree. And so do you, look good, I mean,” Colleen answered, while she situated herself at the table. “I can’t believe all this time has gone by, and we’re now just getting together.”
“I know,” Gina concurred. “But, you’re a busy married woman now, and you know how crazy back to school can be. August just flew by, and now, here we are in the third week of school. Plus, didn’t you and Terence go out of town for Labor Day?”
“Yes, there was a church trip to Pennsylvania and a cookout, and . . . Girl, who knows! Church life is hectic and busy. There is always some function going on or some crisis. It never ends.” While she spoke, Colleen rummaged through her purse and retrieved a beaded necklace that she’d brought back from Jamaica for Gina.
“It’s beautiful!” Gina exclaimed, while examining the beads. She clasped it around her neck. “Turquoise is such a beautiful stone. Looks expensive.”
Colleen lowered her chin and arched her eyebrows. Gina laughed as understanding dawned. Terence had given her a hard time when she decided to purchase it, but Colleen had stood her ground. She had let him know that she was going to get it whether he liked it or not. Seeing her determination, Terence had backed off. He had even magnanimously paid for it with his credit card, and Colleen let him, without any remorse or guilt.
“So, how is Terence?” Gina toyed with her necklace. “How was the honeymoon?”
This was the first time Gina mentioned Terence’s name without a snide rejoinder. Colleen pretended to swoon with dramatic disbelief. “What? No biting comment?”
“Maybe I’m reforming my ways.” Gina raised her hands in mock surrender. “If you’re happy, then so am I. I’m not going to interfere, especially since I do not even know the man, and he is your husband at this point, so . . .”
Colleen appreciated that. “Thank you. And, to answer your question, he’s doing fine.” She looked at her watch. Terence had probably called her at the house already. He usually rang at one o’clock to say hello. Colleen was always at home, waiting to hear from him. However, even though she would never admit it out loud, she felt a little uneasy about his daily phone calls, which came like clockwork. She couldn’t shake the feeling that he was really checking up on her.
He was jealous, controlling, and possessive, but kept that side to him veiled under politely worded requests. The requests, however, were more like demands.
Their pizza came, and both women bit in. Colleen loved the homemade sauce filled with the right amount of tomato and basil. Gina loved the thick mounds of stringy cheese when she took a bite.
“So Bohlander & Associates accepted Payton’s case!” Gina said, between bites.
“Good for you, Gina. They’re a top law firm.”
“All I did was write a letter on Payton’s behalf,” Gina demurred. Then she added. “Michael’s brother, Keith, works for them . . .”
Her pizza finished, Colleen nodded at the appropriate times while Gina elaborated, but her thoughts drifted to Terence. She refused to entertain the notion that she might have made a mistake and jumped the broom a teeny bit too soon. Her pride prevented her from telling Gina.
Besides, in her heart of hearts, Colleen believed that somehow, things would work themselves out for good. That’s what the Bible said, and God’s Word was gold. She and Terence were just undergoing an adjustment period, she reasoned. Things would get better between them.
“Are you even listening to me?” Gina cut into Colleen’s thoughts.
She jumped out of her reverie. Gina had been saying something about . . . Stumped, Colleen could only shake her head. She gave Gina a sheepish grin.
“See what married life does to you! It affects your brain.” Gina cracked up good-heartedly.
Thoughtful, Colleen rested one hand on her chin. Gina glowed. Her eyes sparkled. Her sunny persona appeared for two reasons—Money or Men. Colleen would stake her vote was on the latter.
“So, you and Michael hit it off, huh?” Colleen pried.
“Yeah, we sure did. He’s away now in Atlanta for a few weeks, but that is just a slice of the pie . . .” Gina filled her in on her lunch date with Keith, and her fantasizing about him.
“Brothers!” Colleen shook her head with a slight grin, not the least bit surprised to hear that her friend was mixed up in such a love triangle. This was not the first time Gina had attracted the attention of brothers.
“This sounds like Jason and Justin Browben all over again,” Colleen said, reminiscing.
Gina hissed through her teeth. Colleen wiggled her eyes and ears. She would never let Gina live that down.
“That was ages ago,” Gina smirked and rolled her eyes. Her cheeks were rosy from embarrassment, though. “This is nothing like that. Believe me.”
Colleen delighted at her friend’s discomfort. Jason and Justin Browben were identical twins who both had taken a strong liking to Gina in college and who had become her shadow. Gina called them Double Dragons and Twin Trolls, but that didn’t make a difference to either of them.
“I wonder where they are now,” Colleen said.
Gina shuddered. “I don’t care. As long as it’s nowhere near here! I’ll never forget their invitation to a threesome.”
Colleen slapped her thigh. “I had forgotten about that.”
“Well, Michael and Keith are nothing like Jason and Justin. They’re like mincemeat compared to these guys.” Gina bragged. “And just wait until you meet Keith. The man is beautiful. I’m sure he’d cringe if he heard me say that, but it’s the truth.”
Colleen raised her eyebrows at the airy inflection in her friend’s voice and became a little concerned. “Girl?”
“What?”
Gina refused to meet her eyes.
“You know what!” Colleen pers
isted. She leaned over to look Gina in the eyes. “You’re attracted to him!”
“Him, who?” Gina hedged.
“Cut out the games, Gigi,” Colleen warned. “You’re too smart to play dumb. Gina, you can’t be messing with two men, especially in this day and age. Plus the fact that they’re brothers . . . Ugh!”
Gina hung her head. But Colleen didn’t care about the censure in her voice. She knew her friend needed a tough talking to.
“I do like Michael,” Gina insisted, “But there’s just some sort of magnetism about Keith that draws me to him.” She whispered the words to Colleen, as if she were in a confessional.
“Well, Keith is engaged, so you know that nothing can ever come of that,” Colleen warned, using her schoolteacher voice.
“You do not have to reprimand me like I’m one of your students,” Gina answered, a little testily. “I would never try to play two brothers like that. Haven’t I always walked a straight line?”
Colleen exhaled and relaxed. “You’re right, girl. I’m sorry if it seemed as if I was judging you. But I guess I’m just being overprotective. I know you always do the right thing. Speaking of doing the right thing, are you coming to our Friends and Family Super Sabbath? I’m going to be getting rebaptized and I need someone there who’s in my—”
Colleen’s cell phone rang, interrupting the conversation. She saw relief wash over Gina’s face. Gina welcomed the reprieve. “Hi . . . Yeah . . . I ah . . . I have no idea . . . All right . . . Give me a couple of hours.” Colleen hung up the phone. She looked over at her friend, who was giving her that look. A look that Colleen knew all too well, for it was usually followed with a snippy comment. “Don’t give me that look,” she scowled at Gina with irritation.
“What look? I guess you just got your summons to return home, huh?” Gina balked. “I’m not surprised. Even when you both were just dating, he’d always find a reason to call you away whenever we hung out.”
“That’s not true,” Colleen denied, but Gina’s accusation pierced her heart, because it resonated with truth. She had made the same observations herself, but was not as willing to admit it out loud.
Defensive, Colleen sought to wipe off that smug expression on her friend’s face. “Well, at least I don’t have to worry about mixing up names and keeping track of my lies.”
Gina’s mouth popped open with shock and appall from Colleen’s crass statement. In all their years of friendship, she had never come at her friend like that. Gina’s face contorted with hurt. Colleen squirmed. Pride prevented her from apologizing.
“Well, Sister Hayworth,” Gina began, with tears stemming her eyelids, “I guess there is no need for us to continue this discussion, is there?” With that, she snatched her handbag, tossed a twenty-dollar bill onto the table, and walked out without even a good-bye.
Once Gina had left, Colleen felt miserable. She couldn’t believe that she had taken a cheap shot like that at the very best friend she ever had in the whole world. Especially since what Gina said about Terence was true. She knew she could have apologized or said something to ratify her nasty comment, but she hadn’t. Gina’s spine had been ramrod straight, and Colleen knew that she had hurt her friend with that crude remark. She all but called her friend loose and trifling, when that was the farthest thing from the truth. Colleen didn’t have any idea what the matter was with her lately.
Lie. She knew. Her new attitude could be summed up in one word. Terence.
She looked at her cell phone and pressed Gina’s speed dial code but stopped just before it could ring. She’d call her, later.
Later, turned into days . . . days turned into weeks, but Colleen couldn’t bring herself to make the call. Gina had texted her a couple times, but she refused to answer. So, it was no surprise that Gina didn’t come for Super Sabbath, which Colleen was glad about, because it was surprisingly uneventful. She had seen the whole day as an ordeal, and maybe Gina would’ve picked up on her discomfort with the fanfare of her rebaptism celebration. A part of her wondered if that wasn’t a subconscious stimulant for her fight with Gina.
Then one day, Colleen entered her house, having just returned from a shopping spree. She had enjoyed herself, but had to admit that it was just not the same. Colleen missed Gina. Shopping was something that they almost always did together. Though Gina was usually kicking and screaming, it was always still fun.
She hunched down in the couch, dead tired.
“How was your day?”
She’d had her eyes closed but cracked them open at Terence’s question. He had come out of the kitchen to greet her. She could tell because he held the remnants of the turkey sandwich she’d left for him before going out.
“Okay,” Colleen said, and boosted her tired body high enough to give him a kiss on the cheek. “But it feels weird, not working. This is the time of year I’d usually be dress hunting with Gina for the high school’s Homecoming Dance. So I decided to go shopping. I’ve rarely gone shopping without Gina,” she bemoaned.
Terence merely shrugged. Secretly, Colleen believed that he rejoiced that she and Gina were not on speaking terms. Why would he? That meant that Colleen was paying him even more attention, and he was basking in every moment of it.
She hoisted herself upright when Terence went over to where she had placed the bags. He peeked into them, looking for something. “I’m sorry, honey, I didn’t buy you anything this time,” she yawned. Still he persisted. Why was he so interested in her purchases?
Terence hauled out a pair of pants and looked over at her. Askance, he raised one eyebrow. Colleen’s heart thundered in her chest. She leapt off the couch, eyeing him like a cornered prey. The air between them intensified under his silent question. “They were on sale.” Colleen’s voice quivered. She rubbed at her arms to kill the goose bumps, hating her transparency.
Terence did not reply. Instead, he dove through the other bags. She stammered, “What are you doing?” He ignored her. Colleen shivered as her husband maniacally divided the clothes she had purchased into two piles. “What are you doing?” she repeated, with more emphasis.
“Get rid of those,” Terence ordered and abruptly departed.
Colleen watched him go before expelling a small sigh of relief. She held up her hands. They were actually shaking. Colleen picked up the pants—the culprit. Terence was angry that she had not taken his subtle advice to only wear skirts since he was about to become the church’s associate minister. He had stated that as a pastor’s wife, she should wear more demure dresses instead of what she was used to wearing. But Colleen was not having it. She was her own woman, and being married was not about to change that.
If he thought for one second that just because she was now spending his money, she had to answer to him, he had another think coming. If that was what he expected, Colleen would just go back to her job at the school. It was at his insistence that she’d resigned and devoted herself to his ministry—well, she hadn’t resigned, just put in for a year’s leave of absence. She could have her old job back any time she wanted.
You know what, she wasn’t having this. Colleen threw the pants on the floor and strode into the kitchen. She confronted him. “I am not taking them back!”
Terence’s eyes narrowed. His body stance said, Who is she talking to like that? But he didn’t say that. “Yes, you are,” he said quietly.
He always spoke in a low voice. Yelling was just not his style. But Colleen was not fooled for an instant. She could hear the underlying steel, and it did not sit well with her. She ran her fingers through her hair before she caught on that it was a dead giveaway of her uncertainty. She clasped her hands together to keep them out of her hair.
Though unsure what her next move should be, she knew that she wasn’t happy with the way that things were going. Colleen liked pleasing people, but at this moment, she wanted to please herself. Gina’s comments from weeks ago still rattled. She didn’t want to be taken advantage of by anybody, and that included her husband.
“It shouldn’t matter what I wear,” Colleen changed tactics. “You never had a problem when we were dating. And you may not want me wearing pants, but don’t think I don’t see you checking other women out.”
Terence scoffed at her sentiment. “All the other wives wear dresses, and I feel that you should, too. Baby, I’m not trying to change who you are. I just want you to fit in with the ministers’ wives. Even my mother agrees that you need to dress a little more conservatively. ”
Colleen bit her lip to keep from screaming. It was all beginning to make sense to her. Francine was behind this. She’d probably made some comment that put this idea into Terence’s head. Colleen knew that Francine didn’t really like her. Francine wanted to keep her son to herself and at her beck and call. Colleen recognized this and made up her mind to ignore Francine’s antics, but it was difficult.
Terence leaned toward her and kissed her full on the lips. Colleen knew that this was his way of persuading her to change her mind. She vowed not to be manipulated by his charm. Then, she sighed as she felt Terence’s passion increase. He continued his tender manipulations. Colleen’s passion rose. “I’ll try,” she promised as she leaned into her husband’s embrace, seeking more.
The better she felt, the more she capitulated. It wasn’t such a big deal, Colleen convinced herself. She could wear dresses every day. There were so many cute styles, and she had long boots for the winter. She supposed she could compromise on this, because, after all, it was not going to hurt her.
Terence smiled with barely concealed pleasure at her acquiescence.
Colleen noticed the slight air of superiority on Terence’s face and hated that she’d become putty in his hands. It was almost like he was reveling in the control he had over her, and a part of her resented it, but a stronger part of her wanted to agree to anything he told her to do. She felt powerless, like all he had to do was touch her and she would do whatever he asked.
Chapter Eight
Walk a Straight Line Page 5