The Best of Everything

by Kimberla Lawson Roby

  After arranging his tie, Phillip went downstairs to the kitchen, draped his suit jacket across the back of a chair, and then walked over and kissed his wife.

  “You look beautiful.”

  “Why, thank you, sir.”

  “Of course. Anytime.”

  They both laughed and then Phillip sat down at the table. Alicia put a plate of pancakes in front of him and next to it, a small dish of sausage links. When she’d poured their orange juice, she took her seat as well and Phillip said grace.

  When he finished, he forked a couple of flapjacks onto his plate. “So, what have you got planned for today?”

  “I’m really going to try to buckle down and get back to writing.”

  “Good. But you do know that I wish you had given the job at the church a few more weeks.”

  “I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t. I tried to hang in there but what Carmen needs is someone who doesn’t aspire to do anything more than a few clerical duties and that wasn’t working for me. I realize that I’ve only been out of school for a year, but I also didn’t spend four years in college just so I could end up in that kind of a position. Plus, I really didn’t care all that much for Carmen, anyway, and I don’t think she liked me, either.”

  “Well, the thing is, Carmen really did come highly recommended and that’s why everyone was so in favor of hiring her.”

  “That’s all well and good, but I wasn’t planning on being someone’s little assistant or secretary.”

  Phillip wasn’t sure what to say, because the last thing he wanted to do was start a fight with Alicia, especially since they hadn’t argued once in four weeks.

  “Plus, it wasn’t like I could go to a job and take care of you at the same time,” she said teasingly.

  “Yeah, right.”

  “I’m serious.”

  “I was only down for a few days, so that wasn’t nearly reason enough for you to quit working.”

  Alicia smiled, but Phillip thought about how Alicia had taken off the whole first week after he’d been shot and then after that she’d called Carmen to tell her that she was resigning. Of course, Curtis hadn’t been happy about Alicia’s decision in the least and he hadn’t hesitated telling her she was making a huge mistake. He’d told her that she needed the experience and that he wanted her doing something that would help the church. Nonetheless, though, Curtis’s feelings hadn’t seemed to affect Alicia one way or the other.

  “I know you were disappointed and so was my dad, but writing is what I really want to do.”

  “And you know I support that one hundred percent but I just hope you take it a lot more seriously and that you go ahead and finish a full manuscript.”

  “I will, and actually, I’m going to try to be finished with the first draft in a couple of months.”

  Phillip raised his eyebrows in awe. “Really?”

  “Yeah. I mean, up until now, I’ve been dragging my feet and I can’t deny that all the other times I told you I was writing, I really wasn’t. I always planned to, but I always seemed to get distracted and then I never got anything done. But now I’m really going to do this. I was also thinking that at some point, it would be good for me to purchase a notebook computer. My desktop version is fine but if I had a notebook, I could take it outside or take it anywhere that inspires me to write.”

  “If you finally get going and stick with it, I’ll see what I can do about that.”

  Alicia beamed. “You really mean that?”

  “I do. Especially, if you’re claiming you’re going to have a full draft within the next two months. That is what you said, right?”

  “Something like that.”

  “Well, I’m impressed. And I think it goes without saying that I can’t wait to read it.”

  “I’m a little self-conscious about my work, but I’ll let you read some of it as soon as I feel it’s ready.”

  When they finished eating, Phillip got up and slipped on his jacket. “I won’t be home until after nine or so because I’m staying for the men’s ministry fellowship.”

  “Oh, that’s right. You told me that.”

  Phillip picked up his briefcase and then went over to the sink and kissed her good-bye. “I love you, baby, and I’ll see you tonight.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Alicia had tried her best to forget about Levi but now here she was lying in his bed—again. She’d tried and had succeeded for all of four weeks but then, a couple of days ago, she’d picked up the phone and called him. She’d told him how she missed him and that she really needed to see him. Of course, she hadn’t been sure how Levi was going to respond, but he’d told her how much he missed her, too, and that he wanted her to come right over. He wanted her to come right away—but only if she’d made the decision to leave Phillip and file for a divorce. He’d gone on to say that while he respected her attempt at trying to make her marriage work, it was finally time she realized the inevitable: that she and he and not she and her husband were meant to be together.

  Alicia had gotten in her car and driven to the usual spot, and Levi had picked her up the same as always. She remembered how for the first time since their connecting with each other, they hadn’t cared about it being broad daylight and had kissed fiercely. Alicia remembered how she hadn’t been able to wait for them to drive out to his house, go inside, and make love to each other.

  But the only thing was, even as good as Levi had made her feel, she hadn’t come there for the sex. No, she’d come because she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about all the money she knew he had and how he was the only person who could help her out of the terrible mess she’d gotten herself into. She’d only missed paying bills three months in a row, but already credit card companies were blowing up her cell phone and sending multiple notices to her P.O. box. She hadn’t paid anything this month because she no longer had a job, but she could kick herself for not paying any of them the two months before because if she had, at least she’d only be thirty days behind, and it would be a lot easier for her to catch up. But worse than that, the total balance for all of her debts combined was so astronomical that she still had a hard time believing it was correct. It was difficult for her to fathom it, because for the most part, Alicia barely remembered all that she’d purchased on the credit cards or used the credit lines for in the first place.

  But currently, that was beside the point because what she had to focus on now was making sure that Phillip never found out how deeply in debt they were. She had to make sure he never found out about her forging his name every chance she’d gotten. She had to do whatever it was she had to do, regardless of how morally right or wrong it was.

  It was true that she hated using Levi, but she didn’t see where she had any other choice because she still couldn’t bring herself to ask her parents or Melanie for help. She wished she could, but no matter how she’d tried to weigh things, she knew they would never understand and that they would forever remind her how they’d told her this was eventually going to happen if she didn’t stop spending so much money.

  Levi had dozed off for a few minutes but now his eyes were open. He blinked a few times, looked at her, and sensed something was wrong. “Sweetheart, what’s the matter?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Come on now. You’re not looking all down and out for no reason. Right?”

  Alicia wasn’t sure if this was the proper time to tell him or not, especially since she’d just started seeing him again two days ago, but she went for it.

  “I’ve really gotten myself into a major bind with my bills and now that I’m not working, I don’t know what I’m going to do. I have no clue how to see my way out of this awful situation.”

  “How much exactly do you owe?”

  “You mean every month?”

  “No, I mean total.”

  Alicia didn’t know how he was going to react but went ahead and answered.

  “Thirty-five thousand dollars.”

  Levi’s eyes widened and Alicia loo
ked away.

  “Sweetheart, that’s a lot of money.”

  Alicia was too embarrassed to comment.

  “Are these bills in just your name, or are they joint accounts with your husband?”

  “Both.”

  “Does he know about any of this?”

  “No.”

  Levi fluffed two pillows and sat up straighter in the bed. “Okay, look, this is the deal. I’ll pay off everything that you owe, but only if you tell your husband tonight that you want a divorce from him and you hire an attorney first thing on Monday to handle it.”

  Alicia’s stomach churned because while she knew she wasn’t going to do anything of the kind, she had no choice but to agree with whatever Levi wanted because she really needed that money.

  “Fine. I’ll tell him as soon as I get home, and I’ll also call a lawyer.”

  “I hope you really mean that because I’m very serious about you filing for a divorce. As a matter of fact, I’ve never been more serious about anything. So, please don’t play games with me. Don’t tell me you’re going to do this if you’re not.”

  “I wouldn’t do that.”

  “Good, because remember I told you right from the start that I don’t take kindly to people who lie to me.”

  “I’m really going to tell him when I get home. I promise.”

  “And?”

  “And I’m calling an attorney on Monday.”

  Levi smiled. “That’s my girl. And, hey, I know this isn’t going to be easy for you, but just know that you really are doing the right thing.”

  Alicia hated this. She hated lying to him and lying to Phillip, and she hated admitting the worst thing of all: that sadly, she was her father’s daughter. She hated the fact that after only being married for nine months, she was already lying and sleeping around, the same as her father had done for so many years.

  Levi drew her into his arms. “I also have one other condition.”

  “What?”

  “I need you to tell me that you love me.”

  Alicia felt like dying but then reluctantly spoke as convincingly as she could, “I love you.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yes. I’m positive.”

  “Then, from this day forward, I’ll do whatever it takes to make you happy. I’ll do anything for you.”

  Alicia wished she could break and run from this place, but she knew she couldn’t think about doing anything of the sort until Levi gave her some money. Plus, she needed to know just how much he was planning on giving her today.

  “Are you really going to pay off the entire thirty-five thousand?”

  “Eventually. But for now, I’m going to give you five, so you can catch everything up and also so you can pay the retainer to whatever attorney you decide to go with. Although, actually, now that I’m thinking about it, it might just be easier if I pay my own attorney to take care of this. I’m not sure if he does divorces but even if he doesn’t, he can easily assign it to another attorney at his firm.”

  Alicia didn’t like what he was saying because if Levi paid his own attorney, she’d have no choice but to really file for a divorce. There would be no way to delay it as she was planning.

  “I disagree because I just think it would be best if I find my own representation.”

  “But that’s not necessary, because not only will my guy take care of everything, he’ll do it as quickly as possible. Not to mention, I’ve dealt with him for years and I trust him completely. The other thing is that he’ll probably start the process without any up-front payment because I already pay him a monthly retainer for other services. As a matter of fact, knowing him, he probably won’t charge anything for this at all, but let me just check to make sure.”

  When Alicia saw Levi reaching for the phone on his nightstand, her heart sunk. Oh no, what is he doing?

  “Hi, Shelley, this is Levi Cunningham. Is he in?”

  Alicia prayed and prayed that he wasn’t.

  “No problem. Just tell him that I called and that I have a personal matter that I need to discuss with him.”

  Alicia couldn’t hear what the woman was saying to him but she guessed that with today being Friday, the attorney wouldn’t be returning Levi’s call until Monday.

  “You have a great weekend,” he said and hung up. “He’s away with his family up at their cottage in Wisconsin, but I’ll chat with him first thing next week.”

  At this point, Alicia saw no way out. She decided it was just best to go along with the program, get as much money from Levi as she possibly could, and then simply tell him that she’d changed her mind about leaving Phillip. He’d be upset about the way she’d lied to him and led him on, but it wasn’t like he was going to do any harm to her because she still remembered how on the first night they’d slept together, he’d told her that when a person lied to him and it wasn’t business related, all he basically did was drop them from his life and never had another thing to do with them. She was sorry she was going to have to deceive him in such a cold and uncaring way, but there just weren’t any other options. She was sorry, and all she could hope was that he’d one day be able to forgive her. But even if he didn’t, the good news was that she’d only have to sleep with Levi maybe a couple of more times at the most. By then she would have more than enough money to pay the minimum payments for each of her bills over the next few months. Even better, Phillip would never have to find out about anything—not about Levi or about the number of times she’d falsified Phillip’s name on credit applications.

  When they finished getting dressed, Levi gave her a stack of hundreds, which she forced into her leather shoulder bag, and they went outside to the garage. Once they were in the car, Levi backed out and headed down the long, winding driveway. There was an iron gate at the end, and as they approached it, Levi pressed a button and the gate slowly moved to the left.

  While they waited for it to open completely, Alicia admired the flawlessly maintained, rich-looking, bright-green lawn and the exquisite water fountain positioned right in the center of it. Levi truly was living the good life, and regardless of how he made his money, Alicia had to give credit where credit was due.

  Levi drove through the gate, closed it, and then a few feet into the street, slammed on his brakes. They screeched loudly, and Alicia’s heart plummeted as she watched, in what seemed like slow motion, a massive number of detective vehicles and squad cars closing in on them, one after another.

  “Take that money out of your purse.” Levi said.

  “What?”

  “I said take it out now! Drop it anywhere!”

  Alicia frantically did what she was told and watched countless officers of the law jumping out of their cars, drawing their weapons and holding their positions.

  She watched and knew there was no chance of escaping.

  Chapter 29

  Over the last hour, Alicia had cried a bucket of tears, and she could feel how swollen her eyes were. Now, though, two of the arresting detectives were holding her in a small room with a table and two chairs, and the situation wasn’t pretty. The thirtysomething officer had been standing the entire time and was seemingly treating her pretty nicely, but the fiftysomething gentleman, sitting adjacent to her, had a very nasty attitude. He’d questioned her over and over about one thing or another and was furious because she wouldn’t say anything. She’d kept her mouth shut because after watching enough Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent episodes to last a lifetime, she knew how to protect herself.

  “Look, we know you’re the girlfriend and that you’ve been helping Levi push a ton of drugs through this city,” the mean detective said. “So, why don’t you just make things a lot easier on yourself and tell us everything?”

  Alicia looked at him. “For the hundredth time, I’d like to make my phone call now.”

  “Just as soon as you tell us what we need to know.”

  “I know my rights, so like I said, I want to make my phone call.”


  The elder detective laughed out loud. “For what? So you can lawyer up? So you can buy some time and work on getting your lies together? So you can run home and try to hide some of that dope and the thousands of dollars you’ve been making off it? Well, if so, little lady, I hate to be the one to tell you, but at this very moment we’re getting warrants so we can search your vehicle and your house.”

  Alicia wasn’t worried about them finding anything because she knew she was innocent but when she thought about Phillip, and how hurt he was going to be, she burst into tears. She hadn’t thought she had any more tears left to shed, but here they were showering down her face again.

  The nice cop unfolded his arms and walked closer to her. “Okay, fine, one phone call.”

  Alicia wiped her face with both hands, slid her chair back, stood up, and walked outside the room. The officer directed her to an empty cubicle and stood a few feet away.

  Alicia picked up the phone and dialed her father’s cell.

  “Daddy, it’s me.”

  “Hey, baby girl. What’s up?”

  Alicia tried to contain herself, but she couldn’t.

  “Baby girl, what’s wrong?”

  “I’m…at…the…police…station…and…”

  “You’re what?”

  “Daddy, they arrested me, and I need you to come down here.”

  “Oh my God. Arrested you for what?”

  This was the one question Alicia didn’t want to answer, and she was glad when she heard someone calling her name. When she turned to see who it was, she realized it was Brad.