by Mary Monroe
“I was with a real nice gentleman from Florida. He’s a professor at Florida State. He grew up in San Jose and he’s in town now to attend his twenty-fifth high school reunion. I swear, his request for a date couldn’t have come at a better time. When I got to his suite at the Hyatt, he had a bottle of champagne ready.”
“How was he?”
“Well, even with all the rave reviews other members gave him and the long, thick equipment between his thighs, he was just average to me. He was so nice and he had such a great sense of humor, I enjoyed his company. But I’d rather not see him again.”
“And you shouldn’t. Don’t waste your time on a bad fuck. We’ve both had enough of that. Speaking of the Hyatt in San Jose, my mother-in-law saw you there last month. She just left here.”
“No wonder you sound so tense.”
“I am tense. That woman really gets under my skin. I thought that I’d get used to her, but she irritates me now just as much as she did before Reed and I got married.”
“So what did she have to say about me?”
“She thinks the man she saw you with is married.”
“He is. So what?” Lola laughed. “It’s none of her business. What was the lady dragon doing in the Hyatt hotel?”
“She was having lunch with her flower garden club.”
“Well, it won’t be the last time I go to a hotel room to hook up with a man. And I hope she didn’t spook you.”
“She didn’t. If she, or anybody else, ever spots me in a hotel with a man, I’ll say I was there having lunch with a friend from out of town who was a guest in the hotel.” I laughed. “If we can make people believe that bullshit Liza Mae ruse, we can make them believe anything.” The words were rolling out of my mouth so fast I had to clear my throat. “Would you believe Mother Riley had the nerve to call me selfish because I told her I didn’t want another child yet?”
“What’s it to her? She had only one child.”
“She had a hysterectomy shortly after she had Reed. She claims she wanted several more.”
“Oh. Well, if having a lot of kids was such a big deal to her, she could have adopted some.”
“Tell me about it.” I let out a loud breath. “Have you heard from Calvin again yet?”
“No, I haven’t. But I hope he doesn’t forget about me. The more I look at his picture on his profile page, the more I want to see him.”
Chapter 33
Joan
I WAS GLAD OUR CONDO WAS SO BIG. THERE WERE A LOT OF PLACES I could go when I didn’t want to be in Reed’s presence. We had three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a game room, a library, and a huge living room that was connected to the dining area.
Saturday morning I prepared a lavish breakfast. As usual, Reed and Junior took their good old time coming to the breakfast table. And when they did, fifteen minutes after I’d told them everything was ready, I had already eaten. I was still in the kitchen reorganizing the canned goods in the cabinets, putting everything in alphabetical order, which was what Reed expected and monitored a few times each week.
Right after scarfing down a Spanish omelet with a side of fresh fruit, Junior skittered back to his bedroom to chat online with a girl he’d been pursuing for a few weeks. I had eaten all of my New York steak, lobster, and poached eggs, but Reed had put only a dent in the same items on his plate. When I started washing the dishes, he left the kitchen without looking at me or saying a word, and went into the living room.
I planned to do some reading in the library before I tackled the laundry and a few other chores. Before I could make it past the living room, Reed got off the couch and started following me with his cell phone in his hand. “Mother just called. She wants to know what time we’ll be arriving for the barbecue,” he told me.
I stopped in my tracks and looked at my watch. I whirled around so fast to face Reed, my hair flopped forward. “Huh? Is the barbecue today?” I yelped as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
He looked at me like I was crazy. “Joan, we just talked about this last night. How could you forget so soon?”
“I thought the barbecue was next Saturday,” I said, blinking.
“Today is just a little backyard get-together with a few close friends. Next Saturday, Mother and Father are hosting a formal dinner party at the country club to celebrate their forty-fifth wedding anniversary. They’re having the barbecue today because Reverend Sharpe and his wife are leaving for a three-week cruise to Hawaii in a couple of days. You said you might not go to the country club next week because your book club is having their monthly meeting at the same time.”
“Oh, yeah,” I said, slapping the side of my head. “I guess I forgot. Well, I can go to the barbecue today. But I’ll have to skip the country club party next week because I had already made plans to attend my book club meeting. . . .”
“I don’t expect you to change your plans for next week, Joan. Now, if you’re going with Junior and me today, you need to start getting ready. I told Mother we’d be there by noon,” Reed said harshly. Then his voice got real low. “I hope you won’t disappoint Mother again by not coming with us.”
“I’ll start getting ready right away.” I hurried to my bedroom closet to find something suitable to wear. It was March and the temperature was in the mid-seventies, which meant it was not warm enough for me to wear the outfit I usually wore to outdoor barbecues—shorts and a halter top. I grabbed the first pair of jeans and sweatshirt I saw.
We arrived at my in-laws’ house in Monterey a few minutes before noon. After we greeted the other dozen guests on the spacious backyard patio, Reed ducked into the house. He returned a few minutes later wearing a bibbed apron and grinning from ear to ear. My silver-haired father-in-law, who was still quite handsome despite his wrinkled face, a lazy eye, and a pot belly, stepped aside and let Reed take over the grill.
A couple of the female guests complimented me on my figure and hair, and one even told me she had come to the barbecue only because she heard I’d be attending. I was actually enjoying myself. Everybody was having such a good time, it was hard for me not to. And out of respect for Reverend Sharpe, I retired the sullen look I’d had at home.
Reed was in his element. Every time I looked in his direction, he winked and blew me a kiss. Just as I was about to fix myself a plate, Mother Riley beckoned for me to follow her back into the house.
As much as I loved my in-laws’ sprawling, cream-colored Spanish-style house, which was located on a street lined with palm trees in a gated community, I rarely enjoyed my visits. For one thing, Mother Riley was a show-off. She liked to brag about her antique furniture and imported carpets and how much money she spent on every item she purchased. Today was an exception. So far, she had not done any bragging.
A few seconds after we entered the kitchen, she lit into me. “Joan, of all the clothes you must have by now, why are you dressed like that?”
I gave her a puzzled look and a shrug. “Dressed like what?”
“Like a . . . like one of those cheap wenches from the projects!”
I experienced the same kind of brain freeze that I experienced when I drank a Slurpee too fast. I shuddered and shook my head. “What are you talking about? There is nothing cheap or wenchy about a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans. Reed is wearing a sweatshirt and jeans too!”
Mother Riley glanced out the window, then back at me. “A man can wear a loincloth and nobody would care. You’re a woman, a married woman. The clothes you have on were made for a much smaller woman. Just look at you. That sweatshirt is hugging your bosom like a straitjacket.” There was a grimace on her face as she gazed at my chest and shook her head. “Your breasts are jutting out all over the place. And I would think that you’d want to hide that bubble butt of yours in something more loose fitting, like a skirt or a muumuu like the one I have on. Didn’t you see the lewd look on Reverend Sharpe’s face when you hugged him? And when you walked by him a few minutes ago in those skin-tight jeans with your rump jiggling like Jell-O, I tho
ught his eyes were going to pop out of his head. The man’s a preacher!”
“The man’s a man, Mother Riley.”
“And what’s that supposed to mean?”
“You know what it means.”
“Shame on you, Joan! I know you come from a crude environment, but I am appalled to hear you imply that a man of the cloth is having ungodly thoughts about another man’s wife. You have stooped really low this time, but I guess you can’t help yourself. From what I’ve heard about how loosey-goosey you were when you were a teenager, I’m sure you were not a virgin when you latched on to my son.”
“No, I wasn’t a virgin, but Reed wasn’t either,” I pointed out. “And from what I’ve heard, he was one of the biggest man-whores in town before he met me.”
“Young lady, that’s my son you’re talking about! Shame on you!” I hadn’t seen my mother-in-law shed a tear since the day I married her son. She screwed up her face and started boo-hooing like a baby. And I felt like shit. When Reed walked into the kitchen a few seconds later, I had my arms around Mother Riley, patting her on the back and telling her how sorry I was for upsetting her again.
“What’s going on in here? What did you do to Mother, Joan?” Reed asked, rushing across the floor. He looked like an idiot wearing that bibbed apron with KISS THE COOK in big, bold, black letters across the front.
“I was just telling Joan how happy I am that she was able to make it to the barbecue,” Mother Riley choked.
“Oh?” Reed glanced from me to her with a skeptical look on his face. “So those are tears of joy, huh?”
“Yes, son.” Mother Riley sniffed, dabbed at her eyes with the tip of her finger, blinked a few times, and forced a smile. Then she pranced over to the counter and lifted a large tray of dinner rolls. “I’d better take these outside right now,” she said as she slowly backed out of the kitchen door.
Reed looked at me and hunched his shoulders. “Well, honey, you’ve made Mother very happy today and I can’t thank you enough. However, I still think you need to spend more time with her.”
“Reed, I don’t have a lot of time on my hands. I have a very busy life.”
“Tell me about it. But it’s what’s keeping you busy that’s the problem. It’s bad enough you spend so much time with your hard-partying family and Lola. Not to mention what’s her name—that woman in a wheelchair. You shop for hours at a time, several times a week. Now you’ve joined a book club!”
“Well, I’d rather be doing all of that than spending time with your mother.”
Reed’s eyes got big and his jaw dropped open so wide his mouth looked like a Big Dipper.
“The only thing you’re not doing is sleeping with other men! Or have you crossed that bridge already?”
“Oh, please! How many more times are you going to bring up this subject? I have never cheated on you and I never will. Don’t you know that by now?”
Reed folded his arms and got within inches of my face. “Look me in the eye and tell me you would never cheat on me!”
I held my breath and blinked first. Then I looked him in the eye and said, “I’ve never cheated on you and I never will.” I put so much emphasis on my words and I sounded so convincing, I almost believed the lie myself.
He looked into my eyes for what seemed like an eternity. “Are you sure about that?”
“Of course I’m sure.”
“Joan, please don’t lie to me.”
“And that’s another thing. I’ve never lied to you.” Had I been Pinocchio, my nose would have grown halfway across the room. I pictured that, and it made me snicker.
“Oh, so this is funny to you?”
“No, it’s not funny. I just thought of something funny. Did you notice those baggy shorts Sister Wilson is wearing today?”
“See there? You can’t even keep your mind focused on me when I’m talking to you.”
“Reed, I would never cheat on you or leave you for another man. I know how serious you are about us breaking up. Especially after your, uh, accident with those pills.”
“Accident, my ass. I tried to kill myself. The thought of you being with another man drove me to do it. If I ever find out you’re cheating on me, I won’t be responsible for my actions.”
Chapter 34
Joan
“REED, I DON’T KNOW WHAT ELSE I CAN DO OR SAY TO MAKE you believe me. And no matter what I do say, you’re going to believe what you want to believe anyway.” I folded my arms and leaned against the counter.
He placed his hands on his hips, pressed his lips together, and blinked a few times. “I know how much you like sex, Joan. And I know how easy you are. You had sex with me just a few hours after I met you.”
“A lot of women have sex on the first night they meet a man they like.”
“I don’t give a damn what ‘a lot of women’ do.”
“What is your point?”
“You didn’t waste any time jumping into bed with me. You were so frisky, you almost wore me out.”
“That was because I really liked you, Reed.”
“I guess you did! What will happen if you meet another man you really like? Will you have sex with him too? Your own sister told me about all the boys you fooled around with when you were in high school.”
I looked around the room and then toward the doorway that led to the patio. All we needed was for Mother Riley, or her dirty-minded preacher, to walk in and hear us discussing our sex life. “Are you ever going to let me forget what I was like when I was a teenager?”
Reed wiped his forehead, even though there was no sweat on it. “Despite all your flaws, I still love you, Joan.” Then he looked at me in a way that he or no other man ever looked at me before. He tilted his head to the side, winked, and smiled, then kissed the tip of his finger and pressed it against my lips. I was so touched, my heart began to beat like mad. “You are so sexy, I get hotter than hell just thinking about you when we’re not together.” Reed leaned closer to me and started whispering. “Some days I sneak into my office restroom and masturbate with a picture of you in my hand. I can’t wait to get you back home. We’re going to fuck like porn stars.”
“Reed, please stop talking nasty. You’re embarrassing me.” I was pleased to hear that he found me so appealing. I was tempted to wrap my arms around him and cover his lips with mine. But I couldn’t. Our marriage was beyond repair and I didn’t want to confuse him, or give him false hope. I lowered my head and stared at the floor. He lifted my chin and kissed me.
The look of love suddenly left his face. His pupils looked like drops of pitch-black ink, which was scary because his eyes were brown. In the next breath he said the last thing I wanted to hear. “I’ve told you many times before, but I’ll tell you again; I will not go on if you ever leave me. . . .”
I shook my head and stomped my foot so hard the pans hanging from the ceiling rattled. “Oh, please! Here we go again!” I snapped.
“I mean it, Joan. My life is in your hands.” Reed shook his finger in my face and gave me a stern look. “And I won’t use pills the next time! I’ll take myself out in the worst possible bloody way and I’ll do it right in front of you so you’ll never forget what you made me do!”
I covered my ears but I could still hear his ominous words. I shuddered and gave him an exasperated look. “I’ve heard enough of your insane foolishness. I’m going back outside.”
“Just remember what I told you.”
One thing I never wanted to do was get violent with Reed. But he was pushing me in that direction. About three weeks ago, I dreamt I tried to cut off his dick with a dull knife so I could inflict as much pain as possible. That dream haunted me for days. The last thing I wanted to do was cause him even more pain, physical or mental. In the meantime, I had no choice but to continue going on about my business as usual.
Instead of going back outside, I brushed past him and rushed into the nearest bathroom. The only reason I didn’t have myself a good cry was because when I did, my eyes got red and pu
ffy. I stared in the mirror above the sink and asked myself, “How much longer are you going to allow yourself to be so miserable?” This was a question I had been asking myself for years, and I still couldn’t answer it.
I managed to get through the rest of the afternoon with a smile on my face. But only because I gulped down two bottles of beer and two glasses of wine. I had to be tipsy in order to take Mother Riley aside and apologize for upsetting her earlier. She was pleased and receptive. She even gave me a big hug. “Joan, let’s just forget about that little incident in the kitchen,” she told me as she rubbed my back. “My son is happy with you, and that’s all that really matters.” I had to blink very hard to hold back my tears. “Maybe someday you’ll be the kind of daughter-in-law I’ve always dreamed about. But until then, I have to accept you the way you are.”
Right after I heard Mother Riley’s last statement, I told Reed that I was ready to leave. Even though she gave me another hug and thanked us for coming, she did so with a smirk on her face. I was glad Reed was aware of her behavior. He mentioned it right after we piled into his Lexus and headed home. He started talking in a steely tone of voice. “I noticed how annoyed Mother looked every time she looked in your direction. She even rolled her eyes at you a couple of times.”
“Huh? Well, I’m surprised to hear that she was doing that.”
“I was surprised too because you two had had such a nice little encounter in the kitchen earlier. Somebody must have said something nasty to her, because I noticed that she also looked at a few other people the same way. Maybe she had a little too much to drink.”
“Maybe she did,” I mumbled.
“But at least you two are getting along better now. I hope things keep moving in that direction.”
“They will,” I said. And I really meant it. Mother Riley’s birthday was coming up next month, and I planned to do something special for her. I was determined to improve our relationship.
“And another thing, I want you to be more people-friendly when we go out in public together.”