by Pat Simmons
“Humph. There was no way I was going down to that altar, knowing that I’m ready to whip up somebody for messing with my sister.”
“You can’t fight my battles, Nalani.”
“How do you know? I would have given Jet a run for her money. I wish I had been in town when she decided to act a fool.”
There were some things about Nalani that hadn’t changed since they were teenagers: she was still stubborn, had a quick temper, and believed in the cause—whatever it was at the moment.
“All I want is for my sister to follow me to Christ. I’m living the best example that I can.” Karyn just needed to hold it together. She had been praying since she told Levi yesterday. Feasting on the day’s sermon, Karyn felt as if she had left a spiritual spa, rejuvenated with joy. If need be, she would go head to head with the devil. Bring it on!
Less than forty minutes later, Levi called for the fourth time, wondering at the Wallace sisters’ whereabouts. When Nalani turned the corner, Karyn saw Levi standing near the curb in front of his parents’ house like a doorman.
Despite his hat, coat, and gloves, he shivered as the car came to a stop. He opened Karyn’s door first and wrapped her in a smothering bear hug. The coldness on his cheeks was evidence that he had been outside a while. Levi kissed her with desperation as if he hadn’t seen her in weeks instead the day before when he came up to her job to see with his own eyes that Karyn was okay physically and mentally. He stole another peck then spoke to her sister. “Merry Christmas, it’s nice to see you again.”
Nalani laughed as she activated the alarm on her SUV rental. As Levi escorted them up the stairs, Dori was standing in the doorway, grinning and waving.
Karyn relaxed. She hoped the incident wouldn’t put a damper on the holiday. She wondered if the rest of Levi’s family were aware of the incident and Jet’s suspicions. It didn’t matter. After Pastor Scaife’s sermon, she was determined to have a great day.
She knelt and hugged Dori. She oohed and ahhed over her evergreen colored velvet dress and white tights, which had already accumulated a few smudges. As she greeted everyone, more than one of Levi’s family members commented on how she and Levi were matching with red turtlenecks, even his quiet brother. The compliment seemed to kick Levi’s dimples into overdrive. More than once, he stole her away to a spot under the mistletoe. She giggled. Even Seth’s twin Solomon seemed to be in a jovial mood.
Soon, the devil called Karyn’s earlier bluff when the doorbell rang and seconds later, Jesetta Hutchens walked into the living room, appearing larger than life wrapped in her mink coat. Gifts were dangling in her arms. Karyn groaned inwardly as Jet smiled at everyone. Dori screamed her delight at seeing her aunt and the presents she was bearing.
Karyn sucked in her breath. She wasn’t sure if Jet was going to try and finish what she started the other day. Levi felt her stiffen, and he tightened his arm around her while casually using his free hand to sip his punch.
“Jet will apologize. If she even breathes on you too much, she’s out of here.” He lifted a brow. There weren’t any dimples forthcoming this time.
What words were exchanged between Levi and Jet? she wondered. Karyn glanced at Nalani who was chatting with Solomon as if they were old friends.
Jet offered everyone kisses and hugs until she faced Karyn. Jet squinted. “I’m sorry for my actions the other night, Karyn. Please forgive me?” Jet lowered her lashes.
Although Karyn was obligated to forgive, she remained wary. “Yes, I do.”
Nalani made her presence known, coming to stand next to Jet. “Merry Christmas. Remember me?” Nalani gave a camera-ready smile that Karyn knew wasn’t genuine.
“Aunt Jet, Aunt Jet, come see what I got for Christmas.”
Jet turned to her niece and allowed Dori to drag her away. “This isn’t over,” she practically hissed.
“It’s just the beginning,” Karyn mumbled. Without a test, there’s no testimony, Karyn reminded herself. Lord, You do have my back on this, don’t You? Please.
CHAPTER 37
Levi watched the women’s interactions very carefully. It wasn’t unusual for Jet to have her claws out, but she was making a mistake if she thought she would dig them into Karyn. He chuckled at his sweet little woman’s reaction to Jet as if silently saying, Bring it on.
The other day when he had gone to Jet’s house after work, Rossi insisted on coming to serve as a buffer. Within minutes of Levi’s temper flaring, Jet had broken down and apologized profusely for her behavior. She had seemed embarrassed to discuss what had prompted her to snap. The storm that Levi had brought with him frizzled. He empathized with her vulnerability.
“Jet,” Rossi instructed her, “more than anything you need to attend that crime victims grief counseling session before you destroy yourself.”
“I haven’t made the appointment yet.”
“Do it,” the Tolliver men had said in unison.
She had frowned. “Should have figured my big mouth brother-in-law would have said something to the family preacher.” Bowing her head, Jet took a few minutes before meeting Levi’s eyes. “I’ll apologize to Karyn. I know I’ll see her on Christmas at your parents’ house.” Clearing her throat, Jet’s voice had become stronger. “Apologizing doesn’t mean I’m okay with her trying to take Diane’s place. I have the right to be suspect of any woman in my niece’s life.”
Levi had been a minute away from threatening Jet when Rossi shook his head, cautioning Levi not to take her bait, so he had backed down. They hugged and patched up the past twenty-four hours before he walked out of her house, leaving Rossi behind to pray with her.
When the doorbell rang, Levi cleared his head as Rossi entered the living room. He had small gifts packed neatly in a red plastic crate. “Merry Christmas, family, for Jesus is born,” he recited his standard holiday greeting.
What was he doing here? Rossi preferred spending most of the day with his own parents. Making his rounds, his cousin delivered small tokens as gifts. He planted a slender box that probably was a tie on Levi’s lap, then pulled out a box for Karyn.
Levi lifted a brow and pointed. “What is that?”
“It’s not for you, chump,” Rossi taunted then grinned at Karyn. “Merry Christmas, sister.”
She looked from Rossi to Levi. “Oh, I wasn’t expecting…”
“Shh. That’s the best part of a gift. We never expect it. Enjoy,” Rossi whispered.
Every minute with Karyn was humbling. The simplest thing made her smile. Nalani was Rossi’s last stop where he lingered. He seemed enthralled with the other Miss Wallace as he handed her a card.
When Levi glanced at Dori, from the corner of his eye, he caught Rossi mouthing to Karyn, I’m praying for you. Levi frowned. What was that all about? If anybody was going to do any whispering with Karen, his name would be Levi, not Rossi Tolliver.
“I would’ve thought all the gifts under the tree would be opened by now,” Rossi said after he returned to the living room from hanging his coat in the closet.
“Basically, we have. The rest are Karyn’s,” Levi said loud enough to break up the private conference between Karyn and Nalani.
“Mine?” Karyn splayed her fingers on her chest. She glowed. What a vision that was sure to visit him in his sleep. Her hair—without curls or a braid—swept her shoulders. Her stature might be petite, but her curves would tempt a man—him. Her legs were encased in the sheerest stockings he had ever seen.
Nalani didn’t try to mask her delight. Levi earned an ally. There was no mistaking their sisterhood. Both had the same facial structure. Although the younger sister was taller, not by much. Nalani’s hair looked like she had it purposely cut short.
“It’s like a wedding shower,” his mother said as she reclined on the sofa. Crossing her feet at the ankles, she grinned. “I stopped counting at twenty gifts, Karyn.”
The more Levi thought about it, this moment could easily be a scene from a bridal shower he had seen on sitcoms and commercials.
Reaching for her hand, Levi tugged Karyn closer to the decorated tree, which touched the eight-foot ceiling.
Tia elbowed Seth. “Take note, because whatever Levi got Karyn, I want one, too.”
Everyone laughed as Seth grabbed her around her waist and pulled her onto his lap. He whispered something in her ear and laughed.
“Don’t you think you went overboard?” Karyn said in a hushed tone to Levi.
Nalani whispered through clinched teeth. “Just say thank you, girl.”
“Can I talk to you for a moment?” Karyn looked up into his eyes.
Squeezing her hand, they strolled into the marble-covered foyer. Levi guided her to a cozy window seat hidden under a set of stairs. “Is this enough privacy?” He grinned mischievously, stealing a kiss. “Now, what would you like to say?”
“I have a small gift for Dori and an even smaller one for you.” She lowered her lashes. “I wasn’t expecting so much generosity.”
Despite the additional funds Nalani had given Karyn after the sisters reunited, his woman still lived modestly. He teased her chin with a finger and lifted her face. “Babe, those gifts are from my heart, like yours. I kept seeing stuff. Is it my fault that I think of you all the time? If it will make you feel any better, I can return them.”
“And stand in a long, non-moving return line? Nah, I wouldn’t dare put you through that,” she teased, then dragged him back to the living room. “I can’t wait to get started.”
Once in the doorway, Levi clapped. “Okay folks, let the fun begin.”
Dori left Rossi’s side to sit on the floor with Karyn who entertained his daughter by ripping open the wrapping paper and screaming her delight at the gifts she suspected were Dori’s ideas: a Tiana doll from Disney’s the Princess and the Frog movie, a kangaroo stuffed animal, striped stocks and more.
Between the choruses of laughter, Jet mumbled snide comments. Levi shot her a warning glare. After opening her last gift, a tennis bracelet, Karyn hugged Levi and Dori. Then everyone pitched in to gather the discarded wrapping paper.
“Does anyone have energy left to go ice skating at Steinberg Rink?” Rossi assisted Nalani and Jet to their feet.
“I may live in the Midwest, but I’m not one for staying outdoors for any type of activity in December,” Jet stated, shivering.
“I’m with you, sweetie.” Sharon waved her hand. “How about hanging out with me? We can deliver my home-baked cookies to the other Tolliver households.”
Jet shrugged. “Okay.”
“I haven’t been ice skating since I was a little girl.” Karyn grimaced, glancing at Nalani. “I don’t know.” Karyn grabbed her purse. “I need to use the bathroom.”
“I guarantee you, I won’t let you fall,” Levi yelled after her.
When she returned, she briefly whispered to Nalani, then relaxed. Karyn smiled at Levi. “Okay. What are we waiting for? Let’s go.”
They piled into Nalani’s rented SUV. Dori sat in her booster seat, which Levi had retrieved from his car. She quickly occupied herself with her handheld electronic game Rossi gave her. Levi and Karyn sat on either side of her. As Nalani drove, Rossi sat in the passenger seat and gave her directions to nearby Forest Park where the rink was located.
“Are you having a good time?” Levi asked Karyn.
“You have no idea how happy I am right now.”
They arrived at the rink and rented skates. Once they were on the ice, Rossi coaxed Dori to skate with him and Nalani. Levi hadn’t determined if his cousin was doing him a favor or using his daughter as bait with Nalani as he had done with Karyn.
“I apologize for my sister-in-law. I’ll keep her in check.”
Karyn covered his lips with her hand. “Shhh. She apologized. I want to move on.”
“You amaze me with the amount of charity in your heart for people. That’s why I went ballistic on Jet.”
“Today has been so beautiful, and I don’t want to complain because you’ve been so good to me.”
“Did you enjoy your presents?”
She nodded, chuckling. “Yes, all twenty-seven of them.”
“The jewelry box? The house shoes, the bracelet…” When Levi leaned in to kiss Karyn, a skater zoomed by, causing him to lose his footing and fall. Rossi barked out a laugh in the distance. Karyn giggled, helping him up. He would be aching later, but once he remembered how he got hurt, he would smile through the pain.
CHAPTER 38
Buttercup’s moving out-moving on-and-getting-gone party was winding down at New Beginnings. In three days, her stay would be a memory by the time the clock struck midnight to announce another year. “Girl, I hope you get a sane roommate like me.” She grinned, adjusting her gold headband, which matched her pantsuit.
“I wouldn’t trade you for anybody,” Karyn stated. Her roommate had been her voice of reason and insanity when it came to beauty experiments. Pouring more punch and helping herself to some finger sandwiches, Karyn was starved, having had to work through her break because the bookstore was bombarded with customers making returns or cashing in their holiday gift cards.
Refusing Levi’s offer for a ride home, Karyn had insisted on taking the bus home. If he had known about Buttercup’s party, Levi might have expected an impromptu invitation. His curiosity would be piqued once she explained men were not allowed inside unless they were family.
“Please talk to Levi,” Buttercup became sober. “Look how he stood up for you with that Jet woman.”
Karyn smiled. “He did, but families can kiss and makeup. Girlfriends can be cut and replaced.” Switching the subject, Karyn wouldn’t miss Buttercup’s soapbox on Levi. “The parole board did grant you and Halo permission to get married, right?”
“Yes, indeedy. We ex-felons can wed. Thank God we don’t have to get the okay to have babies,” she said dryly.
“It’s the price we pay for breaking the law.” Karyn sighed. Once a felon, always an ex-felon, or so they say. That would never change.
“I know what you’re thinking. We can’t worry about what labels society puts on us. We just have to roll with it.” Buttercup held Karyn’s eye contact. “Repeat after me, While we were yet in weakness…powerless to help ourselves, at the fitting time Christ died for the ungodly…”
Karyn finished quoting Romans 5: 6-8 with her friend.
“Now, don’t you feel better?” Buttercup grinned. “Back to Levi. You are going to tell him, right?”
“Yes!” Karyn filled her mouth with gourmet meatballs. Buttercup was wearing her down.
“When?”
“When the time is right,” Karyn mumbled, still chewing.
Buttercup twisted her lips in doubt. “I don’t believe in perfect timing, or at least it never worked for anyone behind bars who committed a crime. We still got caught.”
***
It was a good thing Karyn stuffed her face the night before because she would be fasting the entire day. After getting out of bed that morning, she stayed on her knees a little longer, crying out to God for wisdom.
At work, she meditated on every Word God had spoken since she started dating Levi. Determined to stay focused on God throughout the day, Karyn recalled scriptures about salvation. She was helping a toddler with a jigsaw puzzle when Patrice got her attention. Taking a deep breath, Karyn went to see what she wanted.
“You know that new girl they just hired?” Patrice mumbled, not waiting for Karyn to answer. “She has two kids and this is her first job off welfare…” She tsked. “They let anybody work here. I hope we won’t have baby-mamma drama up in here.”
Shaking her head, Karyn walked away. She refused to fill her mind with petty gossip, but rather something positive as she had read the other day in Philippians 4.
Late afternoon as she neared the home stretch of her fast, God spoke to her. Her hearted pounded at His request. Clocking out, Karyn took her final break. “Lord, I believe this is Your will although I don’t understand why me. I ask Your blessings for being obedient.” She whispere
d amen and tapped Levi’s number on her phone. She might as well get this out of the way.
“Yes, dear,” he cooed. Levi never made her feel as if she was disturbing him.
“Hi.” She swallowed. “I need a favor,” she said tentatively.
When he chuckled, she imagined his dimples. “You’ve got it. What’s up?”
“I would like Jet’s number, please.”
“Karyn, I would give you the moon or anything else within my power. But my sister-in-law is not in a good state of mind right now. The holidays have always been hard. It’s been particularly rough for her now, probably because I have you and she has nobody. She’s become a pro at pushing people away.” He exhaled. “This is my first official no…wait a minute. Has she said anything to upset you again?”
Jet is My lost sheep. Minister to her, God had instructed her.
It was definitely God speaking, because Karyn preferred to avoid Jet at all costs, and she shared that with Levi until he conceded, but only after confirming he was still picking her up from work. Disconnecting, it was Karyn’s turn to take a deep breath.
Tapping in Jet’s number, Karyn’s heart pounded in fear of the impending conversation. “But I trust You, Jesus,” she whispered repeatedly.
“Hey, Levi,” Jet answered. “When did you get a new cell number?”
Caller ID. “This isn’t Levi, Jet. It’s Karyn.” She waited for the surprise to sink in. She didn’t offer that this was her cell number. “Do you have a few minutes to talk?”
“I’ve already apologized. Leave it there. What else is there to talk about?”
“You stormed into my workplace, hurling accusations in front of my customers? It might not be the corner office, but it’s still my income.” Karyn had to get that off her chest. God forgive me, she asked. “I don’t want to be your enemy.”