Former Rain-Forsaken Box Set

by Vanessa Miller

  Yet, Elizabeth felt ashamed that she had never allowed Kenneth to enjoy time spent with his mother. He was always busy breaking up an argument. She couldn’t change the past, but today, she would give him this time with his mother. She not only endured her insults in silence, she went one better than that; she grinned and took it.

  Kenneth got a call on his cell phone, and the grinning stopped. She heard him say, “I thought I told you not to call me. I’m with my family.” He hung up the cell phone and turned to Elizabeth. “I’m going to get this number changed.”

  “If you hadn’t given it out in the first place, you wouldn’t have to worry about changing it now,” Elizabeth stated.

  He changed the subject. “My cousin, Mark, wants us to stay with them. Is that alright with you?”

  Elizabeth wondered if her dysfunctional family was ready to share living quarters with someone else. But hey, it was Kenneth’s family. If he wasn’t ashamed of all their drama, why should she sweat it. “That’s fine.”

  ***

  Outside of Nina, Mark and Tina Smith had to be the nicest people Elizabeth had ever met. They were warm, friendly and inviting. It wasn’t so much what they said, they just seemed to have a quality about them that made people feel comfortable. Elizabeth took her shoes off and walked to the kitchen to help Tina fix a snack for the family. In her head, she could hear her mother saying, “Girl, what’s wrong with you? Where’s your home training? Put those shoes back on.” But, to tell the truth, even though Elizabeth had only been in the Smith’s house thirty minutes, she felt like she was home.

  “How long have you and Mark been married?” Elizabeth asked Tina while she put mustard on a couple of sandwiches.

  “Twenty-seven years,” Tina replied with a big grin on her face.

  “Wow! How’d you survive?”

  “What do you mean?”

  Elizabeth looked over at her husband. He was playing with the girls, and well out of earshot. “Kenneth and I have been married for only seven years.” She hesitated for a moment. “Put it like this – some days, I’m glad we don’t keep a gun in the house.”

  Tina laughed.

  Mark looked up. “Hey, what’s so funny in there?”

  “You just entertain your cousin and leave us alone,” Tina joked with her husband, then turned back to Elizabeth. “Every marriage has its ups and downs. Believe me, you don’t go through twenty-seven years of marriage without going through the fire a time or two. You’ll get through it.”

  Elizabeth’s eyes moistened and a tear rolled down her cheek. Embarrassed, she turned away from Tina.

  “Are you okay?”

  Elizabeth shook her head.

  Tina handed Elizabeth a paper towel, then asked, “Do you remember the Bible story about God telling Abraham that Sarah would conceive a child?

  Elizabeth shook her head again while blowing her nose.

  “Remember how Sarah laughed at God?” Tina asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Anybody with common sense probably would have laughed, right?” Tina leaned against the sink. “Sarah was looking at the situation for what it was. She knew her womb was dried up and that Abraham didn’t have any function in his junction. So how on earth were they going to make a baby?

  “God’s response to Sarah’s laugh is something I always lean on whenever I think I’m faced with a situation that seems immovable.” Tina smiled. “’Is anything too hard for God?’ was all He asked Abraham.”

  “I don’t know, Tina. I think our situation is beyond hope.”

  “I firmly believe that God likes to work in hopeless situations.” Tina patted her on the back. “Just pray and obey God’s Word. The rest is up to Him.”

  “But…”

  “Elizabeth Underwood, is anything too hard for God?”

  Elizabeth hung her head low, then answered, “No.”

  Tina handed one of the plates to Elizabeth. “You just keep praying. Let God handle the rest. Now let’s get this food out there before they start a riot in here.”

  Elizabeth laughed and followed Tina out of the kitchen. Tina sat some chips and dip on the coffee table, then plopped down next to Mark. He put his arm around his wife and nibbled on her neck. “I think I’d rather have the cook than the food.”

  Tina giggled like a teenager at a high school prom.

  Kenneth watched Elizabeth as she put the sandwiches down in front of him. He looked up at her questioningly.

  She ignored the unspoken question in his eyes. “Well, eat up,” Elizabeth told the group.

  Elizabeth looked back at their hosts. They were hugged up on one corner of the couch – whispering, grinning and kissing.

  “Kenneth, can you put the girls to bed when they finish?”

  He was still staring at her. Elizabeth thought his eyes were trying to steal the secrets of her mind. “You’re going to bed already?”

  “Yeah, I’m tired,” she turned to the others. “Goodnight everybody. I’ll see you guys in the morning.”

  After several goodnight hugs, Elizabeth took a shower, and escaped into the sanctuary of the guestroom. She pulled a cream nightgown out of her suitcase and put it on.

  Twenty-seven years and they were still lovey-dovey. Until interacting with the Smiths, Elizabeth had almost convinced herself that her and Kenneth’s dysfunction was normal. NORMAL! What a joke. I don’t know how to fix it, Lord. So many things have happened. We’ve hurt each other over and over. How can we move past it when it still hurts so much?

  She turned off the light and climbed into the modest, yet caressing bed, waiting on God to answer her questions. Hoping that it was not too late for her family.

  Kenneth slid into bed with her about an hour later. He pulled Elizabeth close to him and rubbed up against her. “Mmm, you smell good,” he told her as he kissed the back of her neck, his hands skillfully rubbing her inner thighs as he inched her gown up.

  Elizabeth grabbed hold of her gown and pulled it back down.

  Lifting his head off the pillow, Kenneth asked, “What’s wrong?”

  She started to tell him that on days when he wanted sex from his wife, he might want to turn off his cell phone. Instead, she told him, “I’m not in the mood.”

  “You’re not in the mood?”

  She scooted away from him. Is he stupid or something? Come on, Lord. What man in his right mind would think that his wife would want to make love after his girlfriend tracks him down (right in front of his wife) all the way in New Orleans? “No, I’m not.”

  Kenneth plopped his head back on his pillow. “Have it your way, Liz.”

  Elizabeth turned into her pillow and cried. She tried to stop the tears but they flowed freely. Without her permission, she might add.

  “Why are you crying?” Kenneth asked her.

  “I—I d-don’t know.”

  He turned her around to face him. Snot drizzled down her nose. He grabbed some tissue off the nightstand and handed it to her. “I need to know, Liz. You were crying earlier too, when you were in the kitchen with Tina. What’s wrong?”

  She blew her nose, then said, “I just wish I could make you happy.”

  He hit his forehead with his palm. “Oh, so you think withholding sex and crying after I touch you will make me happy?”

  “There’s no need to be a smart aleck,” she smiled at him. “I just think we need to work through our problems before we make love.”

  “Okay. So what problems do we have?”

  “Kenneth, let’s see about your mother right now. We can discuss our problems when we get back home.”

  “I’m not going to get none tomorrow night either?”

  Elizabeth expelled a heavy sigh and turned away from her husband. “Goodnight, Kenneth.”

  ***

  Mark took Kenneth to the gym to work off some steam. The tension had been boiling between Kenneth and Elizabeth the last two nights. Kenneth’s mood was dark.

  They were running on the treadmill when Kenneth opened up. “Man, I d
on’t know what’s wrong with that woman.”

  “Who? Elizabeth?”

  “She won’t let me touch her. As if I don’t have enough to deal with.”

  “Didn’t you tell me that your girlfriend called you while you were visiting Mama Rosa the other day?”

  “Ex-girlfriend,” Kenneth corrected.

  “Does Elizabeth know that?”

  Kenneth stopped the treadmill. He stood there to catch his breath. “Come to think of it, I don’t think I ever told Liz that I broke it off with Denise.”

  “Well, cuz, what you waiting on?”

  “I guess I was trying to hold out – leave myself a little escape room.”

  Mark turned the treadmill off, did a couple stretches then got off the machine. “Do you want room to escape?”

  They got on the bicycles and started pedaling. “I don’t know. Elizabeth is different now. She’s not the same woman I wanted to escape from.”

  “What changed her?”

  Kenneth looked embarrassed. “It feels weird saying this – but – well, Elizabeth got saved a couple months back.”

  “Same thing happened with my wife.”

  Kenneth looked at Mark, imploring him to continue.

  “Yeah. We had just celebrated our twenty-first year of marriage. The kids were away at college. The house was always so quiet, and I started wondering – what’s next? What do we do now?” Mark shook his head and smiled at the memory. “And then one day Tina came home and announced that she accepted Jesus into her heart. Well, I didn’t wonder what to do any more.”

  “What did you do?”

  “Are you kidding, boy. I wasn’t about to let my woman out do me. She was different when she came home – changed. I had always loved her, but man, after she received Jesus – I loved her more. I had to have what she had. So I went down to that church and accepted Jesus myself.”

  Kenneth hunched his shoulders. “How did that make your relationship better?”

  “Well, for one thing, whenever things aren’t going right between me and my Queen, instead of thinking about leaving or finding a replacement – I pray about the situation. God is always there with an answer.”

  “Prayer, huh?”

  “Yeah, and that’s what I suggest you do. And when you get off your knees – wine and dine your wife. Help her to believe that she is the only woman in your life – for the rest of your life.”

  25

  On Christmas Eve, Kenneth brought Elizabeth an arrangement of roses. They were still in New Orleans dealing with his mother’s illness, so Kenneth wanted to do something nice for his wife this evening.

  Elizabeth smiled, “What’s this all about?”

  Kenneth put the roses down in front of Elizabeth, bent over and kissed her cheek. “These are for my baby.”

  “Don’t you think Erin is just a little young to receive roses from a gentleman?”

  “Not that baby,” Kenneth snuggled up next to Elizabeth, “my other baby.”

  Elizabeth laughed. “Danae is way too young for roses.”

  He kissed her neck and slowly moved up to her ear. “Okay, then. I brought the roses for my woman - my wife. What do you say to that, Mrs. Underwood?”

  “I say, thank-” His mouth captured her “you”, as he passionately kissed her. She was engulfed in his heat. She could feel his desire for her, his hunger. It felt good. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

  “Mmm, you feel so good.” He pleasured her mouth again, and pushed her further into the sofa. His hands were delving into recently unchartered areas. “Oh, Liz, I need you.”

  “Kenneth, Kenneth.” Elizabeth pushed at his chest. “Get up. We’re on Tina’s couch for God’s sakes.”

  “So…”

  “So, get up.”

  He moved off of her and tried to quiet the emotions that were running through his sexually deprived body. “Go get dressed. I’m taking you to dinner.”

  “What about the kids?” Why was he doing this?

  “Mark and Tina are going to watch them.”

  “What about your mother? I thought we were going back to the hospital tonight.” Does he really want to spend time with me, alone?

  “I just left Mama. She told me to spend tonight with you.”

  Elizabeth looked shocked. “She did?”

  Kenneth fessed up. “Well, I told her I wanted to spend Christmas Eve with you, and she said that was a good idea.”

  Elizabeth put on the red pantsuit she bought at Casual Corner. She decided not to worry about the reasons why, or what would happen tomorrow. She was going to enjoy herself tonight and let the chips fall where they may. And she had to admit; as she glanced at her reflection in the mirror, she looked good in red. Actually, she looked really good in red.

  Kenneth whistled, when she walked out of the bedroom. “Mmh, I guess I’m going to have to be your bodyguard tonight.”

  Elizabeth smiled.

  He took his wife to NOLA’s, one of New Orleans’ finest restaurants owned by Emeril LaGasse. Elizabeth watched him all the time on the cooking channel, so Kenneth thought she would enjoy visiting his restaurant.

  Kenneth was right. From the time they walked into the restaurant, Elizabeth couldn’t wipe the grin from her face. When the waiters seated them and took their order, Elizabeth put her hand on top of Kenneth’s and rubbed it. “Thank you.”

  “No, thank you. You’ve been wonderful with my mother and I know she can be a handful sometimes.”

  “Who, your mother?”

  Kenneth laughed. “But seriously. I’ve never seen you so restrained. You’re normally going at it with my mother the moment we walk in the door.” He looked at her. She saw the pain in his eyes. “It means a lot to me.”

  She gently stroked the line of his jaw. “I am sorry about this thing with your mother.” He looked away. Why men hated to let their emotions out, she would never know. “But I need you to know that I’m not the wonderful person you think I am. I’ve had to pray real hard so I wouldn’t tell Mama Rosa off.”

  “But you did it.”

  “But I don’t want you to think I’m special because of that. It wasn’t me. Only God could have kept my mouth closed when your Mama told me she had been begging you to leave me for years.”

  “She said that?”

  “She also told me, she was glad you had another woman.”

  Pain etched across Kenneth’s face. “I’m sorry I hurt you.”

  “You know what they say, ‘Time heals all wounds’.” She looked away from him, her eyes glazed over. “I hope they’re right,” she mumbled to herself.

  Kenneth turned her face back towards him. “I’m not seeing her anymore. You believe me, don’t you?”

  She shook her head. “Yeah.” Tonight she was determined not to worry about it, but what about next month – next year?

  Not one, but two waiters walked over to their table and placed a boatload of food in front of them. “Will there be anything else?”

  Elizabeth looked at the waiters. She was impressed. “No, this is fine.”

  Kenneth ordered the grilled prosciutto-wrapped salmon with black pepper-parmesan grits. Yeah, he actually ordered grits and salmon. “This is good.”

  “Good? It’s marvelous!” Elizabeth exclaimed as she bit into another Gulf Shrimp.

  They continued feasting, then Kenneth said, “Mark told me that God helped him keep his marriage together for all these years. Do you think,” he hesitated, “that if I gave my life to Jesus, it would help us?”

  “Yes. But you can’t do this just for me, or even for us. You have to get saved for yourself – that’s the only way it will last.”

  “Yeah, I know that. I just wanted you to know that I’m thinking about it.”

  Finally, after months and months of shedding tears of pain and agony, she was able to shed a few tears of joy.

  “I didn’t mean to make you cry, Liz.”

  “I like to cry when I’m happy.”

  “I might b
e able to give you a few more tears of joy before the night is over.” He shifted his eyebrows suggestively.

  His eyes smoldered, while his loins yearned for the release that only she could give him. Elizabeth smiled. “You really want to be with me?”

  He leaned over and kissed her. “You’re the only one I want, baby.”

  ***

  Mama Rosa died the day after Christmas.

  Elizabeth, Kenneth, Erin and Danae spent Christmas with Mama Rosa. They opened presents, laughed, joked and played around. Kenneth and Elizabeth did more playing than the kids did. Kenneth couldn’t keep his hands off his wife, and Elizabeth wasn’t complaining one bit.

  She caught Mama Rosa looking at them a few times when she was lucid.

  They ate dinner and the kids gave Mama Rosa a big hug. The next morning they were back at the hospital bright and early. The nurse called, she said that it wouldn’t be long.

  Elizabeth held Mama Rosa’s hand. She didn’t have much time, and she knew she had to talk to this woman about her eternal soul. “Lord, forgive me for not doing this sooner.” She looked down at her mother-in-law. Her skin was gray and cold.

  It’s now or never, Elizabeth told herself. “Mama, have you accepted Jesus as your savior?”

  “N” –cough- “never was much f-for church.”

  “Death is not the final resting place, Mama.”

  Mama Rosa gave her a quizzical glance. The best one she could muster in her weak state.

  “No, Mama. It’s only the beginning. When you die, you can be in paradise with Jesus.”

  Kenneth stood behind Elizabeth, listening.

  “Re-really?” Mama Rosa asked.

  “Yes. But you’ve got to make the choice. You have to accept Jesus into your heart. Do you want to be in paradise, Mama?”

  Mama Rosa shook her head.

  Whew! “Okay, I’m going to say a few words, and then I need you to repeat after me. I know it’s hard for you to talk, so just repeat the words in your head. When you finish, blink your eyes, so that we know you’ve said the words.”

  “Say, I believe that Jesus is the Son of God.”