by Nyora René
“Whatever happened, she didn’t come to me or Amethyst. She went straight to Jade. My advice to you? Wait until she comes back. Give her this time to get her thoughts in order and you take this time to clear your mind and gather your thoughts. Obviously, something major happened between you two to send her fleeing from the country. I can see with my own eyes the tiredness in yours and yes, the anger and hurt. Take this time to get yourself together.”
He stood and she followed suit. “Yeah, thanks, Ruby,” he told her quietly, walking to the door.
Her hand on his arm stopped him from moving forward. “Get some rest. You know Crystal can be impulsive, and this last-minute trip reeks of impulsivity encouraged by Jade. When she comes back, you two can hash out whatever happened. But know this, if you hurt my sister, I will come after you when you least expect it.” She narrowed her eyes at him.
He chose not to respond, choosing instead to simply open the door and walk out. He was the villain in this scenario, and he accepted his role, but Ruby didn’t know shit and her threat annoyed him. He was grateful for her help, but if she thought her little warning and lawyer tactics would scare him, she really didn’t know him at all.
Crystal strolled along the beach, enjoying the warm weather and the pretty turquoise water. Today was her fifth and last day in the country. Whenever Jade left for work after they shared breakfast, she’d pack a bag with snacks and water and escape to the beach. The resort they were at provided beach lounge chairs and umbrellas for them to lay on. After the first day when her solitude was constantly disrupted by guys trying to talk to her, she’d gone ahead and reserved a cabana. She spent her mornings meditating and snapping pictures for her blog and social media pages. She would upload them once she returned home, not wanting to give her location away lest Brendon was monitoring her pages. She walked back to the bungalow for lunch and afterwards responded to a few business emails.
Pausing at the edge of the shore, the sun kissing the skin that wasn’t covered by her tribal print yellow bikini, Crystal looked over the vast expanse of beautiful water before her. She’d opted to leave her hair down and the curls blew in the gentle breeze, teasing her shoulders and upper back. Her feet sank into the white sand as water tickled her toes as it ebbed to and fro.
She sighed, her thoughts on Brendon. She missed him so much. Now that she had time to think, she realized that she shouldn’t have left. Her running away would not solve her problems, and she could only imagine how her disappearing act made him feel.
“Crys!”
Crystal jerked her head up. Jade was jogging down the beach, oblivious to the stares she elicited in her coral one-piece with cutouts at the sides, her sarong parting with each stride to reveal toned honey legs.
“You’re back early,” Crystal said when Jade came to a stop beside her.
“Yeah, we wrapped up early today. There’s a wrap party later tonight, but I declined and told them you and I had plans already. After being around the same people for the last three weeks, I’m tired of seeing them.”
Crystal laughed and Jade joined in. “Tired of the beautiful ones?”
Jade scoffed. “More like tired of the arrogant and entitled ones.”
“So, what are these plans you mentioned?” Crystal asked.
Jade eyed her and didn’t say anything for a few moments.
Crystal’s forehead crinkled and she tilted her head to the side. “What?”
“We’re going to have a girls’ night in. Your flight leaves tomorrow morning at ten, and you need to be at the airport by eight. Besides, we need to have some quality alone time together. Every night, with the exception of the first night you came, we’ve been out exploring Zanzibar,” Jade said.
Silently, they turned and started walking back towards the resort. Crystal stopped at her cabana a few feet away and picked up her bag. Once they were on the grounds of the resort, they made their way to Jade’s bungalow.
Entering, Jade opened the doors leading to the deck while Crystal put her bag on the table.
“I was thinking we could order in. Have a few drinks and talk,” Jade said.
Crystal frowned. “What else do you want to talk about that we haven’t already discussed?”
Jade arched an eyebrow. “Don’t play stupid, sis, it doesn’t fit you. We’ve talked about everything under the sun except what happened between you and Brendon, and I’ve allowed you to not mention him.”
Crystal’s eyes widened and she sat on the bed, immediately jumping up when Jade glared at her and then at the bed. “Allowed?”
Jade sighed. “Come on, Crystal, you know what I meant. Stop diverting attention away from the topic by focusing on petty words instead of the heart of the matter—you and B.”
“I’m going to shower and change. If we’re going to have this conversation, I’d at least like to be clean and relaxed,” Crystal said, moving towards her bags, which she’d packed that morning. She pulled out the loungewear she’d placed on top of her travel outfit.
“Cool, I’ll order some appetizers, a pitcher of margaritas, and some entrees, and tell them to bring them in an hour. I’ll hop in once you’re done,” Jade said, moving towards the dining table and picking up the leather-bound folder that had the menu for the resort’s restaurant.
“Ooh, get me that seafood cocktail appetizer and for sure the mahi-mahi dish. Go ahead and add the chocolate cake, too, please,” Crystal said, entering the bathroom.
“Don’t take too long in there, I need to shower too,” Jade called after her, picking up the phone to order their meals.
Crystal decided against taking a bath and instead opted for the rain shower head so she could wash her hair. She quickly showered and took care of her hair, not wanting to hear Jade complain about her hogging the bathroom. Once she’d finished, she detangled her hair and braided it into two French braids, washed her face, and put on a pair of skimpy black shorts and matching tank top.
“All done!” she said as she walked out of the bathroom with her swimsuit in her hands.
Jade grabbed her change of clothes and entered the bathroom as Crystal placed her bikini over the chair near the sliding glass doors that led to the deck. It would need to dry before she could pack it.
Crystal sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed cocoa butter over her limbs. Her mind went back to when Brendon had performed this chore and she closed her eyes at the memory, her nipples tightening as she also recalled what happened afterwards.
“I miss him so much,” she whispered, closing her eyes as tears filled them.
She was the one who chose to leave, but she could now admit that wasn’t the right course of action. She flopped back on the bed with her legs still draped over the side, memories of the heaven she experienced with Brendon, once they finally acknowledged their feelings for each other, running through her mind like a movie reel. She’d been blissfully happy until Eloise dropped her bomb.
“You thinking about Brendon?” Jade asked as she walked out of the bathroom, towel drying her auburn and gold mane.
“That was quick,” Crystal said, ignoring her question.
Jade shook her head and tossed the towel on the chair that Crystal’s swimsuit was draped across. “Yeah, you were thinking of him because I was in the shower for fifteen minutes.”
Crystal scooted back and sat cross-legged against the bamboo headboard. Jade came to sit beside her and neither spoke for a few moments.
Jade broke the silence. “Crys, you know I love you and have your back no matter what, but I wouldn’t be a good sister if I didn’t let you know when you were in the wrong.” She gathered one of Crystal’s hands and held it in hers.
“I know I should have stayed instead of running away. I need to acknowledge that bit of immaturity,” Crystal said, leaning heavily against the headboard.
“What else are you acknowledging?” Jade prodded her, squeezing her hand.
Crystal frowned and she looked at Jade. “That’s it.”
Jade sighed and
looked up at the ceiling. “Girl, let’s unpack. Why are you mad at Brendon?”
Crystal’s mouth dropped open and she uncrossed her legs, sitting up in the bed. “Are you serious? He didn’t tell me about the baby! Then he had that bitch in his office all in his face. What do you mean, why am I mad?”
“First of all, he didn’t have to tell you about the baby,” Jade said. She held up a hand when Crystal’s mouth dropped open.
“He didn’t have to tell…” Crystal trailed off incredulously.
Jade shook her head. “No, he didn’t. He didn’t cheat on you. He wasn’t with you. You were just his friend. Your reaction to him not telling you was extreme and overblown.”
Crystal opened and shut her mouth several times, blinking rapidly. It took her several tries before she could speak. “We may not have been together, but we were best friends. How could he not tell me?”
Jade shrugged. “Easy. You weren’t his woman then. It technically wasn’t your business. That extremely sensitive information wasn’t just about him, but about his ex as well. I understand being a little hurt he didn’t confide in you, but you took your upset too far. You need to acknowledge the root of your anger.”
“Oh wise one, since you know everything, why am I so angry?” Crystal asked sarcastically.
“I detect your sarcasm, but I’m going to keep it real, so don’t interrupt. You’re upset because you’re jealous. Uh-uh, remember I told you not to interrupt. You are jealous because you wanted to be the only woman to carry his child, and now you know you weren’t. Your reaction was that of someone who had been cheated on, not someone who was a friend.” Jade grabbed her hand again and tugged until she had Crystal’s full attention.
“You think I’m jealous?” Crystal asked her, shaking her head.
“Yes, you’ve never done well with sharing. You’ve never liked any woman Brendon has dated, not only because you had feelings for him, but because you had to share him with his exes. You thought that since he confided in you, probably more than he did his girlfriends, that your relationship with him was better—maybe even more important—than his relationship with them. So finding out he got Eloise pregnant and that he hid it from you rocks your belief that you two knew everything about each other and that another person, a woman, knew something that you did not.” Jade released her hand and wrapped an arm around her.
A knock had both sisters swiveling their heads towards the door.
“That must be the food,” Crystal murmured, rising from the bed.
“Go to the table, I’ll get the food,” Jade said, standing and rounding the bed.
While Jade let the staff in to set the food up on the table, Crystal sat down in the wooden dining chair, smiling at the waiter as he greeted her. Once they’d set everything up and the staff left after receiving their tip, she and Jade sat down to eat. Crystal poured them both a margarita from the icy pitcher and Jade divvied up the food she’d ordered.
After saying grace, they dug in, neither talking. Crystal thought about what Jade said as she devoured her seafood cocktail. Her being jealous shocked her, but when she really mulled it over, she realized that Jade was right. The root of her anger over the pregnancy was jealousy. Jealous that someone else carried his baby, jealous that he’d had that close of a bond with someone other than her, and that he hid the miscarriage from her.
“You’re right,” she told Jade quietly.
Jade looked up from her crab dip and took a long sip of her drink. “Right about which part?”
A corner of Crystal’s mouth kicked up. “About everything so far. I am jealous. How could he get someone pregnant and not tell me?”
“You ever think he didn’t know how to tell you? Or that before he could tell you, she miscarried? Or how about he probably hadn’t fully processed it when it happened? So many reasons why he possibly didn’t say anything,” Jade told her, reaching over with her fork to get some of Crystal’s appetizer.
Crystal moved her dish out of range of Jade’s fork. “Okay, but what about later on?”
Jade shrugged. “Maybe it was a painful memory for him, losing a child. Maybe he didn’t want to upset you. I don’t know, but I know you didn’t give him a chance to explain anything, you ran.”
Crystal rolled her eyes. “We’ve already established I was wrong for leaving.”
“Umm-hmm, now what are you going to do about you and Brendon’s relationship once you get back, assuming you still have one after the way you dipped out of the country,” Jade said.
“Stop playing, we’re still together. I hope,” Crystal muttered, moving her appetizer to the side and pulling her mahi-mahi closer.
“Well, you left the country and left him vulnerable, with Eloise in town determined to win him back,” Jade said, eyeing her.
Crystal clenched her fist around her fork, her body tense. “If Eloise knows what’s best for her, she’ll leave Brendon alone.”
Jade burst out laughing, mouth wide open, shaking her head once she was done. “Girl, she didn’t get the hint when Brendon point blank told her he was with you. She poked and prodded your buttons, not giving a damn about how you would react. Clearly, she doesn’t know what’s best for her.”
“Yeah, well, when I get back in town she’d better stay far away from me,” Crystal muttered, tossing her fork down, appetite gone.
“You’ll see soon enough. You’re not going to finish that?” Jade asked, gesturing with her fork towards Crystal’s fish.
“No, my appetite is gone,” Crystal said, scooting back from the table but not getting up to leave.
Jade shrugged and pulled the dish closer to her, sampling a piece of the fish. She closed her eyes and danced in her seat, prompting Crystal to chuckle at her.
“So now that we’ve acknowledged your immaturity and feelings about the pregnancy, let’s talk about Eloise and how he handled her,” Jade said, pushing another forkful of mahi-mahi into her mouth.
“I know that nothing happened between them. Even with the way it looked, I trust him enough to know he wouldn’t cheat. I’m pissed that he allowed her in his office in the first place and let her get close to his body. Plus, it took him too long to check her on her blatant disrespect,” Crystal said, crossing her arms, pissed off all over again thinking about what happened.
“Umm-hmm. I agree, he could have handled that better, but again you didn’t give him a chance to make things right with you. My suggestion? You need to think about how you want to handle your relationship going forward. And no offense, I hope the two of you aren’t talking about marriage any time soon, because neither one of you is mature enough to handle a marriage…or kids,” Jade told her, looking her in the eyes.
Crystal put a hand to her chest and reared back. “Excuse you. We are not—”
“Yes, you are. Anyway, let’s split this chocolate cake and watch something on Netflix. It’s been a long day and I want to relax,” Jade said, slicing the chocolate cake in half down the middle.
They ate the moist dessert in silence, then cleaned up the table, putting their empty dishes on the serving cart the staffers left behind. Jade rolled it outside and left it against the bungalow wall for the night cleaning crew to pick up.
Crystal hopped on the bed, bouncing. “What do you want to watch?”
Jade got into the bed and slid under the cover. “Something funny. We’ve had a serious conversation, so something lighthearted is needed.”
Crystal scrolled through the available shows and settled on a movie about a case of mistaken identity. Settling next to her sister, she got under the covers and leaned against the headboard, settling in.
The sisters didn’t last long, as sleep claimed them about forty minutes into the movie.
16
“One…two…three…” Brendon huffed, raising and lowering the weight bar to his chest in measured fluid movements. He was in his gym before they opened, getting in a much needed extra workout.
Ever since he found out where Crystal was, he’d st
opped calling and texting. She wanted space, and that’s what he would give her, but when she was finally ready to address their issues, he had a few issues of his own to bring to the table.
He finished his bench press reps and placed the bar on the rack. He then put the weights back on the rack and wiped down the bench with a sanitizing wipe. Brendon contemplated what to do next when his phone rang. He didn’t recognize the number but assumed if someone was calling him this early, it must be important.
“Hello?” he answered, walking over to the squat machine.
“Brendon, you’re a hard man to reach these days, boo,” Eloise’s voice purred.
He groaned and closed his eyes. Ever since he kicked her out of the gym, she’d tried to talk to him either by calling or dropping by his home or the gym. Thank God he’d given his staff instructions not to allow her inside and to escort her out if she managed to get in. Whenever he drove home, if she was parked at his house, he kept driving. If she came by when he was home, he didn’t answer. He blocked her number and that of her parents and siblings and any number she called from and answered unknowingly. She still wasn’t getting the hint.
“What do you want, Eloise? I don’t know how else to tell you that you and I are not happening ever again. I don’t want you and don’t appreciate you popping back into my life causing drama,” he told her as he racked the weights on the squats bar.
“Come on, B, you know how good we were together. How can you pass up the chance to be that good again?” she asked.
He shook his head and continued adding weights. “Easy. I moved on, something I suggest you do. You showing up at my business, my home, constantly calling me is harassment.”
“Oh please, like you’re really going to file charges against me. Not you the big bad football player being scared of a woman,” she trilled, laughing as if what she said was the funniest thing she’d heard in her life.
“Don’t be so sure that I won’t. I don’t like drama, and I don’t live in chaos and confusion. You bring all three to my life. Go find you a man who wants to be with you and will appreciate you. I’m telling you now, I’m not that man.” He hung up before she could respond and blocked that number from his phone.