I'll Stand by You

by Wayne Jordan

  “I’m flying back to New York tomorrow, Barbara.”

  “You’re not in New York?” she asked.

  “No, Barbara, I’ve been in Los Angeles for the past week. I leave tomorrow.”

  “I’ll keep Kenya with me at the hotel tomorrow and bring her over on Saturday morning, if that’s okay with you?”

  He hesitated. He still hadn’t told Eboni about Kenya. “That’s fine, Barbara. I’ll see you on Saturday. Give Kenya my love.”

  “I will do that in the morning. She’s already asleep. She is so excited to see you, but I finally got her to sleep.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing her.”

  “Darren?” Her tone had gone serious.

  “Yes,” he replied.

  “Kenya loves you, you know.”

  “I know. I love her, too. I’m just sorry I missed so much of her childhood.”

  “You’ve more than made up for it along the way. You’ve turned out to be a pretty decent dad.”

  “Thanks, Barbara. That means a lot coming from you. I’m just glad you are a good mom. If not, I could have really messed up her psyche.”

  “Oh, you weren’t that bad. You just had your priorities mixed up.”

  “I know. It took me a while to get my act together. If you hadn’t left I would never have realized how out of line my priorities were. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. One of the best things you did was to divorce me. I’m glad you’re happy, Barbara. Really glad.”

  “I’ve been fortunate. Ted’s a good husband and he loves Kenya, but he never forgets you’re her dad. He likes you.”

  “Yes, he’s pretty cool. Your taste has definitely improved.” He chuckled. “Though, I’m still better looking!”

  “Yes, I know. You’re still more handsome and arrogant than ever, but one day, you’ll find love again.”

  He paused.

  “There is someone?” she asked.

  “There is,” he confirmed.

  Barbara screamed in delight.

  “She’s a firefighter.”

  “Wow, that’s cool. At least, she doesn’t sound like a bimbo.”

  “Oh, I ended the bimbo thing a while ago. I was just spending some time alone, finding me...and she came along.”

  “I’m glad for you. Is she pretty?”

  “Yeah, beautiful...inside and out.”

  “I’m happy for you,” she said. “Do you love her?”

  He hesitated briefly. “Yes, I love her.” It surprised him how easily the words came. Once they were out, he felt liberated.

  “Then that’s good. Don’t make the same mistakes you made with me. Though I know we didn’t love each other. We loved the idea of being in love.”

  “At least we can laugh about it now.”

  “Yes, we can. But I do love you, Darren. Not in the same way I love Ted, but a different way. It’s hard to explain.”

  “I know exactly what you mean. Now, let me go and get some sleep. I have a flight to catch in the morning,” he said, and then added wistfully, “I can’t wait to see Kenya.”

  “I have to go, too. Ted is calling. He told me to say ‘hi’ to you.”

  “Yeah, let him know the next time I’m in the area—we have to take in a game.”

  “You men and your basketball!”

  “We do have to have something that’s off-limits to you ladies.”

  She laughed. “I’ll see you when I bring Kenya over.”

  “See you.”

  He hung up.

  A wave of dread washed over him. He had to make sure he took care of letting Eboni know about Kenya before she arrived.

  As soon as he got home he planned on going over to her place. He hoped this news wouldn’t mess up his future with her. He should have told Eboni a long time ago. To be honest, he’d been afraid that his divorce would only prove that the rumors she’d heard about him were true.

  He would take her to a nice restaurant, feed her a mouth-watering meal with a wonderful vintage wine and hope that everything would be fine when he told her.

  Did she love him? He didn’t know. He knew she liked being with him and loved their lovemaking, but did she love him?

  He would soon find out. Though not trusting someone was not the same thing as not loving them. Sure, she may love him, but she sure didn’t have to trust him because of that fact.

  On reflection, he would have done the same thing if she had withheld information from him.

  He’d known he had to tell her, but he’d balked at every opportunity he’d had. Now he had to be a man, rectify the situation and deal with the consequences no matter what they were.

  He stripped off his clothes and fell onto the bed. He was tired and weary. He needed to get some sleep in order to face tomorrow.

  He closed his eyes, but it wasn’t until the early hours of the morning that he fell into a restless sleep.

  * * *

  Eboni glanced down at her father. Tears sprang to her eyes. Her mother and her brother Maxwell were outside sitting in the waiting room. She’d left work immediately when Maxwell had called and told her that their dad was in the hospital—he’d had a minor stroke.

  She loved her dad, loved his brash, quiet way of doing things. He had been a strict disciplinarian, but there was no doubt in her mind that he loved her, too—he loved all his children.

  She’d always felt his love. From that day in the children’s home when she’d stood bravely, looking warily at the handsome couple who wanted to take her away from her sisters. But he had taken one look at her and said he wanted her to be his daughter. She’d fallen in love with them instantly.

  “Daddy,” she whispered in the room that was silent except for the soft, steady beeps of the monitors connected to him. “Please wake up. Don’t you dare die!”

  Strong arms folded around her. She turned her head. It was Maxwell.

  “He’s not going to die,” her brother said with conviction. “The doctor says it’s a mild stroke. It could be worse. He’ll just need to take it easy.”

  She rested her head on his shoulder, taking comfort in his words. She wanted to believe him. Maxwell was the rational one, the one who wasn’t always led by his emotions.

  “Let’s go get something to eat. Omar and Kemar have arrived. They’ll keep an eye on Dad until we get back.”

  She glanced down at her dad, reluctant to leave, but her stomach began to growl.

  Eboni couldn’t believe how far off track the day had gotten. Earlier that morning, she’d called her parents and asked them if it was a good time to come by. They were ecstatic. But, before she could leave her condo, Maxwell had called with the bad news.

  And, today was also the day Darren returned. She was looking forward to seeing him. She realized she needed to let him know she was at the hospital.

  She reached into her pocket for her cell phone but it wasn’t there.

  She’d have to call him later. She wished he were there with her. She needed his presence to help comfort her.

  * * *

  Eboni quickly headed to the elevator that led to her condo, barely speaking to the security men upon entering the building. All she could think of in that moment was getting to Darren.

  As she exited the elevator, she noticed a beautiful, leggy blonde walking down the corridor toward her. Since there were only two condominiums on her floor, she had to assume that the woman had been Darren’s guest.

  The woman nodded and smiled politely, but as soon as the woman entered the elevator, Eboni ran the rest of the way to her door, and after unlocking it, she quickly slipped inside. In her bedroom, she collapsed on her bed.

  While staring at the ceiling of her bedroom she wondered why a beautiful woman would be leaving Darren’s apartment at tha
t time of the day? While she did not want to come to any irrational conclusions, the evidence was clear. The woman looked disheveled, as if she’d spent the whole night making love.

  She walked slowly to the kitchen. She was tired and needed an hour or two to just relax but she was hungry.

  Halfway to the kitchen, the phone rang. She turned around and walked quickly to the living room and picked it up.

  She glanced down at the number and sighed. She wasn’t ready to talk to Darren. She had too much on her mind, and if her earlier assumption was correct she really could not deal with the situation. Right now she had to focus on her dad.

  She needed to get out of the house before her scheduled class that night. She would take a run around the neighborhood. She needed to do something to keep her mind off Darren Grayson.

  * * *

  Late in the afternoon, when Eboni left the gym, she realized that she could not continue to avoid Darren. She’d mapped the journey of their relationship in her head and she could not think of anything at all, beyond gossip, that would suggest he was involved with another woman.

  The thought of him with someone else made her sick to her stomach. She had to find a quiet place to sit for a while and calm her nerves.

  She walked along a narrow path to her home, through the pool area that led to the back entrance of the building. When she reached the small open area past the pool, she was surprised to see a little girl she’d never seen before, sitting on a mat playing with her dolls.

  She was reading to them.

  The little girl looked up, saw Eboni and waved and smiled. She was adorable.

  “Hi,” Eboni responded.

  “Hi, I’m Kenya,” she said cheerfully. “This is Amanda and this is Rena.” She held up her dolls.

  “I’m Eboni. It’s nice to meet you, Kenya, Rena and Amanda.”

  Kenya laughed. She looked at her dolls and then turned back to Eboni. “They’re pleased to meet you, too.”

  She put her dolls down gently and looked up at Eboni.

  “Do you live around here?” she asked. “I wanted to go into the pool, but my dad won’t let me. He says I must sit here and play with my dolls for now. Even though my sitter is in the pool with her friends.”

  “You’ve just moved into the building?”

  She shook her head. “No, I live in Baltimore with my mom, but I’m spending some of the summer here with my dad since school’s out.”

  “That must be cool.”

  “Yes, I like him now. At first—” she lowered her voice “—he was scary, but I like him now. My mom and dad divorced when I was four, so my mom took me to live with her. But my step-dad is also there and I like him a lot.”

  “Oh, so you just arrived here?” Eboni asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

  “Yeah, my mom brought me over. She’s in New York on business.”

  An alarm went off in Eboni’s head, loud and clear.

  “What’s your dad’s name?” Her heart had stopped beating.

  “Darren McGregor Grayson,” she recited with pride.

  “Darren?” she stammered.

  “Yeah, and he’s handsome, too. My mom told me he has a girlfriend and to be nice to her. I hope she’s nice or it’s going to be hard to be nice to her.”

  Darren had a daughter and hadn’t told her? And he was divorced?

  She felt as if a knife had ripped her heart out. The sense of betrayal she’d felt when he’d not told her that he owned the building surfaced.

  “Well, Kenya, I have to go. It was nice meeting you.”

  “It was nice meeting you, too, Miss Eboni. I hope I see you again.”

  “I am sure you will,” she replied, trying to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. The little girl couldn’t be blamed for her father’s deceit.

  Kenya smiled and waved, returning to her dolls.

  Eboni walked away slowly, her hands curled into fists and her jaw clenched. But her heart hurt—she wanted to cry, to scream. She’d trusted Darren with her most precious possession—her heart—and he’d stomped it with his secrets.

  She shook her head, unsure of what to do. So the woman she had seen was Kenya’s mother and Darren’s ex-wife. She hadn’t stayed the night? Kenya had talked about her step-father? This was just not adding up. She knew she’d have to talk to Darren eventually...which would hopefully straighten the situation out.

  She needed to trust him, wanted to trust him, but he had to be up front with her. He couldn’t continue to keep things from her—things she had a right to know.

  While neither of them had given a name to their relationship, they were lovers and certain protocols were expected to be observed if they were ever going to make it to the next level.

  She was sure he would have an excuse, one that he considered legitimate and would justify his actions. But she had no intention of letting him think her forgiveness would come easily. If they were to have a serious relationship, he had to know that trust and loyalty, once lost had to be earned again. In the court of love, he would be guilty until proven innocent.

  She would stand for nothing less.

  Chapter 10

  Eboni put the book down, picked up the phone and dialed a familiar number she knew by heart.

  Cheryl answered on the first ring.

  “Girlfriend, I was wondering what happened to you. You didn’t even call me back to let me know how the big date went.”

  Before she could reply, the tears started to flow.

  “What’s wrong, girl? You stay right there. I’m coming over.”

  The call disconnected.

  When the doorbell rang twenty minutes later, Eboni rose sluggishly from the sofa. She was so tired. She needed a few hours of sleep before she returned to the hospital.

  Just as she was about to unlock the door, the doorbell rang again. As quickly as she could, she opened it.

  She almost laughed out loud. Cheryl stood there, wearing a robe that had seen better days. Large pink curlers stuck out from beneath the floral scarf tied around her head.

  “I don’t know how you got past security looking like that.”

  “Girlfriend, I know one of the guys who works down there. Just had to bat my eyelashes and he let me come up. Didn’t even have to call you!” Cheryl walked inside and closed the door behind her. “The one on duty with him is so hot! I plan on asking him out as soon as I’m tired of Calvin.” Untying the scarf, Cheryl pulled it off her head.

  “So what’s wrong, girlfriend?” she asked. “You’re already having man problems? I told you to let me meet that man. I see now, I’m going to have to have a little ‘chat’ with him. He won’t give you any more trouble. Trust me.” She pulled a tub of ice cream from the bag she carried. “Kitchen. Now.” She headed for the kitchen. “Come on, girl, I’m not standing here all night and letting our Double Fudge Choco Roco melt.”

  Eboni followed Cheryl into the kitchen, sat where her friend indicated and waited silently as Cheryl filled two big bowls with ice cream. “Now, we’re going to have us a good tête-à-tête like The Golden Girls over your favorite ice cream—it’ll make you feel better. Always makes me feel better.”

  Cheryl sat, placed a bowl in front of Eboni and the other in front of herself.

  “Okay, talk to me, girlfriend,” she said.

  “I was calling to tell you about my dad.”

  “Your dad? What about him? I hope he isn’t having an affair with a young skank?” she joked.

  “No, Cheryl. He’s in the hospital. He had a mild stroke.”

  “Oh, dear. Here I am making all kinds of jokes. Is he going to be okay?”

  “So the doctor says, but he is definitely going to have to be careful to avoid it happening again.”

  “Well, I am sure he’s going to
be fine. You’ll need to get him coming to the gym so he can get regular exercise. I’ll bet he spends most of his time sitting in front of the TV.”

  “He does spend most of his time sitting watching television or reading. I must look into getting a personal trainer for him.”

  “Good, your father is too young and sexy to be having a stroke,” Cheryl said.

  “My dad? Sexy?”

  “Your dad may be in his late fifties, but, girl, he is still fine!”

  “Can we please change the conversation,” Eboni said, laughing.

  “So we can we talk about the boyfriend now? You still haven’t told me about that date with him.”

  “It was wonderful. We went to see Porgy and Bess. The show you and I were supposed to go see. After that, we went on a romantic carriage ride and then dinner at this fantastic new restaurant. The food was exquisite!”

  “And dessert?”

  “Decadent. We had the most sinful cheesecake—”

  “Not that kind of dessert,” Cheryl interrupted.

  Eboni blushed.

  “Girl, you’re having sex and still blushing?”

  “That may be coming to an end,” she said abruptly.

  “What you talking ’bout? You’re having great sex and want to end it?”

  “He lied to me,” she said.

  “What do you mean he lied to you?”

  “He has a daughter.”

  “Oh, my God. Not a wife, too?”

  “An ex-wife.”

  “That sounds better. Is he still in love with her?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “So what’s the problem?” Cheryl paused, holding a spoonful of ice cream near her mouth. “She wants him back?”

  “No, she married again.”

  “I repeat...what’s the problem?” Cheryl asked. “I’m confused. The man has a daughter, was married, his ex-wife is married and there is a problem?”

  “He lied to me,” Eboni admitted.

  “How?”

  “He didn’t tell me he had a daughter and ex-wife!”

  “And that’s a lie? I’d say he omitted to tell you, but that’s not a lie,” Cheryl reasoned.