Abby picked up a knick-knack from the table. “Walk faster, J.J. I may not have played basketball, but I’m a damn good shot.”
J.J. headed for the elevator.
“Take the stairs. You’ll get away faster.” She warned.
Upon hearing the tone of her voice, J.J, quickly went to the staircase.
Abby placed the statue back on the table. “He wants to take my child from me.” She sat back down. “Oh, God, what’s happening with my life?” She dissolved into tears.
***
The security men rode with Sam back to the W Hotel. Again they escorted him through the crush of media that clamored for any tidbit they could chew on. Once Sam arrived at his room, one security man remained near the elevator while the other stationed himself outside his door.
When he opened the door he saw his mother and father.
“Momma and Dad, what are you doing here?”
“Oh Sam we had to come.” His mother hugged him.
“Don’t get me wrong. I’m very glad to see you. How did you get up here?”
“We talked to the hotel manager. He remembered seeing us on that 60 Minutes report with you,” his mother answered.
He and his father embraced. “How are you holding up, son?”
“I’m hanging in there. I’ve been better, though.”
“I know you have,” his father said.
Sam sat on the bed. “I fell in love with someone else, and now it’s being made out to be something ugly and shameful. As soon as I realized that I was just going through the motion and I wasn’t in love with Maria anymore, I ended it. I won’t say it was an easy thing for me to do, but…”
“You had to do it.” His mother completed his sentence as she sat next to him.
“You want to tell him, Sara?”
“Tell me what?”
His mother and father glanced at each other knowingly.
“I was engaged to someone else when I met your father.”
“What?”
“Yes.” She nodded.
“I thought you and Dad were college sweethearts.”
“We were, in some ways.” His father paused. “At least for our senior year,” he smiled.
“His name was Rich. We grew up together in Tyler. Rich and I started dating as high school sophomores and when it was time to head to college, we naturally went to the same school. The plan was that we would marry right after graduation.”
“What happened?”
“I happened. Your mom took one look at me and it was over right there,” he said jokingly.
“Stop being silly, Don.” She laughed. “He’s exaggerating, but not by much. We met in a required biology class we had to take in our senior year. The professor paired us for labs, and it didn’t take long for me to realize that I belonged with your father.” She looked at her husband lovingly.
“I knew right after she said, ‘My name is Sara.’ ”
“So how I feel about Abby doesn’t sound crazy to you?”
“No. If there’s anything we’ve learned is that when it comes to love there’s no rhyme or reason to what the heart feels. It just feels,” his mother said as she took his hand.
“When I first saw Abby something in me just said ‘I take this woman.’ I didn’t know anything about her. It was just a feeling.”
“It’s a pretty good feeling, isn’t it?” His father asked.
“Yes. It felt better this morning before all this nonsense exploded.” Sam paused. “I’ve got to call Abby and see how she is. The vultures had descended on her while she was working Fashion Week and I need to check in on her. Will you excuse me?”
“Sure.” His mother said.
Sam got up and went into another part of the suite. He dialed Abby.
“Hello?” Abby’s voice sounded hoarse.
“Abby?”
“Yes.” She said weakly.
“Baby, are you all right?”
“No. J.J. was here. He’s suing me for full custody of Justin.”
“What?”
“You heard it correctly. He wants to take my baby away from me.”
“I can’t believe that.”
“He’s actually hired Nancy Bloom.”
“What?”
Abby’s voice caught. “I can’t talk right now. Can I call you back?”
“Yes, of course. I love you.”
“Love you, too. Bye.”
Sam felt flush with anger. “I bet that son of a bitch is behind this.” He dialed Big Bill.
“Hello?”
“Mr. Carrangelo?”
“Sam. I thought I’d be hearing from you. Have you come to your senses?”
“I was going to ask if you had taken leave of yours.”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I just got off the phone with Abby, and she told me that her ex-husband has hired Nancy Bloom to represent him in a custodial case against her.”
“He is the father. He has rights.”
“Yes, he has rights, but I know for a fact that there’s no way he could have gotten access to a heavy hitter like Nancy Bloom without a little help.”
“I just reached out to J.J. Stokes, father-to-father, to offer a little advice and help if he wanted it. He took me up on it.”
“That was a low thing to do. Abby’s a wonderful mother. Justin always comes first for her.”
“You could have fooled me if she had time to steal another woman’s fiancé.”
“She didn’t steal me. Maria and I were over a long time ago. I just put a period at the end of the sentence and closed the chapter. You need to get over it.”
“I told you that I could make life hard. I didn’t say it would be limited to you.”
“You’re problem is with me. Leave the people I care about out of it.”
“You know what you have to do to make this go away.”
“I can’t be bought or threatened. You can go to hell, Bill.”
When Sam turned around his father was there.
“How long have you been standing there, Dad?”
“Long enough to smell a rat named Bill Carrangelo.”
Sam took a few moments to calm down. “He helped Abby’s ex get Nancy Bloom so he can sue for full custody of their son, Justin.” Sam began to pace. “I feel awful. This is my fault.”
“No, this is Bill’s fault. If he couldn’t get to you, he’s going through the people closest to you.”
“Dad, you should have heard her on the phone. She sounds so bad, it’s killing me.”
“Then you have to make some decisions on how you’re going to fight fire with fire.”
***
Still upset, Abby sat on her bed in the dark.
“Abby? Are you in here?” Shana asked as she turned on the light.
“Yes.” Abby wiped her eyes. “How did the shows go?”
“The shows went fine.” She sat down next to her. “I’m not here to talk about that. It’s obvious that something else has happened. Did you have a fight with Sam or something?”
“J.J. was here.”
“Oh, no,” Shana groaned.
“He came here to tell me that he’s suing me for custody of Justin.”
“What?”
“He’s questioning my commitment to being a parent.”
“He’s got some nerve. You’re a great mother.”
“That’s not the way he sees it.”
“He’s upset that you have another man in your life. It’s okay for him to parade women up and down the block, but he can’t take the idea that another man will be around his son, especially a white man.” Shana shook her head. “There’s no way he’s going to get custody. You don’t have anything to worry about.”
“I’m not so sure. He’s hired Nancy Bloom.”
“Get out of here!”
“I don’t know how he managed to get her, but he did.” Abby choked up. “This is what I get.”
“What do you mean, this is what you
get? You don’t think you deserve this, do you?”
“Don’t I? Am I not guilty of the same thing I said Beebe did to me?”
“No. You didn’t go after Sam. What’s more, Sam broke off his engagement. He didn’t try to have his cake and eat it, too, like J.J. did. The only thing you’re guilty of is falling in love.”
“But now I could lose my son for it.”
“I’m telling you that won’t happen.”
“Damn straight it isn’t.”
When Shana and Abby looked up, they saw Abby’s brother Franklin Jr. Still long and lanky, the only hint of his age was a little grey hair around his temples, which was pretty good for the father of three teenage girls.
“Frankie!” Abby jumped up and the two embraced. “When did you get here?”
“I flew in a couple of hours ago. Naturally it took the cab forever to get here from the airport, but that’s something I’ve grown to expect whenever I come to New York.”
“You are a sight for sore eyes.”
“When my big sister needs me, I’m here in a flash.” He hugged her tightly and looked over at Shana. “How are you, Shana?”
“I’m good, Frankie.” She got up and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m going to head back down to the office, Abby. I think you’re in good hands now. Call me if you need anything.”
“Thanks.”
“I’ll see you two later.” Shana waved as she left the room.
“Where are your bags?”
“I put them in the spare bedroom.”
“I forgot. You know the drill.”
“Yes, I do.”
“I haven’t picked up my phone, but I’m sure Mom and Dad have called at least a dozen times.”
“That would be a safe bet. They’re worried about you.”
“Are you sure they’re not mortified?” Abby looked down at the floor.
“Hey.” He lifted her chin. “They know you, Abby. They know you’re not the kind of woman the media is trying to make you out to be. After all, they are the ones who raised you and the rest of us.”
“That’s good to hear.” She sighed. “I guess I got worked up.”
“You’ve been watching television haven’t you?”
“Yes. It’s not like I haven’t been through this before, but I wasn’t on this end of it with so many people assuming the absolute worst about me.”
“Right now, it’s a feeding frenzy. It will die down.”
“I hope so. I need to focus on keeping my son.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll deal with that. Wes is in the middle of a case, but, as soon as he can get a continuance, he’ll be here. And Nick is working on getting some professors to cover for him so he can be here, too. Between the four of us, I think we can handle whatever J.J. throws our way.”
Abby hugged him again. “You know I really love you guys.”
“We love you, too, sis. Now how about I fix some tea for us and you fill me in about this Mr. Best. I mean, I know about him as a player but I want to know about him as the man my sister fell in love with. Does that sound like a good deal?”
“It’s the best deal I’ve had all day.”
Chapter 26
While Sam made arrangements for his parents’ accommodations, his father Don made a phone call.
“Hello?”
“Hello, Norm. It’s Don Best. How are you?”
Though Don didn’t play in the NFL, he and Norm met at a fundraiser years earlier and had become good friends.
“I’m good, Don. How are you?”
“I’m all right, but I could be better. That’s why I’m calling you.”
“I think I know what this is about, and you can count me in.”
“Thanks so much.”
“No need to thank me. It’s the least I can do.”
“I’ll be in touch with the details soon.”
“I’ll wait to hear back from you.”
“Okay. Talk to you shortly.” Don hung up.
“Don are you sure you want to do this? You know how Sam feels.”
“Sometimes our son is a little too pigheaded for his own good.”
“I wonder where he gets that from,” she said facetiously.
Don laughed. “I’m aware that he comes by that trait naturally,” he said as he dialed Bo.
“Hello?”
“Hello, Bo.”
“Hello, Mr. Best. It’s good to hear from you. Are you in town? What am I saying? Of course you’re in town.”
“We flew in this afternoon. We’re at the W Hotel with Sam.” He paused. “In fact he’s the reason I’m calling. I wondered if I could prevail upon you to use your influence at ESPN to get some air time tomorrow.”
“Sure. Whatever you need.”
“Great. I think it’s time for the world to meet the other side of Sam Best.”
“I couldn’t agree with you more. “I’ll make some calls and get back to you.”
“Thanks.” Don hung up. “Now to call Reggie for the last piece of the puzzle,” He said as he began to dial.
Just then Sam entered the room. “Okay. I have your key cards. You’re in the suite across the hall.”
“Thanks, son,” his father answered.
“You know, Sam, I’d like to go down to that Olives restaurant. I’ve heard it’s pretty good.”
“It is good. But considering the madness going on, wouldn’t you prefer if I order up room service?”
“We don’t have anything to hide. Let’s have dinner downstairs.”
“Are you sure, Momma?”
“Yes. I’m sure they’ll take us without a reservation.” She picked up her purse. “Come on, you could use a change of scenery and a good meal.”
“Okay, Momma. Are you coming, Dad?”
“Yes. Why don’t you give me the key card and I’ll put our stuff in the room and then I’ll catch up to you.”
“Are you sure? I can have the bellman do it.”
“Nonsense, it’s just a couple of bags.”
“Okay,” Sam said reluctantly.
“I heard the pan roasted cod is supposed to be good.” His mother gently led him out of the room.
Don waited a moment then called Reggie.
“Hello, Reggie. I don’t have much time to talk. I need you to listen and move as quickly as possible.”
“I’m all ears,” Reggie said.
***
Unable to sleep, Abby turned on the television and scanned through the channels. Hesitantly, she turned to HLN.
She turned the volume up when she thought she caught a glimpse of Beebe.
“Entertainment reporter Joanna Kelp caught up with J.J. Stokes’s estranged wife Beebe outside of her apartment to get her reaction to the recent developments with Abigail Carey. As many of you know, Beebe had an affair with J.J. while he was married to Ms. Carey.”
“Ms. Stokes do you have any comment about Sam Best and Abigail Carey?”
“No. I wish Abby and Sam the best.”
“Even under these circumstances?” Joanna inquired further.
“Who am I to pass judgment? Even in the midst of everything that happened between J.J. and me, Abby was never anything but nice to me, even though I didn’t deserve it. I just wish everyone would leave it alone. Thanks. That’s all I have to say.”
“If I hadn’t seen it for myself, I wouldn’t have believed it,” Abby said aloud as she turned the television off. “Now if everyone else would follow her lead, I’d be okay.” She rolled over and tried to sleep.
***
The next morning Frankie awoke to find his sister dressed and seated at the kitchen table with a stack of papers.
“Good morning. There’s coffee if you want.”
“Thanks.” He went over to the cabinet and got a mug. “I didn’t expect to see you up and dressed for work.” He said as he poured his coffee.
“I didn’t think I’d get out of bed either but then I decided that staying in bed wasn’t an option.”
“You need t
o keep your mind occupied, right?”
“Yes. I tried watching television last night.”
“How did that work out for you?”
“The only things on in the wee hours are infomercials, home shopping, bad movies and the news.”
“You watched the news, didn’t you?”
“Of course I did and who did I see? Beebe.”
“Please tell me you turned it off.”
“I didn’t. I wanted to hear what she had to say since the shoe is on the other foot and I’m the man-stealing hussy.”
“Abby…” Franklin groaned.
“It turned out that I had nothing to worry about. She basically said she wished me the best and thought everyone should leave us alone.”
“Wow that is shocking coming from her.”
“It’s awfully magnanimous of her, but it won’t garner ratings or sell papers.” She lifted the stack of newspapers on the table.
“You should toss all of them into the shredder.”
“I will. Then I’m going to head down to my office. In the midst of all of this work, it’s the only thing that I feel I have control over. Does that make sense to you?”
“It makes perfect sense. I think we’re all wired that way.” He chuckled. “When I find myself baffled by the whirlwind known as teenage girls, I head to the office.”
Abby laughed. “I can empathize, having been a teenage girl.”
“Yes, but you didn’t have a cell phone, text messages, instant messages and video chats. I tell you Barbara and I don’t know whether we’re coming or going sometimes.”
“I feel for you, little brother, but you should enjoy it while it lasts. They grow up so fast. I only have a couple of years before I send Justin off to college.” Abby took a deep breath and stood up. “That’s enough of that. I’ve got to head downstairs and face my staff. You can come down later if you want.”
“Okay. I’m just going to have a couple of cups of java and hit the shower and then I’ll be downstairs.”
“Okay. I’ll see you later.”
Abby headed for the staircase instead of the elevator. She didn’t want to allow herself even a moment to dwell on all that was going on around her. Once she got to the floor, she handed out her papers and headed into her office.
She tried to get through the stacks of messages on her desk.
I Take This Woman Page 26