Love, Lies & Consequences

by Frazier, Natasha D.

  Also by Natasha Frazier

  The Life Your Spirit Craves

  Not Without You

  Love,

  Lies &

  Consequences

  Copyright © 2015 by Natasha D. Frazier

  Published by Encouraging Works

  All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be used in any form without the written permission of the publisher.

  This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or if it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  ISBN: 978-0988452169

  ASIN: B00UJ01O8I

  This is a work of fiction. Although it is set in the real city of Houston, TX, names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Edited by: Cheryl Molin

  Cover design by BJ Benjamin O’Neal (I Imagine Beyond)

  For Order Information, please visit:

  www.encouraging-works.com

  Contents

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  CHAPTER 41

  CHAPTER 42

  CHAPTER 43

  CHAPTER 44

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  CHAPTER 1

  ∞

  Raegan stood at the entrance to the sanctuary on the arm of her father. The double doors remained closed as they waited to hear the wedding processional, signaling it was time for them to enter. She was so nervous that the bouquet of roses and lilies was starting to slide around in her hands.

  She was about to make one of the biggest commitments in her life. Marriage. She believed in till death do us part and had dreamed of this day since high school, but right now she wondered if she was making the right choice by marrying Damian.

  All had been well in her mind until her weekend getaway with her girls last month. They traveled to Miami as sort of a last hoorah for Raegan before she tied the knot. The weekend was perfect at first. They entertained themselves with spa appointments, fine dining, sightseeing, shopping, and time on the beaches.

  During her last night in town, they dined at Rusty Pelican, one of Miami’s waterfront restaurants that offers a stunning view of the skyline. She must have chosen the perfect seat because she had a great view of everything from the entrance of the restaurant to the people walking along the beach and the gorgeous skyline. Although it was nearing dusk and she had a few sips of wine, she was very clear on who she saw in that moment. Caleb. She could identify him anywhere. He was strolling along the beach with a few friends, people she did not recognize.

  She thought her father would be giving her hand to Caleb, but Caleb messed that up some time ago. But there he was again. A slight smile formed on her face when she thought about their time together back in college. That smile quickly turned into a frown when she remembered how and why things ended between them. She didn’t mention seeing him to her friends. He didn’t notice her and neither of her friends noticed him, but her facial expressions changed so quickly that her friends expressed concern. “Oh, it’s just some food that caught between my teeth,” she told them with a wince and a small laugh.

  Now here she was, on the arm of her father walking down the aisle to join in holy matrimony with Damian Charles. The wedding processional played and started to sound more blurry by the moment. She could see the goofy smile plastered across Damian’s face as his legs visibly shook. The closer she got to the altar, the more she realized that something wasn’t right.

  She took slow, deep breaths, reminding herself that this was just a case of cold feet and that she could do this. This was her moment. She recalled the day he proposed. He took her to the movies. They went at midday on a Saturday afternoon and she thought it strange that they were the only two people in the theater. As the previews began rolling, she gasped. Pictures of the two of them played across the screen until finally the last screen displayed a diamond ring with the words, “Will You Marry Me?”

  Without much hesitation, she said yes. There were no butterflies like she thought there would be; her heart was not fluttering with excitement. They had been dating for about a year. He asked and she accepted. To rethink all of this now was bad timing, but the closer she got to the altar, the more she wanted to bolt out of the door.

  She caught glimpses of the flashing cameras and smiling faces of family and friends until the next thing she realized the pastor was asking who was giving her away. Her mom stood along with her dad and in unison, they said, “We do.” Her father kissed her forehead and placed her hand inside of Damian’s. He whispered into Damian’s ear, “Take care of my baby girl.”

  As she walked hand in hand with Damian toward the pastor, she began to tremble even more. She turned and placed the bouquet in her maid of honor’s hand. She stepped closer to Damian and placed both hands in his. As the ceremony continued around her, she stared blindly into her husband-to-be’s eyes. She couldn’t see him, though. All she could see were thoughts of Caleb and what-ifs. This probably wouldn’t have happened had she not seen him last month. However, it was happening, and she knew that it wouldn’t be fair to Damian to spend the rest of her life with him wondering how things would have turned out with another man.

  She thought of how things started and the current state of their relationship. They were moving too fast. Pre-marital sex and living together; it was as if they were already married. The relationship is already doomed, she thought. We can’t do this, she reasoned with herself. Her heart was beating double time now.

  “Raegan, do you take Damian to be your lawfully wedded husband?” Pastor asked. He must have asked more than once because she felt Damian’s gentle tug on her hand, bringing her back into the present.

  “I…I…I do…I do not. I’m so sorry Damian; I can’t do this,” Raegan said as she slipped her fingers out of his, grabbed her dress so that she wouldn’t trip, and ran back down the aisle. She rushed inside the bride’s holding room, locked the door, and quickly peeled off her dress in tears and relief, thinking that she may have avoided one of the biggest mistakes of her life.

  Seconds after she stepped out of the wedding gown, Damian’s mother and sister were banging on the door.

  “Raegan! What are you thinking? You better get your behind back down that aisle and marry my brother!”
his sister screamed through the door.

  “Hush girl!” Raegan heard Damian’s mother say. “What is going on with you Raegan? Your parents and I spent a great deal of money making this wedding happen for y’all. Come out of there, now!” she demanded.

  “Please, just let me be,” she stated faintly, leaning against the door.

  Raegan felt the knob jiggling in her back. She stepped away when she realized that a key was being inserted. Her heart sank to the floor. She didn’t think of others having the key when she locked the door. To Raegan’s relief, her mother entered the room, pushing Damian’s mom and sister out of the way. “Let me talk to my baby,” she said. She gently closed the door behind her, drowning out some of the sound of Damian’s mother spewing much angrier words than before.

  “What happened out there, dear?” her mother asked in a quiet, non-judgmental tone.

  Raegan didn’t answer. She just stared back at her mother in silence. She wasn’t quite sure why she allowed things to get this far, but she was certain it shouldn’t go any further and this was the right thing to do.

  Glancing at the dress on the floor, her mother said, “I take it you’re not planning to go back out there?”

  “I can’t Momma. I feel like a terrible person for leading Damian on this way. I should have said no to his proposal.” She paused, giving her mother a moment to speak, but when her mother said nothing Raegan continued. “This just feels wrong. It’s almost as if we’re married now because we’re living as if we’re married. I want a better relationship with the man I’m going to marry. I need sparks and lights in my eyes. Besides, I want a marriage that is blessed by God. I want to do things right. No shacking and no sex until marriage,” Raegan said.

  “It’s your life, Raegan, and I can’t tell you what to do. However, you can’t leave Damian like this. You’re going to have to be a woman and tell him that you’re not going to marry him. If you want a right relationship with God and the man you are to marry, make sure you settle this now,” her mother advised.

  “But how am I supposed to go back out there? I don’t even know what to say.” Raegan chewed on her bottom lip as she paced the floor. “How can I even face him right now? Especially with his mother and sister outside of that door probably wanting to kill me.”

  “Raegan,” her mother said in a tone that caused her to stop pacing, “I did not raise you to act like this. You’re going to have to get it together. Is there something you’re not telling me?” Her mother walked over and lifted Raegan’s chin so that she could see Raegan’s eyes when she answered.

  “What do you mean Momma?” Raegan whined a little. “The truth is that this isn’t going to work. Not now, not ever. I don’t love him the way he loves me and I think I deserve to be truly happy,” Raegan said, thinking of the only person she had been truly happy with before things went wrong.

  Raegan spoke without blinking. Her mother knew that there was something Raegan wasn’t telling her but she would find out soon enough. She advised Raegan again to talk with Damian. Now his voice was the only voice outside of the door calling her name, asking for answers. She could tell he was hurting by the sound of his voice.

  The door banging and screams from his mother and sister had ceased. After she felt confident enough, she opened the door to allow Damian to enter. He had taken his jacket off, loosened his tie and unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt. Her heart broke for him but she cared enough for him not to spend the rest of her life lying to him and wishing he was someone else. He walked past her and stood silently waiting for answers. Her eyes pleaded with her mother for help but instead, her mother shot her a look that said you’re on your own. She left them alone to talk and sent the guests to the reception to enjoy the food.

  CHAPTER 2

  ∞

  Precisely two years had passed since Raegan left Damian standing at the altar, confused and heartbroken. It was likely one of the worst things that happened to him but one of the best things she could have done for herself. Whether or not he realized it then, she saved him a lifetime of heartache because she was still in love with someone else. She knew she would never be able to love him and treat him with the respect he deserved without some sort of resentment. She didn’t want to spend her days dreaming of another man. She would be devastated if she found out that her husband’s heart belonged to someone else the way hers did.

  After the failed nuptials, Raegan moved out of the place she shared with Damian and stayed with Tammy for a while before purchasing her own home. Since then, Raegan had taken the time to grow spiritually and focus on her professional career. She was quickly climbing the corporate ladder and was proud of her accomplishments, but she would definitely be lying to herself if she said that she didn’t want to be married; she just didn’t want to marry the wrong guy.

  Raegan’s thoughts were interrupted by the honking of the car horn behind her. The signal light had turned green and she hadn’t even noticed.

  Soon she arrived at her destination. Slipping her two-door coupe into park, she stepped out to see two of her friends waiting for her outside of Pappadeaux for dinner.

  “Hey Rae!” both Tammy and Michelle said in unison.

  “Hey ladies!” she said, walking into their embraces. “You both look gorgeous!”

  “We all do,” said Tammy with a giggle.

  The restaurant was crowded with young professionals who were ready to celebrate the weekend. They were escorted to a booth near the rear of the restaurant, for which they were all grateful because they wanted to chat and enjoy the scenery.

  When they were seated, Michelle turned to Raegan. “Rae, we know that today would have been your two-year anniversary to Damian. How are you holding up?”

  “I’m actually doing pretty well. Have you all heard anything about him? How is he?” Raegan wrinkled her nose, her tone almost a whisper.

  “He’s fine, I guess, but we’re concerned about you,” Tammy said.

  “Well, that’s good. You all know that work is keeping me busy. I’m preparing for my next promotion,” Raegan said proudly. While speaking, she noticed a handsome man walking toward their table. He stopped right beside Raegan and asked, “Is there anything that I can do for you?”

  “Are you our waiter?” She wondered because they had yet to receive any service, not even glasses of water.

  “I can be whoever you want me to be,” he said, smiling at her.

  “I take it you’re not going to be serving us then?” she said and smiled back. “If you can find our waiter, that would be great,” Raegan said and turned her attention back toward her friends as he walked away.

  Michelle gasped. “Rae, you do know that he was flirting with you, right? Aren’t you waiting for Mr. Right? Missy, that could have been him.” Michelle has been on the quest for Mr. Right over the last several years. She was now on her third engagement.

  “I doubt it. No butterflies,” Raegan stated as she dismissed the idea.

  Shaking her head, Tammy said, “You turn down everybody. It’s almost as if you’re waiting on…”

  “Waiting on what?” Raegan quickly interrupted, almost daring her to say his name.

  “Caleb,” Michelle and Tammy both blurted his name as if they had been rehearsing it all evening. Michelle folded her arms and began to lecture Raegan on giving love a chance and not worrying about Caleb, especially since she claimed that she didn’t want to be with him. Their relationship had ended horribly years ago. Raegan hadn’t spoken to him since they ended things back in college. However, seeing him shortly before her wedding sparked something inside of her. She just didn’t know exactly what.

  After they finally received service and had dinner, the friends parted ways.

  “Don’t forget about my Labor Day party tomorrow,” Tammy said as they left the restaurant. Tammy had invited quite a few people from her alma mater’s alumni chapter and was hoping that Raegan would meet someone there. She knew that her friend desired love and hoped that tomorrow could
be a great start.

  ***

  “Why aren’t you married?” Rico asked Raegan. Raegan caught Rico’s eye during a game of Taboo at Tammy’s Labor Day party. He waited patiently for the opportunity to talk with her; when he finally got the chance, he wanted to know more about her relationship status. He admired her beauty, and when he noticed she wasn’t wearing a wedding band, he promised himself that he would not leave Tammy’s house without talking to Raegan.

  “Am I supposed to be?” She didn’t have an attitude, but her tone depicted that it wasn’t really any of his business either. She gave him a once-over. He wasn’t the most handsome man that she had met but he was kept. His receding hairline gave her the impression that he was at least thirty years old, and at that age, she figured, most men started looking for a woman to marry.

  “Well you’re beautiful and intelligent.” He was trying to charm her in order to get her to open up. Rico was used to women being receptive to his slick words, but they didn’t fool Raegan one bit.

  “Is that all it takes to qualify to be a wife?” Raegan asked with raised eyebrows.

  “Well no, but I’m sitting here talking to you and I haven’t found a flaw yet. What are your flaws?” Rico questioned as he made himself comfortable on the couch next to Raegan.

  “Why are you looking for them? Why does it matter to you?” At this point, she was wondering why on earth she was even sitting there entertaining him. She glanced around the room quickly to find any sign of Tammy. Tammy wasn’t anywhere to be found.

  “I just want to know why a woman as beautiful as you are is still single.”

  This is what happens when you go to parties and you only know the host, she thought. Her friend Tammy had purchased her home a couple of years ago and this Labor Day barbeque was her first party welcoming friends and family to her new place. The house was really nice, located in a cul-de-sac in a gorgeous master planned community. Tammy’s house was one story with three bedrooms, a game room, two and a half baths, and a two car garage.

  Michelle stopped by the party but Raegan could not spot her either. Tammy and Raegan attended different schools and had different professional circles. She met Tammy at a networking event about a year ago. Most of the attendees were people who went to Tammy’s alma mater, and Raegan was not a social butterfly.