Love, Lies & Consequences

by Frazier, Natasha D.

  Interrupting him, she said, “Well, I didn’t just pull that thought out of thin air. Kendrick was the one who mentioned it when I came inside looking for you.”

  “How could you listen to him? I’m sure he was pretty drunk and I think we previously established that he had a thing for you anyway. He would do anything to pull us apart. Looks like he succeeded,” Caleb stated. The disappointment was clearly written over his face.

  “How was I to know, Caleb?” Raegan defended herself. The thought never crossed her mind that someone would lie to her like that.

  “You weren’t, but you didn’t try to find out the truth either. I was really upset at the thought that you would think I could do something like that to you and even more upset that you called our relationship off without giving me a chance to explain.” Caleb grew more frustrated as he continued to talk. “I thought we had a pretty decent relationship, so I was very confused by everything that transpired. I mean, I knew I must have missed something and that you had to have been upset about something else. Tell me Cami, why would you throw our relationship away without even talking to me? I thought we agreed that we would always talk to each other. I don’t want to hear that you were young, we were kids or any other excuse you can come up with. Give me the real reason,” he demanded, now leaning in closer to her.

  Raegan could see his growing frustration because he no longer wore a smile. Confusion and hurt were all over his face. If she didn’t know any better, she could have sworn that his eyes were a tad bit watery as well.

  “You know Caleb, I can’t really explain myself. I can tell you that I was livid when I heard that you were locked in the room with Stacy. I went to that bedroom and the door was locked. I banged on the door, screaming your name and you didn’t come open the door! I even stood there for a few minutes waiting for you to come out. All I could hear were sounds of ecstasy and what sounded like a headboard bumping up against a wall. Can you imagine what I felt like in that moment? A fool, Caleb! I felt so humiliated, betrayed and angry! When you walked out of that house, I wanted to give you much more than a slap.” Tears were now streaming down her face because she could no longer contain her emotion and her voice had become slightly elevated. Caleb scooted closer to her and began to hold her, rubbing her shoulders.

  “How could we both have been so stupid? We’ve lost so many years because of that misunderstanding,” Caleb said slowly, thinking out loud, wondering what they would do next. “What does this mean for us Cami?”

  “I honestly don’t know.” And she didn’t. How was she to know that he was telling her the truth? She wanted to believe him. She actually needed to believe him. She once loved him so much, and if she was being honest with herself, part of her still had some feelings for him. But then there’s Rico, a small voice echoed in her mind.

  “Can we at least start by being friends again?” he asked as he scooted back to his place setting. He knew she was with Rico, but he now had every intention of winning her back. There was no way he was going to let her go this time. There was one thing that he and Raegan had that she and Rico didn’t, and that was history, a very good one except for that sour moment that tore them apart.

  “Yes, why not? We deserve that much, don’t we?” she said smiling and dabbing her eyes with the napkin that she had wrinkled up from anxiety. It was a good thing that she didn’t wear makeup tonight because her face would be a mess.

  “I hate to bring up old stuff, so after tonight, can we leave the past in the past?” he asked before he began asking questions about way back when.

  “Agreed,” Raegan nodded.

  “Why didn’t you confront me if you thought that I slept with someone else?” he asked, still trying to see things from Raegan’s point of view.

  “I figured there was nothing that you could have said to make things better, especially after what I thought I witnessed.”

  “Okay, but why didn’t you respond to any of my letters or messages,” he pressed, looking for answers to questions that he’d asked himself for years.

  “Same answer as before,” she stated laughing. “I’m sorry but I didn’t think we needed to communicate at all after that night.”

  “You didn’t think that our love was worth saving?” he asked softly, his gaze intense.

  “I felt like you had thrown it all away and besides, I was only twenty and we weren’t married. I didn’t feel the need to save anything or work it out with you. You had made your choice, or so I thought,” Raegan said, defending her actions.

  “And so you gave up on us.” Caleb wondered if she ever really loved him like she said she did.

  “And so did you!” she said as she sipped her glass of water.

  “I know not to ever cross you, because there would be no coming back,” Caleb said, relieved that he was getting another chance with her.

  “You’re right. I just feel like this: If you didn’t care enough to stay, why should I care enough to try to keep you or work things out with you? I’d much rather be alone.”

  Interrupting their conversation, the waitress stopped by their table to take their orders.

  “We’ll just be having dessert tonight. Cami, did you change your mind or do you still only want dessert?” he asked, directing the waitress to her.

  “Yes, only dessert and I’ll take the pecan caramel butter crunch please,” she said smiling and handing the waitress the menu. That was her favorite dessert and she could not wait to take pleasure in the delectable delight that was topped with caramel and homemade vanilla ice cream. She knew she would probably need extra time in the gym to make up for eating it, but in her eyes it was well worth that extra mile or two on the treadmill.

  “I’ll just have an apple pie,” Caleb said as he handed the waitress his menu and mouthed to Raegan, “and eat some of your dessert too.”

  “Still greedy, huh?” she said laughing. She was happy that they were going to work on becoming friends again. They had such great times together. She dared not compare but he was actually better company than Rico. Oh, Rico! How am I going to explain this to him, she silently questioned herself. Do I even have to explain it at all? So many questions. So few answers.

  CHAPTER 20

  ∞

  After Raegan and Caleb’s long overdue talk, they chatted as if no time had passed. It felt natural. Comfortable.

  “So, tell me about your work. How is that going? What is it you do again?” Raegan asked, taking a sip of water.

  “I’m an architectural designer, where my focus is commercial designing and construction. I love designing plans for our clients; and it’s really rewarding to see their excitement when they review what I’ve come up with.” Seeing that he had her interest, he continued, “In other good news, I recently finished my Master of Architecture degree, so I am currently exploring career advancement opportunities. Sometime in the future, though, I may consider starting my own architectural firm.” Smiling and staring intently into her eyes, he said in a much lower voice, “I may need to hire you to help with recruiting interns and staff for my business.”

  “As long as I can work remotely and you’re willing to pay the big bucks, count me in,” she said, playing along with him. “But that’s great Caleb. It sounds like you’re doing quite well career wise. I’m happy for you. How is your family?” She asked, posed with her chin resting in her palm, fully engrossed in the conversation.

  Both of their families lived in Florida. Her family lived in Jacksonville, his in Tampa. While they were dating, they visited both families during the holidays.

  “My mom is doing well. She retired last year and now spends most of her time taking care of Dad. He took an early retirement after getting hurt at work. He gets around pretty well with the leg injury but still needs assistance. My sister had twins last year, so Mom helps out a lot with the babies as well.”

  “Wow, last year seemed to be a pretty big year for your family, huh?”

  “Yes! My baby brother John graduated from FAMU last year! C
an you believe it?”

  “My goodness, it has been so long! The last time I saw him, I think he was just entering middle school. Time flies that that,” she said, snapping her fingers.

  “You’re right about that Cami, but it looks like you’ve been taking advantage of all the time you have—MBA, house, excelling at work and a new boyfriend.”

  She didn’t miss the slight saltiness in his tone when he mentioned her relationship with Rico. “Yes, I have to admit that things are going well in my life right now.” And you had to come along and try to make things all difficult for me, she thought to herself. “Rico seems like a nice guy and we’ve been having a really good time together. You should have gotten some sort of glimpse into his character; you just broke bread with him.”

  “I did and he’s okay. You can definitely do better,” he said, winking and curling his lips into a smile. Caleb thought of himself as the much better choice—the right choice for Raegan. He just hoped that it didn’t take Raegan very long to figure that out as well.

  “I’ll be the judge of that; I’d like to see where things go with him. He’s sweet.” At this point, she felt she owed it to herself to see how things would work out with Rico since she had given herself to him.

  “Yeah, that’s what you think. I’m a guy and I can tell you right now that something is off about him. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something just doesn’t sit well with me,” he said, shaking his head as if in deep thought.

  “Where did this inkling of a feeling come from? Was it something that he said or did?” Raegan sometimes felt like something was a little off with Rico but she always shook the feeling off. Since Caleb thought that something may be wrong, she wanted to know what he thought, although she knew that he was biased because he liked her.

  Turning his nose up, he stated, “I just don’t know about him Cami. I’ve always wanted the best for you, even when you didn’t want me, so I will just warn you to keep your eyes open and not to get caught up in all of his sweetness. Can you promise me that? Just be careful.”

  “You are making it sound so gloomy and doomy. What did he say or do that has you warning me? Just tell me. I can handle it. I’m a big girl, remember?”

  “I just get the feeling that he’s hiding something. How long have you known him?”

  “Not very long. Just a few months actually.”

  “Has he already professed his love for you and you him?” He asked mainly because he was trying to gauge how deeply involved Raegan had gotten with Rico and how much he would have to do to win her over again.

  “Wait, where’s our dessert?” she asked, trying to distract Caleb. It was awkward discussing her relationship with Rico.

  “I don’t know. It has been quite a while and it’s not even crowded. I’ll get the waitress’ attention.” Just as he was motioning to the waitress to come to the table, someone from the kitchen was walking toward their table with the large serving tray on his shoulder.

  “Oh, wait, I think that may be ours,” Raegan said hopefully.

  The waiter approached the booth and spoke as if he’d been eating sweets all day. He was very spirited. “Hello! I have a pecan caramel crunch and an apple pie.” They both reached for their dishes as Raegan prepared to dig in.

  “Hold on dear, let’s take a quick second to pray,” he said as he extended his hands toward hers. “I know it’s only dessert but I’m still thankful. God has finally answered my prayers and brought you back into my life, he thought.

  There he goes, she thought. “I won’t turn down prayer but be sure to make it quick,” she said batting her eyes. Her body immediately grew warm at the touch of his hands, coupled with her heart skipping a few beats.

  Caleb prayed for their desserts, the two of them, and traveling grace for the two of them as they returned home.

  “Amen,” they stated in unison.

  “Thanks Caleb.”

  “No problem. You never answered my question either,” he reminded her.

  “What question is that?” she asked with a puzzled look on her face. She knew exactly what question he was referring to, but she had hoped he would have moved on by now.

  “I asked you if Rico has professed his love for you and if you’ve professed your love for him,” Caleb stated, taking a bite of his dessert.

  “Yeah…but I don’t want to talk about that. We haven’t talked to each other in years; there are so many other things we can talk about,” she said, hoping to change the subject again.

  Raegan successfully diverted Caleb’s attention to other things as they ate dessert. They talked more about their families, careers, friends and church involvement. Raegan was happy that she had decided to see him again. She had almost forgotten how comfortable she was around him and how much she enjoyed his company. Luckily for her, he was leaving in a few days; otherwise he would truly make things complicated for her. After their dessert, Caleb took care of the check and they walked out of the restaurant.

  “Where did you park your car?” he asked opening the door so that she could walk out first. “I’ll walk with you.”

  “I’m straight ahead about two rows down,” Raegan said, pointing in the direction of her car.

  As they walked, Caleb broke the silence. “It was really great sitting down talking with you again Cami. You probably don’t want to hear this but I do miss you,” he said sincerely. “Hopefully we can catch up again soon.”

  “I enjoyed talking with you again, too. Although it took forever, thanks for taking the time to explain things to me. I’m glad that we can be friends again. Forgive me for being so stubborn,” she said, stopping when they made it to her car.

  She turned and gazed into his eyes for a moment. Glad that he was more forgiving than she would have been. She had to admit that she missed him too. Everything about him. Her gaze shifted to his hands as he reached out to rub her arms. His then grabbed both of her hands.

  “I know the position you thought I put you into, but all of that is behind us now. Let’s just move on, okay?” he said as he motioned to hug her. She honored his request and gave him a hug, relishing in the smell of his cologne. She unlocked her car and Caleb opened the door for her, and watched as she revved up the engine and drove away. He had much hope that things were finally turning around for him in the relationship department and that he had a great chance of winning her back. It would just take a little time. It didn’t matter how long because he was up to the challenge.

  CHAPTER 21

  ∞

  The four friends had brunch and then parted ways as Kensi returned home and Tammy left for a business trip to Boston. When she landed in Boston, she remembered that the Celtics had a home game that she planned to attend. She figured it would be a great way to entertain a client and get what she wanted too–to see Josh. They spoke on the phone from time to time but she couldn’t remember the last time she saw his face. It had been so long.

  She had to find something suitable to wear. She wondered if she could find something with his jersey number on it. Of course, that would do nothing but boost his ego. On her way to baggage claim, she stopped in one of the airport’s gift shops to see if she could find a cute tee to sport to the game in a few days. As she browsed the shop, she noticed pictures of him and his teammates plastered everywhere. She couldn’t escape him in this city even if she wanted to. Flipping through the racks, she came across a fitted bling tee with his jersey number on the chest.

  “Oh, this is absolutely perfect and it’s just my size. I will slip on a pair of my skinny jeans with this and his heart is going to turn flips!” she whispered to herself while holding the shirt up to her chest, looking in a mirror.

  The gift shop was quite fancy for an airport store, she thought. She picked up a package of pistachio nuts along with her shirt, paid for her purchases and headed to baggage claim.

  Tammy hailed a taxi to the hotel instead of renting a car. She didn’t have any friends to visit in Boston so much of her trip would be strictly busin
ess. When she arrived at the hotel and checked in her room, she was happy to see that her accommodations were very nice. She was staying in the Ritz Carlton and the pillows on that bed were cause for anyone to miss the alarm clock in the morning. She quickly settled in and ordered room service.

  “Everything looks so good!” she exclaimed, talking to the menu. “What am I going to get? No salad today. Let’s go with this six ounce steak, twice baked mashed potatoes, broccoli and a fruit tray,” she said aloud before calling room service to place her order.

  After placing her order, she took a shower, washed her hair and relaxed in one of those comfy robes and flicked through the television channels to find a great movie. She was just getting comfortable when her food arrived. The steak was medium well just as she liked it and those buttery potatoes were to die for, loaded with all of the ingredients that she liked. The broccoli was steamed perfectly and the fruit looked as if it was freshly picked from a farmer’s market. She didn’t waste any time tearing into the food. This was her first time all day eating a full meal and she was not going to let it go to waste. Once finished, she set the tray outside of her door and curled back up into bed.

  It felt good to relax without all the noise and commotion. She enjoyed being in hotels from time to time. She didn’t have to clean or cook; she just had to be. After relaxing for a while, she prepared for her workweek. She reviewed her presentations and organized her documents for the many meetings scheduled throughout the week.

  With all of the work that needed to be done, her week went by quickly, but maybe not as quickly as she had hoped. She was anxious about going to the game for many reasons. She was taking one of their top clients to the game. This was an opportunity for her to win the client over and renew their contract. If all went well, she could definitely see a promotion in her future. In addition to that, she hoped that the client was a fan of Josh because that would work well in her favor. She could introduce them. After all, she and the client would be sitting on the floor. Those were expensive seats, but her firm would spare no expense to keep this client. This was one of their biggest clients, so spending a few thousand bucks was no big deal at all.