Two Weeks to Love

Chapter 1

“Thank you for dragging me out of the house, Sis. I needed this,” I told my older sister, Elaine.

When she called and invited me out to dinner, I declined at first but decided it would be good to get out for a bit.

“You’re welcome. I was tired of you moping around over that tired ass nigga. Tremaine is nowhere near worth the tears you’ve cried over his raggedy ass.”

“I know. The tears weren’t necessarily for or about him. They were more for what I thought we could be. After being with him for ten years, and engaged for seven, it’s hard getting used to my new normal.”

“I’m sure it is, Sis, but your decision to leave his ass was the smartest thing you’ve ever done. Stand ten toes down on your decision. It’ll get easier as time passes.”

“I know.”

Two months ago, I woke up and decided I was tired of waiting for my fiancé to agree on a wedding date. I’d been patient and hadn’t nagged him about it, but whenever I brought it up, it turned into an argument.

My sister and parents began warning me, after Tremaine and I had been engaged for over a year with no wedding date set. They didn’t come right out and say it, but alluded to him stringing me along. I was in denial and didn’t want to believe he would do something like that.

My parents had been married for almost forty-three years, and my sister and her husband for eight. That was over fifty years of marriage between the two couples, and I had the audacity not to heed their warnings.

All my life, I’d watched my parents love each other.

For over a decade, I watched my brother-in-law love my sister in the same way my father loved my mother.

It was a beautiful thing to witness, and I wanted it for myself.

It took a while, but I finally realized that what I wanted, I’d never have with Tremaine.

“You were still a baby with very little dating or relationship experience when Tremaine locked you down. He wasted your twenties, and I’m glad you’re not letting him do the same to your thirties.”

“Same. He would’ve probably strung me along for as long as I allowed him.”

“No doubt about it. I’m mad you gave the ring back, though. Girl, I would’ve gone to the nearest pawn shop and took whatever they gave me for it,” my sister said.

“I didn’t even think about that until it was already done. After seven years, it’s probably not worth much.”

“True.”

We both laughed as the server approached our table and asked if we wanted another drink.

After we placed another drink order, Elaine went to the bathroom.

I continued eating and scrolled Flikstagram while nibbling on the last of my fries.

As I took a sip of water, my eyes landed on a post from Tremaine’s sister.

tremeera_is_the_best: Congratulations to my big bro @tremaine25 and his new fiancée @leeleelove. I’m so excited for y’all and can’t wait to meet my new niece or nephew.

My eyes zoomed in on the picture, and I couldn’t believe my eyes. We broke up two months ago, and this nigga already had a baby well on its way and proposed to this bitch.

“Oh, hell nah!” I whispered.

I continued studying the picture, focusing on the woman’s face, which didn’t look familiar. I zoomed in on the picture and was flabbergasted when I noticed the ring.

“This muthafucka!”

“What are you looking at?”

“We gotta go!” I exclaimed, my voice much more elevated than it had been all evening.

I stood to leave, but Elaine grabbed my arm to stop me.

“Hold on, Sis. I was gone for less than five minutes. What the hell happened?”

I took a few deep breaths and sat down before giving her my phone. She looked at the screen, and her brow narrowed.

“This nigga can’t be serious,” she said in disbelief.

“We’re about to find out. Let’s go.”

I stood again, and again, my sister stopped me.

“Sit down, Eva!”

“I’m—”

“You’re not doing anything, especially if you’re planning to address him and this bullshit.”

“Lainey! We broke up two months ago. How the hell—”

“It doesn’t matter. What’s done is done, and you’re done with him. Whatever he does with his life is none of your concern.”

I sat down, pressing my back against the back of the booth and looking at the ceiling.

I was pissed, and the tears that gathered in my eyes eventually fell down the sides of my face.

I thought I was done crying over Tremaine, but when I was extremely angry and couldn’t do anything about it, I cried.

“Sis, don’t cry,” Elaine said on her way to my side of the booth.

She used her hip to push me over and sat next to me before draping her arm over my shoulder. I let my head fall onto her shoulder and released what I was determined to be the last tears I cried over my trifling ex, angry or not.

“I can’t believe this nigga. Obviously, he was cheating on me. How the hell did I not know?”

She released me and angled her body toward mine.

“I won’t minimize your pain, because I know this hurts.

I also won’t let you dwell on it. He’s moved on with his life, and it’s time for you to move on with yours.

You’re beautiful, you’re highly intelligent, you’re successful, and so much more.

It might take some time, but you’ll find a man who is worthy of you.

Don’t let Tremaine’s actions make you lose hope. Okay?”

I nodded and picked up a napkin to wipe my tears.

“Thank you, Sis. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“You’d be lost, but thankfully, you don’t have to worry about that.”

She returned to the other side after giving me a much-needed hug. The server returned with our drinks, and I downed mine before she walked away.

“Damn, Sis,” Elaine teased.

“Don’t judge. I needed that.”

“You want another?”

“No. I’m good, but I can’t lie. Seeing that pissed me off.”

“You’re allowed that, but now, you move forward. No more energy will be wasted on his ass, angry or otherwise.”

“That’s the goal.”

“You know what would be good for you?”

“A long, thick dick.”

“Shit. You can never go wrong with that, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I think you should take a vacation. You can go to Barbados and stay in the house we have there.”

Elaine’s husband, Semaj, was a retired professional football player. Although he was born and raised in Chicago, his parents were born and raised in Barbados, and most of his family still lived there. His parents came to the States after getting married and started a family.

“Hmm. That sounds intriguing.”

“I can notify the cleaning people and the chef to let them know you’re coming.”

“It sounds amazing, but I’ve never traveled alone internationally.”

“Are you scared?”

“Not scared, but the thought makes me nervous.”

“The property is gated, and the neighborhood is safe, but I can hire security to be there around the clock.”

“All of this sounds expensive.”

“Don’t worry about it. You pay for your plane ticket, and I got the rest.”

Semaj signed a few multimillion-dollar contracts while he was in the league, had a few endorsement deals, and had always been smart with his money.

Elaine had her own business styling and making custom outfits for the wives of professional athletes.

I did well for myself as a relationship therapist, but my income didn’t hold a candle to my sister’s and brother-in-law’s.

“Are you sure?”

“Definitely. Besides, I’m sure Semaj’s accountant will find a way to write it all off.”

We laughed, but we knew she was serious. I agreed to her offer, and for the duration of our time together, she shared things she’d learned about Barbados. I decided to fly out on the Monday after Thanksgiving and stay for two weeks.

Later that evening, when I arrived home, I had a chance to truly process the information I’d learned about Tremaine today. It was still hard to believe he’d played me like that, but I had to move past it.

After a relaxing shower, I donned my favorite lounge set, grabbed my favorite pen, and took out my favorite journal. Once I was comfortable in my favorite corner of the couch, I wrote my thoughts for today.

November 19th

I’m still growing accustomed to my new normal. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to get Tremaine out of my system, but I gotta cut myself some slack. I was only 22 when we started dating, and he was only my second real relationship, if you count my high school boyfriend.

Looking back, I think Tremaine took advantage of my youth and naivety. Our relationship wasn’t horrible, and he didn’t blatantly mistreat me. His mistreatment was subtle, and I never made a big deal about it because he could talk his way out of damn near anything.

He insisted I share my location with him, but never shared his.

He policed what I wore and who I hung around.

He had a key to my apartment, but I didn’t have a key to his because he and his cousin shared a place.

He only introduced me to a handful of people in his family, saying they weren’t close like that, so I didn’t need to meet them.

I didn’t get a good vibe from the people I’d met, so I wasn’t pressed to meet any others.

His mom was funny acting, and I was sure she only pretended to like me to keep the peace between her and Tremaine.

There is more, but I’d rather not get into it with this entry while I process his engagement and pregnancy announcement. The shock has worn off, but if I run into his ass on the street any time soon, I might throat punch him.

Coming to grips with the fact that my decade-long relationship wasn't what I thought is hard. I’m a relationship therapist, and my job is to help couples maneuver through the highs and lows of their relationship.

I question whether I’m doing a good job because I sure in the fuck mishandled my own.

I guess I’ll sort through that while I’m in Barbados. Until next time . . .