43/Renee
I was home dozing off while watching a late-night movie when my cell phone rang.
I ignored it because I had a pretty good idea who was calling, again.
A glance at the Caller ID confirmed I was right.
Danielle. She refused to tell me what happened when I called her earlier, and now that it was convenient for her, she wanted to call me back.
I guarantee Chance told her some lame-ass story to get her to believe him.
So now she wants to call me to throw it back in my face.
As far as I’m concerned, I’m staying out of it.
If she wants to believe that sorry mothafucka, then so be it.
I know she better not come running to me when the shit hits the fan.
She wants to believe him, then she can deal with the consequences.
If she had any sense, she would take Calvin back.
The next morning, I went to work, but after an hour my head was hurting so bad I decided to just go home for the day.
It was the end of April and school was called off due to an electrical problem.
Usually when the kids were home I tried to stay as far away as possible, but the thought of going home and curling underneath my covers was too good to pass up.
I was halfway home when I decided to give Kenny a call just so he wouldn’t wake me up after I had fallen asleep. Nothing pissed me off more than to be disturbed when I was dreaming good. And after a dose of medicine that’s exactly what I would be doing.
“Hello?” he said, sounding like he was still in bed.
“I thought you were going to the shop this morning.” Sometimes I think Kenny is lazy as hell.
“I started to but the bed felt so good this morning, I decided to just lie here.”
“I can definitely understand. My head is killing me so I’m on my way back home to bed.”
“Who you got meeting you? That other nigga?”
“Whatever.” He could be so ignorant at times. I don’t know why I even bothered calling him.
“That’s okay, just tell me the truth.”
“Kenny, the kids are at home. How much entertaining do you expect me to be doing?”
“I come over when your kids are there.”
“That’s you. They know who you are. I don’t make it a habit of having a bunch of men running in and out of my house.” Hell, why do that when I can just meet them at the nearest hotel?
“How I even know you’re really going home?”
“You are really talking stupid.”
“Yeah, you right. I don’t have no right to ask,” he said and waited for a response.
I was already tired of this conversation. “I’ll call you when I get home.” I hung up and groaned. I can’t stand a jealous-ass man. Never have. Never will. Some women think that shit is cute. Well, I don’t.
Now my head was really pounding, and I felt relieved when I finally pulled my car into the garage next to Quinton’s.
The second they heard school was canceled this morning, they both jumped back into bed and went back to sleep.
Which was fine with me, otherwise they’d be wanting me to make them pancakes or something and I wasn’t feeling up to doing anything but taking a nap.
I moved into the quiet house and went straight to the bathroom to pee.
Once there, I noticed that Quinton had taken a shower and as usual had left the bathroom a mess.
I frowned. He kept his room clean, but the bathroom was another story altogether.
As soon as I washed my hands I moved down the hall to his bedroom and knocked.
He didn’t answer.
I turned the knob and found that the door was locked.
So, I started banging on the door. “Quinton, get your butt up!” I heard mumbling on the other side.
Two voices, and one was female. Hell nah!
Reaching over the trim of the door, I grabbed the small key and stuck it through the lock.
As soon as the knob turned, I barged into the room.
The television was on and Quinton was lying in the bed.
“What’s going on in here?” I demanded to know because something smelled fishy, and I didn’t mean that literally. Whoever was in his room needed a douche.
He rubbed his eyes and tried to act like he was just waking up. “Huh? What are you talking about? I was asleep.”
I pursed my lips and gave him a long look, then dropped down and looked under his bed. He sprang up and the covers fell low and I could tell he didn’t have any clothes on.
“Mom, what are you doing?” Panic was apparent in his face. He quickly reached for his boxers.
“Looking for the girl you in here screwing.” I rose to my feet, moved over to the closet, and flung the door open. Crouched down in the comer was Alicia. She looked scared to death. And needed to be.
“Get dressed and go home!” I managed between gritted teeth. I wanted to cuss her ass out but decided to save that for Quinton.
She stepped out wearing one of Quinton’s shirts, pouting with straight attitude like I’d done something to her.
“Don’t ever come over here and disrespect my house like this again!”
Quinton tried to take up for his girl. “Mama, it isn’t her fault. I invited her over.”
“And she came knowing good and damn well she couldn’t do that same shit at her house.”
She sucked her teeth. “Actually, my mother doesn’t mind if I have company in my room.”
“Then that’s your mama, because I don’t allow it in my house and Quinton knows it. Now both y’all, get dressed.”
I moved out the room and down the hall to mine, where I called Kenny and woke him up again.
“You made it home.”
“Yep. And guess what I walked in on? Your daughter and my son fucking in my house.”
“What!”
“Yep.”
He was quiet. “That’s because her mother lets her do whatever she wants.”
“Well, she won’t do whatever she wants over here. Do you want to talk to her?”
He was quiet. What the hell did he have to think about? “Nah. She’ll just get pissed and then run home to tell Reese on me.”
Did I hear him right? “Is that all you care about?”
“Listen, babe, I just don’t need the drama right now. I’m getting married in two weeks.”
“Then you need to quit fucking around!” Now I was pissed off. So much for getting some sleep.
By the time I moved back down the hall, I heard Quinton’s car pulling out of the driveway. I walked over to the window and glanced out in time to see Alicia mean mugging me. I stuck up my middle finger, then turned and went to the bathroom to find some ibuprofen. My head was pounding.
I took a nap and when I woke up around five, I headed to the store. I didn’t have any missed calls, so Kenny hadn’t even bothered to try and call me back. I was hurt beyond words. I obviously did not mean as much to him as I thought I had. That’s what I get for giving my heart to a mothafucka.
On my way back home, I reached for my phone and called Kayla. I just needed someone to listen to me without passing judgment. Maybe she might throw in a scripture or two to help me come to terms with what was going on.
“Hello?”
“Hey, girl. Where you at?”
“I’m at Walmart in the jewelry department talking to Reese about her wedding.”
I hit my brakes. “Is she still there?”
“Uh-huh, standing a few feet away.” Her voice was low so that she wouldn’t be overheard. “I can’t believe I’m telling you this.”
I hit a U-turn. “Neither can I, but I’m glad you did. I’ll be there in a few.” I pushed my foot down on the gas and went as fast as I thought I could get away with. A couple of weeks ago Kenny had shown me a picture of Reese, but nothing would be like seeing her in person.
Five minutes later I was jumping out of my car and making my way into Walmart. I dialed Kayla back. “Where is she now?”
“I don’t know. She said she was going over to the cosmetics department.”
“As homely as everyone says she is, I doubt makeup can help.”
Kayla breathed heavily in the phone. I know she was regretting even telling me.
“What’s she wearing?”
She hesitated. “She’s wearing navy blue capris and a white sparkle T-shirt.”
I moved into the store and headed to the cosmetics department, scanning each aisle as fast as I could, and looking both ways. I reached the end and was in the pet department. “I don’t see her.”
“She’s here unless she left.”
I started walking down the main aisle and moved past each of the checkout lanes hoping to see her.
“She can’t be too far. All she was talking about was her wedding and all of her arrangements. I wouldn’t have even told you, but she’s having a bridal shower and didn’t even bother inviting me. I thought she and I were friends.”
“I guess not. Or maybe she knows that I’m fucking her fiancé and that we are friends.”
“I doubt that. She would have confronted me. She’s like that. A whole lot of talk.”
I moved to the other side of the store where the groceries are and found Kayla and her daughter Asia in the bread aisle. I hung up my phone and moved over to her cart.
“Hey, Asia.” I gave her a hug. “How’s school?”
“Good,” she answered with a shy smile. She’s a pretty girl. Tall with pretty light brown skin and long jet-black hair. She’s only ten but looks every bit of thirteen.
I hugged her once more, then turned my attention to Kayla. “Where’s she at?” I mumbled so Asia wouldn’t know who we were talking about.
She shrugged. “She was just here. Maybe she left. She did talk about going to Tropical Liquors for a drink afterward.”
I huffed out a frustrated breath and reached for a loaf of bread. I was sure we could use some at home. I glanced over her shoulder and my eyes grew round. “Is that her over there?”
Kayla turned around and tried to act like she was grabbing a pack of bagels. “Yep, that’s her.”
Before she could stop me, I walked in Reese’s direction so I could get a closer look.
She was standing in the meat department examining the lunch meat.
As soon as I saw her pick up a pack of hot dogs, I started cracking up laughing.
She turned and looked in my direction. Ugh was right.
She looked like she’d had a hard life. She was close to fifty and looked every bit of it.
She had big round eyes and high cheekbones that, like her breasts, were starting to sag.
I moved closer and could tell that she once had severe acne because it left black spots and craters in her face.
I wouldn’t call her skinny or fat, but she did have a tire around her middle section that you just couldn’t stuff in a pair of capri pants.
I moved over just so I would have a chance to see if she recognized me. Up close and personal. I reached over and grabbed a pack of bacon and looked up to find her staring at me.
“Aren’t you the writer, Caeramel?” Reese asked.
The shit I write, I have to pen under a pseudonym.
“Yep, that’s me,” I said, trying to be polite.
“I thought so. I read your last book Feinin'. It was really good.”
I couldn’t help but grin at the compliment. “Well, thanks. I have a new book coming out at Christmastime called A Delight Before Christmas.”
“I’ll have to grab a copy. Well, keep up the good work.” Her smile was genuine.
“Thanks,” I said and watched her head over to the milk.
As soon as she wasn’t looking, I turned and headed back down the bread aisle.
Kayla’s eyes were wide as saucers. I know she was dying to know what the two of us were talking about.
I didn’t want Reese to know we knew each other if the shit ever hit the fan, so I called Kayla on my phone and told her to meet me in the photo department.
She must have run because she beat me there.
“Oh my God! What were the two of you talking about?”
I looked around to make sure Reese wasn’t around because people have a way of popping up on you. “She was complimenting me on my book.”
“Girl, do you think she knows?”
I thought about it for a second, then shook my head. “Nope, or she doesn’t know that Renee Moore and Caeramel are the same person.”
“Maybe that’s it. She’s looking for Renee.” She started laughing. “Wouldn’t that be something when she finds out?”
I snapped my fingers. “No, come to think of it, she would know it was me because when I ignore those blocked calls, my voice mail picks up and it says Renee Moore loud and clear.”
“Then maybe it isn’t her calling you.”
“Maybe not.” If not, then who?
I reached for a picture frame. I found a photo of my sister that I loved and wanted to put out on the shelf. “Have you spoken to Nadine?”
Kayla nodded. “Briefly this morning. She’s still pretty pissed off about that whole thing.”
I nodded. Her feelings were quite understandable. “I’m gonna give her a call tomorrow.”
Asia looked like she was anxious to get home, and I was ready to get out of the store myself.
I said good-bye and moved to the register to pay for my stuff.
I saw Reese once more. She waved and headed to the door.
I stood there trying to figure it out. If it wasn’t Reese and it wasn’t Leslie calling me, then who could it be?
It wasn’t until later that night, after I had given up expecting a call from Kenny and climbed under the covers, that my cell phone vibrated.
I grabbed it hoping it was him. It was a text message.
BITCH THIS IS UR LAST WARNING.