Chapter 13
D avion woke his mother from her nap with a knock that could only rival a SWAT team.
Bleary-eyed and half-asleep, she flung the door open to find her son on the other side looking like stress and misery.
“What in the world is wrong with you?” she demanded.
He looked around before saying, in a hushed voice, “I’m having second thoughts.”
“Oh, God. Come on in here.”
She eyed the young man as he brushed past her into the room.
“You know I’ve never said this to you before, but, do you need a drink?”
Mark had stocked bar carts in almost every room she’d been in. She wondered if that was a doctor thing. Maybe a rich person thing.
“I’m good,” he said as he plopped down on the bed. "Are you okay? You're limping a little. Did you hurt yourself?"
She couldn't even look at him as she said, "Kind of. Stretched a little too far, that's all."
His eyes narrowed.
“Anyway, talk to me. What are you having second thoughts about?”
“Getting married,” he said matter of factly. “I just feel like…what’s the point?”
She dropped into the desk chair with a heavy sigh. “The point is you’re in love and you wanna spend the rest of your life with that lovely young lady. And she loves you, too. Nothing else matters.”
“I disagree,” he said. “That ‘rest of your life’ part matters a whole lot.”
That old familiar ache radiated in her chest. She first felt it when she decided to leave Orion, and it had been popping up ever since.
“Baby, I know why you feel the way you do,” she said, her voice sounding tired. “But just because my marriage wasn’t perfect doesn’t mean—“
“Respectfully, Mama, I don’t wanna hear that right now.”
She waited a beat. “Well what do you want me to say? You called this meeting, Dav.”
“I guess I want you to…” he trailed off, shaking his head as if the words were too heavy for him to say.
Sunny’s eyes filled with tears. The collateral damage her divorce had caused was even worse than she thought.
The ache intensified.
Part of her wondered if she made a mistake. If maybe she should have just stuck it out until all of her sons made it down the aisle. Especially given the fact that she was still sleeping with the man.
“I want you to tell me it was worth it,” he said, finding his voice. “That, if you could go back to when he asked you to marry him, knowing how it would all turn out, would you have said yes? Be honest.”
Defeated, she exhaled until she couldn’t anymore. “My honest answer is that I really don’t know. You and your brothers are the best thing that ever happened to me. If I’d said no, I wouldn’t have you. So—“
“But the marriage part. You and him . That’s what I wanna know.”
“Dav. That’s…I just—“
“Welp.” He nodded slowly. “That tells me what I needed to know.”
“Hold on.” Sunny inhaled deeply, getting her bearings. “Okay, you blame him. I understand that. But I wasn’t the perfect wife, either. No divorce is one-hundred percent on one person.”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m not gonna get into details, but just understand there were issues on both sides.” She swallowed hard, crossing her arms in front of her. “He just chose to handle his issues in the worst possible way.”
“Yeah. He did. So, again, what’s the point?” Dav demanded. “I’m sure you never thought it would get to that point until it did. And the family I thought was forever is broken now. Who’s to say mine won’t end up the same way?”
“Listen to me, Dav. Nobody can say. All you can do is hope and pray for the best and then do your best every day. No, it’s not easy, but you do it. And if it all breaks down one day, baby, life will go on.”
He eyed her curiously. “But…look at you.”
“What about me?”
“You’re going on, but are you happy ?”
She sat in silence.
He raised his eyebrows. “You think I don’t know you’re struggling?”
“That’s not really your dad’s fault, Dav.”
“Yeah, it is. He made more, and now you’re trying to survive on one income doing the same tiring work you always did, but now you gotta work more at your age.”
“That’s not your concern,” she said firmly. “I’m grown. I’m your parent. You’re the child. I can take care of myself.”
“I know that, but you’re not living like you used to,” he said softly. “Look, you can put on a happy face all you want, but I’m not stupid.”
He paused before he hit her with the dagger.
“Why didn’t you get any money from him?”
Sunny rolled her eyes. “Because there was no money to get. Okay?”
“I’m confused.”
“It’s really not your business, Dav. You had everything you needed, and that’s what matters.”
“I’m twenty-six. That’s old enough to know the truth,” he said. “Whatever it is.”
It was hard enough having this conversation a few hours after she’d been fucked within an inch of her life. Now he wanted truths and explanations?
She was not in the mood.
But if this was what it took to get that boy down the aisle, so be it.
“Okay, well, the truth is that we had three sons who we never wanted to say no to, who attended expensive private colleges and didn’t get full rides, who we wanted to focus on their grades instead of working to support themselves.” She leaned in closer. “There’s no money left, Davion. Now, that part is not a regret at all. I’d do it again, and so would your daddy. Is that honest enough for you?”
“Damn.” His slight pout reminded her of when he was a baby. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. And we would have never told you that, but that’s part of marriage, too. Working together. Making sacrifices. Being selfless.”
“That sounds less like marriage and more like being great parents. Why couldn’t y’all do that with each other?”
She sighed. “We did, until we didn’t.”
Silence stretched between them as they both considered the implications. Sunny had no real way to reassure her son of anything given the way her marriage ended. But this was a conversation his father should have had with him—not her.
As if he’d read her mind, he mumbled, “I’m still pissed at him.”
She nodded. “Understandable.”
“I looked up to that man,” he said, his eyes fixed to the floor. “I used to want to be just like him. But now…” his voice cracked, his pain seeping out of him and rolling down his cheek.
Another round of tears welled up in Sunny’s eyes as she moved to sit next to her oldest baby. That’s what he would always be to her, married or otherwise.
“I’m so sorry, baby.” She put an arm around him, leaning into him, but he stayed rigid. It was as if his body couldn’t even relax anymore.
He sniffed, wiped his face, and leaned away. “It’s whatever,” he said, sounding every bit the tough 26 year old. “I’m good. Just had to get that out, I guess.”
He was embarrassed, Sunny could tell. Men and their emotions. She couldn’t imagine going through life repressing her deepest feelings. What a burden.
“How would you feel about me seeing somebody?” she said, hoping to lighten the mood.
“I already know you’re seeing somebody. Old boy that’s coming to the wedding, right?”
“Uh…yeah,” she said as she moved back to the chair.
“I mean, I ain’t met him yet, but if you like him, it’s all good.” Dav narrowed his eyes. “He treating you right?”
She smiled. “So far, he’s amazing. Very attentive. He’s generous. Seems loyal. He’s an all around good person.”
“I hope so. Because you got a gang of sons behind you, and I’m the ringleader.”
She laughed at that.
“How long you been talking to him?”
“Not that long.”
“Uh huh.” He peered at her, searching for something. “Your eyes just went all dreamy.”
She laughed. “Cut me some slack. There’s a lot going on right now. I’m tired.”
“Yeah. Speaking of, we gotta get back out there for family game night.”
“Okay. But Dav…how do you think your brothers will feel?”
He shrugged. “I really can’t say. They aren’t happy about that lady coming with Pop.”
“Well, it is what it is. This is the new normal, unfortunately. Your father and I are over.”
He blew out a breath. “I just want you happy. Whoever makes that happen is good in my book.”
“I appreciate that. I love you, Dav.”
“Love you too, Mama. Let’s go on out there.”
“Are you better now?”
He stopped at the door, his hand on the knob. “I’ll keep you posted.”
Daisy stood at the front of the cozy den and smiled at the guests around her.
“Welcome to the Bennett Family Wedding Game Night! Can we all scootch in just a little closer? Remember, the theme is family. Let’s show how much we like each other!”
Everybody moved their bodies a few centimeters closer to one another, but besides Dav and Brooklyn, there was more segregation in the room than 1960s Alabama. The Bennetts; Mark, Drew, Vince, and Mark’s sister Mishon were on one side. The Dixons; Orion, Sunny, Amari, and Sylvan, sat on the other. Daisy wasn’t going to be defeated, though. She’d seen far worse and triumphed by the end of the night.
“Now, I know everyone thinks these are corny, and you’re absolutely right,” she said to laughter. “BUT, we’re gonna have some fun tonight! And to facilitate that, let’s go ahead and bring in the libations.”
Two young men rolled gold bar carts into the room. Dressed in black slacks and white button downs, they expertly mixed drinks to order. Once everyone was served, they retreated to the back of the room, ready to refill if necessary.
Mark had a feeling it would be necessary.
He sipped his old fashioned and snuck a few glances at Sunny, who was sitting pretty next to her ex-husband on the couch. Their body language was confusing, but he resigned himself to the fact that until she was officially his, he had no say in what they did.
But he was definitely gonna need a refill.
“Okay, first game,” Daisy announced. “Bride and groom trivia!”
When nobody reacted, she crossed her arms. “Did I mention there are prizes associated with these games?”
“Okay! Now we’re talking!” Drew cheered.
Sunny’s smile was contagious, causing a grin to break out across Mark’s face.
Then he wondered if Sunny was wearing panties under her green sundress.
“Fair warning,” she said. “I’m a little competitive.”
Mark thought it at the same time Orion said it out loud.
“A little ?”
She rolled her eyes at her ex and looked up at Daisy. “What are the rules?”
“Well this one is just an ice-breaker, but I’m gonna ask questions about the happy couple and we’ll see who knows them best. Feel free to yell out the answers. First person to five points wins a lovely trip to the Oasis for a full spa day.”
“Aw, come on, man.”
Vince wasn’t the only one grumbling. All of the guys sans Mark complained under their breath.
“OR,” Daisy continued, “tickets to the Panthers’ season opener.”
Amari clapped his hands together once. “Okay, now we’re talking!”
Satisfied, Daisy pulled out her notecards. Every question was embroidered on the front in a fancy font and stamped with gold leaf. Dr. Bennett had spared no expense.
“Okay, question one. Where did the happy couple meet?”
“Damn, I know this one…” Amari tapped his forehead as he stared at his brother. “Cancun?”
“Close,” Daisy said. “But not close enough.”
Mark knew, but he didn’t need a spa trip, and he already had season tickets to the Panthers. He sipped his drink and felt his muscles relax. This wasn’t too bad. At least he got to stare at Sunny all night.
Panties, or no panties?
He’d find out soon enough.
“I know,” Sunny said quietly. “Tulum.”
Daisy nodded. “Good job, Mom.”
“That’s not fair,” Sylvan whined. “I don’t think parents should get to answer.”
“Don’t be a sore loser,” she told her son. “You should want your mama to win. I need a massage.”
“Ew. I don’t wanna be thinking about you getting rubbed by a stranger,” Amari said, and all three Dixon boys laughed at that.
Mark, on the other hand, loved the thought of Cici being pampered. He pulled his phone out to handle some business, trying to be as covert as possible.
“Next question,” Daisy said. “Where did Davion and Brooklyn go on their first date?”
Mark snapped his fingers. “I know this.”
But before he could answer, Sylvan yelled out, “Cheesecake Factory!”
All of the Bennetts laughed at that. Brooklyn’s childhood nickname was Princess. Hilary Banks was her idol. That girl wasn’t going to no Cheesecake Factory on a first date.
Just another side effect of the way she was raised. Mark’s first date with Sunny was at a McDonald’s after a football game. He smiled at the memory. Two big mac combos and two apple pies. They ate under the stars in his Geo Tracker, then made out until dorm curfew.
Those were some of the best days of his life.
“Why is it taking y’all so long to answer this?” Davion asked with a smile. “Actin’ like y’all don’t know us at all.”
“Didn’t you take her to your apartment?” Amari blurted out. “Yeah, cuz you told me she—“
“Nah, nah, nah!” Davion put his hands up, while Brooklyn froze next to him. “Chill, bruh.”
Mark set his phone and glass on the side table. “Did I hear that right?”
Sunny chuckled to herself. His little princess on a first date in her son’s musty apartment? The outrage of it all.
“W-we um, no, it wasn’t—“ Brooklyn stuttered helplessly.
“Sir, I did not—I mean, what happened was—“
“Relax,” Mark said with a shake of his head. “Yall ‘bout to be married. The horse is already out the barn at this point.”
Sunny giggled at that, but the kids all looked confused.
“It’s a saying,” he explained.
Drew made a slashing gesture at his throat. “Let’s dead all the old folks talk, Pop.”
“Old?” Orion tilted his head. “We can take this outside if y’all got the nerve.”
“I second that,” Mark said. He raised his glass, signaling, and one of the butlers rushed over with a fresh one.
“Ain’t nobody say we wanted to fight,” Drew defended.
“But that’s one of them fighting words,” Orion said.
“Can we get back to Dav taking Brooklyn to the crib on the first date?” Amari laughed.
Davion sucked his teeth. “Yall some hoes.” He shot a quick look at Mark. “Sorry.”
Brooklyn rolled her eyes at her future brothers-in-law. “Nobody gets that point. We went out to eat, and then we played Call of Duty.”
“Call of Duty?” Mark scrunched his face up in confusion. “Who is this girl, and where the hell is my daughter?”
“The things we do for love,” Sunny remarked quietly. Both Orion and Mark turned their gazes on her, but only one got her attention. It was fleeting, but she let herself lock eyes with Mark just for a moment, enjoying the rush of adrenaline that coursed through her veins as something secret and intimate passed between them.
“Fine. Scratch point.” Daisy let the card drift to the floor. “Next question: Who said ‘I love you’ first?”
As the game rolled on, answers flew this way and that as they learned Dav said ‘I love you’ first, their pet names for each other were Brookie Cookie and King, their favorite show to binge watch was Snowfall , their song was “Snooze,” and their proposal had taken place on a yacht off the coast of Miami.
Once Mark signaled for his third old fashioned, Sunny asked for a second Long Island ice tea. She was feeling nice and relaxed now, and almost having fun. The only thing that would have made the evening better was not having Orion looming over her left shoulder.