As Long As We Got Love

by Tina Martin

  He smiled.

  She broke eye contact with him. Didn’t smile back.

  That’s the moment Tyson knew something was bothering her. He didn’t know what it was but he knew it was something. He made it a point to educate himself on her mannerisms. Any good husband could pick up on signs that something was wrong with his wife.

  Gabrielle sat down next to him sitting on the sofa wishing she could take one of the champagne flutes and gulp down the whole glass, but she couldn’t since she was still breastfeeding and pumping milk for Amryn.

  Tyson scooted to the edge of the couch, placed his glass on the table, then pressed his lips beside Gabrielle’s cheek. She felt the warmness of his affection flow through her, then looked at him and worked up a small smile.

  “Hey. Are you feeling okay?”

  She was looking dead at him, so no doubt, she heard his question. The only problem was, it was echoing in her mind over and over again, each echo louder than the one before it – not typically the way echoes worked. Gabrielle couldn’t bring herself to respond with a yes or a no, so she said nothing.

  Tyson narrowed his eyes. What’s wrong with my baby? “Gabrielle,” he said, then stopped short of saying anything else when he glanced up and saw Dilvan walking into the room. Immediately Tyson frowned, sized him up and momentarily forgot about the conversation he was having with Gabrielle. He kept his eyes on Dilvan. He couldn’t stand the sight of his cousin – the family all knew that – especially after he found out what Dilvan had done to Gabrielle. The men had exchanged words over it, got into fist fights over it and the animosity between them still existed down to this day, even though Tyson tried to be the bigger man and keep a calm head. Still, he didn’t like being in the same room with the man and he especially didn’t like Gabrielle being in the same room with him. He didn’t want Dilvan’s presence to bring back bad memories for her – of the way he had treated her.

  The moment he saw Gabrielle glance in Dilvan’s direction, Tyson whispered in her ear, “Are you sure you’re okay with him being here because we can leave?”

  “He doesn’t bother me anymore, Tyson. It’s easy for me to pretend he’s not here. Besides, he has no reason to say anything to me.”

  “Even if he did have a reason…I wish I would see him trying to talk to you. It would take an act of God to save that man.”

  Gabrielle smiled, but Tyson could still sense something wasn’t right with her. If it wasn’t Dilvan, what was it?

  “I’m going to check on the kids,” Gabrielle said standing.

  While she went her way, Tyson watched as the family greeted Dilvan like he was a celebrity. The hugs of happiness were probably stemming from the fact that he was so hit and miss, nobody was certain he would show up. Surprise lit up their faces when he finally did. The only people who weren’t smiling and all welcoming were the ones who didn’t know him like that, and Henry. It probably wasn’t a good idea for Dilvan to be at an event where the father and the new husband of the woman he’d abused were present. Tyson was furious enough but Henry – he looked like he could choke the life right out of Dilvan.

  Henry stood up with a bald fist, taking easy steps toward Dilvan when Tyson hurried off the sofa and intercepted him. “He’s not worth it, Henry.”

  Henry was so furious, he’d temporarily lost the ability to hear. Seemed the room went quiet. He definitely hadn’t heard Tyson, and Tyson was aware of that, so he tried to get Henry’s attention again. “Henry, he’s not worth it.”

  Henry blinked out of his fury and focused on Tyson. “What’d you say?”

  “I said he’s not worth it, Henry,” Tyson repeated.

  “I just want to get my hands on him one good time,” Henry said through clenched teeth.

  “Trust me, I know the feeling. I’m with you, but Dilvan’s not himself most times especially since he’s on and off his medication and—”

  Henry made another step toward Dilvan and Tyson, once again, held him back.

  “I’m not making excuses for him, Henry, but Padma worked so hard to put this together for everyone. Let’s try not to ruin this for her, okay?”

  “Yeah, okay. Fine.”

  “Can I let you go?” Tyson asked.

  “I’m fine,” Henry said still heaving with madness.

  Tyson released him and he calmed down a little, returning to his seat. Shrew, he said under his breath, then called Heshan over.

  “Heshan, can you keep an eye on Henry for me?”

  Heshan glanced over at Henry, then returned his attention to Tyson. “Why? What’s going on with Henry?”

  “Your brother just showed up. You connect the dots.”

  Heshan shook his head. “See, I knew this reunion was a bad idea.”

  “It’s not a bad idea, man. There’s only one person who’s throwing everything off balance. It’s up to us how we react to him. Look, I have to go talk to Gabrielle about something. Watch Henry.”

  “Yep. I got it,” Heshan replied.

  Tyson walked to the kid’s play area, looking for Gabrielle since that’s where she said she’d be, but when he walked into the room, he didn’t see her. He saw Carmen, Destiny, Charity and the kids, but no Gabrielle. “Hey, Carmen, come here for a minute.”

  Carmen, who was sitting on the floor helping T.J. stack Legos stood up and walked over to him. “What’s up, Tyson?”

  “Where’d your sister run off to?”

  Carmen shrugged. “I’m not sure. I thought she was in the party room with you.”

  “She was. She said she was coming to check on the kids.”

  “Gabrielle hasn’t been in here.”

  “Hmm,” Tyson said, frowning slightly. “Okay. I’ll find her.”

  Tyson checked the kitchen. Through the large, bay windows, he could see Gabrielle standing on the deck. Alone. He exited the back door, seizing this opportunity to talk to her in private. He took steps in her direction. Her back was to him, but surely she could hear his steps as he got closer and closer to her.

  “Hey, you,” he said, encasing her small waist in his arms.

  Gabrielle closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel the love radiating from him. He had plenty of it – so much to give. That had never been a problem with them. Actually, they didn’t have many problems, but this Paris thing – him putting off his dreams – didn’t sit well with her.

  “Tell me what’s wrong, Bri.”

  Why couldn’t she just let this go and bask in the warmness of his arms? In the scent that calmed her like nothing else. In the welcoming arms of the man she adored.

  “I know something is bothering you, so you may as well go on and get it out.”

  “Tyson, I—” she paused, hesitant to say anything. “You know what?” she said, turning around to look at him. “It’s nothing.”

  “Look me in my eyes and say that.”

  She looked at him, but couldn’t hold contact with his copper-toned eyes.

  “See, you can’t even look at me. Gabrielle.”

  “I can look at you,” she said, making herself do so.

  “Good. Now, tell me what’s bothering you? Is it Dilvan, because if so, we can go. I’ll talk to Padma. I’m sure she’d understand considering...”

  “It’s not Dilvan, Tyson.”

  “If it’s not Dilvan, what is it?”

  “It’s you.”

  He grimaced. “Me?”

  “Yes.”

  Tyson leaned forward, kissed her lips and said, “Then tell me what I did wrong so I can make it right.”

  Why did he have to be so charming and just plain perfect? She didn’t want to say anything now.

  “Tell me,” he said.

  “Okay. Um…I overheard your father and Colin talking about how you gave up a major opportunity and I didn’t know anything about it.”

  “About Paris?”

  “Yes. Paris. Is it true?”

  Tyson sighed evenly. He didn’t want her to know anything about that. “Yes, it’s true. I wouldn’t c
all it a major opportunity though.”

  “Then what would you call it because that’s what it sounded like to me.”

  “Okay, so what if it was, Gabrielle?”

  “Then you should’ve gone for it. Instead, you turn it down and kept the whole thing a secret from me.”

  “I wasn’t keeping it a secret, baby. I didn’t tell you because it didn’t directly concern you.”

  “It didn’t?” Gabrielle asked with narrowed eyes, “Because you’re my husband. Why wouldn’t it concern me?”

  Tyson released a heavy sigh. “Gabrielle, there are certain things—decisions—I have to make concerning this family. This was one of those decisions. Yes, I got an offer to open up my chain of restaurants in Paris, but what you don’t know is, as a part of that deal, I had to physically be there. I had to make an appearance at the restaurants at least once a week and have a direct hand in training the chefs and interacting with the high-end customers the restaurant would cater to. It was a good deal on paper, but logistically, it wasn’t.”

  “Why not?”

  He scrunched up his brows. “Because I’d have to leave you and my kids on a regular basis to fly back and forth to Paris. Alternatively, I could’ve uprooted you and the kids to make a move to Paris with me but there’s no way I would do that. So, I turned it down.”

  “You shouldn’t have.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I said, you shouldn’t have. This is your dream, Tyson. I don’t want to stand in the way of that.”

  “Are you kidding me, Gabrielle?”

  “No. I—”

  “What makes you think you’re standing in the way of anything?”

  “Because if you didn’t have me, Amryn and T.J., you’d be free to pursue it, and probably would have. Am I right?”

  Tyson took a step back from her and walked over to the railing, staring out into the ocean to settle himself. Then he looked over at her and said, “You’re my wife. You, T.J. and Amryn—you’re my world. I thought you knew that, Gabrielle.”

  “I do—”

  “You don’t,” he said frowning, “Because if you did, you wouldn’t be saying these things to me. You would know that a man—a real man—makes sacrifices for his family. A real man put the needs and wants of his family ahead of his own. Was Paris a good opportunity? Of course, it was. Was it worth disrupting my family? No. That’s the reason I didn’t bring it up. There was no need for me to bring it up, just like there should have been no need for this conversation, Gabrielle, because you should know this already. Whenever the choice is between something I want and the needs of my family, you win every time. You, T.J. and Amryn. You’ll always win.”

  The sound of waves made the silence between them bearable but still painfully obvious. Tyson’s frustration was apparent by his tone and surely Gabrielle knew that but she still wanted Tyson to see her point – that she wanted him to fulfill all of his dreams and not have them stifled simply because he was married with kids. Any good wife would want that for her husband, and no woman wanted to feel like she was the reason her man couldn’t live to his full potential.

  Tyson turned his vision away from her, tapped on the wood railings and said, “I’ll be inside.” And he left her standing there as he headed for the door, still frustrated that the woman he loved more than anything was having difficulty ascertaining everything that entailed.

  Chapter 20

  -*- Dilvan -*-

  When Charity stepped into the kitchen and saw Dilvan sipping on a bottle of water, she scanned the living room for Eden.

  No Eden.

  He really had the nerve to show up here without her like everything was normal while her sister was depressed and pregnant – probably halfway to Belize by now to get away from him? She could just slap that bottle of water right out of his hand.

  “Where’s my sister?” she asked him.

  “I don’t know,” he said calmly. There was no sense of urgency in his voice. No panic. No worry. “I was hoping she’d be here.”

  Charity threw a hand up on her hip and with raised brows she said, “You were hoping?”

  “Yes.” He took a sip of water.

  “You know what, Dilvan, you’re such a freaking jerk. I don’t know how or why my sister ever got crossed up with you. She could’ve done so much better.”

  “I’m sure she could have,” Dilvan said evenly. He wasn’t trying to be a smart aleck. He was just being truthful. He knew in his heart that Eden could’ve ended up with a better man. One who wouldn’t exit the room when she told him she was pregnant. One who would be there for her emotionally and not so absorbed in his own problems that her problems were minor. Eden was a phenomenal woman, and he wasn’t deserving.

  “This is how you treat the mother of your child? Like she’s at fault for getting pregnant? Like you had nothing to do with it?”

  So, she knows about the baby…

  “Look, this is between me and Eden, not you Charity.”

  “What’s going on?” Heshan said stepping inside the kitchen around the same time Tyson came in.

  “Nothing!” Charity yelled. “I was just telling your brother how stupid he is.”

  “Charity—” Heshan said, putting his arms around her. “Baby, calm down.”

  “How can I calm down, Heshan, when he’s here but my sister’s not because your brother treats her like crap and doesn’t want her to have the baby?”

  “I never said I didn’t want her to have the baby. I said I didn’t want the baby to be messed up like me. I’m screwed up in the head. I think everyone here can attest to that!”

  Padma came walking into the kitchen now to see what all the yelling was about. So did Preston and Tamera.

  “What’s going on?” Preston whispered to Tamera.

  “I’m not sure, but it’s no surprise that Dilvan is in the center of it all,” Tamera whispered back. “See, this is why I prefer living in Charlotte. It’s always drama when the family gets together.”

  “Dilvan, why are you yelling?” Padma asked.

  “It’s nothing, Mother. I’m about to leave. I’m sure that’ll make everyone happy.”

  Charity, still beyond heated, was so angry, tears came to her eyes. Heshan tried to console her but she maneuvered out of his hold to go outside and catch her breath.

  “Wait a minute...no one’s leaving,” Colin said, trying to take control of the situation.

  “I think it’s the best thing for me to do, Dad. I don’t want to ruin this reunion for everyone else. Besides, I need to go find Eden and see if I can save what’s left of my marriage.”

  “Eden’s in the hospital!” Charity yelled, barging back into the kitchen.

  Dilvan, paralyzed by what he heard for a moment, said, “Hospital?”

  “Yes. I just got a call from a nurse,” Charity told him.

  “I—I gotta…I gotta go.” Dilvan found it hard to breathe as he fiddled around in his pocket for his keys and walked toward the front door.

  “Dilvan, you can ride with us,” Heshan said.

  “No. I’m good to drive.”

  “Dilvan,” Heshan said, looking into Dilvan’s dazed eyes. “Ride with us.”

  “Okay. Just get me there as fast as you can.”

  * * *

  In the back seat, Dilvan fidgeted with his phone. There was no use in trying to call Eden directly if a nurse had to call Charity to inform her of Eden’s hospital visit. Why hadn’t the nurse called him? He was the husband. And what was wrong with Eden that she couldn’t talk? Had something happened to the baby?

  “What exactly did the nurse say, Charity?” Dilvan asked.

  “Please...like you care.”

  “Charity, calm down. Please,” Heshan whispered to her. He could understand her anger but he also knew of his brother’s mental state.

  “The nurse didn’t say anything,” she finally answered. “She said the doctor would let me know what was going on when I got there.”

  Dilvan was so weighed dow
n with worry and guilt, he couldn’t concentrate. He glanced out of the window and looked at his watch. “Shouldn’t we be at the hospital by now?”

  “We’ll be there in a few minutes, Dilvan,” Heshan told him. “Just try to stay calm. Eden’s at a hospital where she can be taken care of. I’m sure they’re doing just that.”

  Dilvan buried his face in his hands. He should’ve been the one taking care of Eden. How would he live with himself if she – if they – lost yet another baby?

  Chapter 21

  -*- The Reunion | Still Day 1 -*-

  “Okay, everyone,” Padma said, trying to smooth things over at the reunion. “Let’s all gather into the kitchen. Dinner is ready to be served. Sorry about the little misunderstanding. That’s what makes a family a true family, right?”

  Giggles spread throughout the kitchen. “These amazing chefs have prepared some wonderful mouth-watering dishes for us, so dig in.”

  When no one moved, John said, “In other words, let’s eat!”

  Tamera laughed. “It would be Dad hollering let’s eat.”

  “You know it,” Rena said. “He stays hungry.”

  Preston smirked. “With all this food, you won’t be hungry too much longer,” Mr. Alexander.

  Gabrielle made a plate full of food so the kids could nibble off of her plate. Tyson was in the living room talking to Henry. Since their conversation outside, she wasn’t sure if Tyson wanted anything to eat. In fact, he hadn’t said anything more to her since.

  Lalita fixed plates for her family while Prasad went to get the kids from the playroom.

  Tamera and Preston chose to sit at the dining room table, feeding each other samples of food off of the other’s plate. She’d made a Chinese food plate, and he had a plate full of Mexican cuisine.

  Henry was still frustrated, but somewhat relieved that Dilvan had left. It gave him time to relax and enjoy this opportunity for Carmen and Destiny to spend time with their extended family. They’d all sat with Gabrielle at the dinner table. Carmen got a kick out of Amryn’s giddiness when it came to food.