“Yes, that’s what I want.”
“Fine.”
Alexia inwardly frowned. She totally despised domineering men and had a feeling Lorenzo Ballentine was as domineering as they came. Her earlier opinion of him as being nice suddenly vanished. She wondered how Brandy could tolerate such a man. She shrugged. He was Brandy’s problem, not hers. In fact, Lorenzo and Brandy deserved each other. She had long ago learned the truth about men and their need to manipulate and control. Maybe it was time Brandy learned the same lesson.
“After you’ve checked your schedule please let us know,” Lorenzo said, like he was used to giving orders and having them obeyed.
Alexia was about to tell him that she had decided not to sing at their wedding when the music stopped playing and Cousin Agnes announced that everyone was to take their seats for dinner.
Chapter 17
Rae’jean couldn’t help but hide a grin behind her napkin as she finished wiping her mouth. She glanced across the table, and the grins on Alexia’s and Taye’s faces matched her own. Victor Junior was getting a taste of his own medicine, which served him right.
After everyone had sat down to the table to partake in the meal, Victor Junior had deliberately started a conversation that was intended to exclude Grady. Unfortunately, Victor Junior had not known that Grady, being the type of person that he was, could hold his own in any group, even when he was in the minority.
Also, Victor Junior had not known that this was not Grady’s first time being placed in such a situation. Before moving to Boston, Grady had worked two years at an inner-city hospital in Chicago. During those two years, he and three other doctors, all black, had operated a clinic in one of the worst areas of town. Therefore, none of the topics being discussed were going over Grady’s head like Victor Junior had intended. Grady was just as much a part of the conversations as everyone else. In fact, he was hitting it off big-time with Michael and Taye’s brothers as well as some of the other cousins. And Poppa Ethan seemed to like him. That meant a lot to her.
The only person who didn’t seem to be happy about the recent turn of events was Victor Junior. He was the one on the outside of the conversation, since the topic had shifted to golf, a sport Grady, Michael, and Taye’s brothers played regularly and Victor Junior didn’t play at all and knew very little about.
“As soon as the food is cleared away, it’s movie time,” Cousin Agnes announced to everyone.
Rae’jean knew that for this portion of the evening, which would last around thirty to forty-five minutes, a video that consisted of family photos Cousin Agnes had collected over the years would be shown. She wondered at what point during the evening she would have to speak privately with her uncle Victor. She was certain he knew the facts about her father, but like the others, he would not talk. She was prepared to beg and plead with him if that’s what it would take for him to tell her what she wanted to know.
Rae’jean noticed as soon as the lights were turned off for the movie Uncle Victor quietly left the room. Thinking that this would be the perfect time to talk to him, she turned to Grady. “Excuse me, Grady. I need to go talk to my uncle about something,” she whispered.
Grady nodded, smiling, not taking his eyes off the video. Evidently he was enjoying watching the movie Cousin Agnes had put together.
Rae’jean stepped out into the empty lighted hallway, wondering where her uncle could have gone so quickly. After waiting outside the men’s room for a little more than five minutes, she figured he must have gone someplace else.
A thorough search of the pool area indicated Uncle Victor was not there. Rae’jean was about to turn around and leave when she noticed the door from the pool area that led to the outside stairway was slightly ajar. Automatically she walked through it, and immediately she heard the moans and grunts of a man and woman entrenched in the throes of hot-blooded lust.
The stairway area was dark, so she could not see a thing, but she sure did hear a lot. She recognized her uncle’s voice but didn’t recognize the moans of the woman he was with and wondered if it was the woman who worked at the hotel. The sounds Uncle Victor and the woman were making went above and beyond mere sexual gratification as far as Rae’jean was concerned. She refused to believe that anyone could enjoy doing it so much that they had to make that kind of noise. They sounded like two animals who hadn’t had sex in fifty years and were making up for lost time as well as stocking up for the next fifty years.
Embarrassed at the thought that the man under the stairway carrying on that way was her fifty-year-old uncle, Rae’jean couldn’t help wondering if perhaps he was taking Viagra or some other type of medication to boost his sex drive. It must be in the genes, genes he had unfortunately passed on to Victor Junior, since he couldn’t keep his pants zipped, either. Deciding she had heard enough, more than she’d actually wanted to, she entered the pool area and sat down on one of the recliners to wait. They had to get their fill and come out sooner or later. Rae’jean quickly decided to use her uncle’s whorish activities to her benefit by blackmailing him into telling her what she wanted to know about her father.
Nearly a good twenty minutes later the woman slipped back through the door’s opening and Rae’jean nearly gasped out loud. The woman who had been outside making out with her uncle was none other than the prim and proper Valerie. Talk about being shocked. It appeared that even after thirty years Uncle Victor and Valerie still had some use for each other.
Rae’jean stayed out of sight in the darkness as she continued to watch Valerie fix her hair and straighten her clothes. From the smile Valerie wore, evidently Uncle Victor’s performance tonight had been well worth her time. Rae’jean wondered if anyone attending the banquet had noticed that both Valerie and Uncle Victor were missing. She wondered if Rose had noticed.
After Valerie disappeared from sight it didn’t take long for Uncle Victor to make an appearance, as he hurriedly entered the pool area. Rae’jean waited until he’d finished tucking his shirt back in and zipping up his pants before making her presence known.
“Uncle Victor.”
Nearly startled out of his pants again, Victor Bennett, Sr., placed a hand over his heart. “Rae’jean, what are you doing out here? Why aren’t you in there watching the movie like everyone else?” he asked, catching his breath.
Rae’jean came closer to him in the light. “I could be asking you the same thing.”
He had the gall to look innocent. “I decided to get a bit of fresh air.”
Yeah, and that’s not all you got a bit of, Rae’jean thought as she met her uncle’s gaze. She checked her watch. She didn’t have a lot of time to waste. “Look, Uncle Victor, I know what you and Valerie were doing out here, and I know Rose wouldn’t be too happy if she found out, so I’m willing to make a deal.”
Uncle Victor frowned. “What are you talking about, girl? Are you saying you’ll say something about tonight to Rose?”
Rae’jean detected surprise in his voice. “Yes. I might say something unless you’re willing to swap secrets with me.”
Uncle Victor lifted a brow. “Swap what kind of secrets?”
“I want to know about my father.”
Uncle Victor shook his head regretfully. “Can’t do that, girl. All of us promised that we wouldn’t.”
Rae’jean frowned. “And just who did all of you make that promise to?”
Uncle Victor crossed his arms over his chest. “Can’t tell you that, either.”
Rae’jean rubbed both hands across her eyes. She was sick and tired of family secrets, especially one she felt she had a right to know about. “Fine, Uncle Victor, you keep your secret, but I won’t keep mine. If you don’t agree to meet with me later and tell me what I want to know, then I’ll make sure Rose knows all about what happened here tonight with Valerie.”
Uncle Victor looked at her, shaking his head. In his heart he knew his niece was bluffing, but he also knew how determined she was to learn the truth. “Rae’jean, honey, some things are better left
alone. You didn’t have a daddy all these years; why do you want to find out about one now? Didn’t me and your other uncles give you everything you needed while you were growing up? Didn’t we help your mama with you, girl? God rest her soul, Colleen was my sister and we all loved her dearly. Not once did any of us turn our backs on her when she got knocked up with you. She was the youngest of the girls but was the first to have a baby. She had you when she was only sixteen.”
Rae’jean sighed. “Uncle Victor, I know all that, and I do appreciate everything you and my other uncles did for me but I need to know who my father is. Because of my coloring, I know he couldn’t have been a black man. I need to know who he was, not just for me but for the kids I may have one day. I have a right to know about the person responsible for creating me. For once, think about how I feel. I bet all your outside children know you’re their daddy.” At his nod she said, “Then why can’t I know who my father is? Just because he may be white doesn’t change anything. I may decide not to act on the information once I get it, but I think I have a right to make that choice.”
“Leave it alone, girl,” he said gruffly.
“No, I can’t leave it alone. If I don’t get the information from the family then I’ll hire a private detective and get the information that way.”
Rae’jean saw her uncle swallow hard. Evidently taking that approach was something he and the family would not want her to do. “I mean it, Uncle Victor.” She turned and started for the door.
“Rae’jean?”
She stopped walking and glanced back over her shoulder. “Yes?”
“About tonight. You’re not going to mention anything to Rose about tonight, are you?”
Rae’jean turned and stared at her uncle for a long time before answering. It would serve him right if she did. He was a married man but was not honoring the vows he’d made. But she knew she would never do anything that could possibly cause him harm. What he said earlier had been the truth. When she was a child growing up her uncles had always taken care of her just as much as they’d taken care of their own kids.
“No, Uncle Victor, I won’t mention anything to Rose.”
Hunching his shoulders, he nodded his head and muttered, “Thanks. It will be best for everyone if you don’t.”
Rae’jean’s full lips tightened as she nodded in agreement. She was certain that it would be. She turned around to leave again.
“Rae’jean?”
She turned back around to her uncle. “Yes, Uncle Victor?”
“See me after church tomorrow. We’ll talk and I’ll tell you everything then.”
Rae’jean felt her stomach jump. “You’ll tell me about my father?”
Uncle Victor nodded. “Yeah, as much as I know. And you’re right, girl. You do have a right to know the truth.”
“Yes,” she quietly agreed. “I do.” She smiled as she walked back over to him. She reached her hand out to him. “Come on, Uncle Victor; let’s go back inside together. And if anyone asks why you’ve been gone so long, I’ll just tell them that you and I had a long uncle–niece chat just like we used to do. How does that sound?”
Uncle Victor took her hand. “That sounds good, girl. Rose will believe that.”
Chapter 18
Rae’jean and Uncle Victor slipped into their seats just moments before the video ended and the lights in the room were turned back on.
Grady twisted around in his chair to look at Rae’jean. He reached out and smoothed her hair away from her face. “You missed seeing the video, sweetheart.”
Rae’jean smiled. “Did you enjoy watching it?”
“Yes. There were a number of clips that showed you as a child. You were kind of cute, and I want a daughter who looks just like you.” He leaned down and let their foreheads touch and their noses rub. Their lips came mere inches from touching before Alexia caught Rae’jean by the shoulder and tugged on her.
“Excuse us a minute, Grady,” Alexia said apologetically. Nearly dragging Rae’jean out of her chair, she took her hand and headed toward an area on the other side of the room. “What are you and Grady trying to do? Give these old folks heart failure? Cuzin Sophie got some of them on the warpath already at the thought of your marrying Grady. I doubt they can handle such an open display of affection between a white man and black woman. You should have seen Uncle Bubba’s eyes nearly pop out of the sockets.” Alexia chuckled. “I hadn’t seen his eyes get that big since that Sunday when Sister Harrison shouted so hard she passed out on the floor and showed everything under her dress—which, shamefully, wasn’t much. But it was enough to keep the deacons awake the following Sundays in case there was a repeat performance.”
Alexia’s good humor caused Rae’jean to laugh. “Oh, I remember that.” A few moments later she glanced around the room. “Where’s Taye?”
“The teens are having their own little party upstairs, and she and Michael volunteered to chaperone for the first hour. They’ll meet us back downstairs around eleven.”
Rae’jean nodded.
“The rest of us grown-ups,” Alexia continued, “those between the ages of thirty and fifty, will be partying to the sounds of the sixties, seventies, and eighties out by the pool. Grab Grady and meet us there. And remember, none of that kissy-kissy stuff from the two of you.”
Rae’jean grinned. “Gotcha.”
Taye and Michael caught the elevator back downstairs, leaving Taye’s brother Darryl and his wife, Lisa, as chaperones for the next hour.
“I’m glad that’s over,” Michael was saying. “If I had to listen to another song by Ginuwine, I would have lost my mind.”
Taye shook her head, grinning, understanding completely. She’d been surprised when Michael had volunteered to assist her in being a chaperone. If she didn’t know better, she would think he’d done so to escape Jolene Bradford’s obvious interest in him.
“So, I take it the girls are excited about this Disney trip,” he said. His voice was low and deep, and Taye felt her body immediately responding to the sound of it.
“Yeah, they’re excited; can’t you tell? That’s all they’ve been talking about.” Taye fell silent for a moment as she remembered the last family reunion and the good time she had growing up in the eighties.
“You’re quiet, Taye,” Michael said after a few moments. His hand reached out and touched her arm. “What are you thinking about?”
She glanced up at him. “I was thinking about the last family reunion and those who were there then and aren’t here now—Gramma Idella, Aunt Colleen, Uncle Herbert, and Aunt Bertha. And we can’t forget Billy.”
Michael nodded. He knew their cousin Billy was doing time somewhere in a Texas prison for armed robbery. “Does any of the family keep in contact with him?” Michael asked softly.
Taye nodded. “We all did at first, but then his letters were so negative most of us stopped writing. I think Uncle Taylor and Aunt Marcy still write to him. Even Poppa Ethan writes to him now and then, although it hurt Grampa real bad when Billy changed his name to Mohammed something or another, totally turning his back on the Bennett name and his Baptist religion.”
Michael nodded. He then paused in his stride just before they reached the pool area. “Hold up, Taye; there’s something I want to say to you.”
Taye stopped walking. A small lump formed in her stomach as she turned to face Michael and looked up at him. She tried to keep her tone light when she asked, “What is it, Michael?”
“I watched you up there with those teens, and you can relate to them so well and on their level. Hell, you even kept up doing the latest dances. I had no idea you could dance so well. Even Kennedy was in awe of you. And your daughters are so well mannered and respectful, and your relationship with them is amazing. In my book that says a lot, and to me it means that you’re a swell mom.”
When she mumbled some words to try to deny that she was anything special, Michael held up a hand to silence her. “No, Taye, you’ve always done that, even as a kid. For some reason you ref
used to take compliments at face value. I’m proud of you and the woman you’ve become. I know being single and raising two kids, working, and going to school can’t be easy, and I admire you and what you’re doing. I think you’re very special.”
Taye chewed on her lower lip and fought back the tears that threatened to cloud her eyes. Michael had somehow seen in just three days what some of her other family members hadn’t been able to see in thirteen years. Even with her mistakes from the past, she was doing a good job as a mother, an employee, and a student. “Thanks, Michael. Hearing you say that means a lot.” She doubted he would ever know how much. She leaned up on tiptoe and brushed a kiss across his cheek. “And I think that you’re special, too.”
Chapter 19
“Excuse me, people,” Alexia said, leaning over the table and whispering to Taye, Rae’jean, and Michael. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this party supposed to be for the thirty-through-fifty crowd?”
Taye nodded her head. “Yes, that’s my understanding.”
Alexia snorted. “Then why is Aunt Jules’s old butt hanging around? She has to be in her sixties; therefore, she should be with the others who are in the banquet room listening to the sounds of Fats Domino, the Platters, and hometown favorite Little Richard.”
Rae’jean giggled. “Leave Aunt Jules alone. I can deal with her a lot better than I can deal with this forty-something crowd who’s dominating the music. If I hear another song by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell I’m going to scream. When are they going to play something by Prince or Janet Jackson? I’d even be happy to listen to ‘We Are the World.’ That was one of my all-time favorites.”
Michael chuckled as he quirked an eyebrow at her. “You don’t have to remind us, Rae’jean. After that song came out you were hell-bent on sending every penny you could get your hands on to Africa to feed the poor. You drove us nuts with your constant begging.”
A Family Reunion Page 15
