Brenda had never been a loving mother to Samantha, or to her older brother, Jeffery. She was absorbed in her own world, which centered around her wants and needs instead of those of her children and husband. Jeffery had been conceived in order for Brenda to trap Ed into marrying her, and Samantha would soon discover that her arrival into the world was the consequence of a very tangled family web.
When Samantha entered the dark, quiet house in the middle of the night she was careful to be extra quiet because she didn’t want to wake her mother, lest a nasty conversation ensue. As she crept up the stairs with her weekend bag slung over her shoulder, she saw light coming from her parents’ bedroom and heard her mother’s voice engaged in a phone conversation. Samantha thought this was highly unusual because her mother always went to bed early. As she rounded the corner and headed down the long hallway toward her bedroom, she came to an abrupt stop when she heard her name.
“I told you, Fred,” Brenda practically yelled into the phone. “Neither Dorothy nor Ed, nor anyone else, will ever find out that Samantha is your child. It’s going to my grave with me, and the only way the truth will come to light is if you open your big mouth, which I suggest you keep closed. Now I want you to stop this foolishness right now because it won’t do anyone any good.”
Samantha stood against the wall, out of sight, and continued to listen. After ten minutes of a life-changing conversation, all she could do was stand frozen in place like a hollow statue. The man who’d cut her umbilical cord, raised her with love, and been her champion all her life wasn’t really her father, but the uncle she’d always been fond of and admired was. Brenda had slept with her sister’s husband and Samantha was the result. The only reason Brenda and Fred were even having the conversation was because Samantha was about celebrate her twentieth milestone birthday in the coming summer and Fred’s guilty conscience was getting the better of him.
Samantha stood in the hallway well after her mother hung up the phone, turned off her bedroom light, and fell fast asleep. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she walked down to her room. She slept for a few hours, then rose with the sun and headed back down the highway to Atlanta. When Brenda finally stirred from beneath her sheets at her usual noontime hour, she had no idea that Samantha had ever been in the house.
Samantha’s emotions went from disbelief to anger, to sadness, and finally to tears during her twelve-hour drive back to school. But the long trip gave her a lot of time to think. She loved her father more than anything, and she knew this revelation would devastate him. Not only was she not his biological child, he’d been betrayed by his wife, and his brother-in-law, with whom he golfed, played cards, and had grown up with, because the two men also happened to be first cousins.
All her life, Ed had been Samantha’s biggest cheerleader. He loved her and believed in her when no one else did. He was her hero and she didn’t want to see him hurt. She decided to keep what she knew to herself, and like her mother, she’d planned to take what she knew to her grave. But a year later, a soul-baring journal and the treachery of David Carpenter disrupted those plans.
“Sam, what’s wrong,” Tyler asked again. “Talk to me.”
Samantha sat up in bed and took a deep breath. “I wanted to come here this weekend because I’ve been carrying a terrible secret for a long time, and now I need to let it out so I can bury my guilt and move on without any burdens.”
Tyler sat up beside her and listened as Samantha told him everything from beginning to end.
Tyler shook his head as Samantha finished her confession. “I’ll never forget the night before Thanksgiving, the year before we got married, when you told me that Emily and your dad were having an affair. I thought that was the wildest, most surprising shit I’d ever heard. But this right here?”
“Um, hold on. I’m not finished.”
“There’s more, Tyler said with raised brows.
Samantha nodded and proceeded to tell him about David. She explained how they’d met and the holiday tryst they’d shared many years ago. She also told him how David had invaded her privacy and discovered her secret, as well as how she’d accidentally stumbled upon his. When she ended her story this time, Tyler looked as though he’d just watched a movie with no ending. He was left with a blank stare.
“I don’t even know what to say,” Tyler mouthed in bewilderment. “This is some truly messed up shit, Sam. How in the hell?”
“I know.”
“Of all the people Chase could go out and screw . . .” Samantha lowered her head. “Baby, I’m sorry.”
“Why? You’ve done nothing to be sorry about. David’s triflin’ ass needs to be sorry.” Tyler reached over to the nightstand and grabbed his phone.
“What’re you doing?”
“I’m callin’ that punk ass motherfucker. Nobody threatens my wife and gets away with it! His ass is mine . . . well, you know what I mean.”
“No, don’t say anything to him,” Samantha said. She took the phone out of Tyler’s hand. “Let him squirm in the dirt he’s done. The truth will eventually come out. Let’s focus on getting our family straight right now, and that means dealing with this situation about my father along with what Chase is about to face.
They sat in silence for several minutes before Tyler spoke again. “Okay, you’re right. Let’s deal with our family for right now. But I’m telling you, if David calls you again with any nonsense I’m flying to D.C. and I’m gonna kick his ass. Plain and simple.”
“Okay. We have to deal with him eventually because of the baby, so let’s cross that bridge when we get to it.”
Tyler let out a deep breath.
“I know. It’s pretty fucked up.”
“It sure is. First the news about your family, and now this.” Tyler paused. “And speaking of your family, I knew your mother was a trip, but screwing her own sister’s husband? That’s just foul. And it’s sad because they’re so tight.”
“They used to be, but they’re not close anymore, and it’s not because of the secret. Uncle Fred’s been dead for ten years now, and Aunt Dorothy still doesn’t know the truth. Uncle Fred went to his grave with it, and you know my mother will, too. She’ll tell somebody else’s business in a heartbeat, but she won’t dare breathe a word about her own shit.”
“Then what happened to drive a wedge between them?”
“The same thing that always happens with my mother. Aunt Dorothy finally got tired of putting up with Mother’s crap. Now don’t be fooled, Aunt Dorothy is a bitch for real, too. But my mother’s on a whole other level. From what I understand from Parker, Aunt Dorothy told Mother off a few years ago and they haven’t really spoken since. Hell, I haven’t spoken to her in almost a year . . . and do you think she’s picked up the phone to check on me or her grandchildren?”
“I didn’t want to say anything because I know you and your mom have always had issues, but I was wondering why she hasn’t been in touch.”
“It’s like she doesn’t even exist. The boys don’t even ask about her. They figure they have Daddy and Emily, so it’s cool. Plus you know CJ’s always loved Emily.”
Tyler repositioned himself on his pillow. “I’m still trying to take this all in.”
“It’s a lot to process.”
“Yeah, it is. And I can’t believe that Parker is really your brother.”
“I know,” Samantha said.
Over the years she’d thought about what Parker’s reaction might be if he found out. Would he be mad at her for keeping the truth from him? Would he embrace her as the sister he’d never had? Would he have mixed feelings? She knew they’d always been close, but she also knew that, like herself, when it came to family, Parker was very loyal and fiercely protective, so she hoped he’d look at the secret she’d kept as something that was for the family’s greater good.
“Is that why you’ve always loved him and been so close to him?”
“No, actually. Parker and I have been each other’s favorite cousins since forever. I di
dn’t find out he was my brother until I was in college. By then we were pretty much like siblings, especially since he doesn’t have any sisters and my brother is practically a ghost.”
“I hope to meet Jeffery one day.”
“Don’t hold your breath.” Samantha knew that many things were possible, but Jeffery ever coming back to the States and wanting to reunite with the family wasn’t one of them. He’d always been an intensely private and deeply tortured soul. Their mother had manipulated, intimidated, and mistreated him so much that his fragile psyche had nearly broken into a million pieces once he’d come out of the closet and she’d completely rejected him. Paris, with his lover, was where he wanted to be, and as long as he was happy and safe, Samantha was okay with it.
“So are you gonna tell your dad?” Tyler asked.
She nodded. “I have to. I’ve waited too long already.”
Tyler held his head down in silence.
“What’re you thinking?”
“How I’d react and feel if someone told me that Chase wasn’t mine, and that his biological father was a relative, and someone I had considered to be one of my closest friends. That’s rough.”
“Why do you think I’ve kept this secret in the first place? I would’ve loved to burn Mother’s low-down, hypocritical ass, but I never would because it would’ve meant hurting Daddy. But now I realize that the truth has to come out. I can’t carry this weight anymore. Uncle Fred was my biological father, but that won’t change the fact that Edward Curtis Baldwin will always be my daddy.”
Tyler took Samantha’s hand in his. “Whenever you decide to tell him, I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
Samantha was a self-proclaimed tough chick, a badass who rarely showed signs of emotional weakness. But as her husband wrapped her in his arms and rocked her back and forth, she cried just like she had the night before Thanksgiving, all those years ago.
Chapter 19
Victoria
Victoria felt as though she’d been walking on eggshells for the past two hours.
The drama from earlier that afternoon, combined with the stress of her evening, had begun to create nervous knots in her stomach. Ever since PJ and Alexandria had delivered the news that Parker was in town, the light-hearted fun that she and Ted had been having had quickly deflated, and left both of them feeling as if they were in a fog.
They had stood beside each other not saying a word for what seemed like hours, but had really only been five minutes. Victoria knew her husband was mad, and so was she. She had wanted to talk to Ted and explain things, but she’d known that a downtown street full of strangers wasn’t the time or place to clear the air between them. So instead of trying to talk it out, she’d decided to follow Ted’s quiet lead and wait until they were back at the house to discuss things.
After an hour of the two of them walking through the crowds, filling their time with festival distractions while they waited for the rest of their group to wind things down, Victoria and Ted had piled into Tyler’s SUV and headed back to the house. She had known everyone had noticed the shift between her and Ted, so she’d told Samantha the reason for Ted’s frosty mood. She knew Samantha had wanted to give her words of encouragement, and she appreciated that her friend was thoughtful enough to save it for another time.
The ride back to the house was only ten miles, but it might as well have been a hundred because Victoria had felt as though she were in solitary confinement as she sat next to Ted, neither of them saying a word.
Now, she and Ted were in their bedroom, busying themselves with more quiet distractions, not saying a word to each other just as they’d done for the past two hours. When Ted took a shower, Victoria polished her nails. When she showered, he read through the paperwork he’d brought along in his briefcase. Finally, when they were in bed, Victoria was the first to speak. “I know you’re angry and so am I. But it’s not fair for you to continue to blame and mistrust me for a mistake I made so long ago.”
“I’m not blaming you for anything, and I already told you that I trust you,” Ted said as he removed his reading glasses and put his papers on the nightstand.
“You don’t act like it. I was just as surprised as you were to learn that Parker is in Nedine, but your first reaction was to think that I invited him. If that doesn’t speak to mistrust, I don’t know what does.”
Ted looked straight ahead but said nothing.
“Am I wrong? You did think I’d invited him, right?”
“I don’t know, V. I guess on some level I do feel . . .” He breathed out, letting his words trail off.
“Feel what?”
Ted was silent.
“You can’t continue to block me out and I won’t sit by and be ignored. I’ve been patient and I’ve tried to be understanding. I even agreed not to be alone in the same room with Parker, all so you can feel more secure.”
“It’s not about me being insecure. It’s about maintaining boundaries.”
Victoria shook her head. “You actually think that I’d cross the line and cheat on you?”
Ted still remained silent as a wave of hurt rushed over Victoria.
“I can’t believe that after all these years and all we’ve gone through, that you have such little faith in me.”
“V, it’s not that simple.”
“I don’t even know how you can form your mouth to say that.”
“Because it’s the truth.”
“You haven’t made love to me in over six months, yet when you tell me that there’s no other woman I’m supposed to believe you.”
Ted looked at her incredulously. “What does that have to do with the conversation we’re having now?”
Victoria didn’t say a word. She stood and reached for her silk bathrobe that was draped over the sitting bench at the foot of the bed.
“Where are you going?” Ted asked.
“I need some air. Besides, I’m sure you don’t want to lie down next to someone you can’t trust.”
Victoria slipped on her furry slippers and didn’t look back as she walked out the door.
Chapter 20
Alexandria
Alexandria was determined not to let Christian rattle her nerves or further upset PJ, as he’d done this afternoon. She knew it was time to intervene because she could see certain danger on the horizon, but she also understood he needed to accept that he had a problem before anyone could help him. But an uneasy feeling came over when she saw her brother standing next to Parker, looking as though he was on a mission to stir up more trouble.
It pained Alexandria when she thought about the person her brother had become.
She remembered how excited she had been when a vision had come to her, letting her know that she was going to have a little brother. She’d seen him in her mind as clear as day, and she’d proudly drawn a picture of him at school so she could show it off to everyone. A year later, when Christian was born, she’d eagerly gone to the hospital with her father to see her new brother. But as soon as she’d laid eyes on him she’d known something was wrong. Even though she had been just a young girl, not equipped to understand certain things about relationships, life, or the unique gift she possessed, she had known right away that Christian would eventually lead a life filled with trouble.
At the time, she hadn’t said a word about what she felt because at six years old she hadn’t really been sure how or why she knew the things she knew, plus she’d seen the perplexed look that would show up on people’s faces whenever she spoke about the interesting things she saw, felt, and heard in her head. So she’d kept quiet and watched as her brother slowly grew from a rambunctious child to a rebellious teenager into the slick young man he was today. He wasn’t a bad person, but his addiction was turning him into someone she barely recognized.
Now as she and PJ approached Parker and Christian standing on the corner at the end of the street, she tried to remain calm. She whispered into PJ’s ear. “No matter what my brother says or does, please don’t let him
get to you.”
PJ didn’t respond. He simply looked straight ahead, focused on what was in front of him.
“Good to see you two,” Parker said as he greeted them both with a hug.
When Parker held Alexandria in his embrace, she smiled because of what she felt, which was pure love. Parker loved her as though she was his own daughter, and that gave her a sense of comfort.
She looked into his eyes and she could see that Parker’s primary concern was for PJ, but he also wanted to see her mother as well. The hard fact that he still loved Victoria after all these years was one of his biggest frustrations. Holding on to the memory of their love wasn’t the way he wanted to continue to live his life, and he saw this weekend as a way to test his theory that Victoria still had feelings for him, too.
As they stood making small talk, Alexandria could tell that Parker had had his fill of Christian and was ready to leave him standing on the corner by himself. It was clear to her that Parker knew exactly what was going on with her brother, and he didn’t want any parts of dealing with him.
“Have you two eaten?” Parker asked, looking only at PJ and Alexandria. “I got a really great recommendation about a restaurant that’s not too far from here.”
“Sounds good to me,” PJ said. “Is that okay with you, Ali?”
“Sure. A nice meal after this long day sounds wonderful.”
They were talking among themselves in a way that let Christian know he wasn’t invited. But just as Alexandria had known he would, her brother inserted himself into their plans.
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