Lies of Love

by Hannovah

  “It was Miss Jean-Pierre’s attorney who placed a call to the Miami Police Department, informing them of Dr. Jamus Joseph’s whereabouts. They gained entry to her premises via her key, but the fugitive had barricaded himself in her bathroom. The police had to break down the bathroom door to take the Dade Seminole University dean into custody.”

  “A man can do as much as he wants,” Brandon pronounced, “but not for as long as he wants.”

  The video camera moved to Vickie’s attorney who spoke on behalf of his client. “Miss Jean-Pierre has admitted to having a sexual relationship with Dr. Joseph, but did so only under duress to retain her job at the university.”

  A still photo of the fugitive’s face, in better times, remained on the TV screen while the newscaster continued to beat the story to death.

  On impulse, I jabbed a finger at the harasser’s dirty face and blurted, “Game over, you bastard! Who’s the better quarterback now?” Then I hugged Brandon.

  “Heh, heh, heh,” he laughed. Placing his warm arms around me, he said, “I’m sorry that I made you feel unwanted, Eddie.” He kissed me.

  I returned the kiss. “I’m sorry I didn’t confide in you sooner.”

  We hugged for a long moment.

  “I love you,” I said.

  “Not more than I love you.”

  I returned to the university that night with a liberated spirit and in a mood to give all my students an A.

  The following morning, as I went down the hall towards my office, I saw Trevor and a few faculty congregating not far from my door, and from the looks of things, I judged that the custodian was the authorized spokesperson. I knew exactly what they were talking about, and I decided to get in on the gossip.

  Trevor was telling them that the president wanted JJ to resign even though he was already placed on administrative leave.

  “How do you know all of this?” a professor asked.

  Trevor, in his element, answered proudly in perfect English, “It just came out on the news this morning.”

  The professor said, “Most likely he’ll go free again.”

  Another one jumped in. “I doubt it. With that video out there? Ha! JJ would need more than a miracle this time. There’s just too much evidence against him.”

  I only listened and nodded my head, and I couldn’t let on that I knew the current victim.

  Blabbermouth Trevor continued. “And many ladies are coming out of the woodwork and accusing him of all kinds of harassment.” His eyes met mine briefly as if he knew about my predicament.

  I showed no reaction.

  Trevor went on to say, “It does not look good for Greeneyes. While he might’ve been famous, he has brought a lot of drama and shame to DSU.”

  Note to self: Go ahead Edna Berg. Write that book.

  EPILOGUE

  Joshua’s New Girl

  Fourth of July was coming around again.

  Surprisingly, Brandon was renovating our bathrooms, and so we were not planning to throw a party. Nevertheless, all of our friends who were present for the last one were expecting us to have the usual big splash. And some were bold enough to declare that whether we were having a party or not, they and their children would be at our pool that Saturday evening. And Cynthia told me she was definitely making the trip from Ft. Meyers, regardless.

  But Joshua convinced us to do it. “Ray, you must have this party. Please?” We were hanging out under D Luv Joint when he made his request.

  Brandon watched him like what’s it to you?

  Joshua’s long lost, brilliant smile, resurfaced. “I didn’t want you to think I was fickle, so I wasn’t saying anything before . . . but there’s this girl at school.”

  Right away Brandon and I exchanged smiles.

  “I want to take her out on a date . . . but I don’t have money to do anything fancy.” His white teeth glittered in the little sunlight that lingered in our back yard. “A pool party would be ideal.”

  Brandon said, “I’m working on our guest bathroom right now, and it is a total mess – I can’t finish it by Saturday.”

  Joshua countered quickly and earnestly, “I can help you, Ray. We still have a week to go. We can get it done.”

  Brandon chuckled, “Alright. No problem.”

  And just from the way he laughed, I suspected that he was capitalizing on the circumstances to extract some free labor from Joshua. Joshua did not seem to mind at all, and they both went into the house to analyze the bathroom situation. I remained under the gazebo, thinking that I’d better get a move on planning this party, and I began making calls to let the folks know what food and drinks to bring along. All that was left to do was to pressure wash the back yard and hang up a few decorations.

  The men finished the bathroom remodel with a day to spare, and I was totally pleased with the final product. I felt like I was looking at something in a magazine. I just loved it. When Cynthia showed up later that day she was so awed with it that she was afraid to use it in case she upset its beauty. I had to playfully shove her inside and close the door after her.

  Maxwell and Lia were the first to arrive on party Saturday, followed by Stephen, who was now single. I was not surprised. He was accompanied by the rest of the band and their girlfriends who, by the way, were not the ones I remember seeing last year.

  My boys got the music started on the stereo, and soon afterwards, as Brandon and I were standing next to Grill Mistress, Cynthia, our adopted son appeared with a petite woman by his side. She was dressed in a yellow, oversized netting T-shirt, through which we could see a yellow, one-piece bathing suit. She wore a short curly afro and she was very easy on the eyes as she carried a denim beach bag over her shoulder. Tagging along just behind her, and dressed in a red, white, and blue bathing suit, was a little dreadlocks cutie who was obviously her daughter.

  Joshua kissed my cheek, placed a hand on Brandon’s shoulder and said to us, “Meet a friend from school.” Turning to the beauty beside him, he said, “Lauren, this is my Miami Dad – Brandon, his wife – Edna, and her cousin – Cynthia.”

  “Pleased to meet you,” we all said, following it up with a round of gentle hugs.

  “And who is this cutie-pie?” Brandon asked as he focused on the child.

  The girl let go of her mother’s hand and went closer to Brandon. She was so tiny and had so much hair on her head it looked like it was sucking all her nutrients away.

  “My name is Lauren, similar to my mom’s . . . but not to get us confused, I’m frequently referred to as LJ.” Then her bright eyes found Brandon’s. “Can you guess what the J stands for?”

  Brandon lowered his head and guessed, “Junior?”

  “Bingo!” she shouted and high-fived my husband.

  Cynthia and I exchanged glances of amazement at LJ’s boldness and eloquence.

  Brandon, astonished as well, stooped down to her level and asked, “How old are you?”

  She put her tiny hands on her hips and tilted her head sideways, “How old do you think I am?”

  “Well . . . you’re as tiny as a three-year-old, but as smart as a twenty-three-year-old.”

  “Hee-hee. Hee-hee,” LJ giggled. “I know. I get that a lot.” Then holding up six little fingers, she said, “I’m this much.”

  Though tiny for her age, LJ was one of the prettiest little girls that I had ever seen.

  I said to Lauren, “She is something else. You must be so proud.”

  “I am,” Lauren responded, “but I can’t take the credit for her articulation. She reads a lot.”

  “Oh!”

  “Yes. It could be because I read a lot when I was pregnant with her. I was on bed rest for a long time. She reads at a fifth grade level, books like Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, and Nancy Drew.”

  As we spoke, Joshua began to set up his shiny musical instrument under the shade of D Luv Joint. There he, along with Brandon on guitar, would entertain the pool audience. LJ took an instant liking to Brandon and he was more than glad to host her. From my
peripheral vision, I saw him patiently and carefully making a hotdog for the little angel. He had always wanted a daughter but got none, and he hoped to have grand-daughters one day.

  “So what’s your major?” I asked Lauren.

  “Automotive Service Management like Joshua, but I’m a year behind him.” Then Lauren volunteered that she was from Miami and had already obtained a Business degree, but working for her father, who owned an automotive garage, she saw the need to formally learn all aspects of the business.

  From my brief chat with the new girlfriend, I could tell that Lauren was not a religious fanatic or a stripper; she appeared to be quite normal.

  “May I enter the pool?” LJ asked.

  Brandon replied, “Sure, but let’s ask your mom first.”

  Lauren said, “Oh, I’ll take her to the kiddie pool.” Mother and daughter headed to an eighteen-inch high vinyl pool at a corner of our backyard where a few children were frolicking. Lauren bent forward to her daughter’s level and warned, “LJ, remember that you can’t swim, so don’t go into the big pool without me. Stay in the kiddie pool, okay?”

  LJ nodded, and climbed in to join in the fun with the other kids.

  Her mother pulled up a chair and sat close to the kids so she could keep an eye on them. No sooner she did that, little LJ stepped out of the pool, and ran directly to Brandon, asking him, “May I have a beverage, please?”

  “Sure honey. What do you want? Soda? Water? Juice?”

  “My mom will prefer me to have juice or water. Is it real juice or concentrate?”

  “Uhhh,” Brandon blinked like there was something in his eye; he had no idea. “Let’s get you some water.”

  LJ followed him, and even after getting her beverage, she continued to follow him around, and I knew Brandon was in his glee with the attention of this little girl.

  I accosted Joshua in a quiet area to interrogate him about his new friend. “I see that you’ve already found a new girl,” I began.

  “I don’t know,” he smiled brightly. “For now, Lauren is just a friend from school, but I really feel like she is the one for me.”

  I stared at him intently, and I was about to give him a warning when he volunteered, “Don’t worry, I learned my lesson. I’m going slowly this time.”

  “She seems rather nice.”

  “She’s very, very special,” Joshua answered, closing his eyes for emphasis. “Coincidentally, she and Joanne share the same birthday, November third – different year. She doesn’t look it, but she’s older than me by three years.” He paused and looked out at nothing. “You know something?”

  “Go ahead.”

  “I had many girls in my few years on Earth.” He played with his dreads and stared giddy-eyed at Lauren who was supervising the children. “But this is the first one that I can say I really love. I cannot bear to be away from her. It’s like it’s beyond my control.”

  I realized that he and this young lady had been talking for a while. So I ventured boldly, “Have you told her how you feel?”

  “No! I’m not in a hurry to mess up this one. Trust me; I’m taking my time.” He grinned, and his flawless, white teeth sparkled.

  I was glad for him, but he had a lousy track record as far as relationships were concerned.

  My thoughts may have shown on my face, because in a somewhat defensive tone, he said, “I was never in love with any of my wives. I didn’t know what love was, so I never told any of them that I loved them.”

  “I heard Ashley say ‘I love you’ all the time,” I reminded him.

  “Yes, but I never said that to her . . . or Joanne.”

  That was true, now that I thought of it. It’s just that I had never noticed.

  Then Joshua’s eyes took on a distant look. “If I’m lucky to get with Lauren, she will hear those words from me all the time. I will write them up on a banner for the whole world to see.”

  Goose bumps covered my body as he spoke; this was certainly a new Joshua talking.

  We got back to socializing with the folks, and I was just in time to hear LJ tell my husband that he ‘bore a resemblance’ to her granddad, and that she liked her granddad a whole lot. Brandon was grinning from ear to ear as he entertained the little one who was smart way beyond her six years. I was so impressed that I asked her about her schooling.

  “I attend Montessori and More,” she answered bravely.

  I recognized the name; it was a top-notch private school.

  LJ continued, “And I’m advanced. I’m the only six-year-old in grade four and I get A’s in every subject.”

  “Wow!” Patting her abundant dreadlocks, I left the happy pair and continued my circulating among the guests.

  After a while, the music was cut, and Joshua with steel drum and Brandon with guitar took their position on stage: under D Luv Joint. They started out by playing I Swear, and we all, every last one of us, joined in, singing along like if we were at a Christian camp meeting or something. As song followed song, Joshua seemed to be at his entertaining best, and I thought that he was trying to impress Lauren. And she seemed impressed, if not by his musical talent, then by the sweet fellowship that existed in our back yard.

  The men paused for a moment to rest their hands before their final rendition, which was the all-time favorite, the anthem for island music: Hot-Hot-Hot. When they were ready, they summoned everyone to come closer. The pool was more or less abandoned at that point as we got prepared to dance and behave badly.

  The duet struck up the beginning note and we began the joyful chant,

  “Olay, olay . . . olay, olay.”

  Joshua looked up in appreciation, smiling, as he readied his hands to tap out the melody. Suddenly his smile vanished and he threw his sticks aside. Brandon looked over at him, his forehead creasing with curiosity. Without a word, Joshua forced his way through the audience and dived into the middle of the pool. He resurfaced with a gasping LJ clinging onto his neck.

  Everyone drew a quick breath.

  Lauren rushed over to Joshua, stepping into the shallow end of the pool to relieve him of his load. “Oh Dear God,” she finally said when she held LJ in her arms. “Baby, are you alright?”

  “Yes Mom,” LJ sniffled, seemingly unaffected by the near disastrous incident.

  All the sympathetic attention from the onlookers was beginning to have an effect on the child, so before she or her mother started crying, I said as confidently as I could, “Don’t worry people, LJ is just fine. Isn’t she a strong girl?”

  “Hoo-ray!” everyone yelled.

  LJ grinned like a Cheshire cat. Having raised two boys, I knew that it was best to avoid the mere thought of trauma, if possible.

  Lauren wrapped her daughter in a large towel and I took them into the lanai where she sat on a rocker and rocked her daughter.

  I closed the patio door behind us in order to give them some privacy, but worried individuals looked in on us from behind the screened wall, asking, “Is she alright?”

  And each time, I nodded or answered, “She’s fine.”

  Lauren’s eyes watered as she held her daughter close to her bosom, and I sensed that she never wanted to come this close to losing her child again. I considered leaving them for a minute, but again my maternal instincts kicked in, so I sat next to her and offered her my hand. She took it instantly, and she was trembling.

  I took one end of LJ’s towel and gently wiped Lauren’s face. “It will be okay,” I consoled her. “These little ones are stronger and tougher than we think. They are natural survivors.”

  “I didn’t even thank Joshua,” Lauren whimpered.

  “There’s lots of time to thank him later . . . and I’m quite sure that he knows you’re grateful.”

  Then Brandon came into the lanai asking, “Is she alright?”

  Before anyone could answer, LJ volunteered, “I held my breath the whole time I was in the water.” Surprised, her mom released her. “I held my breath like when I’m at the beach with Uncle Frank (Lauren’s
brother) and we play that game . . . to see who can hold their breath the longest under water.”

  Lauren’s shoulders shook with laughter.

  Brandon bent down and ruffled LJ’s damp locks. “Good girl!” he said.

  Smiling, she let go of her mother and hugged him.

  Joshua, now in dry clothes, came in next, and before he opened his mouth Lauren got up and embraced him warmly. “Thank you soooo much,” she said, almost crying.

  “Not a problem, babe.”

  “But tell me, how did you notice her in the water?”

  “It all happened so fast. As I looked up from playing the pan, I saw her rolling on the deck to get her feet untangled from her towel. Next thing I knew, she slipped right into the pool.”

  Lauren asked her daughter, “Is that what happened, baby?”

  LJ nodded. “I was hurrying to meet you because you instructed me to dry up and come eat, but I tripped on my towel. I got all entangled and I was trying to get loose. I didn’t enter the grown-up pool on purpose, Mom.”

  Joshua continued, “I couldn’t think to call out or anything . . . I didn’t get a chance to think . . . my feet just took off running.”

  “Thank God you looked up when you did,” Brandon said.

  The deeply appreciative mother asked, “How long was she in there?”

  “Not long,” Joshua answered. “Not more than ten seconds, I’m guessing.”

  The whole accident had put a damper on the fun, but after about twenty minutes or so, Joshua struck his pan-sticks and announced, “Hot-Hot-Hot!”

  Everyone assumed his or her previous positions and the jamming started afresh, but Lauren and her daughter enjoyed the entertainment from the safety of the rocking chair in the lanai. I stood next to Cynthia at the back of the crowd, taking in the whole spectacle and reminiscing on the year that just went by. I thought that this song was very appropriate. This year was really hot, hot, hot!

  Big Mess in Paradise

  Part One