Too Much of a Good Thing

by Kimberla Lawson Roby

  “You’re sick,” he said. “You need professional help, and I suggest you try to get some.”

  “No, I’m perfectly sane. You’re the sick one.”

  “I’m calling the police,” Curtis said.

  “Mariah, please call me. I work at KTM Corporation, and all you have to do is ask for Adrienne Jackson in marketing.”

  Curtis slammed the door shut.

  “I told you she was crazy,” he said.

  “So is that why you all of a sudden wanted to divorce me?” she asked.

  “No. I keep telling you, she’s lying. I don’t know why she’s doing this, but none of what she’s saying is true.”

  “Then where did that tape come from? Because Deacon Thurgood’s niece told me that everyone in the meeting agreed that it was your voice they heard.”

  “I can’t explain that, but you know how advanced technology is now. And for all I know, Adrienne called my cell phone, somehow recorded my outgoing message, and then had some professional put that tape together.”

  “Well, if that’s true, how did she get your cell phone number?”

  Curtis could kick himself. It was so unlike him to slip up like this.

  “I don’t know that either,” he said. “Maybe she knows somebody at the phone company.”

  “Curtis, you are so unbelievable,” she said. Her tone and smile were sarcastic.

  “But, baby, I’m telling you the truth, and you have to stand by me. I’ll do anything you want, but you have to help me convince the board that Adrienne is schizo.”

  Mariah dropped back down on the sofa.

  “You know the other thing that Deacon Thurgood’s niece said was that the letter Adrienne wrote talked about your five-thousand-dollar weekly salary and your housing allowance. So how would she know about that?”

  “Because it’s public information. Everybody at the church knows what I earn, so it would be pretty easy for her to find that out.”

  Mariah was quiet.

  “Baby, I’m sorry that this is happening,” he said, sitting down next to her.

  She still didn’t look at him.

  “You do believe me, don’t you?” he said, and didn’t know how much more begging he could do. Especially since he didn’t feel the need to beg any woman.

  “Curtis, I can’t think about this now. So, please, just leave me alone.”

  He thought about making one more plea, but decided he would go upstairs. He would talk to Mariah in the morning when things had settled down. Because he needed her to back him up on this thing. He needed her to stand by her husband.

  He thought about Alicia and the fact that he didn’t go see her today as planned.

  He thought about Charlotte and Matthew and how he wanted to be with them.

  He wondered if Mariah would have the nerve to call Adrienne.

  Chapter 26

  Whitney, if you have a moment, I need to see you,” Curtis said.

  “Sure, I’ll be right in.”

  Curtis had tossed and turned all night and hadn’t slept more than two consecutive hours. Outside of that, he’d done a ton of catnapping. He’d watched the clock on and off the entire time: 12:40, 1:10, 1:40. He’d awakened every twenty minutes until he’d finally had enough. He’d gotten up at five, but unbelievably, he wasn’t tired. Probably because his mind was still racing. He was trying to figure out what had come over Adrienne and how he was going to explain this to everyone.

  Whitney walked in and shut the door.

  “You sure came in late today,” she said. “And you’re wearing a jogging suit, too.”

  Curtis knew she was only trying to break the ice.

  “I went to see Alicia this morning, and I know by now you’ve heard the news.”

  “Yeah, I sort of did.”

  “So what is everyone saying?”

  “That they believe it’s you on the tape.”

  Curtis sighed and leaned his head back, staring at the ceiling.

  “I know this really isn’t my business, Pastor, but is there any truth to what that woman said in the letter?”

  Curtis debated whether he should confide the entire story to Whitney or only part of it. Tyler had told him not to tell anyone, but Whitney had proven her loyalty since day one, and he knew whatever they discussed would never leave his office. But the problem was, he felt ashamed and didn’t want her thinking badly of him.

  “As much as I hate admitting it, yes, I was seeing her, and I did tell her I was going to marry her. But the truth is, I was never going to do it.”

  “Then why did you tell her you were?”

  “Because I knew she wouldn’t keep seeing me if I didn’t.”

  Whitney’s expression pronounced that she didn’t understand.

  “Go ahead,” he said.

  “What?”

  “Tell me how stupid it was for me to make that sort of promise.”

  “You said it, I didn’t.”

  Curtis couldn’t help laughing with her.

  “So how are you going to deal with this?” she said.

  He could tell she was genuinely worried about him and he appreciated that.

  “I don’t have a clue. The board has already asked me not to preach on Sunday, and they’re having another meeting this evening.”

  “Gosh, Pastor, this is so unfortunate.”

  “Yeah, but it’s my own fault.”

  “Maybe if you go before the church and apologize, it will make a difference. Maybe you need to take your chances and tell the truth.”

  “Oh, how I wish it could be that easy. But I just don’t think they’ll go for that. Not after what happened at Faith, because one-third of our members were also members over there when I was ousted. And now that they’ve placed all this trust in me again, I don’t think they’re going to be very forgiving.”

  “What will you do then?”

  “At this point all I can do is pray. And I’ll definitely be here on Sunday morning. I can’t tell them the whole truth, but I will ask them to try and forgive me.”

  “I really hate that this is happening.”

  “Imagine how I’m feeling.”

  “I’m sure.”

  “So is there anything else you’ve heard?” he asked.

  “The truth?”

  “Yes,” Curtis said, and dreaded what she was about to tell him.

  “Well, the word is you’ve been a money-hungry womanizer ever since you came here, and most people are surprised you’re just now getting caught.”

  “Whoa. Maybe the truth is not what I needed to hear.”

  “Sorry.”

  “Well, I did ask you. And is there anything else?”

  “There have been quite a few members calling because they want to know why you haven’t already been fired. They don’t feel another meeting is necessary.”

  “This is worse than I thought. It sounds like they’ve already convicted me without a trial.”

  “I know.”

  “Which means I’m going to have to say and do whatever it takes to convince them that I’m innocent.”

  “I realize you have to make the final decision on this, but I still think your best bet is to tell the truth. Because people have a lot more respect for the truth than they do a lie.”

  Curtis heard what she was saying, but if he confessed to everything he’d been doing, they’d string him up and hold a witch hunt right in the sanctuary. So, no, that wasn’t the route for him to take. He was good at lying. He was good at making people believe him. It was better to stick with his area of expertise. He didn’t want to deceive them, but if he could just get past this one major catastrophe, he’d be home free.

  “Well, you know I appreciate your honesty,” he said.

  “No problem. But is there anything I can do for you?”

  “Pray. Pray for me every time you think about it, because I’m really going to need it.”

  “I’ve already been doing that. And no matter what happens, just remember that God loves you, and th
ere are a lot of other people here who still love you, too.”

  “Thanks, Whit. It really means a lot.”

  “I don’t even know how to tell you this,” Curtis said. He and Charlotte were sitting on a picnic table, and Matthew was playing on the slide with his little cousin Daniel. Curtis had met them an hour ago at a secluded park near Evanston, right after Charlotte picked the boys up from school. Now Curtis was trying to tell her what was going on.

  “What’s wrong?” she said, caressing his back.

  “I might be losing the church.”

  “You what? Why?”

  “You remember Adrienne Jackson, right?”

  “How could I forget?”

  “Well, she wrote this off-the-wall letter and gave it to the chairman of the deacon board.”

  “When?”

  “Yesterday. So, of course, he read it in the meeting.”

  “What did it say?”

  “That I’ve been sleeping with her, and that I promised to marry her. Pretty much just a whole lot of nonsense.”

  “Well, did you?”

  “Did I what?”

  “Did you sleep with her and promise to marry her?”

  “Over five years ago, but not recently.”

  Charlotte looked over at the boys, watching them climb to the top of the slide.

  “Hey,” Curtis said.

  “Yeah,” she responded, but didn’t look at him.

  “I haven’t been sleeping with her, if that’s what you’re thinking. And the only woman I’ve promised to marry is you.”

  “I hope so, Curtis, because I have no intention of being caught in some love triangle. I said I could deal with you not being in love with me, but I won’t tolerate other women. I won’t tolerate being unhappy. So if you plan on seeing anyone else once we’re married, we need to end this now.”

  “But I don’t want anyone else, and slowly but surely I am falling in love with you.”

  He knew she didn’t believe him, but he truly was. He wasn’t head over heels, but it was still love.

  “So what’s going to happen now?”

  “They’ve asked me not to preach again until I hear from them.”

  “Then this is pretty serious.”

  “Yeah, it is, and I have no idea what the outcome will be.”

  “But if you haven’t been with her, it’s her word against yours.”

  If only it were that simple. If only Adrienne hadn’t seen a reason to record what they were saying and doing to each other. It was still so inconceivable to Curtis, and he wondered how many other tapings she’d done. He even wondered why she’d lied about still being married to the deacon. She’d been telling him for weeks how miserable she was with Thomas, how she didn’t want to hurt Thomas, and how Thomas was starting to question her whereabouts. So either she was one great actress or she wasn’t dealing with a full deck. She had to be nuts in order to fabricate something like that.

  “There’s more,” he said.

  “Can it get any worse?”

  “Yes. She also sent a cassette tape.”

  “But why?”

  “Because she wants them to think she has proof.”

  “Well, does she?”

  “No, but when they played the tape, it sounded like she and I were having sex and talking to each other. Which means she must have used some sort of high-tech equipment to make it.”

  “What high-tech equipment are you talking about?” Her voice was rising.

  Curtis had assumed Charlotte would be upset, but not to this extent.

  “I don’t know, but she had to use something because the voice on the tape sounds just like me.”

  “And you expect me to believe that?”

  “Yes, because if I wasn’t going to tell you the truth, why would I even bring it up?”

  “Well, it’s not like you couldn’t not tell me either, because I’m sure this is going to cause some sort of delay with you getting a divorce. Am I right?”

  “Maybe, but it won’t be long. It’ll just be until I can calm down the deacons and get things back in order. After that, we’re good to go.”

  “I really hope that’s true, Curtis, because I have something I need to tell you, too.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Matthew told my dad that he met you.”

  “And how did he respond?”

  “You don’t even want to know. I mean, he was so furious with me. But I told him the reason I allowed you to meet Matthew was because I want him to know his father, and because you promised to marry me.”

  “And?”

  “We argued back and forth, until finally I was able to make him see that this is what I want. But he did say you would be sorry if you didn’t keep your word.”

  “Which means?”

  “That he’s prepared to press charges if he has to. I tried my hardest to reason with him, but he’s very serious about it. He’s even spoken to an attorney.”

  “About what?”

  “To see what the statute of limitations is for Illinois.”

  “And?”

  “You won’t like it.”

  “That’s beside the point.”

  “It’s ten years after a minor rape victim turns eighteen. And he made it very clear that he has until my twenty-eighth birthday to have you arrested.”

  “This is crazy.”

  “I know, but my dad doesn’t think so.”

  Curtis didn’t like the sound of this. He didn’t like the idea of anyone having that much control over him. He knew he’d been wrong for sleeping with Charlotte back then, but God had already forgiven him for that. God had forgiven him for every sin he’d committed, so why couldn’t everyone else? Why couldn’t they all just leave him be and mind their own business? It was almost as if there was some sort of conspiracy against him.

  “You know what?” Curtis said. “I don’t mean any disrespect, but right now your father is the least of my worries.”

  “Well, he shouldn’t be, because he’s not someone to be played with.”

  “Maybe he isn’t. But, baby, if I don’t keep my focus on this Adrienne situation, I’ll end up losing everything.”

  “I understand that, but just so you know, I won’t wait around for you forever. Because whether it ends up being you or someone else, Matthew will have a good life, and he will have a father.”

  Curtis didn’t know what else to say. She was clearly upset, and he hoped she wasn’t planning to keep his son from him. He hoped she would try to hold on for just a short while longer. If she did, they would both get what they wanted. He would keep his church and get his son, and she would have the life she always dreamed of.

  Curtis smiled when he saw Matthew and Daniel running toward them.

  “Dad, come get on the slide with us,” he said, pulling Curtis away from the table.

  “C’mon, Auntie Charlotte,” Daniel said, grasping her hand.

  “I think I might be a little too old for this,” Curtis told his son.

  “I know, but it’ll still be fun.”

  Curtis grabbed Matthew and tossed him over his shoulder.

  Matthew squealed with sheer enjoyment.

  Curtis turned to look at Charlotte and smiled at her.

  She smiled back, but Curtis knew she wasn’t happy. She wasn’t nearly as happy as when they’d first arrived at the park. Before he’d told her the news. Before he’d lied to her about Adrienne. But whether she realized it or not, things would work out for them. He didn’t know exactly how, but they would.

  There just wasn’t any other alternative.

  Chapter 27

  Mariah and Curtis had just arrived at church, and she was happy he’d gone straight to his study. She was happy she didn’t have to look at him for at least the next hour. It had been three days since Adrienne dropped that bomb on the deacons and then paid Mariah and Curtis a surprise visit at their home. At first Mariah had despised the fact that Adrienne had been bold enough to ring their doorbell, but once she’d
called Adrienne, she realized it was a blessing. She realized God always allowed everything to happen for a reason. She’d known about some of the things Curtis had done and said about her, but Adrienne had told her everything. Everything from the way Curtis had talked about Mariah’s ghetto family to how he dreaded lying in the same bed with her. Adrienne had also told her how she’d caught Curtis, Charlotte, and their son walking out of Tyler’s condo. She’d told Mariah how this had been the ultimate slap in the face for her. Partly because Curtis had lied to her about why he couldn’t see her that night, partly because she’d known for sure he was sleeping with Charlotte again, and partly because she’d seen a little boy she might’ve had herself if Curtis hadn’t talked her into having that abortion. Mariah had learned more about her husband from Adrienne in one day than she’d known the whole time she’d been married to him. She’d been totally in the dark about everything, but she had to admit she hadn’t gone out of her way to find out much of anything. She’d been happy just to be with him and happy that he’d chosen her as his wife. But now she knew she’d been living some ridiculous fantasy and it was time to accept reality. Thanks to Adrienne and her friend Vivian, her eyes were now wide open, and she wasn’t afraid of Curtis anymore. She’d been worried about leaving him, because of the way he’d threatened her, but now she didn’t care what he said or tried to do to her. Not after finding out about Charlotte and her son, not after discovering his affair with Adrienne, and certainly not after he’d had the audacity to demand that she tell the deacons she’d been unfaithful to him. Because it was then that she knew for sure that Curtis didn’t care a thing about her, and that he clearly thought she was stupid. He thought she was some child who would do and say anything as long as he told her to. But she knew it was her own fault, because she’d been completely submissive from the very beginning. Unfortunately for him, though, his good thing with her was quickly coming to an end.

  Mariah walked into the sanctuary and smiled at Sister Fletcher.

  “How are you, Sister?”

  “I’m fine, Sister Black,” she said, hugging Mariah.

  “Wonderful. And where’s Miss Carmen at today?”

  “She’s here somewhere,” Sister Fletcher said, looking around for her. “Probably looking for some of her little girlfriends to sit with.”