“No, mommy. I heard Tee-Tee tell Aunt Paige that her daddy was your daddy.” Karen immediately stopped tying the ribbon on Nikki’s hair and bent down eye-level with her. She held both sides of Nikki’s arms as she searched her eyes for understanding.
“Nikki, what are you talking about, when did you hear this?”
“Last night, I woke up because I was thirsty. I heard Tee-Tee tell Aunt Paige that her daddy was your daddy.” Karen thought to herself that Nikki must have misunderstood, so she went back to tying the ribbon on her hair.
“Honey, we will talk about it when we see Tee-Tee at Momma Gladys’ restaurant.” Nikki began to jump up and down with joy causing Karen to mess up the bow she was trying to tie. She gave up and put the ribbon back into the barrette box.
“Oooh, mommy we going to Momma Gladys, I love her she is so funny. She is going to make my pancakes smile. But I still wish you had told me about my granddaddy, am I gone meet him when Tee-Tee marry Uncle Ben?”
“We’ll talk about it later, sweetie. Let’s go we are already late” “Okay, can I get my Shopkins first?”
“Yes, hurry.” Nikki ran off to get her prized possessions. Karen wanted to believe her three-year old daughter had misunderstood the conversation she overheard. In her gut, Karen knew Nikki had understood perfectly. What was with her life?
***
“I’m telling you girls, you have to be careful out there with who you’re dating. You two seem to be headed in the right direction but you have to watch them. Pray and watch ain’t that what ya'll learning in church?”
Paige who was sipping on her orange juice was tickled pink for Momma Gladys to be on a tirade about dating. She pushed her a little further by asking, with a mischievous smirk so only her eyes appeared over her glass, “Why is that Momma Gladys? You see something in Kevin and Benjamin, Mille and I are missing?”
“Nah, I ain’t saying that I’m just saying be careful, because I have seen folks parading they partners, man and woman, woman and man…” She paused to chuckle. “Sometimes it’s man and man, woman and women; they be around her
acting like they got gold. Only after they get married they find out they really just
had glitter.”
Camille was so thrown by Momma Gladys’s comment the coffee in her mouth came spewing out across the table landing on the side of Paige’s face, causing more laughter between the trio. The laughter and conversation went on for several minutes until the door chimed alerting Momma Gladys that customers were entering. They all gasped as it was a busload of what looked to be fifty or more patrons entering the restaurant.
“Well my girls, looks like my break is over, let me put these lazy bones to work around here. Let me know if ya’ll need anything, ok.”
“Okay.” Camille and Paige said in unison still trying to slow their laughter as Momma Gladys walked off barking at her employees to get to work. After the busload of customers entered Camille lit up to see Nikki running toward her.
“Tee-Tee we made it.” Camille stood up and started walking to gather her niece in her arms and give her a twirl. However, it was Camille who was left
spinning after Nikki made an announcement to the entire restaurant.
me!”
“Tee-Tee, tell Momma you and her got the same daddy, she doesn’t believe
Just as Camille was trying to balance herself and Nikki, she looked around
to see Karen’s piercing gaze on her. The only words she could get out of her mouth were, “Jesus Christ of Nazareth!”
In Karen’s eyes, Camille’s response to Nikki’s proclamation, coupled with the look of horror she saw on Paige’s face, was the answer she needed. She gently took Nikki out of Camille’s arms and turned around for the door. Ignoring Nikki’s
demands to stay and have smiling pancakes and see Momma Gladys; she darted
out of the restaurant holding on to a wailing Nikki. The thought she had earlier was the only thing ringing in her mind, what was with her life?
***
Camille and Paige entered through the garage of Benjamin’s house. Paige had texted both Ben and Kevin when Nikki blurted out the sister secret. As much as Karen’s quick exodus from the restaurant saddened Camille, she was happy they didn’t cause a scene in Momma Gladys’s restaurant with so many customers there. She was hoping and praying that Frankie would be able to convince Karen to come over to talk about their family issue. She had spoken to him on the phone in the car while Paige was driving them to Ben’s. She gave him a brief, but detailed version
of when she found out and why she withheld the information from Karen. She could not get a read on how Frankie felt about her actions, but he said he would try to convince his wife to come over to hear her out. She was kicking herself for
being a coward and not coming clean about the possibility they could be half- sisters sooner. She truly let fear and selfishness cause her sweet Nikki to have to spill the beans. She had made a huge mistake in her procrastinating, she felt sick and although Paige was with her, she felt alone. She needed Ben.
Yes, Ben had warned her if she didn’t reveal the news to Karen it could turn out badly. However, she knew her man would not give her an I told you so, there was no doubt in her mind that he would comfort and encourage her. As she fought back the tears trying to make it to the room he was in, she stopped in her tracks. Ben was standing in the foyer with open arms; all she could do was rush to him
and fall into those strong arms and receive the comfort of his love.
Kevin was standing beside Benjamin when the women walked in and he wanted to get more information from Paige on what was going on today. His mind was still trying to process the likelihood of Camille and Karen being sisters. The story Benjamin told left little room for doubt. This group never ceased to baffle him; the amount of drama in their lives was enough to pitch to a network for a reality series. If that didn’t work it surely was a book, it would become a best seller even if it had to be self-published. He shook his head as he recounted the last year of drama in this group. There was a simple date to a theater that ended in a hit and run that left Camille hospitalized. Then there was his girlfriend beating up his mother because of an insult and spit, his mail courier was the father of his girl’s goddaughter. That same mail courier was a recovering alcoholic and drug abuser who happened to be wealthy and also had a psycho ex-wife. But the best one had
to be the beautiful, surprise, engagement party, when Benjamin proposed to Camille, only to have to be rushed to the hospital because his deceased girlfriend’s mother gave him a concussion with a skillet. He shook his head thinking all this from a bunch that called themselves Christians.
Kevin was brought out of his thoughts when he realized he would not be getting any answers from Paige. Once he laid eyes on what should have been her smooth, deep, chocolate skin he saw it had been replaced by a shade of gray. Paige was sprinting toward Ben’s powder room with one hand cupping her mouth. He followed in hot pursuit to make sure she was okay; when he caught up to her she was leaned over the toilet releasing the contents of her stomach.
He called out to her as he tried to enter the room to assist her, but she used her free hand to motion for him to stay back. He felt useless and wondered what could have caused her to become ill. Was it stress from the day’s drama? Surely she had not gotten food poisoning from Momma Gladys’s cooking, her restaurant
always had a high score from the health inspection office. Nonetheless, something was up with his girl’s health, she had been throwing up quite a few meals in the last few weeks, and her energy had been low. A thought struck him as he started
adding things up. Could she be expecting? If it were true, it would just add to those episodes that would make their group, reality television worthy.
He stood outside the powder room wanting to go in and help his love. Instead, he stayed back with his chest tightening with each retch from Paige. He was turning around to go get water for Paige, feeling it might help her,
when he heard her dry heaving and knew she had emptied her stomach. Camille was already on the job with ginger ale and crackers in her hand. He was pushed out of the way by Camille, who went over to rub Paige’s back and got her to drink and eat the crackers. It wasn’t lost upon Kevin, that Camille’s help was received graciously versus his. He just stood there in awe as her best friend sweetly cared for Paige.
Watching them made him sure the beef between Karen and them had to be squashed. These women were family. He dropped his head in sadness as he remembered that was the reason Karen was upset; they were family. Suddenly the images of his mother disowning him for loving Paige came to his mind. He shook
it off as best he could, because he could feel his own lunch threatening to rise from his belly. He left the ladies alone and went to find Benjamin. He wanted to know
if Frankie was able to convince Karen to come over.
***
Paige and Camille were now in one of Benjamin’s guest rooms sitting on the bed. Camille was observing her best friend as she finished her second
bottle of ginger ale. When Paige was done, she looked at Camille and blurted out.
“I’m pregnant.”
Camille raised an eyebrow giving her best friend a look that said
“really?” She laughed. “Duh!”
***
“I don’t care what you say Frankie, I’m not going over there.” Karen was sitting in the living area on the couch; Frankie was sitting adjacent to her on an ottoman. Nikki was at a playdate. Karen had called a daycare parent when she left the restaurant, it was the only way she could get Nikki to stop crying.
“Karen, don’t be like this, what is wrong with talking to Camille? At the
very least you will gain some understanding on why she didn’t tell you about being her sister.” Frankie wanted his wife to go speak with her sister. He didn’t like the fact that Camille kept this secret, but after speaking to her on the phone he understood her reluctance, and now he agreed because there was no reasoning with Karen.
“Nothing is wrong with it, but I don’t care what her reasons are. So there isn’t anything for me to understand. But you should accept the fact that I won’t be talking to her again, EVER!”
“Sweetie, you work with her, what are you going to do there? Avoid and ignore your boss?”
“Humph, who said I was going back to work for her? Did you forget I have a rich husband with a few hundred thousand dollars in the bank? I’ll be a stay at
home mom before I return to be her assistant.”
Karen got up and started pacing. She could not believe her life. All this time she had admired and practically worshiped Camille. She made most of her life choices based on Camille’s opinions. And to think how awful she felt when Camille had chastised her for sleeping with Frankie before they were married. Finding out she had trusted a fraud was more than disheartening, she felt hurt in
the core of her being.
“Karen you don’t mean that, we need to go over to Ben’s and talk this out. Kevin said the girls are miserable and Paige has become ill and is throwing up.”
“Those conniving heifers should be miserable they led me to believe I was their friend. Ha, the joke is on me. All this time I thought Camille was a good friend, a great boss, and a loving godmother. Now I know she is just a terrible sister and a guilty wench, who took pity on her poor, little, bastard sister.”
“Honey you don’t know that, you are just letting your imagination get away from you.” Frankie stood and grabbed his pacing wife’s shoulders to calm her. Looking into her eyes, he searched for the reasonable woman who had made his life complete again.
“Sweetie, you have to give Camille a chance to explain, she called me earlier. She realizes she messed up by not telling you, but don’t forget who she has been to you over the last few years. You can’t just push her out of your and Nikki’s life, she loves you both.” Frankie was praying to the Lord that he broke through; he thought Karen had been angry about Shayla’s episode, but this was something else.
“No, I’m not going over there to hear why she kept this life altering fact from me. You know what; I always wondered how I got placed at Intransit, now I know. Camille probably felt sorry for her poor, little, stripper sister and decided to do some charity work. Boy she really had me going, she put on a quite a show, she should take a bow.”
“Karen, are you really quoting Rihanna? You are being ridiculous.” Karen spun on her heels and gave him an incredulous look. Frankie knew if looks could kill, he would be a dead man. He lifted both his arms in surrender. “I’m sorry babe I didn’t mean to call you ridiculous. I just want you to hear her out.”
“Frankie, why are you on her side?” Karen was now in front of him with her arms folded underneath her chest.
“I’m not on her side. I just understand how hard it was for her to tell you. Mr. James dropped this bomb on her when she wasn’t fully healed and one event popped off, then another. She didn’t want to ruin our wedding or honeymoon, then when we returned Nikki got sick, then the Shayla incident. I believe her when she says the time just wasn’t right.” Frankie saw his wife’s anger lift she seemed to believe Camille’s reasons.
“I can’t deny a lot has been going on, I’ll talk to her. But. It. Won’t. Be. Tonight!” Frankie gathered her in his arms and kissed the top of her head.
“I understand, I will call and let them know we won’t be coming. What do you want to do?”
“I’m tired Frankie, I just want to go to bed and for you to hold me.” “If that is what you want, sweetheart that is what we will do.”
***
Camille sat on her bed texting with her dad. She had tried to video chat via her laptop, but he wasn’t able to connect. She settled, as usual, to simply converse via text messaging.
Camille: Daddy I need you to come home.
J.D.: Why baby girl, is everything okay? How are you feeling?
Camille: Physically I’m fine. On my last check-up, I was cleared of all physical therapy, I am running again. But, I need you to come home because I’m emotionally and mentally not well.
J.D.: Why baby girl, are you still on your meds?
Camille: Yes, daddy, I am still taking the Prozac and Xanax as the therapist recommends. But there are some situations in life that exceeds the limitations of medicine Daddy. I need you to come home. Karen has found out you are her father and she has shut me out of her life.
J.D.: Baby girl I told you about her connection, just so you would know. You
shouldn’t have let that been revealed to her.
Camille: Well daddy it is, and I need you! Please daddy, come home.
It had been over an hour since she sent the last text to her father, to say she was outraged was an understatement. It was not lost upon her that when she revealed her problems were not physical he went straight to her prescriptions for anxiety and depression. This was the reason no one in her life knew she took them. She kept both prescriptions in vitamin bottles, and everyone assumed that’s what they were. Only she, her dad, and her psychiatrist knew she had been on them
since she was a teenager.
She was prescribed them after the nightmares of her mother’s last days battling cancer continued into her teenage years. She often dreamed of horrid visions of her mother during her last days battling that deadly disease. In her nightmares, she would vividly see the last stages of her mom’s life and how the cancer had eaten her from the inside out. The stench of death couldn’t be removed from her adolescent sense of smell. She was haunted with vivid images of her mother’s skin hanging from her bones, and the scaly look of her skin, that made her face resemble that of a reptile. She grimaced as she could see her mom trying
to smile at her, only it was frightening because her teeth no longer fit in the skeletal
face the disease had plagued her with. After each nightmare, her days were filled with anxiety attacks until she could not focus, and her grades started to fall. Teachers beg
an to call and report that she had become withdrawn. Those reports prompted her Grammy to take her to see a psychiatrist who taught her coping skills for the anxiety attacks. Camille still sees Doctor Kendall once a month, another secret she keeps from Benjamin and her friends.
As time dragged on and no word was received from her dad, Camille sat in her bed with tears streaming down her face. She now realized nothing had changed about her daddy. It was obvious his one coping skill had remained—avoidance. That is what he had done after her mom died, he literally ran from her all the way overseas. He left her with her Grammy who showered her with love and affection, but still her father had left the scene. Taking into consideration what he had shared concerning his relationship with Karen’s mom, when Cynthia revealed imperfections he ran and never looked back. This angered Camille and she took
After Church: Walking Worthy....After the Benediction! (The Greatest Love Series Book 2) Page 10
