When You Least Expect It

by Sandra Leiper

  “This is a crock. I see no evidence whatsoever of adultery here. As long as they were not carrying on a relationship while Mr. Knight lived at home, I see no reason to enter this into today’s proceedings. Motion denied. Anything else you want to pull out of your jack-in-the-box, Mr. Richards?”

  Sam reddened. Without turning to Carrie, he said no.

  “Good. Mr. Knight, I’m granting you this divorce with the alimony and child support guidelines that we previously discussed. The alimony will drop every two years, giving Mrs. Knight plenty of time to get on her feet. Visitation with your children will be at your discretion, and Mrs. Knight, I do not want to see you back here because you’re being unfair with that. Your husband is being more than reasonable; the least you can do is reciprocate. This case is over. Divorce granted in the case of Knight vs. Knight.” He banged his gavel and the bailiff asked all to rise.

  Ray turned to Mike. “Thank you. It looks like I get to have a somewhat normal life now.”

  They shook hands. “I’m glad it turned out this way. I’m sorry he didn’t bend on the alimony, but you still get what you want, right?”

  “Yes, Mike, I do. I get my freedom.” He turned to look at Carrie. Ray smiled at her, wanting to thank her for letting it end, but she stared at him sadly for a moment, then turned and walked out, without so much as a glance back in his direction.

  ~~~

  Ray couldn’t wait to call Amanda. He rushed back to his desk and first thing he did was call her at work.

  “This is Mandy.”

  His heart soared at the lilt in her voice. “Hi honey.”

  “Ray, hi! How was court?”

  “Well…” He couldn’t help messing with her a bit.

  “Oh no, what happened, another postponement?” She couldn’t hide her disappointment.

  “All I can say is, you’re now speaking to a free man.”

  There was a moment of silence as his words sunk in. Then she let out a whoop! “You’re divorced!”

  Ray started to laugh. “I’m divorced. It’s finally happened.”

  Amanda laughed with Ray. She couldn’t believe it was over. “I wish I were there so we could celebrate. Congratulations, Ray.”

  “Thanks. I wish you were here too. I’d love to take you out, proud as could be, as a free man.”

  They hung up the phone, both feeling exuberant. She sat at her little desk wanting to explode. She ran to Mariah’s office. “He’s divorced!”

  ~~~

  That night the girls went out and celebrated enthusiastically. There were more than one beer involved, and before the night was over, everyone thought it was Amanda celebrating her divorce, and everyone was buying her drinks, toasting her, and celebrating with her. She had a great time.

  She called Ray late in the night, waking him up. She was feeling no pain. “Hi there, sexy.”

  Ray smiled in his bed. “Hey you, what are you doing up so late?”

  “It’s not that late. I just came back from a celebratory bash at Nene’s.”

  “Oh? What were you celebrating?”

  She laughed. “My boyfriend got divorced!”

  It was Ray’s turn to laugh. “Hey, how come you got to go out and get drunk, when I was the one getting divorced?”

  “Did you go out and celebrate?”

  “I guess, if you call having Chinese with my mother, then going out for ice cream a celebration. I’d have rather been with you.”

  He settled more into his bed at this thought. “I would have rather celebrated alone, just you and me, nobody else.”

  Amanda twirled her hair. She loved Ray’s sexy voice.

  “Really and how would we have celebrated?”

  “Mmmm…let me think. There would have been champagne, rose petals, and well, clothes would have been optional.”

  “No clothes; and then what?”

  As Ray explained to her in explicit detail what would have happened, Amanda laid back and lavished in it. It didn’t take long before they were both lost in the fantasy

  ~~~

  Chapter 36

  Ray was on top of the world. He finally felt liberated. Free to pursue his new life, his happiness. He knew that Amanda was a big part of his happiness, but he wasn’t sure where it was going to go from here. He wanted to be with her. There was just one little glitch in this plan—the distance between them.

  Ray sighed. He wasn’t going to let this, or anything, get him down. He was going to turn his apartment into a home for both him and his girls, he was going to change his wardrobe and maybe his hairstyle, and finally he was going to travel. First stop, El Paso.

  He was on the Internet trying to plan his first trip when his phone rang. With a lilt in his voice, he picked it up.

  “Hi Dad.”

  “Glenda? Hey. How are things?”

  “Things are okay. Mom told us about the divorce being final.”

  “Yeah, isn’t it great?”

  Glenda couldn’t help but be happy for her dad. He sounded as if the weight of the world no longer sat on his shoulders. “I’m happy for you, Dad. Mom had a rough night though.”

  Ray slapped his forehead. He could be so insensitive sometimes. “I’m sorry Glen; how did it go?”

  “She just told us the divorce was final, and how we were still a family; minus you, of course.”

  Ouch.

  “Then Dad, she mentioned you had a girlfriend. Actually, she called her a mistress.”

  Double ouch.

  Ray couldn’t believe that even Carrie could sink this low. “A mistress? What exactly did she say?”

  “She told us you had a mistress. She said she hoped you still had time for us now that you had a mistress. Are you seeing someone?”

  Ray knew that lying about this wasn’t an option. If his relationship with Amanda ever went anywhere, she’d need to try to establish a relationship with the girls. It was not off to a great start. “Well, kind of I guess. I wouldn’t call her a mistress though.”

  Glenda flinched. “What would you call her?”

  “My friend. She’s someone that I talk to about things. She helped me through this divorce, just by listening. She’s a good friend Glen, that’s all.

  “Mom says you met on the Internet.”

  Ray knew where this was going. He had no access to the Internet at his apartment, so she knew it had started at home. “We chatted on the Internet a few times. We met about two weeks ago. Like I said, I needed someone to talk to, and she was a good listener. She was recently divorced herself and could answer my questions. That’s it.”

  “How did you talk to her, at work?”

  Ray groaned. “Glenda, why are you interrogating me? What’s bothering you?”

  “I just don’t understand how you have a girlfriend and didn’t tell us. Why did you keep it a secret? Why did we have to hear it from Mom? She made it sound so creepy.”

  “I’m sorry. She’s a friend. Maybe now that we have actually met it might turn into more, but Glen, she lives in Texas. It would be tough to carry on a relationship, don’t you think?”

  “I guess, Dad.” Although she actually wasn’t convinced, she decided to concede. “Will you tell us about her when we come up next weekend? Do you have pictures?”

  “Yes. I will show them to you on Saturday. It’s a harmless friendship Glen; don’t let your mother make you think otherwise, okay?”

  “Okay. See you Saturday.”

  “Okay. How do your sisters feel about this?”

  “About the same way as I do; I’ll let them know the scoop.”

  Ray hung up, no longer feeling quite as lively. Obviously, no matter what, there will always be a catch in his happiness.

  ~~~

  That night, he told Amanda about the conversation. She handled it a lot better that he’d expected.

  “So the cat is out of the bag. Now your kids know about me. Wow, things went from not happening at all, to happening way too fast. After the initial shock wears off, how do you think they’l
l react?” She was out of breath. This seemed surreal to her.

  “I think they’ll be just fine. Ultimately, they want me to be happy. If they see you make me happy, they’ll accept you, I’m sure of it.”

  She wasn’t quite as sure, but she didn’t let on to Ray. “That’s good. We’ll just have to take it as it comes.”

  The subject then changed to Ray’s trip. They were both excited about him going to El Paso.

  “When do you think I could come out? I need to ask for the time off at work.” Ray could barely contain his excitement.

  “Well, I’ve been thinking about it. How would you feel about coming out at the end of May?”

  “May, huh? Is it nice there then?”

  “Yes, it’s spring like weather; sunny, warm and dry. You’ll love it. But there’s another reason why I want you to come then.”

  Ray could tell Amanda was about to drop something big. “Let me guess, you want a May wedding?”

  They both laughed. “Very funny, Ray. There’s an event happening in May that I want you to come to. Alex is graduating, and I’m going to throw a big party. Randy and his wife will be here, and well, I need a date.”

  Ray laughed heartily. “You want me to come to be your escort?”

  She laughed nervously. “There’s more.”

  “I can’t wait to hear, go on.”

  Amanda bit her lip, afraid to tell Ray that she wanted him to meet her family. “The party I’m throwing will be for about sixty people. I’m having it in my backyard with food, music, dancing; the whole bit.”

  Ray was impressed. “That sounds like fun, actually. So you want me there to help you?”

  Amanda surged ahead. “My whole family will be here.”

  Ray was speechless.

  “Blossom keeps bugging me about telling the family, so when I tell them in the near future, I want to be able to say they can meet you when they come down. My family is very protective, Ray. If they’re ever going to accept you, they’ll have to see for themselves that you’re not an axe murderer. So, what do you think?’

  “I think that I’m coming to be your escort. How will your ex react?”

  “Who cares? He won’t say anything to you or anything like that. It’ll be fine.” She was so excited. He was actually going to do it!

  “Tell me exactly when the dates are, and I’ll ask for the time off at work, then I’ll buy an airline ticket. Should I get a hotel?”

  Amanda had not thought through where Ray should stay. “Well, of course, I want you to stay here, but with my family staying here and all, I’m not sure it would be a great idea. Will the expense of this be too much?”

  Ray had not considered staying in a hotel. He’d have to rent a car too. “I guess I’d have to cut down my stay a few days. Maybe just come for a long weekend. How does Thursday through Tuesday sound?”

  “Not long enough, but I understand.” She was disappointed, but happy that he’d agreed to come for the graduation. “I think this’ll be great. I’ll get everything done early so that we have a chance to spend some time together.”

  “That sounds great. Since I’m staying at a hotel, we will definitely have to put it to good use.”

  Amanda blushed happily. “I can’t wait.”

  ~~~

  She called Blossom right away to tell her the news. “So see, now you have nothing to worry about.”

  “Yes I do! You’d better not tell them that I knew about this all along! I’m an innocent bystander. Are you going to tell them you went to Maine?”

  Amanda considered this for a minute. “Yes, I am.”

  Blossom shrieked. “They better not find out that I knew about that, either! You’re killing me, here!”

  Amanda giggled. “Relax. So, are you going to come meet him?”

  “You bet you’re sweet ass I am! I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I have to go and inform Julio of this trip. Call me after you tell the family.”

  “Good luck with Julio.”

  She hung up and dialed Leeza’s number. After the formalities, she went got straight to the point; almost.

  “So, you’re coming to Alex’s graduation, right?”

  “I’m planning too, but I’m not sure if Jerry can, or the girls. It’s a hectic time, plus the kids go to school until June here.”

  “Alex will be so disappointed. He’s really hoping for a large family turnout. He’s way too proud of himself.”

  “Well, maybe I can talk Jerry into it. I think my Mom and Auntie Inez are coming. Are Blossom and the rest of the cousins going to make it?

  “Blossom says she is; I don’t know about Trish or Cindy though.”

  “I don’t know if Tina is, either.” Tina was Leeza’s sister.

  “Well, we’ll have to see as it gets closer. I’ll need a head count, of course. Randy will be here.”

  “Why?” Leeza had no use for Randy, and frankly, never did.

  “I think it’s because he’s Alex’s father.” Amanda giggled. “Why else would he come?”

  Leeza rolled her eyes. “Okay, okay, I forgot. That was a dumb question. Is he bringing his bimbette?”

  Amanda laughed. “Bimbette? That’s too funny. I don’t know; I would assume so.” She took a deep breath. “I’m going to have a date there, too.”

  Leeza was shocked. “You’re dating someone? Great! Who is it? How did you meet? Tell me everything”

  She proceeded to tell Leeza the whole G-rated version of their story. Leeza was quiet through it all, only adding a few “mm-hmm’s” now and then.

  “…so, I convinced him to come when the family was here so he could meet you all. Cool, huh?”

  “Very cool. I have a friend who married someone she met on the Internet, and they’re very happy together. This really is the new age way of meeting people. I don’t see anything wrong with it. I can’t wait to meet him. This is great, Mandy, I’m happy for you.”

  It was Amanda’s turn to be speechless.

  “Are you there?”

  “Yes. I just can’t believe you are taking it so well.”

  “Why wouldn’t I? It’s a different world out there, and hard to meet men in your forties. I think it’s great. It’s not so great that he lives in Maine, but at least you won’t jump into anything unless you are actually ready. Does he make good money?”

  Amanda knew it had been too good to be true. “Yes, he does.”

  “So he can afford to have this long-distance relationship, and you can just sit back and enjoy it for once. No jumping in with feet, arms and neck. You’ve already been married twice, Mandy; give it a rest.”

  Amanda wanted to come through the phone and kick her cousins’ ass, but instead just muttered, “I will.”

  She hung up the phone, feeling both relieved and chastised. Her family was really too much. Even though she had promised Blossom she’d call her back, she decided two family phone calls tonight was enough. She opted to have a cup of tea and go to bed.

  ~~~

  The phone ringing brought Amanda out of her dream the next morning. Before she even brought the receiver to her ear, she could hear Blossom yelling.

  “Why didn’t you call me? Don’t you know I was sitting here on pins and needles?”

  Amanda sighed. “Well then it must have been a long night for you.” She giggled. “I got off the phone with Leeza and was exhausted, so I went to bed.”

  “Oh god, you called Leeza first? How did she take it?”

  “She took it very well and is happy for me…she can’t wait to meet Ray.”

  Blossom was stunned. “She didn’t think you were crazy?”

  “Nope, that would only be you, girlfriend.”

  “Did you call anyone else? I’m sure not everyone will react that way.”

  “I’ll call Aunt Inez, then I’m sure from there, the family circle will take care of the rest. The news will spread like wildfire.”

  Blossom laughed. “You could always tell them not to say anything, and then it will really spread fas
t!” Both girls cackled loudly. “We’re so bad!”

  She hung up and made several other calls. She called her aunt, the cousins and Kara. They were all excited Ray was coming and that they were going to get to meet him. She was then off to Nene’s to tell Hilary over a few margaritas.

  ~~~

  “He’s coming to meet the family? You’ve got to be kidding me. Mandy, you’ve lost your mind.” She laughed. “I’ll give Ray this…he’s brave.”

  They ordered margaritas with chips and salsa. “What do the kids think?”

  “I haven’t told them yet. Actually, Elisa and Tom are meeting us here in a little while, and then you can see it for yourself.”

  “Oh great, I’m sure that will be drama filled. Elisa is still dating Tom?”

  “Yes. It seems to be getting hot and heavy quickly. That’s not like Elisa, but maybe she is ‘in love’.” Amanda sighed. She felt Elisa was way too young for such a serious relationship. The last thing she wanted for her daughter was to repeat the same mistakes she did. She wanted her to go to college and experience life before getting married. After all, she was only twenty. Elisa had a good head on her shoulders, always claimed she was waiting to get married, so she hoped ‘love’ wouldn’t cloud her mind.

  “Hi Mom!”

  Speak of the devil. “Hey.” She got up to hug her daughter tightly. “Hey, Tom.”

  “Hi, Mom!” Tom squeezed her like a long lost friend. “How goes it?”

  The four sat down and talked animatedly about everything, catching each other up on their lives. Amanda was surprised when Elisa brought up Ray.

  “Still talking to Ray, Mom?”

  “Yes, of course. In fact, I have a surprise for you. He’s coming to Texas.”

  “Really? Cool! When’s he coming?”

  “He’s coming in May, for Alex’s graduation.”

  Elisa rolled her eyes. “Mom, Alex isn’t going to like that. Why’s he coming then?”

  Hilary, sat back, drink in hand, watching the show. “Yeah, Mom; how come?”

  Amanda shot her a dirty look. “Because honey, I asked him to come be my date. Your dad will be here with his wife, so I wanted a date too. Plus, he can meet the whole family in one shot. You know they’re going to freak out that I met him on the Internet, but once they get to know him, they’ll see for themselves that he’s a nice guy.”