Sisters and Husbands

by Connie Briscoe

  “I agree,” Beverly said. “But that’s not all she said. You’re going to be shocked. I know I was.”

  “What?” Charmaine tapped her foot impatiently on the rug.

  “She told me that she’s had feelings for Julian since before I met him.”

  “Get out of here,” Charmaine said. “For Julian?”

  “Let me get this straight,” Evelyn said, sitting up on the edge of her seat. “Valerie likes Julian, your fiancé? And that’s why she slept with my husband?” Evelyn’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “I wouldn’t take anything that woman says seriously. She’s obviously very confused.”

  “Even if it’s true that she likes Julian, that’s hardly his fault,” Charmaine added. “So what are you mad at him for?”

  “Valerie said Julian knew about her feelings all along. Or she hinted that he did, and when I asked him, he admitted that he knew she was attracted to him. Yet he never said anything to me. Never! This wasn’t some random girl at the office who was coming on to him, this was my best friend. If we’re going to be a married couple, he can’t keep secrets like that from me. How can I trust him?”

  “Did you ask him why he didn’t tell you?” Evelyn asked.

  “He claims this all went down before he and I met and that he didn’t want to come between our friendship.”

  “At least he meant well,” Evelyn said.

  “Look, obviously he didn’t handle it the best way possible,” Charmaine added. “Or the way you would have wanted him to, but he was trying to be considerate of you.”

  “I understand that,” Beverly said. “But he still should have told me. They were working for the same company all that time, right up until he left a couple of months ago.”

  “You don’t think he cheated on you with her, do you?” Evelyn asked.

  Beverly shook her head. “No, he said nothing happened, and I believe him. In fact, he told me that the real reason he left his previous job was to get away from Valerie.”

  Charmaine’s eyes widened. “He left because of Valerie? Interesting.”

  “Shows how much he cares about you, if you ask me,” Evelyn said.

  “I agree,” Charmaine added. “Not many men would do that. I’m not so sure Tyrone would leave his job if a woman there had the hots for him.”

  “I know, I know,” Beverly said.

  “You are definitely blowing this way out of proportion, girl,” Charmaine said.

  Evelyn nodded in agreement.

  “That’s not the only reason I’m having second thoughts. I look around at you all and others and…” Beverly paused to collect her thoughts. She didn’t want it to seem like she was blaming her sisters.

  “I admit it doesn’t look promising when you do that,” Evelyn said.

  “I wonder, why go through with this when everyone I know who gets married just seems to end up getting a divorce?” Beverly looked at Evelyn. “I thought you and Kevin were an exception, that you two had it all figured out. I thought you two had the perfect marriage, and that it would last forever.”

  “So now everyone knows that we didn’t have the perfect marriage,” Evelyn said drily. “I don’t think you can ever be certain that a marriage will last forever, because nothing in love is guaranteed. If you want a guarantee, buy a new television. If you want love, you have to take chances.”

  “Preach it, sister,” Charmaine said, snapping her fingers. “I’m going to give it my best shot with Tyrone. I’m gonna try harder than I ever have before to make this one work. If I fail, guess what? I’ll move on. I’m proof that even when it doesn’t work out, you can pick yourself up and start over. There’s no such thing as a foolproof marriage because every man out there has faults. So does every woman.”

  “Instead of asking yourself if Julian is perfect or if your relationship is,” Evelyn said, “you need to ask yourself whether you can live with Julian’s faults.”

  Beverly paused to let that sink in. Obviously, Julian was not perfect, but could she live with his faults? He didn’t tell her about Valerie’s feelings for him, but he was trying to spare her friendship with Valerie. And he had left his job to mitigate the situation. Then when she confronted him about it, he admitted the truth. She also suspected that he would handle something like this a lot more to her liking in the future.

  “We’re not saying you should go through with this if you have strong doubts,” Evelyn said. “Just be realistic. This is marriage we’re talking about, not a fairy tale. It’s going to take a lot of work, and even with that, you might still fail.”

  “Either way, you’ll be fine in the end,” Charmaine said.

  “Okay, okay, I get it,” Beverly said, easing up on the pillow.

  Evelyn noticed a small smile appearing around Beverly’s lips for the first time that morning. Hopefully they were getting through to her and had averted pending disaster. “So should I call Ma and tell her everything is fine? And that you’ll be at her house to get into your dress by ten o’clock as planned?” Evelyn held her breath while waiting for the answer.

  “Not so fast,” Beverly said.

  “You mean all this lecturing from us and you still haven’t made up your mind?” Charmaine said teasingly.

  “I know, I know,” Beverly said. “And what you all said makes a lot of sense. I just need a little time to be sure. I’ll call Ma probably within the next hour or…”

  The doorbell rang and Beverly jumped and looked at Evelyn and Charmaine in a panic. “Is that Mama?” she asked. The last thing she needed now was more pressure to make up her mind.

  Evelyn stood up. “No. I don’t think it’s Mama. Like I said, I told her I would call her back.”

  “Then who could it be?” Beverly asked.

  Evelyn squared her shoulders. “Um, it’s probably Julian.”

  “But he doesn’t know I’m here,” Beverly said. “I haven’t talked to him since last night and I haven’t answered his calls.”

  “I know,” Evelyn said. “I called him after I talked to Mama and told him you were here. He was worried about you and needed to know that you were safe.”

  “Shit!” Beverly said under her breath. “I’m gonna kill you, Evelyn.” Beverly hopped up, ran across the room, and flew up the stairs.

  Chapter 38

  Evelyn opened the door to see a worried-looking Julian standing on the stoop dressed in loosely fitted, knee-length shorts and a T-shirt. She pulled him in, hugged him, and shut the door. He and Charmaine greeted each other warmly.

  “So?” he asked. “How is she doing?”

  “She ran upstairs when she found out it was you at the door,” Charmaine said.

  “Not good,” he said. “Should I go up after her?”

  “I would give it a few minutes,” Evelyn said. “I think we were making progress with her.”

  “Whatever you two decide is best,” he said. “I know she thinks the world of you both. Me? I’m in the doghouse.” He chuckled sadly.

  “It’s not entirely your fault, Julian,” Evelyn said. “This has always been an issue with her, as you know.”

  “I’m going to go put some coffee on,” Charmaine said. She walked back toward the kitchen.

  “Did she say what the problem is?” Julian asked as Evelyn sat on the couch and he sat in the armchair facing her. “’Cause we were fine until last week. And then this thing happened with Valerie and it’s like she blames me for everything.”

  “I honestly don’t think it’s about you, Julian. Beverly has always had a problem taking this step.”

  Beverly lay across the bed and hugged a pillow in her arms as she relived the past week in her head. They weren’t pretty memories. In fact, thinking back was enough to make her want to cut and run. She grasped the pillow tightly, as an anchor to keep her from fleeing.

  Fleeing what? She wrinkled her brow and tried to think. The man downstairs, that’s what. And those women. All three of them were trying to get her to do something she wasn’t sure was the right thing to do.


  She thought back through the similar episodes previously. Painful as it was to dredge the memories up, it was something she needed to do if she wanted to make the right decision now. With both earlier engagements, she had thought she was madly in love. And both times she had panicked weeks before the wedding when she realized she was in love only a little if at all.

  This time it was different. Although she and Julian had been physically attracted to each other immediately, their feelings developed more slowly. People always expected fireworks when they found their soul mates. But with Julian it was more like a steady and soothing hum that grew in intensity with time. He made her feel loved and secure and always put her feelings first. Even the worst thing he’d ever done to her—hiding the stuff about Valerie—was done to protect her feelings. If that was the worst, she had little to complain about.

  Charmaine placed three mugs of hot coffee on the table, and then sat down on the couch next to Evelyn and picked up her mug. Evelyn glanced at her watch and tried to think of the best approach to put an end to this madness. Julian tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair and then suddenly jumped from his seat.

  “I’m going to go up. I think I can get her to come around if we talk about this.”

  “Probably a good idea,” Charmaine said.

  “What happened when she backed out before?” he asked. “Was there an argument?”

  Charmaine and Evelyn looked at each other. Evelyn squinted, trying to remember. “I don’t think it was an argument as much as her feeling like she was being boxed in or forced.”

  Julian sat back down. “Maybe I’ll give her a few more minutes.”

  Suddenly all three of them turned in the direction of the stairway as they heard Beverly skipping down the stairs. Before any of them could react, Beverly had sprinted across the living room floor and flung herself into Julian’s lap. She snuggled close and hugged him. “I’m sorry,” she said softly.

  Julian wrapped his arms around her and murmured gently as Charmaine and Evelyn exchanged glances. Happy ones, this time. Charmaine placed her coffee mug on a side table, and both she and Evelyn stood up.

  “Looks like we should step out,” Evelyn said.

  “I agree,” Charmaine said. “I do have a question first. Should we expect you at Ma’s at ten, like we planned?”

  Beverly sat up and looked into Julian’s eyes. “Do you still want to marry me?”

  “I have since almost the day we met.”

  “Aw,” Charmaine said.

  Beverly smiled and looked at her sisters. “I’ll see you at ten, then.” She looked back at Julian. “Meanwhile, we got some making up to do.”

  “Works for me,” Julian said.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Charmaine said.

  Evelyn smiled as she reached for her cell. “This is wonderful. I’m going to call Ma right now, but you know what she’s going to say, Bev.”

  “What?” Beverly asked.

  “She’s going to insist that one of us stay here until you’re ready to come to the house to make sure you don’t change your mind again. And she’s going to be real upset to know that Julian is here. Bad luck and all that.”

  “So don’t tell her he’s here,” Charmaine said.

  “Know what?” Beverly said. “The last thing we want to do is start things off with bad luck.” Beverly stood and ushered Julian toward the front door. She smiled at him. “If we’re going to get married, let’s do it right.”

  Chapter 39

  Evelyn held the bouquet in her hand and walked down the aisle of the community church. She reached the front pews and caught a glimpse of Kevin sitting with Andre and Rebecca on the bride’s side. At the last minute, Evelyn had asked Reuben not to attend. They were planning to see a movie together later that evening, and she was excited to have something to look forward to. But it was too soon to spring a new man on Andre and Rebecca. It would only confuse them, maybe even anger them. If she and Kevin could agree on anything at this point, it was to make the upcoming divorce as painless as possible for their son and daughter.

  She smiled at the minister as she approached the altar. Could she see herself ever getting married again? Maybe, maybe not. She wasn’t ready to think that far ahead. She had descended into a dark hole when Kevin left, and for a while she had lost her way. Wife, lover, soul mate. That woman had been coldly tossed aside. She had wandered about dazed, confused, and bitter, trying to get her bearings until the news about Kevin and Valerie snapped her out of her stupor. Now a new woman was emerging, one with no ties to Kevin or any other man, and she would get through this one day at a time.

  Charmaine fussed with the veil on Beverly’s face just a few seconds longer and then turned and walked down the aisle behind Evelyn. She soon spotted her family near the front of the church. Tiffany and Kenny sat on opposite sides of Tyrone. Russell sat next to Kenny. Both Kenny and Tiffany looked totally miffed. Tiffany was pouting. Kenny had folded his arms tightly across his chest.

  Not a good sign, Charmaine thought. The two teens had had a spat that morning about something so trivial that Charmaine couldn’t even remember what the heck it was. That Tyrone had felt the need to plant himself between them at the church meant they hadn’t made up. And to think they were getting along so well at the bowling alley just last night. Obviously, she and Tyrone still had much work to do when it came to those two.

  She looked at Tyrone, and he winked at her when she passed by. Yeah, Charmaine thought as she smiled and winked back at him. This was definitely a man worth working hard to hold on to.

  Beverly slipped her hand under her father’s arm, and he patted her hand as if to soothe her nerves. She laughed softly and whispered in his ear. “Don’t worry, Daddy,” she said. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  They marched down the aisle together behind Charmaine, and Beverly saw her mom in the first pew on the left side smiling proudly. Julian’s parents were holding hands and smiling from the opposite side.

  Beverly glanced toward Evelyn and Charmaine, standing on the altar, looking gorgeous in their coral-colored gowns. Thank God for those two, Beverly thought. With a lot of loving patience and a little sisterly prodding they had helped her finally get past her silly fears to this point.

  Her father handed her off, and she lifted her gown and stepped up to the altar with Julian, the man who would help her navigate from here on out. She and Julian faced each other before the minister and clasped hands together. Beverly looked into Julian’s eyes and smiled. She was ready to say, “I do.”

  Reading Group Guide

  For those who have read Sisters & Lovers, how have Beverly, Charmaine, and Evelyn grown or changed over the past ten years?

  Which of the three sisters has grown the most? Which has grown the least?

  Did Beverly make the right decision about whether or not to marry Julian? If so, why? If not, why not?

  Do too many American women have unrealistic expectations of marriage? Do they expect marriage to be a perfect life, or like a fairy tale?

  What are Beverly’s greatest strengths and weaknesses?

  What are Charmaine’s greatest strengths and weaknesses?

  What are Evelyn’s greatest strengths and weaknesses?

  Which sister is your favorite and why?

  Which sister is you least favorite and why?

  Was Charmaine right to go to bat for her son Kenny, even at the risk of destroying her marriage?

  Do you think that Beverly and Julian will last?

  Do you think that Charmaine and Tyrone will last?

 

 

 
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