Brothers and Wives

by Cydney Rax

  I don’t hear old. I don’t hear age. I hear love.

  — 27 —

  SCOTTIE

  I’m Going to Make You Love Me

  The day of Scottie’s homecoming, Dani waits three hours for his paperwork to be processed. When Scottie wanders into the lobby, walking with a bounce, Dani yelps and jumps into his arms. He swings her around in a circle until she starts screaming with joy.

  “Okay, put me down. Let me take a good look at you.”

  Scottie’s wearing the same clothes he wore the day he got arrested. He smiles and flexes his muscles.

  “Ooo, baby, you’re looking good. I love that you worked out while you were here,” she says, and squeezes his plump arms. “You already had a tight body….”

  “Well, I kept it tight for you. You were all I thought about every second I was here.” He takes one final glance. “Hey, let’s bounce. I’ve had enough of this place.”

  She grabs his arm tightly, and they walk out the door into the brilliant sunlight. Downtown Houston looks awesome today.

  “Man, the fucking sun is blazing down on me, and I love it. And I love you, Dani.”

  She grins at him, and they plod down the street, settle in Dani’s truck, and drive toward home.

  “Okay,” Dani says. “Your boss has been kind enough to grant you that leave of absence. But now that you’re back, you should report to work on Monday.”

  “No problem. I’ve never been so eager to go to a job in my life.”

  “And, of course, Anya’s throwing a party for you, so we’ll head straight there. You can take a shower. I got you a brand-new outfit. Everything will be different.”

  “Will it?” Scottie says calmly.

  “Well, yeah,” she says, pouting. “You’re going to definitely become a better, more conscientious driver. And I insist that you attend anger management classes. You can’t threaten or try to fight anybody just because you don’t like what they say to me or anyone else.”

  “Those are the changes you want me to make. But what about your changes?”

  “M–mine? What do I need to change?”

  “Word gets out, Dani. Even when you think no one knows your business, they do.”

  “Um, what on Earth are you talking about?”

  “Don’t play the innocent role. Someone from the outside came to visit me….”

  “Is LaNecia really anyone who can be trusted? Please don’t insult me, Scottie.”

  “She may make up shit from time to time, but when she knows the truth, she’s gonna tell me that, too.”

  “You believe that sicko over your own wife?”

  “Yes, if I know for a fact that you sneak around behind my back.”

  “Y–you don’t know that.”

  Scottie glares at his wife as she presses her foot on the accelerator.

  “Going faster ain’t gonna change anything, Dani. If you need to tell me something, now’s the time to do it.”

  “Look, Scottie, if you’re asking if I had sex with another man, the answer is hell no. Are you kidding me? LaNecia needs to check herself. She’s so desperate she’ll do anything to get you away from me. And, since we’re on this subject, why do you allow her to do the things she does? Is it because you told the girl you still care about her? You love her? You’re as guilty as I am….”

  “What did you say? Keep talking, Dani. I want to know how guilty you are.”

  “Don’t try to put words in my mouth. Scottie, if I didn’t love you, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have accepted your collect calls, put my manicure and pedicure money in your inmate fund so you can eat a bag of chips or whatever they served y’all down there.”

  “You never even wrote me a letter. I saw other guys getting mail all the time, but not me.”

  “That’s crazy,” she says seductively. “We talked on the phone, honey bun, and I have the bills to prove it.”

  “Don’t try to sound sweet now. I’m mad at you.”

  She laughs. “I’m so glad you’re out, baby. It wasn’t any fun without you there. And Brax … oh my goodness, he’s practically reading now. You’ll see.”

  Scottie begins to relax as he considers her reasoning.

  “I guess I need to chill. The main thing is I did my little time. This is just a funky Class C misdemeanor. It’s gonna be on my record, but at least I’m not on probation. I’m straight.”

  “I hope you mean that literally,” Dani teases.

  “Seriously, baby. I appreciate the little things you did for me. Every inmate’s fear is that his woman is gonna leave him, or sleep with another man. I guess I’ll take your word for it, but if I ever find out you lied, ten anger management classes won’t help.”

  “You need to quit,” she says, laughing hysterically.

  It’s almost five o’clock on a Friday. They get stuck in rush-hour traffic but take the time to catch up on the details of everything Scottie’s missed out on.

  They arrive at Neil’s and notice lots of cars parked in the driveway and in front of the house.

  “People have been waiting to see you all day, honey.”

  “That’s a trip. I never thought folks would care this much about a brother.”

  “Lots of people love you. You’ll see,” she says as they exit the truck.

  Colorful purple and orange streamers are mounted on all the doorways. A huge Welcome Home Scottie banner spans across the arches that lead into the den.

  “Hey, cousin,” says one male cousin.

  “What up, what up. I see the cards over there. I’m dying to whip you in spades. Set up the table.”

  Scottie goes around hugging Vette, Reesy, Riley, and Karetha.

  “Where’s your girl?” he says folding Karetha into his arms for a warm hug.

  Karetha averts her eyes. “I don’t know, but wherever she is, I know her mind is only on you. You know Necia.”

  “I know, Ka. Be good. I’m glad you’re here.”

  Scottie breezes into the kitchen and opens the refrigerator. “Real food,” he screams at the top of his lungs.

  “Don’t you dare walk in my house looking for something to eat without first saying hello to us.” Anya is standing near the breakfast bar with her hands on her hips. Sola waits beside her, clinging to a large photo album.

  “Scott-Scott!”

  “Mommy!” He leaves the refrigerator door open and races into his mother’s arms. She hugs him and softly cries. “Thank you, Jesus. I was so scared for you. And sorry I didn’t visit. I just couldn’t bring myself to come down there. I don’t want to see my son behind bars.”

  “Except the kind of bar that serves Crown Royal, right, Mama?”

  Neil steps into the kitchen, his presence almost filling the room. He locks eyes with his brother, then walks up to him and pats him on the back.

  “Yo, man, thanks for looking out for me. I appreciate everything you’ve done. Took care of the attorney, paying my bills. I owe you, man.”

  “You don’t owe me anything,” Neil says and walks out of the room.

  “He’s so weird,” Dani says nervously. She’s been standing in the shadows, observing all the action.

  “Anyway, it’s time for you to take a nice, long shower, hubby. You smell worse than a pig.”

  “You know what? You right. I can smell myself. So, y’all give me twenty minutes. I’m going upstairs to shower and I’ll be back down to get the party started. Now, make sure my favorite music is playing. Oh, guess what. When you’re in jail …”

  “Oh no, here he goes trying to liven things up with his prison stories,” Anya says, laughing.

  “Listen up. Everyone gets a nickname. Know what they called me? ‘Radio.’ ’Cause I was singing all the time. Scottie was making hits up in the joint.”

  Everyone beams at Scottie as he leaves the kitchen.

  He runs up the stairs, enters his former bedroom, sees clothes lying on the chair, and scoops them into his hand. Just as he’s about to turn around and leave the room, he hears
a click; the door locks.

  He quickly turns around. LaNecia is staring at Scottie as if she’s looking right through him. Her long, unbraided hair is a tangled mess.

  “What are you doing here, cousin?”

  “I came here to see you. I heard you were getting out.”

  “But why aren’t you downstairs with the rest?”

  “You don’t want to see me alone, Scottie? What can I do to make you see I’m special because I’m all out of answers? How can I make you love me?”

  “You gotta stop stalking me, cousin. I feel like you’re following me on Twitter.”

  “Do you have a Twitter account?”

  “See, you’re scaring me, baby girl.”

  She steps closer to Scottie and tries to grab his penis. He slaps her hand away and steps back.

  “That is enough. You need help, cousin, for real. Leave right now or else I’m going to call the cops.”

  “You wouldn’t do that.”

  “Yes, I would.”

  “Do you know what I’m going to do?”

  Scottie watches her pull a 9-millimeter gun from behind her back. Her hands shake as she points it directly at his face.

  He screams, “Please, LaNecia, don’t shoot!”

  — 28 —

  DANI

  Marriage Isn’t Always What It Seems

  I casually walk upstairs to find out what’s taking Scottie so long. As I approach the bedroom, his door is closed shut. I hear voices.

  “What’s wrong, Scottie? You scared? Are you now ready to take me serious?”

  “LaNecia …” He raises his voice in a weird sounding way. “Please.”

  “You son of a bitch. You said you love me, but you lied. You act like you want to fuck me, yet you end up teasing me. All you gotta do to release me is tell me the truth.”

  “I have told the truth.”

  “No, you haven’t,” she wails.

  Feeling tense, I lean in closer, not yet ready to knock.

  “LaNecia, nooo!”

  “You scared of this gun, huh?” She laughs. Then I hear an animal-like howl.

  “If I can’t have you, nobody can.”

  The air fills with yelling, a loud gunshot, then complete silence.

  I rattle the doorknob and bang my fist against the door, pounding on it till my skin begins to sting. “Scottie! Scottie! Are you all right? Talk to me, Scottie!”

  The door squeaks opens. LaNecia stumbles back away from the door. She lowers herself to a sitting position on the edge of the bed. She dumps her face in her hands, rocks back and forth, and wails at the top of her lungs, “I can’t make this man love me. I can’t make any man love me. I have to learn how to love myself. That’s the only love I know I can get.”

  “Where’s my husband?”

  She points. Scottie’s standing in the doorway of the walk-in closet. His eyes are bloodshot. His face is ashen. He begins removing bullets from the gun and drops them in his pocket. I smell gunpowder and look up. A bullet hole punctures the ceiling. I take one look at Scottie and collapse in my husband’s arms. I thank God he spared Scottie’s (and LaNecia’s) lives.

  They tried to warn me. “Marriage isn’t always what it seems. Every married woman I know is miserable and wishes she were single.” Blah, blah, blah. I wish they’d have told me this before I said “I do.” But wait. They did tell me. When did I ever listen? Well, I’m all ears now. It’s funny how young folks reject good advice until they have no other choice but to listen because all the sharp warnings finally come true. Your life brings you to a cold, lonely cell. Door shut. Locked. In jail. Believe me when I tell you. Scottie wasn’t the only person behind bars. Don’t get me started.

  Thankfully, Neil and Anya heard the gunshot that day and escorted LaNecia out of the room. Once Scottie and I were alone, I saw him differently than ever before. When I realized how close I came to losing the one man who proved his love to me in every imaginable way, I had to make a drastic change. I had to do things that made life better for Brax, Scottie, Anya, Neil, and especially myself.

  And two weeks after our ordeal I adopted what I refer to as the Neil Braxton Meadows rules.

  I’m a happily married woman. And because of this, I told myself, and my baby daddy, no more being alone in a room or house with Neil. No more wearing skimpy clothes around him. No more reminiscing about a past that should have been long buried.

  Because Mrs. Danielle Meadows promises to be an excellent wife who’s always on her best behavior. After what Neil and I went through, and seeing how LaNecia almost lost her mind over a man, I can never put myself in those tempting situations again. Thank God LaNecia finally agreed to go to a therapist. Maybe a professional will prescribe a permanent cure for her unhealthy fixation.

  And now that the drama has subsided, thank God Scottie doesn’t pester me anymore about Neil, or any other guy these days.

  Besides, what Scottie doesn’t know can never hurt him.

  Or can it?

  Acknowledgments

  Special thanks to my editor, Heather Lazare, for her editing expertise, and to Claudia Menza for being a wonderful literary agent. Thanks to Emily Lavelle for everything you do to promote my books, and to both the copy editor and the copy department for your superb work!

  Shout-outs to Electa Rome Parks, Shelia Lindsay, Cheryl Robinson, Marissa Monteilh, Lexi Davis, Claudia O’Hare, Margaret Johnson-Hodge, Kole Black, Wilt Tillman, Cynthia Gibbs, Albricka Gordon, RAWSISTAZ Reviewers, Patrik Henry Bass of Essence magazine, Carol Hill-Mackey, The Pink Reviewers, Trice Hickman, Philana Marie Boles, Ta-Nisha Webb, Sylvia Hubbard, Niobia Bryant, Chelsia McCoy, Tia Ross, Shani Greene Dowdell, the one and only Karen Hunter, Sam Redd of MaverickMedia, Heather Covington, Vanessa Davis Griggs, reviewer Cheryl Hayes, Antoinette Hosley, and every book club, reviewer, library, and bookstore for your support.

  Blessings to Lt. Derrick McClinton for his input, and to Duane Gordon for the “inside” info.

  Can’t forget Facebook and MySpace friends, and the University of Houston crew.

  To all the aspiring authors who ask for advice: keep hanging in there and never give up.

  Thanks to the Lord for blessing me to live my dream.

  Last, thanks to my mother for the support, and to everyone in my family (What’s up, Detroit).

  E-mail me at booksbycyd@aol.com.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2010 by Cydney Rax

  All rights reserved.

  Published in the United States by Three Rivers Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York

  www.crownpublishing.com

  Three Rivers Press and the Tugboat design are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Rax, Cydney.

  Brothers and wives : a novel / by Cydney Rax.—1st trade paperback ed.

  1. African Americans—Fiction. 2. Triangles (Interpersonal relations)—Fiction. 3. Domestic fiction. I. Title.

  PS3618.A98B76 2010

  813′.6—dc22 2010004536

  eISBN: 978-0-307-46010-3

  v3.0