Shattered Lives (The Shattered Series Book 1)

by Marilyn Williams

  Robert Polinsky walked in disrupting their back and forth. “Tim, the board is waiting,” he said with a puzzled look on his face. “Should I expect you shortly?”

  “Yes, of course, Bob. I was on my way.” Tim put on his suit jacket, straighten his tie, and before he left, he whispered in Ramona's ear, “There's nothing to stop me from telling Tami everything.”

  Tim knew before he entered the boardroom that his career was over, so it didn't come as a surprise when the board suggested that he resign from his position and in return, they would try to keep his indiscretions from leaking to the media. The members were disappointed and made it known they condone none of his behavior. Their willingness not to release any portion of the email was not for his benefit but for the corporation. When he returned to his office, there were two men from security waiting for him. They handed him a cardboard box to pack his personal items as they watched. They were there to make sure he packed nothing proprietary. Within fifteen minutes he finished and the two burly security guards escorted him out a secret passageway he never knew existed. On the way home, he stopped at a bar, downed his sorrows in two beers. He met a fiery redhead that looked barely over twenty-one. She kept Tim company as he tried to look at the bright side of an ongoing nightmare and he was ecstatic to no longer be under Ramona's thumb. He was finally free of her and in control of what happened next. But, right now the only thing he wanted to do was to continue his party at home with his new redheaded friend. He and the redhead arrived at his home, right as he was about to walk through the door, his cell phone rung. It was Miranda, he silently hoped that she was calling to tell him last night was a joke. He told the redhead to wait for him out by the pool while he answered his call. Once she was inside he answered. “Hello Miranda, I didn't expect to hear from you. You told me to lose your number.”

  “That's quite an exaggeration, Tim. Your reaction to my news was childish and pretty offensive, so I asked you not to call me until you were ready to deal with this in a mature manner,” she said.

  “Let's not get ahead of ourselves, you won't know if you’re pregnant until a doctor says you are.”

  “That's why I'm calling. I'm six weeks along, my doctor confirmed it this morning. You're going to be a father.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  It's a new year and two months since the board asked Tim to leave the company. At first, it was hard for Tami to believe he would be involved in anything like sexual harassment. But, once she saw the video of him having sex in his office with an unknown woman, she couldn’t deny it. It's rumored that the female was an intern that used to work closely with him. People say that explains why she was abruptly fired.

  Due to Tim’s absence, Tami had to take on extra duties, therefore, she asked Ramona to work as her Junior Executive Assistant, instead of moving her to another department. To her surprise, Ramona has worked out to be a great addition. She works side by side with Suzette with a split workload. Having Ramona work so closely with her has given them the chance to become more acquainted. She hasn't found her to be deceitful as Alexis suggested. Unfortunately, that topic has caused a strain in their relationship. Alexis talks trash about Ramona every time they speak and Tami has grown tired of it. It has to be jealousy because there isn’t any other explanation for her behavior. So, when Alexis calls or asks to go to lunch, Tami tells her she’s en route to a meeting, too busy dealing with a client, or whatever she can think of. But, on a positive note, Tami has impressed the members of the board. Because of the upheaval, Tim caused, they put the Emergence Project on hold until recently. Thank goodness Tim didn’t take the lead of the project. When she reviewed what Tim had done, it was atrocious. It had deleted files, missing figures, and charts that did not correlate with the appropriate information. In the end, she cleaned up the presentation and pleased the members with her ideas and strategies. Several board members implied they may not have to look far for Tim’s replacement.

  Tami pressed the L button for the Lobby on the elevator, she was tired and couldn't wait to get home. Josh had left her message saying he picked up Chinese takeout, and he had exciting news to share. Their relationship has greatly improved, they are no longer having their usual ugly arguments. He has remained true to his word when he suggested they put the baby talk on hold. He hasn’t mentioned it in months. A pregnancy at this time would be bad timing. Especially with her mother’s health problems. Each day both her speech and mobility improves. However, it’ll be months before she’s back to her old self.

  When she arrived home, the aroma of shrimp lo mein and fried rice met her at the door. Tami placed her purse and briefcase on the front entry table. She walked over to her mother to place a loving kiss on her cheek; she was watching another rerun of Law & Order in the living room. “Hey babe, come eat,” Josh yelled from the kitchen. Tami gave her mother another hug before taking a seat at the kitchen table.

  “How did she do today?” Tami asked as she scooped fried rice onto her plate.

  “Her nurse said she was in good spirits all day and she did really well with her speech therapy. I fixed her dinner an hour ago, so overall she had a good day. How was yours?”

  “No, no, no. You said you had exciting news to share. So what is it?”

  Josh smiled like he could hardly contain what he was dying to tell her. “Well, as you know, I've worked overtime to set up a home office. It’s been a goal of mine for some time to work from home.” He rubbed his palms together like he was about to burst with excitement. “I completed the transition today. I will work here ninety percent of the time. I can do most of my job functions from home. I have Nick and other associates who will handle out-of-town clients. But, I will travel occasionally.”

  Tami forced a smile. “That's great honey, but I've always known you planned to work from home.”

  “I know, but don't you see what this means?”

  Tami was utterly perplexed, she wondered where Josh was going with this. Usually, when someone said they have exciting news, it means there's a promotion involved or they came into some money or something of that nature. “Sorry, you must spell it out for me. What does it mean?”

  “Since I will be here almost every day and your Mom is on the road to recovery. I see no reason we have to wait to have a baby. The more I thought about it…”

  Tami couldn’t believe her ears, she had to interrupt him. “Josh, we agreed that we would table the baby discussion for now. So, what gives? Work is chaotic due to Tim's firing. The timing is not right.” Tami backed away from the kitchen table, got up to pour herself a glass of wine. She should have known his change of heart was too good to be true.

  “I’m beginning to think there will never be an opportune time. You’ll always find an excuse.”

  “Was this your plan from the start?” Tami finished her glass of wine in one gulp before pouring a second. “You told me what I wanted to hear, only to pull the rug right from underneath me.”

  Josh angrily threw his dinner napkin on his plate. “That’s absurd! I've been more than fair and patient with you!”

  “Fair would be you honoring your word! You know how stressed I've been with work and taking care of my mom. Do you think if I became pregnant I would be less stressed? All the balls I'm juggling would magically disappear? I’ll answer the question for you— No! I would still be busy with my mom and work, besides that, I would be pregnant!”

  “The difference is I will be home full time.”

  “Working!! You’ll be home full time working, Josh!”

  “We can get a nanny.”

  “Okay, now you're being ridiculous. Let me ask you something why is it so important that we do this now?”

  “When I think of our future, I see us with a daughter and a son. I would like to give our children the one thing I didn’t have. A father.”

  “That's admirable, Josh and I understand your desire to be a father. But, I'm not ready yet.”

  Josh backed away from the table and stood directly in front of
her. He cupped her face with his hands and stared into her eyes. “Why are you afraid to become a mother?”

  She stood shaken. That one question felt like a punch in the gut that caused the wind to be knocked out of her. So much so, the wine glass she held shook from the slight tremble of her hand. Tami removed herself from Josh's grasp and placed the glass down on the counter. She would not allow him to guilt her into doing something she does not want to do. She would never admit why the question rattled her so. It’s not about being fearful of becoming a mother. It’s entirely about the child she chose not to have. There are times she felt she doesn’t deserve to be a mother to any child because she must pay for what she’s done. Tami left her husband in the kitchen and checked on her mother, who had fallen asleep on the sofa. She gently woke her and helped her to her room. When she exited her mother's bedroom, she saw Josh grab his car keys and leave the house. She didn’t know where he was going nor did she cared. She was furious with him and hated how they continued to go around in circles. Drowning her sorrows with endless glasses of wine would be counterproductive. Instead, she chose to vent to her friend. A friend who would understand why she’s right and her husband was wrong. A friend who understood how hard it was to break her husband' s heart every time she told him no to having a baby. Tami reached for her cell phone and dialed her friend's number.

  “Hello,” she said, answering on the third ring.

  “Hey, Ramona. It's Tami.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  How does that old saying go? Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Ramona couldn't plan this better if she tried. From day one, her objective was to work closely with Tami to gain her trust and it has finally happened. Becoming her new best friend was icing on the cake. The best part was she didn’t have to scheme her way into a friendship status. After Tim left, Tami needed extra help, so she accepted her offer to work as her Executive Assistant alongside Suzette. As far as dethroning Alexis as Tami’s confidant, that took great manipulation. When their friendship was on the rocks, Ramona made sure she slowly worked her way in to take Alexis' place. She made the wedge between them large enough it was natural for her and Tami to become friends. For every negative remark, Alexis had to say about her, Ramona played the victim card with Tami. I don't know why she dislikes me. Ramona would say to her. I've done nothing but try to be nice to her. She would add. One day Tami asked Ramona to lunch and from that day on, they’ve grown closer. One afternoon they had lunch in Tami's office, Alexis walked in with a made-up excuse of needing an important file. The look on her face when she saw the new-found friends having lunch together was priceless. She looked at Tami with disappointment in her eyes and sulked out the office without saying a word. A few days later Ramona gave Tami her number and suggested that they should go out for drinks but she never used it until today. She had a fight with her husband and wanted her opinion. “I think both of you are right. I understand your desire to further your career before starting a family. However, your husband has the right to expect you to give him what he desires. The problem is that no one wants to compromise. You will have to give a little.”

  “Why me? Why can’t he compromise?” asked Tami.

  “Because you have more to lose,” said Ramona. “He’ll eventually get fed up and leave. You have to decide what’s more important your career or your husband.”

  “Alexis told me that once. I guess I should have listened to her if your advice is the same.”

  “I don’t know what motivated her to offer that advice to you but I’m speaking from experience. I’ve had past relationships where I had to give more than I wanted to hold on to my man.”

  “Marriage is completely a compromise. I think this is less about giving my husband what he wants and more about my guilt.”

  Ramona sat up in her bed. Tami suddenly became quiet like when someone accidentally blurted something they shouldn’t have. “Forget you heard that,” she said. “I tend to ramble when I’ve had too much wine.”

  Ramona had no intention of forgetting anything. Tami opened the door now she had to know the cause of her guilt. “Everyone has done something they are ashamed of and carry that guilt around like a suitcase. I'm pretty sure whatever it is, it can’t be that bad.”

  Nothing but more silence from the other end of the line. “Look, I know we haven't been friends that long. Whatever you tell me I will never breathe a word of it. It may be cathartic to tell someone who won’t judge you.”

  Tami let out a heavy sigh and finally said, “I’ve been on birth control pills the entire time Josh thought we were trying for a baby. I'm still on them and he doesn’t have a clue.”

  Ramona smiled to herself. “Okay, not informing your husband you're on birth control may be a deal breaker.”

  Tami continued to share she has no plans of getting off her pills or giving into Josh’s demands. After Ramona had enough of listening to her go on about her pitiful life, she told her she needed to get back to sleep and they will talk in the morning. Ramona placed her phone down on the nightstand beside the bed. She then rolled over and kissed Nick on the cheek. “Hey, are you asleep?” Nick turned onto his back. “I was, but you woke me with your gossiping. Who were you talking to?”

  “No one you know. It was a friend from work.” It's been three months since Ramona moved in with Nick and nothing has changed. He’s still splitting his time between the two women in his life and she continues to struggle with her role as the other woman. He’s always quick to remind her he’s not leaving Lauren. She assumed the longer they were together it would motivate him to leave his wife. Since he won’t budge, she would have to force his hand.

  Ramona snuggled closer to him, tracing his bare chest with her finger. “Since we’re both awake do you want to — you know?”

  Nick moved her off of him and sat up in bed. “I'll like to talk to you about something important, instead.”

  “Concerning?”

  “Have you ever thought about trying to find your mother?”

  What the hell? They have not discussed her mother since the day she first told him about her. “Why are you asking about her?”

  “When you don’t know I’m watching I catch you staring at the picture in your wallet. You know, the one of your parents together. The one you refuse to show me.”

  “I pull it out to remind myself of the many ways she's hurt me.”

  “Sweetheart, you don't have to carry a picture to remind yourself of the pain she's caused. That's embedded in your soul. The last time you saw her you were four. Aren't you curious about her? How she's doing or if she's even alive?”

  “No, and no! I don't give a damn about her, what she's gone through, or if she's still alive. As far as I'm concerned my mother died the day she left me with my grandmother.”

  “I don't think that's true,” said Nick.

  “Why are you concerned, anyway?”

  “Because I care and I don’t think it’s healthy to harbor so much anger inside.”

  Ramona threw the comforter off of her and got out of the bed. She narrowed her eyes at Nick as she placed her blue furry slippers on her feet. “If you cared about me, you would divorce your wife!” She shouted before storming out of the bedroom. Nick followed her into the living room. “If my anger is such a concern, why leave me to be with Lauren for weeks at a time?” she continued.

  “We're not about to discuss my marriage again. I don't know how suggesting that you find your mother gets turned into you shouting at me about my marriage.”.

  Ramona plopped down on the sofa. “Let's drop this. I don't want us to say anything we’ll regret. But, hear me when I say, never mention my mother again.”

  ◆◆◆

  Tami was already in her office when Ramona arrived the following morning. She had stopped at Starbucks on the way in to buy them each a vanilla latte. She knocked on Tami's office door, not waiting for a response, she walked in and greeted her with a smile and placed the beverages on her desk. “Oh, Thank you. Y
ou didn't have to do this,” Tami said taking a sip of the latte.

  “It's my treat. I figured you would need a pick me up this morning.” Ramona sat next to Tami, drink in hand. She silently gave herself an internal pep talk to continue to play the concerned friend of someone she despised. “I don’t mean to pry but did Josh come home last night?”

  “I appreciate you lending your ear. Josh and I had had a terrible fight and I needed to vent. So, thank you. But, yes, Josh finally made it home, sometime after I was asleep.”

  “That’s great. I’m happy for you.” Ramona placed her now half-empty cup down and inhaled sharply. “Can I be blunt with you?”

  “Sure,” said Tami, raising a brow.

  “I was hoping you would say that. Because, I think if you didn’t want me to comment on your marriage, you would’ve never opened up to me.”

  “I appreciate your input last night. But, I don’t…”

  “Let me say this please!” she shouted. Tami appeared startled as she watched Ramona wide-eyed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to raise my voice. But, when I was at your party I watched you and your husband together. Y’all were the perfect couple.”

  Tami cracked a small smile.

  “You shouldn’t fight over having a baby. Like I told you last night all relationships can work when there’s a happy medium. However, in order for it to work to your advantage, you have to work him. By showing him he comes first and you appreciate him. Not saying you don’t but if you love him you have to show him.”

  Ramona watched as Tami thoughtfully appeared to consider her suggestion. “His birthday is in a few days, maybe I can get him something extravagant. I caught him eyeing a set of expensive golf clubs. I could get that for him.”

  No wonder her marriage was on the rocks. “No, you need to think bigger. Remember, you want him to agree with your viewpoint on the baby issue and golf clubs won’t make it happen. You need to surprise him with a romantic vacation, somewhere exotic,” said Ramona.