She knew her husband well, and she was almost certain that whatever the problem, all roads led back to his mother’s secret.
Each time she’d steered the conversation toward anything involving his activities in Boston, his tone shifted. She’d had a feeling that he was lying to her. She’d wanted to push deeper, but she knew it was a waste of time. It was hard enough to get him to share information face-to-face, so she was pretty sure she wasn’t going to get anywhere over the phone. Plus, in her guilt-ridden state she knew she was in no position to demand the truth from him, so she didn’t mind when he quickly hurried her off the line.
She sat in her dimly lit family room, drinking a glass of wine and devouring a handful of Godiva dark chocolate truffles as she thought about the mistake she had made with Parker. She was regretful to the point of feeling tortured by what she’d done, and she couldn’t keep her turmoil bottled up any longer. She needed her touchstone, so she called Tyler.
He picked up after a few rings. “What’s up? You lonely over there all by yourself?”
“How’d you guess?”
Tyler laughed. “Why else would you be calling me on a Saturday night? I know you miss your man and your baby, so you’re callin’ your old standby. But that’s all right. That’s what I’m here for.”
Victoria sighed into the phone. “Can you talk?”
“Uh-oh, hold up. You sound funny. Did something happen?”
“That’s an understatement.”
Tyler took a seat on his sofa and readied himself for what he sensed was going to be bad news. “Are you at home?”
“Yeah.”
Tyler shifted the phone to his other ear. “Okay, talk to me.”
Victoria didn’t know where to begin. She was silent for a second before she spoke. “I think I’ve gotten myself into something that I’m not sure I can get out of.”
“This is about Parker, isn’t it?”
Victoria said, “Um, yeah.”
Damn it, Tyler said to himself, shaking his head. He knew what Victoria was about to tell him, and being the friend he was, he knew he had to deal with her straight. “Before you say anything, let me throw something out there, okay?”
“All right.”
Tyler’s voice was full of dead seriousness. “If you decide to sleep with him, or if you already have, don’t tell a soul about it. Don’t open your mouth to anyone. Not Denise, not Debbie, not your mom ... not even me. That’s the kind of shit you carry to the grave. Do you hear me?”
“But,Tyler . ..”
“I’m serious,Victoria.”
Victoria’s voice began to shake as a small tear escaped her eye. “But I need to let this out, because it’s eating me up inside.”
Tyler let out a deep breath. “Please don’t cry.”
“I can’t help it.”
“You want me to come over?”
“I’ll be here, waiting for you.”
A half hour later, Tyler was sitting on the other end of Victoria’s couch, drinking a Coke and listening to his friend pour out information that his ears didn’t want to hear. He had never liked Parker, and the fact that not only had the man come back into Victoria’s life, but she’d played slap and tickle with him, was a situation that he knew could only be described as a nightmare waiting to greet daylight.
Tyler had been afraid that this would happen. From the moment Victoria had told him about running into Parker, he knew that trouble was on the horizon. He had tried to calm her fears and push them aside by telling her that what she’d been feeling for Parker was fleeting and would eventually pass. In retrospect, it was what he had inwardly hoped. He remembered the love that Victoria had felt for Parker, but he also remembered how the bastard had hurt her.
“I feel so bad,” Victoria said, looking Tyler in the eye.
He sat his Coke can on the coaster atop the coffee table and rubbed his hand over his closely cropped hair. “I’ma be honest with you. This is a fucked-up situation.”
“Tell me something I don’t already know.”
“Well, at least you didn’t sleep with him. But even with that, I’m here to tell you, this cannot and will not end well if you continue down this road.You know that, don’t you?”
Victoria was silent, her head bent, owing to a complicated mixture of fear and shame.
Tyler scooted closer to her on the couch. “From this point forward you can’t see him again,Victoria. I’m serious. Leave his slick ass the hell alone. Pull Alexandria out of Jack and Jill and register her at a new school if you have to.”
Victoria’s eyes grew big. “But,Tyler—”
He cut her off, holding up his hand. “But nothing. Listen to me,” he implored. Tyler reached for her hand, holding it in his. “Do you think Parker’s gonna be quiet about this? Do you think he’s gonna just go away?”
“I told him that what we did last night was a mistake. That it can’t go any further.”
“I don’t think you realize the gravity of what’s going on here. If Ted finds out that you were fooling around with another man, and that it was with Parker, of all people, somebody’s gonna wind up dead.”
Victoria’s back stiffened. “Ted would never kill anyone.”
Tyler released Victoria’s hand. “Never, ever say what somebody won’t do. Did you ever think you’d be visiting another man’s hotel room while your husband was out of town?”
Victoria could only shake her head no.
“But you did, right?”
She couldn’t speak. All she could do was look down at her feet in silence.
“I’m not here to make you feel bad. I’m here to help you. I love you,Victoria.You’re my sister, and I only want the best for you. I’d be wrong if I didn’t tell you with brutal honesty what I think. I’m not being objective about this. I’m being very biased because you’ve got some serious shit at stake.”
“I know that,Tyler.”
“Do you?” he asked in frustration, raising his brow. “I don’t care how strong you think Ted is. He’s just a man, and he just lost his mother ... his first connection to this world.You don’t know what that’s like, but I do, and it’s not something you can easily recover from. Ted’s in a very fragile state right now.”
Victoria nodded and was about to speak up, but Tyler cut her off again.
“Do you realize that if Ted finds out that you’ve been seeing ole boy, he could snap and kill you both?”
Victoria leaned forward and stared at him. “I told you, Ted’s not a violent person. He’d be mad, hurt, and angry for sure, but he would never bring physical harm to me or even dream of doing anything as drastic as killing someone, no matter how mad he got.”
“There you go again with that never shit,” Tyler huffed, shaking his head. “See, that’s the reason why you don’t need to be creepin’ in the first place. You have no freakin’ idea what you’re doing. There’s no telling what a man won’t do if you mess with his family, his money, or his pussy, and it doesn’t have to be in that order. Victoria, I’m very, very concerned for you.”
He was telling her the same thing she’d told Debbie. “Tyler, you’re scaring me.”
“Good. You need to be,” he said, looking as serious as death. “When is Ted coming home?”
“Not until Monday afternoon.”
“Okay, you have one day to regroup before he gets back.”
“I don’t know how I’m going to manage that. I’m a nervous wreck,” Victoria said with worry. “And to be honest, I’m not sure what Parker is going to do.”
“That’s what I told you earlier. I don’t think he’s going to go away or keep quiet. He wants you, and from what you’ve told me, it sounds like he’s ready to do whatever it takes to get you back.”
“Oh, Lord, what am I gonna do?” Victoria moaned.
“You’re gonna have to start by squashing lover boy’s plans, because trust, he’s got plans for you. Parker’s persistent, and he’s not gonna let up, so you need to back him down. He’s the kind o
f brotha you have to use force with in order to get your point across. What I’m about to advise you to do will require you to be really strong and stand your ground.”
“Okay, I’m listening,” Victoria said, nodding.
Tyler knew his friend’s history and patterns, and despite the fact that Victoria was inquisitive, always seeking answers to questions, there was a side of her that had a tendency to avoid situations, instead of facing them head-on. “Under any other circumstances I’d tell you to just ignore his ass until he goes away, but we both know that won’t work here, because of Parker’s persistence and your avoidance. So you need to meet with him face-to-face, look him dead in his eyes, and tell him that it’s over.”
“I thought you said I shouldn’t see him again.”
“I’ve updated my assessment,” Tyler said and nodded. “He needs to know you’re serious, and that you’re not gonna let this linger. Nip it in the bud now. Then first thing Monday morning you need to start looking for a new school for my niece.”
Victoria sat back farther on the couch, knowing that Tyler was right. She had to rectify the situation immediately. “Okay, I’ll call him tomorrow and end this madness.” She rested her back against the couch. “Thanks for the advice. I know what has to be done, and I’m going to do it!”
“Remember, you can’t flinch. You’ve gotta look that muthafucker straight in his eyes and let him know that you’re not bullshittin’.”
“I can do that.”
Tyler looked at his friend, hoping she could get herself out of the catastrophe she’d created. They sat in silence for a moment, digesting their conversation, before Victoria went into the kitchen and brought him back a fresh can of Coke.
They settled into a less tense line of conversation, changing the topic to how Alexandria was doing. It was a subject that Victoria welcomed, helping her to ease into a better frame of mind as she told him about how happy she was that her daughter was enjoying her visit with Elizabeth and John.
Victoria curled her legs under her hips, making herself comfortable on the couch. “Now that we’ve solved my problems, how’re you doing?”
“Me? I’m cool.” Tyler smiled as he sat back and took another sip of his Coke.
Victoria saw a glimmer in his eyes. “Uh-huh ... How’s Samantha?”
“She’s cool, too.”
“So what exactly does cool mean?”
Tyler crossed his legs and chuckled. “Why don’t you just come out and ask me if I’m hittin’ it?”
“I don’t want to know about your sex life,” Victoria scoffed, raising her brow before asking, “Well ... are you?”
They both laughed out loud.
“I know what you’re thinkin’,” Tyler began, “and honestly, I’m as surprised about this whole thing as you probably are. I mean, I never thought I’d find a woman who would make me feel alive again, but that’s what Sam does for me. I’m really feelin’ her.”
“It’s been only two weeks,” Victoria cautioned.
“Some things take only a minute.”
“Damn, you’re serious about her, aren’t you?”
Tyler nodded his head. “Maybe ...”
“Wow,” was all Victoria could say as she thought about Tyler’s newfound relationship.
Her first concern was for his emotional safety. She knew that Samantha was wild, liked to party her ass off, and had a reputation for running through men like cheap panty hose. And from what she remembered Parker telling her about his cousin, she seemed to gravitate toward men who either had a criminal record or were just one step ahead of the law. She preferred the thugged-out, roughneck types, and Tyler definitely didn’t fit into that group. Victoria didn’t want her best friend to get hurt, especially after all that he’d gone through. Then her second concern came to mind, the fact that Samantha was a direct link to a mistake that hit way too close to home.
“Tell me why you’re so into her,” Victoria said.
“I know what you’re getting at. Sam’s rough on the outside, but there’s a real gentleness about her on the inside. She’s not afraid of letting herself go to experience life to its fullest, whether it’s conventional or not. She’s a genuine person. She’s smart, funny, and mad sexy.”
“Interesting ... I didn’t think you were into skinny women.”
“I didn’t think you liked assholes, but you almost slept with one last night.”
“That’s not funny.”
“Who’s laughin’?”
Victoria could see that her comment had hit a nerve, which let her know that Tyler’s feelings for Samantha must be strong, and growing. “It was just an observation. I didn’t mean anything by it,” she said in an attempt to smooth things over.
Tyler shrugged his shoulders. “No biggie.”
“So where do you see things going between the two of you?”
“I’m flying to D.C. to visit her next weekend. We’re just gonna hang out, have a good time, and see where it leads.”
“You’re prepared to have a long-distance relationship?”
He smiled. “Like I said, we’ll see where it leads.”
“Tyler, you keep it real with me, so I’m gonna keep it real with you.” Victoria leaned in close to her friend. “Be careful with Samantha. Go slow and make sure this is for real.”
“I’ll take that under advisement. But believe me, I’m a big boy, and I know what I’m doing. Besides, you have entirely too much shit on your own plate to be worrying about me.”
Victoria could only nod her head in agreement, because he was right, and she knew she was the last person who was qualified to give anyone a shred of relationship advice. “I hear you.”
A short time later Victoria walked Tyler to the door. “Thanks for being there for me. I’m so glad I can always count on you,” she said, giving him a hug.
“I’m gonna always have your back, you know that.” Tyler smiled. He hoped Victoria would be strong in the face of her current storm. But despite his hopes and best wishes, he had a feeling that his best friend was already in over her head and was speeding toward disaster.
No Wonder Tyler’s So Scared ...
After Tyler left, Victoria took a long soak in the tub. She slipped on her cream-colored silk teddy and sprayed lavender-scented body spritzer on her skin, preparing to relax her mind and body before heading to bed. But the harder she tried to clear her head, the more she kept thinking about the situation she’d gotten herself into and the conversation she’d had with Tyler.
It hadn’t occurred to her that Ted might react violently in any situation. She’d thought about various scenarios of what might happen if he found out that she had fooled around with Parker, loud arguments and a possible threat of separation being just a few of the things she knew could happen. But based on his nature, never in her wildest dreams had physical violence entered her mind. Ted was always cool and composed, especially in difficult situations.
But the more she pondered the possibility, the more plausible it seemed. As it was, his behavior had already started to change, and she was pretty sure that he had told her a few lies when they were in Boston, and then again when she spoke to him today. It was something he’d never done before, at least not to her knowledge.
Then a thought came to her, one that sent chills through her body as she crawled into bed. She remembered the hot July night many years ago when he and Parker had nearly come to blows at her front door.
She had just broken up with Parker after she caught him cheating, and she was an emotional mess. Ted had come by to bring her dinner and comfort her, hoping to woo her in the process. After their meal, when they were about to get cozy, Parker showed up unexpectantly, begging for forgiveness and a second chance. During the middle of his plea Ted had come to the door, and that was when things turned ugly. The two men cursed and threatened each other with physical violence. The only reason they hadn’t rumbled like street thugs was because her nosy neighbor was taking her dog for an evening stroll. She had seen the comm
otion and had walked up, threatening them with pepper spray and a call to 911.
Like many things in her life, Victoria had pushed that memory to the side, but now, as she lay in her empty bed, full of uncertainty and fear, it was something that commanded her attention. This isn’t good, she said to herself. No wonder Tyler’s so scared. And now she knew that she should be, too!
As Victoria nestled her pillow under her head, yet another thought sprang into her mind, something she’d completely overlooked. She was so focused on Ted’s possible reaction that she had forgotten about what Parker might do. He was a determined, strong-willed man, just like Ted, and he was persistent, the type who refused to take no for an answer. The very thought of how he might react once she hammered home her point tomorrow sent fear through her veins. “What have I gotten myself into?” she whispered in the dark.
Chapter Fourteen
Whatever Road He Had to Take ...
The next afternoon Victoria found herself standing in the front entrance of the Spring Garden restaurant, waiting for Parker. It was a hole-in-the-wall establishment, but its saving grace was a delectable array of Asian delights and its virtual anonymity. It was situated in an area that was private and under the radar. Victoria hated creeping, but the fact that her short-lived indiscretion was soon coming to an end gave her a little relief.
She looked at her watch, noting that Parker was running late. On her drive over she had questioned whether she could trust herself to meet with him, thinking that she might be better off telling him what she had to say over the phone. But she knew she had to act just as boldly to get herself out of the situation as she had going in.
Victoria waited a few more minutes, but still no Parker. She was about to call him when he walked through the door. He looked sexy as hell in his faded jeans and Howard University T-shirt. He breezed in, confident and strong, giving her a smile that made her stomach do small flips. Focus, she told herself. You know what you have to do.
Keeping Secrets & Telling Lies Page 24
