by Unknown
Anthony had already unseated himself and was halfway inside the bay when Orlando spotted him. “Where are you going?”
“Man, it’s too hot for drama. I’ll catch you later,” he said disappearing inside the firehouse.
Maggie pouted her lips. “He’s still as immature as ever. Are you going to take the cookies or wait for my arm to fall off?”
Orlando turned away walking inside the firehouse straight to his quarters. Maggie fell in step following him. “Orlando, these are a peace offering,” she said closing the door for privacy.
“Do I have a reason to make peace with you, Maggie?” Where was a triple-three alarm when he needed one? Let him decide to shower or use the bathroom an alarm went off without fail.
“Yes. We have been at each other’s throats for too long. We should try to be civil if not friends.”
He chuckled. “Good God, you must be suffering from heat stroke or something. We will never be friends.”
“Why can’t bygones be bygones, Orlando? What happened to us is in the past. I want to start over and remove the animosity between us.”
“Why? What do you have to gain from us being friends?”
“Orlando, I would have a peace of mind and maybe your forgiveness.”
“What you did is unforgivable,” he said shoving his hands in the pockets of the dark blue uniform pants.
“Orlando, I was losing you. I couldn’t let that happen.”
“We weren’t in an exclusive relationship, Maggie. We both agreed to keep it that way because you were on a break from the other guy you were involved with, and I wasn’t looking for a steady relationship with all I had going on at work.”
“I know that and I had a hard time dating other men because I had fallen in love with you. Baby, fate brought us back together,” she said running her hand up his chest. “I miss the feel of your body on mine.”
He snatched her hand from his chest. “Maggie, just tell me what you want so we can end this for good. Hell, it’s been two years already, and I’m tired of talking to you.”
“I want you back,” she said bluntly and with a hint of truth in her eyes. “I know I did a dreadful thing, but I have always loved you. You have to believe me when I say that.”
Orlando played the field back in the day and that is how he met Maggie Denton. Maggie at one time was a fun and attractive woman. He found her sexual appetite irresistible. Her luscious curves and soft dark skin hypnotized him. Their arrangement consisted of satisfying each other physically, but nothing else since he wasn’t looking for a relationship and she had set her standards higher than settling for a blue-collar man.
They didn’t connect on any other level outside of the bedroom. She wasn’t a woman to get dirty by playing outdoors. She wanted luxury or to snag a man with the ability to provide her luxuries. She didn’t care about sports, or anything he did outside of work or what other women he entertained when she wasn’t around. She had classified them as friends with benefits, and he was okay with that.
They didn’t hookup often, only when her sixty-nine-year old sugar daddy named Pops, wasn’t around or he felt like being bothered. He worked odd hours and spent a lot of time at the firehouse.
His career was taking off with a promotion to lieutenant of Engine 30. With the promotion came an abundance of responsibilities leaving him little free time to cat around with Maggie. He wasn’t surprised when he learned she dumped the old man and began dating a businessman she’d met at a bar. He wished her well and thought nothing of her anymore.
It had been a year since he had last seen her. When she called him unexpectedly, she sounded hysterical. After talking for a bit, she revealed that her current boyfriend left her for another woman, and she needed to talk to him. That rejection sent her over the edge, and he felt badly for her—he did consider her a friend if nothing else.
They began to spend time together on his days off and after a while, she seemed to take an interest in his work. Anthony suspected she was playing him and advised Orland to break it off or be careful when it came to her. He knew acquaintances of hers and what he had heard about Maggie Denton was not good.
Orlando ignored what Anthony was saying since Maggie seemed honest about being with him, and he actually enjoyed spending time with her. The six months they had been together exclusively were fun, but he had not developed any feelings of love for her. However, the night she disclosed she was pregnant was the one emergency he could not handle.
The shock sent him reeling because he always played it safe when it came to sex. Never once did he have sex with her without using condoms. Caught in a difficult situation, he had to do what was right. He asked her to marry him so he could properly raise his family.
Three months into the marriage, his family suggested he get proof the baby was his. They did not trust the woman with shifty eyes to be completely truthful. He refused to believe Maggie would lie about the baby. They had been together exclusively, and if she were pregnant by her ex-boyfriend, she would’ve been sporting a belly considering she had spilt with him six months before they got together.
So turning his back on family and friends, he continued to build a life for his family. It wasn’t until she avoided including him in the baby experience that he became suspicious. Maggie didn’t ask him to attend doctor’s visit with her and her body didn’t fit that of a woman entering her second trimester. When he asked about doctor appointments, she made the excuse since she worked for her OB/GYN; her appointments were schedule for the days she worked. She’d even produced an ultrasound and a sonogram with a promise to take him along on the next scheduled visit in order to hear the baby’s heartbeat.
Orlando learned she wasn’t due for another doctor’s visit for some time and went to Tennessee for a family reunion. Later that night, he received a call at work from his mother-in-law informing him Maggie had taken a hard fall down the stairs and miscarried. The accident left her too distraught to travel and she would spend the week there to recover.
Shaken by the news, Orlando tried to imagine how Maggie might be dealing with the loss of their baby. He left for Tennessee the same night to be with his wife.
That night is where her lies began to unravel.
When they returned home, Orlando asked for the paperwork from the hospital so he could submit it to the insurance company. Maggie claimed she’d left it with her mother and would ask her to mail the paperwork.
Weeks after the miscarriage Maggie reverted to her normal way of life never mentioning the baby again. She’d resumed socializing, often getting upset with him when he couldn’t attend events due to work. Their constant arguing about his job was the center of many arguments. His unwillingness to seek employment that allowed him to be home in the evenings pushed him further away from her and had him thinking of dissolving the marriage since there was no child binding them together.
He started to believe Anthony might have been right about Maggie. He revisited the night of the miscarriage. The story sounded contrived as it played in his head. How convenient for her to be out of town when it happened. Also, it was strange he never received an invoice from Maggie’s mother or from any hospital in Tennessee for her care.
He decided to do some digging regarding his wife. What he collected proved Maggie Denton Torres was a habitual liar and venomous. Armed with information to discredit her claim of a miscarriage, he decided to keep it to himself for a while and use it against her when she least expected it.
Orlando listened to her pleas. He didn’t care her feelings were hurt with his harsh words. His face remained uncommitted. “Sorry, I’m not feeling the same about you. I can barely stomach to look at you.”
“You've punished me for my mistakes but fail to take any responsibility for your part.”
“Why should I take any responsibility for this? I married you thinking you were carrying my baby! I attempted to do what was right.”
“Oh, you were not without fault!” She barked. “You spilled our dirty laundry
in front of my family. You didn’t have to do that.”
He gave a sly grin. “That was doggish but brilliant I must say. It gave me a lot of satisfaction to witness the shame your mother had for you.”
“Orlando, it broke her heart. My mother is a God-fearing woman and you made me look like the devil in front of her. I would never embarrass you like that.”
“Man, you have a short memory,” he mumbled looking down at his shoes. If he stared at them too long, he would burn a hole in them. His head yanked up to redirect his burning glare. “Maggie, do you not remember I defended you to my friends and family! Anthony tried to drag my ass from the chapel seconds before the wedding was to start. I fought him off and went through with it—drunk as hell but I went through it.”
“Orlando, I can’t reverse what happened and I’m sorry for what I did to you. You have no idea how hard this has been for me. I pray you won’t ever love someone who doesn’t return the affection.”
His face skewered. “Maggie, I’m a little confused about who you’re talking about? I was never in love with you. Your intention was to trap Lee, the man you really loved. Shouldn’t you be pleading with him to take you back?”
Maggie was too hardened to cry, but her voice weakened. “I apologized and came clean for my part with Lee.” Her eyes glossed over. “I did fall in love with you, Orlando. I came here today to bury the hatchet and ask for a second chance.”
He shook his head. “I’m just supposed to forget everything you did? Really, Maggie, do I look that stupid to you?”
Orlando felt the sweat beading across his forehead. He had been holding onto the anger too long and maybe unleashing the anger on the person who caused it would free his soul. Maggie remained quiet letting him rant. “Maggie, I turned my life around preparing for a baby you knew didn’t exist.”
“You were a great husband. Orlando, during your transition you lost the fun side of yourself and became serious. Everything was savings and finance. You didn’t want to have fun anymore. I missed that part of you.”
His lips pressed into a tight line. “Supposedly, we had a kid on the way! One of us had to be an adult since you weren’t taking on the role. But, then why would you? You plotted the story but forgot to plan the ending. What you left out is how I would react once the truth came out.”
Maggie dropped her head to hide her face. “I had fallen in love with you and didn’t want to lose our marriage. I lost control of my senses and went too far with my deception.”
“No you weren’t. You lost your cash cow and needed me to keep you afloat. How ironic your scheme came back to bite you in the ass. You not only loss me but it got your ass fired. Ii appears it is unethical to claim another woman’s ultrasound as your own.”
“I was desperate and had to do something! You seem so happy about having a baby once the shock wore off. I only wanted to be a priority in your life. I wanted you to fall in love with me too.”
He yelled. “Dammit listen to me! It would not have worked! I listened to what people were saying about you. The more I pieced the shit together, it all started to fall into place. Including you hanging out with Pops again while I was at work! The man was over seventy, Maggie—how far is too far for you?”
“He was the only person I had left to turn to for comfort. You were only concerned with the loss of the baby and not me.”
“Is that right? I could swear I took a leave of absence from work to care for you when you lost the fake baby!”
“I have no excuses for what I did to you. I can only beg for you to forgive me.”
Orlando rubbed his forehead. The pain from a pounding headache was spreading fast. “Maggie, the next time you decide to pull the baby trick on some other unsuspecting man; make sure he doesn’t have a reason to read your medical records. That hysterectomy you had kinda makes it impossible for you to get pregnant.”
He started to walk from the quarters, but she grabbed his arm. “Orlando, this is nothing new we’re rehashing! During the divorce, I revealed the truth about everything. I admit I deceived you about the baby and cheated on you with Lee and Pops. I was lonely and felt unloved. I’ve always felt unloved.”
He glared at her. “I wasn’t in love with you and you knew that. Maggie, if I had done to you what you did to me you’d want my balls on a chopping board.”
“Desperation made me do it. Why can’t you see that is why I am here? I’m throwing myself at your feet, Orlando. I’m a changed person.”
“Cut the crap, Maggie, you are a conniving bitch and I let you dig your own grave. Yeah, it cost me two years of my life and some dollars, but it was worth every damn penny.”
“You have me all wrong,” she said knocking the Tupperware dish full of cookies on the floor. “You are painting me to be a monster when I’m not. Please let me prove I can be the wife you need.”
Orlando rolled his eyes. “Let’s keep it real, Maggie. I didn’t want that with you then, and I don’t want it now. If Lee and Pops have left you again, I’m sorry for your loss, but I don’t want you. The door has been closed on us for good.”
“It’s not over, Orlando. You are only refusing to see the new improved Maggie Denton Torres because that bitch has your nose wide open. She is enjoying parading you in front of me. She’d better recognize you are my husband.”
“I am your ex-husband; you should recognize that.”
“I won’t accept that. There was a time you wanted to make things work between us; I can make that happen again.”
He chuckled. “This shit is made for TV. Save it, Maggie, I am not carrying any feelings for you and I have no intention of ever having this conversation with you again.”
He saw a lump in her throat rise and fall. “All right but chew on this before writing me off completely; you know nothing about that woman. We have a history together.”
“You need professional help, Maggie.” He reached for the door to open it. “I have business to tend to and you need to go.”
“I’m telling you, she is wrong for you! She will hurt you.”
He started to laugh, grabbing his belly. “Oh God, this is coming from you? Face it Maggie, you cannot stand there is another woman in my life. That is the only reason you are here! You saw me with Regan, and it is killing you I’ve moved on.” His laugh stopped suddenly, and his voice dropped. “Well, get over it. Regan is not going anywhere, and you will not scare her away.” He had to catch himself before he believed what he was saying. In what world did he have Regan Richards? She was only his in his imagination.
Maggie raised her brow. “We’ll see about that,” she said crossing her arms.
“I’m serious, Maggie. You start messing around with Regan and you’re going to be sorry. We are divorced. Look up the word if you don’t understand the meaning.”
“I will always be your first wife.”
“Correction—you will always be a pain in my ass. There is no reason for you to call me or drop by the firehouse anymore. You will receive your alimony payments until the end of August. When the court order ceases, all ties between us end. Do you understand that?”
“You will always be my hot Latino stud. Orlando, don’t write me off just yet.”
“Woman, you were written off years ago. This Latino doesn’t want you anymore.” The blaring alarm caused Orlando to rush from his quarters. Pulling on his gear, he got into the truck looking at Maggie’s reflection in the rearview mirror. He knew this wasn’t over by a long shot, and now Regan was involved. The deception they’d pulled on Maggie affected her more than he’d thought. He would have to warn Regan just in case Maggie sought her out.
*****
Regan searched through the rack of coveralls for her size. She had never painted anything after leaving elementary school, except for three walls she and Orland had finished last week. Their next project was hanging wallpaper, and she needed new clothes for that task. She took a pair of dingy mustard-colored coveralls off the round rack and held them up to herself. The color clashe
d with her skin, and the style was butt-ugly. “Ugh, no way am I wearing this,” she said, hanging them back on the rack. She continued to search and came across the same style in orange. “Here we go, prison orange. Orlando should get a kick seeing me in these.” She placed them over her forearm and kept looking.
Lincoln tapped her on the shoulder. “Have you found anything yet?”
“Not really. These coveralls are all ugly and shapeless.”
“Regan, these clothes are made to get dirty in. Why don’t you get a pair of these painter’s pants and a t-shirt? That way, you can show off your shape and boobs to Orlando.”
Regan blushed. “I’m not doing that. I just want to look cute while I’m getting dirty.”
“You’re hoping to seduce that man, aren’t you?”
Regan propped her fist on a narrow hip. “You’re crazy. We have been painting on his days off. Tomorrow, we are hanging wallpaper. We won’t have time for hanky-panky.”
“Hanky-panky? What are you, eighteen again? Regan, if you want Orlando, you can make the first move, only play it cool.”
Regan sighed. “Lincoln, I’ve done everything but throw myself on him. Oh wait, I did that too. Anyhow, he isn’t interested in me romantically. I’m beginning to think we will have nothing but a platonic relationship. I will be his tenant, and he’ll be my landlord.”
“If you feel that way, why do you continue to help him with the house?”
“Well, I am living there and I kinda made a bet with him.”
“What kind of bet?”
“That I could paint and wallpaper and other home repairs. I have to show him I’m not a diva,” she said, stomping her foot.
“Oh my God, Regan–you are a diva. We went to Neiman Marcus for clothes for you to hang wallpaper. I don’t think there is such a thing as fashion for hanging wallpaper.”
“Lincoln, I’m using this project as an excuse to be with him. I was hoping the quality time spent with him would break his walls. His ex-wife screwed him over, and I think he is a little timid when it comes to relationships.”
Lincoln flipped through several hangers of painter’s pants, picking a black pair for her sister. “I understand being attracted to a guy, but don’t make yourself look desperate, okay? Let Orlando wonder what he is missing by playing hard to get.”
