by Tina Martin
Candice’s forehead creased. “Why not?”
“He’s sterile.”
“Oh my gosh,” Candice said. “Poor Barringer.”
The waitress came by, took food orders, then quickly left.
Junior began wiggling and squirming in Candice’s lap before a faint cry ensued.
“Okay, this is where I hand him back to you, Cali,” Candice said.
Once Junior settled in Calista’s arms, he calmed down. Calista took a bottle from the diaper bag and watched Junior clamor for it. “Goodness, lil’ man. You’re that hungry?” she asked him.
“You’re a natural,” June told her. “I know Garrison appreciates you being able to take care of Junior like this.”
“He does…tells me all the time.”
Kalina frowned, quickly removing the disturbance from her forehead when Calista saw her.
“What is it, Kalina?” Calista asked. “You looked like you wanted to say something.”
“I was wondering how Barringer feels about all this. I mean, here it stands, he can’t give you a baby, but you’re taking care of his brother’s baby.”
“I don’t know how Barringer feels about anything. Whenever I talk to him, he’s insulting and rude…talks to me condescendingly like I did him wrong.”
“But you can’t ignore him forever,” Candice said.
“I know, Candy. I’m going to talk to him soon. I just need time to process the fact that he lied to me.”
“Well, technically, he didn’t lie,” June said. “He just didn’t tell you.”
“Same thing,” Calista said. “He wasn’t upfront with me.”
“Would you still have married him if he had been?” June asked.
“Probably. I love Barry, but the last few years have been rough. He’s always stressed out about the job. Ugh. I don’t even want to talk about it. I’m beginning to sound like a broken record.” Calista took a sip of juice. “No, I take that back. A broken record sounds better.” She dug around in the diaper bag for a burp cloth. Junior had since gone to sleep and she needed to burp him before strapping him inside of the car seat. So, she threw the cloth over her left shoulder held Junior against her so his head rested on her shoulder and rubbed his back in circular motions.
“This is totally off topic, but I think Everson is cheating on me,” June said.
“What?” Kalina, Calista and Candice all said together.
“No way,” Candice said. “I know I sit here and have these girly pow-wows with y’all, but I grew up with these men. These are my brothers we’re talking about.”
“I realize that, Candy.”
“Then you know Everson wouldn’t cheat on you,” Candice said in Everson’s defense.
June shrugged. “He’s always on the phone. Always gone, and I usually travel with him but for the last couple of months, he’s been requesting to travel alone. Even when I tell him I want to go, he finds a reason why I shouldn’t.”
“Well, if you knew him like I knew him, you know he wouldn’t do that to you,” Candice said. “Seriously, June? As much as Everson wanted you? Yeah, he tried to be a player back in the day. Shoot, they all were, well except for Bryson. He was more conservative.”
Kalina smiled.
“And Garrison even went to the left for a while there after some woman broke his heart in college,” Candice said.
Calista’s heart almost stopped beating when Candice brought that up.
“But still, when they commit, they commit,” Candice said.
The waitress brought the food by.
“And as for you, Cali,” Candice continued, “Don’t act like you didn’t know how Barringer was before y’all were married. He’s always been short-tempered. Expects everything to go his way. The fact that he can’t give you a baby is killing him. You should see him at the office. He can’t concentrate on a thing. In meetings, he looks like a…like an android. I can’t even talk to him half the time without wanting to slap him across the head, but I hang in there because I know sometimes his sarcasm and rudeness is a cry for help. And to Kalina’s point, how do you think it makes him feel to see you with a baby knowing he can’t give you a baby. It must hurt. Barringer has too much pride. I doubt if he would ever admit it, but put yourself in his shoes. It must be a thorn in his flesh to see you taking care of another man’s baby, even if it is his brother’s child.”
Calista lowered Junior into his car seat and strapped him in. Then she began eating her salad. She didn’t respond to Candice because what else was there to say?
After lunch, the women took a stroll on the Riverwalk before preparing to go their separate ways. Hugs were exchanged. Kisses were left all over a sleeping Junior.
“Don’t forget…family dinner at my house on Saturday,” June reminded them.
“Got it,” Kalina said.
Everyone dispersed, heading to their vehicles.
“Hey, Candy, wait up,” Calista said, pushing the stroller faster to catch up to Candice.
Candice stopped, turned around and said, “Hey, what’s up?”
“You know, don’t you?”
“That’s sort of an open-ended question, but if you’re talking about the fact that you and Garrison used to be an item in college, yes, I know. I also know you’re the one who broke his heart, Cali. Vivienne told me a long time ago about you and Garrison…don’t know why you wanted to keep it a secret.”
“For obvious reasons. As you yourself said, Barringer is short-tempered. Imagine how far to the left he’ll go if he finds out about me and Garrison.”
“But that’s the thing, Cali…he’s going to find out, especially now.”
“How?”
“Don’t know. I certainly won’t say anything.”
Calista sighed heavily.
“Look, Cali…I know you’re helping Vivienne and I know Garrison needs you right now, but you need to be careful.”
“Be careful? What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about you and Garrison. Y’all have a history. And Garrison is the complete opposite of Barringer. I know. I grew up with them. Garrison is charming. Sweet. He’s not a hothead.” Candice grinned. “Basically, Garrison a better version of Barringer. I’m sure you’re aware of that. Don’t spend a lot of unnecessary time alone with Garrison. If your intention is to get back with Barringer, work towards that goal.”
Calista turned her head to look out into the water while a breeze tackled her hair.
“Wait…is it your intention to get back with Barringer?” Candice asked.
Calista shrugged. “I’m not sure.”
Candice frowned. “Cali—”
“I’m being honest, Candy. I’m not sure. What I am sure about is, I have no feelings for Garrison. I love him as my brother-in-law, the same way I love you as my sister-in-law.”
“But you don’t love Barry anymore?”
“I didn’t say that. I—I don’t know how to feel about Barry right now.”
“Well, just be careful.”
“Don’t worry. I will.”
Candice closed her arms around Calista, “See you later.”
“Yep. Later.”
Chapter 24
Calista had been home for a few hours, catching up on TV shows she’d recorded in the previous weeks. Junior wasn’t sleeping tonight. Going into month four, he seemed extra alert. He made those sweet baby noises, stared at her and smiled while kicking and wiggling his little body.
Staring at the TV, Calista said, “He doesn’t know it yet, but he’s about to get ambushed, Junior.”
Junior smiled as if he knew what Calista was saying.
“Are you smiling at me handsome boy?” she asked, watching a big gummy, slobbery smile brighten his face. When Calista heard the doorbell, she kissed Junior on the cheek and said, “Looks like daddy’s here.” She stood up with the baby in her arms, making her way to the door. “Let’s see who it is.” She took a quick glance in the peephole. “It is daddy.”
Calista
opened door. “Hey.”
“Hey, Cali.” He reached for his son, kissed him on the forehead, then stepped inside.
Calista closed the door. When she turned around, she looked him up and down. He was wearing a white T-shirt and a pair of light gray sweatpants. I know he didn’t wear that to the office. Or maybe he’d since changed clothes. “How did it go today?”
“Not so good,” Garrison said, taking a seat on the couch with Junior in his lap.
Calista thought he would pick up Junior and leave, but he was getting comfortable on the couch. Okay, so he wants to talk. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“No. I’m not staying. I know you need your personal time and I don’t want to impose.”
Calista thought about the talk she had with Candice, about not getting too close to Garrison, but she couldn’t send him away, so she replied, “You’re not imposing. What happened?”
“I told you I was going to the office today.”
“Right,” she said sitting next to him, touching Junior’s hand, allowing him to wrap his little fingers around her index finger.
“And I spoke with Barringer, but he was belligerent. I’ve never seen Barry like that before.”
“So let me guess…you decided you didn’t want to go back to work there?”
“I wanted to go back. I know he needs help, but he just makes me want to choke him sometimes.”
Calista laughed. “That’s Barringer all right.”
“I was so irritated, I told him I wasn’t coming back. I’ll find something else to do with my skills.”
“What did you do for BFSG?”
“I headed up the finance division…basically I did forecasts, long and short-term financial planning, performance reporting, accounting, etcetera.”
Calista smiled. Impressed.
“Why are you smiling?” he asked her.
“I just remembered you were always good with numbers,” she said, still playing with Junior.
“I think you should talk to him, Cali. He’s not well. He needs you.”
“I was planning on calling him tonight, so—”
“Okay. Well, I’m going to get out of your hair so you can do that.” Garrison stood up and lowered Junior into his car seat. “Thank you again, Cali.”
“You’re welcome. Hey, what time will you be by in the morning?”
“Oh, that’s what I meant to tell you. “I’m going by my parent’s house tomorrow. Mom feels slighted that I haven’t been allowing her to keep Junior, but I wasn’t ready to face them, you know. I figure I’d go by there tomorrow to smooth things over to avoid a confrontation at dinner on Saturday.”
“Smart thinking.”
“And you call your husband. He’s driving everybody insane.”
Calista smiled as she opened the door. “Pray for me.”
Garrison grinned. “All right, sis. I’ll see you Saturday.”
“Okay. Bye Junior.”
* * *
Even though she was temporarily distracted by TV shows, she still had time to think about and meditate on what Candice had told her about Barringer. She said it must’ve been difficult for Barringer to watch her with Junior, all the while knowing he couldn’t give her a child. Okay, she could see how that could be difficult, but it’s not like she was intentionally trying to hurt Barringer.
And then there was what Candice said about Garrison. She warned Calista not to get too close to him because they used to date back in college. But that didn’t mean they had feelings for each other now. He just lost his wife. Then again, there were those few occasions when they would hold each other a little longer when they embraced, or when he would leave a kiss at her temple. And when they would lock eyes in the midst of awkward silence.
Calista shook her head. She picked up her cell phone from the nightstand. She hadn’t programmed Barringer’s number into her new phone yet but she knew his number by heart. She dialed it and waited. And waited. And…
“Hello.”
“Hi, Barry. It’s—”
“I know your voice, Calista. We’ve been married for five years, not that it means anything to you.”
Calista shook her head. Barringer was already starting out wrong. Why am I even trying? “Barry, I didn’t call you to argue.”
“So why did you call me?”
Calista glanced at the clock. It was a few minutes after nine, and she could hear Barringer typing. He was still at the office. He could’ve been home on his laptop, but she doubted it.
“Hello?” he said. More like yelled.
“Are you still at work?”
“What’s it to you?”
“Jeez, Barringer. Can’t we have a simple conversation without you being rude?”
The line went quiet.
I know this man did not hang up on me…
“Barry?”
“A few days ago, I came to you, confessed to you, bared my soul to you about something that has plagued me for years and you sent me away.”
“I sent you away because you lied to me, Barringer. You planned out all of this behind my back.”
“Planned what out?” he hissed.
“Your life. This marriage. You knew you couldn’t have children, but you wanted me, so screw what I wanted, right, because Barringer does whatever pleases Barringer.”
“That’s not true.”
“It is true. You never discuss anything with me. Sometimes I feel like I need to make an appointment with you just so you can talk to me.”
Barringer released a frustrated breath. “I don’t know what you want right now. What do you want from me, Calista? You’ve been gone for a little over three months now. What do you want?”
“I want to know why you lied to me.”
“I didn’t lie. I—”
“I want to know why you didn’t tell me about your situation before we married, Barringer. When we were dating, we talked all the time. I shut people out of my life so I could devote all of my time to you. And you did the same for me. We talked. We did everything together. We talked about a family. I told you I wanted kids. We were supposed to spend the first two years of our marriage getting to know each other on a deeper level, remember? The kids would come after we grew closer. Did we not discuss that?”
“We did.”
“Then you very easily could’ve told me you were sterile. Instead, you made the decision to marry me and not tell me a thing. You kept this secret for over six years. You entered into a marriage with me carrying this secret. How…how am I supposed to trust you now? How?”
The line went quiet again. Calista knew he was still there. The call was still connected and she could hear him breathing.
“I don’t know, Calista. But, as I told you before, I thought I could go see a doctor and get my issues resolved without having to involve you. You think I didn’t want to give you a baby?”
“Yes. That’s what I thought because that’s what you led me to believe. Any time the topic of a baby would come up, you said it wasn’t the right time. Said we needed to wait another year, or you were too busy on the job to bring a child into the world. Always an excuse, but now I understand they were lies.”
Again, silence.
“So where do we go from here?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I honestly don’t. Maybe…” Calista wanted to suggest marriage counseling, but she wasn’t sure if it could help their situation. “I’m going to bed.” Alone, just like when I was living with you. She thought it, but didn’t say it. She had told him to chill with the sarcasm, so she had to do the same. “Bye, Barringer.”
She ended the call before waiting to see if he would respond back. “What am I going to do?” This situation was driving her crazy. There had to be a resolution but what? She picked up the phone and decided to send Kalina a message:
Calista: Hey, I need to talk to you about something. Can we meet in the morning?
She glanced at her toenails and wiggled her toes while waiting for Kalina to respond back
. A good day of pampering would surely take her mind off of Barringer.
Kalina: Sure. Can you meet me at Edith’s Café, say around 9?
Calista smiled as she responded back:
Calista: Yes. See you then.
She placed her phone on the nightstand, turned off the lamp and laid there in bed staring at the TV, but not watching it. She thought about her issues – about Barringer. He didn’t seem like himself anymore. And now, she wondered if their marriage was worth the effort or if they should remain apart. Something had to be done. When a married man wanted to live as if he was single, what was the point of getting married? Then there was the secret he’d kept from her…
Calista grabbed the remote and shut off the TV. Her head pounded with various thoughts running through her mind while tears came to her eyes. She closed her eyes, forced them away and willed herself to sleep.
Chapter 25
“Mr. Champion is here with a Mr. Hempstead, sir,” Eleanor said via intercom to Barringer. Should I have them sent up?”
“Please,” Barringer responded. He left his office and sauntered to the conference room where Candice was already waiting with her laptop.
“Is he here yet?” she asked Barringer as soon as he opened the door with his tablet tucked underneath his left arm and a cup of coffee in his left hand.
“Just got here. I told Eleanor to send them on up.”
Candice raised her brows. “Them?”
“Yeah. He brought somebody with him.”
“Hmm…this should be interesting,” Candice said.
“And remember, we’re not making any final decisions, Candy. We just want to hear what they have to say.”
“I know. I wish Garrison was here with us,” she pouted.
“Garrison has more important things to do,” he said bitterly.
“Barry, you do know it’s okay to have a life outside of work. Garrison is going through a rough time right now.”
