****
Leroy trotted into the kitchen as Michelle was replacing the receiver on the hook. She took in her husband who was elegantly attired in a charcoal pinstripe suit, with a solid gold tie resting against a well-ironed white shirt.
He pulled open the refrigerator and picked out an apple from the fruit bin. “Who was that?”
“Mrs. Wesson…” Michelle decided to keep the details short. “You look very handsome this morning. I’m loving this gold tie. Very bold.”
Leroy planted a wet, juicy kiss on her lips. “Thank you, babe. I’m taking Cecil and Rodwin with me to a town hall meeting on Busch. You feel up to it?”
“No, thanks. You guys are not going to bore me to death with politics. Besides, I have other plans.”
“Oh, really?”
Yes. I’m thinking about going back to the office later on today.”
“At the church? Why? What’s brought this on?”
“What do you mean why?” Michelle folded her arms. “I’m tired of working at home. You said it yourself yesterday. I am Head of Administration. I haven’t been functioning in that capacity as I should. I feel I’ll have better control if I’m physically at the church.”
Leroy bit a chunk out of the apple. “Control over what?”
“Why am I sensing that you don’t agree? You don’t want me hanging around the church with you?”
“I didn’t say all of that.”
“Then what are you saying?”
“Nothing. I just hope your decision doesn’t have anything to do with Shaniece.”
“You brought up her name this time; not me.” Michelle was tempted to mention that receipt she’d found on the floor yesterday, obviously leaving out the part about her and Abraham visiting the Sheriff’s Office, but she feared her accusation would not stick. She needed something more concrete, because she knew at this point that Leroy would not confess the truth to her. She tried another approach. “You know, I went to Brandon yesterday morning.”
Be cool, Leroy told himself. “Oh? You drove?”
She didn’t expect that to be his first question. “Does it matter?”
“Not really.” Leroy moved to the sink to wash his hands, purposely turning his back to her.
“You’re not going to ask me why I went to Brandon?”
“I assume it was for a good reason. I know you won’t waste your time doing something that’s unprofitable.”
“Well, you’re right about one thing. I did go there for a reason. I want to host the next Women’s conference there in June.”
Leroy spun around to face Michelle. “In Brandon? Why not here in Hillsborough? It’s literally half an hour difference, offering the same amenities. I don’t see the sense in that.”
“I do,” Michelle said. “If I have it here, I will be distracted, among other things. But I also don’t feel like traveling too far this year. So, I chose Brandon. I’ve already booked dates at Holiday Inn Express.”
What a coincidence, Leroy thought suspiciously. “I admit; it’s a nice hotel. I’ve stayed there a few times – but I still think my suggestion is better. Have it here in Hillsborough. That way you won’t have to spend those days away from me.” One look at his Rolex told him that it was time to go. “Can we pick this up later? I’ll be late if I don’t leave now.”
“Of course,” Michelle said, offering her cheek to Leroy.
“I’ll call you later, babe. Love you.”
Leroy’s reaction threw her for a loop, making it seem as if her going to Brandon didn’t make any difference to him. Maybe Abraham had been right all along. Leroy was always in and out of hotels. That receipt could mean anything. He could have simply forgotten that it was there. But how would she explain the date – the exact date that she had nearly lost her husband to a gunshot wound? Was that a coincidence? Was she reading too much into this thing with Shaniece? Was she trying to search for something that plainly wasn’t there, trying to fix something that wasn’t broken? She couldn’t stand the woman, but that didn’t mean Leroy was having an affair with her. Right?
Oh Lord, please help me. I am so confused…
Michelle noticed Tayah inching her Nissan Altima up the driveway, which was strange, because Tayah rarely sacrificed her mornings for small talks. She preferred to devote her mornings to spreadsheets and numbers, claiming she was at her sharpest during the time when most people were just pouring their first cup of coffee. Michelle grew even more alarmed when she saw Tayah’s appearance. Her daughter wasn’t Naomi Campbell, but she sure wasn’t slapdash in her apparel either. Michelle could tell Tayah hadn’t ironed her outfit this morning. Her thick flowing hair was pulled back in a ponytail, while her feet dragged along in a pair of slippers that didn’t match anything she was wearing.
“Hey, baby. What’s wrong?” Michelle asked, opening the door.
“What an appropriate question,” Tayah said. “Everything’s wrong, mother.”
Michelle followed her daughter across the hall and into the living room, knowing that anytime Tayah led the way to sit and discuss, trouble was brewing in the camp.
“You know, mother,” Tayah started. “I’m at a place in my life where I truly don’t understand what is going on with me. It feels like the walls are closing in and I’m being squashed.”
“I can see that you’re overwhelmed,” Michelle said, sitting down next to Tayah. “Working like you do is taxing on anyone.”
“I’m not talking about work. I love my work.” Tayah wiped the corners of her eyes with the tissue she held between her fingers. “It’s me and Phillip. I won’t pretend, mother. I’m not happy in my marriage.”
“Don’t tell me you’re giving up already.”
“Who said anything about giving up? I said I wasn’t happy.” Tayah gave her mother a stern look. “What is it with you and divorce? Every time that I tell you I’m having problems with Phillip, you jump to these crazy assumptions.”
“Honey, I didn’t mean for it to come out that way,” Michelle said, rubbing Tayah’s hands. “I’ve been so wired up lately that I hardly find time to pray. I’m sorry. Let’s start over.”
Tayah stared at her mother. “What’s going on with you?”
“No, no, you came here to talk about you and Phillip. I’m an old veteran. I should be able to weather the storm a little better than you, don’t you think?”
Tayah cracked a smile. “I never thought I would ever hear you quote any of grandma’s words.”
“Me either,” Michelle laughed. “The older I get, the more her words make sense.”
“Isn’t that how it supposed to be?” Tayah said, still patting the corners of her eyes. She was hurting so much she was afraid she would lose it right there in front of her mother. “These days the elderly women don’t teach the younger women anymore.”
“This is a two-way street,” Michelle said. “The younger women today are independent. Many of them feel their grandmothers are too old fashion. Even I’ve been called old fashion by your generation.”
“We’re crazy, that’s why,” Tayah said. “Don’t listen to us. We’re in this mess because we think we know it all.”
As it was with any devoted mother, Michelle couldn’t stand to see her children suffering, especially when they cried. She took one long look at Tayah and knew something had gone terribly wrong. “Talk to me, Tayah. What’s going on between you and Phillip?”
“Oh mother, where do I start?” Tayah didn’t have enough tissue to absorb her tears, which now flowed steadily down her flushed cheeks. “Phillip said some really hurtful things to me last night. His words stung so hard that I wanted to use them as an excuse to walk out of our marriage.”
Michelle held her daughter’s hand. “Honey, we all say things that we don’t mean when we’re upset.”
“Not this time, mother,” Tayah said. “Something’s going on with Phillip and I don’t have a clue to what it is.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. He’s
different. He’s not the same Phillip that I knew six months ago. When I got home yesterday, he was drunk…”
“Drunk? Deacon Phillip?”
“Mother, please. Those titles don’t mean anything.”
“You can understand why I’m shocked? It appears as if you’re talking about two different people.”
“It feels like I’m living with two different people,” Tayah said. “One minute he’s this sweet caring man and other times, he’s mean and disruptive.”
“Tell me he didn’t put his hands on you.”
When Tayah didn’t respond, Michelle panicked. “Oh God, what did he do to you? Tayah!”
“He pushed me,” she said, annoyed by her mother’s reaction. “Nothing serious.”
“That is serious, Tayah.” To say Michelle was incredulous was an understatement. “Why didn’t you come to us with this sooner?”
“And say what, mother? That Phillip wants a baby and I can’t give him one? How many times have I told you and daddy that? It’s getting old.”
“It sounds as if you blame yourself for the way he’s acting.”
“And you wouldn’t? For three years, I’ve been trying to give my husband a child and every twenty-ninth day of the month, I’m disappointed.”
“Tayah, listen to me,” Michelle said, her voice strong with concern. “Marriage is about two people coming together to share the load, not make one partner feel as if he or she is carrying it alone. Phillip is selfish. He doesn’t care about how this is making you feel. I think you should talk to Leroy about this. He would know what to do.”
“Don’t make a spectacle out of my marriage, mother,” Tayah said. “Let me handle this the way I see fit.”
“Baby, I’m worried about you.” Michelle stood up. “I’ve always had my reservations about Phillip–”
“Stop it!” Tayah stood up too. “I didn’t come here to listen to you berate my husband. We’re not perfect. Just as you and daddy are not perfect. I know y’all are having problems. I can see it in your face every Sunday when that woman takes the microphone from daddy.”
Michelle’s eyes watered. “Why, Tayah? Why would you intentionally hurt me when I’m only expressing my concern for you?” When the tears dropped, she wiped them with the back of her hand. “If that’s what you want, fine, have it your way. I won’t meddle in your life anymore.”
“And it’s not even about meddling,” Tayah said. “It’s about facing the truth and being honest with yourself. If you don’t deal with this woman, I promise you, she will deal with you.”
“Tayah, you could be very mean when you’re upset,” Michelle told her daughter. “I’m not your enemy. I’m your mother and when any one of my children is in pain, I will respond. Please, don’t make me have to apologize for caring for you.”
Tayah took in a deep breath, wanting to cry even more. “You’re right. You shouldn’t have to apologize for caring about your children. I was wrong for lashing out at you like that. I just wish I could experience those same feelings with my own baby…”
“And you will, Tayah,” Michelle said with conviction. “You and Phillip will have children and there’s no doubt in my mind about it.”
“I pray to God we do, mother. If only for Phillip’s sake.”
Chapter Twenty-Five