the position hung over her head like a dark cloud. To make matters worse, Darius had hinted around at marriage to sweeten the deal.
As a last attempt to keep her in Detroit, Darius had proposed to her after a night filled with passionate lovemaking. Lying in his protective arms, Alexa was glad that it was dark for it hid her tears. Darius felt the sobs racking throughout her body and had mistaken her tears of sorrow for tears of joy. While Darius slept with a contented smile on his face, Alexa placed his ring on the nightstand and slipped out of his embrace and essentially his life.
It seemed as though the taxi driver was an accomplice to her escape that morning as they sped down the expressway. She turned her tear-streaked face from the window to the driver with a questioning look. Was this supposed to happen? There was hardly any traffic about and he was driving like his life depended on getting to their destination.
It was when she noticed his slightly bobbing head and heard the reggae beat popping through an old transistor radio perched on the dashboard that she realized he was in his own world. She sank back in her seat and closed her eyes with Darius’s face haunting her silent reverie. How could she make him understand that it was the right thing for both of them? She loved him too much to mess up his life, but leaving was something she had to do. She knew that if she didn’t leave now, she never would. Her mother’s words rang through her mind. “Don’t tie yourself down before you’ve experienced life.”
For many years, her mother had preached that sermon to Alexa and her brother. However, the words were especially meant for her; she didn’t want her daughter to make the same mistakes as she did.
Alexa’s parents were married the summer following graduation from high school believing that it was the only thing to do because they were in love and were expecting their first child. After fifteen years of marriage, the two grew up and eventually grew apart.
Alexa made it a practice to never talk much about her family, so telling Darius how much her mother’s words impacted her decision never presented itself. Rather then reveal the dysfunction in her family, Alexa took the low road, journeying to a future she embraced and praying that fate would shine favor on her. However, when her eyes met Darius’s upon entering the room, there were no signs of fate being kind as animosity filled the air.
She sat on the edge of the bed.” I don’t know why I thought he would behave any other way,” she murmured to herself. “But nine years is a long time to hold a grudge.”
She was interrupted by a soft knock.
“Come in,” she called. She knew it was Maya coming to save the day.
She was right when her friend poked her head in. “Are you okay?”
Alexa nodded, and then laughed halfheartedly. “As okay as I can be.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You didn’t do anything, Maya,” Alexa replied. She noticed that her friend’s way of taking on other people’s problems had not diminished over the years.
“I should have left things alone.”
“Well, apparently he has some place to stay, so I wouldn’t worry about it,” Alexa replied. “Besides, you have other things to worry about.”
Alexa hoped she sounded convincing because she didn’t want Maya to worry about her or Darius.
Chapter 3
Early the next morning, Alexa was shaken awake by a very distraught Maya. She knew that something was wrong judging by the anxiety in Maya’s tone and the urgency in her actions. Alexa immediately sprang up into a seated position, her eyes wide with wonder and her heart hammering in her chest.
“Wh-what’s wrong, Maya?” she asked, clutching the front of her gown in terror.
Maya sank into a nearby chair and covered her eyes with her hands. “It’s Bry’s mother. She had a diabetic episode last night and they had to rush her to the hospital.”
“Oh, my Lord,” Alexa moaned. “Is she okay?”
Maya shrugged. “We haven’t heard anything as of yet and Bryant and I need to go to the hospital. I don’t know if I can handle this right now.”
“Is there anything I can do?” Alexa asked.
“Do you mind watching the girls?” Maya asked as she began to remove the scarf from her head, allowing the silky curls to fall in disarray around her face.
“Of course I don’t mind!” Alexa replied. “I just pray that Bryant’s mom is okay. How is he holding up?”
“To be expected. He’s upset because he knew how excited his mother was about the wedding. We believe that in the excitement of it all, she may have forgotten to take her insulin.”
Alexa paused. She understood how easy it was to forget important details when your mind is focused on other things. Just the other day, she’d left her purse at home while on her way to work. Since the wedding announcement, she frequently found herself so nervous awaiting her confrontation with Darius that she’d forget the simplest task.
“By the way,” Maya began as if reading her mind. She rose from the side of the bed. “Darius is supposed to swing by to work on Bryant’s computer in his office. Bryant tried calling him when he found out about his mother, but he couldn’t reach him. He must have already left his hotel room.”
Alexa’s first instinct was to protest, but given the delicate situation her friends were facing, she refrained from doing so. Instead she tried her best to assure her that everything would be okay.
“Don’t worry about a thing, Maya. I’ve been looking for an opportunity to spend some time with my goddaughters.”
Maya turned around before exiting the room. “Thank you, Alex, for being here. I’m so grateful you came early, you just don’t know.”
Had it been any other day, Alexa would have remained in the bed until noon, but godmother duty called. When Maya closed the door, she got out of bed and opened the dresser drawer in search of something to wear.
The first thing that she laid her eyes on was a snug black sweater and a pair of fitted boot-cut jeans. Although casual, the outfit complemented her size ten figure. However, she had second thoughts when she remembered Darius. She didn’t want him to entertain the idea that she was dressing to impress him. So, she quickly laid the outfit to the side and selected a loose-fitting pair of sweats and an oversized long-sleeved T-shirt. Ordinarily Alexa wouldn’t be caught dead in her sweats; however, they came in handy today. She hoped that choosing the sweat suit over something more visually appealing sent a strong message of indifference to Darius.
Before stepping into the bathroom, she stopped to turn on the CD player. She fingered through the CDs in the holder, before selecting Cassandra Wilson’s latest.
Once the composition started to play, she gathered her things and went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. As the water warmed up, she bobbed over to the sink and began brushing her teeth.
Moments later she emerged from her quarters feeling fresh and ready for the day. To her surprise the Renault family was seated at the breakfast table before 8:00 a.m.
Bryant,
