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Oh, I knew his theory all too well. “Nothing in life happens by chance. Everything we encounter has purpose,” I said, and had a quick impulse to grab for my drink, but he caught my hand before I could do so.
“Exactly.” He said, looking deeply into my eyes as if he was searching for something he had once left there. He paused for a moment allowing his theory to take its full effect on me. “You remembered.”
“Yes, what did you think I would forget?”
Instead of answering, he smiled and changed the subject with a compliment. “You are looking good. How has life been treating you?”
I definitely didn’t want to think about my life and how it had been treating me, so I shrugged my shoulders and gave a
typical answer to his question. “I’ve been okay, and you?”
Maverick let his hand cover mine on the countertop. I attempted to act like I didn’t notice this, but the blush that was rushing across my cheeks betrayed my true emotions. He caressed my hand, his finger moving gently over my wedding band. The gesture was not lost on me. Then, he replied gingerly, “Just okay, Marisol? You’ve always deserved better than ‘okay,’ so I hope you are not settling for that now. You are an amazing woman.”
My next words caught in my throat, so I sat silent. Settling for “okay”, or the “okie doke”, in life was something that Maverick and I never believed in back in our college days, but that was when we were naïve college students. It was a new day and age where grown up responsibilities, travesties, and reality had set in. It was funny how things changed, but it’s called reality. That was the real world, not the ideal fantasies of two young lovebirds, philosophizing underneath the trees.
When I found my voice, I conjured up the enthusiasm to tell a convincing lie. “No, actually, life is great, Maverick,” I said, convincingly, nodding my head. Then, I switched to the one bright spot in my life that I could honestly sell him on. “I have two beautiful bundles of joy that keep me busy every day, a two-year-old daughter and a four-year-old son. Their names are Nazaria and Kelvin.”
“Really?” If I didn’t know any better, I would say a tinge of disappointment settled on his face with that news.
“Yes, and they are the reason that I wake up every morning – the reason that I work as hard as I do. They keep me going.” I nudged his strong shoulder, and asked, “Okay, how about you and yours? Tell me all about them.”
“What about me and mine?” Maverick asked abruptly, suddenly tensing up.
“Don’t play coy, Mr. Still-Fine-As-Hell. Who is the lucky lady?” I gently nudged his shoulder, again. I knew there had to be a video vixen tucked away somewhere. Or maybe his wife was the Fortune 500 executive type who was sharper than a thumbtack. Either way, I knew Maverick Douglas was not curling up at night alone. Anticipating his answer about a special someone and possibly children, I picked up my drink and took another long swig, hoping to quench the thirst that was building in my throat.
He somberly said, “I don’t have a lucky lady. Still a bachelor looking for that special someone to share my life with, ya know?”
“Excuse me, mister? You know you don’t have to lie to me. You can keep it real with me. I just knew someone would have snagged you up by now. There is no way you should be single.” I meant that. If I were still available, he would be my primary target of affection.
“There are many women that have tried to ‘snag’ me. I just haven’t found the right woman to share the best of me with. I’m not willing to settle for just ‘okay’ in life, ya know? I’m searching for the extraordinary. In order for me to make anyone my wife, she is going to have to take my breath away just at the mere sight of her.”
He once again covered my hand with his and continued, “There was this one girl that I was in love with once. Since being with her, I’ve never found another girl to compare. Unfortunately, I made a mistake when I had her. I was working so hard to make something out of my life – so that I could have something to give her – that I never got to show her how much I loved her. Since her, I haven’t been able to love anyone else quite the same. Now, she was the one – a woman that will always be special to me. If I had her by my side, I would be complete. I guess I’ve been waiting on the time that we would meet again, and I was hoping that if the stars were aligned just right when that meeting occurred, I’d have another chance at love.”
The depth of Maverick’s words touched me so deeply that I sat frozen, wishing that I were that invisible woman he spoke so affectionately about. If only he felt that way about me eight years ago, we would not be sitting here having this conversation. I would be Gladys Marisol Douglas with a house full of little amazing Douglas children. There was a time I would have gone to the ends of the earth for this man. However, it was what it was. I went with the flow and sat quietly, listening to him profess his undying love for this woman who had broken his heart. It was more than I could bear.
“I know that losing this woman was hard on you, Maverick. Trust me; I know the kind of loss you are talking about, all too well.” I took another sip of my drink, forgetting that there was no more liquid libation to satisfy my thirst, and slipped down out of my seat.
“I have an event that I’ll be attending in a few hours, so I guess this is goodbye. Until next time…” I said abruptly, hoping to get away before any more raw emotions slipped up on me that I wasn’t anticipating.
I didn’t have an anywhere to be in the next few hours, but the pure sight of him was more than I could bear. Hearing him talk about the special woman that had slipped through his fingers was more than an ear full. He suddenly looked panicked, as if he had lost control of the situation.
Instinctively, I planted a kiss on his cheek, allowing my lips to linger a few seconds more than what would be deemed cordial. The familiarity in our connection had me wishing I could take him back to my room and make love to him one last time. At that thought, I knew it was time for me to part ways with the quickness. Not only was he spilling his guts about some other woman, but I was married and visibly still in love with him. The whole scene was definitely not good for the soul.
“Take care of yourself, Mav.”
“You too, Marisol,” he said softly, avoiding my eyes and looking at the ground as our once intertwined hands gently slid apart. I quickly made a hasty retreat, careful not to look back.
Chapter 14
Shayla
To my surprise, Titus made a point of staying at home the rest of the evening wining and dining me, and acting like he had not just gotten down and dirty with Ronnie in our den. I impressed myself with my ability to hide my true feelings and slip into my own duplicitous disguise. With disgust rising in the pit of my stomach, I had to look at his conniving ass flaunt around the house, waiting on my every beck and call as if he was the husband I’d dreamed about many nights when he was away. We were lying in our bed after another round of amazing sex, where I had managed to divide my mind and my heart from my body, when he announced his latest plan.
“Shayla, I called The Pampering Queen over, so you have a manicure and pedicure appointment in the den at three.” Titus rolled over and placed his arm around me, a prideful grin covering his face. He was too proud of the arrangements he had set up for the afternoon to pamper me, as though a little nail polish would cover the deception he had used to taint our marriage.
“Oh, really, now? I just had Queen over here yesterday hooking me up. Don’t my toes look fabulous?” I maneuvered my body to stretch my leg out until my toes were inside of his mouth.
“Baby, everything about you is fabulous!” he said, before sucking on my big toe. “Don’t worry, I’ll cancel them, then.”
