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“Eric, I’m giving you thirty days, and that’s more time than you need to make up your mind. It’s either me or your wife.”
“Is all of this because I couldn’t see you the other night? You know Saturday isn’t one of our nights.”
“I know that, but you said no matter what, you’d be there when I called and that I would always be number one. I’m not. Because if I were, you would have done whatever it took to see me, but you didn’t. So I’m offering you a solution, me or your wife.”
“Kyla, I don’t know what’s gotten into you. Let’s go…” He stepped closer and grabbed her by the hand.
“Let go of me.” She jerked away.
“What’s gotten in to you? We agreed…”
“I refuse to be the other woman.” She started toward the door. “You have thirty days. If I don’t hear from you, then I’ll assume you’ve made your decision.”
She opened the door and he called out, “Kyla.” She slammed the door.
Chapter 36
FOR KYLA, A VISIT FROM her mother was like having root canal surgery without anesthesia. Nadine Marshall James Henderson made these treks to the city every six weeks, invited or not. And she expected Kyla to visit once a month.
Nadine grew up outside of Birmingham and married her high school sweetheart, Daniel James, six months after graduation. They had a happy marriage until he died seven years later. She was devastated. Her older sister suggested she take a cruise to clear her head. While on this journey of healing, she met Dr. Percy Henderson, the ship’s doctor. In a few days he showed her how to cherish the memories she had with her husband while making new ones without feeling guilty. By the end of her trip, she was full of life and had fallen in love. When the ship docked, Percy went home with her. She introduced him to Kyla and three weeks later they became a family and moved to New York.
Nadine and Percy have been married thirty-seven years. A couple of years into their marriage, they had Kyla’s sister, Corianne. Corianne was following in her mother’s footsteps. She married her high school sweetheart, Dexter Abernathy. They waited two years after graduating college before getting married. They have been married almost twelve years and have been trying to get pregnant for eleven. Unlike everything else in their lives, getting pregnant hadn’t been easy. However, they were trusting God and patiently waiting on the manifestation of His word in their lives.
When Kyla’s mother came to visit, she made it a point of reminding her how wonderful Corianne’s life was and that she should consider joining the “wives club.” And just like anything else Kyla didn’t want to hear, she tuned her out.
Kyla prepared for these visits with the precision of a highly classified military operation. She made mental notes of topics to avoid during her mother’s visits. Number one on the list was Eric. Mrs. Henderson wasn’t a fan of Eric’s when he was single. And once she heard he was married, he moved to the top spot on her imaginary hit list. If she’d had her way, she’d have brought her nephew up from Selma and had him take care of the problem for her. Unfortunately, she knew she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she had. Instead, when she visited, she would hint at her disapproval of Kyla’s personal life.
The buzzer sound startled Winnie and she started barking.
“Winnie, be quiet,” Antonio barked back. He hit the buzzer unlocking the door and looked up to see who was walking in. “Hi Mama Henderson.” He walked over and threw his arms around her. “What did you bring me?” he asked.
“Good to see you too, Antonio.”
“I’m sorry. You look pretty. Here,” he reached for the green woven bag in her hand. “Let me take that for you.”
She blocked his hand. “I’ve got this, but you can take my suitcase.”
“Okay.” Winnie ran out and started barking.
“What is that?” she asked.
“Winnie, be quiet. I think it’s your grand-dog.”
“My what? Does that thing belong to Kyla?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“Oh my God, here, take this.” She handed him the green bag. “There’s plenty for everyone. Where’s my daughter?”
“She’ll be back any minute.”
“I’ll wait in her office.” She walked into Kyla’s office and sat on the sofa. Winnie came in and sniffed her feet. “Get away from me.” Winnie ignored her and sat in front of her feet with her tongue hanging out. “Don’t look at me like that. I don’t care what Antonio says, you are not a grandchild substitute.” Winnie barked and placed her face on the tip of Nadine’s shoe.
Kyla walked in and inhaled. “Fried Chicken.” She continued to her office and was immediately greeted by the sight of her mother sitting on the sofa. “Hi, mo…mo…” She walked over and kissed her mother on the cheek and saw Winnie sitting at her feet. “I see you’ve met Winnie.”
“You mean my grand-dog.”
Kyla laughed. “Your what?”
