One Magic Moment, page 23
Dressing, she went downstairs to join her father and aunt for coffee. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t stay in her room forever. She knew they were waiting for her, anxious to find out what had caused her meltdown. They would hit her with a barrage of questions that would require very personal answers.
Nia found the two of them sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper. Her father was reading the sports page, while her aunt perused the coupons. They both looked guilty when Nia entered the room, and Nia caught her father pulling his hand away from her aunt’s. Was something going on between the two of them? She hadn’t been blind to the change in her aunt’s behavior since Nathaniel returned to town, and evidently he had slept over last night. Nia wondered if love was in the air for her aunt. If so, she sure deserved it, even if it was with her father.
“Good afternoon,” she said breezily, trying to put on a good front. She walked over to the counter and poured herself a cup of coffee. Nia felt their questioning eyes burning a hole in the back of her head, so she took an extra-long time adding sugar and cream before turning around to face them.
“I’m sure you’re feeling better after a hot shower,” her aunt said, staring at her. Nia sat beside her, opposite her father.
“Yes, I am.” She sipped at the hot coffee. “Did you spend the night here?” she asked, looking at her father.
“I did,” he murmured. “I hope that’s all right. Your aunt Olivia didn’t seem to mind too much.” He smiled at Olivia, who smiled back at him.
“Why should I mind?” Nia asked. “It’s not my house.” The words sounded harsh coming out of her mouth and a silence fell over the table. “I’m sorry.” She felt bad at the comment; she wasn’t upset with him. “It’s not your fault men can’t be trusted.”
“Mmm, I see.” Her aunt rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “I understand now what this is all about. Oh, Nia.” She patted her niece’s hand. But the last thing Nia wanted to hear was pity over her fallen romance.
“Care to fill me in?” her father inquired, looking back and forth between the two women.
“Aunt Livie guessed correctly. Things between Damon and I have gone sour,” she said. At his raised brow, she continued. “Damon’s my boyfriend. I mean,” she paused, her voice cracking slightly, “my ex-boyfriend.”
“Did something happen last night to facilitate this?” her father asked.
“Yes, something happened,” Nia responded evenly. “I found another woman in the bed of a man who claimed to love me.”
“Oh, Nia, no!” her aunt exclaimed. “Are you sure? I can’t believe Damon would do something like that. I saw how much he cares for you. He’s head over heels in love with you.”
That’s what Nia had thought, too, until she’d seen Kendall in Damon’s bed, their clothes strewn across the room. She could feel the bile rising in her throat again. It hurt so much to think about it, but the images were forever branded in her mind.
“Are you sure that’s what you saw?” her father asked.
“What I saw was that he was head over heels for another woman and was just using me,” Nia stated bitterly.
“Nia, I’m playing devil’s advocate here, but are you sure you didn’t misinterpret things?” Nathaniel asked. He didn’t want to upset the poor girl, but the situation begged the question. Sometimes women had a tendency to overreact and make snap decisions or judgments based purely on emotion. “Maybe this young man deserved a second chance.”
“Yes, honey,” her aunt agreed, “you could have misread the situation.”
“There was no misinterpreting Kendall lying half naked in his bed and Damon coming out of the shower.” A lump formed in her throat and the monsoon of tears she was holding in began flowing down her cheeks. Her father walked around the table and gathered her in his arms for a fatherly hug.
“Shh, shh,” he crooned. “It’ll be all right.” She snuggled into the cocoon of his chest, “I just feel so betrayed,” she cried, resting her head against his firm shoulder.
“Well, what did he have to say for himself when you found him in such a compromising position?” Olivia asked.
Nia sniffed. “He said that whatever I thought happened didn’t. He claimed he gotten back from his trip early and found Kendall leaving a note at his doorstep. He claimed he told her he wanted nothing more to do with her. How convenient for him.” Nia accepted the handkerchief her father offered. “He told me he’d let Kendall show herself out and went in the shower. The rest, as they say, is history.”
“You walked in and found Kendall in his bed and Damon coming out of the shower,” her aunt repeated. “Hmm...”
“It sounds like a plausible story,” her father said, turning Nia around to face him. “Why you don’t believe him?”
“Why should I? I know what I saw. Plus, he’s withheld the truth from me before about this woman. I have to believe what my gut instinct tells me.”
“Or perhaps you’re letting your own insecurities get the best of you,” her father said.
Nia jumped out of her seat. Her aunt sensed that the discussion might be about something more than just Damon, so she quietly left the room. “How dare you say that to me? You’ve no right.” Their father-daughter truce was over just as quickly as it had begun. “You don’t know the first thing about me.”
“And whose fault is that, huh?” her father asked. “You won’t let me in. You’ve kept me at arm’s length for months and that’s exactly what you’re doing to this man—this Damon. You’re happy to believe the worst in him because then it would confirm your worst fears about men. Then you could say you’ve tried that love thing and it didn’t work out.”
“You go to hell. I don’t have to listen to this, and least of all from you,” Nia said before stomping out of the room, but her father followed her into the hallway and grabbed her by the shoulders.
“That’s right, Nia, run away from your troubles like that will solve them. Why don’t you stand up and face them?” he countered. His mouth was firmly set, ready to do battle with his daughter, “you’re so sure you’re right. Did you ever think or consider that you could be wrong? Did you stand up to Kendall and fight for the man you love?”
“Fight?” She spun around to face him. “I’ve been fighting this woman from the moment I met Damon and I plum don’t have anything left in me. I’m worn out, okay. She’s won. She can have the no-account, lying cheat.”
“Wow, you don’t hold back, do you?” Her father chuckled. She had never heard him laugh before. It was a rich, throaty sound.
“No, I don’t,” she answered haughtily.
“Darling, you’ve got to let go of all this anger.”
Nia sighed. “I don’t know how.” The anger was all she had. She didn’t know any other way to be.
Her father opened his arms. “Then let me help you,” he stated simply. “I can be a father, Nia, if you would only let me.”
Nia so desperately wanted to believe him. Perhaps, if she did her like might begin to change.
Sunlight streamed through Damon’s blinds, waking him from his slumber. He had passed out on the couch sometime during the wee hours of the morning after drinking himself into a stupor.
It had been several days since Nia had walked out on him and he still couldn’t believe it. How could she leave when he loved her so much? He needed her.
His whole well-being and happiness were intertwined with having her in his life. How was he going to live without her? She was his rock, his home. She completed him in every way that counted. Over the last six months, his whole life centered on her, being with her, laughing with her, making love with her. He ached to be inside her; his body was going through Nia withdrawal.
He’d fallen hopelessly in love with Nia Marie Taylor and it wasn’t going to be easy exorcising her from his heart He didn’t know if he could or if he even wanted to. But the cold hard reality was that Nia didn’t trust him, so their relationship had no future. How could she think he would hurt her and lie to her face? It had been all too easy for her to believe the worst about him. Hadn’t he tried as hard as he could to show her he was honest and that he would be faithful and true to only her? How could she doubt him?
He wanted to go to her now, but his pride wouldn’t let him run after her. This time she would have to come to him. She would have to be the one to admit she was wrong and beg his forgiveness. He was tired of trying to prove his love and loyalty to her.
Damon didn’t hear the knock at the door or the key turning in the lock as his mother and sister entered his apartment. They found it dark, hot and musty. The curtains were drawn and Damon was lying on the couch. Cartons of day-old pizza, Chinese food and empty beer bottles littered the room. They made their way to open the curtains and balcony door to let in some sunlight and fresh air.
“Look at this place,” his mother said, amazed at the sight in front of her. “Damon, what in heaven’s name has happened to you? Your sister and I’ve been trying to reach you for days and we’ve only gotten your voice mail.”
“I think I found the culprit.” His sister held up several empty beer bottles. Damon glanced at her from his drunken haze on the couch and plopped his head back down on the pillow. The woman he loved was gone and he was in no mood for this mother-daughter duo.
“Damon,” his mother admonished. “You turn over and look at me.” He ignored her and kept his head down. “You look at me right now, Damon Bradley.”
Slowly he turned to face his mother and she saw how ravaged he looked. His eyes were bloodshot and his face looked like he hadn’t shaved in days. He was sure it was a shock to his mother to find him so unkempt, but at this moment he didn’t care.
He watched Jordan unbutton her coat, roll up her sleeves and start picking up cartons of food and taking them to the trash in the kitchen.
“Jordan, just leave it!” he bellowed. “Matter of fact, why don’t the two of you just go.”
“Darling, what is it?” his mother asked, scooting him over on the couch. It hurt her to see her baby in this much pain and she wanted to know the reason why, “What happened?”
“It’s Nia,” he murmured into the pillow. “Mom, I’ve lost her.”
“What—how could that be?” she asked. “Damon, please turn around and look at me. Please tell me this is not my fault. I thought I settled everything between the two of us.”
“Mom, what are you talking about?”
“I asked Nia over to brunch last weekend and we hashed everything out. She forgave me for being such a snob. She told me everything was fine between the two of you. Did I misunderstand?” She sniffed. “Oh, Damon, I’m so sorry, this is all my fault. I should have left well enough alone.”
Damon sat up. He had no idea his mother had met with Nia privately and apologized. Nia never mentioned a word of it to him in his phone calls to her. He reached over and pulled his mother into an embrace. “Mom, it’s not your fault,” he said. “It’s me. Nia is angry with me.”
“What could you have done so soon? You just returned days ago. I don’t understand this. Nia was so excited to see you, almost impatient. She couldn’t wait for you to get back. She told me she was going to surprise you with a home-cooked meal.”
“And surprise me, she did.” He motioned for his mother to move over so he could sit up. He rubbed his bald head to soothe his splitting headache. “Mom, could you get me some aspirin?”
“Sure, darling.” She left the couch and went into the kitchen. Jordan was already washing the dirty dishes in the sink.
“How is he?” Jordan whispered.
“Not good,” her mother said. “He’s not making much sense, something about him and Nia breaking up.”
“See, I told you that girl was going to cause my brother nothing but grief.”
“You hush now,” her mother said, scolding. “Damon would be furious if he heard you speak like that.”
“Fine.” Jordan turned her back and went back to washing the dishes. “I’ll keep my opinions to myself.” Her mother leaned over her and pulled a clean glass from the cabinet. Opening the refrigerator, she poured a glass of mineral water and took it and some aspirin to Damon, who hadn’t moved one iota from where she’d left him.
“Here you go, darling.” She handed him the bottle and he twisted it open, quickly popping several pills into his mouth and washing them down with water. “Better?” He nodded. “Did you have a fight with Nia?”
He took another swig of water. “Nia found me in a compromising situation with Kendall. She thinks I cheated on her.”
“How could she think that?” his sister shrieked from the kitchen doorway. “You would never cheat on her or any other woman, for that matter, “you’re much too honest and decent for that. You’re a good man, Damon, doesn’t she know that?”
“Nia believes otherwise,” Damon said. “Not that I blame her.” He put his hand up to prevent Jordan from speaking another negative word against Nia, “Listen, J,” he explained, “Nia came by to make me dinner just as Mom thought. But Kendall came over before Nia got here. I told Kendall I was through with her games and if she darkened my doorstep again, I would have her arrested. Mom, the only reason I let things get as far as they did was out of respect for our family’s history with the Montgomery’s. I warned Kendall to stay away and she appeared to agree. Unfortunately, I told her to let herself out and I went to take a shower. When Nia arrived, she found Kendall sprawled out on my bed wearing next to nothing and me coming out of the shower looking suspiciously guilty.”
His mother gasped. “Oh, my.”
“So she jumped to the conclusion that you slept with Kendall?” his sister finished.
“Yes - I was wearing nothing but a towel and Kendall had of course thrown our clothes around to make it look as if we had been in a hurry to make love. God, when I think of that woman, I want to strangle her.” He balled a fist and hit the side of the couch. I tried to explain to Nia that she misconstrued the situation, but she didn’t, or wouldn’t, believe me.”
“You’ve got to make her,” his mother said, grabbing him by the shoulders, “Listen to me, you have to go to her, Damon, and make her believe you. You can’t just let her go without a fight.”
“Why not? She did.” He stood up, wrenching himself from his mother’s arms. “She ran away without fighting for us, for our love.”
“Why should you go?” asked his mother, eyeing him. “Because you love her and she loves you. I saw it with my own eyes. That girl is crazy about you. You have to believe that.”
“It’s sad to say, Mom, but sometimes love is not enough.”
“I agree,” his sister chimed in. She had never been fond of Nia and was glad her brother was rid of her. “Nia clearly doesn’t love you enough if she believes you could cheat on her with that slut Kendall. I mean, of all the things.” Jordan was furious that Nia could think her brother was that slimy. Damon was a prince among men.
“J, just shut up, OK. Because you have no idea what you’re talking about,” he spat.
“A woman claims she loves you but walks out on you at the first sign of trouble? How do you expect me to react big brother? Do you expect me to turn the other cheek? You need a strong woman, one who is going to stand by you, no matter what, a woman to complement you when you take over Bradley Savings & Loan one day. Nia Taylor isn’t worthy of you. And she most certainly isn’t good enough for you.”
“Stop it, J. Do you hear me? I won’t have you talking against the woman I love,” Damon roared. “God, I can’t take this.” He rubbed his pounding head.
“Damon, I’m sorry,” Jordan said, coming to kneel down in front of her brother. She reached for him, but he shrugged her away.
“Please tell us, darling, what can we do to help you?” his mother asked.
“Yes,” Jordan agreed, looking up at him. “What can we do?”
Damon sighed. “First off, you can help me get out of here, away from this place.”
“That’s a marvelous idea.” His mother stood up. She walked over to grab her purse. “Why don’t you take a shower and get freshened up? If you want, your sister and I can pack a bag for you?” Simone opened his coat closet to find his suitcase. “You can come and stay at the house. What you need right now is to be with your family. We’ll help you get through this crisis.”
Damon could see Jordan searching his face for acceptance of the idea, but all he could do was lie down again on the couch.
“Mom,” Jordan said, interrupting their mother’s gushing. “Mom, stop. I don’t think Damon wants to be with his family right now. I think he wants to go someplace alone.”
“Oh, of course” his mother replied, turning around slowly. “I guess I got a bit ahead of myself.”
A silence fell over the room. “I have an idea,” his sister said out of the blue. “Doesn’t your friend Matthew have a cabin up in Wisconsin? You could go there and stay. You know, regroup. What do you think?”
Rubbing his chin, he mulled over the idea. Some time away from Chicago, from Nia and the memories that haunted him would probably do him so good.
“J, that’s a great idea. Can you arrange that?”
It wasn’t easy going to her mother’s grave site; Nia hadn’t been to visit in years. She’d stopped wanting to go and her aunt hadn’t pushed. Now, she stood facing the tombstone. Her father and aunt were at a safe distance behind to give her privacy.
Nia needed to come and try to bury the past and embrace her future, a future that included her father and her aunt, the only mother she had ever known. She’d taken a week off and over the last few days, the three of them had spent a great deal of time together, talking and soul searching, and Nia had come to the conclusion that her mother’s ghost was haunting her and she had to let her go. Everything wasn’t hunky-dory now; it was going to take time and a whole lot of patience. She and Nathan still had a lot of work to repair their relationship, but Nia was willing try and that was the first step.
