Feelin' the Vibe (33 page)

I
rolled over and looked at the clock: 6:07 a.m. I patted the other side of the bed, and Taylor wasn’t there. My head popped
up and I got out of bed. I walked through the house. Jennifer and Aaron were packing their car to leave. When they saw me
come down the stairs, they looked shocked. They’d told me they were leaving early so Nicole could make it to school in time.
Obviously there was a baffled look on my face, because Jennifer said, “Taylor left a few minutes ago.”

I was slightly embarrassed, because I didn’t realize anyone knew she’d stayed the night. “Oh, yeah, she fell asleep. She told
me she was leaving early.”

Nicole sat in the family room, bundled in her coat, pissed that she was up at the crack of dawn. I walked in and kissed her
on the cheek. “Have a good day, Nikki.”

She nodded and looked extremely agitated as I walked her to the door. When they left, I quickly called Taylor. When she answered,
I said, “So is that how we do it now? You come get a piece and leave before sunrise?”

“Look, Devin. We aren’t doing anything. I came to keep you company last night because you deserved it, but I don’t plan to
just be getting a piece from you,” she said with conviction.

“But I’ve offered you more.”

“And I’ve declined.”

Her words stung and would have offended anyone who had any feelings for her. I wondered when all this anger surfaced. It just
didn’t make sense. I said, “Taylor, what’s wrong? Why are you acting like this?”

“Your phone is in the bathroom. Check your text messages.” She hung up.

I rushed upstairs and into the bathroom and looked at my text messages. C Winston had left four new messages through the night.
The first one read:
BRAVO DEVIN
! The next one:
DID YOU EVER REALLY LOVE ME
? The next:
I’M SICK WITHOUT YOU. AND FINALLY: IT’S JUST NOT FAIR THAT WE NEVER HAD OUR TIME
.

My heart sank. What the hell was she doing up all night sending these messages? I called her, and she didn’t answer. I called
nearly ten times before my parents got up and began moving around the house. A part of me wondered if I was interrupting her
home, but the other part didn’t care. She was hurt and missing me the same way I missed her. We’d bypassed each other enough
on the road of life. An hour or so later, my parents’ car came to take them to the airport, and it wasn’t even eight o’clock
yet. I didn’t have to be anywhere until ten. I needed to see Clark.

When I called back again, she answered the phone groggily. “Hello?”

“Clark.”

Her voice perked up. “Devin?” She sounded surprised to hear from me.

“Yes, Clark. It’s me. Yes, I’ve always loved you and I’m more sick without you and whatever time you want to be our time,
let’s make it happen.”

She sucked her teeth and I could hear her moving around in her bed. “What?”

“I’m responding to all the messages you sent me last night.”

She coughed and laughed. “Devin, I was so drunk.”

“A drunk man’s words are a sober man’s thoughts. But I’m sober as shit right now. My words and my thoughts are the same. I’ve
spent almost ten years missing you, regretting every relationship because of you. I can’t do it anymore. Our lives have grown
together; despite all the time we spent apart. Let’s stop fooling ourselves.”

“Devin, how can you just make that decision today and you were telling the world how much you loved your wife last night?”

“Clark, my wife and I are separated and we plan to legalize it next week.”

She sniffed, and I continued pouring my heart out. “You deserve me. You deserve a good man that loves you.” She started crying,
and I kept going. “And I deserve you. We are supposed to be together, and I don’t care what anyone thinks about it.”

“Devin, I’m getting a divorce. My husband really did have a relationship with that girl.”

For some strange reason, I never doubted that he was guilty. Clark deserved a better life and I wanted to give it to her.
I felt as if God had given me another chance, and I promised not to mess it up this time.

I
met Devin at his condo in DC the day after the election. When I walked in the door, he said, “Would you move into a house
that I lived in with an ex-wife?”

“I was your first wife, Devin, and from the looks of things, your only wife. Why wouldn’t I?”

“I hoped you’d say yes. I want you with me.”

We haven’t left each other since that day. Devin gave me an astronomical budget to redecorate his home and make it my own.
We stayed in his DC condo until the renovations were done. Then we moved to our home in Mitchellville. It was all I ever dreamed
my house to be.

I sold it all,
everything
. This was a fresh start and the promise of the life I always wanted. The house sold for way below market value, and I barely
broke even because of the second mortgage on the house. Devin settled all of my outstanding debt. That was the least I could
do for Kenneth. When he got out of jail, at least he’d be starting with a clean slate. I wasn’t sure what he planned to do,
but that was no longer my problem. I took on Mia’s tuition, because she was still my child. Our relationship was outside of
Kenneth.

Devin and I opted to be life partners and not taint our bond with marriage. We were committed to each other, and we wanted
to wake up every day and reaffirm that commitment. We didn’t need any legal papers to force us to be together. Our union was
totally at will. I didn’t fear him leaving and he didn’t fear me leaving. We’d been married spiritually for a long time, and
we had nothing to prove to anyone.

My new job as director of programs for Love My People has been adventurous and rewarding. My purpose would spread around the
globe, helping black girls and women everywhere. It was my responsibility to organize high-society charity events to raise
funds for our programs. That was probably what I loved most. Ms. Teeny is my well-paid assistant director, and she loves getting
the opportunity to travel and look at all the fine black men this world has to offer.

She wouldn’t be accompanying Devin and I when we headed back to Nicaragua to pick up our baby, Devin. Amina had passed away
about a month before, and Señora Gonzales contacted Devin to ask if he and his wife were still interested in adopting the
baby. We never thought twice. Instead, we began handling things and making sure the paperwork was processed correctly.

When we got on that little plane from Managua to the Corn Islands, I held his hand tightly, still the bumpy ride I recalled,
but this time I wasn’t afraid. I was excited about life. Our life together and the life of our new baby.

When we arrived at the outreach center, Señora Gonzales was glad to see us. We hugged and she told us how Baby Devin was doing.
He’d tested negative before he turned nine months.

Señora Gonzales wanted to have a small going-away party for him. He was such a happy baby and even sweeter than I recalled.
We stayed the night and took Baby Devin to the hotel with us. I had expected him to take a moment to adjust, but he fell right
asleep in the Pack ’n Play we’d rented from the hotel.

Before we left the next day, we said our good-byes to Señora Gonzales. We promised her that we’d be sure Baby Devin knew his
heritage and we’d bring him back as often as possible when we were doing our outreach work. We decided to tack
Patterson
on the end of his name, and not change his last name in case he ever wanted to know more about his biological family. Señora
Gonzales looked at me as we were about to leave. “You have something to tell me, no?”

“Huh?”

“I can look at you and see something.”

Devin smiled and said, “Yes, we’re expecting a baby, too.”

“No!” she said dramatically. She yanked me and hugged me. “God bless you.”

My eyes shot at Devin. We’d agreed to keep it under wraps until my second trimester. I guess we were merely a week away. So
it was no harm. Yep, on our first try, the IVF worked. Devin and I were biologically created for each other. When we told
people that we were adopting a baby, those who knew we were trying to conceive thought we were crazy. We were just making
up for lost time, and I’d never been more happy and fulfilled in my entire adult life.

1.  Did you feel that Clark had lost herself in her marriage? If so, what could she have done differently?

2.  What do you feel was Devin’s motive for marrying Taylor?

3.  Did you get the impression that Taylor was in love with Devin? Why or why not?

4.  Did Kenneth seem to resent Clark? Where did it seem to stem from?

5.  What were your initial thoughts when Clark decided to reach out to Devin? Was it wise?

6.  Do you think Clark would have made the first call if her marriage was more stable?

7.  Do you think that Clark and Devin were realistic about their feelings for each other after so much time had passed?

8.  Would you have been able to trust Devin if you were Clark?

9.  Would you have been able to support Kenneth during his dilemma? Why do you think Clark did?

10.  How do you think Taylor and Devin’s marriage would have played out without Clark in the picture?

11.  Did you have any compassion for Kenneth in the end?

12.  Did you think all the characters got what they deserved?