The Alex Chronicles:Girlfriends & Secrets (5 page)

I think Moses could be the one for her, or at
least the one for right now.

I’M DIONNE BURKE, AND I
am married to a wonderful man thanks to my friend, Alex.
God always puts someone in your path to help you, and when it comes
to Quentin and me, it was Alex. I have a good life. My husband and
I have been married almost three years. We own a media relations
company with plans to expand. We don’t have children, and that’s
something his annoying mother brings up on a regular basis. It’s
not like we aren’t trying. We’re trying every chance we
get.

I wanted
to adopt. Quentin made the mistake of telling his mother, hoping
she
’
d be happy. No, that
mean old goat said if we adopt, she
’
d die of a broken heart and cut him out of her
will. I tell you, it would be worth it just to see if
she
’
d really die.
Forgive me, God. I
know that
’
s
not right, but she gets on my nerves.

I love
the Lord and I love Quentin, but it
’
s becoming more and more difficult to breathe. My
girlfriends don
’
t
realize the pressure I
’
m
under to compete and maintain my place in this family. His father
is a neurosurgeon and his mother, Satan
’
s Handmaiden, is a fertility specialist. They own
a medical plaza with doctors specializing in everything from
cosmetic reconstruction, to cardiology, to vascular medicine, to
oncology. They also lease space to a couple of GPs and OBGYNs. All
the doctors are expected to donate time to my
mother-in-law
’
s pet
project, The Kenderson Free Clinic, named after her late father,
William Kenderson, III.

My
in-laws are on the boards of several charities, and they regularly
open their house for fundraising events. Quentin
’
s older sister is a general practitioner
married to a cardiologist. They have two children and their
practices are located in my in-laws building. This, of course,
makes them the family favorites. My brother-in-law, Adam, is the
wild child. You name it and he
’
s done it; drugs, alcohol. I recall Quentin saying
something about his having slept with several of his
sister
’
s friends, which
she, nor his mother were too happy about. He completely changed
when his best friend was killed in a car accident. At the funeral,
he said the Spirit of God spoke to him and told him to teach His
Word.

He left
home and went to the seminary. He came back, worked with a local
church and, a few years later, formed his own ministry. For our
second date, Quentin took me to his brother
’
s church. It wasn
’
t until we got married that I became a
member, mostly out of family loyalty. I liked my church but I
wanted to show my support for my brother-in-law. The rest of the
family stops by every now and then, but won
’
t join. His mother says they are very
comfortable at their church and have too many obligations. She said
it wouldn
’
t be fair to
abandon their pastor. He
’
s ninety-five and reads the same three scriptures every
week. Trust me, he doesn
’
t know if he has on matching shoes, let alone miss her
meddling behind at the church bake sale.

I love my
husband and I want him to be happy, but his mother is making it
difficult. She makes it a point to mention his ex-girlfriend,
Stacy, whenever she can. It
’
s no secret I
’
m
not her choice for Quentin. She wanted someone she could control,
but she got me. Because I
’
m quiet, people think I
’
m fragile, but I
’
m not. My friends say I
’
m a people pleaser, which explains my poor choice in men
prior to Quentin. I thank God for using Alex to bring us together,
because I probably would have ended up with I
don
’
t know
what.

I
’
m learning
from my friend, Chloe, how to be a lot more aggressive and
assertive. She says I need to explode every now and then.
I
’
ve tried it at work,
but I haven
’
t gotten up
the nerve yet to let loose on my mother-in-law. Given the right
situation, even the quietest of people have been known to snap. I
just hope it
’
s not in
private, because I need to let the family know I am nothing to be
toyed with. That
’
s
right, I am a strong, black woman. I can do all things through
Christ Jesus who strengthens me. Once I actually get that in my
spirit and believe it, my mother-in-law had better watch out. I
will be taking names and kicking butt, and she
’
s number one on my list.

My
mother-in-law only wants me around when it suits her needs. Step
one in my plan to establish myself in this family, is to not be at
Katherine
’
s beck and
call any more. If she wants to talk to me, she needs to take a
number and call me at a decent time. No more calling after
nine-thirty. That
’
s
Quentin and my time to reconnect.

And no
more demanding we come over at a moment
’
s notice for a family gathering. I have a family,
too, and we need to spend more time with them. And there will be no
more talk about shooting me up with baby making juice. Quentin and
I will get pregnant the old-fashioned way. If she has a problem
with that, then she can talk to God.

And there
will be no more talk about Quentin
’
s ex, Stacy. I
’
m his wife and she had better get used to it because
I
’
m not going anywhere.
And no more telling me once I get the house decorated she can host
a fundraiser at our home. First of all, we like our home the way it
is and, if we decide to host a fundraiser it will be because WE
want to and not because SHE says we HAVE TO. And if she
doesn
’
t like the way our
home is decorated, then don
’
t come over. And no more telling me how to dress. I know
how to dress, and if I need help, I
’
ll call Alex.

Who does
she think she is? I
’
m a
grown woman. I
’
m her
daughter-in-law not her daughter, and I am only obligated to extend
my affection to a certain point. And if she keeps pissing me off,
I
’
ll use those heart
paddles and shock some sense into her. She
’
s been campaigning for a tongue-lashing
and I
’
m about to cast my
vote and give it to her. She
’
s been running this family like we
’
re prisoners and she
’
s the warden. Well, I
’
ve got news for her, my parole came
through and I
’
m not
taking any more of her crap.

I think
I
’
m one major PMS surge
away from losing my cool. I hope I remember all of this when I
explode. But until then, I will be the dutiful, supportive, loving
and hopeful wife my husband married, who packs a loaded
gun.

_________________________

When I met my four best friends in college, I
had a little girl crush on each of them. I wanted to be like all of
them.

I wanted
to be pretty like Chloe. I wanted Taylor
’
s sassiness, Alex
’
s style and Kendell
’
s cooking skills. I never really knew where I fit
in. It seemed like they all had plans. The only plan I had, was to
finish college, get a good job and possibly leave with a husband.
When I left college, I left with a degree and still no real idea of
what I wanted to do. I also failed in my quest to graduate with a
fianc
é
.

After a couple of years, I ended up at an
accounting firm. I hated it. It was stable and that made my parents
happy.

Honestly,
my childhood hasn
’
t been
story book. I was born with a twin brother, Donnie. I know, Donnie
and Dionne. You
’
d think
my parents would have been a little more imaginative. I
can
’
t really blame them
though. They had been trying for quite a while to get pregnant and
when they did, it was twins. Unfortunately, Donnie died when we
were five. It really messed my parents up. At one point I thought
they were going to get a divorce.

They managed to patch things up and tried to
get pregnant again, but it never happened. They decided to turn all
of their attention on me. Lord have mercy, I love my parents, but
it was difficult there for a while. So when I got to college and
met these amazing girls who were so carefree, but with goals, I
wanted to be just like them.

When I
was younger, I wanted the fairy tale, complete with the perfect
marriage to a wonderful man, a couple of kids, a dog, a fulfilling
career and the perfect three bedroom Craftsman style bungalow with
a white picket fence. I got the husband and the marriage. But, I
also got a nagging mother- in-law, no kids, and a four bedroom
Santa Barbara style house. Instead of a dog, I got half ownership
in Burke Media, my husband
’
s company, and the job as its CFO. And the picket fence was
swapped out for a boxwood hedge.

_________________________

So
what
’
s my secret? I no
longer believe in fairy tales and don
’
t know how to tell my husband I
don
’
t want a baby or a
dog. But it might be too late.

MY NAME IS KENDELL MARTIN and I own Tangerine
Spice, one of the hottest restaurants on the West side. At least
that’s what my publicist says. But my publicist is also my best
friend’s husband.

What
’
s my story?
It
’
s a story
that
’
s as old as time. I
was in love with a wonderful, compassionate, attractive man. His
family owned a vineyard, which produced a high quality organic wine
and sparkling wine, which my dad was excited about. After our third
date, my dad went to work creating new recipes for his restaurants,
Blue Dove, Blue Belle and Blue Cafe to be compatible with their
wines. My ex-boyfriend
’
s
father and my Dad worked out an arrangement to serve their wine at
all of his restaurants and mine. It was a match made in
entrepreneur heaven.

My ex was
constantly making references about our getting married. You know
things like,
“
I told my
dad to hold back some of the port for our
wedding
”
,
“
Madrid would be a great
honeymoon location",
“
I
don
’
t want a big
wedding, just a few family and friends
”
,
“
I
think three children would be nice, two boys and a little girl I
can spoil as much as I spoil you". I went so far as to start
interviewing wedding planners. After three years of this premarital
talk, I just came out with it and asked.

“
When are
we getting married?
”

“
I have
no intentions of ever getting married
”
, he replied.

“
Then
tell me what is with all the wedding talk?
”

He
didn
’
t have an answer.
Turns out he was just saying what he needed to say to keep me happy
because of the business arrangement between our fathers.

When we
broke up, my dad was more heartbroken than I was. I recovered
quickly, but it took him a little longer. To help him get over this
breakup, I took him to Napa and introduced him to several far more
superior organic wines. Before we got back home, he had forgotten
all about the ex and his father
’
s sub par wine.

Do I
regret the time I spent walking in total oblivion? Yes, and no.
Should I have been a little more in tune with what was going on?
Yes. Should I have asked him early on how he felt about marriage?
Most definitely. Will I make the same mistake again? I pray to God
I don
’
t.

After
wasting all that time with someone who basically lied to me, I
turned my love life over to God and promised to listen to Him. He
told me to trust Him, and I have only been trusting Him with part
of my life. I have too much to accomplish to waste my time with
someone that doesn
’
t
really know what he wants to do. Or who will say whatever he has to
in order to seal the deal.

And what
happened to
“
Mr. I Have
No Intentions of Getting Married
”
? His dad made him an offer he
couldn
’
t refuse. Seems I
wasn
’
t the only woman he
was engaged to not marry. Rather than lose another big contract,
his dad made him marry his other non-fianc
é
. Seems her father owned five Sizzlers.
Now he
’
s living in
Idaho, managing one of his father-in-law
’
s restaurants. And yes, they serve his
dad
’
s wine. Pay back can
be painful. I almost feel sorry for him, but you
shouldn
’
t make marital
promises you don
’
t
intend to keep.