Twisted (28 page)

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Authors: Tracy Brown

BOOK: Twisted
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She told him about her life since she'd moved to Atlanta. How she'd enrolled in college and lived with her mother until after she graduated. Celeste described for him the rapport she had built with her mother and her grandmother. Nana was so full of wisdom, although she was growing slightly senile as she got older. Celeste told Rah-lo how Nana's anecdotes about love and life had changed her perspective on many things. She also told him how her mom had stayed up late with her while she completed important assignments while she was in college. They had supported Celeste from start to finish. She told him about landing her dream job and purchasing her condominium and how good it felt to buy her
own
car for once and the joy she found in decorating her new home. She had lost weight, cut her hair, and changed her whole life around and it felt so good. She spared him the details of her new romance with Bryson. “But I did miss you,” she admitted.
Rah-lo was so happy to hear that. He looked into her eyes seriously. “That night we met on Targee Street, I was
there for a reason. I feel like I was there that night waiting for
you.
” He kissed her again. “I'm sorry,” he said. “I never should have let you walk away from me.”
He kissed her, and made love to her once more. Later, Rah-lo relaxed in the huge claw-foot bathtub with Celeste perched comfortably between his legs. She needed to soak after all the sex they'd been having. Her head rested on his chest, his arms held her close to him, and the steamy water engulfed them as they sat together, reconnecting after so many years. They sat in silence this way for a long while. Both of them were relishing the feeling of being back in each other's arms again, the feeling of not having to worry about time or spouses or responsibilities. They were in a world all their own.
“I love you,” he said, breaking the long silence.
She smiled. “I love you, too.” She scooped up some vanilla and jasmine—scented bubbles in her hand and wiped them on Rah-lo's face. He laughed. So did she. As they sat together in the bathtub, playing and talking and enjoying each other's company, Celeste realized that this was what she had always wanted. She sat with her head on his chest and listened to the sounds of his breathing, the rhythm of his heartbeat, and she fell in love all over again. This just felt so right.
She turned over on her stomach and kissed him. Rah-lo held on to her big booty for dear life and felt so full of love for her at that moment that he would have asked her to marry him if he wasn't already married to Asia. When their
kiss finally ended, he looked at Celeste lovingly and he began to wash her body tenderly. He lathered her up and kissed her all over when she was clean. It dawned on Celeste that he was there to stay. There was no more wife to contend with, no more of Rah-lo's hurried exits soon after their lovemaking ended. This was the real thing. When he finished bathing her, she returned the favor. She couldn't stop kissing him. His lips seemed to be calling her name. His hands began to roam across her body and she was ready for another trip to paradise.
 
 
That afternoon, the hospital called. Ishmael was showing signs of consciousness. The two of them went back to the hospital and went to Ishmael's bedside. He lay there looking at them, but unable to speak with a tube down his throat.
Celeste squeezed his hand. “Ish, we're here. You're gonna be okay,” she reassured him. To her delight, he squeezed her hand back. She smiled at Rah-lo, her eyes full of hope.
Rah-lo smiled weakly. He looked at his former friend and then turned to Celeste. “Let me get a minute with him alone please?” Rah-lo asked. Celeste nodded and exited the room, leaving Rah-lo alone with his friend.
Rah-lo sat in the chair next to Ishmael's bed and looked at his friend. “Ish, listen,” Rah-lo said, unsure whether Ishmael was too drugged up to listen. But Rah-lo had some things to
get off his chest. “I won't sit here and act like I'm not still mad at you. I am. I know that you have love for Celeste. But you know how I feel about her—how I've always felt about her. And still you kept pursuing her in a sneaky way—calling her without telling me, coming down here when you knew that I still wanted her.” Rah-lo shook his head and looked at Ishmael. He was weak and heavily sedated by all the painkillers. Rah-lo almost felt bad for what he was saying, but it was the truth. Ishmael had betrayed Rah-lo in more ways than one. “Then there's the shit with Cito. I thought we were boys.” Rah-lo looked at his friend and forced a smile. Ishmael looked like he was slipping away. Rah-lo had to accept that this could be his last conversation with his friend. “I guess we both made some mistakes and shit,” he managed. “I just want to say that I forgive you. And I hope that you forgive me too for whatever I did to hurt you.” Ishmael stared at Rah-lo, unable to respond. But Ishmael heard what Rah-lo had come to say.
“Remember when we were kids, Ish? Every dime piece in the hood had a crush on you and you used to be a little Casanova.” Rah-lo smiled at the memory. “That never changed. But when you walk out of here, you're gonna stop that. These women are losing their minds these days and that shit is out of hand now. Nina's dead. She tried to kill you and she killed herself instead. But that's not your fault. You didn't make her go crazy. Just like I didn't make Asia a fucking madwoman. But still, we gotta be easy from now on. I'm
done with that player shit. I think Celeste is gonna give me another chance. This time I'm not gonna fuck that up.”
Rah-lo sat with Ishmael for a while longer, offering him reassurance that he would pull through. The doctor interrupted and asked Rah-lo to leave so they could run some tests, and he stepped back into the waiting room. When he came out, Celeste sat alone. She looked up at him and offered a smile. He sat down in a chair beside her and sighed. Within minutes, Rah-lo had dozed off. He was awakened by Celeste's wailing cry. Opening his eyes, Rah-lo looked around and saw the doctors trying to calm her down. Immediately, Rah-lo's heart sank. He looked to one of the nurses for clarification. She shook her head at him somberly.
“Your friend Mr. Wright passed away a few minutes ago. Every effort was made to resuscitate him, but we were unsuccessful. I'm sorry.”
Rah-lo pulled Celeste into a tight embrace and held her as she was wracked with sobs. Ishmael was dead.
 
 
Clean Slates
A
sia dialed her mother's number and dried her tears. Hearing her husband dismiss her for the hundredth time in the past week was more than she could stand. She felt helpless and hopeless and tired of trying to convince him to stay with her. Asia knew that Nina had gone too far. But truthfully, Asia might have done the same thing had she seen Rah-lo with Celeste. Asia had finally admitted to herself that it wasn't about her loving Rah-lo as much as it was about her not wanting to lose him to Celeste. She finally wondered if this whole thing had gone too far. Ishmael lay dying and Nina lay cold in the morgue.
Mrs. Hudson answered and was relieved to hear her daughter's voice. “Chile, you have no idea how worried I've
been. I keep dreaming about funerals and I don't know if it's yours, Raheem's, or that mistress of his!”
Asia sighed. “It might be one of Rah-lo's friends. He got run over by a car and he's in critical condition.”
Mrs. Hudson gasped. “That's terrible. Are you okay, Asia? When are you coming back home?”
Asia shrugged. “I'll be back soon. Rah-lo won't listen to me and I'm tired of fighting for him. I guess it's over.”
Angela Hudson heard the pain and resignation in her daughter's voice. Mrs. Hudson had never been the type of mother to hold or coddle a child. But at that moment, she wanted nothing more than to hold her daughter and tell her that she was going to be all right. “You're strong, Asia,” she said. “No man is strong enough to break you. Remember that.”
Asia wished she believed that. But she didn't. She felt broken. Rah-lo had tossed her aside like yesterday's newspaper.
“Rasheeda wants to talk to you,” Asia's mom said, handing her granddaughter the phone.
“Ma?” Rasheeda said.
“Hi,” Asia said, sounding tired and fed up.
“Ma, when are you coming back? I miss you.”
Asia felt her heart melt. She and Rasheeda fought all the time. Rasheeda was a daddy's girl and always had been. To hear her express that she missed her mom touched Asia profoundly. “You do?”
“Yeah,” Rasheeda said. “It's nice here at Grandma's
house, but we want to go home.” Rasheeda thought about her parents' marriage and how she'd overheard her grandmother on the phone telling someone that Asia just couldn't accept that Rah-lo didn't love her anymore. “Ma, even if Daddy wants to leave, it's okay. You still have us. Raleigh and Raven are being good for Grandma. And I haven't been cutting class or none of that. We know you need us to be good right now, so we're not trying to add to your stress. Just come home. We love you.”
Asia felt tears cascading down her face as she listened to her daughter pour her heart out. “Thanks, 'Sheeda,” she managed. “I love you, too. All of you. Daddy does, too.” She sighed. “We're not gonna be together anymore, but he'll still be there for you guys. He promised me that. I'm gonna come home tomorrow morning.” She thought for a moment about the things Rah-lo had been saying lately. She took a deep breath and then said, “'Sheeda, I know I haven't been the best mother in the world. A lot of what your father said about me was true. And I'm not gonna pretend that I'm gonna be perfect when I come home. But I'm gonna work on being a better mother to you all. I really am.”
Rasheeda smiled. “Come home, Ma,” Rasheeda urged.
Asia concluded her conversation with her daughter and began packing her things. Going home was exactly what she intended to do. She may have lost her husband. But she finally appreciated the blessing she still had in her daughters—and in her mother, too. Asia decided that it was time for her
to start fresh, and that's just what she would do when she got back to New York. Asia had finally found the strength to stand on her own two feet and the courage to let Rah-lo go.
 
 
The day of Ishmael's funeral in Brooklyn was a solemn one for all who attended. Even members of rival crews came out to show their respect for one of the last Brooklyn dons in the game. Rah-lo paid all of the expenses, and he hosted the funeral repast at Akwaaba Mansion in Stuyvesant Heights. No expense was spared and Ishmael was given a send-off fit for royalty. Despite their differences, Ishmael had been one of Rah-lo's lifelong friends. Instead of focusing on their differences at the end of Ishmael's life, Rah-lo remembered the good times. And there had been a ton of them.
For the first time, Rah-lo, Asia, and Celeste were present at an event simultaneously. But Asia behaved and kept her distance from Celeste. Celeste was respectful and kept her distance from Rah-lo, focusing instead on grieving for Ishmael for herself. Robin sat in pained silence, rocking Hezekiah in her arms for much of the night. Charly came decked out in a curve-hugging black suit with a big dramatic hat atop her head. At first glance, anyone would have assumed that she was Ishmael's widow. She cried and carried on the loudest and sat up front in the family pew as if she belonged there. The shock and sadness among all those present was palpable. Ishmael hadn't deserved what had happened to him,
and the tragedy made them all appreciate life a little bit more.
Celeste sat behind Rah-lo during the funeral. At the repast she watched him from across the room. He stood with his daughters and he looked so powerful, so in control. The way he directed the caterers and the staff to keep everything running smoothly, even the way he held his youngest daughter's chin in his hand—he exuded power and strength. Celeste loved him more than ever. Along with Ishmael, she and Rah-lo had buried their past, and now they looked forward to forging ahead once again—together.
She had gone to talk to Bryson soon after Ishmael's death. It was one of the hardest conversations she had ever had. As she walked into Bryson's house and sat down, she wondered if she had completely lost her mind. He was a single heterosexual man with a great job, no kids, and no crazed ex wreaking havoc in his life. He had no felony convictions, no lengthy rap sheets, and no beef in the streets. He was handsome, his sex was utterly amazing, and she still couldn't make herself feel more for him than the love that she felt for Rah-lo. She felt like such a fucking idiot.
Bryson noticed that she seemed upset. She wasn't her usually happy and seductive self. Bryson had really begun to care for Celeste. He liked having her around and was wondering if they could build something together. “What's the matter?” he asked. “Looks like you have something on your mind.”
Celeste sat forward in her chair and played with her hands. This wasn't going to be easy. “Bryson, I think we need to fall back,” she said.
He frowned. He wanted the opposite. “Why?” he asked. “Did I do something wrong?”
She shook her head. “No. You did everything right.” She sighed. “I mean that. You have been perfect!” She shook her head, again wondering what kind of spell Rah-lo had cast on her to make her walk away from this man. “But I have some unfinished business in a past relationship. And I don't want to keep seeing you while I try to sift through whatever's left of my past. I just think you're a great man and I could really be with you … but right now I have to fall back and sort things out with my ex before this goes any further.”
Bryson nodded. He appreciated her honesty. At least she wasn't the type of woman to carry on two full-fledged relationships simultaneously the way that his ex had. “Okay,” he said, the disappointment palpable in his voice. “I respect that.”
She hated that he was making it easy. But she also appreciated it. She did love Rah-lo, whether it was smart to do so or not. She couldn't help it. As hard as it was to walk away from a man as good as Bryson, she had to follow her heart. She stood and kissed Bryson good-bye, and he hugged her tightly.
“I can't kiss these lips anymore?” he asked.
Celeste smiled. “Don't tempt me,” she said. She picked up her purse and walked to the door. Turning around to look at him one last time, she winked at him and waved. As she walked to her car, she wondered how long she would continue to second-guess the decision she had just made.

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