“I can only prove one since she called here. But a woman knows, and I looked the other way far too many times because a piece of my heart always belonged to Freedom.”
Mama’s usually attractive brown face scrunched in disgust. “Then leave his ass.”
“What?” My mouth popped open in amazement. “Mama?”
She jabbed the table. “I always thought he was a little too slick, but your father seemed to like him. Over time, I grew to love him like a son. But he has to go. We don’t tolerate cheating. You have sons, and we’re not about to teach them that infidelity is an option in a marriage.”
I flung my arms around her neck. “Thank you. Thank you.”
My mother and I had rarely been on the same team when it meant opposing my father.
Mama chuckled and hugged me tightly. “You should have led with Kody cheating. We wasted time arguing over nothing.” She pulled back with a discerning gaze. “I can tell you have the glow of love. My advice, whether you take it or not, is to give yourself space between men. Make sure it’s a clean break and that you’re truly ready to be the woman of a superstar… or any man’s woman.”
“I will.” I embraced her again, tears of relief and hope sprinkled my eyes. “Thank you, Mama.”
Kody finally strolledin late that night. I stayed awake, working out the details for the separation of our business and financials at the dining room table. Jamie was spending another night with Freedom, and my mother decided to keep KJ so Icould speak with Kody in private. She told me she would work on my father.
With bloodshot eyes, he stopped at the doorway, loosening his tie. “Guess you decided to remember you have a husband.”
I pushed the laptop away from me and clasped my hands together, and without preamble, announced, “I want a divorce. We don’t love each other the way we should for a strong, healthy marriage.”
“No,youdon’t love me the way we should for a strong, healthy marriage.” The slight tick in his temple was the only telltale sign that what I said impacted him as he pulled out a chair and plopped down across from me. “I have loved you since the day in the hall when I almost hit you with that basketball, and I have been waiting for the other shoe to drop ever since. Bet you didn’t know that I envied Freedom because he had you hooked, and that you were the reason our friendship slowly deteriorated.”
Rarely did Kody show vulnerability. He preferred expressing anger to mask his sadness or frustration. At the funeral of his mother four years ago, he didn’t shed tears despite how deeply he loved her. He hated losing, especially to Freedom. I expected rage and yelling. Not this quiet resignation and confession.
“I wanted you to pay attention to me, to look at me with those beautiful eyes of yours with adoration like you did Freedom. I teased Free mercilessly, hoping that he would say something that indicated that he hadn’t fallen in love with you. I flirted with you, hoping you could really see me, and you never did. When he refused to tell me anything about whether or not you were having sex, I knew he loved you. Freedom used to brag about the girls he’d been with, yet refused even to tell me if he kissed you. One day, I followed him to the clearing and hid. He didn’t see me. You came soon after, and the way that you two looked at each other, I knew you would never love me.
Between his odd jobs, school, music, and you, he didn’t have time for me anymore, and our friendship took a backseat. I’m sure he still thought we were best friends who just hadn’t had time to catch up. He didn’t know that jealousy and envy easily slip into hate.”
Kody had drifted into the past. The steeliness of his jaw and the vacant look in his eyes foreshadowed the worst of this unexpected admission of truth. “So, when Peace approached me about making money because he didn’t want to bother his brother, who’d been working hard to pay for his prom, I told him about a house in which the couple would be going out of town. It was my mother’s boss's home, and I knew he had money and jewelry. I told him not to tell Freedom because Freedom would try to stop him.
I would be on lookout, and he would go in and rob the house. Peace was scared and wanted to back out while we were outside the house. I called him a coward and said that if it were Freedom, we’d already be home counting the bills. Peace went inside, and when he took too long, I followed him in. Then I realized why he had taken so long, the couple was home, and he was trying to find a way out without alerting. The wife left her jewelry bag in the hallway bathroom. I took it and eased back out, and eventually, Peace left, except they saw a glimpse. That glimpse fit the description of Freedom.”
He took a long, wary, shaky breath. “Your father was patrolling nearby and saw me running at the same time as the 911 call. He searched my pockets and found the jewelry. I was scared to death. When he said he would go easy because I was a star basketball player, had a bright future, and he believed it was Freedom’s idea, I didn’t correct him. Your father demanded to know where Freedom hung out, and I told him about the clearing. He let me go and told me that if I ever said a word, he would arrest me. I later heard Freedom was detainedbecause the jewelry was found at the clearing, and there was a witness. Yesterday, before everything happened with Jamie, I told Freedom that your father set him up.”
The gravity of what he said churned my stomach, and I ran from the table and made it to the bathroom to throw up. I hugged the toilet as another wave of nausea attacked me. I wailed, “No. No. No.”
Kody dropped down to the floor with me and embraced me. He mumbled apologies over and over as we rocked together until I was all cried out. Emotionally drained, I shifted to rest against the wall, and Kody joined me.
“We had a few good years, didn’t we?” He smiled weakly.
I glanced at his familiar side profile. “Yeah. For a long time, I loved being your woman and taking care of you and our sons.”
He inhaled and exhaled deeply. “I won’t fight you on the divorce. We’ll figure out the business and custody for both boys.” His reddened eyes sparkled bright. “I do love Jamie as much as I love KJ, although it may not have always seemed that way. Just didn’t know how to raise a son who didn’t like the same things I did.”
“I know.” I then leaned on his shoulder. “Why did you tell me about my father?”
“Because Freedom won’t.” Kody tapped the back of his head on the wall. “And he was once my best friend.”
I don’t know how long we sat there like that, lodged between our winding past and the unknown of our future.
THREE MONTHS LATER
The two of us hung our arms over the wooden fence, watching the four horses run around the corral. The handler I’d hired prepared saddles for us to ride. Jamie pointed to a brown mare. “Think I want that one to be mine.”
“I like her for you.” I pressed his cowboy hat down lower playfully. “Which one should be mine?”
“The black beauty.” We both focused on the largest horse there. “He looks like you.”
