Two Tears in a Bucket (26 page)

“
Uh-uh?”

“
Who’s Simone to you?” he asked.

“
Umm, my aunt. No, my sister.” Confused, Jordan turned to Alicia for the correct answer. “I don’t know. She’s something.”

“
My mother calls Simone her aunt,” Alicia added. “Simone says sister.”

“
Simone says sister? Good God almighty.” Thomas couldn’t believe Simone was feeding into Angela’s scandal. “Listen, Jordan,” Thomas said as he sat next to Jordan at the kitchen table. “I’m going to tell you this because you need to know the truth. It’s one thing for Angela to raise you, but to
brainwash
you is something else. Baby Girl, Simone is your mother. Angela is Simone’s mother, which makes her your grandmother and me your grandfather. Ricardo? Well, Ricardo ain’t shit!”

“
Thomas!” Mae yelled.

“
Well, he ain’t.”

“
Granddaddy, Simone’s not my mother. Angela is.”

“
Alicia, tell her who her real mother is. You won’t get in any trouble. If your crazy-ass momma asks you how she found out, just tell her I told her.”

“
Well…” Alicia sighed as Jordan waited on the edge of her seat. “Simone is your mother, but don’t tell Mommy I told you.”

“
You serious?”

“
Yeah,” Alicia said. “And remember, I didn’t tell you.”

“
When you were lying up in that hospital, a teeny-tiny little baby, Simone,
your real momma
, sat up there with you every day by herself. She used to spend her whole paycheck buying you little designer outfits and everything. You even slept in the bed with her. I used to think she was gon’ roll over and flatten you like a pancake.” Thomas chuckled.

“
So if Simone’s my mother, where’s my father?”

“
We’ll save that for another day,” Thomas said. “I can’t believe
your grandmother
,” he reiterated, looking at Jordan. “She shoulda been told you the truth.”

“
Told her the truth about what?” Simone shouted as she walked inside the house.

“
That you’re my mother,” Jordan stood up from the kitchen table and walked toward Simone, staring at her as if she was seeing her for the first time. For the first time as her mother.

Simone froze. She hadn’t expected that. “Who started this conversation?” she asked, her eyes fixed on Thomas.

“
You shoulda been told her, Simone. I didn’t know your momma was keeping that from her.”

“
Simone,” Jordan said, “if you my mother, how come when we out and people ask you who I am, you never say I’m your daughter?”

The question cut deeply into Simone’s heart. She grabbed her daughter’s hand and led her back to the couch. “Jordan, baby, oh my goodness. Are you serious?” she said as she sat Jordan in her lap. “Who wouldn’t want you for a daughter? You’re the prettiest little girl in the world, you’re funny, smart…oh my goodness, Jordan, believe me. I wanted to shout it to the whole entire world but you didn’t know. And I was scared if I told you, Angela would start playing tricks again, and I wouldn’t be able to see you. Now watch what happens when she finds out you know the truth.”

“
Well,” Jordan said, looking down at the floor, “if I’m your daughter, how come I live with her? How come I don’t live with you and Kayla?”

Simone felt herself getting upset. “Jordan, you did live with me. Your grandmother was supposedly doing me a favor by watching you. Then one day, out of nowhere, she decided she wasn’t giving you back. I called the police and everything.”

Thomas leaned against the archway that divided the kitchen from the living room. “Jordan, I don’t want you to be mad at Simone or your grandmother. Simone was young, and your grandmother’s just crazy.” His playful snicker caused Jordan to smile, too. “I’m just kidding, Jordan,” he said as he grabbed his camera from the kitchen table.

Jordan looked up at her mother. “So, Simone, if you’re my real mother, where’s my real father?”

“
Uh, Jordan, I think you’ve had enough for one day,” Simone said as the unexpected flash from Thomas’s camera lit up the room.

● ● ●

Angela could tell something was wrong with Jordan the minute she walked in the front door. She wasn’t her usual happy-go-lucky self, ranting and raving about where Simone had taken her or what she had bought her. Instead, she ran straight to her room and closed her door.

“
Did something happen this weekend that I need to know about?” Angela asked as she walked into Alicia’s room and closed the door. The smell of fingernail polish lingered in the air as Alicia coated her toes with brick-red polish.

“
Umm, something like what?” Alicia asked, more focused on the polish than her stepmother.

“
Where’d y’all go?” Angela huffed, crossing her arms impatiently. She was asking the questions, not Alicia.

“
To Simone’s father’s house.”

“
Did Simone’s father say anything to Jordan?”

“
Like what?” She blew her nails dry, not bothering to look Angela’s way.

“
Alicia, so help me. I’ma jump across that bed and make you eat that polish,” Angela threatened through tight lips. “Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. Did Thomas say something to Jordan, yes or no!”

“
Yes,” Alicia mumbled, looking shamelessly at Angela.

“
Yes, what?”

“
Yes…he told Jordan the truth. That Simone’s her mother.”

Angela fumed. “Why didn’t you say something to me?”

“’
Cause she was fine all weekend. She didn’t get upset until she came here. What’s the big deal anyway? Simone
is
her mother.”

Angela sprang across the room and slapped Alicia across her face, leaving the imprint of her hand in her flesh. “I’m her mother,” she growled.

Angela stormed from the room, slamming Alicia’s door. Although tempted to talk to Jordan, she decided against it. She was too upset to approach her now. If anything, she needed to make sure the pieces to her puzzle were still intact.

Tucked neatly in a secret file, hidden deep in her closet, were the papers from years ago. The papers Beatrice signed on behalf of Kevin, which allowed the judge to grant custody to Angela and Ricardo. It was all perfectly legal. Or was it?

Chapter Twenty-Two

Early 1996

Simone was a natural when it came to selling homes and catering to the needs of her clients. The top-selling agent in her office, Simone celebrated her success by trading in her Camry for a brand
-
spanking
-
new white Lincoln Navigator. Everything in life seemed to be going great. Jordan knew who she was and practically lived with Simone. Business was good, and Simone didn’t have a financial worry in the world. Life would be perfect, if only she could find a faithful companion. Always ready and willing to offer his love was good ole Andre Perkins.

“
So,” Andre whispered as they sat on the leather couch watching a movie in the dark. Girly flicks weren’t his thing, but he sat watching
Love and Basketball
with Simone anyway. Kayla was stretched out asleep between them. “You gonna tell me you don’t love me anymore?”

“
Of course, I love you, Andre. I just don’t love us.”

“
What you mean by that?”

“
The name calling, the lies, the strippers, you strolling in all hours of the night, the silent treatment, your attitude.” Simone looked at him and asked, “Any of that sound familiar? I mean, what we’re doing now is how we were in the beginning, but this ain’t us. I mean, at least not the new us.”

“
Simone, everything you’re saying is true. But please believe me when I say nothing happened between me and Sunshine.”

“
Whatever, Andre.”

“
I’m serious, Simone, and I’m sorry for everything. I know how it looked, and I can imagine how it sounded. I just wanna make it up to you.”

“
Make it up to me for what? Because I’m doing good?”

“
Damn, how easily we forget. Did you need a down payment on your truck, or did the value in the Camry hold up like I told you it would?”

Simone was speechless. So much had happened that she’d forgotten how lovingly generous Andre used to be. In the forefront of her mind was the lying, cheating dog he’d become.

“
Look, I don’t know when things turned. All I know is that I love you.” He draped his arm across the back of the couch and gently massaged Simone’s neck with his fingers. “Why don’t you let me take you away this weekend…to see if we can mend things? Let me see if I can make you fall back in love with me, or back in love with us.”

“
I can’t, Andre. I have appointments.”

“
Can’t you reschedule them, just this once?”

“
You know the last time we went away, you—”

“
Simone!” Andre huffed, cutting her off. “Stop living in the past. Let’s just have a nice weekend and see if we can’t start over. We have to at least try.” He looked down at Kayla. “We owe that much to her. I don’t want her to be like every other child out there, being raised by only one of her parents. I want her to have both of us every day.”

Simone sighed. She was hesitant and it showed.

“
We don’t have to hop on a plane, but let me plan a little weekend for you. I’ll make it one you won’t forget. I promise.”

The weekend came, and things didn’t go according to plan.

“
I’m sorry, Andre,” Simone said as she pulled into the driveway of a house she was trying to sell. “I rescheduled all of my appointments, and then these clients called talking about backing out of their contract. I can’t just let it fall through. It’s my biggest deal, so I gotta do something to save it.” She pulled the visor down and flipped open the mirror to apply a little gloss to her lips. Not enough to be glamorous, but a modest dab to accent her smile.

“
Ah, man,” she said as her clients pulled into the driveway behind her. “They brought their mothers.”

“
So how long you gon’ be?” Andre asked with little patience.

“
I don’t know. Hopefully not long.” Flipping the visor back up, she threw on her professional smile and whispered, “Wish me luck,” as she climbed from the truck.

Simone’s clients stayed in the house for over an hour. Every so often, she went outside to check on Andre, but the last time she checked, he’d reclined the seat and dozed off.

“
I’m so sorry. I didn’t know they were gonna take that long, but I saved the deal and got a referral,” Simone rejoiced later. “Aren’t you proud of me?” she beamed, while backing out the driveway, but Andre didn’t share in the blissful moment.

“
Andre?” she said again, stealing a quick peek at him as he stared out the window, ignoring her.
Now see, this is the dumb shit I’m talking about,
she screamed inside, immediately regretting that she’d cancelled her other appointments.

The tension in the truck was suffocating. After riding in silence for nearly ten minutes, Simone was ready to yank out her hair.

“
You’re really killing me,” she mumbled, braking for a traffic light.

“
I’m killing you?” he shouted back.

“
Yes, Andre. You act like I scheduled the appointment on purpose. I told you what happened.”

“
Simone, you could’ve cancelled it! You didn’t have to show them the house.”

“
Cancel it and what, let it fall through? I had to show them damn near twenty houses before they finally agreed on that one,” she raved. “And now I’m just supposed to let it fall through?”

“
Man, whatever.”

“
No, Andre, it’s not whatever. I don’t get a paycheck every two weeks anymore so it can’t just be whatever when I have a mortgage.”

“
Fuck you and your mortgage!”

“
Fuck me? You know what?” The light turned green, but Simone didn’t budge. Instead, she popped her locks. “Get out!”

“
What?”

“
Get the fuck out!” she repeated over the blaring car horns. “I knew this was a bad idea.”

“
You ain’t said shit.” Andre opened the door and hopped from the truck. He pulled something from his pocket and threw it forcefully inside before slamming the door. Whatever it was hit Simone in her thigh and fell underneath her seat.

Speeding through the light, her thigh stung from whatever it was Andre had thrown at her. She turned on the interior light and fished around under her seat until she felt the object.

What the hell is this?
she thought with the small jewelry box in hand. She shook it but nothing rattled. She flicked off the gift box top, flipped back the velvet top of the jewelry box and gasped at the sparkling solitaire diamond ring. It wasn’t a ‘Lord-have-mercy, smack-ya-momma’ diamond, but it was a ring nonetheless.

“
Oh my God,” she whimpered. “He was going to propose?”

Visions of a fairytale wedding waltzed in her head. She could picture it all—her modern-day gown that would make Cinderella jealous, her hair in a Hollywood pinup fit for the red carpet, the ice sculptures, her wedding cake—all of this and more in the midst of a white Winter December Wonderland theme.

Engulfed in the fantasy, Simone whipped an illegal U-turn and drove down the street searching for Andre. She had to find him. They had a wedding to plan for the end of the year.