When Hell Freezes Over (37 page)

Love,

Daddy

She eyed it suspiciously as she read it. Confused, she showed the note to
Gwendolyn, then excused herself from the sanctuary. When Meridan opened the door to the minister's office, she saw William dressed handsomely in his black tuxedo. At his side was his brother, Conrad St. John. Meridan looked at her father in confusion and when she walked in, a chill ran over her body as she came face to face with Keaton.

She gasped.

“Keaton! You made it!”

Keaton stood there looking unbelievably handsome in his black suit. He smiled and walked over to her.

Leaning down, he kissed her softly on the lips. “Hello, beautiful. I've missed you and I wouldn't miss this wedding for anything.”

She smiled with joy. “I was hoping you'd make it.”

William said, “Honey, I asked you in here so Keaton could assure you that everything is going to be okay. I know you've been under a lot of stress, Baby, and you know we wouldn't let anything happen to you.”

Tears formed in her eyes as she listened to her father's words.

“I'll leave you two alone for a moment.” Looking at his watch, he said, “You guys have five minutes.”

Finally alone, Keaton said, “Meridan, you look absolutely breathtaking.”

Blushing, she replied, “Thank you. You look handsome yourself.”

“Thank you.”

Caressing her arm, he continued saying, “Your father told me you've been stressing since you've been here, and I want you to know that we went through great lengths to make sure you would feel safe. We hired security guards to be here to protect everyone, in case Sam tries to show up.”

Shocked, she said, “Really? I didn't see any security guards.”

“You won't see them. They're blending in with the guests so relax and enjoy. Okay?”

Meridan took a deep breath and said, “I'll try.”

They kissed each other passionately one last time before William tapped on the door. “Hurry up in there, you two. You're holding up our wedding.”

Meridan yelled, “We're coming in just a minute!”

Before leaving the room, Meridan said, “I love you, Keaton.”

“I love you, Meridan.”

“I guess we need to get out of here before Daddy comes in here after us.”

Taking her hand into his, he said, “Let's go, beautiful.”

They returned to the sanctuary and witnessed the marital joining of William and Leona St. John.

Thankfully, Sam stayed away and the wedding went off without any problems.

 

A
couple of weeks later, Meridan received an urgent message that Jacob was very ill in a Florida hospital. Her mind told her not to go visit him, but her heart told her she couldn't let their friendship end this way; especially since he was ill. Against her better judgment, she caught a flight to Miami to visit him.

Upon arriving, she caught a cab and made her way to the hospital. As soon as she stepped off the elevator, she knew how sick Jacob was.

As she entered his room, she walked over to his bed and whispered, “You're always trying to get attention, aren't you?”

He forced a grin. “Thanks for coming, Meridan.”

Meridan sat down. “You know, this was hard for me; especially after what you did.”

He looked up toward the ceiling. “I'm so sorry I tripped out on you like that. It was the drugs, Meridan. You know that wasn't me.”

She tried to swallow the lump in her throat but it wouldn't go down. “Why are you messing with drugs anyway?”

He turned away. “I don't know. Stupid, I guess.”

Looking around his room, she asked, “How long are you going to be in here?”

“I don't know. I hope not long. They want me to get a little stronger first.”

“I see,” she answered with sadness.

Curious, he asked, “So, are you still with that guy?”

She folded her arms. “I'm trying to be and, if you're asking me if I love him, the answer is yes.”

“Then why the long face?”

She sighed. “Do you remember that girl, Samantha, who stabbed me?”

He sat up and frowned. “How can I forget that crazy Amazon? What has she done now?”

Meridan stood and walked over to the window. “She's out of jail and she's after me. She's trying to force me into a homosexual affair with her.”

Jacob laughed and said, “You're shitting me!”

“It's not funny, Jacob. She's threatening to kill me. She already shot and nearly killed my friend, Nikki. Thank God, she's okay now.”

Jacob sat up in bed. “You're serious, aren't you?”

Meridan sat back down. “I wouldn't joke about something like this. She told me to stay away from Keaton or she's going to hurt him. I think she tampered with the brakes on his car. It nearly killed him.”

Jacob couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wiped his eyes and said, “You know that chick did look a little scary in court. You be careful because it sounds to me that she's not playing.”

“You don't have to tell me,” she responded.

“Damn, Meridan!”

She laid her head down on the side of his bed and said, “I'm scared, Jacob.”

“What is that dude, Keaton, doing about it?”

Mumbling, Meridan said, “He's mad as hell. I told him to stay away from me until the police find her so he won't get hurt.”

“Now you know that man's not going to do that,” Jacob added.

She looked up at him and said, “He doesn't have a choice. He came to Philly to get me but I told him things would be better if he stayed in San Antonio.”

“He's a fool!”

“No, he's not. He doesn't know what she looks like, Jacob. It would be easy for Sam to hurt or kill him. You know if she tried to kill me, she wouldn't think twice about doing something to Keaton,” she said in frustration.

Taking a sip of water, he said, “I guess you're right.”

She walked over to the window and softly said, “I'm supposed to go to San Antonio to his dad's fund-raising dinner that's coming up, but I don't know.”

“You should go,” he urged.

“Why?”

Jacob sighed. “Well, you say he's your man so, if that's true, you should be by his side. This campaign thing is a big deal. I saw his father on CNN a while back. He's in a tough race.”

Toying with her hair, she said, “I don't know.”

“You have nothing to worry about. I'll tell you what. I'll be your guardian angel looking out for you while you're there.”

She laughed and said, “Yeah, right!”

He looked at her seriously and said, “I'm dead serious, Meridan. I won't let anything happen to you. Okay? I owe you that after what I did.”

Humoring him, she said, “Okay, Jacob, you can be my guardian angel.”

He clasped his hands together and said, “With that settled, I want to thank you for coming down to see me and I want to apologize again for everything that happened between us. You're my only friend, Meridan, and if there's anything I can do to help, you just say the word.”

Meridan smiled. “You hurry up and get out of this hospital.”

Solemnly, he asked, “Can you find it in your heart to forgive me, Meridan?”

She held his hand. Squeezing it, she smiled and said, “Yes, Jacob, I forgive you.”

He laid his head back against the pillow and whispered, “Thank you, Meridan. Now tell me about your dad's wedding. Mom says everyone's talking about it. I know he's pissed off at me right now.”

“That's an understatement. He's not happy with you at all,” she admitted. “He was ready to give you a beat down.”

Staring across the room, he thought about the night he shot at Devon and Keyshaun. He turned to Meridan and said, “Babe, I've done a lot of foul things over the past few months. Some that I'm very ashamed of, but I promise you, from this day forward, I'm going to do right.”

She hugged him. “Good!”

A heavy burden had been lifted off his heart with Meridan's forgiveness. He also thought of the perfect way he could redeem himself in this lifetime. He would make sure Sam never hurt Meridan again.

Meridan's plane landed in Philly right on time. She'd spent two days with Jacob and mended their bruised friendship. As she walked through the airport, her cell phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Meridan, I admire what you did, but I can't say I agree with you.”

“Keaton, try to understand. Jacob and I go way back. Yes, he acted like an ass, but I decided to forgive him and put it behind me. He's sick. Can't you understand that?”

He was quiet for a moment on the other end. Meridan grabbed her luggage and headed out the door.

“Keaton?”

“I'm here. Look, Meridan, this thing is getting ridiculous and we're not getting anywhere. I want you here with me.”

Climbing into the cab, she said, “I know, babe. I wish things could be different right now, but they can't and I'm sorry.”

“You're still not coming to Daddy's fund-raiser?”

“I'm not sure, but just in case, give my love to your parents and the rest of your family. I love you.”

Hurt and feeling abandoned, he said, “Look, I'll talk to you later. I love you, Meridan.”

“Bye, babe.”

“Goodbye, Meridan, and stay safe.”

“I will.”

She hung up the telephone and rode the rest of the way in deep thought.

 

D
ays later, it was the night of the big fund-raiser and Keaton didn't know why he let Gerald talk him into picking him up. Gerald had always been a party guy and he knew tonight would be no different. He wasn't in the party mood, but could use some cheering up. He missed Meridan terribly since he'd seen her in Mississippi. He wanted to hold her. He knew he was going to have to do a lot of acting tonight since the media would be focusing on his family. It was going to be hard to smile without Meridan by his side.

Eyeing himself in his tuxedo, he took one last glance in the mirror. The doorbell rang and he knew Gerald was downstairs waiting. Opening the door, he found Gerald and two women dressed in formal gowns standing there.

Shocked, he asked, “What have you done?”

“Keaton, I would like you to meet Amelia Monroe. Amelia, this is my best friend, Keaton Lapahie. You know Keisha already.”

Keaton reluctantly extended his hand and said, “It's nice to meet you, Amelia.” He then turned to Keisha. “Hello, Keisha.”

Keisha hugged Keaton and said, “It's about time you came back to Texas.”

Keaton smiled. “Thanks. Come in and have a seat. Ladies, please excuse us for a minute.”

The ladies sat down and Keaton hustled Gerald out of the room. Inside the kitchen, he said, “Gerald, why'd you bring that woman here?”

Smiling, he said, “I figured you didn't really want to go without a date tonight, so I thought I'd hook you up.”

“Gerald, I'm able to get my own date if I want one. Damn! You know the press is going to be there tonight! What if Meridan sees me in the paper with this woman?”

Gerald grabbed some bottled water from the refrigerator and said, “I'm sorry. Man, I didn't know. I thought you and Meridan haven't been able to make this thing work and you've been so down lately. I thought you could use some cheering up and some company. Amelia's nice and she's fine, too.”

Keaton looked at Gerald, then his watch. “Don't do this shit again. Let's go before we're late.”

Opening the door, Keaton saw the limo outside. Gerald smiled and said, “You know I only travel in style. Come on, man! We're going to have fun tonight.”

At the hotel, Keaton greeted some of his family members. He was also happy to see Mr. St. John and Ms. Leona in attendance. He walked up to Mr. St. John and extended his hand. Instead of shaking it, he pulled Keaton into a warm embrace. In his ear, he said, “It's so nice to see you again, Keaton.”