Alexis questioned everything she’d done in the last six months. Michael was nervous that her accident would hurt the sale of the company, so she didn’t contact the Robinson family, even though she had wanted to do just that right after the accident.

  How could she have gone on with her life without making sure John Robinson was all right? Why weren’t the Robinsons agreeing to arbitration? They’d already said no to the insurance settlement. Michael was going to postpone their court case for as long as he could. She needed to figure out a way to help this family. No more ignoring the people whose lives she had changed in an instant.

  Chapter 17

  “What in the world?” Dwayne sat up in bed and shook Trish.

  “Huh? What’s going on?” Trish yawned and rubbed her eyes.

  “Did you talk to that girl about the house rules?”

  Music was playing so loud that the walls were thumping. Trish sat up in bed. “This can’t be happening.” Tossing the covers off, she got out of bed, put her house shoes on, and headed toward Jon-Jon’s and Marquita’s rooms.

  Marquita’s door was open, and the baby was stretched out, asleep in the middle of the bed. How he could sleep with all the noise coming from Jon-Jon’s room, Trish didn’t know. Jon-Jon’s door was closed, but the music was causing his door to bounce. Trish swung the door wide open.

  Jon-Jon was in his bed, popping his fingers and bobbing his head. Marquita was dancing—it wasn’t the holy dance of praise. She was twerking and gyrating in a way that Trish’s older bones couldn’t think about doing without a heating pad, massage, and some pain pills. “Marquita! Jon-Jon!”

  Jon-Jon stopped popping his fingers. Marquita jumped, stood straight up, and put her hands behind her back. “Hey, Trish.”

  Trish pointed to her cell phone. “Turn it off. We don’t play that kind of music in this house.” She then addressed Jon-Jon. “You know better than this. Your daddy works hard for this family. Y’all not gon’ interrupt his sleep with this foolishness.”

  Marquita picked up her phone and slid her finger across the device to stop the music. “My bad. I was just trying to cheer Jon-Jon up. He’s in a lot of pain this morning and was being all gloomy about it.”

  Trish turned concerned eyes in Jon-Jon’s direction. “You need your pain pills?”

  Blowing threw his nostrils, he said, “They don’t work.”

  “You should still take them. Let me fix you something to eat, and I’ll bring your pain pills.” She was about to leave the room, but then she said, “This door stays open when you have someone inside with you.”

  Looking annoyed, Jon-Jon said, “That’s fine, Mama. She only closed it so we wouldn’t wake Moochie up while listening to music.”

  Hands on hips, Trish said, “Well, y’all woke me and your daddy. Moochie probably needs his ears checked because he’s still sleeping.” She didn’t know how she was going to handle having two grown folks under her roof, trying to follow their own rules.

  Trish pulled some pots and pans out and started cooking breakfast. Marquita inched her way into the kitchen, like she wasn’t sure if she’d be welcomed. “Get on in here,” Trish told her. “Do you like cheese in your eggs?”

  An eyebrow lifted as her eyes sparkled. “Yes, I like cheese.” Then she said, “I’m not trying to cause problems for you. I didn’t know you’d get mad about the music, especially since I was just trying to cheer Jon-Jon up.”

  “I appreciate what you did for Jon-Jon, but we live a quiet kind of life here. The only loud music that gets played in here is gospel music, but I’ve never played it that loud.”

  Trish had forgotten to provide Marquita with the house rules because the girl had been beaten up enough the day she moved in. After breakfast she sat her down and gave her the rules: no swearing, no music with swearing, and no late nights on the town and then coming home knocking on the door, waking everybody up. Marquita just nodded her head. Trish hoped she was listening but only time would tell.

  Trish went back to her bedroom. Dwayne was sitting up with his back leaning against the headboard. They had been cordial since she moved back in their bedroom, but that was about it. Nothing else had been resolved.

  “I owe you an apology, Trish.”

  Trish’s head bobbed backward, her hands propped on her hips. Did she just hear what she heard? She was going to stand right here and wait. Dwayne said he owed her an apology. Knowing him, this apology might not be all it’s cracked up to be. “What are you apologizing for?”

  “You know, for everything.”

  She shook her head. That wasn’t going to cut it. “No, I don’t know.”

  Sweat beads formed on Dwayne’s forehead. He wiped them away. “This thing with Jon-Jon threw me for a loop. I’m supposed to be a man and provide for my family. How do you think I felt when I lost my job?”

  “It couldn’t have been easy,” she acknowledged.

  Flinging the covers off, he paced the floor. “Fifteen years I gave that job. Never used my sick days. I only took the vacation time they gave me. But the minute we have a serious family emergency and I have to miss work or I’m late a few times, they let me go.”

  Trish didn’t say anything. She just kept listening, praying that he would finally say something that she could latch onto, giving her some glimmer of hope that things might be good with them again.

  He sat down in the oversize chair that had been placed on the right side of their bed. “I had to take a job making much less, so now I’m working all this overtime just to keep up. And I’m still not keeping up. I don’t know from one minute to the next if the lights or the water are going to get cut off because of all the late payments.”

  “Yes, it has been tough financially, but we’re partners in this.” Trish added, “And with Marquita here, I’m going to be able to at least take on some part-time assignments.”

  “Are we still partners, Trish?”

  “I haven’t thought about divorcing you this week, if that makes you feel better.” She was trying to lighten up the moment, but the look on Dwayne’s face told her she had done the opposite. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Dwayne. I was just joking.”

  “But you weren’t joking. I’ve seen it in your eyes, Trish. You don’t feel the same way about us. You’re not happy, and I don’t know what to do.”

  Sighing, Trish decided to show her hand and see if it would make a difference. “I want someone who sees me, Dwayne. I have needs, and I need them to be important to you.”

  Dwayne pulled her close. “Give me a list of some of the needs that I’m not meeting.”

  “I can’t explain it, Dwayne, but it feels like you don’t get me. After all the years we’ve been married, you should know what I like, right?” She couldn’t even get him to get her sandwich order right. And to this day, Dwayne would order a sausage pizza when he knew she preferred pepperoni.

  “I can try to do better, but you have to try more as well, Trish. I can’t be in this alone.” His eyes were sad as they pleaded with her.

  Sighing, Trish told him. “I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting lately. Things haven’t been good between us.”

  He sat down next to her on the bed. “But isn’t that what our vows meant by ‘for better or worse’? We had a lot of good years, Trish. That ought to count for something.”

  “It does.” She looked down at her feet, then over at her nightstand, any and everywhere except looking directly at Dwayne. She couldn’t look into those deep brown eyes—those eyes that drew her in and made her want to be close to him.

  He put a finger below her chin and lifted her face. “Don’t you give up on me, Trish. I would never give up on you.”

  “You came out the bag on me so many times since Jon-Jon’s accident. I just need to know that I can trust you won’t act like that if we go through hard times again.”

  “Babe, like you said, what we just went through was the hardest thing we’ve ever dealt with.” He stood, pacing the floor, listing off all the issues they dealt with. “Losing that job and then not having health insurance to cover the surgery that Jon-Jon needed made me feel less than a man, like I wasn’t pulling my weight.”

  “That doesn’t make sense, Dwayne, because I know you were doing the best you could with the hand we were dealt.”

  “I get that, Trish. I’m just telling you how I felt. When you quit your job and I was having trouble making the mortgage payment, I was in a bad place. I know I took it out on you, but I’ve done a lot of praying. And I need you to forgive me and let us move on. I thought when you moved back into our room, things would be better, but you’re still holding back.”

  “Give me some time, Dwayne. That’s all I’m asking. I see you. I promise I do, but you broke my heart. I’m trying to find my way back. I’m just not all the way there yet.”

  He looked defeated. Trish wanted to reach out to him because it hurt her to see him like that, but she couldn’t get her hand to move in his direction. It used to be so easy with them. Now everything was hard.

  He turned so that his back was to her as he spoke. “When I met you, I thought twice about approaching you because you were this college girl and way out of my league.”

  “I was never out of your league, Dwayne. You’ve always been a wonderful provider for our family. Neither of us ever expected what happened to Jon-Jon.”

  “I know babe, but . . .” He wiped his eyes. “Remember when we got married and you were only working part-time?”

  “Because I was still in school working on my master’s degree.”

  He nodded. “I felt proud because my wife didn’t have to work a full-time job. I made enough to pay for our apartment and the expenses so you didn’t have to stop dreaming your big dreams.”

  She laughed. “I’d hardly call being a teacher a big dream. I certainly will never get rich with the career I chose.”

  “Trish, you were so good with your students. You care, and that’s the most important part. Those kids will go on in life to be something, and it is because of what you and so many other educators do, day in and day out. I’ve always been proud of your decision to become a teacher.”

  The air was on in the house. The hot, humid days of summer were upon them, so the air conditioner was running nonstop. But to Trish it suddenly felt warm and cozy in the room. It felt like sitting in front of a fireplace, wrapped in the afghan her grandmother knitted for her while watching Christmas movies. “Thanks for saying that.”

  “But it’s still not enough, is it? You still won’t forgive me.”

  When she didn’t respond, he continued pleading his case. “All right, okay, you say I broke your heart. But not being able to put things back to right around here broke me down. Yes, I took it out on you in ways I am ashamed of. I didn’t realize how much I was tearing you down until you moved out of our bedroom, and that broke me down even more.” His eyes implored her to understand where he was coming from. “I love you, bae, and I’m sorry for not being everything you needed me to be.”

  Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! was the internal voice bouncing around Trish’s head. This man had bent over backward trying to make amends for his bad behavior. Why was he still asking for forgiveness? She put a hand over his. “Dwayne, you don’t have to apologize anymore or ask for forgiveness. You and I are good. And anyway, I am the one who needs to ask you for forgiveness.”

  “You do?” His eyebrow lifted. He gave her a did-you-really-say-what-you-just-said look.

  “I do, Dwayne. I never should have quit my job without talking it over with you first. I guess I thought you would handle things like you did when I was finishing college. Things are different now. We have more responsibilities.”

  A light appeared in Dwayne’s eyes that she hadn’t seen in a long time. “I can forgive you for that. Still, I wish I had handled it better, because I could see how much these last few months had taken out of you. I should have been a shoulder to lean on.”

  “Tell you what, Dwayne. Why don’t we both try our best to wipe the slate clean and start from here?”

  With a hopeful lilt to his voice, he rose from the chair. “Do you think you can do that?”

  “I think I can try. I want to try. We have to work together, and maybe even pray together. I can’t be the only one trusting and believing that God can bring about a change around here.”

  “You’re right, Trish. I’ve been slacking, and I’m not going to do that anymore.” He reached out for her hands. “Let’s pray now.”

  Joy, that’s what she was feeling right now. She’d thought joy was forever gone from her home, but Dwayne was standing in front of her asking for forgiveness and reaching out his hands to pray. She bowed her head as she took his hands.

  Dwayne prayed for their marriage. He prayed for God to look down on Jon-Jon and take care of his needs. He prayed for Marquita and for baby Marcus. When he finished, all that was left was for Trish to say amen.

  “Whew! That felt good,” Dwayne said.

  “It did. I have always loved the way you pray.” She grinned at her husband, nudging him playfully as a truce was called.

  “Believe it or not, I’ve been doing a lot more praying since we saw that cardinal in the yard.”

  She smiled. “Me too.”

  Dwayne leaned forward, about to kiss Trish, when the doorbell rang. “You expecting someone?”

  Trish shook her head.

  The only person who visited their home these days had been Jon-Jon’s physical therapist. They had cancelled his sessions because Jon-Jon refused to cooperate. Trish headed to the door with Dwayne following behind.

  “I hope it’s not the water company. I haven’t got around to that bill yet.”

  “Now listen, I can do without electricity, but if you don’t get that water bill paid, I want to see how you feel when I walk around this house like the great unwashed for a few days,” she joked with him. And that, too, felt good. There hadn’t been much laughter in their home. Maybe Marquita and Marcus coming to them when they did had been a true godsend.

  Trish looked out the peephole. Confusion danced across her face.

  “Who is it?” Dwayne whispered, as if the person on the other side of the door hadn’t already heard their footsteps as they made their way to the door.

  “I don’t know. Some white lady.”

  “What does she want?”

  Trish laughed for the third time that day. “I don’t know, Dwayne. She’s still on the other side of the door.”

  With Dwayne standing behind her, Trish inched the door open. “Hello. Can we help you?”

  The woman was biting her lip and looking nervous, as if she wanted to turn around but was trying to make her body line up and stay put.

  “Are you okay?” Trish asked.

  “Y-yes, I’m sorry. I’m a bit nervous. My name is Alexis Marshall. I came to see John Robinson.”

  “Alexis Marshall!” Dwayne’s hand gripped the door and flung it wide open. “How dare you come to our house after what you did to our son.”

  Alexis took a deep breath and stepped forward. “I’m sorry that it has taken me so long to do this, but I’m here to help.”

  Anger flashed in Dwayne’s eyes. “Then why do you keep getting the judge to postpone Jon-Jon’s court case?”

  Trish had a feeling about this. God was up to something, and she was not about to get in the Almighty’s way. She wasn’t a big fan of this woman either. Dwayne thought Trish was so forgiving, but in truth, she struggled to forgive Alexis Marshall. She put a hand on Dwayne’s shoulder. “Maybe we should let her in so we can figure out why she decided to come here after all this time.”

  Dwayne looked like he was about to object, but then he stepped out of the way and allowed the woman to enter the house. Trish pointed Alexis toward the living room. “Let’s sit down and talk a minute before we bring Jon-Jon in here.” Alexis sat down in the large floral chair. Trish and Dwayne sat in the love seat next to her.

  Trish thought back to the day she had felt as if she was at her lowest point. She prayed and asked God to do something good in her life. Then Marquita showed up and now Alexis Marshall herself. At this point, Trish wouldn’t be surprised if those sweepstakes people came knocking with an oversize check in their hands.

  Chapter 18

  Alexis had been terrified about meeting the Robinsons. She half expected them to slam the door in her face. Although Dwayne Robinson was hostile toward her, his wife seemed a bit more gracious. She sat on the edge of her seat, looking at Alexis as if she was interested in what she had to say.

  “Our attorney informed my husband that John is in need of another surgery. She opened her purse, took out a cashier’s check, and handed it to Trish. “I want to pay for his surgery.”

  Dwayne’s eyes bucked like they were about to fall out of his head. He snatched the check from Trish’s hand. “This is twenty thousand dollars.”

  Alexis and Michael had a joint bank account, but she had kept the individual bank account she had before marrying Michael. Her husband gave her fun money from time to time. There had been occasional splurges, but Alexis managed to save most of the money. She had planned to do something special for Ethan and Ella when they graduated from high school. But she couldn’t hold onto this money, knowing that John needed it.

  “Thank you so much. It has been a real struggle trying to figure out how Jon-Jon would get this next surgery.” Trish’s voice caught. She wiped her eyes as she stood. “Let me go get Jon-Jon.”

  Dwayne stopped her. “Hold on a minute, Trish. No sense getting Jon-Jon out of bed if this check is some kind of bribery attempt.”

  Alexis’s eyebrow furrowed. She never imagined they would think she was trying to bribe them. “No, Mr. Robinson, that’s not my intent at all. You told our attorney that this surgery would relieve some of John’s pain. I feel awful that he is still in so much pain.”

  Dwayne’s lips pressed firmly together while she spoke, then he said, “So where’s the document you want us to sign? We need to read the fine print.”