After All (45 page)

“
So what's on the agenda for
you today?” Anthony began clearing the breakfast dishes. He filled
the sink with soapy water.

“
I'm going by the hospital
to see Dom; then over to the radio station.” Michelle stretched
lazily. Gazing out at the beautiful weather she thought how it
perfectly mirrored her mood. “You don't have to do
that.”

“
I might as well get in the
habit. I plan to be a fifty-fifty husband.” Anthony spoke with his
back to her as he dried his hands on a dish towel.

“
What?” Michelle's mouth
dropped open.

Getting down on one knee, he took both
her hands in his. “I said, will you marry me?”

Michelle traced the line of his strong
jaw with a forefinger. “Yes, yes, and yes!” she said, her eyes
shining. A beautiful dream, one that seemed impossible only a few
days ago, came true.

Anthony ran his fingers the soft curls
of her hair. “I love you so much,” he whispered.

Michelle could not stop the tears that
flowed. “I love you, too.”

Drawing back, Anthony held both her
shoulders. “Now all you need is an engagement ring.”

Michelle sniffed. “Baby, I don't need
anything fancy. Something simple will do.”

Anthony reached into his pocket. He
sighed in a loud, exaggerated fashion. “Then I guess I should
return this.”

Michelle shrieked when she saw the two
carat diamond solitaire set in white gold. She lunged forward to
clasp him around the neck causing them to topple onto the floor as
she covered his face with kisses.

Anthony lay on his back laughing. “Hey,
lady; I know you want me bad, but try to control
yourself.”

Michelle leered at him. “This is only
the beginning, darlin'.” She smiled down at him. Then her face grew
solemn. “But can you afford a ring like this?”

Anthony placed a finger on her lips.
“Don't worry. I've gotten a vote of confidence from three of my
biggest clients. They assured me the building projects they hired
me to complete are still mine. Now give me back that beautiful
smile.”

“
Oh, Anthony,” was all she
managed before he smothered her attempts with his kiss.

***

Driving to the hospital, Michelle waved
gaily at everyone she met. She wanted to shout her happiness to the
whole world.

Michelle breezed into Dominic's room.
“Hello, brother. How are you this fine day? I must say, you look
marvelous.”

Dominic sat next to the window in the
recliner. “Wow, try to cheer up.” He grinned at her. “Spill it.
What have you been up to?”

Michelle assumed a nonchalant pose. “I
have no idea what you're talking about. I happen to be in a good
mood, that's all.”

“
Don't give me that. You've
got that goofy, dazed look in your eyes that could only mean one
thing: true love.”

“
What makes you the expert?”
Michelle sat on the side of his hospital bed swinging her legs back
and forth.

“
Hey, I had my share of love
struck ladies before I settled down.” Dominic studied her with
amusement. “You've got all the signs. And I don't have to be
psychic to know Anthony put that smile on your face.”

“
Okay, so we're back
together, Mr. Know-it-all.” Michelle giggled.

“
It wasn't hard to figure
out. I'm really happy for you.” Dominic patted her knee.

“
This time we won't let
anything keep us apart.” Michelle gazed down at the ring on her
finger. This symbol of love still awed her.

Dominic did a double take when the
stone sparkled in the sunlight. “Whoa, look at that rock. You go,
girl. When's the big day?”

“
We haven't set a date yet.
He only gave it to me this morning. I'm still recovering from the
proposal.” Michelle's eyes went wide.”I hadn't even thought about
the wedding.”Her head swam at the prospect all the arrangements
needed. There was no question she wanted it to be a special day.
“So many details.”

Dominic struggled to his feet to
shuffle forward with small careful steps. He sat next to her on the
bed. “Well, there's no need to panic. If I know Mama, she's been
planning the wedding of her only daughter for the last twenty years
at least. She'll know which caterer to use, the best flower shop,
and everything else down to the last detail.”

Michelle lost the contented look. “Mama
won't have to bother. A big circus with a lot of snobby,
pretentious people is the last thing I want.”

“
What did she say when you
told her you didn't want a big wedding?”

“
Nothing.” Michelle did not
turn around.

“
For real? She didn't beg,
threaten or lay a guilt trip on you?”

Michelle cleared her throat. “Like I
said, nothing.”

“
Amazing.” Dominic was
silent for a few moments. “Wait a minute, when was the last time
you talked to Mama, Michelle?”

“
A while.” Michelle folded
her arms and stared out at the traffic below. No matter how she had
tried, she had been unable to do more than engage in mechanical
chatter with her mother for brief moments. She could not blot out
the ugly image of her mother sneaking around with Ike
Batiste.

“
Michelle, come over here.”
Dominic slapped the bed sharply. “Right now or I'll come over
there.”

Michelle sat beside him with her arms
still folded. “Dom, you don't understand.”

“
Mama had an affair with Ike
and Pop knew about it. Mama's been milking our sympathy all along
and letting us think Pop was the bad guy. Does that sum it up?”
Dominic held up a hand. “Wait, I left out the part about Pop not
knowing for sure if I was his kid.”

“
My Lord, who told you all
this?” Michelle sputtered. “Brian? I'm going to wring his
neck.”

“
Chelle--”

“
The last thing you needed
was to have a bombshell like that dropped on you. He's going to be
sorry.”

Dominic clamped a hand over her mouth.
“Shut up will you? I overheard Pop and Mama talking one night when
they thought I was too drugged to hear them.” He took his hand
away. “Now if he can find a way to forgive her, so can
you.”

Michelle looked away. “I've
tried.”

“
Talk to her about it. I'm
sure Mama is in a lot of pain that this has come between
you.”

“
I'm so angry with her...
I'm afraid of what I might say.” Michelle bit her trembling lower
lip.

Dominic took her hand. “You miss her as
much as she misses you, Chelle. Tell her how you feel. Scream at
her if it'll help. But don't treat her like a stranger. We're close
to really being together as a family again.”

“
Dom, I just don't
know.”

“
Please, Chelle.” Dominic's
voice broke. “Please try for me.”

Michelle enclosed him in a gentle
embrace. “Shh, don't get upset. I swear I'll talk to Mama.” Despite
the ease with which she made her promise, her stomach churned at
the thought of confronting Annette.

Chapter 18

Michelle stood near her old desk in the
news room of Channel Twelve. In spite of the unpleasant
circumstances surrounding her exit, she felt surprisingly at ease.
She gazed about her as though it had been years instead of a few
months since her departure. Michelle searched for lingering anger
or resentment but found none. Several staff greeted her warmly, as
though she were returning from exile. Michelle was secretly amused
at the underlying tone of sympathy in their voices. Far from
languishing in self-pity, she had cultivated her skills and seen
her career blossomed in a promising new direction. Weston Lockport,
with Jason in tow, strode forward wearing a broad smile. Jason
hovered at his shoulder.

Lockport stuck out his hand.” Michelle,
wonderful of you to come.” They walked towards his office. “I've
been following your work on that little radio station. You've
certainly made a name for yourself.”

Michelle gave a short indulgent laugh.
“Why thank you. Being featured in USA Today is also pretty
good.”

Lockport's face registered shock, but
he quickly recovered. “Really? Congratulations my dear.” He ushered
her to one of the leather chairs around a glass table set in front
of a large window with a view of the Mississippi River. “Jason, get
us some coffee please. How do you take yours, Michelle?”

Michelle did not bother to look at
Jason. “Cream, no sugar.” The corner of her mouth lifted just a
bit.

A chagrined Jason pursed his lips. He
fought to keep his expression blank. “Yes, sir.”

Weston leaned back and beamed at her.
“Well, well. You wasted no time getting established in both radio
and print media. Fine article in Parade Magazine on self-help
groups in the African-American community. Very fine indeed. Of
course, we at Channel Twelve recognized your talent long
ago.”

Michelle inclined her head in gracious
acceptance. “Yes, and most of my time spent here was
rewarding.”

Weston cleared his throat. “You're
referring to that incident with your notes. I did what seemed
prudent at the time. After all, Charlotte Kinchen and James Bridges
had high powered attorneys sitting on my doorstep. When your notes
couldn't be found...”

Michelle's eyes narrowed. “You leaped
to the conclusion that I faked the story. Even though Nathan said
he saw some of the invoices.”

Weston shifted in his seat. “He
couldn't swear the two or three he saw were genuine. And then an
employee at the Housing Authority denied the invoices
existed.”

“
Didn't it occur to you that
T'aneka was scared witless by those thugs?” Michelle's eyes bored
into him.

“
Well, Nathan said that was
a possible motivation. Sure she tried to change her story later,
but frankly we felt her credibility had been compromised.” Lockport
lifted a shoulder.

“
T'aneka came to talk to you
for me?” Michelle's eyes misted. “Such a sweet kid.” Her soft
expression hardened when she turned her attention back to Lockport.
“So what did you want to discuss with me, Mr. Lockport?” she said
in a crisp, business-like tone.

Jason came back in bearing two large
mugs with the Channel Twelve logo on them. After setting them down
on the glass table he started to pull up another chair.

“
Take that report on my desk
with you on your way out. I made notes in the margins. Re-work some
of the verbiage.” Lockport dismissed him with a short wave of his
hand. “Thank you, Jason.”

“
I, uh, wanted to--” Jason
stammered searching for a reason to stay.

“
Thank you, Jason.” Lockport
stared at him hard. When the door closed behind him, he faced
Michelle again. “As I was saying, let's put that unfortunate
incident behind us. Channel Twelve is on the cutting edge of news
reporting in this state and you fit right in with where we're
going. With your talent and our resources we can do great things in
this city.”

“
What about the `unfortunate
incident'? I never found my notes or proved I ever had them.”
Michelle had no intention of letting him off easy.

“
Maybe we acted in haste. In
any event, it’s been a learning experience for us all.” Lockport
wore a paternal smile. “We have the exposure and ratings that can
launch you nationally, my dear. We need you and you need us.”
Lockport smiled at her paternally.

Michelle arched an eyebrow at him
without returning his smile. “I don't think so.”

Lockport's smile stretched tight.
“Excuse me? I don't understand.”

Michelle leaned on the table crossing
her arms and cocked her head to one side. “While I agree with you
about my talent, this invitation didn't come for that reason
alone.” She gazed at him waiting for the real explanation.
“Well?”

“
As I said, you have the
potential to do even greater things. The Housing Authority story is
one example. We had such a hold on the ratings.”

“
Which I hear have really
slipped,” Michelle said with ice in her voice.

Lockport fingered his designer silk
tie. “And the stories about community groups working to help
themselves.”

“
Which you took from me
after I came up with the idea. Jennifer not doing so well, eh?”
Michelle pressed on. She enjoyed watching him squirm.

Lockport lifted his nose. “I wouldn't
say that exactly.”

“
Mr. Lockport, let's cut to
the bottom line.” Michelle held up one finger. “One, Channel Six
has been beating the pants off this station since they picked up on
the Housing Authority scandal. They even wanted to interview
me.”

“
Now, Michelle,” Lockport
said in a flustered voice. “Why take second billing on a story you
made?” His face turned bright pink. “You deserve
better.”

Michelle ignored his remark. She held
up a second finger. “Two, the sources that helped me break the
story will only talk to me; you know it and I know you know it.”
She grinned at him and held up a third finger. “And three,
Jennifer's handling of the series on community groups making a
difference in this city has hit a dead end. From what I've seen,
it's become a video society page with low ratings.”