Exposed (35 page)

He regarded her in silence, waiting for her to elaborate.

“I went to your office one night to talk to you, to beg you to give me another chance. And that’s when I saw you and Cynthia together….”

Brandon said nothing.

She gave him a small, mournful smile. “That was
my
fantasy, remember? To have sex in your office, on top of your desk. That should have been me. But I threw it all away, and that’s something I’ll have to live with for the rest of my life.”

Brandon silently assessed her, his expression unreadable. He could have mocked her, could have cursed at her. He could have rubbed his new woman in her face. But he did none of those things. Which tortured her even more.

“Do you love her?” she whispered.

Instead of answering her question, he reached for his leather briefcase and began packing up his things.

“Do you?”Tamia persisted.

After several excruciating moments, he met her gaze.“Yes.”

Tears welled in her eyes.“You
do
love her?”

“Yeah,” Brandon said softly.“I do.”

They stared at each other across the table, the chasm between them wider than ever.

“I love you, Brandon. I always have.” Tamia reached over and desperately grabbed his hand, threading her fingers through his.“Do you believe me?”

Slowly he dropped his eyes, staring at their joined hands. His silence spoke volumes.

She eyed him in wounded disbelief. “So you believe I’m innocent of murder, but you don’t believe that I genuinely loved you?”

Silence.

After an agonizing eternity, Brandon raised his eyes to hers. His expression was sad, etched with regret. “I think you did
love me, in your own way. But obviously”—he gestured around the small room—“it wasn’t enough.”

Tamia gazed at him, tears streaming down her face.

He picked up his briefcase and rose from the table.“I’ll see you on Monday.”

She nodded mutely.

He walked to the door and quietly knocked, signaling to the guard posted outside that his visit was over. As the door opened, he paused for several seconds.

Tamia held her breath, heart thumping, hope stirring.

He left without a backward glance.

Tamia felt like she was having an out-of-body experience.

It was another Sunday afternoon at the Joe Corley Detention Facility.

She was seated across from Fiona, separated by a thick glass partition.

But this time
she
was wearing the drab prison uniform while Fiona was decked out in designer clothes and high heels, gold dangling from her ears and around her neck.

They stared at each other, both silently marveling at the shocking role reversal. Tamia wondered whether Fiona was remembering every unkind, judgmental word she’d ever spoken to her during her two-year incarceration. Although Tamia had always been supportive of Fiona, never missing a visit or a holiday, she’d never let her sister forget what a horrible mistake she’d made by trusting her shady boyfriend. Now it was
Tamia’s
turn to regret becoming involved with the wrong man.

Karma is a straight-up bitch.

A full minute passed before Fiona broke the heavy silence. “I thought I’d never have to see this godawful place again.”

Tamia made a pained face.“You and me both.”

Fiona shook her head sorrowfully. “I’m so sorry this happened
to you, Tam-Tam. But don’t worry. Brandon’s gonna get you out of here. You’re in excellent hands.”

“I know.”Tamia sighed deeply.“I’m counting on it.”

Absently toying with her right earring, Fiona said casually, “I saw him this morning.”

“Who?”

“Brandon. I called him yesterday to ask him for an update on you. I wanted to know how you looked, how you were doing. So he offered to take me out for breakfast and bring me up to speed on your case. Wasn’t that sweet of him?”

Tamia smiled sadly.“Brandon’s a sweet guy.”

“Very,” Fiona agreed. “Anyway, when I started giving him directions to our house, he got really quiet. I knew he was confused because you’d been using your coworker’s address. When he arrived to pick me up, he looked really disappointed, but not for the reason you might think. See, he didn’t turn up his nose at where we lived. After I explained that our neighborhood was a historic landmark and would soon be getting gentrified like many other parts of the Third Ward, I gave him a tour of our house and told him how it had been in our family for generations. And he could relate to that because his childhood home had been passed down from his great-grandparents. So he could definitely appreciate how our house had sentimental value for us.” Fiona eyed Tamia curiously. “Why didn’t
you
think of that?”

Tamia’s face flushed with embarrassment, because providing such a simple yet brilliant explanation to Brandon had never once occurred to her. And
she
was supposed to be the smart, college-educated one.

“But our house wasn’t the only thing that came as a surprise to him,” Fiona continued ruefully. “As soon as I opened the front door and he took one look at me, he just started shaking his head. He recognized me from that day he saw me here. So I had to explain to him why you’d lied about me going to Hampton, just like you’d lied about where we lived.
He got that sad, disappointed look on his face again. And you know what he said?”

Tamia gulped hard, then shook her head slowly.

“He said, ‘I wish she’d spent less time courting my parents, and more time letting me get to know the real Tamia.’”

Tamia cast her eyes downward, blinking back tears of shame and regret.

Fiona watched her sympathetically.

A heavy silence followed before Tamia mumbled,“Go on. Finish what you were saying.”

“Are you sure?”

Tamia nodded.

Fiona sighed. “Well, he took me to Brennan’s for their Sunday jazz brunch. I’d never been there before, and I really appreciated him taking me to such a ritzy restaurant instead of someplace like IHOP or Denny’s. Girl, the maître d’ was so excited to see Brandon! We were seated outside in the courtyard and given the VIP treatment. We talked, ate delicious food, listened to nice jazz music, and enjoyed the fresh flowers and beautiful scenery.” Fiona sighed again.“It was
wonderful.
”

Tamia’s eyes narrowed menacingly. “Why do you sound like you’re describing a romantic date?”

Fiona giggled and rolled her eyes.“Of course not! I know it wasn’t a date. We talked about you and your case. I even told him about my own nightmare ordeal, and he pointed out some mistakes that my lawyer made in his defense strategy. Girl, Brandon probably could have gotten me off if
he’d
represented me.”

Tamia bristled. “Yeah? Well, I couldn’t afford Brandon at the time,” she snapped. “As it is, paying your legal fees wiped out my damn savings account.”

“So you keep reminding me,” Fiona muttered under her breath.

Tamia pretended not to hear her.

“Anyway,” Fiona continued with a sigh,“that was the best
breakfast I’ve ever had. And being there with Brandon made me realize that you were right all along. I’ve been wasting my time with losers like Marquis and Sugar Bear—niggas who ain’t got shit and ain’t about nothing. It’s time for me to set higher standards and start demanding better things for myself. Brandon’s even got me thinking about enrolling in college. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a hairdresser”—she shrugged—“but maybe God has something better in store for me.”

Tamia eyed her incredulously, shaking her head. “I don’t believe this.
I’ve
been encouraging you to apply to college for
years,
but you always blew me off. Now after one bonding session with Brandon, you’ve completely changed your tune!”

“I know.” Fiona grinned sheepishly. “Maybe I just needed to hear the advice from someone else, someone more objec-tive. And what can I say? B can be very persuasive—”

“B?”
Tamia repeated scornfully. “Where the hell do you get off calling him
B?
Like y’all are fucking best friends now!”

Fiona reddened with embarrassment. “Obviously I didn’t call him that to his face. That’s how I refer to him in my mind sometimes.”

Tamia glowered at her, not liking where this conversation was going.

It got worse.

“Oooh, girl, Brandon’s even finer than I thought he was,” Fiona breathed. “Every time he smiled and flashed those sexy dimples, I just wanted to stick my tongue in them. And his voice is hella sexy, too!”

Tamia stared at her.
“Are you fucking serious?”
she hissed.

Fiona blinked.“What?”

“Don’t give me that innocent look! You’re trying to push up on Brandon!”

Fiona blushed, nervously twisting her earring. “I guess I just thought … well, since there’s no chance of you and him ever getting back together—”

“You thought you could just take my place?” Tamia spat furiously.“Girl, please! If
I
wasn’t good enough for Brandon’s parents, what the fuck makes you think they’d approve of an ex-convict from the projects with no damn college degree?”

Fiona recoiled, hurt flaring in her eyes.

Tamia was instantly contrite. Closing her eyes for a moment, she sucked in a deep breath and slowly exhaled, striving for calm.

“That was a rude thing to say,” Fiona mumbled accusingly.

“I know, Fee, and I’m really sorry,”Tamia offered gently.“I didn’t mean to lash out at you like that. But you
know
how much Brandon means to me, and you know how much I’m still hurting over the way our relationship ended. It hasn’t even been a month since he broke up with me! So it’s pretty fucked up that you’d even
think
about making a move on him, especially at a time like this.”

“You’re right.” Fiona looked shamefaced. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gone there.”

“No, you shouldn’t have,” Tamia grumbled. “Besides, you don’t stand a chance with Brandon. He’s in love with Cynthia.”

“I know.” Fiona sighed. “She called him while we were eating. You should have seen the way his eyes lit up and his voice went all soft and affectionate. And he couldn’t stop smiling after he got off the phone with her.”

Oblivious to the dagger she’d just thrust through her sister’s heart, Fiona heaved another deep sigh.“Oh well. At least he has a brother close to my age. Maybe I’ll reinvent myself and go after
him.
”

Tamia snorted. “Good luck with that,” she said bitterly. “Between your prison record and my arrest, his parents probably have a restraining order against
both
of us!”

Fiona grimaced.“Probably. I asked Brandon how they felt about him representing you, and he admitted that they weren’t
too thrilled about it. They think he should let you rot in prison. But he doesn’t really care what they think.”

Tamia was suddenly remembering what Dre had told her.
You might even be the one…. If you are, he won’t care whether or not his parents approve of you, ’cause he’s always been his own man.

Words that would haunt her for a lifetime.

Shoving the gloomy thought aside, she pinned her sister with an accusing glare. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you, Fee. Why the hell did you concoct that crazy story about Isabel belonging to a Crucian crime syndicate?”

“Oh.” Fiona gnawed her lower lip, looking sheepish. “I’m really sorry about that, Tamia.”

“Why the fuck did you do it? You had me terrified of that woman for no reason!”

“I know.” Fiona sighed heavily.“I guess I got caught up in all the excitement and drama of your stories.”

“Stories?”

“Yeah. Remember when we were younger and you used to make up those wild, thrilling stories about adventures you’d had, places you’d visited, people you’d met? Remember how you used to make me feel better after I’d had a nightmare, or after my daddy didn’t show up to see me like he’d promised? You always had such an amazing imagination, which is why you’re so good at your job. While I was locked up, I always looked forward to your visits because you kept me entertained with your antics about people at work and juicy gossip about folks from the neighborhood. So when you told me about the crazy drama with Dominic, I thought you were making the whole thing up!”

“
What?
” Tamia exclaimed. “Why the hell would I make up something like
that?
”

Fiona’s expression softened. “Because I couldn’t believe you would actually jeopardize what you had with a man like Brandon.”

That shut Tamia up.

A long, uncomfortable silence ensued.

Fiona gulped into the phone. “That’s why I made up that whole story about Isabel belonging to a ruthless crime organization and killing her husband’s mistress. I thought it added an exciting twist to the drama.”

“That
drama,
”Tamia ground out tersely, “was my fucking life. Which became a fucking nightmare.”

Tears welled in Fiona’s eyes.“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

Tamia glared at her.

Nervously licking her lips, Fiona leaned closer to the glass, dropping her voice to a hushed murmur.“I … I have another story to share with you.”

Tamia scowled impatiently. “I think I’ve had enough of your—”

“This story is about two best friends who are as close as sisters.” Fiona forged ahead as if Tamia hadn’t spoken.“When the tale begins, one friend is behind bars while the other has a fabulous job and an even more fabulous boyfriend. The incarcerated woman isn’t jealous of her friend; she loves her dearly and is truly happy for her. But she often wonders what it would be like to have what her friend has—the job, the boyfriend. She wonders … and she fantasizes. Because while she’s locked up, that’s all she
can
do—live vicariously through her friend.”

Tamia stared at Fiona as a deep chill of foreboding spread through her veins.

“Anyway,” Fiona continued in the same confidential tone, “the incarcerated friend finally gets out of prison. She’s so ecstatic, so optimistic about her future. But several days later when she comes home from running errands—she and her friend are roommates—she checks the voice mail and hears a message from a strange woman. A woman she didn’t think existed. Her curiosity gets the best of her, so that same night she goes to the woman’s house to confirm that she
is
real. But just in case the woman is dangerous and up to no good, the friend
secretly borrows a gun from one of the thugs she used to date. And she takes another precaution by parking blocks away from the woman’s house and heading there on foot. It’s dark outside, with lots of trees in the neighborhood, so she figures no one will see her.”