She walked into the courthouse and had no trouble finding the room where her mother was, because there were more reporters and observers standing outside the door. Freddie pushed through the crowd.
“There are no more seats in there,” a woman said.
“I don't care, that's my mother in there,” Freddie said as she wedged her body between the crowd and the door. It was standing room only inside the courtroom and she could only see the back of her mother's head. The judge banged his gavel.
“Bailiff, make sure that door doesn't open again. There will be order in this courtroom.” His voice was angry and boomed like thunder. All of the movement and chatter in the courtroom stopped. “Now,” the judge said. “Mr. Sparks, continue.”
“Your honor, the DA is wasting the tax payers' time and money on the word of a convicted killer. Ms. Barker is in no way connected with this murder and I move that these charges be dropped.”
“Your honor,” the district attorney interrupted. “If we reopen the murder case, we wouldn't just be going on Jacques Babineaux's word. There is new evidence . . .”
“Where was this evidence during Babineaux's trial?” the judge questioned.
The DA faltered for a moment. “Well, his attorney and a private investigator presented our office with the evidence and it was authenticated by the police department,” the DA said.
“I'm not comfortable with this,” the judge said. “We're talking about a twenty-year-old murder. Evidence could've been tampered with and this doesn't smell right to me.”
“But your honor,” the DA protested, openly showing his frustration.
The judge held up his hand. “I'm dismissing the charges against Ms. Barker with prejudice.”
Freddie shook her head. Her mother had gotten away with murder. So, what did this ruling mean for her father?
The courtroom began to clear out, but Freddie stood her ground and waited for her mother to walk across the room. What would she say to her? It took about five minutes for Loraine to make it to where Freddie was.
“Winfred,” she said happily when she saw her daughter. “I'm happy to see you.”
“Really?”
“Now do you see why I've never encouraged a relationship with your father?”
She shook her head and leaned into her mother as if she was going to give her a hug. “I guess you're proud of yourself since you've just gotten away with murder.”
Loraine shook her head. “This is over. Your father made a mess of my life and you're going to stand here and defend him?”
“Both of you are sick and I'm washing my hands of you.” Freddie stormed out of the courtroom, ignoring the flashing light bulbs of the photographers' cameras.
Once she made it outside, Freddie ran into her father, who was standing away from the crowd and watching the door. She shook her head when she saw him.
He crossed over to her and tried to embrace her, but Freddie put her hands up. “Are you happy?” she asked.
“Is she going to jail?”
“No, so, all you did was bring a lot of undue attention to us.”
Babineaux frowned at his daughter. “I was only trying to clear my name. I didn't kill that man. Now, it's on the record.”
“Well, no one is going to be punished for it. In the eyes of this city, you're going to be O.J.”
“What about you? How do you see me?”
“The same way I see your ex-wife, you're sick. This family is a circus and I'm bowing out.”
He shrugged his shoulders and extended his arms to Freddie. “I love you and I'm sorry.”
“Empty words that are way too late,” she snapped, side stepping her father so that he couldn't reach out to her.
“I'm sorry you feel that way, but you know the truth now. One day, I guess you'll be able to forgive me.”
Freddie turned her back to her father. There were so many things she wanted to say and needed to get off her chest. When she turned around, Jacques was gone. Freddie was sure that she'd never see him again. As she turned around and watched her mother hold court with the reporters, she was sure she never wanted to see her again. Freddie started walking, wanting to get far away from the scene at the courthouse. She didn't know who she was most angry at, her mother, her father or herself.
Neither one of them think that they're wrong,
she thought bitterly. Before she knew it, she found herself on Bourbon Street. Shaking her head, she hopped on a streetcar to get to the French Quarter.
Riding on the car, listening to the clang and beat of the city, she almost forgot that she was there because her father and mother just exchanged accusations of murder. As the smell of crawfish jambalaya and Po-Boys mixed with the wind, Freddie wondered if she was really ready to let go of New Orleans and what it meant to her. The success of the hotel was because of her. This was her home and despite all that happened, New Orleans was special to her.
But does this city mean more than Cleveland?
“No,” she said quietly to herself as the streetcar stopped at her destination. Freddie walked up to the hotel and smiled because this was the last time she'd ever see the place. Her emotions swirled like a hurricane wind. The French Garden Inn was a big part of her, much of who she was resided in that hotel. She framed that place to be a great getaway for guests at a time when she wanted to get away from the pain and heartbreak in her life. It was the place where Cleveland Alexander opened her mind and body to the possibility of love and untold passion that she'd never dared to dream about.
She took a deep breath and walked in the door, finding Celeste sitting behind the desk with her eyes glued to the overhead TV that wasn't there when Freddie left for Atlanta.
“This is some bull,” Celeste muttered.
“I know I taught you how to properly greet guests when they walk through the door,” Freddie said.
Celeste quickly turned the TV off and rose to her feet. “You coulda told me you were coming back here today. Please, please don't leave us to face the wrath of your mother.”
“Sorry, the only thing I can do is suggest you find a new job if you don't want to deal with Loraine. Can you hand me a key to my suite, please?” Freddie asked.
“Sure, but your mother has moved into that suite as well. I guess you two were going to be roommates if you ever did decide to come back.”
Freddie's right eyebrow and blood pressure shot up at the thought of being Loraine's roommate. Knowing her mother, she'd probably tossed Freddie's things aside as if they were garbage. That was Loraine's way and now that she'd gotten away with murder, she'd be intolerable. In a way, Freddie felt sorry for her staff and what they were going to face working for Loraine.
When she entered the suite, her suspicions were right. Her belongings were flung in a corner as if Goodwill needed to come and get them out of Loraine's way. Freddie went through her clothes, picking out the things that she wanted to take with her and what she would leave for her mother to do away with. After sorting out the things that she wanted, Freddie went to the closet to retrieve a suitcase. That's when she heard the door open.
“Winfred,” Loraine called out.
Freddie stepped out of the closet and faced her mother. “What?”
“Don't leave. Please, I need you here to help me . . .”
“No,” Freddie said as she tossed the empty case on the bed. “You don't get to do this.”
“Do what? I have been through one of the most harrowing ordeals of my life while you were in some man's bed in Atlanta. It's not going to last. He's going to disappoint you just like every man in my life let me down.”
“That's your life, not mine. Cleveland and I love each other. Your history with men is not going to be my future. You set all of this in motion, so now you're at the wheel. Enjoy the drive, Mother,” Freddie spat, then began stuffing her clothes into her suitcase.
“You're wrong and you're going to get your heart broken because . . .”
“No,” she snapped. “You've been bitter for years and I'm not following in your footsteps. I can recognize a good man, too bad you couldn't.” Freddie zipped up her suitcase and yanked it off the bed. “Good-bye, Mother.” Loraine grabbed her daughter's arm.
“Freddie, don't be like me, don't . . .”
“I'm nothing like you and any second thoughts that I may have had about going back to Atlanta, you've crushed them.” She pushed past her mother and headed out the door.
Chapter 29
Cleveland used to enjoy being alone at home. After all, he spent days in a firehouse surrounded by loud dudes with dispatchers always calling, so his time at home meant solitude. But tonight, he was missing the touch of Freddie's fingers on the back of his neck. He was missing the sound of her voice as they talked about what to eat for dinner.
Cleveland entered the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water, wondering when Freddie was going to return. She'd been gone for two days. Was she safe? Did she find the closure that she needed?
He grabbed his phone and dialed Freddie's number. It was nearly eleven
P.M.
and he was beyond worried about her.
She said she was going to get her car and come back. What if she got into an accident or worse?
“Hello,” Freddie said, immediately putting Cleveland's mind at ease.
“I was worried about you,” he said. “It's getting pretty late.”
“I know and I should've called. When I got into town, I found out that my mother had a court date and against my better judgment, I went over to the courthouse and watched my mother skate away scot-free.”
Cleveland furrowed his brows in confusion. “You wanted your mother to go to prison?”
Freddie sighed into the phone. “It's a long ugly story and I don't want to drive and talk about it.”
“Are you sure you're all right to drive back tonight because I don't want you to be fuming about your mother and run off the road.”
“Baby, I'm fine and if I don't get home and see you ASAP, I'm really going to lose it. I really want your arms around me when I go to sleep,” she said.
“Then call me Motel 6 because I'm leaving the light on for you.”
“I'll see you in a few hours,” she said.
Cleveland hung up the phone and started a pot of coffee so that he would be fully awake when Freddie arrived at his place. Despite his best efforts, Cleveland fell asleep after his second cup. He'd had a taxing day training to be the new battalion chief. There were tests that he had to take, training exercises and countless other tasks that had to be completed before he was installed as the new leader.
Still, part of him wondered if he would be able to lead the station as well as Darren had over the years. He was still mourning the loss of Roland and how would he rally his men if he lost someone on his watch?
But as an Alexander, he knew this was in his blood. He wanted to save lives and he wanted to keep people safe. It was a calling that all of the men in his family had answered and when he needed to be strong, he would be.
Shifting in the recliner, Cleveland inhaled and could've sworn that he smelled Freddie's rose perfume. His eyes fluttered open and he smiled when he saw her standing over him. Had he really slept that long?
“Leaving the light on for me, huh?” she ribbed as she kissed him on the cheek.
“It was a long day,” he said then pulled her onto his lap in a quick motion. “Glad you made it back in one piece, though.”
Freddie wrapped her arms around his neck and nestled against him. “This feels so good,” she said.
“What happened in New Orleans?”
She sighed and began to tell him the entire story of her family's history. “This all started a long time ago, even before I was born. My father had some vendetta against Nolan Watson because he cheated my grandmother out of an insurance policy payment. My mother was dating Nolan and Jacques made it his mission to woo her and steal her away from him. She ended up getting pregnant with me after all of the wooing,” she said.
Cleveland watched her incredulously as she told the story. “Wow,” he said. “That's something.”
She shook her head and sighed. “It gets worse,” Freddie said. “My parents got married, but I'm not sure how much love was between them. But they started the hotel and for a little while, we seemed like a normal family. But Nolan ended up dead because he attacked my mother.”
“Your father did the right thing by protecting his woman,” Cleveland interjected.
Freddie dropped her arms from around his neck. “My father didn't kill him. It was my mother. She saw an opportunity to get back at my father and Nolan because she was tired of being a pawn in their game.”
“So, all of this time that your father has been on the run, your mother was keeping this secret from you?” Cleveland asked.
“She flat-out lied,” Freddie corrected. “She lied to the police, the courts, and me. The worst thing about all of this is that she got away with it. My dad is gone again, even though his conviction was vacated because of the new evidence his investigator found. He knows he's not going to get any peace in New Orleans. Then again, it's not like he's innocent in all of this either.”
Cleveland didn't know what to say. He couldn't imagine what it must have been like for Freddie growing up and not being able to depend on either one of her parents. This explained a lot about Freddie and why she had a tough time trusting people.
“This has to be hard for you,” Cleveland said.
She didn't say anything, but Cleveland felt her warm tears drop on his shoulder. He stroked her back and rocked her back and forth as she cried silently.
“Are you all right?” Cleveland asked after a few moments passed.
She faced him, dried tears on her cheeks. “Yeah,” she said. “I'm tired. This whole thing has been overwhelming.” She rose from his lap and wiped her face.
Cleveland stood up and closed the space between them and gave Freddie a tight hug. “What do you say to a nice warm bubble bath and candles?” he asked as he kissed her on the top of her head.
“That sounds beautiful, but I'd probably go to sleep on you,” she said. “That ride back took a lot out of me. Besides, it's almost morning.”
“That's why I want to help you relax,” Cleveland said with a slow smile spreading across his face.
“Umm, rain check, baby? I just want to lie down and close my eyes.”
“All right,” he said as they headed upstairs.
As soon as Cleveland and Freddie undressed and got into bed, they both fell fast asleep. He held Freddie close to his chest and had the best night of sleep that he'd had in months. The next morning, Freddie woke up with a start. All night she pretended to sleep soundly, but she couldn't shut off her mind. Lying in Cleveland's arms, she should've been happy and content. He loved her unconditionally and even though he knew her family had demons, he didn't look at her any differently. She knew that the Alexanders were a close-knit family and there was no way he could understand what she was going though. Hell, she didn't understand it herself. It wasn't as if she and her family had ever been close. But knowing that she would never see her parents again made her feel some kind of way. She couldn't explain the feeling. Peeling herself out of Cleveland's arms, she walked into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on her face. Had she made the right decision, leaving her family behind and coming back to Atlanta? She was so sure when she told her mother that she never wanted to see her again that it wouldn't affect her. But here she was in the bathroom when the man she loved was lying in bed.
Freddie knew if she was going to move on with her life that eventually it wouldn't matter what her mother or father did because she'd have a family of her own.
I would never do to my child what my mother and father did to me,
she thought as she wiped her face. She headed back to the bed and snuggled up beside Cleveland. This was her future.
“Where did you go?” he asked as she wrapped her arms around his waist.
“Bathroom.”
“You all right?”
“Yes,” she said. “I'm going to be just fine.” Freddie looked into Cleveland's sleepy eyes. “I love you.”
“I love you more,” he said then sought out her lips. She responded to his gentle kiss by pressing her body against his.
Cleveland slipped his hands between her thighs as her kiss became deeper, wetter and hotter. Freddie moaned as he entered her with his finger, finding her throbbing bud of desire. Closing her eyes, Freddie sighed. If this was her future, then she was looking forward to it.
“I need you,” she cried as Cleveland eased a second finger inside her hot body. She didn't know if he understood the meaning of what she was saying. Not only did she need him physically, but she needed Cleveland more than she ever thought she would.
Would their love last? Would their love be enough? Could she trust that he would never hurt her or leave her?
He reached for a condom and slid the latex in place then turned to Freddie. Her eyes were wet with unshed tears. “What's wrong?” he asked.
“Tell me this is going to last,” she whispered. “Tell me that I can depend on you no matter what.”
Cleveland pulled her against his chest. “Of course you can. Baby, I love you and I never thought I'd love someone the way that I love you. I've never allowed anyone to get this close to me.”
“Why am I special?” she asked.
Cleveland groaned. “Are we really going to do this, now?”
Freddie cocked her head to the side and simply said, “Yes.”
He pulled her on top of him and she shifted her hips away from his swelling manhood. “Well,” he said with a sigh. “No woman has ever challenged me the way you do. No other woman has ever turned me on the way you do.”
“So it's just physical?” she asked. “Because you haven't said one thing . . .”
Cleveland placed his finger to her lips. “Will you let me finish?” He struggled to breathe as he felt the heat from Freddie's body. “When you're gone, I worry about you. I wonder what you're doing and if you're thinking about me. When I look at you, I want to know what you're thinking, even if it's just about what you want for dinner. This has never happened before. I've never cared about a woman deeply enough to have these feelings. So I should be asking you if you're going to leave me.”
Freddie spread her legs and straddled his body. “I'm not going anywhere,” she said as she mounted him. “Cleveland.” Her voice was like a breeze as he filled her. “I love you.”
He gripped her hips, unable to speak as she tightened her grip around his manhood. He pressed his mouth against her neck as she leaned forward, pushing her breasts against his chest. Cleveland seemed to set her body on fire with his lips. Closing her eyes, she rode him faster, crying out in ecstasy as she neared climax. But Cleveland wasn't finished with her. Flipping her over, it was his turn to control the passion. Wrapping her legs around his waist like two silk ribbons, he rotated his hips, touching every spot that made her moan. Freddie dug her nails into his back as he pressed deeper and deeper into her wetness.
“Damn,” Cleveland moaned as Freddie ran her tongue up and down the side of his neck, sending his body into overdrive. “Marry me.”
Freddie closed her eyes, because she knew he didn't say what she thought he'd said.
He said marry me, I know that he did, but he can't mean it.
Cleveland rolled over on his side and faced Freddie. Sweat rolled down his face and he closed his eyes. “Umm, Cleveland,” she said, stroking his cheek.
“Yeah, baby?”
“Did you just say what I think you said?”
He opened his eyes and smiled. “And just what do you think I said?”
She shook her head. “It doesn't matter,” she said and pinched his shoulder. “Don't you have to go to work today?”
Cleveland snuggled closer to Freddie. “No, I don't. And that's not how I meant it to come out, but I meant what I said. I want to marry you.”
“Wha-what?”
Cleveland kissed her on the lips and pulled her even closer to his chest. “I want to marry you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“This is so sudden,” she said. “I don't know what to say.”
“All you have to do is say yes,” Cleveland said. “Say yes to our future.”
“I don't know,” she said, gently pushing away from him. “I don't have anything to offer you. I don't have a job, I don't have . . .”
Cleveland shushed her with a gentle kiss. “Do you think I care about any of that? We're going to work all of that out.”
“Cleveland, this is . . .”
“Baby,” he said. “You're going to be Mrs. Cleveland Alexander whether you like it or not.”
Throwing her head back, Freddie was filled with happiness and dread. Could she marry him with all of the turmoil that she had going on in her life?