Authors: Serenity King
also where they all got together and watched
television.
Once in the family room, Brandon sat
down on one of the sectionals and put his head
in his hands. Wow, he hadn’t realized until he
walked in here that this was going to be
difficult. For some reason all the emotions he
had suppressed for so long were welling up
inside of him. He had to control it, though. He
didn’t want to scare his folks.
His mother sat quietly, wringing a white
handkerchief in her hands.
“Want me to make you a drink,
Brandon?” he heard his father ask.
Brandon nodded. “Yes, a whiskey. Make
it a double,” he murmured.
“Oh, my, Brandon Cameron, what’s going
on?” his mom asked. “This must be serious if
you’re asking for a double whisky.”
“Give the boy a chance to speak, dear,”
his father said, walking over to Brandon and
handing him his drink.
Brandon downed his drink at once. The
liquid burned his throat.
“What I’m about to tell you cannot leave
this room. Not yet,” Brandon said hoarsely
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looking from one to the other of his parents.
Each time he recited the story, his heart tore in
two. “It won’t,” his father said. Brandon
watched as he gave his mother’s shoulder a
squeeze.
“Oh man, I don’t know where to start,”
Brandon said.
“How about at the beginning?” his father
said encouragingly. His mother just continued
to stare at him.
“Brandon you need to tell us what’s going
on now,” she said finally. “The last time you
men kept me in the dark, Tristan and Sinjin
were involved in a shoot-out in New York and
your office was on fire. Please tell me we are
not about to relive that nightmare.”
Brandon snickered. “Mom, I almost wish
it were that simple.” He struggled again to get
his emotions under control. Running his
fingers through his hair, he began.
“Dad you asked me at Diamond and
Rafe’s wedding if something was wrong. I think
you kind of guessed my attitude that day had
something to do with Dominique. Well, it had
everything to do with her. Dominique and I
have been seeing one another for a while. I love
her very much. My sole purpose for being at the
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wedding was to reconnect with her. I had begun
to feel as if I was losing her,” Brandon croaked
out.
“What do you mean losing her? Did you
break up or something?” his mother asked.
“Yes…and no,” Brandon answered.
“Well that explains it all, Brandon,” his
mother said sarcastically.
Brandon took a deep breath and rushed
through the next few words like he was fighting
for his life. “We’ve been married for two years.”
His mother’s mouth fell open. “Excuse
me? Did I hear you correctly? Did you just say
you’ve been married for two years?”
“Yes, Mom, please let me finish,”
Brandon said. “It’s not that cut and dried.”
His father must have heard the
seriousness in his voice because he put a
restraining hand on her shoulder again. “Hold
on, Sarah. Go on, son.”
“As I said, Dominique and I were married
two years ago after she found out she was
pregnant,” Brandon choked out. His mother
gasped loudly. Her face drained of color, but no
one said anything and he went on to tell his
parents the whole story from beginning to end.
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197
By the time he finished, his mother was crying
outright.
“My baby,” Sarah wept. “Why didn’t you
come to us? Why’d you try to carry this alone? I
knew something was wrong. I kept telling your
father. I never dreamed it was this.”
“I’d made a promise to Dominique,
Mom.” Brandon realized that silent tears were
slipping down his own cheeks. He wiped them
away. “I realize now that I just didn’t want to
face anyone. I felt Dominique slipping away
from me. I’d already lost a child. I was so afraid
I would lose my wife as well. Dominique was a
complete wreck. I would’ve agreed to anything
just to see her smile again. At the time, I
thought keeping everything secret was the best
thing to do. Now we both realize that keeping
this secret almost destroyed what we were both
trying to protect, our love for one another.”
“Where’s Dominique now? Please don’t
tell me that you’re giving up, Brandon?” Sarah
said.
“No, mom, I forced Dominique’s hand at
the wedding. It was the best thing I’ve done
since this all started. I realized that she still
loves me. If I hadn’t taken matters into my own
hands, I would have lost her. Her father’s been
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riding her for a while to marry someone else. A
real…well, someone who’s not very nice. Now
because of his pressure, she’s agreed it’s time to
tell her family. She’s arranged a dinner for
Saturday night. I’m worried, though. I think the
stress of this high-profile case and the fallout
that is sure to come with her father after her
announcement is going to be too much for her.
That’s why I’m here now. I’m helping in any
way that I can. My baby girl is gone. I’ll not
lose my wife. I want to make more babies with
her,” Brandon said around the lump that had
formed in his throat.
“The baby was a girl?” his mother cried.
“You knew the sex that soon?”
“Mom, Dominique was going on six
months pregnant,” Brandon whispered. “Our
baby lived for a little while.”
“Oh, my God! You poor darlings.
Brandon, you should have told us,” his mother
said in a broken voice.
“Son, that was too much for you to bear
alone. I can understand why you did it, but it
seems to me that Dominique’s not the only one
who hasn’t dealt with the loss,” his father
surmised.
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Brandon nodded helplessly. “You’re right,
Dad. I thought I had until I came here tonight.
All of a sudden these emotions that I’d kept
hidden almost overwhelmed me. Honestly, I
feel responsible. Dominique was on her way to
see me when she began to miscarry,” Brandon
cried.
Sarah dried her own tears and set about
comforting her son. “No, Brandon. It’s not your
fault. Sometimes these things just happen.
There’s no one to blame. Did the doctor say she
can have more children?”
“Yes. The doctors couldn’t give us an
explanation as to why Dominique miscarried.
Her obstetrician couldn’t find anything
physically wrong with her. He decided that it
might have been stress-related. I still feel
responsible. I’d begun to hound Dominique,
telling her I thought her father was
intentionally keeping her in Atlanta for some
reason…” Brandon went on to repeat the story.
He felt as if he’d told it a thousand times this
week. Maybe if he repeated it enough, he’d
understand it better.
“Brandon, I can’t imagine Dominique
being six months pregnant and no one
noticing?” his mother said.
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“You have to remember Dominique lived
and worked in New York. At the time her family
didn’t see her as often. Besides that, she wasn’t
showing much which concerned me anyway,”
Brandon sighed. He was tired, drained in fact.
And the worst part of it was that he had a
feeling this was just the beginning.
“It’ll all work out, Brandon,” Sarah said
firmly. It sounds to me like you and Dominique
love each other very much. The loss of a child,
through any means, will either tear a couple
apart or bring them closer together. You and
Dominique might have separated for a little
while but your love for one another never
wavered. Hold on to that love and don’t let
anyone or anything come between you two.”
His mother patted his hand. “I’ve always
wanted a daughter. Well, now I have two. I’m
glad y’all are deciding to tell her family. Since
Dominique is capable of having more children,
I want some grandbabies soon. Lord knows,
Tristan and Alisha are just being downright
contrary, and forget about Sinjin. I don’t know
what I’m going to do with my youngest child.”
Brandon and his father both laughed at
his mother’s theatrics.
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201
“He’s not that bad, Mom. Look at Tristan.
No one would have ever thought that that
ornery dude would find a woman who would
put up with his attitude, let alone marry him.
Now look at him. Whipped like a puppy.”
Brandon laughed. It felt good to laugh again.
“She did tame him, didn’t she? That’s
what the love of a good woman will do for you.
That and a good, swift kick in the behind.
Alisha’s no wallflower. That’s what I like most
about her. She doesn’t stand for any nonsense
from your brother. Sinjin, on the other hand, is
of a different breed altogether. I am sure that
the woman to sink her claws into Sinjin will
surely have to shoot him. Lord knows, I’ve
thought about it a couple of times myself,” his
mother giggled.
Brandon laughed so hard tears ran down
his face. He had missed his mom’s witty
personality.
“Now, if you two will excuse me, I have a
lot to do before I retire for the evening,” Sarah
Cameron said, excusing herself.
“Sure. I have to call Dominique anyway.
Then I have some work to do as well,” Brandon
said. “I’ll see you both in the morning before I
leave for the office.”
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“Hang around for a few minutes, son. I
need to speak with you. Sarah, honey, I’ll be up
in a bit,” Lawrence Cameron, said smiling at his
wife.
Sarah smiled and nodded. Brandon
waited for his mother to completely leave the
room before giving his father a questioning
look. “What is it, Dad?”
“I’m still trying to comprehend why you
felt the need to keep your
marriage
—with
Dominique a secret, especially after she lost the
baby. Don’t you know it’s at times like that that
you need family to lean on?”
Brandon studied his hands. “See, Dad,
here’s the thing. When Dominique and I first
started dating, I didn’t know how you or the
rest of the family would feel. I’d never dated
outside of my race, nor had Tristan or Sinjin, as
far as I knew. Regardless of how times have
changed, this is still the South and a great deal
of our social circle is riddled with uptight
people. I didn’t want anyone intruding on what
we shared. I was cocky enough to believe that I
had it all figured out and under control.”
“It wasn’t until this situation with Alisha
and Tristan and how you reacted to them that I
realized I’d made a mistake and that I truly
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missed being with my wife. After she lost the
baby, it was as if I was moving in slow motion.
Nothing much mattered. I think that’s why I
missed this thing with Langston. I’m sorry, I
didn’t mean to hurt y’all’s feelings,” Brandon
murmured.
His father looked stunned. “Why would
you think we wouldn’t have approved of
Dominique? Because she’s African American?
I’ve never given you any indication that I
wouldn’t have approved a mixed-raced union.
Chad was one of your closest friends. Why
wouldn’t you think I’d approve you dating his
sister?”
“Being friends with someone is totally
different from marrying them, Dad. I just
wasn’t sure, and I respect you and mom too
much to go against your wishes…and that’s
what I would have had to do if you hadn’t
approved of Dominique. I love her just that
much. I won’t let anyone come between us
again, Dad,” Brandon said firmly. “Not even her
father.”
“Brandon you’re not sure that he did
anything in the first place. He has a right to
want his daughter to marry an African