My White Ex Soldier's Past (BWWM Interracial Romance) (4 page)

“So, I’m guessing I will be in there on my own, right?” he asked as she got dressed. She looked at him and smiled as she walked out of the bedroom.

Cynthia and Rochelle gave her an all knowing smile as she walked into the kitchen. They were busying themselves with warming the food she had so elegantly made earlier.

“And I thought you were genuinely traumatized,” Rochelle said, looking up at Desiree.

“What are you talking about?” Desiree asked as she sat down.

“You crying out here so Taylor could take you to the bedroom and sex you up,” Rochelle said in a whisper. Desiree rolled her eyes.

“Please don’t remind me of Leon,” she said. “That man should never come here again. Ever,” she said sternly. Cynthia and Rochelle exchanged glances. Desiree hardly ever got this serious but when she did, she was downright solemn. Rochelle nodded.

“Don’t worry, sis, I don’t think he will be coming back here anytime soon,” she said. Cynthia smiled as she brought a tray of juice and glasses. “Besides, I think Taylor is here to stay,” she said as she took a seat next to Desiree.

“You guys were right. I think I’m falling in love with Taylor,” Desiree said as she looked up at Taylor who was at that moment making his way towards the girls at the table. She was already at the point of no return. She could not refute the fact that he made her happy, and he was a long shot from the sorry excuses for men she had gone out with. Taylor was definitely her future.

A few months into their relationship, Desiree was still trying to figure out what Taylor’s deal really was. She was a bit concerned the way he never talked about his past. She never really minded his secrecy, but lately, people like Cynthia and Rochelle, as well as some of her workmates, were asking questions she could not really answer.

It had all started earlier that week when she was at work. Taylor had developed a habit of picking her up from work every time her shift ended between two and six in the afternoon, since most of his landscaping jobs ended at around the same time. Desiree’s workmates had actually become familiar with Taylor’s grey truck. Every time someone saw the truck, they would make a joke that it was Desiree’s time to clock out.

“
You need to tell me if your man has a brother, preferably one that samples the other side of the buffet table,” Malcolm Palmer, one of her workmates told her once. She had always considered Malcolm to be her best gay. He was in charge of the cosmetic section of the store, and Desiree could have sworn he knew better about makeup than the people at Cover Girl. To Malcolm and almost everyone she worked with, Desiree had hit the jackpot, but she hated the weird look that came over her face every time they all went, “So, what’s his story?” or ”Was he ever married?” But the mother lode came when she was leaving work one day and she bumped into a pretty brunette in the driveway. She had noticed the brunette even before she talked. She looked stunning in what Desiree made out to be a Dolce and Gabbanna floral print pencil dress. The girl had matched the white dress with a pair of red platform heels. She actually looked a bit lost. In Desiree’s opinion, the brunette looked like she belonged in some high-end fashion store rather than outside the local supermarket.

“
Hi there. Can you help me?” the brunette asked. Desiree smiled and walked towards her.

“
Sure. What can I do for you?” she asked as she looked at the brunette.

“
I am looking for a woman, Desiree Young,” the brunette said. Desiree looked at her, stunned.

“
Um, okay. You found her. What’s going on?” she asked looking at the woman. The brunette smiled.

“
Oh, you’re Miss Young. Great,” the woman said. A look of relief seemed to sweep over her face. “My name is Laura Ericson. I was wondering if you could direct me to Taylor Ericson,” she said.

Desiree froze. Laura Ericson? Was she her sister or something? Taylor never talked about his family to her, so there was no way of knowing who this woman was or what she wanted.

“Okay. Are you his sister?” Desiree asked. The woman smiled.

“
Oh no. I’m his wife,” Laura said with a smile.

Desiree felt a sense of déjà vu when she said that. She looked at her as a tear threatened to roll down her cheek.

“His wife?” she asked trying hard not to cry.

“
Yeah, though I haven’t seen him in the longest time,” Laura said. She gave Desiree a sad smile. “I’m sorry. I’m sure this is a shock to you,” she said. Desiree shook her head.

“
Wait. How did you find me? How did you know about me?” she asked. Laura smiled.

“
Maybe we should sit down. There’s a coffee shop down the road. We could go there,” Laura said. Desiree knew the coffee shop she was talking about. It was Cynthia’s place and the last thing she needed was explaining to Cynthia who the woman she was with was. She looked at Laura and shook her head.

“
I know one that’s closer,” Desiree said as she began heading in the opposite direction.

“
Wait. We can take my car,” Laura said pointing to a Mercedes convertible that was behind her.

Desiree wanted to scream. How was it that Taylor led such a humble life while his “wife” managed so damn well? She shuddered as she headed towards the vehicle.

“Fine,” Desiree said absent-mindededly. She climbed into the car and buckled up. It was all she could do not to punch Laura in the face or even just claw her eyes out. She was silent the entire way to the coffee shop except for the occasional directions she gave to Laura.

When they got to Aunt Sally’s Pies, she got out and walked in. Aunt Sally’s Pies was one of the places Desiree went to as a young girl. The chances that anyone would recognize her here were minimal and she needed that in case she strangled Laura in broad daylight. She was still wondering what Taylor’s wife, whatever that meant, wanted from her. She sat across from Laura at the table and waited patiently for the waitress to bring them a menu. A million thoughts were going through her mind as she sat there looking at this lovely woman who had turned her life upside down with just three words.
“I’m his wife,”
she remembered Laura telling her that half an hour earlier.

“
Hi, I’m Penny. Welcome to Aunt Sally’s Pies. What can I get you?” the waitress asked cheerfully.

“
I’ll just have a regular coffee,” Desiree said.

“
Yes, me too,” Laura said as she gave the menu back to the waitress.

“
You really need to try our chef’s special pie today” she said.

“
Oh, okay. What is it?” Laura asked.

“
Caramel pecan cheesecake pie,” the waitress said with a smile. Laura’s eyes lit up.

“
Oh, those words just tickle my fancy. I’ll have a slice,” she said with a smile. “Bring one for my friend here too,” she added as she turned her attention back to Desiree.

“
We are not friends, lady,” Desiree said sternly. Her voice was steady and serious. Laura knew exactly what she needed to do. She smiled at Desiree and shrugged.

“
I didn’t want this to be awkward. Calling you a friend might ease everything,” she said. Desiree laughed cynically.

“
Look. You ambushed me at my place of work and told me that you are my boyfriend’s wife. So unless you want to shoot me, I suggest you tell me what the hell you want from me,” she said looking at Laura, who took a long deep breath.

“
I’m really sorry we had to meet like this. It’s just that I have been looking for Taylor and when I knew that he moved here…” Desiree put her hands up and shook her head.

“
Wait. What do you mean moved here? Didn’t he always live here?” she asked looking at Laura.

“
Actually no. We used to live in California until…well, until our marriage ended,” Laura said. Desiree felt a wave of relief go over her.

“
So, you are divorced?” Desiree asked. Laura smiled and shook her head.

“
No. Not really,” she said simply. Desiree was getting agitated.

“
Look here, lady. You are really testing my patience here. It is either you are married or not. I’m done playing this damn game. You either tell me why you brought me here or I walk out,” she said getting more irritated by the second. Laura smiled as the waitress brought their coffees and pies and then walked away. Laura smiled and took a bite of the pie. She smiled and closed her eyes as she chewed.

“
You really need to try this,” she said pointing to the pie. Desiree rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“
How did you even find me?” she asked as she looked at Laura.

“
I was looking for a way to get to Taylor, to get him to listen to me because he would hang up as soon as he heard my voice or click delete on my emails. So I got a PI to follow him so I could know how I could talk to him because I need closure,” Laura started explaining.

Desiree would have preferred if Laura had remained silent. Everything she said only got her more confused.

“You hired a private investigator to follow Taylor…me? Why? What the fuck do you want from us? And what the hell do you mean closure? What is it you need closure from?” she asked.

This time it was Laura’s turn to be confused. “He didn’t tell you?” she asked looking at Desiree. Desiree shook her head confused.

“Tell me what?” she asked.
“It’s not like he tells me much. I don’t even know his middle name,”
she thought as she looked at Laura. She needed answers more than ever.

“
I thought he would have told you…it’s not my place to say anything if he hasn’t,” Laura said as she took another bite of the pie.

That was it. Seeing her acting so passive-aggressive was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Desiree slammed her fist on the table, not caring that people were starting to stare. She moved up close to Laura and looked at her squarely in the eyes.

“Look here, bitch. You either tell me what the hell it is you want from me or I swear to God I will ruin that perfectly botoxed face of yours,” she said holding her coffee up. By the look in her eyes, Laura knew that Desiree was seconds away from making good on her threat and pouring hot scalding coffee all over her face.

“
Okay, please sit down, Miss Young. We can be civilized about this,” Laura said. Desiree sat back down and looked at her. She had no idea what Laura meant. Desiree was being perfectly civilized. Laura was the one being all mysterious and that was the last thing she needed. She’d had enough drama in her life and she was not about to welcome any more surprises.

“
Stop calling me Miss Young. I’m in my twenties, not forties,” Desiree said angrily.

“
So, I need to get in touch with Taylor…”

“
You already said that part. I need to know why you need to get in touch with him and how I play into all this,” Desiree said, cutting her short.

“
Okay. I am looking for him because I want to work things out between us,” Laura said. Her words were like a stainless steel blade cutting through Desiree’s heart.

“
Why would you think I would help you? Didn’t you hear me say boyfriend?” Desiree asked angrily.

“
I know about your past with a Mr. Leon and I know you would hate to be the reason another marriage fails, right?” Laura asked. Desiree looked at her and stood up.

“
Fuck you,” she said before she walked off. With every step she took she felt like she would explode. She wanted to scream out her pain, her anguish, her disappointment. Why did this happen to her now? Just when everything was going so well? She felt a tear roll down her cheek as she made her way out of Aunt Sally’s. She quickly walked to a cab that was parked nearby and mumbled the address of Cynthia’s coffee place before leaning back. She needed answers ,but before that, she needed to vent.

*****

Cynthia’s mouth gaped as Desiree told her about her very peculiar visit from Laura. She walked over to Desiree and draped an arm around her cousin’s shoulders. She could only imagine what Desiree was going through. She stroked Desiree’s hair as she sobbed uncontrollably on her lap. The last time she had done this was when Desiree found out the truth about Leon, that he was a married man. She had been a crying shoulder for her two cousins for as long as she could remember. Actually, she was more like a mother to the two sisters, even though sometimes Desiree liked to assign herself the maternal role. She smiled as she looked into Desiree’s puffy eyes.

“
You feeling all right now?” she asked. Desiree shrugged.

“
I don’t know,” she said as she looked at Cynthia. “What do I do?” she asked.

“
I usually say that I can’t tell you what to do, but today, you need to have a talk with Taylor,” Cynthia said, a sad smile playing on her lips. She had a feeling that this was just a huge misunderstanding because she actually really liked Taylor. She would have hated it if Desiree and Taylor broke up because of a misunderstanding. “Does he talk about his wife to you?” Cynthia asked. Desiree shook her head.

“
I didn’t even know he was ever married. He doesn’t talk a lot about himself, you know,” Desiree said sadly. “Maybe this is what my life is supposed to be. Maybe I’m supposed to spend my life alone,” she said sadly. Cynthia shook her head.

“
Don’t say that. Taylor is a good guy. I feel it in my gut and you know my gut feeling is usually very accurate,” Cynthia said with a smile. Desiree gave her a short laugh.

“
I really don’t want to know what this could mean,” Desiree said.

“
But you cannot live your life making assumptions,” Cynthia said to her. “You told us you are falling in love with him but I know that ship sailed a long time ago. You need to have a talk with Taylor. If you don’t do it for me, then do it to save a beautiful thing,” she said.

Desiree knew she was right. She needed to have a long talk with Taylor. Whatever it was about Laura, it was probably something she needed to hear from the horse’s mouth...the horse in this case being Taylor. She looked at Cynthia and nodded.

“I’ll see you at home,” Desiree said as she stood up.

“
You’re going to be okay, right?” she asked as Desiree began walking out. Desiree stopped and turned around.

“
What’s the worst that could happen?” she asked before walking away.