Wrong Way Renee (5 page)

The children scampered away, eager to escape the fresh tension in the room.

“Nice to see you too,
Mama
,
”
Renee said.

Elizabeth's eyes narrowed, her tortoise shell glasses slipping further down her nose.
“I can not understand for the love of God, why you say su
ch things to the children
.
”
She looked at
Char
.
“I called your father from the car. He and Gary are on the w
ay. They won the Barnard case.”

Char
clapped her hands and giggled.
“You know what that means,
Mama
.
”
She looked at Renee to explain.
“Gary said we'd take that Alaskan cruise if they won this one. Big settlement.
”
She jumped up and down, squealing like a wounded pig.

“You could be practicing with them, Renee.
”
Elizabeth gave her head a disapproving shake.
“If you had only majored in pre-law as your father and I suggested, you'd be a partner like Gary is by now. But you had to drop out to start doing nails, for God's sake.
Do you know how many girls would have given their right arm to have the opportunities you did?
”
She wrung her hands, looking around the room.
“I see you girls have finished the salad. I just need to put the cheese on the chicken and slip it into the oven. “

Renee's shoulders slumped. Too bad she couldn't fast-forward past these family dinners like she did through the boring parts of a rented movie. Maybe she
was
a failure. The sound of the front door closing interrupted her self-deprecation.

“
Where’s my sexy wife?
”
Gary shouted from the foyer.
“Come 'ere,
Miss
Char
.
I need some sugar.
”

Char
took off running.

Renee poked her head through the dining room door and watched her sister jump into his arms, wrapping her spindly legs around his waist. He was so thin and gawky, it amazed her that he was able to hold her sister up.
Char
kissed him before he set her down.

He glanced at Renee and straightened his suit jacket.
“Hey, Renee. Didn't see you there. Sorry.
”

She
backed through the door into the kitchen. Gary was totally not her type, but she was jealous, damn it. Jealous of her sister's loving marriage, big house and easy life. She had sitters for the kids whenever she wanted, she bought what she wanted, traveled when she wanted, did what she wanted. And she had a man who worshiped the ground she walked on, something Renee had never even come close to.

Be happy for your sister.
She has everything she ever wanted.

The kitchen door creaked and she jumped.
Luther
Wright entered the room, making a beeline for her.
“How's my pumpkin?
”
As he hugged her, she closed her eyes, drank in the familiar scent of him, a mix of Polo cologne and Head and Shoulders shampoo, the smell of comfort and safety.

She held on for an extra few seconds.
“Hi, Daddy. Congrat
ulations on winning your case.”

“Thanks, sweetheart. Why don't you buy yourself a new outfit, on me.
”
He pushed something into her palm.
Luther
Wright always knew when his daughter needed a lift.

She stealthily shoved the money into her pocket.
“Thank you, Daddy.
”
As long as her
mother
didn't know. Money from
Mama
always felt like some sort of admonishment.

Over dinner, Renee counted her
mother
's disapproving glances at everyone at the table.
Char
was usually spared.
Luther
seemed to be the most frequent benefactor of his wife's scowls, with Gary Junior coming in second.

By nine PM, the sleeping kids had to be carried to
Char
's car and Renee found her chance to sneak away. She kissed her parents then headed home to the safety of her tiny apartment.

The red light on the answering machine was blinking when she arrived. Setting her mail on the counter, she hit the Play button.

“
…
Renee, honey
,
it’s
Dan. I need to
…
hic
…
talk to you. We have to discuss some stuff
…
hic
…
Give me a call
when you get in, please, baby.”

Baby? Honey? He must have been drunk. But he sounded like he wanted to
…
She picked up the phone to dial his cell.

Wait a second. What the hell was she doing? Why would she want anything to do with
his
cheating ass? Everything bad that had happened to her in the last few months was his fault. His fault she'd taken this apartment she couldn’t afford alone, and with another eight months on the lease. His fault she'd been shopping like a mad woman to fill the void he'd left in her life. His fault she had no one to share the upcoming holidays with. His fault her life had become so freaking pathetic.

She stared at the phone, wondering if she was pathetic enough to call him back.

Chapte
r
Two

“So sorry I'm late, Helen.
”
Renee raced across the salon Wednesday morning, slid into her chair and threw her purse on the floor behind her.

“No problem,
”
Helen said.
“I just got here myself. How are you?
”

“I'm great.
”
She was proud of herself for resisting the urge to call Dan last night. Screw the bastard.

Chantelle
, the salon's other nail tech—and the only other
black woman
in the place—
was already working. She hadn't said much since Renee had reprimanded her for telling an off-color joke in the salon two weeks ago. Now, she seemed to be whispering to her clients all the time. It made Renee uncomfortable, so she decided to try to make nice.
“I
love the way you did your makeup
,
Chantelle
. It really shows off your
great cheekbones
.
”

Chantelle
eyed her warily, raising her highly arched brows.
“Why thank you, Renee
.
”

“
And that lipstick color was a brilliant choice. But when you have a gorgeous face
like you do, how can you go wrong?
”
Sh
e gave her a sugary smile.

“You might want to hold back on the honey a bit,
”
Helen whispered.
“It’s a little over the top.”

Zoey ran to the nail stations, skidding to a stop, her pink Converse high tops leaving cloudy streaks across the polished wood floor.
“Listen up everyone. One of my customers from the shop
where
I used to work has an appointment in a few minutes. You'll notice right away she's unusual, but please, don't stare. You'll make her uncomfortable. She likes to be a
ddressed as Hazel and she's
…
”

The door chime dinged and Zoey's head popped back.
“Hazel, darling, how are you?
”
she shrilled as she glided to the reception area.

Renee heard a man say,
“I had a bitch of a
time finding this place, Zoey.”

What the…

Everyone in the salon
stared
toward the door at the tall blonde woman
…
no, man, no, woman. He marched down the center aisle to Zoey's station. Built like a linebacker, he was dressed in a rose colored skirt with a white blouse, a flower pinned near the top button. It reminded Renee of an outfit her grand
ma
might have worn.

“Everyone, meet Hazel.
”
Zoey smiled, but her eyes flashed a warning at
Chantelle
.
“Hazel, this is Renee, that's
Chantelle
, this is Becky.
”
She ushered Hazel to her service chair.

Chantelle
's mouth fell open.

“Nice to meet you Hazel,
”
Renee said, breaking the deafening silence that had momentarily settled over the salon. She stared at
Chantelle
's face, still frozen in shock.
“Can I get you anything,
Chantelle
?
”

Chantelle
finally closed
her mouth.
“Nice to meet you,
”
she
ground
out.

Becky waved, then continued cutting her client's hair.

“Hello everyone
”
Hazel
deftly maneuvering his large frame into the pink chair.
“This place is a step up for you, Zoey.
”

Zoey glanced around the room.
“I like it.”

Renee finished her manicure then led Helen to the drying area. When she returned to her station to wipe up the cloudy streaks Zoey's sneakers had left on the floor, she noticed how
Chantelle
kept looking toward Zoey's station, whispering to her client. Heading to the kitchenette for a cup of coffee, Renee stopped at
Chantelle
's table and leaned down, trying to discreetly whisper in
Chantelle
's ear.
“Are you okay?”

“Fine, fine. No problems.
”
Chantelle
continued polishing her client's nails.

Renee twirled a ringlet as she walked past Zoey's station, taking a long glance in the mirror at Hazel. He would probably be pretty nice looking if it wasn't for all the makeup and the blonde hair teased up to look like the top of a Q-tip.

There
she went
again. Trying to make a date out of the most unavailable man
she’d
met since the bank robber.
Why hadn’t that cute cop called her last night instead of Dan?
Was
Dan
tired of the nymph and her money? Did he want to come back to her?

She walked
straight
into the wall with a thud.
Damn, that hurt.

Becky ran over.
“Are you all right? God, that's the
third time this month, honey.”

Her forehead ached.
“I'm fine. Just embarrassed.
”
She headed straight to the bathroom to assess the damage. Leaning close to the mirror, she saw her eyebrow already turning purple. Great.

Since she'd had a rough morning, she opted for a power lunch of peanut M & M's, then
worked
nonstop until seven. After work, she headed to the mall to lift her spirits. As she strolled through the food court, the smell of fresh pretzels lured her to the Aunt Annie's stand. She made a dinner of two large pretzels, swearing she'd start her diet Mo
nday morning.

Continuing through the hallowed halls, she spotted a pair of hot pink Lily Pulitzer sling-backs. Something pulled her into the store to try them on, for the heck of it. They fit perfectly, so she decided they'd be a pre-reward for her upcoming diet.

“Will that be cash or charge?
”
the skinny blonde sales clerk asked in a babyish voice, staring straight at Renee's bruised left eye.

“Charge.
”
Who needed stupid Dan the cheater? She had the hottest pink sling-backs ever. Unfortunately, she also had half a dozen charg
e cards nearly at their limits.

* * * * *

By the time Saturday arrived, Renee was more than ready for her workweek to be over. A bride-to-be got a set of pink and white acrylics and a pedicure, while the
mother
of the bride was with
Chantelle
, having a manicure and pedicure.

Next
sh
e did a fill for Pamela, one of her regulars. She got to hear the ups and downs of Pam's relationship with a cheating fireman, which usually made her thankful she was done with Dan.

“
Pablo
's father really wants him to marry this girl fro
m Texas, a friend of the family.
”
Pam slouching in the chair.
“You know, like an arranged marriage.
”