medicine, and quickly found out that I didn’t have what it took.
The closest I got was pharmacology.”
“I can’t picture you as a pharmacist,” Kalen said.
“I couldn’t either after a year of it. Much to the chagrin of my
parents, I went into sales for a pharmaceutical company. Being
tied to a pill counter was not for me.”
As Mom and Kalen talked to Hailey, I sat back listening and
learning about the woman I had shared most intimate secrets with
the night before. I realized then that there was so much about her
that I didn’t know before jumping into bed and dreaming of a
future together. Nothing that I learned detracted from the way
I felt about her, but I did sort of feel like I was giving my heart
away to someone I only knew half of.
Hailey insisted on cleaning up after dinner, and I was more
than happy to help. The quicker we got out of there, the quicker
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we’d end up in Hailey’s bed or mine. I didn’t care which as long
as we were naked. Kalen put my intentions on hold when she
slapped the kitchen table and practically yelled.
“Oh, my God! I forgot to tell you what Zoe Martinez sent
me.”I pretended not to hear her exclamation, and Mom had to ask,
“What?”
“She videoed Shannon’s speech. Y’all can’t leave until we
watch it.”
“Oh, yes, we can.” I dropped the dish towel on the counter. “I
lived through that once. I don’t want to experience it again.”
“Kalen told me about how wonderful you did, and Angela
raved,” Mom argued. “Stay, I want to see it.”
“I’m tired. Hailey aren’t you tired?” I asked, looking to her
for help.
“I’d like to see it, too,” she said, looking at me and Mom.
I learned another thing about Hailey. She was not good at
picking up on my subtle clues for escape. That was something
we’d have to work on if she still wanted to see me after watching
the video.
“Wow,” Mom and Kalen said in unison as the camera zoomed
in on me at the podium. Kalen looked over at me with a satisfied
grin. “Sis, I think you’re beautiful, but Marvin made you look
like a supermodel.”
I thanked her for the compliment as I cringed, not knowing
what to expect. My memory was still vague about that night, and
I was afraid that I was about to look like a super-ass. The camera
zoomed in closer. My eyes looked like two saucers, and I was
sporting a crooked grin.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s an honor…”
Zoe and someone else were speaking in hushed tones off
camera, but their voices came in clearly over mine. Kalen paused
the video and caught me in mid-blink. My mouth was hanging
open, making me look like I was about to pass out. “I’m going to
choke her. She’s gossiping right over Shannon’s speech.” Kalen
hit the play button.
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Robin Alexander
“…four successful salons in New Orleans.”
Whomever Zoe was speaking to said, “So that’s the other
Brycen sister.”
“Yeah,” Zoe whispered.
Between Zoe’s conversations, we could only hear bits and
pieces of the speech, but with the camera in my face, there was
no denying that I was half out of my mind. “…specialized service
provided by Angela Kennedy—”
Kalen hit the pause again. “Were you drunk? What’s with the
giggling and pointing?”
“I was nervous,” I shot back.
Hailey came to my rescue. “It’s not so bad, especially for
someone who has never done public speaking.” Mom agreed, and
Kalen pressed that damn play button again.
I could tell that Zoe and her compadre had moved away from
the camera, but the mike still picked up their voices over mine,
which sounded like a blur in the background. Apparently, Zoe
had not watched the video before she sent it to Kalen because of
what she said next.
“I’ve always wondered if there was something going on
between Kalen and Angela, even though they claim to be
straight, but I was wrong about which of the Brycens Angela
was servicing. They were into it hot and heavy the other night in
that bar bathroom. If I hadn’t have walked in when I did, Angela
would’ve been giving Shannon the works.”
The TV screen went black. I looked over at Kalen, who looked
mournfully sad for me. I looked at Mom next, who sat with her
mouth hanging open, then last at Hailey, who had no expression
at all.
“That’s not what happened.” I hoped that Hailey would
believe me.
“No, it wasn’t,” Kalen agreed. “Zoe was pissed because
Shannon rejected her, and she didn’t want to look like a loser.”
I could only imagine how Hailey felt. She smiled weakly.
“We weren’t really even dating then, so I have no right to be upset
even if it were true.”
20
Pitifully Ugly
“Well, it’s not,” Kalen said. “That asshole. Wait till I get a
hold of her.”
And that concluded our peaceful evening.
In retrospect, I suppose Zoe’s comment was a good thing
because it opened up a very candid conversation between Hailey
and me on the way home. I told her about kissing Angela and why.
Hailey got a kick out of it, but she wanted to know who Angela
was.“She’s a straight sales rep for Natural Beauty and a friend of
Kalen’s. I’m not interested in her, and I can assure you she has no
interest in me.”
Hailey squeezed my hand. “Good because I don’t want to see
other people, and I don’t want you to, either. Does that bother
you?”
“It’s official, we’re a couple,” I said with a smile.
“But I’m not looking for anything serious,” Hailey said,
returning my smile.
“The hell you aren’t.” Hailey’s laugh thrilled me.
“I should tell you something that I told Kalen tonight. I
probably should’ve told you first, but I got so caught up in the baby
talk that it all just came out.” Her tone turned serious, somber. I
waited silently for her to continue. “I had a miscarriage, well,
actually an ectopic pregnancy in the second year I was married. I
was told it was going to be very difficult for me to conceive.”
“Hailey, I’m sorry.” I wished she had waited until we were
home to tell me, so I could take her in my arms. “I wish I would’ve
known. We would have skipped the nursery visit.”
“No.” Hailey shook her head. “If I’m going to be a part of
your life, then Kalen will be a part of mine, and I don’t want
either of you walking on eggshells around me. This is an exciting
time and I get to be a part of it, and that really makes me happy.”
I was truly excited about having a niece or nephew to spoil,
but my own pitter-patter of little feet? No thanks, unless they
were four fuzzy paws. And then a startling thought hit me. What
if Hailey did want a baby and wanted me to carry it? My palm
started to sweat on the steering wheel, and the one that Hailey
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Robin Alexander
had in her grasp was more than likely doing the same. That was
a conversation we’d save for another day, preferably after I went