“Show us your back,” James said bluntly. “Or if you aren’t comfortable with me in the room at least show Sophia. I doubt you can see if the skin is broken but it needs to be looked at just in case.”Karla had ignored the pain over her shoulder blades because the pain in her heart overshadowed everything else. Slowly she turned, presenting her back to Sophia and James, and allowed Sophia to lift the T-shirt she’d changed into at home so she could see the damage inflicted by the strap.She heard Sophia’s swift intake of breath and James’s savage curse. She winced at the colorful expletives that exploded from James’s mouth.“How bad is it?” Karla whispered.“Bad enough,” James said, but then he was never one to sugarcoat things. Karla had only known him a few months, but she liked his no-nonsense air and the fact that he was always plainspoken.“The skin’s not broken, thank God,” Sophia said, soothing over James’s more terse response. “But there are raised welts and bruises already formi
“Let’s get you to bed, sweetie,” James said in a gentle voice. “You look like you’ve reached the limit of your control. Get some rest. Tomorrow you and Sophia and Sandra can have one of your terror … er … uh I mean girl lunches where y’all threaten the demise of the male population. If I wasn’t so pissed off at the ass**le for what he did, I’d actually feel sorry for Ken about now. But he made his bed and now he has to lie in it. Alone.”“You know,” Sophia said thoughtfully.“Uh oh. I recognize that voice,” James said in a dry tone.“We get up with Karla whenever she’s ready to go over and tackle packing whatever she wants to take. Then I’ll call Sandra, give her the 411 and have her meet us back at your place. And you can be the sweet, adorable guy who gets us takeout so we don’t have any messy upsetting issues in a public restaurant. You’d be invited of course,” Sophia said teasingly.“It’s a good plan and I certainly don’t mind getting all my girls something to eat, but you’re goin
James walked up to stand beside Karla, adding his silent support as he stared Ken down. There was open disgust in James’s expression. Ken wouldn’t even meet James’s gaze. Guilt was plastered all over Ken’s face and then resignation swamped his eyes and he stepped aside so Karla could enter the front door.Karla walked by him, Sophia following behind. James remained, however, and Karla paused just inside the partially open door. Sophia looked questioningly at her, but Karla held a finger to her lips and pointed at the door.“What the f**k were you thinking, Ken?” James demanded. “How could you have allowed your wife to get hurt while you were taking a f**king business call? Have you lost your goddamn mind?”Karla winced but Sophia looked as though she wanted to cheer.“This is between me and Karla,” Ken said in an icy tone. “I don’t need your input when it comes to my marriage.”“Someone needs to knock some sense into your head. God only knows why she’s put up with you as long as she h
“You won’t ever have to do it alone, Karla,” James said in a determined voice. “You were there for Sophia when I was a dumbass. You were there for Sandra when Derrick was a dumbass. So now Ken is the one being the dumbass. It all turned out well for Sandra and Sophia so maybe there’s hope yet for Ken.”Karla attempted a smile but failed miserably. Compared to Ken’s “fuck-up,” Derrick and James’s paled in comparison. There was never any doubt in Karla’s mind that the two men adored their women, and even when they pulled their stupid male moves, she’d known that it would turn out just fine in the end.Before the night at The House, she had felt optimistic about her future with Ken. She’d truly believed that they’d incurred a minor hiccup on the way to happily ever after. But when a husband turned his back on his wife when she was at her most vulnerable to take an after-hours business call, what else was she to think other than that their marriage was well and truly over?************TR
All he could do was set into motion the partnerships and hope for the best. Words were useless. Until now his actions hadn’t supported his words, his promises. It was time to show Karla instead of telling her. He refused to give up and go quietly away, allowing her to walk out of their relationship.This would be the biggest fight of his life, but one he was fully ready to wage. There would be no holding back in his bid to win Karla back. Her love, her faith, her trust. He wanted it all. And in return he’d give her his all.***********THE next few weeks were a test of endurance for Karla. She was surrounded by Sophia and Sandra as well as James and Derrick and their unfailing support, and God knew she needed it because Ken was persistent in his campaign to win her back.Flowers arrived daily. Karla had gotten on a first-name basis with the florist who delivered each bouquet. Equally prevalent were gifts. Earrings—she was admittedly an earring whore—a delicate necklace, and handwritte
“Sorry. I won’t say another word. My lips are sealed.”“I wish I could share this with Ken,” Karla said in a wistful voice. “Not that I’m going to keep it from him. I’m not. But I just wish things were different. That he could have gone to the doctor with me. That we were still together and he met the news with joy. This isn’t ever how I envisioned getting the word that I was pregnant with my first baby.”Sandra reached across the console and curled her hand around Karla’s. “I know it’s not the way you wanted it to happen, but a baby is a blessing and you’re going to be an awesome mom, Karla. You can do this. We’ll take childbirth classes together. I’ll let you borrow all my pregnancy books and we can even use the same OB doctor and schedule our appointments on the same days.”The enthusiasm in Sandra’s voice was contagious. Karla felt the first kernel of excitement since having the proverbial bomb dropped on her in the doctor’s office.She was going to have a baby.No, it wasn’t the
Ken checked his watch. It was five. Certainly not out of the realm for preparing dinner. By the time Karla drove over and they settled into the kitchen and he started preparations it would be six. Perfect timing.“Can you head over now?” he asked, trying to keep his enthusiasm at bay and sound normal even though when it came to Karla, anything at all to do with Karla, normal wasn’t part of his vocabulary for sure.He couldn’t wait to finally see Karla one-on-one for the first time since the night she’d walked out, when she had been devastated and so damn fragile looking. As though she’d break if someone stared at her too hard. And yet he had let a brute of a man put his precious girl through the paces, warming her up for when Ken would have taken over.Karla could have been seriously injured. For all practical purposes she had been raped. Just because the bastard hadn’t fully penetrated her didn’t mean he hadn’t forced himself on her, even as she was screaming her safe word.To still
Her heart squeezed at the sincerity and graveness in his tone. She had no doubt he meant it in this precise moment. That wasn’t in question. He’d also been absolutely sincere after the night of their anniversary, and look where that had gotten them. It wasn’t a matter of him speaking an untruth now. It was the question of how long that vehemence would last. A week? A month? She had no faith that he’d continue to put her first in his life and she refused to live with that uncertainty any longer. She had a child to think about now and her child deserved a full-time father, not someone who was gone all the time and never there for the important moments in life.“I don’t know what to say—to think,” Karla said, her mouth turned down in an expression of unhappiness.“Just say you’ll think about it,” he urged. “I don’t have to have an answer today or even tomorrow. Just promise me you’ll think about it and not give up on me quite yet.”She closed her eyes but nodded, knowing there really was