Baby, Let It Snow: I'll Be Home for ChristmasSecond Chance Christmas, Page 3

“Still? He didn’t love me the first time around.”

  Jasmine glanced over. “Yes, he did. He just figured it out too late.”

  “His loss.”

  “He has changed, though.”

  “Good. I hope he’s happy with his new self. How about we change the subject?”

  “Sure.”

  So they talked about the wedding, and Dina learned that the bridal gown had arrived that morning. It had been created by an up-and-coming New York designer and was Dina’s wedding gift. Dina had no blood siblings but Jasmine was the sister of her heart.

  “When are Rick’s parents coming in?”

  “They aren’t.”

  “What?”

  Jasmine shrugged. “They aren’t coming. His mother’s a judge and she doesn’t think I’m cultured enough for Rick to be with, so she and his also-a-judge-daddy are staying home.”

  “That’s stupid.”

  “Yep. My boo’s pretty upset, too, but he didn’t back down. Told his mama he was marrying me whether she came to the wedding or not.”

  “Good for him.”

  “I hate drama.”

  “Since when?” Dina tossed back and they both laughed. Jas had spent most of her high-school years in the principal’s office for everything from skipping school to smoking in the bathrooms. Her college stint hadn’t been much better. In the years after, she’d been an artist, a singer with a bunch of outrageous bands and even deejayed at some of the local clubs for a while, but she’d grown up and was now, at the age of twenty-six, a dedicated art teacher. She was also a part-time docent at the city’s world-renowned Charles H. Wright African-American museum. She met Rick during a visit he made there with some of his colleagues. “What’s your mama saying about his parents boycotting the wedding?”

  “Nothing you can repeat in church.”

  Jas’s mother, Grace Todd, made cakes fit for heaven but she could be hell in high heels when defending her kids.

  “When she found out the reason they weren’t coming, I had to practically sit on her to keep her from flying down to New Orleans and giving them a piece of her mind. She’s still mad.”

  “Can’t much blame her.”

  “I know. Rick’s mother Lucille actually demanded Rick make a choice. His family or me, but let’s talk about something else because I’m getting mad all over again. How’s your show going?”

  “Producers are making so much money it’ll probably run forever, but I’m bowing out in June.”

  “Why?”

  “Maureen’s going to have a fit when I tell her, but I want to take some time off to adopt a child.”

  In the darkness, Jasmine’s eyes glowed with happiness. “That’s so cool. Have you started the process?”

  “Just the preliminaries.”

  “Have you told Lynne and Tony?”

  “Not yet, but I will while I’m here.” Lynne and Tony were Dina’s parents. She knew they’d support her decision, and be just as excited at the prospect of opening their hearts to a child. After all, her mother was adopted.

  “How does Arthur feel about this?”

  “Haven’t told him. I’m not going to marry him so there’s no need. He and I both know we don’t have a future together.”

  Jas looked over. “I’m sorry, Dee.”

  “Hey, it’s okay. I’m just being realistic. He’s a sweet, caring man, but I’d shoot myself or him within a week of the wedding.”

  “Morgan will make a great dad someday.”

  When Dina didn’t respond, Jasmine said, “Sorry, I keep bringing him up, but you two belong together, always have, always will.”

  “Give it a rest, Jas. Like I told Maureen, pigs will fly first.”

  “But Dee Dee…”

  “Jasmine,” she cautioned warningly.

  “Lord, you already sound like a mama.”

  The mutual laughter deflated the tension.

  “Okay,” Jasmine said in surrender. “I’ll stop harassing you. I want you to enjoy being home for the wedding and not be mad at me all week.”

  “You don’t have to worry about that. Love you too much.”

  “Good, because I love you, too.”

  Jasmine finally swung the small SUV into the Caldwell driveway. As Dina told Eunique Steel, the Todds and Caldwells had lived next door to each other for ages.

  “So what’s on the agenda for tomorrow?” Dina asked.

  “Morgan’s going to show me and Rick some of the cake designs he has in mind.”

  “He’s making the cake?”

  “Who better, and plus I don’t have to pay him.”

  Dina thought that made a lot of sense. Morgan was the best thing going when it came to desserts.

  “And,” Jas added, “Aunt Lynne still doesn’t have a dress for the wedding. You think you can get her to go shopping? I’m scared she’s going to show up in her jeans.”

  Dina’s mother, Lynne, had been raised during the sixties and she was a jeans-loving woman, and the older the jeans, the better. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  Dina leaned across the seat and gave Jas a hug. “Thanks for picking me up. It’s good to be home.”

  “Glad you’re here. See you in the morning. Call if you need anything.”

  “Will do.”

  While Jasmine sat in the car, Dina got her suitcase off the backseat and walked up the steps. Thanks to the porch light and the bright beams of the headlights, she had no trouble seeing the lock. With the door open, she rolled the suitcase inside. She gave Jas a wave and after watching the SUV back down the drive, closed the door.

  The interior of the house was silent. She left her suitcase by the foot of the stairs and took off her coat before hanging it in the front-hall closet. She walked into the living room. By the light of the lone lamp burning on one of the end tables she glanced around the familiar surroundings. Over the years, the sofa and other furnishings had changed but the feel and smells were the same. The fireplace mantel was still filled with a variety of framed family photographs. One in particular had been taken on her parents’ wedding day. She ran loving eyes over her then-young mother in her white gown and Angela Davis–size afro. Standing next to her with a smile was Dina’s father Tony, dressed for the seventies in a burgundy tux and light pink ruffled shirt. A long, droopy moustache framed his smile, and his large afro rivaled his bride’s. Dina set the large gold-framed photo back in its place. Next to it were other smaller framed photos of herself, most from what she now called her Ugly Duckling phase. Between the black-framed coke-bottle eyeglasses, her allergies and asthma, she’d had very little to be happy about but in every picture she was smiling.

  In the kitchen she found a note from her mom on the table. Her parents were at their weekly bid whist game. She’d called them on the way to meet Morgan and told them of her early arrival. They’d offered to forego the game in order to pick her up from the airport, but she knew how much they enjoyed slapping cards with their friends so she’d called Jas, instead. The note informed her they’d be back home around midnight. Since it was only a bit past ten, Dina opened the fridge to search out something quick to eat. The note said there was ham, mac and cheese, and collards inside but it was far too late for so much food. She did pull the ham out though, grabbed some condiments and prepared to make herself a sandwich.

  Chapter 4

  Morgan pulled the rental car into the driveway of his parents’ home and got out. He saw the lights on at the Caldwells’ and sighed over the missed opportunity with Dina. His plans for their evening together had been shot to hell, thanks to Eunique Steel. The hotel where the cake challenge would be held was on the airport property, so it had taken them only a few minutes to arrive via the onsite shuttle. On the way she’d made a slew of not-so-subtle hints about him spending the night, but he left her at the registration desk and didn’t look back.

  Now he wanted to go over and talk to Dina, but the way his luck had been going, tomorrow might be a better choice.

  Jasmine walked in while h
e was hanging up his coat. “Hey, sis.” He gave her a long hug. “How are you?”

  “Fine. Welcome home. How are you?”

  “I’m good. I see you and Dina made it back. How’d she seem?”

  “Same old Dina. Heard you got kidnapped by Eunique Steel.”

  He blew out a breath. “She’s a mess. Dina say anything about me?”

  “Not really. She asked about your school, though, and wanted to know why you’re selling off your assets.”

  “And you said?”

  “That you were changing your life.”

  That pleased him. “And she said?”

  “She hoped you were happy with the new you. Next subject.”

  That didn’t please him.

  “I don’t know why you’re disappointed,” Jasmine offered in response to what she must have seen on his face. “You messed her over big-time, remember?”

  “I know.”

  Morgan desperately wanted to see her, talk to her, let her know just how sorry he was for treating her the way he had. Deep in thought over the dilemma, his reverie was interrupted by Jasmine’s voice. “I told her I still wanted her to be my sister-in-law.”

  He studied his sister silently for a moment. “And she said?”

  “Pigs will fly first.”

  He hung his head.

  Jasmine gave him a sympathetic pat on the back. “Don’t worry, big brother, I’m sure you can teach a pig to fly in no time.”

  As she left him standing alone in the living room, he said sarcastically, “Thanks.”

  The Caldwells and the Todds had been next-door neighbors since Dina was seven. Usually they entered each other’s homes by the back door, so when Dina heard a knock she assumed it was Jasmine. She placed her empty plate in the sink and went to answer the summons. It wasn’t Jasmine. The sight of Morgan standing there brought her up short.

  His voice was soft. “Hey.”

  The sound affected her senses. “Eunique get to the hotel okay?”

  “Yeah.”

  She fought to keep her voice and her eyes aloof while trying to ignore the way her heart was pounding again.

  “Came over to see if we could talk for a minute.”

  Remaining aloof would have been easier were it not for the memories of the good years or the feel of him so near. With an effort, she forced it all down and stepped back so he could enter. He closed the door and followed her into the kitchen.

  She gestured him to the chairs ringing the table. He took a seat, but instead of joining him she opted to stand against the sink. Arms folded, she waited for him to speak. He looked uncomfortable. She was okay with that.

  He finally said, “I tried to call you after everything blew up between us, but you never picked up.”

  “Never had anything to say.”

  “But I did.”

  “Didn’t matter.” And it hadn’t. Nothing he could have said would’ve erased the pain, so why bother to answer his calls.

  “I wanted to apologize for tearing us apart and disrespecting you the way I did.”

  “Appreciate that, but it’s water under the bridge now, Morgan. Obviously our relationship didn’t mean that much, so no sweat. At least you let me know before we walked down the aisle.” She saw him wince, but that didn’t matter, either.

  “I suppose I deserved that.”

  “Yep.” She saw no sense in lying.

  “I miss you being in my life.”

  Emotion closed her eyes. “We’re not going to talk about this.”

  He whispered, “We have to. I lost the most precious thing in my world. I know that now.”

  Pain rose. “Go home, Morgan, please.”

  “I’m sorry, Dee Dee.”

  Dina knew she’d pluck out her own eyes if she cried. “Please, go home.”

  To his credit, he got to his feet. “If I could do it all over again, I’d do it right. Just so you know.”

  Dina didn’t respond.

  “Thanks for letting me say that, at least.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  The bleakness filling her heart seemed to be mirrored in his eyes.

  “I’ll see you later.” He exited and closed the back door quietly behind him.

  Alone again, Dina ran her hands wearily down her tear-damp cheeks and tried to remember what she’d been doing before he came in. A part of her wanted to mull over his words, but the still-hurt parts cried angrily, You’re kidding, right?

  On the short walk in the dark back to his house, Morgan was blue. That she’d let him into the house was more than he deserved, but in his heart he wanted more. Growing up he’d always considered her his little sister, but he came home after two years of culinary studies in France, took one look at the grown-up Dina and all brotherly thoughts went out the window. To his surprise and delight she’d returned his feelings, and for the next few years they’d dated and built their careers. He remembered how happy she’d been when he’d proposed marriage on the closing night of her first breakout show. And once the world had found out, the press had called them America’s sweethearts, dubbing him the Culinary King of Cool and Dina Broadway’s youngest queen.

  But he hadn’t valued their relationship, or, more importantly, her. Taking her love and sweet nature for granted, he’d cheated on her more times than he could count, with Hollywood starlets, music Pop-Tarts and any other woman with a smile in her eyes. He’d hurt her terribly. The bright lights of celebrity had blinded him to everything but his own selfish desires and cost him the most precious thing in his world. Now he’d gladly give up everything he owned to fix it.

  “How’d it go?” Jasmine asked, pulling the phone away from her ear for a moment. She was talking to her Rick who’d be flying in tomorrow.

  “She let me leave her house alive.”

  “That’s a start.” She went back to her conversation.

  He blew out a resigned breath and went downstairs to his bedroom to work on the sketches for the wedding cakes, but the tears he’d seen in Dina’s eyes stayed in his mind.

  Dina took a shower. After drying off and pulling on a pair of flannel pajamas, she walked down the hall to her bedroom. She always marveled at how small the house seemed now that she was older. On one of her previous visits home, she’d mentioned that to her father. In a humor-filled voice, he’d reminded her that she’d been much closer to the ground when she was a kid. The four-bedroom, two-bath home was sound and strong but it was aging as were her parents. For the past ten years she’d been offering to buy them a new place and for ten years she’d been politely turned down. They had let her buy them a condo in Florida so that they could escape Michigan’s frigid winters. They also let her bring them into NYC for Thanksgiving and Christmas so they could see the shows, marvel at the tree in Rockefeller Center and enjoy a fancy catered holiday meal in Dina’s huge apartment overlooking Central Park, but they refused to move out of the home they’d raised her in.

  Dina sat on her bed and used the remote to turn on the TV. She muted the sound. Her parents had made so many sacrifices to get her ready for the great life she had now that she felt like she owed them the moon. Lessons in everything from dance, to piano, to voice had not been cheap. Her mother had been a math teacher and her daddy a bus driver for the city. Both were retired now, but she was amazed they’d had anything to retire on because of all the money they’d spent on her while growing up. When she was twelve her mother, Lynne, and Morgan’s mom, Grace, went into business together and opened up their catering service, Gracie Lynne’s. Her father worked two jobs to help fund his wife’s dreams and to make sure Dina’s dreams continued to grow, as well.

  Due to the demands of her career, she didn’t get back to Detroit as often as she wanted. Manhattan was her official place of residence now and had been for over ten years, but the D was her home.

  Morgan’s, too.

  The memories of their happy times tried to rise again but were overcome by the dark clouds of his betrayal. He’d played her, plain and simple. H
e’d taken advantage of her love and trust, and left her publicly humiliated and heartbroken. It wasn’t something she ever wanted to suffer through again, so the fact that he’d come over to apologize meant something, but not enough. Because of him, she’d only dated sparingly, preferring to concentrate on her career. Working had been her salvation. Having to immerse herself in dramatic roles helped dull the anguish of the drama being played out in her real life. She’d channeled the anger and emotion into her roles and given the theater audiences some of her best performances. However, once she left the stage, the pain returned. Since giving him back his ring, she always called her mom to make sure Morgan wasn’t in town before she came home to visit. She hadn’t wanted to see him or be around him, but for the next few days there would be no way around that.

  Dina snuggled beneath the covers. She looked at her watch. Her parents would be at least another hour so she settled in to watch television, but a few minutes later she was asleep.

  She awakened the next morning to the smell of bacon and biscuits. Happy as a little kid, she rushed to take care of her morning needs, then hit the steps that led down to the main floor.

  In the kitchen sat her mother reading the paper and her daddy at the stove working his magic. She shared a welcoming hug with each of them and took a seat to wait for breakfast to be done. “Sorry, I fell asleep,” she said to them.

  Lynne set her paper aside. “You were sleeping so soundly I didn’t have the heart to wake you and let you know we were home.”

  Her father Tony cracked, “What your mother means is that we could hear you snoring soon as we pulled up into the driveway. No way was I going to risk my hearing by going into your room.”

  Dina dropped her head. She was known for her snoring, and her daddy for his sense of humor.

  Her mother Lynne scolded him affectionately, “Be nice.”

  He grinned and poured the eggs into the hot skillet to make his signature, Smack Yourself Omelet. Although her mother and Aunt Grace were known for their cakes and pies, Anthony Caldwell knew his way around a kitchen, too. In fact, he’d been a short-order cook when he and her mother first met, so even when Lynne had been away working at the shop, Dina had never lacked for a good home-cooked meal.