If Only We Knew (11 page)

“How was your day?” Matt
took a hold of
her hand
kissing it, as the waiter filled their wine glasses, and then stepped away.

“It was okay. I went shopping today, bought a new purse. How was yours?”

“I had a busy day. Our system went down at the branch, and we had to input all the transactions manually. I had to close the branch down for a couple of hours until the issue was fixed. I’m tired. It feels good to finally sit down and relax.” He could tell she was ignoring everything he said, because when he finished talking, she was shaking her head, looking around the restaurant.

“Well, now that’s over with, and you’re here with me.” She smiled first at the waiter, who’d appeared to take their orders, and then, finally, at him.

Matt pulled a velvet box out of his pocket and handed it to Karen. “I got you a little something. Happy anniversary.”

Karen
clutched
the box and opened it. It was a diamond tennis bracelet. “It’s beautiful, Matt.”

“I’m happy you like it,” he said,
watching the way it sparkled in the light.

“How many carats?” She looked at the writing on the box.

“Two.” He couldn’t believe she would ask that.

“Only two?”

“Yes Karen, only two carats and what does it matter?” he asked, getting mad.

“It doesn’t matter. I was just asking because my friend got one last month, and it was three carats.”
She took the bracelet out of the box and inspected it.

“I don’t care what your friend has. I got something for you, and you’re comparing it to someone else’s. I got it at the best jewelry store in town,” he said, raising his voice.

“I apologize for asking. Thanks for the gift. It’s beautiful.”
She placed her hands on his, but
h
e moved
,
taking hold of his napkin
.

They sat in silence for a while, until the waiter came over with their food. Matt didn’t have much of an appetite anymore.

“Baby, I said I’m sorry.” She said
trying to give him her puppy face look.

Matt looked up to the entrance of the restaurant, where his mother and her accountant, Tom Hunter, were stepping inside. His mother saw him, waved, and walk
ed
toward their table with Tom behind her.

“Hello, dear.” His mother kissed both him and Karen on the cheek.

“Good evening,” Tom said,
watching Karen
.

Matt
nods
his head.
“Good evening Mom, Tom.”

“Hi.” Karen
eyes met with Tom’s
.

Matt studied the way Tom kept
glaring
at Karen.

“May we join you?” Tom asked, looking at the two empty chairs.

Karen shook her head no, but Matt ignored her. “Yes, have a seat.” He had some issues to work out with his mother, and for the moment, those looked to be easier to solve than the issues he had to work out with his wife. .

Tom pulled out the, and then he sat on the other side of Karen.

Matt
observed
Karen, and for some odd reason, she looked like she was nervous. “Karen, are you okay?”

“Yes.”

He could see her hands shaking as she picked up her wine glass. “You’re shaking.”

“No, sweetie, I’m okay, just got a little flushed.” She drank all the wine in her glass.

“Son, how have you
been?”
His mother said trying to touch him
.

His focus shifted from Karen to his mother.
“I’m doing great and your grandson is too.”

“Matt, are you sure that baby is yours?”

The waiter came over to refill their wine glasses.

Matt
picked up his glass of wine, taking a sip, to calm down his emotions, staring over his glass at his mother
. “If you even bothered to see him, you would know that Matthew is my son.”

“The only way you’ll know for sure is if you get a DNA test done.”

“Mrs. Phillips, the baby is Matt’s. He looks just like him,” Karen said.

“Karen, are you okay with him having a baby with someone else and that someone else being black?”

“He made a mistake, and I forgave him. I’m learning to accept his son.”

“You’re a better woman than me.” She
told
Karen.

Karen didn’t say anything. All she did was stare over at Tom in silence.

“Why a black woman, Matthew? Now you have a biracial child. He will never be one of us.”
His mother asked him grabbing her glass.

“One of us…what does that fucking mean? You know what? Don’t answer.” Matt got up, pulled out his wallet, and threw money on the table.

“Son, I’m sorry.” His mother looked up at him with regret.

“I don’t care if you accept him or not. Just in case you forgot, I’m biracial, too. Maybe that’s why you left us like we were trash you were putting out.” He raised his voice. “Karen, let’s go.”

“I haven’t finished my dinner.” Karen
said to
him. He clenched his jaw shut,
looked
at her, and
took
off.

Karen got up, said her goodbyes, and followed him out the restaurant. “Matt, wait!”

Matt stopped, trying to calm down.

“What’s your fucking problem? Your mother is entitled to her opinion,” she said, walking up to him.

“It’s her only grandson. No matter what she thinks of his mother, it’s her only grandson, and she doesn’t want anything to do with him because of his race. She didn’t want anything to do with me when I was younger, but I thought she would want a second chance with him. I don’t want my son to ever feel like that with anyone.”

“You should leave the past in the past. Don’t compare the situations,” she said, putting her hand on her hip.

“You wouldn’t understand what I’m going through,” he said,
noticing the people walking around them
.

“You’re right. I wouldn’t understand, and I don’t care to. You ruined our anniversary dinner by inviting them to eat with us. I just want to go home.” She
headed
toward the valet.

He followed her, and gave his ticket, and waited. A few minutes later, the attendant came back with his SUV.

He was about
move
to
wards
the attendant when Tom rushed toward him. “Matt, hold up.”

“What do you want?”

“You forgot this at the table.” Tom handed him the velvet box with the diamond bracelet in it.

Matt grabbed it from him. “Thank you.” He
continued, reaching
the SUV, he opened the door, jumped in, and threw the box at Karen. “You’re welcome.”

Neither of them said a word the entire ride home.

As soon as he drove up to their driveway, she jumped out and went into the house, leaving the bracelet. He
rushed into
the house, straight to his office.
Why did I let my mother get to me?

A while later, Karen
strolled in
his office. “Matt, we need to talk.” He looked up at her. “I need more out of this relationship.”

“What the hell are you talking about? I’ve giving you everything I can. I take care of you emotionally, physically, and financially. I’ve done all I can do, but if you think I’m missing something, tell me.”

“Do you trust me?” she asked, sitting in front of his desk.

He
didn’t answer.

“Why don’t I have access to all your accounts?” she asked, staring at him.

“This is about fucking money?” he yelled, getting up from the chair. “Look, Karen, I give you anything you want, and you still want more. No, I will not give you access to all my accounts because I would be broke in less than a week. Sometimes I wonder if you married me for my money, because if you did, you’re in for a big surprise.” He stormed out the office and the house
slamming the door
.
Fuck her!

Shannon’s cell phone rang. “Hello.”

“I’m outside. I didn’t want to ring the bell or knock just in case Matthew was sleeping,” Matt said.

“I’m coming.” She hung up the phone and walked to the front door with
Matthew
in her arms.

“Please don’t be mad at me for coming over so late,” he said, staring at her as she opened the door.

“I’m not mad. Come in. I was still up.” She moved so that he could pass.

He walked in, touching
his son’s
face. “What are you still doing up, little guy?”

“I just finished eating, Daddy.” She giggled, looking at
Matthew smiling in her
arms
.

Matt closed the door and followed her to the living room. “I just needed to see him.” He
looked
at Matthew. “He’s getting so big.”

“He is.” She kissed
his
cheek. “The doctor said he gained three pounds.”

“You took him to the doctor?”

“Yes, his six-week checkup.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? I would’ve gone.”

“I did. I told you we had our appointments on the same day.”

“I must have forgotten, but why didn’t you call me?”

“Matt, it was just a doctor’s appointment. He is healthy.”

“When do you start work?” He took the baby from her.

“
N
ext week. I’m not looking forward to all the gossiping about us. Susan from accounting called and filled me in,” she said, sitting down, and
folded
tiny clothes
.

“At least you missed the first couple of months. By the time you go back to work, there will be another juicy story going around. People at my branch talked, but it doesn’t faze me because I know I’m good at my job, and my personal life is just that…personal.” He sat next to her, burping the baby.

She smiled. “Nicely said.”

“Now tell me what’s wrong.”
She said finishing up with the clothes.

“Do you regret having a biracial baby?” he asked, looking at his son.

“No, do you?” She got up. “Because it’s not too late. I told you if you don’t want to be involved you don’t have to be. From the beginning, my intention was to raise him by myself. I don’t care about his race. If I did, you wouldn’t be my friend.”
She look
ed at him with sadness in her eyes and was about to turn around.

“Shannon, don’t walk away. You misunderstood me. I don’t regret our son. I just asked you a question.”

“Why would you ask me that?”

Matt got off the sofa and put Matthew down in his bassinet. He walked over to Shannon,
touching
her arm. “You’re not going to raise him by yourself. I would never turn my back on him, no matter what people
think
or do.”
Taking her hand in his.

“Who said something to you?”

“I saw my mother tonight, and what she
had to say
just got to me.”

“What did she say?”

“She said that Matthew would never fit into her world.”
Matt
shared
what
happened
during dinner.

He released his hold on her hand. “Matt, I don’t care what your mother
thinks
. I know you love him, and that’s what really matters to me. If she doesn’t want to be involved in his life, it’s her loss. He can never miss something he never knew.” She
led
him over to the sofa, and sat down. “What happened between your mom and you was completely different. You knew and loved her, but she hurt you when she abandoned your brother and you. I think you’ve never let go of that pain. Matthew is not going to feel like that, because even though we live in different homes, we love him, and you are not going anywhere.”

He pushed some of her hair from her face.
“What would I do without you to talk to?”

“Well, at least you don’t have to find out until eighteen years from now.”

“More than that. I still need my dad and you still need your parents, and we’re over eighteen.”

“You’re right about that, way older than eighteen.” They laughed. “Happy anniversary. What did you get?”

“Nothing.”

Shannon thought about saying something silly but
didn
’
t
. “It’s eleven o’clock. Why aren’t you at home with your wife?” He looked at her like he was thinking of what to say. “It’s none of my business.”