Private Sins (Three Rivers Series: Book 1) (4 page)

CHAPTER SIX

“I am on a month’s vacation,” Theo announced to Kelly, who was sitting on the patio, lounging on one of the chairs. Matthew was on one side of her and Thealyn on the other. The two were busy touching their little brother and giggling.

“Look Daddy,” Thea said in wonder. “His finger is smaller than my doll's.”

Theo crouched by his family and grinned. “That’s how your fingers were small when Mommy first took you home. I sat and stared at you for hours, with a little fear in the back of my mind that I had taken on the biggest responsibility in the world. That fear is still there. One would think that after three children it would go away, but it never does.” He scooped up the baby from off Kelly's belly and kissed him on the forehead.

“Hey, little one. You are a week old today. I love you.”

Kelly looked at Theo as he stared at the baby. The love he felt for the newest addition to the family was palpable from where she sat. He was a man who loved his children and who wore his emotions for them on his sleeve. He hadn’t yet talked about the fact that Mark's eyes were green, or that they were lighter than his and Kelly’s. He just loved his child, and for that, a heavy burden had been lifted from Kelly’s heart.

She had watched him closely as he interacted with the baby, and she found not even a thread of doubt about the baby in his actions. He was rocking the baby now and cooing to him. Clearly, her worries and misgivings during her pregnancy were for naught.

If only Chris would stop hounding her about the child then she would be fine. She would be home free in this duplicity of hers.

She didn’t intend to keep this secret from her husband for long. She would give it another sixty or so years, and one day when she and Theo were in their nineties
—and hopefully he would be half deaf—she would confess all to him. But for now she was content to let the matter rest.

“So how am I going to spend this vacation, Mrs. Palmer?” Theo turned around still cuddling the baby, a brow raised.

“By changing diapers and getting up for midnight feedings,” Kelly replied, smiling.

“Mmmm,” Theo smiled. “I am also getting some quality time with you, since these two will be back in school in two weeks.”

“Do we have to go to school?” Thea asked, frowning. “Why can't we just stay here and get to know the new baby?”

“Yes, Mommy. Can we stay here with you?” Matthew looked at her, his big brown eyes pleading. “We’ll be good.”

Kelly laughed and kissed him on the forehead. “In two weeks you will be changing your tune when all your friends start going back to school. You’ll be begging me to send you. Besides, your brother is too young for you to play with just now—you'd be bored.”

Theo watched the scene with a smile. Kelly looked so beautiful sitting there in her flowing maxi dress
—a slight fullness in her face was the only indication that she had recently given birth. She had her curly hair piled high on her head and little tendrils of hair escaped the loose bun. She looked happy. Happier than she had been in months, and he instantly felt more relaxed.

He had wondered about her mood for the last couple of months, but having the baby had changed her somehow. He looked down at the baby and smiled. He was getting bigger everyday. He almost looked like a full-term baby. His length and weight were spot-on. It was a miracle to him, this child of theirs. He was unusual in coloring and features from the rest of the children, and Theo was amazed once again at how complex genetics could be.

“Guys, your Aunty Erica is coming in an hour to pick you up and take you to Dolphin Cove. He handed the baby to Kelly. I'd better start helping them get ready, and then today I am all yours.”

Kelly laughed. “Promises, promises.”

He dropped a kiss on her lips and heralded his jumping children into the house. “Daddy, can I wear my pink dress with the sparkly things on it?” Thea asked.

Theo looked back at Kelly and rolled his eyes.

Kelly laughed. “Thea, you are going to play with dolphins. Jeans shorts and t-shirt are fine. Don’t give your daddy any trouble.”

“Okay,” Thea mumbled, heading into the house.

*****

Looking like a forlorn figure, Chris was sitting in his parents’ living room aimlessly changing channels on the television.

His mother sat across from him and studied him intently. He was deeply depressed, she suspected, and he didn’t want to talk about it. Still, it broke her heart to see her child in so much pain, and after discussing it with her husband they had agreed that they needed to find out what was wrong with him.

  He was hiding something from them, she could feel it. Even though he was now a full-grown 34-year-old man, that didn’t make him any less a baby in her eyes, and when her baby hurts, she hurts too. Chris was their only son
—the last of their four children—and she had the tendency to want to smother him with affection. Of course, it was something he resented and avoided at all cost, but that never stopped her from trying.

Her husband, Harlan, was sitting in the armchair pretending to be looking at a file. The file was the bait to get Chris into the house and away from the work environment because he had been avoiding them there, too.

“So, Chris,” Harlan started, clearing his throat, “there is a little discrepancy with the Villa Rose project.”

Chris glanced at his father wearily. He couldn’t bear to go to Villa Rose anymore. He had foisted off the project to his deputy after the break-up with Kelly. They had so many memories there. If he closed his eyes, he could see her scampering into the lobby like a little girl, with a pencil behind her ear and a cheeky grin across her face, or leaning over a diagram with intense concentration on her face. His heart felt sore, and he just couldn’t take on anything else related to the place.

Chris let out a sigh. The memories were going to kill him. With some effort he focused on his father. “Ask Garwin about that, Pa. I told him to tie up the loose ends, not that there were too many. The interior decorator,” he paused and then coughed, “finished everything. Garwin inspected the job and declared it to be excellently done.”

“I know, I know,” Harlan said, nodding his head. “I have always known that Kelly was a fine decorator. I just thought it odd that since you were so involved with the place you decided to give up the project just like that. Garwin is hiring a manager to run the place, and you haven't made an input. You usually insist on being included in making such decisions.”

Chris bowed his head listlessly and cupped his cheek. “I need a vacation. I think I am going to migrate…do something else. Maybe spend some time overseas with Grandma.”

Tears came to Hyacinth’s eyes when she saw her son's listlessness. “What’s wrong, honey? Please tell me. Your dad and I are concerned.”

Chris looked up a little dazed. “I had an affair with Kelly Palmer.”

Hyacinth and Harlan looked at each other. “She's the pastor's wife,” Hyacinth whispered, still shocked.

Chris sighed. “I think that baby she had is mine.” He leaned back in his chair and twiddled his thumb. “It's killing me…eating me up inside.”

He looked at his stunned parents. “I know I shouldn’t have had an affair with her. I know it is wrong and unprincipled and against God’s law. My only justification is that I have always thought about it. You know, being with Kelly, being married to her. Every time I saw her at church was torture. I coveted her for ten years, you know. She should have been mine. She would have been mine if Theo hadn’t shown up. Now she has my baby, and they are living together. All happy with my baby.”

Hyacinth was so stunned she didn’t know where to look. Her husband's mouth was wide open, and she was sure that he was unaware of it. She was a grandmother again. Her heart leapt at the thought. Then the mess that her son had found himself in seeped into her brain.

“Ah…” Harlan swallowed, “what a pickle.” He put away the file he held in his hand and started pacing back and forth.

Chris looked tired and washed-out, his hazel eyes dim. “If I tell Theo Kelly will never forgive me,” he sighed. “There would be no chance with her either. She refuses to break up with him. I am giving up my post as elder, and I am going to stop going to that church. I am not even sure I am fit to go to any church, the state that I am in now.”

“No, no, no,” Hyacinth said hastily. “You were brought up in the church. You should still go. But you are right; you should probably go to another one, possibly outside of the Three Rivers circuit.

“So the husband has no clue?” Harlan asked curiously.

“I don’t think so,” Chris shrugged. “I sometimes wish he knew, and all this could come out in the open. I never wanted to sneak around anyway. I just wanted Kelly. And now I want my baby.”

“He's not legally yours,” Harlan said, looking at Chris somberly. “When a married woman gives birth the baby is legally her husband’s, until otherwise stated. Are you sure he is yours, Chris?”

“Yes,” Chris said, nodding. “He has my eyes, and though she had everyone running around believing he is premature I know he wasn’t. I asked her doctor.”

Hyacinth sighed. “Her doctor should have never disclosed such information. Tell me who it is, so that I don’t use him.”

“Whose side are you on, Mom?” Chris asked curiously.

“The right side.” Hyacinth got up, her slim body was encased in a summery dress which highlighted her still shapely figure. “Unfortunately, there is no right side in all of this.”

Chris sighed and hung his head. She sat beside him and hugged him, “I love you Chris, and always will. I'd love you even if you were a murderer, but I don’t condone your behavior.”

“I know,” Chris mumbled.

“I always knew you were foolishly obsessed with Kelly. Why do you think I invited all of those lovely single ladies to dinner?”

“Didn’t work,” Chris said, smiling slightly at his mother.

“I know,” she replied, patting his knee. “I don’t want you to leave the country, but I can't say it is a bad idea, maybe you should go away for a while.”

“We have a business to run,” Harlan said, his hazel eyes flashing. “For the love of God, man, why couldn’t you find somebody else to fool around with? You had to find the pastor's wife! And not only that, get her pregnant! I am not changing church because of this. We have been going there long before the Palmers, and I am not leaving!”

Hyacinth gasped. “Lola Thomas is my choir director. What am I going to do when she talks about her grandchild, what am I going to do?”

“Ignore the talk,” Harlan said, glaring at his wife. “And you, Chris, you have to let this go. Let Kelly go! Move on with your life. Obviously, she doesn’t want her life upset or she would have left her husband. You are wasting your time and energy pining after her. If you weren’t so fixated on this one woman your life wouldn’t be such a mess. So what if couple years ago she chose somebody else over you? Get over it and move on.”

He rubbed his cheek and looked hard at his son. “Listen, boy. I don’t think you should give up your life here because of this situation. You just built your house over at Bluffs Head. Time has a tendency to take care of these things.”

“But I am a father! I want to tell the whole world about it. I want to claim my son.” Chris looked at his father pleadingly.

“No,” Harlan growled. “You want to make her choose once more between you and Theo. That’s what this is about. Your feud with Theo ended eleven years ago. Why oh why did you go and resurrect it? You of all people should have been able to resist Kelly. She is married! Marriage is supposed to be sacred. My God, man!”

Harlan ran his hands over his face. A slash of red enclosed his ears. “You preach about it at church. You are supposed to be an example.”

He shook his head and sat down. He was steaming, and though he saw Chris' hurt expression, he could not stop. “You say your son belongs to another man, and you want to claim him. Are you crazy? If you create a stink about this, you will drag the family name through the mud. You will drag the business name through the mud, and you will make our church a laughing stock!”

He turned to his wife. “That goes for you, too. Stay far away from Kelly.”

After his outburst, the living room was silent. Harlan looked in the ceiling, a vein pulsing at the side of his head. Hyacinth was fanning herself with one of the files and Chris had hung his head.

Harlan finally said in the quietness, “Think about it.” His voice was hoarse. He looked at Chris. “Pray about it and avoid seeing Kelly altogether. Are you hearing me?”

Chris nodded. “It’s tough. I never really got over Kelly in the first place, and now…”

“Now you'll just give up your eldership post,” Harlan said. “For the love of God, man, shake this obsession. Do whatever it is you have to do. Take a mini vacation to Canada, visit other churches. When you get back, give other women a chance, but you have to stay far away from Kelly. Are you hearing me, Chris?”

Chris looked at his father his eyes watery, “I
…”

Harlan stared fiercely at his son.

“Yes, I hear you,” was the defeated reply.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Kelly was getting ready for date night. Her husband had taken a serious one hundred-and-eighty-degree turn and was being more attentive. She felt as she did at the beginning of their marriage—loved and cherished. He was delegating more to his junior pastors and spending more time with his family.

Mark was three months old and big. His green eyes had flecks of gold in them and looked more hazel than green, just like Chris', and yet Theo had not commented. He loved his baby son, sometimes getting up in the middle of the night to rock him to sleep so that Kelly could get some rest.

It felt as if they were now doing better since she had the baby than they had ever been in the past five years; Kelly wished with all her heart that she had not had that affair.

She stood in front of her closet trying to determine what to wear. They were going to a classy little restaurant called New Beginnings that was all the rage in Ocho Rios. The restaurant had live music and the food was said to be so sumptuous that you had to make a reservation, up to three days in advance, for evening dining.

She chose a paisley maxi dress with striking green hues and held it up to her figure. She had barely gained weight during her last pregnancy and was almost as slim as before.

She looked at her hair critically. Earlier in the day she had washed it and left it to air-dry. It had now shrunken to her neck in tight corkscrew curls, but otherwise would have reached her shoulders—she sprayed oil sheen on it to make her natural curls pop.

Years ago she had learnt how to tame her hair before it descended into frizz, and she was glad she knew the techniques now because it looked healthy and thick. She left it loose and finger combed her curls so that they had some semblance of order around her face.

I look  pretty good for a mother of three
, she thought to herself.
An adulterous mother of three,
the unbidden thought rose up to the forefront of her mind and she quickly slammed it back where it belonged and pulled the dress over her head.

She hadn’t seen or heard from Chris for the past three months and she was ridiculously grateful for that. Her sister had told her that he took an extended vacation to Canada, and Theo had mentioned that he gave up his position as elder because he had issues.

Theo had said gleefully, “He admitted to me that it was a woman who had him in knots. I have to say I am happy for Chris. He has finally moved on.”

She had hurriedly changed the topic when Theo brought it up, but sometimes, like tonight, she wondered about him. She knew that she was the reason that Chris was overhauling his life and she felt a twinge of guilt for that but also a very real relief that he was not going to make any trouble for her by claiming Mark
—he had seemed pretty fierce and determined the last time she had seen him, at the hospital.

That scene had caused her several sleepless nights, but now it seemed as if she had gotten off scot free. Kelly whispered a heartfelt prayer. She was finding it extremely hard to pray these days because she was living with a huge secret.

She heard the door open and looked up. “Hi, honey.”

“Whoohoo, you look gorgeous,” Theo said. He was wearing jeans and a white dress shirt which was opened at the neck. His face was clean-shaven, and she could smell his aftershave.

“You look gorgeous.” Kelly walked over to him and kissed him on the lips.

“Don’t start that now,” Theo said, “or else we will not make it to the restaurant.”

“We can't leave yet.” Kelly pulled away from him and looked at the clock. “Erica's supposed to baby-sit.”

“She's here,” Theo grinned. “In the kitchen, mumbling that she had to carry her own food because all we have is fake meat.”

Kelly grinned. “Okay, let me just go and say hi and then we can go.”

She headed to the kitchen and found Erica rummaging in the pantry.

“Miss Fatty,” Kelly laughed, “what are you looking for?”

Erica spun around. “You were in the bathroom when I got here, just looking for some mayonnaise and ketchup—and stop calling me fat, darn you. Didn’t you just have a baby? Why do you look so good?”

Kelly hugged her sister. “I eat in moderation, and I do Pilates for an hour a day, except Saturdays and Sundays. That’s free advice, take it once and for all and do something about your weight!”

“Next week,” Erica mumbled, turning back to the pantry. “For now, I am looking for ketchup. Don’t tell me that ketchup is on the blacklist?”

Kelly grinned. “I forgot to get some. We rarely have it anyway. Why use ketchup when I have a vegetable garden with tomatoes, go pick one and put it on your burger. She looked in the plate that Erica was fixing. “Is that dead meat?”

Erica giggled. “We humans frown on people who eat live meat, Miss Suddenly-Turned-Vegetarian. Last week Mom cooked curried goat, and she said you had some.”

“Were you having a heart-to-heart with her?” Kelly asked suspiciously, lowering her voice.

“Yup,” Erica grinned. “We went to New Beginnings for lunch and we both sat and licked our lips for an hour when we saw the owner. I think his name is Winston or Froggie. I hear them calling him by both names.”

“Oh, brother.” Kelly rolled her eyes. “When is mom going to act her age, and when are you going to find yourself a husband?”

“Whenever you tell Theo about Mark,” Erica retorted, grinning.

“Shhh,” Kelly said, slapping her sister on her hand. “I can't stand you. Don’t like you. Wish I never told you a thing.”

“You two at it again.” Theo came to the doorway. “Come, huns, we gotta go. Erica, I looked in on Mark. He’s sleeping peacefully. Here’s the baby monitor. If anything happens call me immediately.”

Erica laughed. “Parent trumps nurse. Okay, sir, I will call you as soon as anything happens. Go out and enjoy yourselves and tell Froggie that Erica says hello. He might give you a discount if you tell him,” she said, winking.

Theo laughed. “Froggie is married, Erica. That shining gold band on his finger is a wedding ring.”

“You know him?” Erica squealed. “You know the owner of New Beginnings?”

Theo nodded. “I know his mother better though; she is married to a pastor friend of mine.”

“Drat it,” Erica said disappointed. “He has this little air of danger about him, you know. Mom and I were saying he'd make a good husband for me. I didn’t see him wearing a ring, are you sure?”

“Yes,” Theo grinned, “he got married almost a year ago to a Miss Jamaica finalist. Can't remember her first name. She’s Stanley Winter's daughter.”

“There goes my dreams, dashed,” Erica grumbled. “I should have carried more meat to soothe my weary soul.”

Kelly laughed. “You are too funny. Let’s go, husband.”

They drove toward New Beginnings, chatting about the children and Erica's perpetual man-hunt. They arrived ten minutes early and sat in the lounge area. There were some instrumental jazz sounds coming through discrete speakers.

“That’s my song,” Kelly said excitedly to Theo.

Theo grinned and kissed her on the lips.

“Ehem.” A pretty girl with a notepad stood near them. “That’s George Benson and Al Jarreau's version of the song ‘Ordinary People,’” she informed them.

Kelly looked up smiling. “I had no idea who was playing, but I know my jam when I hear it.”

The girl smiled. “Your table will be ready soon. What would you like to drink in the meantime? We have so many options: green juice, fruit juice, all the healthy options. The chef’s special is a papaya, mango and pineapple blended. No liquor, sorry.”

“That’s fine, we don’t drink,” Theo said. “We’ll take the chef's special.”

“Cool,” the waitress said, scribbling something down on her paper.

“Is Froggie around?” Theo asked. “I got a special hello for him.”

The girl grimaced. “No, sir. Froggie is in Kingston for a wedding. His wife's sister, I think.”

“Oh,” Theo grinned.

“Your juice is coming up.” The girl walked away and Theo looked at Kelly. I really wanted you to meet Froggie. He was an inner-city don, you know. His wife is one of those upper crust Winters. I don’t know how they even know each other—another time, I guess.”

“I really like the atmosphere here,” Kelly said, nodding. “So I am guessing we will eventually meet. This could be our date-night spot.”

She was relaxing in her chair and drinking her juice and chitchatting with Theo when she suddenly felt a stare. She looked up and there was Chris at the door of the lounge. He was standing beside a statuesque woman, who was clinging to his arm possessively. His jaw clenched when he saw her.

She sat up straighter in her chair and drunk him in. He looked so sophisticated with his curly hair slicked back and his burnt orange shirt opened at the throat. They stared at each other for what seemed like forever. His eyes were sending off such deep chaotic emotions that she inhaled involuntarily.

“What's the matter?” Theo asked, noticing her tension and then he looked in the direction she was staring and saw Chris.

Chris smiled at him slightly and raised his hand. He whispered something to his date and they headed over to Kelly and Theo.

“The Palmers, fancy seeing you here,” Chris said a little too brightly.

“Chris,” Theo said, pleased to see him. “I rarely see you these days.” He got up and shook Chris' hand enthusiastically.

Kelly felt wedged to her chair. Seeing him was a shock, and she realized once more how attractive she found Chris and that she was not as nearly over him as she had thought.

He was watching her helplessly too; it would have been exceptionally awkward if his date had not piped up. “I'm Estella, nice to meet you.”

Theo frowned at both Kelly and Chris and said, “This is my wife, Kelly.”

Kelly reluctantly stood up and said, “Hello, Chris. Hello, Estella. Nice to meet you.” Kelly forced a smile in Estella's direction and then sat back down.

“Your tables are ready,” said the pretty waitress who had taken their drinks order earlier. “I requested that the live band play ‘Ordinary People,’ just for you,” she then said to Kelly.

Kelly smiled, though she was feeling a little light-headed. “Thank you.”

“That’s my song too,” Chris said, smiling at the waitress.

As Theo led his wife into the restaurant, she felt her heart beating normally again.

“What on earth was that about?” Theo asked her curiously when they sat down. “Is there something you are not telling me about you and Chris?”

Kelly felt her pulse fluttering again. “No, no, nothing. Isn’t the décor in here a nice combination of sophistication and casualness?”

Theo watched her for a minute and then nodded slowly. “I guess you would know since you are the one with the artistic-eye.”

He watched her keenly throughout the evening, his senses attuned to her every move. She was acting differently since Chris came into the restaurant, and he could not fathom why. Kelly, meanwhile, tried to pretend that she was not casting furtive glances toward the table where Chris and his date were seated, but Theo could see her and because he was directly in line with Chris' table he could also see that Chris was finding it hard not to look over at their table.
What the hell was going on?

He puzzled over the matter all the way through dinner and through the silent car ride home. They were both introspective, with Theo vowing to talk to his wife about the strangeness of her behavior and Kelly wondering who Chris' date was and if he had really moved on. Her heart wavered between intense jealousy, a sense of loss, and a low humming guilt that refused to subside.