A McClendon Thanksgiving Read online

  She wasn’t going to be shamed, made to feel guilty, or anything else, to get her to talk.

  She grabbed the refrigerator door handle. “I can’t do this. We’re going too fast. I can’t do this.” She pushed the door, forcing it to close.

  “Are you saying we’re finished? Are you breaking up with me?” Michael asked, his voice filled with emotion.

  Faith turned around to face him. “For me, that would be best,” she said.

  Michael turned and headed for the door, leaving Faith behind.

  Chapter Twenty

  Once Faith heard the front door slam, she walked swiftly into the living room. Easing the curtains back, she peeped out so she could watch Michael as he got into his car. He was walking out of her life at her insistence. She’d made the choice to end things with Michael since it was evident that she couldn’t trust him either.

  Faith continued to watch from the small space she’d made by the window, but once he got to his car, he slipped on his sunglasses and looked up to her window. She released the curtain, hoping he hadn’t seen her watching.

  Again, Faith eased the curtain back and Michael was still sitting there. So she waited until finally he sped off; soon the car was out of sight.

  Putting the draperies back in place, Faith plopped down on the sofa and stretched her body out to its full length. Tired, weary and confused, she threw an arm over her face, blinking back tears, almost giving in to the overwhelming urge to feel sorry for herself. She wouldn’t do it; she couldn’t. She’d done that for many years and it didn’t get her anywhere except depressed and hopeless. This had to be done and that was the bottom line.

  She couldn’t take any more of Michael’s pushing and digging, trying to find something. Faith didn’t want to talk about marriage because she wasn’t thinking about romance, not when she was focusing on getting her life back on track. She loved what she shared with Michael, but marriage wasn’t on her radar. She’d thought Michael understood that, but he didn’t. Faith didn’t wish to resurrect a dead issue; she wanted to leave her past with Kevin alone.

  With her eyes closed, Faith tried to move past the incident with Michael because she needed to pull herself together.

  It hit her that the Thanksgiving holiday was approaching so quickly—she only had a week to finish preparing for the grand opening. Now that she and Michael had called it quits, she would probably need to get another photographer to cover the event.

  Sighing, Faith pushed back behind her ear a wayward dark-brown curl that had fallen in her face, picked up her cell phone and called Renee. Maybe she could help her find a replacement.

  “Hey, Renee.” Faith didn’t want to give anything away just yet, so she tried to sound as normal as possible.

  “What’s up, sissy?” Renee responded.

  “I need to find a photographer,” Faith said, knowing that Renee was going to hit the ceiling.

  “For what?” Renee’s voice elevated an octave.

  “For my grand opening,” Faith said quickly.

  A long silence followed before Renee spoke again.

  “Why would you need a photographer? I thought from our meeting that Michael would be the official photographer.”

  “That plan has changed a bit,” Faith muttered.

  “Girl, stop playing with me. You can’t change something as important as your photographer this close to your event date. The grand opening is next Friday. How am I going to find a photographer in a week?”

  “I don’t know, but you’re going to have to work your magic.”

  “It surely will be magic, but I thought I told you that I can’t pull a rabbit out of my hat.”

  Faith didn’t respond, but Renee continued to talk.

  “Faith, there is more to this than you’re telling me, but I’m going to leave it alone because I don’t think I want to know.”

  “You don’t,” Faith said, tears filling her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away.

  “Well okay then. I’m going to hang up so I can get on this right away,” Renee said.

  “Don’t hang up, Renee,” Faith said, hating the trembling in her voice.

  “I know something’s wrong, Faith. You can tell me.”

  “Michael and I broke up,” she said plainly.

  “I’m on my way over there,” Renee said.

  Faith couldn’t protest because the line went dead. In a way, she was relieved that Renee was going to come over. She needed moral support, and what better person to be able to reveal her thoughts to than her sister? She also needed someone to help keep her on track with her business.

  One thing about matters of the heart—they could literally take every ounce of energy you had. Faith had come too far to allow that to be the downfall of her achieving her goals…again.

  Ten minutes later, Renee rang the bell. Stepping inside, she pulled Faith into her arms. Faith could feel the tension leaving her body as she stood at the front door, holding her sister. She was glad to have her there. It was so much better than Faith lying on the couch alone, feeling sorry for herself.

  Faith stepped back, wiped her face and ushered her sister to the living-room sofa.

  “I thought you guys were getting along great,” Renee said, crossing her legs at the ankles.

  “Yes, we were. He’s such a great guy,” Faith said.

  “Well, if that’s the case, what did he do for you to break up with him?”

  “He asked me to marry him,” Faith said, the words spilling out of her mouth quickly. “And to make matters worse, he went and talked to Mom and Dad.”

  Renee threw her right hand over her mouth. “What?”

  Faith nodded. “Yes he did. Can you believe that? How dare he go to my parents about me?” she said, feeling anger rise up in her again. The thought of him going behind her back made her blood boil.

  Renee placed her hand on Faith’s shoulder. “I’m sure it was coming from a good place.”

  “Good place my ass, Renee. You don’t do that. He should have spoken to me first. My life is my story, so let me tell it. And besides, Mom and Dad don’t need to be involved in my personal life. I’m not two years old.”

  “I know, but calm down,” Renee said. “What are you going to do about Michael?”

  “What do you mean, what am I going to do? I just told you, we’re through,” Faith said with finality.

  “After you calm down…?” Renee said, emphasizing her words.

  Faith frowned. “What are you saying, Renee? I just told you we broke up.”

  Renee searched Faith’s eyes. “Sweetie, you’re angry as hell.”

  “I have a right to be,” Faith snapped.

  “I know, but after you’ve had a chance to calm down and think about things, you will probably change your mind.”

  Faith jumped up from the sofa. “I will not change my mind. It’s over.”

  “You will, Faith. You will.” Renee stood up as well and went to Faith. Placing her hand on her sister’s right shoulder, she laid her chin on top of Faith’s left. “You love him, Faith,” she whispered.

  Faith didn’t hold back her tears any longer. She let them roll down her cheeks. With her back to her sister, she laid her left hand on top of Renee’s.

  She turned around, inhaled deeply as the pang in her heart grew stronger. “What am I going to do?” Faith dropped her head then looked away.

  A short silence followed before she wiped her face, inhaled deeply, realizing no one could answer that question for her. She would just have to move on and if it took her being hard-nosed about the situation to do that, she would.

  “Can you get on the photographer quest for me?”

  “You know I’ll do my best,” Renee said, taking a few steps back to the sofa to pick up her handbag from the floor.

  Swinging it over her shoulder, she walked to the door. “
Are you going to be okay here?”

  “I’m going to be fine. I have to get back to my projects in order to get ready for the opening.”

  Renee’s eyes widened. “Wait a minute. This just hit me. Treecie said that she invited Michael and his mother to Thanksgiving dinner.”

  Faith’s jaw dropped. She’d totally forgotten about the invitation her sister extended to the Montgomerys. “Maybe he won’t come.”

  Renee dropped her head, giving Faith an under-eyed look. “Do you really think he won’t come?”

  “I know I wouldn’t,” Faith said, almost certain that Michael would be absent from Thanksgiving dinner.

  Renee kissed Faith’s cheek. “What if he does come?”

  “I’m not going to worry about it,” Faith said, unlocking the door, twisting the knob.

  Renee stepped around her when Faith opened the door. “Okay, I’ll call you if I find someone. But, I’ve got to be honest, who are we going to find as good as Michael at this late date?”

  Faith hunched her shoulders and held the door open for Renee. “I’ll call you later.”

  Renee nodded and watched her sister until she walked down the stairs and out of sight.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Michael’s world had been turned completely upside down—nothing had gone the way he’d planned it. He’d done things in the last couple of days that he wished he could take back. He needed to clear his mind and determine what his next move might be.

  He steered his car toward the studio. Michael did his best thinking while he worked. Not to mention, he couldn’t bear the thought of walking into his bedroom, the place where he’d made love to Faith for the first time, where his dream of making her his came true. He couldn’t help but remember the feel of the soft curve of her body underneath his, the smell of her sweet scent wafting through his nostrils as he made love to her.

  Their bond was unbreakable, or so he’d thought, but now it was broken and he’d done it. Getting married, having children and living a beautiful life together were only dreams—Faith didn’t want him.

  He couldn’t believe her condescending tone and determination not to open up to him. Faith’s saying that it would be best if they were apart echoed in his mind like someone shouting in an empty room. Michael would never forget her rejection, words so final, cutting through him like a knife.

  All of that got Michael thinking and asking himself some hard questions because he couldn’t put everything on Faith. He’d played a role in their breakup as well. So, maybe talking to her parents was a bit much. He shouldn’t have pushed her so hard about Kevin. He should have left it alone. Was it that important to know exactly what happened between her and Kevin? Why couldn’t he have been more patient with her?

  As soon as he eased his car into the parking spot in front of the studio, Michael’s phone rang. The number was unfamiliar, so he used his business voice to greet the person. “Michael Montgomery speaking.”

  “Michael, it’s Renee McClendon.”

  Renee McClendon, he repeated to himself, wondering if Faith had asked her to make the call. “Yes, Renee, how are you?”

  “I’m doing just fine. I heard that you and Faith are having some issues, so I’d like to know if you are still going to honor the contract you both signed.”

  Michael threw his head back and looked heavenward. He couldn’t believe that she was asking him if he would honor the contract. “Renee, I’m a professional first. This is business, so of course I’m going to honor the contract.

  “Does your sister not want to honor the contract now? She doesn’t want to be in the same room with me?” he asked, the words spilling out. He hadn’t realized he didn’t give Renee the opportunity to respond before bombarding her with questions.

  After a moment of silence, Renee cleared her throat. “I don’t know what’s going on between the two of you, so I’m not calling to judge you. I’m trying to make sure everything is in place for the grand opening, and you taking the photos is a big part of that.”

  “I will be there, Renee, just as I said I would. The photo strategy I drew up will be the same.”

  Renee released a sigh. “Thank you so much. And for the record, I know you and my sister love each other.”

  Michael wondered if she was waiting for him to respond, since she’d fallen silent, but there was nothing for him to say.

  “Listen, I’ll talk to you later, and if you have any questions, please call me,” Renee said in conclusion.

  Michael got out of the car, dropping his cell phone into his jacket pocket. He went into the studio to get to work on the projects his students had completed the day before. He didn’t know what he was going to do about Faith, but he had to give her space and time to think. He also had to get used to the fact that today he may have lost her forever.

  Faith opened her tired eyes, the morning light streaming through the curtains. She hit the Snooze button on her clock and, pulling the cover over her head once again, she blinked back tears that immediately formed, inhaled deeply and turned over in the bed. Her heart ached—she couldn’t get him out of her head. Michael’s name whispered through her mind, bringing back vivid images and beautiful memories of them together. She needed to lie there a little longer, but the memories were coming on too strong. She had to get up and get busy; there was no more time to waste.

  Faith only had a couple of days to finish up everything and get the shop ready for the grand opening. She wanted to be excited that the day had almost arrived, but she couldn’t. Michael had always been supportive and she usually shared all of her triumphs with him, but they were no longer speaking. It had been several days now since their blowup and he hadn’t contacted her.

  She could finally keep her secret thoughts private, but was it worth losing Michael? She thought it would be best to leave the past behind. Why did Michael continue to ask questions about her relationship with Kevin? If he knew all there was to know about her relationship with Kevin, would he still want her? Love her?

  With a heavy sigh, Faith threw the covers back and rolled out of the bed, dragging herself into the adjoining bathroom suite. She’d better get in a hurry because the interior designer was coming today to put the finishing touches on everything.

  Looking in the mirror at the person staring back at her, she asked, “Why did you turn him down?” That question had formed immediately after she refused Michael’s proposal. And the only word she could think of was fear.

  Fear of another failed marriage. Terrified of getting married so soon after ending another relationship. Who in their right mind would do that to themselves?

  Feeling as if she’d been standing in front of the mirror too long, Faith pulled her nightgown over her head and turned on the shower. She would let the spray from the showerhead do the job. She was so tired from sewing into the wee hours of the morning, but that was the sacrifice she had to make in order to succeed.

  She appreciated Renee for confirming that Michael was coming to the grand opening because she needed to get herself prepared. She had to admit that Margaret hadn’t changed the way she treated her, and Faith was grateful for that. She certainly didn’t want what happened between her and Michael to put a strain on the professional relationship with his mother.

  Faith made herself a promise to calm down and stick to getting her shop opened. After spending time under the falling water, she stepped out of the shower, toweled off and got ready for work. Before leaving, she placed the completed dress samples into a garment bag and headed out the door.

  Forty-five minutes later, Faith pulled up to the shop, surprised that the parking spot in front of the building was available. For the last couple of months several spots had been occupied with construction and contractor vehicles. Today there was only one truck visible alongside the curb. She got out of her car and walked inside.

  Opening the glass front door, Faith glanced down to
see that the company insignias had been installed. The beautifully designed logo had been put on heavy-duty vinyl and applied to the floor, giving the entrance an inviting feel. The once vacant, industrial-looking space had now been transformed into an elegantly designed women’s dress boutique.

  She walked toward the back of the shop just as Ezell came from the rear. He walked over to her.

  “Ezell, everything is just beautiful,” Faith said, giving him a wide smile. She was so happy with the results. “You have truly made me a satisfied client.”

  “I’m so glad you like it, Faith. You gave us a clear vision and I think it turned out fine.”

  She walked toward the new dressing-room area. “I love, love, love the mirrored ends of the dressing closets, the chiffon curtains and those ceiling medallions. They are so on point. I wanted classy and chic, and you’ve given me just that,” Faith responded, satisfied with her choices.

  Faith ran her fingers along the counters. “I see the marble counters have arrived and been installed. I’ll have to double-check, but my registers should be arriving any day now.”

  She twirled around the room with her arms outstretched. “It looks like a real upscale shop, though the merchandise is affordable. It’s just like I wanted it to be.”

  Faith was so grateful to Ezell and his crew for all their hard work. She was glad that he didn’t continue to pursue her, keeping their relationship strictly business.

  Ezell stood next to her with his hands pushed down into his blue-jean pockets. “We still have little odds and ends to do, but everything else is right on schedule. They are preparing to put up the accessory wall in the next twenty minutes or so.”

  Faith shrugged out of her coat and draped it over her arm. “Can you tell me if you’ve installed the sound system?”

  Ezell nodded, walking toward the back, with Faith following him. “Yes, we had a Bose design consultant come out, so we went with a custom Bose system integrated into the design. It has everything we need and more.”