We Didn’t See it Coming Read online

  “I’ll work it off playing tennis or swimming a few laps around the pool,” Noelle said as she and Milandra had taken time out from their tennis games to join their mother for lunch.

  They made their way through the door to see that the limo had arrived to pick them up. The driver tilted his black hat as if to say hello. He opened the door.

  “What did Father say about your birthday party?” Milandra asked Kenley as she was the first to get into the limo.

  “He screamed at me,” Kenley whined.

  “That’s not like Father,” Milandra said.

  “He’s a busy man. He’s probably on a construction site,” Noelle said in her father’s defense.

  “You can talk with your father this evening when he comes home,” their mother said.

  Kenley mumbled, “Discuss it with Mother. That’s the last thing he said.”

  Her sisters giggled.

  “It’s not funny at all. You two are way older than me. Yacht club parties are not for today’s teenagers. A pool party at home is the best. At the yacht club, my friends and I will have to listen to boring piano music. At home, we can listen to current hip-hop and pop music.”

  “Mother, see what happens when you have an ‘oops’ baby?” Milandra teased.

  “You’re plain old mean.” Kenley pouted.

  Alana Houston was startled when the doctor told her that she was pregnant with Kenley. She knew exactly what day she had conceived. Her husband had not touched her in months. She felt he was going elsewhere to satisfy his sexual hunger. But one night, his so-called meeting must have ended earlier than he expected and he came to bed craving her, as if he was a wild animal starving for food. He awakened her from her sleep. Alana felt as if he was raping her instead of making love to her. He ripped her silk-lace gown from her body. Plunging on top of her, he entered with force. After three humps, he ran out of gas. Kenley was born nine months later. She saw to it that Kenley was home-schooled by a private tutor.

  Kenley made new friends with her busy schedule—taking tennis and piano lessons and belonging to social teen clubs. Her sisters coached her in piano and tennis. After all, they were skilled in the same activities. Unlike her family members, who were Harvard University graduates, Kenley’s goal was to break the family tradition and attend Spelman College.

  Mrs. Houston glimpsed down at her diamond watch. “We have a little time to go pick out Kenley’s party dress.”

  “I’ll need a new bathing suit,” Kenley hinted.

  “Nonsense. You must follow the family tradition. Every daughter of mine celebrates her birthday at the yacht club.”

  “That’s awful! It’ll be boring and my friends won’t have any fun,” Kenley cried.

  “It’s traditional,” her mother reminded her. “Kenley Houston, you will not embarrass me in public the way you talk.”

  “Mother,” Kenley said.

  “No back talk.” Milandra jumped in as they headed to their next destination.

  Kenley looked out of the window as they drove off. She folded her arms and sat back in her seat, pouting.

  “Why are you so quiet, Noelle? Is there something you want to talk about?” Alana asked, noticing her daughter was lost in her thoughts.

  “No, Mother, I’m just not in a talkative mood. Kenley has a mouthful for all of us.”

  “Yes, she does,” Milandra agreed.

  Noelle wanted to spill her thoughts. The secret she held would overshadow her baby sister’s argument about a party. It would be a long lecture about what a Houston should do or not do. She wanted no parts of hearing the Houston book of rules, and she dared not share her secret. Her mother would be furious. After having a heart attack a year ago, her delicate heart might not be up to par for such a secret.

  “Mother, did you take your medicine this morning?” Noelle asked her.

  “Not as of yet. I’m changing my medicine schedule. I’ll start taking it in the evening, after supper.”

  “Mother,” Milandra said, “don’t go changing things around. You’ll take the medicine as soon as you get home.”

  Alana Houston loved the concern her daughters had for her. Their attentiveness to her health made her admire them even more. “I will. I want to be around to do many lunches with my daughters.”

  • • •

  “Mother, this is too much,” Kenley told her as she turned around in front of a three-way mirror in the dressing room. She went over to a chair and tried to sit down. The excessive fabric made it difficult for her to sit. “See, I can’t sit down,” she complained.

  “You’ll be dancing the night away. No need for sitting,” Noelle said as she peeked down into her handbag at her cell phone. She noticed Baron’s number displayed on the screen. She was not happy that she was not able to return his call.

  “It’s lovely, Kenley,” Milandra commented.

  The final decision was supposed to be her mother’s, but as usual, the majority ruled. Therefore, Kenley was outvoted.

  The salesperson hung a garment bag over the peach-colored satin dress with a crinoline slip attached underneath, below the bodice. She handed it to Kenley, who carried it out of the boutique. The Houstons loaded up into the limo and headed home.

  As they drove up to the front of the estate, Alana surprised Kenley. “I’ve decided you will be the first to have two parties, one by the poolside and the other at the yacht club.”

  Kenley scooted over her sisters to give her mother a grateful hug. “I love you, Mother. Thanks so much.”

  “Mother, I knew you would give in,” Milandra said annoyed, looking out at the carpet of grass that covered the grounds. Any golfer in South Carolina would think the grass was an ideal spot to putt.

  The heat from the sun beamed down on them, but the view of the water fountain in the front yard gave them a vision of coolness. Kenley, the first out of the limo, noticed that the limo her father rode home in every day was parked near the house. She dashed through the front door. “Father, you’re home,” she called, but got no response.

  Her mother followed closely behind her daughter. “Kenley, go hang your garment up in your closet. You have plenty of time to show it off to your father. He’s probably handling business in his study.”

  Kenley made her way up the staircase to the west wing of the house. As she entered her room, a world of bold shades of pink, green and orange showered her with colors. The drapes were drawn, letting in the brilliant sunlight. Before she went and hung up her dress, she glimpsed lots of water from her window—the placid lake and the pool with a cascading waterfall.

  Alana made her way up the stairs. Milandra kept talking, holding Noelle up from making her one phone call.

  Milandra looked at her mother. “Mother, take your heart pill,” she reminded her.

  Alana reached the top of the staircase and took a deep breath. She made her way down the long hallway to her bedroom, located in the east wing of the house.

  Reaching for the door, she discovered her husband’s arms stretched out on the floor into the hallway. Startled by the sight and fearful for her husband, she dropped her black-and-white clutch purse on the floor near his hand. She tried to belt out a loud scream, but her vocal cords seemed numb.

  Holding on to the wall, she backed up all the way down the hallway until she reached the top of the staircase. Her daughters noticed the flushed look on their mother’s face. They noticed that she tried to speak, but no words came out of her mouth.

  “What’s wrong, Mother?” they asked.

  Alana tried desperately to hold on to the banister. She took one step, and like a falling model, unable to prevent the fall, she tumbled down the stairs. Her head crashed against the hardwood floor with a bang. The girls screamed, running to their mother’s aid.

  Kenley came out of her room, looked down the staircase to see her mother spread out on the floor below. “Mother, Mother!” she screamed.

  “Call an ambulance,” Milandra suggested.

  Noelle reached into her handba
g and pulled out her cell phone. She keyed 9-1-1 into the dial pad.

  Maintaining her composure, Milandra looked up at Kenley and ordered: “Find Father quick. Go find Father!”

  Noelle, busy on the phone, tried to speak to the operator between shedding tears. “They want to know if Mother has a pulse,” she cried.

  Milandra placed her fingers on her mother’s wrist; she felt no pulse. She screamed, “I don’t feel a thing. Tell them to stop asking so many questions.” She was losing her cool. “Just hurry and send an ambulance. We need help.”

  Kenley ran to the east wing of the house. “Father! Father!” she bellowed. “It’s Mother! She’s fallen and she’s unconscious.”

  One shock was too many. When Kenley reached her parents’ bedroom and saw her father laid out on the floor, her scream became like a siren. “Aw…!” Kenley now realized what had made her mother fall down the stairs. “Mother discovered Father on the floor.” Full of tears, she ran to get help. She looked down the stairs at her sisters and pointed toward the east wing. “It’s Father! He’s unconscious, too, just like Mother.”

  “Stay with Mother, Noelle. I’ll see about Father,” Milandra said, taking control back, making her way up the stairs.

  Kenley sat down on the hall floor against the wall. She placed the cell phone on the floor. She buried her head between her knees and became a human waterfall. Tears dampened her dress.

  Chapter 3

  Reared back in his seat, Baron wondered how Rupert had found out about his brief encounter with Noelle. He had told him the truth, but Houston insisted that he still was a liar.

  Rupert was protective of his daughters, but to have one of them followed was a bit too much to believe. He concluded that Rupert had had a private investigator follow and photograph their brief kiss.

  Now Baron was losing his biggest client because he had challenged the Houston Rule for a second time.

  The first time was because of Tessa Sanchez. He remembered walking up to the front door of the Houstons’ home years ago. Tessa appeared at the door—as beautiful as ever—with gorgeous, long dark hair. She wore a black maid’s uniform with a white apron that hugged her slender waistline. She gave him the biggest smile ever.

  “Hello, welcome to the Houston Estate,” she had said in her Spanish accent.

  Her large eyes mesmerized him.

  “Thank you. I’m here to see Rupert Houston.”

  Tessa moved aside and led him down the art gallery hallway. Lots of art in gold and bronze frames hung against the lemon-colored walls. She escorted him into a room that Mr. Houston had named The Gentleman’s Lounge. It was furnished with two brown leather loveseats with creamed-colored cushions, and it was accented with multicolored striped pillows that sat between round Chippendale sofa tables. A reddish, burgundy-colored ottoman sat on top of a rug that highlighted all the colors in the room. He noticed a pool table in the room a few feet away from where he stood.

  “Have a seat. Mr. Houston will be with you in a minute. May I get you anything while you wait?”

  He wanted to say to Tessa, “It’s you I want.” But instead he answered, “I’m fine. Thank you for your warm hospitality.”

  She left the room as Rupert came in. “Hello, Baron. How are you?”

  “I’m fine; just admiring the beauty of your housekeeper.”

  “Yes, Tessa is a pretty girl and a very hard worker.”

  “She deserves more,” Baron said with a sparkle in his eye.

  “I see you’re having an instant crush on my help,” Rupert said as he gave him a stare.

  Baron explained: “I recognize beauty when I see it.”

  The men went on with their business deals. After that day, Baron made it his obligation to come over as often as he could. Any invitations from Rupert were always accepted.

  Rupert’s jealous ways manifested one particular day when Baron came to his home.

  Tessa was busy polishing silver in the kitchen. “Hello, Mr. Chavis.” She smiled.

  “To you, it’s Baron.”

  “I’m sorry, but Mr. Houston gave me strict orders to only call you Mr. Chavis.”

  “Never mind him; it’ll be our secret. Is he in?”

  “Mr. Houston said to tell you he’ll be in shortly.”

  Baron came close up behind her. He laid his hands over hers as she tried to continue to polish the silver. She trembled as he touched her.

  “You’re so pretty. I’ve wanted to touch you for a long time.”

  Blowing kisses on her neck, Baron traveled his hands through her hair. Her hair felt like silk to him.

  “Please, I don’t want to lose my work.”

  “Tessa, I can take you away from this job. You can become the lady of my house.”

  “Mr. and Mrs. Houston have been good to me since I came here from Mexico. I could never leave them. I’m forever loyal to them.”

  He turned her around and pulled her closer to him as he tasted the sweetness of her lips. She tried to pull away, but the force of his lips on hers made her submit to the hunger she also had for him.

  Rupert made his way into the kitchen where he witnessed them kissing. “What’s going on in here?” he shouted.

  Tessa pushed Baron away. “Sir, please don’t fire me,” she cried.

  “Run along, Tessa. I’ll deal with you later.”

  She left the room. The two men came face to face. Baron could see the wrinkles of frustration and anger forming on Rupert’s forehead.

  “I knew you had a crush on her. But that’s as far as it goes from here on out. I don’t allow my help to deal with any of my colleagues.”

  “I have feelings for her and she obviously feels the same.”

  “Baron, we have formed a great business and personal relationship. Let’s not destroy it over poor-class help.”

  “I see more to her than someone under me or you. I see a beautiful woman that has a lot to offer a man.”

  Rupert went over and grabbed a glass from the cupboard. He filled it with water and handed it to him. “Cool off. Remember, I made you what you are, and I can destroy you at the blink of an eye.”

  Baron did not utter a single word.

  He had the power to ruin Baron’s career.

  Baron took a swallow of the water. “There, I’m cooled off. Let’s get down to business.”

  Nothing else was said of Tessa. Baron admired her from afar. She stayed out of his sight as much as she could when he visited the Houstons’ home. The young attorney thought of many ways he could make her his own. He had to find a way to get to her without Rupert finding out.

  At the time, the Houstons had planned to take a trip with their only daughter, Milandra. The other girls weren’t born yet. This was the ideal time for him to see her. He made his way over to the Houston Estate. The servants’ quarters were a separate residence on the property. Each servant who lived-in had his or her own private room. Each one had an outside entrance into their room.

  Baron made his way to Tessa’s room. The sky was dark, but a light pole glowed in front of each quarter. He walked up to her room. The door was ajar. As he eased the door open, he saw the soft glow of low, dimmed lights coming from inside.

  In the room, he saw a mahogany bed made up with a dark-brown blanket. A colorful Mexican blanket was folded at the foot of the bed. Two lamps sat on the mahogany nightstands. The polished hardwood floors reflected the shine from the light.

  Baron looked over at the window seat. He locked eyes with Tessa. She looked over the shoulder of a man. He saw that the man wore a suit jacket, but his slacks were dropped down to his calves, exposing his legs.

  Tessa cried in agony as the man continued to penetrate her. A tear ran down her face as she screamed, “Mr. Houston, it’s Mr. Chavis.”

  Rupert let go of her. He turned around, pulled up his pants, and zipped them. Tessa was fully exposed in all of her glorious nudity.

  Baron stared at what he had wanted so much to touch—her body. She covered her breasts with her
hands as she ran to the bed, got the Mexican blanket from the foot of it, and covered up.

  Out of anger, Baron ran over to Rupert. He tried to grab him by the collar, but Houston got to him first, pushing him away from getting any closer to him.

  “Don’t you dare ever attempt to come at me. You walk out of this room and forget what you ever saw—or ever wanted. Tessa is mine now. Get out of here,” Rupert ordered.

  “I thought you had feelings for me,” Baron said as he looked at her.

  “You don’t have the money to give her or to take care of her the way I do,” Rupert called.

  “I thought you were out of town,” Baron blurted as he walked toward the door.

  “Alana took Milandra away. As you can see, I have business to take care of here. You have no need to question my personal life. Get out!” he yelled.

  Dejected, Baron left the room. He swore that one day he would get even with Rupert. And this was the reason he met with Noelle. She had a crush on him.

  Noelle could barely look at him without blushing. He thought she would be the perfect way to get revenge on her father. He had just begun to put his vengeful plan in motion, but Rupert was one step ahead of him.

  He had to give Rupert time to calm down. Hopefully, he could salvage the mess. He had gotten in trouble with women that he had never gotten to first base with before.

  Frustrated, Baron picked up the manila folder that held the latest lawsuit against Houston Commercial Construction Company: a young man who had fallen off a ladder and broken his leg was claiming expenses for damages. As always, Baron tried to help the company pay little or no money on claims against the company. The more he tried to drown himself in the case, the more he wondered what reaction his client would have with Noelle.

  He went to pick up the phone to contact her, but his secretary tapped on the door. “You may come in, Sara.”

  Holding his appointment schedule in her hand, Sara entered the room, dressed in a beige skirt outfit. Her once brownish hair was beginning to streak with gray strands. She looked over at her boss, a man she longed to have in her personal life. Despite all the years she had worked for Baron, she still grew nervous in his presence. She would have given anything to tell him her true feelings, but loyalty to her job kept her quiet. “I thought maybe we could go over your next few appointments.”