Bad Blood Ch. 02 - No Rest for the Wicked

"Please don't cry, Sweetie. I love you, too. There's no way I'd ever kick you out." There. I'd officially said it. Now she'd stop crying, right? Nope. If anything, she started crying harder, her sobbing increased!

I rolled on my back and pulled her on top of me and held her close. Kissing her forehead, I asked, "Honey, what's wrong now?"

She wailed, "You've made me so happy, and I don't deserve it!" I took a facial tissue and dabbed at her tears, then gave her a light kiss.

"Hey, now, no more of that kind of talk," I warned, "I won't have you or anybody else saying bad things about the woman I love."

I meant what I said. I don't know how it happened, but I'd actually fallen in love with Darlene. Our weeks living together convinced me that the conniving, hustling grifter from New Orleans was gone, replaced by the sweet adoring woman I was sleeping with every night.

Several days later, I was rummaging through the third bedroom closet that seldom got used, looking for my tennis racket. I was thinking I should take it up again, but before I did, I wanted to see if I needed a new racket or if my old one would still work. That's when I found a scuffed-up red gym bag I'd never seen before.

Opening it, I was shocked to see it contained women's clothes, shoes, some toiletries, makeup, and most shockingly, a gallon-sized food storage bag containing $2,800 cash! Alarms started going off in my head.

Picking it up, I carried it to the kitchen where Darlene was making shrimp jambalaya for dinner. (I had to give her credit; Darlene was a super good cook!) I dropped the bag on the kitchen table, and when she turned to see what the noise was, she immediately looked at me with wide guilty eyes.

I asked her point blank, "I found this in the closet in the third bedroom, babe, do you want to explain this? Are you planning on leaving me, Darlene? Is this another scam?" We'd been getting along so well, but now my anger at her earlier betrayal reared its ugly head once more. I could feel my pulse increasing for my adrenalin.

She turned off the stove, then standing stock still she tried to explain. "Brad, no, baby, I know this looks bad but I'm not leaving you! It's not like that at all; I've just been afraid that you might kick me out for what I did."

This explanation did nothing to cool my anger, instead it had the opposite effect. I shook my head in frustration and raised my voice a bit. "WHY would you still think that Darlene? I told you I'd always be there for the baby, and I've told you I love you a hundred times." I pointed at my lap in an angry gesture, "Come HERE!"

Her head down, she walked over next to me. I pushed my chair out, pulled her into my lap and held her close to me. Not going to lie, having Darlene in my lap felt really good. I didn't want this to escalate, so I let my anger pass, then spoke in a calm voice, "Babe, be honest with me. I won't get mad if you just tell me the truth. What's the bag about?"

She replied, almost in a whisper, "It's Momma. Before I moved back in with you, back when I was living with Steven and Misty, she texted me. Said she was sorry for leaving me high and dry, and said she was coming back to get me."

My blood ran cold. Darlene may have been part of the hustle that drained my savings, but her mother Honor was the black-hearted mastermind. Darlene was clever, but not really cruel. That bitch Honor, however, had cornered the market on cruelty. I'd promised Darlene I wouldn't get mad, so I measured my words carefully. "What did you tell her?"

"I didn't say yes, and I didn't say no. I packed that emergency getaway bag just in case, but I still wasn't sure what I'd do." I could see Darlene was on the verge of tears, so I maintained my cool. I gently brushed some stray hair away from her forehead.

"Sweetie, we've come a long way as a couple since you moved back in. Yes, I was angry when you and Honor messed with me, but you and the baby mean everything to me now. You know that, right?"

She nodded her head, then whispered, "Brad, I don't want to go back to New Orleans no more. I want to stay with you. I should have thrown out that stupid bag as soon as I moved in. Please forgive me, baby." The tears were starting, but to my eyes these were genuine tears of the woman who loved me, not the superficial tears of the Cajun grifter I'd first met.

I lifted her face to mine and kissed her face, tasting her salty tears. I reached under her loose blouse and caressed the skin of her baby bump. "You know what? I'm going to put that stupid bag right back where I found it and forget I ever saw it, and you can do whatever you want with it. As of right now, it's none of my damned business. Let's eat your delicious meal before it gets cold, OK?" Her tears now gone, she smiled and nodded.

Darlene's cooking was top-notch; her shrimp jambalaya did not disappoint. Since pregnant women get tired a lot, I sent her upstairs to get ready for bed while I cleaned the up the kitchen and loaded up the dishwasher.

By the time I got up to the master bedroom, my fiancée was naked under the covers, fast asleep. I slid in behind her and spooned, enjoying the feel of her skin as I caressed her sleeping form. Sleep eluded me for quite a while, though, anxious at the thought of that greedy bitch Honor showing up again.

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My parents had been on an extended 6-month visit to Italy and Spain when Steven and Misty got married; now that our folks were back, they were excited to come to Sacramento and meet their new daughter-in-law. After discussing it, Steven and I decided that Mom and Dad could stay with Darlene and I in my condominium, since it had 3 bedrooms.

They insisted on taking us all out to dinner the first night, so Steven and Misty were waiting in the condo with us when they arrived. When I opened the front door, Andrew, my father, looked like he always did, 5'11', brown hair with streaks of gray, brown eyes, stocky build - basically a 62-year-old version of Steven.

Mom, well, she looked fantastic like she always did. At 6'3", slim, and blonde (with a little help from her hair colorist), the only indications she was 60 were a few wrinkles around her deep blue eyes. Mom immediately threw her arms around me and gave me big hug, then did the same with Steven who was standing right behind me, then lovingly demanded, "Where's this new daughter of mine?"

Steven introduced her, "Mom, Dad, this is Misty."

Before Misty could say anything, Mom enveloped her in her long arms for a big hug; stepping back, she held Misty's hands in hers and looked her up and down, gushing, "Oh, Misty, just look at you! You're gorgeous!"

Overwhelmed by my mother, Misty blushed red and uttered, "Thank you, Mrs. Montello."

"No, no, no, Misty. We're family now! Call me Janelle or Mama." In the months I'd known her, I'd never seen my new sister-in-law at a loss for words until now. Score one for Janelle!

Mom was only getting warmed up as she looked at my brother, "Steven, wherever did you find her, she's an angel!"

My brother, pleased at our mother's praises, mumbled, "We used to work together, then after she got laid off, we started dating."

"Well, she's wonderful," Mom went on, then kissed Misty on the cheek, "aren't you dear? I'm delighted to have you as my daughter!"

I was amazed that tough little Misty was actually blushing. "Yes, Mama," she replied.

Dad stepped in, reprimanding Mom, "Now Janelle, you're overwhelming the poor thing. Let her breathe." Mom let Misty go, and Dad took the opportunity to give Misty a quick hug.

"Welcome to the family, Misty," he said, smiling. "Don't let Janelle overwhelm you. She's so excited that now she's got a new daughter and a grandchild on the way. I'm going to have to switch her to decaf coffee for the next month, I'm afraid."

Then Mom turned to Darlene, her eyes wide as she took in Darlene's baby bump as well. "And who is this sweet thing? Bradley, introduce us."

Yikes! I knew sooner or later this needed to happen; things were about to get awkward. "Mom, Dad, this is Darlene Chantelle. She's my, um, girlfriend."

Mom's eyes narrowed. While she was still smiling at Darlene, she managed to give me an icy stare. Uh-oh. I could feel my body temperature start to drop. Her eyes notwithstanding, she pleasantly commented, "Darlene, you're just lovely as well. Are you and Misty related? I can see similarities in your pretty faces."

The two women answered as if they were synchronized, "Yes, Ma'am, were half-sisters." Mom tilted her head slightly to one side, processing this information.

"Well, that's an interesting coincidence. And if you don't mind me asking the obvious question, Darlene, is our son Bradford responsible for that little package you're carrying?" Mom was pulling no punches; this was nothing new, she'd always been that way.

To spare Darlene any awkwardness, I blurted out, "Yes, Mom, I'm the father." My mother promptly beamed her happy smile again, and her joy spilled out.

"We're having TWO grandbabies?!?!?!" Mom wrapped Darlene in her arms, kissing and hugging her while declaring, "Andrew, did you hear that? TWO!"

Now it was my father's turn to get icy. "Excuse me, Brad, but where's this girl's ring? Did you put the cart before the horse? You ARE planning on getting married, right?"

I began to try putting a positive spin on the situation, "We're living together, Pop, you know, to see if we're compatible."

I thought my father's head was going to explode. "COMPATIBLE? Looks to me like it's a little late for that, you've already moved from the participation stage to the committed stage!"

"Well, it's complicated, Dad, I..."

Dad cut me off. "Hold it. Complicated? Seems pretty simple to me. Was there a padlocked cyclone fence around your dick, boy? Did this sweet woman have to pick the lock to get to it?"

"Well, no, of course not, Dad." Shit! While Andrew was fairly even keeled 99% of the time, he'd been here barely ten minutes and was already getting pissed off. This was not going well.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Steven and Misty smirking and whispering to each other, greatly enjoying my discomfort. When Steven and I were growing up, calm and easy-going Andrew Montello didn't lose his temper often, but when he did, Steven and I both knew to run for fucking cover. When Dad lost it, he could blow like Mount St. Helens.

Now there was nowhere for me to hide as Dad proceeded to tear into me, "Well, then son, it's time to pull yourself up by your bootstraps and act your age and not your dick size! Damn it, son, you're a Montello! Man up and marry her! She's a beautiful girl, and she's carrying your baby! What in the hell is holding you back exactly?"

I was struggling to find the right words when Darlene came to my rescue. "Please Mr. Montello, don't be mad at Brad. It's not his fault, it's mine."

Andrew's fury lessened; he turned to Darlene for an explanation. "Tell me why you would think that" he said quietly.

"When I first met Brad, my momma Honor and me were grifters, plain and simple. Brad was an easy mark who had money, and the plan was for me to get pregnant and baby-trap him. I'm ashamed to say it, but I never intended to keep the baby, I was just going to use it to get money out of him." Wow, Darlene had told my parents the truth! For once, I'd read it right - and she wasn't done.

"All that was before my half-sister Misty married Steven. When Momma took the money and ran, I moved in with them; it was through Steven that I really got to know Brad. I realized what a great guy he is, and I felt bad how we done him. I never had me a serious boyfriend, but when I lived with Steven and Misty, I seen what a good relationship was."

Darlene started getting choked up now. "After Misty got pregnant all I could think about was our two babies growing up together. I realized there was no way I could go through with an abortion. I wanted this baby, and I wanted Brad!" After she finished, I could see Darlene trying without much success to hold back tears.

My mind was blown. This red-haired temptress was demonstrating a depth of emotions and honesty I didn't think she was capable of. I wondered if just maybe, this tiger could change her stripes after all.

Darlene kept telling her story, "That's when I decided to try to get back together with Brad and be the woman he deserves. If I'd a done right by him from the beginning, he'd have proposed by now. After what Momma and me put him through, I'm lucky he's even letting me be with him." Her tears were flowing freely now, and my mother quickly moved to put her arms around her.

Addressing my father, she said, "You know, Andrew, I'm really tired. How about if we go to dinner tomorrow night instead? We'll send Brad out for some Chinese carryout; does that sound OK?" It never ceased to amaze me how Mom could give an order but make it sound like a suggestion.

Steven may have looked like our daddy Andrew, but emotionally he was a lot like Mom, and had always been good at reading her moods. He quickly interjected, "You know, Mom, Misty's been feeling fatigued all day, I think she and I will go home so I can rub her feet. We'll catch up with you guys tomorrow."

He headed for the door as Misty called out, "Nice meeting you!" Then like a cool breeze, they were gone, leaving me hanging. Lucky bastard.

Mom's arms still around Darlene, she turned to Dad again. "Andrew, you go on now and unpack our suitcases while Darlene and I have a little girl talk."

Then she gave me my marching orders. "Bradford, go get some Chinese food. You know what Dad and I like, now hop to it!" Not having to be told twice, I went into the garage and got in my truck; I'd call in the order from there.

Also, while in my car I could do a little eavesdropping. After Honor and Darlene had gotten their money from me and cleared out, I'd installed a top-of-the-line HD security camera system in my house. This was the kind that streams to the cloud, allowing me to check it from my smartphone in real time. One of the cameras was located in the dining room, just above where my Mom and Darlene were.

After I'd called in the order for sizzling rice soup, egg rolls, kung pao shrimp, sweet and sour pork and steamed rice, my curiosity got the better of me; I switched to my phone's security camera app and listened in.

The system worked like a charm; I could clearly see and hear everything, in high definition no less. Darlene had started crying, and my Mom was gently speaking to her. "Now, Darlene, try not to be upset," she was saying, "I know my son, and by the way he looks at you I can tell Brad loves you. Has he told you that?" Darlene nodded her head, wiping her tears away.

"Whatever happened in the past, Brad has obviously forgiven you. Besides, you're hardly alone, dear."

"I'm not?" Darlene seemed shocked to hear my mother's gentle assurances that she was not the worst person in the world. I made a mental note to myself to go overboard on the Mother's Day gifts this year.

My Mom laughed, "Oh, heavens no! Every one of us has had to deal with being a woman in a man's world; at some point, we've all had to be witches at some point. Even me."

Darlene had stopped crying. "You? You seem so perfect!" As I listened, I could hear relaxation ease into Darlene's voice.

"Perfect?" Mom laughed, "Oh, please dear. Let me tell you a secret. Has Brad told you the story of how Andrew and I met, about how Andrew dealt with a drunk passenger assaulting me?"

"Kind of."

"Well, it's all true, but nobody knows the whole story. The flight with the drunk guy, whose name was Skip Forrester, was not the first flight I'd seen him or Andrew on. As an auditor for a Big 8 accounting firm, Andrew travelled quite a bit, so I'd seen him multiple times on my routes. He was cute, polite, and sweet, and usually always working in his seat. He was always so wrapped up in his work, I doubt he ever noticed me. Well, I sure noticed him!

Andrew was a perfect passenger, always kind; sometimes he'd even bring a box of candy on board for the flight attendants to share! I got it in my head that passenger Montello was definitely husband material, and by God, I was the girl who was going to snag him!

Skip Forrester, on the other hand, always noticed me and made suggestive comments every time he was on my flights. He was super-creepy, and boy, did he like to drink. Sometimes he'd come on board reeking of alcohol, so I'd have to completely cut him off less than 15 minutes into the flight. I despised him, but the good news was, he was unsophisticated and totally predictable. That made it easy for me to make my plan, using Skip Forrester as bait."

HOLY SHIT! I could not believe my own sweet mother, the perfect woman who cared for me and kissed my boo-boos as a kid, was starting to sound like...a member of the Chantelle family! I started the truck to drive to the restaurant, but as I continued to listen to my mother's voice I was mesmerized.

"The airline I was working for had hard and fast rules about stewardesses not initiating fraternization with passengers, but when I saw Skip and Andrew sitting across the aisle from each other, I got my idea.

Skip started drinking as soon as the plane took off like he usually did, but this flight I didn't cut him off. I brought him as many drinks as he wanted, and sure enough, he got really drunk and obnoxious. Then, as I knew he would, Skip made a blatant pass at me and even went so far as to grab my butt and tried to pull me into his lap.

By that point Andrew had definitely taken notice because he sprang into action with his computer. Laptops these days are super light, weighing a few pounds, but his was one of the early portables, an Osborne 1 that weighed about 25 pounds; it certainly did the job of knocking Skip out cold.

Andrew then gave me his business card and sweetly offered to do my taxes. Of course, I said yes, and the rest is history. Andrew's been my loving man for over 40 years. If I hadn't made my plan to get him, though, some other woman would probably be Steven and Brad's mother."

"That's incredible, Mrs. Montello."

"Please, sweetie, call me Janelle," Mom corrected her, then went on, "See, Darlene, we're very alike in some ways. I got what I wanted because I made it happen. Would you say I'm a bad woman for doing what I did?"

I heard Darlene softly reply, "No, Janelle."

Mom continued, "The way I see it, right or wrong, you and your mother were just doing what you had to do as women to get by. I love my son dearly, but he's a grown man and responsible for his own choices. It sounds like he made some bad decisions and it cost him, but you let him off easy. He still has his home, his livelihood, and his health. I've seen a couple of my husband's friends go through legal divorces that took a hell of a lot more and left them devastated. My question to you is, do you really love Brad?"

Darlene sounded almost ecstatic now that she knew my mother was on her side. "Yes, more than anything! He's sweet and handsome and kind, and this baby is his, I swear, and I'll take as many paternity tests as he wants to prove it! I really love him!" Darlene started crying, sobbing in fact. It occurred to me her pregnant hormones had made her very emotional, since she was crying so much lately.

"It's OK, sweetie, Brad will come around, I'm sure," Mom said consolingly, "you deserve his love, and he deserves yours."

I'd heard enough and turned off the security camera app. Mom and Dad were right. The $15,000 was just water under the bridge now, no longer significant. What mattered was there was a beautiful woman carrying my baby who was crazy about me, but worried I might not want to marry her. That just wasn't right; I resolved then and there that I was going to fix it.

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