“No, Mrs. Bingham. I'll just set up her chair and bring you her meal. We're introducing fresh fruits and vegetables with no preservatives and the chef added something that makes it so delicious!”

  “They're well taken care of,” Barbara said as she looked at the four children. The boys were still smaller than the girls but they looked healthy. “I called Carole but she's out at lunch with friends.”

  “She is,” Cynthia used a soft piece of cloth to wipe her granddaughter’s mouth. “Such a messy eater you are baby girl,” she crooned. She removed the tray and picked up the infant, rubbing her back for her to burp. “It’s good for her to go out and mingle. She didn't want to go but we encouraged her.”

  *****

  “This is nice,” Carole looked around the richly decorated room as she took her seat. It was a meeting of the ‘wives’ and Kelly had called and told her that she had better be there or else!

  “It’s another of Kelsey’s restaurants. That girl can’t seem to help herself where food is concerned,” Leesa said dryly. “It’s not officially open yet and we're the first people to be eating here.”

  “So consider yourselves very honored,” Kelsey said as she made her way into the room. She was wearing a white kaftan that looked great on her. She had been named businesswoman of the year for the third time in a row and the function was being held in December. “Carole good of you to come. Kyle will be out with the delicious food in a short while. I want you guys to give me your very honest opinion. I want this place to be different from the others. A kind of classy joint where you can also be comfortable. Kelly I am in no way competing with you and Kane so don’t get the wrong idea.”

  “I have no intention of doing that,” Kelly retorted.

  “So tell us Carole, how's life with four children at once?” Ciara asked her quietly.

  “Hectic!” Carole said with a laugh. “But I finally caved and hired two nannies along with Mama and Sara and they're very organized.”

  “So you're free to go wherever you want now.”

  “The thing is I have no idea what to do with myself,” she admitted.

  “I thought you wanted to stay home and be a mother and wife,” Leesa asked as she sipped her flavored water.

  “I thought so too but now I really need to do something. Find my niche, so to speak.”

  “We have tons of charity that you could become a part of,” Leesa pointed out.

  “We're targeting third world countries in our quest to donate money for food and education. It’s a fairly new project that we've taken on so you could become a part of that,” Kelly said.

  “You work, Kelly. You run two restaurants. Leesa, you still spearhead models on a part time basis and still manage to go out and conquer the world. I want to help in any way I can but I need to find something to do that's mine,” Carole said passionately.

  “What does Walter say?” Felicia asked. She'd met her husband while operating a novelty bookstore, one that she still operated.

  “He's no help,” she said with a shrug. “I have a feeling that he still thinks I forced him to have four children. Don’t get me wrong, he loves them very much but I did kind of push him.”

  “Men need pushing honey,” Kelsey said dryly. “If you wait for them nothing gets done. What do you like to do?”

  “I sold houses before.”

  “No, I'm asking about your passion,” Kelsey corrected her. “Whenever I speak at a college or high school or even a dinner I always ask the question: what is your passion? What would you like to do? You're in a better position than most people honey. You don’t have to worry about making a living. You need to find your passion and go for it!”

  ******

  Walter stood in the doorway and watched them on the oversized bed. A smile curved his lips as saw one daughter, he assumed it was Brianna, as she pulled one of the boys’ hair. “No hair pulling baby girl,” Carole chided her gently as she moved her son out of harm’s way. “That’s not nice.”

  She looked up and saw him standing there. “I'm afraid they've taken over our bed. I decided to give all four women a break and have them for a little bit but they refuse to go to sleep.”

  “That’s fine.” Walter came into the room and took his jacket off. “I was just standing there and thinking what a nice picture this was. My family all together.” He climbed onto the bed and hauled his sons into his arms. “Hey there guys, you looking out for the women in the family.” They both stared up at him and smiled, making unintelligible sounds as if greeting him.

  “I think they're saying hello,” Carole grinned as Arianna got to her feet and let go of the bed frame for a moment before landing on her diapered bottom. “I also suspect that your daughters are trying to take their first steps.”

  “I hope I'm here to see that.” He looked over at her. She had on blue silk pajamas and looked so damned sexy that he felt the desire stir inside him. “How are you?” he winced a little as one of the boys tried to climb onto his lap.

  “I'm good. How was work?”

  “It was okay. I found myself boasting about my kids at the club a while ago. I've become that guy.”

  “What guy?” she asked in amusement.

  “The one that thinks their kids are better than everyone else’s,” he said wryly. He looked down at his sons indulgently and realized that they were fighting to go to sleep.

  “That’s a good thing.”

  “Yeah?” he held each boy in his arms and started rocking them. “I love you baby.”

  “I love you too.”

  Chapter 7

  Carole looked up at the knock on the bedroom door. “Come in,” she called out. “Mama! You're up late.” She put aside her laptop and invited her mother in.

  “This is such a nice room, very big and spacious.” Cynthia wandered around the room. “It’s a little empty isn’t it?”

  “Both Walter and I like it this way.”

  “Where is your husband at this time of night?” Cynthia asked as she sat a little primly on one of the sofas.

  “He usually goes to his club on Fridays after work if we don’t have plans.”

  “Your father used to tell me that he had church work on Fridays too.”

  “Mama, please don’t start that.”

  “Honey I'm just looking out for you. Your father and I were happily married and he never showed any signs of being unhappy or that he was seeing someone else. Men are deceivers and I don’t want you to have rose-colored glasses where that is concerned. Your husband is very rich and handsome and I'm not saying that you're not an attractive girl but there are women out there who are just waiting to pounce on the man you have spent your entire life building into someone.”

  “Mama are you listening to yourself?” Carole felt as if her heart was weighed down by something heavy. Her mother had been staying with them for almost a year and she had hoped that with her spending time with the children that somehow she'd gotten better. “I love Walter and he loves me. He has a family to think about and he has never given me reason to suspect that he's interested in anyone else.” She pulled her robe around her as she sat up on the pillows. “He's a member of a club where he participates in whatever's going on. He works hard and deserves a break and I am not going to be the one to tell him that he cannot go out and have fun without me.”

  “It is almost eleven p.m. What husband should be out at this time of night? What if something happens to you or the children?”

  “If it was something medical, I would call an ambulance. We have a large number of staff here who are very loyal to us. It's not like I'm alone taking care of the kids. We're fine.”

  “I never see you go out and have fun at this time of night,” Cynthia sniffed.

  “That’s because I don’t want to. I'm not the type to really go out, unless one of the girls ask me or my husband wants me to join him at a function.” Carole took a deep fortifying breath. “Mama I love you and I am so happy that you're here helping out and bonding with your grandchildren, but I am not going to stand for you trying to draw me into the drama of your past. I respect that you're hurting and it was hard for you when Dad left but it's been years now and you need to move on.”

  Cynthia got to her feet and stared at her daughter. “I'm sorry I bothered you.” She said stiffly.

  “You didn't bother me but I'm not going to hold on to a very destructive past. What’s done is done and neither of us can change anything.”

  Cynthia stood there staring at her for a moment and then with a nod she turned and walked away.

  “Mama—” Carole reached her hand out but pulled it back as she heard the bedroom door slam shut. With a deep sigh she moved the comforter off of her and climbed off the bed. She really thought that her mother was well past all that. She'd been so happy around the children that she really thought that it was all behind her. She walked into the bathroom and stared at herself in the mirror. Her mother had implied that she was not beautiful enough to hold her onto husband and she had unwittingly touched something that had been deep inside Carole's mind. Walter was handsome and she had been aware of that ever since she'd eyes on him. When he had proposed to her she'd laughed at him. “Don’t be silly!” she had told him.

  “I mean it. I love you and want to marry you.”

  “I'm not your type,” she had protested.

  “What type is that?” he had asked her in amusement as he ran his fingers down her back.

  “I'm not high society and beautiful.”

  “I don’t need high society and you are beautiful,” he had countered. “And if you don’t say yes I am going to spend the rest of my life being miserable and alone.”

  “In that case I guess I have to say yes.”

  She stared at herself critically in the mirror. She looked different since she'd been married to Walter. Expensive creams and makeup had done that to her. She knew she was naturally attractive but her looks had been enhanced significantly. Her hair had grown since the children and she now wore it spiky and curly with the sides cut low. She had been photographed frequently and the papers had said that she had a natural beauty that had a glow to it. Her eyebrows were tapered and highlighted her eyes. Her lips were perfectly curved, the bottom one full.

  “You are incredibly beautiful,” her husband’s deep quiet voice startled her from the doorway.

  She jumped and turned to face him. “I didn't hear you come in.” Her eyes roved his body and felt the desire stir in her. He was wearing a thick green sweater vest over his light green shirt. His thick dark hair had been rustled by the breeze and he looked like the picture of health and attractiveness.

  “You were so absorbed in admiring yourself that you had no idea that I'd come in.” He came closer to her. “What’s wrong?”

  “Why do you think something's wrong?”

  He tilted her chin up. “Because I know you.” His eyes searched her face intently. “You have that little frown on your brow when you're upset or worried.”

  “Where were you?”

  “At the club. Why?”

  She shrugged and moved away from him. “It’s almost midnight, Walter.”

  “And I've come home later than that.” He caught her arm and turned her to face him. “What’s going on?”

  “Are you cheating on me?”

  “What?” His forehead creased into a frown.

  “It’s a simple question Walter. Are you seeing someone else?”

  He turned and walked out of the bathroom and she followed him.

  “Am I supposed to take that as a yes?” she fired at him.

  He took off his vest and unbuttoned his shirt. “I'm not going to answer that Carole,” his voice was cold and his eyes hooded as he stared at her.

  “Why not?” she demanded shrilly. She wanted to stop but she couldn't seem to help herself.

  “Figure it out for yourself.” He turned and went into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him.

  Carole turned as if to go after him but decided against it. She slumped onto one of the sofas and buried her head inside her hands dejectedly. She had allowed her mother’s vituperative attitude to color her own and had taken it out on him.

  She waited for him to come out but he didn't. He stayed in there for more than an hour and she went to bed. He came back into the room with a robe on and without a word left their bedroom and closed the door behind him. Carole stifled a cry of regret as she slid down the pillow and lay there staring at the ceiling. “Thank you Mama,” she whispered hoarsely.

  ********

  Walter couldn't sleep. He'd left before the card game was even over because his mind had been on her constantly. Jeremy had teased him about being whipped but he had countered with the fact that he was as well. Now to come home to her accusations! Where the hell did it all come from? She was never usually like that. They always spoke openly about everything. He'd told her about the few relationships he had been in. Granted, he'd been seeing someone else when he met her at that party but that had been an exception to the rule. He'd seen her for the first time and a skeptic like him would never have believed in something as impossible as love at first sight if he hadn't experienced it for himself. It wasn't as if she'd been the most beautiful woman in the room. Far from it, but he'd taken one look at her and his heart had slammed inside his chest painfully. He had found himself going towards her as if he'd been pushed. From that moment on he had never looked at another woman and she knew that.

  ********

  “Look who's at the big table!” Carole came into the huge dining room to see her children sitting around the large dining table. Her husband as well as the two nannies and her mother were around the table as well. Walter was tending to his two sons who were making a big mess. She hadn't gone to sleep until the early hours of the morning and had gotten up late that morning. Usually on Saturdays she and Walter would sleep in late and have breakfast in bed but today was an exception and it cut her to the quick. “Hey babies!” She went around and kissed each one, tucking the bib back underneath Arianna’s neck. She noticed that Walter didn't even look up and she felt like crying. “Morning everyone.” She took her place at the table and smiled at the maid who brought her a plate of oatmeal.

  “You okay honey?” her mother asked her.

  “Of course, Mama. I'm just happy to see everyone at the table.” She looked at her husband. “Walter are you still planning on going to that function later tonight?”

  His grey eyes appraised her for a moment before he responded. “I'll let you know. If you will excuse me?” He pushed back his chair and kissed each child on the forehead before heading out.

  Carole pasted a bright smile on her face and avoided her mother’s curious look as she pretended to enjoy her meal.

  *****

  “Honey may I speak to you?” Cynthia came quietly inside the playroom.

  “What is it Mama?” she asked without looking up as she carefully changed her daughter’s diaper. Walter had told her brusquely that he was going out for a little bit and would be back.

  “I'm sorry about last night.”

  Carole picked Arianna up and held her up to her shoulder. The little girl smelled like powder and strawberry, the smoothie she'd just had a short while ago. She and Walter had decided that on Saturdays and Sundays they would give the nannies a break and take care of the children themselves. If they had to go anywhere then they would tell them beforehand. Lola and Mavis had both gone for the weekend but of course Cynthia and Sara were still around and insisted on helping out. “You keep saying that but you don’t really mean it, do you?” Carole asked her quietly as she put Arianna next to her sister who was banging on the rug with a toy hammer. Walter had teasingly said that she was going to be a construction worker.

  “Or maybe the first female to build a pyramid,” Carole had said with a laugh.

  Cynthia sat down next to her granddaughters, smiling as Brianna crawled into her lap. “I want to stay here.”

  “You think I would kick you out?” Carole asked her incredulously.

  “I said some pretty mean things to you last night and I noticed that you and Walter aren't really speaking. I would hate to think that I'm the reason for that.”

  “Walter and I will work our stuff out.” Carole got onto the floor and piled the blocks up that her sons had methodically destroyed. Brianna and Arianna had taken their first steps a few nights ago and both she and Walter had been there to see it.

  “I loved your dad,” Cynthia said quietly, her smile whimsical as she fondled Brianna’s curls. “I fell in love with him the first time I saw him at that church function. He was playing the organ and it sounded so haunting and spiritual that I couldn't help but be moved by his playing. I was a shy girl who hadn't been allowed to go on dates and he made me feel so much at home. We hit it off right from the beginning and it didn't take me long to fall in love with him. He was so kind and thoughtful and I thought that I was the luckiest woman in the world.”

  “I am sorry Mama,” Carole felt her anger evaporating like smoke as she imagined the anguish that her mother must have gone through. “I can never know what it’s like because it has never happened to me but I know my man and last night you had me questioning what I know about him and I didn't like it. I fought with him unnecessarily because of what you said.”

  “I'm sorry,” Cynthia said quietly.

  “I love him Mama. I know he's not perfect but neither am I. He 's a very good husband and father and I'm not going to allow you or anyone to come between us.”

  “I'm happy to hear that.” They both looked up at the tall darkly handsome man framed inside the doorway. “Cynthia could you give us a minute?”

  “Of course.” Cynthia got to her feet and walked to the door. She stopped and placed her hand on Walter’s arm and looked up at him for a moment before leaving the room.

  “Hi.” He got down on his knees before her but before she could say anything the children all came and climbed on him.

  “Hi,” she murmured, her eyes apologetic. “I'm sorry.”

  “I know.” He included her in the group hug he gave his children and kissed her on the lips.

 

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