When A Man Loves A Woman

Prologue

“Shut up!” I yelled at the man in front of me begging for his life. His eyes were squinted together and tears were pouring down his face. I could smell him perspiring; I saw the puddle of urine his knees sat in. He disgusted me. I wanted him to feel all the pain he put me through. I needed him to sweat like he made me sweat. The pee he was kneeling in, I slept in similar for days under his torture. I held in my hand, the same pistol he forced down my throat at the temple of his head. The chamber was locked, loaded, and I was ready to end this slime ball’s life and at that moment a voice called my name, “Silvia...” I jumped but I didn’t take my eyes or the gun off the trash in front of me.

The man who called my name, his voice, it sounded familiar. “Hey,” he paused, “Silvia, we’ve been looking for you.” He paused again; I could tell he was trying to get a reaction from me. I turned my face to see him out of my peripheral vision... “Silvia…can I talk to you? I’m not going to hurt you…I promise.” He set his gun down and put his hands up in a surrendering position. I turned my head back to the man and pushed the gun harder on his temple.

“Oh God, please have mercy!” The man cried. I frowned at his plea. I couldn’t believe this bastard had the audacity to call on God after what he had done to me. I glanced back at the officer and then I turned back facing the manchild and spit in his face.

“Silvia…” The officer called my name again. This time his voice was low and calm. I could hear him moving closer to me. I didn’t turn back around. My eyes were burning holes through the scumbag’s face. I could feel the hot tears running down my cheeks. “Silvia, don’t be him…allow God to be his judge.”

At that moment I turned my face back toward the officer. I could see him clearly now. He was a tall man, with a dark complexion, kind eyes, and his brown dreadlocks were pulled back off his face. I knew exactly who he was. He was a love interest and friend. I wanted to smile, I wanted to run directly to him but the creep behind me shuffled and I instantly turned back facing him and screamed, “IF YOU MOVE AGAIN, I AM GOING TO SHATTER YOUR BRAINS ACROSS THE FUCKING FLOOR.”

“Come on Silvi…don’t allow the Devil to use you. You’re bigger than this.”

I chuckled at the name Silvi. I hadn’t heard that name in weeks. “You don’t understand what he’s done to me!” I replied. My voice was raspy and broken. I was weak. There was a mirror in the room and I looked like Wanda from that movie, Holiday Heart. “Oh God,” I thought. The person I saw in the mirror did not resemble who I was. It was the first time I had seen my reflection in a while. I had lost weight. My eyes were rimmed with dark circles. My face was thin and my hair was a mess. My anger started to boil again.

“Silvia, look at me.” He demanded. “Look at me…don’t take his life & ruin yours. Life is about choices…he’s going to get what’s coming to him but don’t you try to be the judge of this situation.”

My mind wanted to listen to the kind voice but my soul wanted revenge for what this piece of shit had done to me. I knew I would never be the same after this. Even if I didn’t kill him, a piece of my joy had been snatched away from me. Life had been taken from me all because I did not want to continue being involved in a situation that would lead to nowhere. The rage started flaring again. “I HATE YOU!” I screamed at the top of my lungs and bashed the end of the pistol against the man’s head. He fell on his side. I looked at the man lying on the floor. His battered face was evidence that I was fed up with the torture and the abuse. The officer called in back-up to check the man. “I hope he’s dead.” I thought to myself. I threw the gun on the floor and turned to face the man waiting on me. He grabbed in the tightest embrace and tears of relief ran down his face. I heard him sniffing and guessed he was just as satisfied to see me as I was to see him. He kissed the temple of my head.

“He’s still breathing,” one of the other officers stated. That’s when everything went black.

Chapter 1- What do the Lonely Do?

There are many ways to describe how people end up in messy situations, but how dare a woman of my age and intelligence get involved with a man, who already belongs to somebody else? Well, it is pretty easy. All you have to have is no significant other, no real social life, and a mother who gets on your nerves. That's the quickest way to fall into some chaos that's hard to dig yourself out of. It all started a few months ago and I wish now I could turn back the hands of time.

​It had to be around five in the afternoon. I had been off for a while and the sun was going down. I went outside to take some trash out and that's when I saw Mrs. Diane Keaton and her family pulling in their driveway. She got out of her car and so did her three children. They all ran in the house while she walked to the edge of the yard to the mailbox.

​​"Good evening Silvia, how are you this afternoon?" She yelled from across the street. Her voice was still sweet and soft as she yelled.

​I waved back at her, "I am doing just fine today Mrs. Keaton. What about yourself?" I wished I hadn't asked that question but it was good manners to do so, and my mother didn't raise me to be rude. She walked right in the middle of the street and I met her. Diane explained her entire day to me, how the children’s day went and how her husband forgot to tell her happy birthday. That took about seven minutes and I was relieved when she let me go because her teen daughter Ashley, came out the door fussing about her brother Riley bothering her.

​ As I walked back to my house I wondered what it would be like to live like Mrs. Keaton? What would my life have been like if after I graduated from college, I settled down, got married, and raised a family? It wouldn't be so lonely and it would be nice having children running around and messing up the house all the time. Above all, it would give me something to do on nights like this, when there was just nothing to do. I looked back at the Keaton house and for a moment felt their happiness which soon turned into envy.

​The silence in my own house didn't make me feel any better. You could hear a strand of hair fall, how quiet it was in here. My home was extremely comfy and spacious, I purchased it years ago, thinking that it would be full of children by now. How wrong was I? Then I looked in the refrigerator for something to eat and nothing was there. "Great," I said to myself, "A reason to get out of this freaking house." I grabbed my keys, locked the doors, hopped in my 2014 black Mercedes E350, and headed to the grocery store.

​On my way to the store my mother called. I ignored it and she called again so I just answered.

​​"Hello," I stated nonchalantly.

​​"Silvia, why didn't you answer the phone when I first called you?" My mother questioned.

​​"Because I'm driving mother" I replied.

​​"Oh! A date?" She sounded excited.

​​"Sorry mama, not a date, I'm just going to the store to get some groceries." I heard her sigh and I knew she was about to start up.

​​ "My God, child, I just don't know where I went wrong with you. You are so smart and beautiful but yet you're still single. All of your sisters and brothers were married by your age and even Leslie whose 22, is engaged. Baby, you're 32 years old and your maternal clock is just tick, tick, ticking away. I know you're still upset about Kenny leaving you but that was three years ago and it's time for you to move on. He has... hell, he even got kids now." She continued to talk about things she didn't understand.

​Sometimes my mother took it too far and this was one of those nights. Why did she have to bring my ex's name up like that and then throw in my face that he's married with kids now? Then she's always bringing up my siblings and their family successes. I wish she'd realize my feelings about all of this. Yes, I do understand that my love life sucks right now but I can't seem to find anyone who makes my heart beat fast and slow at the same time again. Kenny did that for me but he was ready to start a family and I wasn't the woman he wanted to be with for the rest of his life. I wish he had let me know that before I wasted five years of my life with him though.

​I finally made it to Kroger’s and found a parking spot. I let my other know I had to go and walked in the store. I strolled up and down the aisles filling my basket up with things I needed and things I didn't. When I got on the laundry Aisle, I just stood in front of the detergent thinking. I was really picky about my laundry detergent and it looked like Kroger’s had a great deal on the economy-sized Tide. Just then someone spoke to me.

​​“Trying to figure out if you want to go with the economy size versus the regular?" He asked.

​I didn't look up but replied, "Yes," to him.

​​ "It would be smarter to purchase the larger one. It always lasts longer in my house Silvia." He said while he placed the larger one in my basket and walked away. I still hadn't looked at the man and then it hit me, that he knew my name. So I followed him and I couldn't tell who he was from the back. The only thing I noticed was the salt and pepper thing his hair was doing and his height. He was tall.

​​"Excuse me," I called out to him. I guess he didn't hear me so I pushed my basket a little faster but Newton's Laws of Physics slipped my mind and I tried to stop the basket, but it was too late. I still ran into the man and he fell. "Oh, I am sorry Mister. Please forgive me for that, I am so very sorry." I still couldn't see his face. He was trying to get up. "Let me help you."

​​"Oh no, I got it. I just want to know what made you run your basket into me." He chuckled and finally turned around.

​​"Mr. Keaton, I didn't know that was you." I giggled. "I just saw your wife not too long ago."

​​“I’m pretty sure you did. I haven't seen you lately Miss Lady. You must

have a young buck now?"

​​"I wish, I'm so single right now that all my dollar bills gave up on me." I joked. He looked at me then cracked a smile, I wasn’t great at telling jokes so I guess his smirk was just him being polite. I had never noticed his eyes but they were beautiful, a lovely smoky grey color. Just then an electric spark ran down my spine and I had to take a deep breath. He cleared his throat.

​​"I was looking at your house the other day and I noticed that you got some siding coming down. I could put that back up there for you one day this weekend, while I'm doing my other chores around the house. You know Diane has to put me to work on my off days." He mentioned we were now heading to the checkout lane.

​​"Sure Mr. Keaton that would be a big help. Ever since my father's been sick, everything wants to go wrong in the house. This weekend would be fine" I replied back and turned away. I paid for my things and walked to my car. For some odd reason I felt like he was watching me and what was really weird was the fact that I enjoyed it.

Chapter 2- As We Lay

When I pulled into my driveway, I noticed Mr. Keaton had beat me home. What I didn't expect was him coming down my driveway before I pulled all the way in. I rolled my window down,

​​"Mr. Keaton, what are you doing in my driveway?" I questioned.

​​"You're the one with a massive amount of groceries, not I." He smiled a devilish smile.

​​"You're up to something. I got my eye on you." I smirked at him. I rolled my window up and pulled into the garage. He followed my car and helped himself to the bags of groceries in my trunk. We talked for about ten minutes after we got all those bags in and he left, just as a gentleman should.

​I smiled at the thought of Mr. Keaton. I knew he was the type of man that took care of home and business. I could only hope to find a man like him. He is an Ob/Gyn and his wife is a teacher. They live a life similar to the Huxtables off the Cosby Show…they were perfect. Their life seems so perfect it's unreal. After he left, I took a relaxing bath and ate dinner. Around nine, I was watching the news and listening to my mother nag me again. When the news went off, I watched a little Antenna TV and dozed off.

​I was awakened by a loud knock on my door. When I opened it, there he was, Mr. Keaton. He came on in and closed the door behind him. With lust in his eyes, he grabbed me by the waist and pulled my body close to his. Then he laid the most passionate kiss on me and set my soul on fire. Every single ounce of me melted like butter as he unbuttoned my pajama shirt. Sucking on my neck while fondling my breasts, I was like putty in his hands. I knew what we were doing was wrong but I couldn't stop this burning feeling that he was giving me. I kissed his body while he took off his pants and exposed his manhood at full attention. Picking me up and placing my legs on his shoulders, he began to devour me. He was licking, kissing, and sucking on my vagina as if he hadn't eaten all day. Enjoying what my body had to give him, slowly he pulled me down, kissing my body until we got face to face again. I looked him in his eyes. I wanted to stop it but it felt so damn good. He licked my chin and gently bit my bottom lip. The as if he knew I was ready, he slid his long thick tongue back in my mouth and pressed his erected, fat dick inside of me. It felt wonderful as he rocked my body back and forth, up and down, and around and around. It felt like time had stood still and our passion took over our bodies. I came on him three times before he released himself. He let me go and I slid down the wall. We didn't say anything after it. I sat against the wall in amazement and he watched me. Then he put his clothes back on and placed his card on my table.

​​ "Silvia, don't call me Mr. Keaton any more love, my name's Daniel." He stated while walking to the door. I was still sitting down lost about what just transpired. "I'll see you later baby." He said as he exited the house. I stayed where I was and looked over at the clock, it was six in the morning. I shook my head and called my secretary and told her to cancel all appointments today. I needed a day off.

Chapter 3-Love and Happiness

​ It's amazing how one night of passion will change every single thing about you. I had a new attitude and a smile to match my feelings. My Mother even noticed it. She made her conclusions that I was seeing someone and I agreed. However, when she would ask who the guy was, I'd just say, "You don't know him, mother." There was a part of me that felt bad about what was happening between Daniel and me, but couldn't pull myself out of the sheer bliss he gave me. Plus every time I felt like I wanted to call this thing off, he would do something amazing, like sending flowers and chocolates to my office or calling my phone in the middle of the night just to sing a love song to me. It felt good to have someone want me. I still have no clue about what I did to lead him on but I know now, whatever feelings were being felt were mutual.

​Three weeks after this affair began, Mrs. Keaton stopped by my house. Her hair was perfect as usual and she wore a simple a-line dress. I found it amazing that Diane was still so youthful at the age of 47. No wonder why she was able to snatch a handsome guy like Daniel. I guess it is true, handsome men do marry beautiful women.

​​"Silvia, I've noticed something about you sweetheart." She stated as she sat down on the sofa.

` ​I played it cool and smiled, "What's that?"

​​ "Well, you are very beautiful, educated, young, and single. I never see you go out on dates or anything. You just go to work and come home." She stated.

​I tried not to roll my eyes. Diane was starting off sounding like my mother. "Well, all the good men are taken, so there's none left for me," I smirked.

​​"Oh child, please! How old are you now?"

​​"I'm thirty-two, why?" I responded.

​ Her bold red lipstick began to spread across her face exposing her perfect smile. She clapped her hands and let out a shriek, "Well my oldest nephew Malik is moving up here from Savannah, Georgia. He doesn't know anyone here and he's single..."

​"And you want me to date him." I cut her off. "Diane, I don't think you should be interfering in my dating life."

​"It's not interfering, I just want you to show him around. Please do this for me, Silvia." She begged. I rolled my eyes at her. She continued to smile as I walked to the door to let her out. She sighed, grabbed her purse, and followed me. "Please do this for me, sweetheart, it would mean the world to me."

​ Diane Keaton was standing in my door now, pleading for me to go out with her nephew. She was a very persuasive person." Alright. I will do it," I agreed. She shrieked again and hugged me good-bye. However, I felt like I needed to do something for her since I was sleeping with her husband.

​ After getting rid of Mrs. Keaton, I headed to the office. I hated driving down Poplar, because it was always busy, but that's where my practice is located. I'm what you'd call a relationship counselor. I help couples when they are trying to figure out if they want to take the next step if they should stay together, and sometimes if they should pursue a relationship with each other in the first place. I also specialize in pre and post-marital counseling. As I pulled into Clarke Towers, I got frustrated. There's never anywhere to park, the students from Concorde Career College never paid attention to the moving vehicles, and the other drivers couldn’t drive. Finally, I found a spot to park. "I wish they would hurry up and give me my own parking space." I thought to myself.

​I got out of the car and walked over to the building which has 35 floors. My office is on the 32nd floor and I took a deep breath when I looked up at the tower. I hopped on the elevator with a handful of other people, heading to work and school. I knew it was going to take a minute before I reached my floor.

​When I made it to my office, I noticed that nobody had made it yet. Lisa, my secretary was at the front desk. She was a funny, little stout woman with blonde hair and green eyes. She had made a few mistakes as a teenager and was trying to get her life back on track. I gave her a chance because I knew how hard she had it. I couldn't imagine being 22 with three kids and no husband. I saw it as paying it forward, and on top of that, she wasn't struggling anymore. Hell, Lisa was the best paid Secretary in all of Clarke Tower and she knew it. The other secretaries in the building didn't even speak to her, they wanted her job and tried anything and everything to get it. But my loyalty was with her. She isn’t the brightest secretary but she has a good heart and is a hard worker and that's enough for me.

​​"Beautiful morning we're having Dr. Fields." She greeted me.

​​"Yes, it is Lisa. How are you this morning?"

​​ "Well, I could've had a better night's sleep last night but my youngest lad had a stomach bug. The little one ate too many biscuits last night after dinner." She stated while yawning. Her British accent seemed to be getting heavier by the day.

​​"Biscuits?" I asked, confused.

​She looked at me and then slapped the desk and laughed, "My fault Dr. Fields, you call them cookies."

​​ "Oh." I walked into my office and sat my purse on the desk and looked out the window at the view. It was beautiful.

​​"Oh, Dr. Fields, I almost forgot. A man was here when I first got here. He left something on your desk."

​I turned around and she was standing in the doorway. "Lord have mercy Lisa, you let him in my office."

​​ "He was old, I figured it was your father. So yes."

​I rolled my eyes at her and signaled for her to close the door. I looked at my desk and there it was an envelope with my name on it. I opened it and a Master Card was enclosed in a letter.

-Silvia my love,

You deserve the world and all it has to offer you and I am willing to give it to you. You are such an intelligent woman and you inspire me to be a better version of myself. I feel alive again since we've been spending time together and I look forward to many years of love with you. This is just a small token of my love, to you. Take yourself, shopping sweetheart. The pin is 1205, the month and day we began our journey together. Enjoy your day love. I will talk to you soon.

​I smiled as I closed the letter. Then my cell phone rang.

​​ "Hello?" I answered.

​​"Did you get my gift?" Daniel asked.

​​"Well good morning to you too and yes, I received it."

​​ "There's no limit on love."

​​"How did you put my name on it without my information?" I asked him.

​ He laughed, "Most women would be shopping right now, not asking a question like that. I know my wife would."

​ I sucked my teeth, "Well I'm not like most women. And speaking of your wife, what is she going to say when she checks your spending report and finds out you have a MasterCard under your name but registered to me?"

​​ "You let me handle that Silvia. Just enjoy it, honey. And Happy Birthday baby." He mentioned and hung up the phone.

​I viewed the calendar and there it was, January 28th, I was 33 years old today. I just sunk into my desk. And closed my eyes. A couple of minutes later Lisa glided in the room with a vase of Pink Roses, singing Happy Birthday.

​​"I know you didn't think I forgot about your special day, Dr. Fields. After everything you've done for me, I couldn't imagine forgetting." She stated. I just stared at her. "What's wrong? Is it too much?"

​"No Lisa, they are beautiful. Thanks for them. I love roses, especially the pink ones..." I turned my chair around facing the window again and looked at the beautiful view from my office. "Lisa, I'm 33 years old today and I forgot my own birthday," I laughed. She laughed too.

Chapter 4-Summer Breeze

​Around noon, my mother called me to meet her at Ruth Chris’s for a birthday lunch. I reluctantly agreed only because it was my birthday. I would have invited Lisa but she had taken her lunch already. So I headed down the street to the restaurant. I walked into the building and let the host know I was meeting my mother. However, she informed me, my party was already seated and waiting for me. I followed the waitress to the back of the building and that's when my entire family screamed, "SURPRISE!"

​I was shocked. I didn't expect this. All of my brothers and sisters were here with their children, a few of my aunts and uncles, cousins, and most importantly my papa was here. Tears began to stream down my face as he walked over and hugged me. This was the best birthday gift I had received in a while. Just to see my father up and out was a blessing to me. "Happy Birthday, baby girl. I love you." He spoke in a raspy, deep voice.

​​ "Oh daddy, I love you too," I said crying.

​​"Why the waterworks Silvia?" He stared at me.

​​"Daddy, I just missed you and I wasn't expecting to see you or any of you guys here...I'm a little overwhelmed that's all."

​My father hugged me again and ushered me to my seat. "Silvia now don't you worry about me at all. I'm strong like a bull. I'm not going anywhere until I get to walk you down the aisle, see you have children, and watch them graduate. Then I will be ready, baby." He joked.

​​"Well, it looks like you are going to be with us a while Earnest because that child ain't settling down anytime soon." My crazy aunt Jackie blurted out.

​ My mother shot a cold look at Jackie. "For your information, Silvia is seeing someone now. So it might be sooner than you think."

​​"Mother!" I exclaimed.

​"What," she shrieked, "Nobody's picking on you today baby. It's your day. My little success is 33 today." She planted a kiss on my forehead, which I'm sure left residue of her burgundy lipstick.

​ The waitress came out and took our order. That took about ten minutes because of how large the party was. I just sat in a daze thinking about the little situation I have gotten myself into. Was it so bad that I was having an affair with a married man? Even thinking it sounded bad. But from what I know, Daniel was no longer in love with Diane. He was just there because of the children. All of my years of studying psychology never prepared me for anything like this. I should have been able to prevent this kind of thing from happening.

​​ "Silvia, darling are you just going to stare into space or eat you food?" Mother questioned.

​​ "Oh, my bad mom. I guess I got a lot on my mind." She looked concerned. “It’s nothing to worry yourself about Mom.” She still did not seem impressed but she decided to let the conversation rest for now. We all finished up lunch and I said goodbye to everyone except mother. She decided to sit in my car with me and see what was going on with me.

“So are you going to tell me or do I have to snoop around like a detective?” My mother asked.

I rolled my eyes. “I would rather you not snoop mama.”

“Okay, so we’ll discuss what’s bothering you.” She stated. Her eyes looked concerned but also held a threat that meant not to play with her.

“Well, you know I’ve been seeing someone lately…” I paused and thought about how to word it. “He’s not the one and I need to figure a way to get out of it.”

My mother shifted her eyebrows. “Can you elaborate a little more? I mean what is the issue with this man. Just a month ago, you were on cloud nine with him and now you want to call it quits?” I could hear the nagging starting to fester in her voice.

“He’s in a relationship,” I said in a dry tone which was a half-truth.

“Did you know?”

“Yes…” I replied

“Well don’t you sit there in a rut because you let yourself get involved with a man attached to someone else. Obviously, it’s not that serious because he wouldn’t be seeking outside attention from other women. But I will tell you this honey, you don’t want no other woman’s mess. Trust me, this is from my own personal experience.” She paused and slapped my leg. “I thought you were going to say you got involved with a married man or something.”

I didn't say anything. She kissed my cheek and climbed out of the car.

“Silvia, you’re a smart girl. You can get out of this without your mama’s help. I’ll talk to you later.” She walked back toward her and my father’s SUV and hopped in.

That was the shortest lecture my mother ever gave me and I don’t really think it was a lecture. In a way, she opened up about her past without giving me the details. I knew my father was not the man she was referring to but that only meant she had messed with someone before my Daddy and the man wasn’t hers. I had so many questions to ask her about her situation but I guess that would have to wait. I looked at my watch and noticed it was 2:10 p.m. I had to get back to the office. All in all the birthday luncheon was a nice surprise and the conversation with my mom helped me also. I headed back to the office where Lisa informed me that my 2:30 appointment was waiting.

​I walked into what I called the safe zone and there was Mr. and Mrs. Yonkers, a couple I have been working with since they got married in 2009. I had recommended that the two not get married, mainly because Mrs. Yonkers was not mentally ready to get married, let alone be committed to one person. But they tied the knot anyway, three children, and five years later I'm still trying to convince them that this might not be the right relationship. Plus the kids aren't even Mr. Yonkers, but I guess when you're in love, you'll put up with anything.

​​ "Hey, Dr. Fields, how are you today?" Mr. Yonkers asked. He looked surprisingly happy and so did his wife.

​​"I am doing fine. I could be better but this isn't about me today. How are you two doing?"

​​“We are wonderful, we are going to have another baby!" Mrs. Yonkers blurted out. I glanced at Mr. Yonkers, his facial expression confirmed that this was actually his child.

​​"I'm guessing that means everything is okay right now. No infidelities, just the two of you?" I asked. The two of them nodded in agreement. This couple was something else. Both of them are white as snow with blond hair but the children are darker than me. I chuckled a little at the thought of the new baby and wondered how they were going to explain that.

​​ "I have learned to be patient with Jeffery." She stated as she caressed his hand.

​​"And I have been working on my anger, my low sex drive, and not catering to her needs." He followed and kissed her on her cheek.

​I smiled. Maybe all this time we have spent together was actually working on this couple finally. I finished their session by 3:30 and was driving down Poplar, heading home at 3:45. With the windows down, I let my hair blow in the wind, while blasting, “Summer Breeze,” by The Isley Brothers. Even though my life was in ruins right now, I couldn't help but smile. Hell, you can't help who you fall for. The Yonkers, were a living testament to that.