CHAPTER 3
Veronica spent the day entertaining the girls, frolicking with them through the house. After their swim, she helped them get cleaned off and changed into fresh clothes. No sooner were they redressed, though, they wanted her to take them out on the trails, and of course, she obliged.
As Veronica took care of the girls, bringing them in to have lunch after their trek on the trails, she noticed that rest of the staff had filtered in. Most notably, she caught sight of the men who she assumed were the movers taking her possessions up to her room.
Veronica felt a flash of guilt as she saw them. Her belongings reminded her of the home she had made with Calvin, and she wondered vaguely what he was up to. She realized she hadn’t spoken with him much at all the previous day, and she realized she should probably call to check up on him.
It was strange not to be around him all the time, where the details of each other’s lives just sort of came out in the midst of everyday life. Now, though, that they were no longer physically together, she knew she would have to put forth a bit more effort if she wanted to keep tabs on him.
Veronica considered all this as she cleaned up the dishes from the girls’ lunch. She decided then that she could dwell on all this later, and she refocused her attention on her young charges.
They seemed a little worn out from their swim and their hike through the woods, so Veronica opted to settle them down in the den for a while and put on a movie. She nearly laughed as she had to intercept what may have turned into a fight over what movie to watch, and they finally agreed upon a system wherein they would alternate who selected the movie to be watched.
For today, Veronica picked the movie, and the girls were content to watch it. They were quiet for the duration of the movie, but after sitting still for so long they were well rested and ready to go at it again.
While it was definitely more than she was used to dealing with, Veronica was learning to accept that she would be a major fixture in the girls’ lives. She was not having to hard a time keeping up with them, and the more she interacted with them the more she seemed to like them. In general, they were very smart and well-rounded girls.
Veronica caught herself smiling as she thought of the opportunities they would have, and how their father had created them. Having grown up under such rough conditions, it would have been easy for him to go down a horrible road for the rest of his life. Instead, he had made a name for himself and paved the way for an excellent future for his children, as well as providing for the countless members of his staff.
Veronica tried to keep her mind off Frank, but it was hard when she was so clearly surrounded by all that he had made of himself. Even as she took care of his children, she was reminded of him in their smiles and their deep, dark skin. Veronica found herself vaguely wondering what their mother looked like.
The rest of the afternoon was occupied with trying to put together a large puzzle. It was only when a much larger pair of hands joined in that Veronica looked up and saw Frank kneeling down and helping them. Veronica hastily looked back down at the puzzle.
Soon, the whole work was completed, and the girls cheered excitedly for themselves.
“We’ll have to get a frame and hang it up,” Frank said to the girls, and they giggled their approval. Frank glanced over at Veronica and have her a smirk. Veronica offered him an easy smile.
“Why don’t you run downstairs and get a snack,” Frank leaned over and suggested to the girls. “Miss Lawrence will be right down.”
The girls immediately raced down the stairs, and Veronica felt her stomach clench in a way that was becoming all too familiar. Frank looked over at her and seemed to consider her for a moment before he spoke.
“How were they?” he asked her, his voice seeming more tentative than usual.
“They were great,” Veronica answered, trying to keep her voice light.
“Good,” Frank nodded. There was a long silence then
“I’m going to change out of my clothes,” he said softly.
“Right,” Veronica nodded. “I’ll be in the kitchen with the girls.”
“Of course,” Frank nodded to her. “I’ll be down in a bit.”
Veronica offered him a tight smile and then headed down the staircase to see the girls. She supervised them as they had their snack of a banana and some grapes, and then made sure they cleaned themselves up. About the time they had finished, Frank had made it downstairs.
The girls, of course, immediately rushed to them and Frank chuckled, stroking each of their heads.
“How about a board game?” Frank suggested, and the girls immediately began discussing which one they wanted to play. It seemed to go back and forth between Guess Who and Sorry! Eventually, Guess Who won out.
“Alright then,” Frank said when it was settled. “Miss Lawrence, would you like to play?”
Veronica was a little taken aback. She looked into Frank’s eyes, and she immediately felt the urge to flee.
“Actually,” Veronica countered. “I have been meaning to make a phone call.”
“Oh,” Frank said, seeming a little surprised. “By all means.”
“Maybe I can join in on a later round?” Veronica suggested, mostly speaking to the girls, who encouraged her to do so eagerly.
Veronica looked up at Frank, who gave her a smile and a short shrug. Veronica smiled back, and then turned to head across the kitchen and out onto the pool area. Once outside, she collapsed into a pool chair and ran a hand over her face.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. For a moment, she merely held it in her hand and looked down at it. Finally, she was able to find Calvin’s contact information and hit the call button.
The phone only rang once before he answered.
“Hey!” his voice sounded eager, and Veronica was more than a little surprised by his tone.
“Hey,” she said back, her own voice not quite matching his enthusiasm.
“I didn’t ever hear from you yesterday,” Calvin pointed out. “I figured you were probably just busy taking care of things over there.”
“Yeah it was a pretty wild day,” Veronica said, feeling a cold pang of guilt as she remembered just what had transpired the previous day.
“Oh yeah?” Calvin asked, and Veronica closed her eyes at the eagerness in his voice. “Tell me about it? What’s it like?”
“Well the house is incredible and the girls are great,” Veronica said, and she certainly wasn’t lying.
“What about Davenport?” Calvin asked, his voice full of innocent curiosity. “Is he very cold and distant?”
“I don’t know,” Veronica let the lie slide off her tongue. “I haven’t really seen him all that much.”
“Well I guess that’s to be expected,” Calvin said, and in her mind’s eye Veronica could see him nodding. She couldn’t be sure, buts he could have sworn she heard a note of relief in his voice, and it only served to compound her guilt.
“So what about you?” Veronica asked, eager to steer the conversation away from herself. “I know the movers came by today.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Calvin said. “They got the whole place cleared out. I’m getting set up in one of the apartments that Davenport owns. Really classy place. And he’ matching what I paid in rent on the other one, can you believe that?”
“Wow,” Veronica said, trying her best to sound even remotely surprised. “That sounds too good to be true.”
“Well,” Calvin said, his voice a little deflated. “Not quite too good. I’m missing the one thing that would really make it all perfect.”
Veronica sighed, knowing that he was referring to their separation.
“I know it’s a lot different,” Veronica tried to reassure him. “It’s a lot different for both of us.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Calvin said, and she could tell that there was something else on his mind.
A long silence stretched between them, and Veronica began to feel uncomfortable.
“Well I’d better get back to work,” Veronica said lamely, kicking at the wood of the deck.
“Oh yeah of course,” Calvin said, a soft laugh on his voice. “Well good night! I love you!”
“I love you too,” Veronica said, maybe a little too softly. “Goodnight.”
With that, she hung up the phone. She let out a long breath through her nose and closed her eyes. She had no idea how she was ever going to manage to tell him the truth.
After taking a moment to collect her thoughts and straighten out her emotions, Veronica stood up and made her way back into the house to while away the rest of the evening with the girls, as well as with Frank.