Angela stepped out of the billiard room and almost stepped right into another body standing there totally unexpectedly. She caught herself before she fully collided into them, their figure just a blur as Angela grasped wildly to hold onto something to keep from falling to the hardwood floor close to the railing that overlooked the twenty-foot drop to the first-floor living room at the foot of the winding staircase.

As her bearings came to order, she noticed that she had almost bumped into Naomi standing there. She was definitely the last person Angela expected to see right there at that time. It was getting late and Naomi had her own apartment six blocks away that her father had given her as a graduation gift. Angela still found it odd with all the things that Richard did for his daughter how she could still treat him the way she did. Now that Angela and Richard were becoming an item it was really starting to piss Angela off.

“Whoa, Naomi. I didn’t see you there,” Angela said.

“Too busy with your head in the clouds with my father, I see,” Naomi said.

Angela felt her heart sinking at the realization that Naomi had heard them. She knew why Angela was there; if she didn’t then she was going to have questions anyway as to why Angela was there at that time of night. How much had she heard, though? Angela realized that this was a confrontation she had been dreading, but it was good to get things out in the open. It was silly to hide them away like children.

“Naomi, wait a second, you don’t know what’s going on,” Angela said.

“Oh, I can put two and two together just fine. I thought there was something up with you two. I could see it at the party and at the country club, but I didn’t really believe it. There was something different about the way you were with each other. Looking back now, it all makes sense. You’re sleeping with my father. How dare you...”

“Naomi, I’m not sleeping—“

“Save it!”

Angela was wondering what was taking Richard so long in the billiard room. He had asked her to go downstairs and they would have some dessert before she went home if she wished. He was going to put away the pool sticks and clean up the bar really quickly. Surely he heard the commotion here; Naomi was getting really loud.

“I know what is going on. How could you? You think that now my dad is helping you with a modeling career and that entitles you to sleep with him? You know how I feel about my dad and what he’s done to ruin my life!”

“You’re being so childish; you always have been. Your father didn’t ruin your life. Your mother left because of her; not him. She could have stayed close by and been a part of your life. You just refuse to see it. She is the one who tossed you aside; your dad has always been here!” Angela argued.

Naomi slapped her hard across the face, part of the blow landing on her ear. The entire world sounded like one huge beep as the sting of her fingers echoed the blast on her face repeatedly. The pain was sharp and biting but was quickly turning to a dull, throbbing ache. The anger welled up in her and Angela was hell bent to return the blow as she pulled back, stepped forward and began to swing her hard right hand.

Something was pulling it back.

Her head shot back to see Richard standing there holding her arms and pulling her away from Naomi. He suddenly released Angela and stepped in between the two girls as Naomi came forward apparently ready to mix it up some more.

“What the hell is going on here?” Richard shouted.

“Why don’t you ask your new whore?” Naomi shouted.

“Wait just a minute. You will not speak to her that way,” Richard said in that commanding tone of his.

“Whatever. I’m done with this!” Naomi said as she started to march away.

Angela could now tell that Naomi was drunk as her steps were shaky and for a second she wondered if someone should have been helping her down the steps, but her anger prevented her from caring very much right then. How dare Naomi attack her that way and call her a whore. All because she was a spoiled brat who refused to see what a bitch her mother really was. Nothing would ever get through to her.

“Are you okay?” Richard asked, looking at the welts that were no doubt on her face now. The pain had subsided to a numb tingle but the shock of it all was the real damage. Angela felt angry, hurt, betrayed and heartbroken at the loss of her best friend.

She just didn’t get it. When would Naomi come around? When would it happen?

The front door slammed as Naomi walked out.

“She isn’t going to drive is she?” Angela asked.

“No, she would never do that. She isn’t that stupid. I’m sure she’ll have my driver Bailey take her home.”

“Good,” Angela said.

Ten minutes later Angela was sitting at the mini bar having another drink as she waited for the events of the evening to settle down inside of her mind. She was thinking about all of the stupid little events and bouts of mischief that she and Naomi had gotten into since they were kids. Were those days gone forever now? Was there no getting back to the way things were? She just didn’t know. It was quite possible that she had just lost her best friend for good.

“I just don’t get why she hates you so much. Surely she has to be over it all by now,” Angela said, shaking her head. “I thought I understood the extent of it, but the way she was tonight makes me wonder. I just don’t understand her rage.”

“I do,” Richard said.

Angela looked at him. There was something about his demeanor that said he had more to tell her than she probably should know. There was something else going on that she wasn’t aware of.

“What? What is it?” Angela inquired.

“I’m telling you this because I value your friendship with my daughter and I value our relationship as well. You’ve always been a great friend to her and she has those in short supply. I would never forgive myself if I didn’t at least try to keep this for her.”

“What’s going on?”

“Naomi’s real mother is a woman named Laney Watson. She was a model I had a brief affair with many years ago. The girl turned out to have a horrible substance abuse problem and she was in no position to raise a child, so I gained full custody of Naomi. A year after Naomi was born I married Stephanie. Naomi never knew that Stephanie wasn’t her real mother. Looking back on it, I realize it was hasty and stupid of me to jump into a marriage with a woman that I didn’t really know as well as I thought I did and wasn’t truly in love with, but I loved my little girl so much that I had to make sure she had a good mother. I thought Stephanie was that woman, but really she was pretending. She never intended to be a good mother to Naomi. She wanted to just let hired staff take care of her and be the trophy wife of a wealthy man. By the time I realized this Naomi was a bit older and she loved her mother dearly. So I stuck it out the best I could.”

“I had no idea,” Angela said. “Does Naomi know now?”

“I’m getting to that. I cheated on Stephanie out of loneliness and a moment of weakness. We’d been fighting a lot and rarely slept in the same bed anymore. After one of our insane arguments, I went out to a bar to clear my head and have a few drinks. I met a woman there and we started an affair. One day I made the mistake of inviting her to the house when I thought Stephanie had gone upstate to visit her family. She came back earlier than expected and caught us. Surprisingly, Stephanie was devastated. She really did love me and she felt betrayed by this indiscretion. So she abruptly divorced me, took a big wad of money from me in the settlement, and went to Europe. Naomi never understood why her mother didn’t want her. She just didn’t know and I never had the heart to tell her.  So I kept it a secret for as long as I could.”

“So, what happened? Did Naomi find out?” Angela asked.

“Stephanie eventually told her after she tired of Naomi’s constant attempts to contact her. She did it solely to hurt me because of the way I had hurt her and I was left to pick up the pieces. Naomi blamed me for lying to her, and in a sense she’s right. I did lie to her all those years, but she loved her mother so much that I just couldn’t tell her the truth. I was going to tell her when she was older and was better able to understand that it didn’t matter if she was born to Stephanie or not. But, of course, I couldn’t really do that since I knew how Stephanie felt about Naomi—she was a cross she had to bear as part of her affluent trophy wife lifestyle. The woman duped me like I never thought I could be duped. I feel like a fool every time I think about it. But I was a much younger man then and I still had the idea that the world wasn’t the nasty place it often turns out to be.”

“It’s not your fault. Naomi should realize that,” Angela said. “I can only imagine how much it hurt, but I don’t think she’s mad at you. I think she’s mad at Stephanie, but she still loves the image of the mother she has known her whole life so badly that she needs it to feel normal, even though she knows it’s a sham.”

“I hope you’re right, but she continues to torture me and take it all out on me.”

“It may be something that she never gets over. Maybe she feels that the feelings of anger and betrayal that are dwelling inside of her are your fault because you lied to her about Stephanie to begin with.”

“I don’t know. I’ve spent hours upon hours trying to reason with her and trying to talk to her, but she refuses to listen.”

“Why is she so against you dating? I get the impression she hates every woman that you’ve come in contact with?”

“Yeah, she does. I think she feels that each woman is a reminder of the affair I had which shattered her perfect life.”

“Even though her perfect life was largely an illusion?” Angela asked.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

Angela thought for a moment, “Maybe it isn’t that; perhaps she feels that a woman might take you away from her. No matter the fact that she feels you lied to her all her life and that she thinks you’re responsible for all of her pain. She feels like a woman might jeopardize the fact that you’re always going to be here for her and she really has no one else. Or it might be a mix of those things. That has to tie her head in knots. With all of that going on in her head it’s a wonder she can even function.”

“Right. I just have to keep letting her know that I love her and no matter what happens she will always be the number one woman in my life,” Richard said.

Angela smiled. She understood that. And she understood something else right then too. She leaned over and kissed Richard, running her hand quickly through his wavy hair.

“I love you, Richard Kane.”

Richard smiled as he kissed her back.

“I love you too, Angela Walters.”