Tasha screamed, “Let me go! Let me go!”
He wrapped her up in his arms trying to restrain her, “It’s okay. Tasha, it’s me. Baby, it’s okay.”
Sabrina got up off of the floor, still trying to catch her breath, “Are you kidding? I’m the wife. I’m the one scorned. You’re coming to her defense?”
Tasha screamed and cried, “Get OUT! Get out of my house!”
Sabrina grabbed her bag and screamed as she walked out of the apartment, “You two make me sick!”
Tim was afraid to let Tasha go. At least not until, Sabrina was out of the door. Tasha was crying uncontrollably. He held her trying to offer some form of comfort. He whispered along the side of her temple, “It’s okay.”
Tasha was shaking hard and doing her best to reign in her anger, “Put me down.”
He continued to hold her as Tasha screamed, “I said put me down!”
Tim put her down. The moment her feet touched the floor, she spent around and he became the object of her anger.
“You knew! You knew she was cheating with Eric before you slept with me at the cabin.”
“Yes. But…Tasha, wait…it’s not what you’re thinking.”
“Get out! You used me to get back at her.”
“That’s not true. I promise that’s not true.”
“Get OUT! You and Sabrina are twisted. I don’t want to have anything to do with either of you!”
“Tasha…”
“I swear if you don’t get out, I’ll call the police.” Tasha ran over to her phone and picked it up as if she were about to dial 9-1-1.
Tim stood there wondering how things got so bad so fast. He could clearly see she was too angry to listen. He did the only thing he could. He left.
Chapter 32
It had been three months since the confrontation in Tasha’s living room and she hadn’t spoken to either Tim or Sabrina in all of that time.
Of course, Tim had tried to call but Tasha didn’t want to relive anything that had happened over the last few years. She just wanted a fresh start. So, she changed her number, quit her social media platforms, and her job.
She stood in the center of her living room in jeans and a t-shirt with her hands in her back pockets. There was a lot of sadness as she looked around the place she’d called home for the last several years. Most of her belongings had been moved to storage or was packed up in boxes. The movers would be there in the next couple of hours to clear the rest of her things out.
Tasha always wondered what it would feel like if she ever left Chicago.
She blew out a deep breath and spoke her thoughts out loud, “Melancholy, I feel melancholy.”
There was a knock on her door. She took a quick look at her watch. It was way too early for the movers so she wasn’t sure who it could be. Looking through the peep-hole, Tasha was surprised to see who was standing at her door. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself before opening it.
“Hi.”
“Hi.” They stood there awkwardly for a moment. “You’re not going to invite me in?”
Tasha was nervous, “Of course. I’m sorry. How are you Mr. Links?”
He took off his hat as he walked into the empty apartment. “I’m saddened that I haven’t heard from you in a while.”
Tasha chewed her bottom lip, “I was pretty sure you probably didn’t want to hear from me.”
“Why? Because you and Sabrina had a falling out?”
She was too ashamed to look him in the eye, “I think it was a little more than that. But, thank you for being so gracious.”
Mr. Links dropped his hat on the floor and stretched his arms out to capture both of Tasha’s shoulders. “You know before your father died, I made him a promise. I told him I would always be here for you. I would always love and look after you. Nothing has changed. A parent doesn’t stop loving their child because we wished they’d made different choices.”
She thought she was all cried out but the tears began to flow. “What I did was unforgivable. Sabrina and I…we really hurt each other. I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to be friends again.”
“Nothing is ever unforgivable. With time, your relationship might be different but I will always hope my two favorite girls can forgive each other. And as for me, there is nothing to forgive. I haven’t stopped loving you. The only disappointment I have is that we haven’t spoken in much too long.”
Tasha was finally able to look him in the eye. She whispered, “I love and missed you too, Mr. Links.”
“I don’t consider you a like a daughter Tasha, you are a daughter to me. That means I will love you through it all. The good and the bad.”
He pulled her into a tight embrace. They just held each other for a while before he spoke again. “Now that we’ve taken care of that, you’re finally trading in the cold of Chicago for that ridiculous heat of Dallas?”
Tasha pulled back to see his face, “How’d you know? Who told you?”
Mr. Links released a hearty laugh, “When you have children you’ll find that we always know what’s going on even if we don’t say anything.” He turned serious again, “Sort of like, it wasn’t a shock that you would fall in love with Tim. Anyone looking at both of you could see that coming.”
“Mr. Links, I never…I didn’t intend...” Tasha blew out a deep breath, “I don’t want to make it seem like I’m
