Page 6 of Shooting for his Heart
“Sixty-two days,” Nicholas answered.
“Oh, so you’re counting down?” I smiled.
“Yeah, because you said we could go to the insectarium when we come to Louisiana. You know my friend Caleb went there already. He said it was so cool.”
I shook my head. “I remember.”
I was hoping Nicholas had forgotten all about going to that damn insect place. He was so smart that it was scary sometimes. I knew he got his brains from his mom. She knew all these random trivia facts about anything in the world. Marcia was a genius. She had a doctorate in pharmacy.
My sister was brilliant beyond comprehension, but for whatever reason, she ran away from responsibility. She used drugs and alcohol to escape from reality. She was able to hide her addiction for a while, but eventually, she lost her job as a pharmacist for stealing pills.
Nicholas had the same inquisitive nature as his mom. Just like Marcia, he loved science and anything creepy or crawly. I hated to discourage his natural curiosity and eagerness to learn, so I usually indulged in whatever he was excited about at the time. Right now, he was into bugs.
“And the alligator park,” he added.
I had to draw the line somewhere, right? With a groan, I looked up. “Buddy, we’re going to have to talk about that one. I hate to have to fight an alligator to get you or Ev back.”
“It’s safe, Unc. I promise,” he stated.
I chuckled. “You can’t make promises for a wild animal, son.”
“They’re not wild. It’s like a zoo kinda.”
“I know what it is. I’m going to have to check into it before I agree to take you.”
“Well, can we go to the trampoline park today?” he asked.
“Yeah, we haven’t been there in a long time,” Evan added.
“It hasn’t been that long… not even a month.”
“Do you know how long that is in kid time?” Nick asked.
“I can only imagine. That sounds good, though. I told you two you could decide whatever we did today. I’m leaving early in the morning, so Auntie Marshae will be here tonight.”
They cheered in unison at the mention of their fun-loving aunt. The boys loved spending time with my sister. I knew they would be in good hands while I was away working.
For the past ten years, my career has entailed directing one horror film or thriller after another. As a black man in the film industry, I had to overcome my share of obstacles to make a name for myself. I was well established in my arena of film. However, the call to come on as executive director of a fantasy film came as a surprise. Everything I usually did was dark and gory. The film they were pitching was action-packed, but it was far from my typical movie.
The ninety-million-dollar budget and complete creative control they offered had me booking my flight before I found out Clarissa Sanders, my ex-wife, was cast as the leading lady. Clarissa and I had been divorced for ten years, and I could count the number of times I had the misfortune of being in the same room with her for over twenty minutes. I hadn’t seen her in person in over two years. Still, whenever I finally saw her, it would be too soon.
Clarissa was nasty. Not the kind of nasty that caused me to fall head over heels in love with her and marry her in less than ninety days when I was twenty years old. She was the kind of nasty who cheated on me all while stashing away money from the lavish life that I generously provided under the guise that we were madly in love.
By the time I knew what was going on, she was asking for a divorce due to irreconcilable differences and citing that my heavy work schedule had taken me away for so long that we had fallen out of love. I was too young and dumb to have even thought about getting her to sign a prenup.
I couldn’t prove that she was cheating. On the other hand, she was able to dredge up pictures of me getting cozy with a few of the actresses I had worked with over the five years we were married.
So, on top of my ability to love, she skated away with an eight-million-dollar settlement. Before the ink was dry on our divorce papers, she was marrying the star of one ofmymost recent big films. Clarissa and Clive quickly annulled their marriage, but by then, she was among the Hollywood elite and getting offers to tell her story in the form of a book.
Never one to pass up a dollar, she went on a press tour promoting her book and her new career as an actress. The negative press I received detailing the alleged abuse and neglect she suffered at my hands got me offers for some of the biggestfilms of my career, so by then, the eight million I had to pay her was peanuts. Working with her would prove to be a complex challenge, but I had never been one to back down from a challenge.
Not even Clarissa would stop me from this opportunity.
During the week,I worked part-time doing makeup at Sephora. On Thursday nights, I did makeup for the drag show at a local spot in town. I liked to keep my weekends free for weddings and to spend time with Will.
As I stood at my station putting the finishing touches on my last client of the day, my mind drifted to the conversation Will and I had. What the hell did he mean it was time for me to give up on my dream? I couldn’t believe that he had actually given me an ultimatum. Pursuing this dream opportunity could cost me my relationship, but not pursuing it would likely cost me my sanity.
My sore feet were always a testament to my hard work despite my mother’s constant remarks about me needing to get areal job. Plopping down in the chair my client once occupied was a welcomed relief. My heart ached at the thought of passing up the chance of a lifetime.
