“No, we have such an early flight in the morning. We didn’t think it would be worth the expense, especially considering what this place cost,” Damita responded.
“That’s right; Jamaica.”
“We wanted to spend some time in the new place.”
“Did you guys even have time to decorate the condo?”
“We were both working so much before the wedding, we didn’t have much time to add that personal touch, but Neal hired decorators to give the place that homey feeling. I wanted to enjoy at least one night in the place before we leave for our honeymoon.”
“Have a great time,” Carmella said, hugging her friend around the neck.
Damita was saying goodbye to everyone when she realized she hadn’t seen Neal for at least a half-hour.
“Has anyone seen Neal?”
“He’s here somewhere. I think I saw him talking to one of your coworkers,” Brandon said.
Neal showed up just in time to hear Brandon.
“Did I hear someone was looking for me?”
“There you are,” Damita said.
“Are we ready to go?” Neal asked.
“I thought we should say goodbye to a few of our guests.”
“I’m sure our guests understand how exhausted the bride and groom are. Maybe we should sneak away now while the getting is good.”
The ride home in the limo was unbelievably quiet. As much as Damita tried to drag some conversation out of Neal, he remained silent. She assumed he was tired and decided to stop trying to get him to talk.
Once at their front door, Damita spoke again.
“Aren’t you going to carry me across the threshold?” she asked giddily.
He didn’t bother to respond.
She stared at Neal, completely confused.
Once inside the apartment, Damita looked around at the impressive job the decorators had done. The living room was more traditional than she would have liked; with the cherry wood furnishings and burgundy leather couch. However, the beauty of everything more than made up for the fact that it wasn’t all metal and glass, as she preferred. The moment she turned to speak to Neal about the apartment things became crystal clear.
The first crack across her cheek came without warning. She was stunned and, by the time she recovered, and got up from the floor, he hit her again. This time it felt more like a punch. She saw shooting colors in front of her eyes and, for some reason, thought of boxers. She wondered how they could let someone punch them for a living.
Neal screamed at her. “You’ll never embarrass me like that again!”
Tears fell from her eyes and mixed with the blood on her lips. Damita’s shock made it impossible for her to recover long enough to even begin to feel anger. She had no idea what was going on. When he’d first hit her, she was sure someone else must have entered the room. She stared at him wide-eyed and confused.
Through her sniffles, and the blood filling her mouth, she mustered the energy to speak. “Neal, what are you saying? I don’t understand. Why? What are you talking about?”
“You made a fool of me in front of my colleagues, family and friends. What kind of woman does a thing like that? You invited your lover to our wedding! I thought I was done with lying whores when I met you, but it seems I was wrong. He was pawing all over you and that Carmella person all night. I watched the three of you. What kind of sick, twisted games have you all been playing?
“I get ill just thinking of what kind of life you must have led before we met. It disgusts me. I’ll forgive you, though, as long as you know it stops here. That was your old life. You’re a married woman now and you’ll behave accordingly. I have a reputation to uphold and I won’t have my wife acting like some sort of a slut.”
“Neal, what the hell are you talking about?”
His look told her everything she needed to know. It was a look of caution, a look that didn’t require words in order to instill fear.
“I don’t understand. I thought everything was fine. We had a beautiful wedding day. Why would you hurt me like this?”
“That’s ironic. That’s the question I should be asking you. Why would you want to hurt me this way?”
Damita dabbed at the blood in the corners of her mouth and gazed in disbelief at the evidence of what had occurred, smeared and crimson, on her hands.
He reached for her and she jumped, startled by his sudden movement.
“What has happened to us? Now you’re afraid of me? I only want to help you. You have so much promise, Damita. We have so much promise. I want to help you see your full potential. You’re better than this; better than those people you spend so much time with.”
Gazing into his eyes, sensing the shift in his demeanor and remembering the kind man she had fallen in love with and married, she was even more confused. Damita ran, crying, into the walk-in closet in the master bedroom, and she locked the door.