Free For Better or For Worse by Desirae Williams Page A

not there for
him.” Megan kept a hand on my shoulder and handed me a tissue while
trying to mediate. I groaned and wiped my nose. “Ugh…..What about
me?” I shot up from seat and looked at her.
    “ Does everyone think I’m
so unimportant…..He wanted to move across the country away from my
family, friends, my entire life. I did that…..He wanted to have a
baby hell I did that too…” Meg watched pitying me as I continued to
ramble on. “I do everything he wants but when I try to take a
little piece for myself I’m selfish….No, this is where I draw the
line, he is not taking my career.” I huffed and puffed and paced
back and forth through my office. Damn, I thought. I could give this man one of my kidneys and it still wouldn’t
be enough . I was sick of this, always
feeling guilty for trying to do something for me. For once in my
life can’t I stop putting others before myself? I reached over and
looked into my purse to find an empty body of Advil.
    “ Damn.” I yelled throwing
my purse at the wall. Megan was in shock. “Luce …honey… listen to
yourself.” I looked at her and nodded. “I am …I am going to listen
to myself…for once in my life I’m going to listen to myself.” Damn
it, I have had enough. This was the most important event in my life
and I was not surrendering. Not to him, not to her, not to anybody.
“Excuse me ladies,” Gabrielle entered my office and stood in the
doorway in awe. Oh shit, how long had she
been standing there, I thought. I quickly
recomposed myself but it was of no help. “I’m sorry to interrupt
this discussion, but I have designers waiting to showcase their
work .” Oh damn I remembered we had a
meeting for the designers.
    I looked from Gabrielle to
Meg and back again. “Yes…Umm…Right this way.” Meg stood up and
smoothed back her hair into place. “I’ll talk to you later.” She
watched as Gabrielle and I made our exit. I followed Gabrielle to
the board room but when I reached for the handle to the door she
put her hand on my lower back, pushing past our appointed
destination and guided me to a secluded area. “I overheard you
conversation.” She said sternly. Her eyes were sharp in a no none
sense business fashion. Immediately I was embarrassed. “Gabrielle
I’m so sorry I…” “Listen.” She cut me off and brushed lent off her
dark designer dress. “Normally I wouldn’t intervene on a situation
like this but I hate to see good potential go to waste…” She paused
to make sure she had my full attention and when she saw she had,
Gabrielle spoke again. “On the rise to the top some people are able
to tag along while others…well they fall by the waste side…and
sometimes they set up road blocks on the way to success. Now you’re
a very smart woman. I’m going to let you think about that for a
moment.”
    She put a strand of my
hair back in place reminding me she liked order and proper dress in
the work place. “I am waiting when you’re ready.” With that
Gabrielle went into the boardroom while I stood and thought about
my future. I wanted to be successful, I wanted it badly, but I
didn’t want to lose my husband along the way. Was I actually
considering the unthinkable? I had given up everything to be with
Grant. I love him and our family. How could I turn away now? How
could I … Oh no ,
I thought. I rested my hands on the window sill. My instant
laughter was turning into soft sobs as tears started to form. I
thought about these past few years. And I couldn’t think of one
time that I actually enjoyed being outside of work with my family.
My work had consumed me, I had become so focused on doing what I
wanted to do that I lost sight of the most important thing in the
world to me.
    “ Like mother like daughter
huh?” I muttered. I instantly hated myself knowing that I had did
something that I vowed to myself that I would never do…leave my
family behind. I took calming breathes trying not to breakdown.
Gabrielle was