Free Dream Girl Awakened by Stacy Campbell Page A

someone else to pursue a new beginning with a man. Clifford was his name, correct?”
    â€œMy God. Mr. Cliff. Clifford Rutland. That’s him. Was him.”
    â€œYour mother thought he was perfect for her. He got her out to Texas and left her high and dry. That’s how you came to live with Marguerite, right?” Maxie felt she was frightening Victoria. “Honey, you all right?”
    â€œYes, I just wondered how my mom was doing. I think of her so much.”
    â€œShe’s fine. Embarrassed is all. Don’t give up on her yet. You’ll be reunited with her in less than three years. Pick another card.”
    Victoria flipped over the next card and registered a quizzical look. “The Wheel of Fortune.”
    â€œAaah, fate and destiny. Try if you might, you just can’t stop it. Change is coming in your life and soon, so be prepared.”
    â€œWhat kind of change?”
    â€œI see you helping others.”
    Victoria chuckled. “Maxie, I help myself to good sales. That’s about it.”
    â€œOh, you’ve been on top of the world for a long time now. Storm’s gonna hit you soon. You’ll be forced to rethink all that’s important. Pick another card.”
    â€œThe Lovers.”
    â€œThe Lovers aren’t always sexual in nature, but most times are. Why do you withhold sex from your husband?”
    â€œI . . .”
    â€œDid I startle you? Anytime I’m too personal, you can ask me to back down.”
    Victoria wasn’t sure how to proceed. How could she tell Maxie that while she enjoyed the perks of her lifestyle, sex was the only thing she felt she had control of in the marriage. He made the money, built the houses, bought the cars, stashed cash for Nicolette’s college fund. Couldn’t she have control of something? “I guess I’m tired a lot.”
    â€œHoney, love is a flame that must not be left unattended; it must be fueled and allowed to burn for as long as possible. Your husband is under pressure at his job. He craves and needs your attention now more than ever. As you enter the coming months, light a candle each night—” Maxine stopped midsentence.
    â€œMaxie, what’s wrong? What do you see?”
    Maxine swooped the cards from the table, reassembled the deck, and clutched her chest. “I’m done for the day, Victoria. I hope I was able to help you in some way. Please, please look well to the ways of your household.” With that, Maxine fanned her face with papers from the desk and went back to join the party.
    Victoria sighed and wondered what she’d do now. There was always something legitimate in the cards.

[10]
Let’s Start Fresh
    â€œW atha, what’s up with you? What’s this all about?” Jamilah grinned from ear to ear. She entered the two-story home, carrying a bottle of wine and her famous sweet and spicy ribs.
    â€œYeah, who died and left you an inheritance?” Lasheera joked.
    Tawatha waited to invite Jamilah and Lasheera over to her new place. Waited until everything was just so. They were her girls and she wanted them to be proud of her, the new digs, the new furniture, the new man who would soon be her husband, her new lease on life. The Fourth of July was the perfect holiday to debut the newness, her independence.
    â€œSheer, why somebody gotta die to live better? Can’t I be sick and tired of being sick and tired like Fannie Lou Hamer?”
    â€œMilah, did PBS re-air Eyes on the Prize ? She only talks about the movement when the show airs.”
    Lasheera playfully stuck her finger down her throat, pretending to gag at Tawatha’s words.
    â€œI know, Sheer. Somebody’s done put some sticknotic on our girl. Touch her forehead. I hadn’t seen you this happy since you were with Grant’s father.” Jamilah placed the ribs and wine on the gathering table in the kitchen next to a killer spread. “Who’s all this food