Read A House Divided for Free Online Page A

anyone’s side. I’m just saying that sometimes you have to be the bigger person. Sometimes it’s the only way to deal with certain situations.”
    “Do you feel the same way, Agnes?” she said, but kept her eyes on Curtis. “That I should have to kiss Vanessa’s behind? That I should have to tap-dance around that woman in order to see my own grandchild?”
    “You want the truth? Because you know that’s what I’m going to give you.”
    “I do.”
    “Mr. Curtis is right. And maybe you should sit down and try to talk to her. One-on-one and face-to-face. Maybe you should ask her if the two of you can start over. Let bygones be bygones.”
    “I tried that on Sunday and the first thing she said was how that would never happen.”
    “Well, why do you think she despises you so much, Miss Charlotte?”
    “If you ask me, I think she’s jealous.”
    Now Curtis spoke up. “Of what?”
    “Us and what we have. She’s afraid we’ll be able to give little MJ a lot more than she and Neil can, and that he’ll prefer to spend all his time over here when he’s older. She hates everything about me,” Charlotte said, but she didn’t add what she’d figured out a couple of days ago: that the main reason Vanessa couldn’t stand her was because of her husband and the way he was attracted to Charlotte. Then, although Charlotte hadn’t thought about it all that much for a while now, Vanessa probably hadn’t gotten over the fact that Charlotte had purchased the baby’s bassinet, crib, and dresser set and then had it delivered to the Andersons without warning. She’d wanted her grandchild to have the best and the style of furniture she wanted him to have. So, as soon as Matthew had mentioned how Vanessa was planning to take Racquel to pick out everything in a couple of weeks, Charlotte had rushed over to one of the best baby stores in downtown Chicago. She’d gone that very same day, and because everything she’d chosen had been in stock, she’d paid a ton to have it overnighted so it would arrive the next day. Of course, even if Vanessa had wanted to return it, she hadn’t, because at the time Racquel had been very excited about it and so had Matthew. They’d both thanked Charlotte multiple times, and that had been the end of it. At least it had been for Matthew and Racquel, because Charlotte knew it had burned Vanessa to a crisp. She’d never confronted Charlotte, but it was after that when Charlotte had noticed a subtle yet noticeable change in her attitude. Charlotte didn’t know what she was supposed to do about Vanessa’s jealousy, though, because it wasn’t Charlotte’s fault that she was in a better position to buy her grandchild whatever he needed or that she had better taste than Vanessa. Charlotte couldn’t help that Vanessa was simply beneath her in a number of ways, and that there was no comparison between them.
    Curtis stood up. “Baby, I really doubt that Vanessa is jealous of anything. I mean, why would she be?”
    “You don’t get it. You believe everyone thinks logically, but that’s not always the case. Especially when it comes to women and their envy.”
    “I guess. But hey, I have to get to my meeting. We have a lot to discuss today.”
    “I wish I could be there, but maybe I’ll make it to the next one.”
    Curtis kissed her on the lips. “See ya later.”
    “See ya.”
    “Have a good day, Agnes, and thanks for breakfast.”
    “You’re welcome, Mr. Curtis, and you, too.”
    When Curtis left, Charlotte went upstairs. She still had a few more minutes before she’d have to drop Curtina off at school, so she sat on her bed, picked up her cell phone, and dialed Matthew. She knew he had class, but she wanted to leave a message for him to call her back as soon as he could. Surprisingly, he answered on the first ring.
    “Hey, Mom.”
    “Hey. Why aren’t you in class?”
    “I didn’t go.”
    Charlotte frowned. “Are you okay?”
    “I’m fine. I’m packing and then heading to the