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married a man who thought beating me and my son was some kinda sport.”
    “Wow,” Matthew said. He couldn’t imagine ever laying a hand on Racquel, and he had absolutely no respect for any man who did that kind of thing. And to beat a child? Matthew was mortified. “I’m really sorry that happened to you. I’m sorry for you and your son.”
    “Don’t be,” she said, stroking her long, coarse black hair to the side. “The important thing is that I finally took care of things. I found the courage to leave, and I haven’t looked back.”
    “Does he ever try to contact you? Does he help take care of your son?”
    “No, but I prefer it that way. I’m glad I don’t have to see him or talk to him.”
    “How old is your son?”
    “Six.”
    “When did you leave your husband?”
    “Two years ago, but enough about me. That train is long gone, and I’m over it.”
    “I guess.”
    “So tell me about you . Of course, you can’t work here and not know that Pastor Black is your father. Even though you’ve never volunteered that information.”
    “That’s because it’s complicated.”
    “You don’t have a relationship with him?”
    “I’d rather not talk about it.”
    “Sorry.”
    “No need to apologize. I just don’t wanna talk about my family is all.”
    “Well, what about work? Is that off limits, too?” she asked, laughing.
    Matthew couldn’t help chuckling himself. “No, but what is there to talk about?”
    “I don’t know. Do you like it? Do you plan to stay here for a while?”
    “I’d definitely rather be doing something else,” he said. “And to be honest, I’d like to go back to school.”
    “Why didn’t you go when you graduated?”
    “I did, but then Racquel had the baby, things happened, and I dropped out so we could get married.”
    “Oh really? Where did you go?”
    “Harvard.”
    “University?” she said, sounding shocked.
    “Yep.”
    “And you left there?”
    “Yep. Four-year scholarship and all, and now this is the result.”
    “You must really love your wife. Have to if you gave up four years at one of the most prestigious schools in the country.”
    “I did love her, and I thought she loved me, too. I also couldn’t stand being away from my son for so many weeks at a time. Boston is a long way from here.”
    “I had no idea.”
    “My life is crazy. It’s all messed up, and I don’t know what to do about it.”
    Nicole placed her hand on his leg, and the flirtatious look in her eye made Matthew nervous. “Things’ll work out,” she said. “I know it may not seem like it now, but they will.”
    Matthew pretended her hand wasn’t touching him and said, “It’s almost eight, so we’d better get inside.”
    Nicole opened the passenger door but then looked back at him. “Just know that I’m here for you if you need me.”
    “Thanks” was all Matthew said. Not because he wasn’t grateful, but because he wasn’t sure how to take Nicole’s generosity. He pushed the whole thing out of his mind, though, got out of his car, and locked it. They walked through the parking lot and over toward the building. As they headed closer to the entrance, however, his phone rang. He pulled it from the inside of his blazer and saw that it was Racquel. She rarely called him, so maybe she’d thought about things and had finally decided to call a truce. Maybe she was just as tired of all the bickering and drama as he was.
    “Hey,” he said, watching Nicole walk inside the bank.
    “MJ is out of everything,” Racquel said matter-of-factly, “so you need to stop at the store on your way home.”
    “It’s not a problem,” he said, trying to be as nice as possible. “Can I call you back later so I can make a list?”
    “I already sent you an e-mail. See ya later,” she said and hung up.
    Matthew pulled his phone away from his ear and looked at the blank screen. He wasn’t sure whether to curse or crack up laughing. The thing was, though, he never cursed and laughing