A Blessing & a Curse by ReShonda Tate Billingsley & Victoria Christopher Murray

Author:ReShonda Tate Billingsley & Victoria Christopher Murray
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gallery Books

Chapter

18

Rachel

Rachel studied the digital ARRIVALS screen. JFK flights to Little Rock. 10:40. On time.

A flutter of nervousness passed through her stomach. Jasmine was about to meet her people. Jasmine, who always had something to say, was really about to meet the craziness that was the Jackson family.

Rachel still couldn’t believe that she was here. That she’d done it. That she’d actually been able to convince Jasmine to come to Smackover. She smiled, proud of herself. All her life, people had underestimated her. Even Jasmine had underestimated her when their husbands first started running for the American Baptist Coalition presidency. People thought that she could be ditzy. But Rachel wasn’t anything close to a fool. She had street sense and common sense and she knew how to get what she wanted. That’s why after two days of racking her brain, she’d come up with the perfect plan to get Jasmine to agree to come to Arkansas.

Her cell phone rang, snapping Rachel out of her thoughts. She smiled when her best friend’s name popped up on the screen. Twyla had all but bet her that Jasmine wouldn’t show.

“I was right, wasn’t I?” Twyla said before Rachel could even say hello.

“Her flight hasn’t landed and as far as I know, she’s still coming.”

Twyla tsked. She’d never even met Jasmine, but after everything Rachel had shared, Twyla made it clear she didn’t care for her. “I just can’t believe she’s coming. What I wouldn’t give to be a fly on the wall.”

“It’s not that serious,” Rachel said.

“Please. That bougie heifer. You make sure your uncle Bubba feeds her some coon.”

Rachel laughed. “You know even I don’t eat that mess.”

“Well, feed it to her anyway. And record it and put it on Facebook.”

They laughed and joked some more as Rachel slid into a seat outside of baggage claim.

After a few minutes, Twyla said, “Rachel, all jokes aside. I’m proud of you. When you told me you had thought about lying to get her there, I knew that was the route you were going to take.”

Twyla was right. Rachel had been trying to come up with a plan to get Jasmine to agree to come to the family reunion. After the switcheroo with her father, she knew Jasmine would be unlikely to answer any more of her calls. So she’d contemplated lying, telling Jasmine some elaborate story to get her to come, but in the end she just wanted to operate in a place of truth. Her relationship with Jasmine was up-and-down enough. Lies would only shake the foundation even more.

“Yeah, I couldn’t do it,” Rachel said.

“Well, you found a way to get through to her. But look, Calvin just got back with the kids so I gotta go before he starts trippin’. Call and let me know how it went. Or better yet, post it on Facebook.” She laughed.

“Bye, girl.” Rachel wasn’t about to let this weekend play out on social media for her friends’ entertainment.

She leaned back and thought about everything. It was actually her daughter who had helped her come up with a plan.

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