For the Sake of Love (21 page)

“Are you sure?” Bria wanted to shake her, because she knew Spade's life was about to change forever.

“Yes, I'm positive.” Her voice trembled along with her hands. “He told me. He said, ‘Nice to finally meet you, Mom.' And when I looked in his eyes, I had no doubt. A mother knows.”

“This is going to devastate Spade. Kerryngton is the president of the label that signed him.”

“Oh God.” She ran into a stall and threw up.

They could hear that the opening act was wrapping up and Spade was about to take to the stage.

Bria pulled Ms. Spencer's hair away from her face. “It's going to be all right. We'll deal with this. But right now we've got to get out there for Spade.”

Ms. Spencer pulled some tissue from the roll and wiped her mouth. She then tossed it in the toilet and flushed. Bria ushered her to the sink so that she could rinse out her mouth. When she finished, Bria gave her a peppermint.

Ms. Spencer touched up her makeup. “Time to face the music.”

“Literally and figuratively,” Bria said.

They walked out and took their seats.

 

 

Spade's energy level was turned up. He wanted to see Bria before his performance because she was like the Adrian to his Rocky. He knew he'd kill it as long as he had her by his side. He couldn't be defeated. He went to her table.

“Tonight's your night, baby,” she reminded him. “You've been waiting your whole life for this moment. I'm proud of you. Go represent for the family.”

Family . . . That sounded good to him. Spade placed two fingers over his luscious lips, blew her a kiss, and left. She puckered her lips and kissed the air.

The opening act cleared the stage and Spade took over. “Everybody having a good time tonight?” he spoke into the mic.

“Yeah,” “Woo hoo,” and cheers could be heard from the audience. A round of applause followed.

“I'm so glad everybody turned out tonight to support me and the release of my new CD. Words can't even express how much this means to me. Thanks to all of you, but praises to God for making this possible.”

More cheers and applause from the crowd.

“Before I perform tonight, I want to introduce y'all to the two most important people in my life.” He gestured toward Bria. “My wife, my heart, the love of my life, Bria.”

She waved and people clapped.

He then motioned toward his mom. “And my mom.”

Spade felt someone pat him on the back. He turned around when he heard Kerryngton say, “Congratulations, Spade! May I?” He reached for the mic, and Spade let him have it. “Good evening, everyone! For those who don't know, I'm Kerryngton Kruse, the CEO of the label lucky enough to have signed Spade.” He faced Spade. “I came out to tell you that your song is number one on iTunes.” He held up his index finger.

The news startled Spade. When his eyes initially landed on Mr. Kruse his gut reaction was to clock him again. He didn't know whether that pat on the back was him marking the spot where he wanted to place the knife or a legitimate congratulatory pat on the back.

He had to separate business from personal, because he couldn't go around beating up the head of his record label, he thought. Even though he didn't like Kerryngton because of what he said to Bria, he still had to work with the guy.

He couldn't believe that his song was number one! Inside, he was rejoicing and thanking God.

Kerryngton shook his hand. “You worked hard. You deserve it.” He summoned for a waiter to give him and Spade some champagne. They each took a glass. The crowd cheered some more and raised their glasses along with Spade and Kerryngton. Kerryngton led the toast, “Here, here! To Spade!”

Everyone clinked their glasses together and sipped.

Kerryngton turned his attention back to Spade. Away from the open mic he said, “I apologize for the other day at the courthouse. I was out of line and shouldn't have said all that stuff to Bria. She's a good woman and didn't deserve to be treated like that. You're lucky to have her.” He grinned. “Now let's get this money.” He then placed the mic back in its stand and got off the stage.

Spade took another sip of his sparkling drink and set it on the side of the stage. He winked at his wife and took to the mic again. “My newly released single is number one on iTunes. Nothing but God. Holla at ya boy.”

He gave the DJ the signal to begin, and he ripped it. He knew he was killing it so bad that he could've changed his name to Slayer. He was sure Charlie Sheen wouldn't mind if he borrowed “Winning,” because that's exactly what he was doing.

After the party was over, Spade was still on an emotional high. He told Bria and his mom, “I feel so good, I don't feel like going home yet.”

“That's great, baby,” his mom told him, but she seemed nervous.

“Let's get out of here,” Bria said, trying to hurry him out.

As they made their way to the door, Kerryngton intersected them. “You ripped it tonight,” he told Spade.

“Thanks, man.”

“Can I talk to you for a sec?”

Spade shrugged. “Okay.”

“Son, wait!” Ms. Spencer said, and both men looked at her. “Let's all go somewhere more private and talk.”

Spade raised a brow. “Why would we do that?”

“I have something to tell you. It's important,” she told him.

Kerryngton said, “Listen to your mother.”

Spade was about to go off, but he didn't want to give Kerryngton the satisfaction of knowing he had gotten to him. He decided to let that slick comment about him listening to his mother slide. “What's up, Momma?”

“We don't need to talk in front of the cleanup crew,” Kerryngton said. “No one's on the other side of the building.”

They were quiet until they arrived at the more private part of the facility.

“Somebody needs to tell me what's going on,” Spade demanded.

Before a word could flow out of her mouth, Ms. Spencer was in tears again.

“Mom, what's wrong?” Spade asked as he wiped her tears with his hand. He hated seeing his mother cry.

She then told him the same thing she had earlier revealed to Bria.

Spade felt as though a boulder had rolled over him. He couldn't look at his mother. Trying to console him, Bria hugged him.

“Son, I'm so sorry. I love you. Please forgive me.”

He heard Kerryngton's voice and looked at him. “I knew you were my brother. That's the only reason I didn't press charges against you and drop you from the label.”

Spade felt his anger rising again and silently prayed. He was a Gospel artist and didn't need any bad publicity because of his temper. As calmly as he could he said, “If you knew you were my brother, why did you date my girl?”

Bria stepped away from him, and Ms. Spencer grabbed her hand.

Kerryngton looked him square in the eyes. “Because you had everything I wanted.”

1. After Spade received his prognosis, do you agree with the way he handled his relationship with Bria? Why or why not?
   
2. Spade confided in Mr. Murray and swore him to secrecy. Do you think Mr. Murray was right to keep his confidence? Explain your answer.
   
3. When Kerryngton came on the scene, what did you think his intentions were?
   
4. While in London, Bria learned some startling truths. Did you expect her to make the decision she made regarding her relationship with Spade? If so, did you agree? If not, what did you want or expect to happen?
   
5. As Bria's relationship with Kerryngton progressed, could you feel their love developing? If so, were you for them or against them? Why?
   
6. Medicine is not an exact science. Were you surprised by Spade's final results? Do you know of anyone who has ever been medically misdiagnosed?
   
7. It has often been said that good men are hard to find. If you could choose between Kerryngton and Spade, which one would appeal to you most? Explain. If not you, which one would you pick for Bria? Why?
   
8. How did you feel when Spade and Kerryngton had their altercation?
   
9. Did you notice any growth or changes in Bria's character? If so, what?
   
10. Were you surprised by the outcome of the story?
    

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For the Sake of Love Copyright © 2014 Dwan Abrams

 

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

ISBN: 978-1-6016-2744-5

 

First Trade Paperback Printing June 2014

 

 

This is a work of fiction. Any references or similarities to actual events, real people, living or dead, or to real locales are intended to give the novel a sense of reality. Any similarity in other names, characters, places, and incidents is entirely coincidental.

 

 

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