Confessions by Sasha Campbell Read Free Book Online Page A

and long fake nails. But she was fresh out of business school with exceptional customer service skills. After two bad seeds, especially a thieving bitch by the name of Tiara, who I fired in November after discovering she was stealing books and selling them to her friends for a third of the price, Karen was a godsend. Trust and believe, I have a business to run, and if and when I need Karen to tone down the hair and clothes, I’ll tell her. I know she’s a single parent with four kids, so I don’t have a problem paying for her to get her hair done if needed.
    I took a moment to consider Karen’s offer. I had planned to have a bag of popcorn and a diet drink, but I was sure by late afternoon I’d be hungry for some food. “Go ahead and take enough outta petty cash to cover both our lunches and grab me a two-piece white.”
    â€œThanks, Nikki.”
    â€œNo problem.” I waited until after Karen left before I headed to the back. I had a camera up front, and the bell over the door was so loud, it could be heard from the Dumpster in the alley. I popped a bag of butter popcorn, grabbed a Coke from the refrigerator, and when the timer went off, I carried my food back to my desk and took a seat. While I chewed on popcorn I thumbed through the mail, leaving greasy fingerprints. Bills and magazines, and then my heart practically stopped as I stared down at an envelope that was handwritten. Oh, my goodness! I knew that writing anywhere.
    Donovan.
    My hands were shaking as I reached for the letter opener. I ripped the seal, then I removed the sheet of notebook paper.
    I hope all is well with you. Nikki, you know I love you and would never do anything to intentionally hurt you, but I’ve got to be honest. Being here is giving me a lot of time to think and I feel it’s time for us to move on. It appears over the last four years we stopped growing as a couple. Talking hasn’t done us any good, neither has distance, and I can’t keep living like this. It’s time I start trying to figure out what is going on with my life. That does not mean I do not love you. I know you will continue to be successful, and I wish you all the luck in the world. Twelve years of marriage, you don’t just wipe away. I want you to know if you need something you can always contact me. Love, Donovan.
    My stomach dropped. I had waited months for a letter from him and finally it had come, only it wasn’t at all what I had expected. Donovan had just ripped my heart out. It’s time for us to move on. Those words floated around the store like a heavy cloud only seconds away from raining down on me. Damn him! The last thing I wanted to do was cry, because I’d known our marriage was in trouble long before Donovan left for Iraq. Yet that didn’t stop the tears. I couldn’t help it. I started bawling like a baby. Thank goodness Karen was gone and no one was in the store so I could sit there and feel sorry for myself. I failed at my marriage. Part of me thought, hoped, distance and time would bring us back together; instead it had done the exact opposite. What had gone wrong? As far as I was concerned, our life together should have been perfect.
    Donovan and I both grew up in Englewood Park housing projects, where crack was the drug of choice. A week wouldn’t go by without somebody trying to kill someone else. That was just the way of life for us.
    Mama struggled to raise my sister, Tamara, and me, and did everything she could working part-time as a cashier at the local drug store. Money was tight, but one thing about my mama, she knew how to make the dollar work. Clothes we got from the Salvation Army, but you’d be amazed at what she could find.
    I had always been good at school and knew I wanted to be a nurse or in some other field helping people. I had big plans to have a better life, and so did Donovan.
    Donovan and I didn’t start dating until junior high. He was a cutie then.