“I don’t want to go another time! I want to go now!”

“I’m sorry, Justin.” Dominique stood and reached for her son.

“No, you’re not!” he yelled, running to the other side of the room. “It’s your fault. You said I can’t go! You’re mad at Coach and taking it out on me!”

“Baby, that’s not true.”

“It is, too!”

“Why would you think I’m mad at him?”

“Because he hasn’t been over here again. Probably because he don’t like you no more.”

Dominique pondered where this statement had come from but chose to keep the focus on the issue at hand. “Let me call Jake, see what I can do.”

Dominique left Justin’s room and walked to the master suite at the end of the hall. She went straight to the phone and dialed Jake’s number. That it went to voicemail wasn’t a total surprise. Even if he were home and available, she hadn’t been the friendliest person lately. She pressed the pound key to bypass the message. “Jake, it’s Dominique. I’m sorry about the interruption earlier, but it was an important phone call. Listen, I’m calling about the Oakland trip. Maybe I spoke too soon about Justin not going. Can you give me a call when you get this message, and tell me more about the trip? He’s pretty upset, as you can imagine. So I hope to hear from you soon.”

Dominique pressed the end button and walked to her closet where she made quick work of shedding her clothes. From there she entered her bathroom, turned on the water full blast, and stepped into the shower. She took her time soaping her body, inhaling the citrusy scent. She casually rubbed the loofah sponge over her body, paying keen attention to her elbows, knees, and feet. By the time she left the shower fifteen minutes later, she felt a little more relaxed.

She walked over to the phone and was glad to see a missed call from Jake and her voicemail indicator lit. She sat on her bed and pushed the button.