Raymond stalked over to them, eyes trained on Charmaine, “I need to speak to you right now, alone,” he said quietly. Without giving her a chance to respond, he grabbed her arm and was about to drag her away when Joe stopped him with a hand on his chest.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Joe asked with a sneer. “And take your hands off my fiancé.”

That word only infused Raymond’s anger as he held Charmaine’s arm in a death grip. “Come with me now,” he hissed.

“Who the hell do you think you are Raymond?” Joe asked coldly. “Charmaine is my future wife so just leave.”

Raymond looked at Joe with loathing and said, “She will never be your wife.”

Joe laughed and placed a possessive arm around Charmaine, “She will be in less than a month. Am I right?” He looked at Charmaine tenderly.

Charmaine didn’t know what to do. She looked from Raymond’s mask of fury to Joe’s mocking expression. “I-I…”

Suddenly Joe started gasping for breath and he clutched at his chest. “My.. my… pills…”

Charmaine forcefully removed Raymond’s hand off of her and searched Joe’s pockets for his vial of medicine. When she found it, she quickly popped one into his mouth and rubbed his back. When Joe was breathing normally again, she asked with concern etched on her face, “Are you feeling better?”

Joe nodded and looked at her with a soft smile, “As long as you’re by my side.”

Charmaine winced at his words knowing that she had no where to run now. She was stuck whether she wanted to or not. She didn’t love Joe the way she did Raymond, but Joe had been nothing but kind and gentle towards her. She didn’t have the heart to leave him to suffer his illness alone. She smiled reassuringly at him and said, “I will be.”

Raymond looked at Charmaine with undisguised confusion and asked quietly, “You’re really going to marry him?”

Charmaine turned to him then. She looked at him hoping that he could understand what she was doing. “I am.” She saw the change in Raymond and turned back to Joe and said, “I want to speak to Raymond alone for a minutes, do you mind?”

Joe knew that she was fully committed to him. His plan had worked. He didn’t care if she talked to Raymond now. Playing the gallant gentleman, he said, “Of course not. I’ll go home and wait for your call.” He planted a kiss on her lips and smiled inwardly when he saw Raymond’s clenched fists. “By the way, Raymond, even though we’re not exactly friends, you’re still invited to the wedding.” With those parting words, he got into his car and drove off.

“Why?” Raymond asked softly as he looked at Charmaine. The pain of her words clear on his face. “I thought we were going to start over.”

“Raymond,” Charmaine sobbed, “I don’t know how to explain it to you.”

Raymond saw her tears and his heart twisted. “Tell me. Help me understand why you picked him over me.”

Charmaine lowered her head as her tears crept slowing down her face. “Joe is sick and needs my support.”

“You really think he’s sick?” Raymond snapped. “I bet it’s all an act.”

“It’s not!” Charmaine cried as she looked at him, “The doctor at the hospital told me.”

“Joe wants you and he’ll do anything to get what he wants. The doctor at the hospital is probably in on the scheme,” Raymond said with annoyance.

Charmaine looked at Raymond with wide eyes and said sternly, “I can’t believe you would say that about a dying man. I was there when the doctor told us and Joe was really scared. I can tell that he wasn’t faking it!”

Raymond looked at her harshly and snickered, “Trust me, Joe is capable of anything. What I don’t understand is how you can be such a fool to fall for it.”

Charmaine stared at him, “I’m sorry you feel that way. I can’t turn my back on Joe now.”

Raymond stared angrily back at her and said, “So this is it? You’re going to marry Joe and forget everything that happened between us? Ignore the feelings that you have for me?”

Charmaine inhaled sharply and took a step forward to wrap her arms around his waist, resting her head against his chest. Raymond stood rigid at first and then he too wrapped his arms around her. She tilted her head up and when their eyes met, whispered, “I’m sorry,” then broke away and ran into her apartment building.

Just around the corner, Joe slammed his hand down on the steering wheel after watching the scene that took place between Raymond and Charmaine.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Michael looked inquiringly at Ron, “Are you going to tell me that my assumption is correct or are you going to continue denying it?”

Ron looked at the faces of the three of them and felt himself sweat under their scrutiny, “What do you want me to say?”

Tavia spoke, “The truth? Is there really something going on between them?”

Ron looked over at Michael who raised an eyebrow at him, and said, “Well, I guess you could sort of say that.”

“What?” Tavia shrieked then quickly lowered her voice. “What is wrong with Raymond? He knows that she’s going out with Joe. What kind of person is he to steal someone else’s girlfriend?!”

Ron shot Tavia an annoyed looked and said, “Raymond didn’t steal her! He’s just taking back what belongs to him.”

Michael continued to look at Ron and said, “Raymond told me once that he lost someone that meant a lot to him. If he ever saw her again he would do everything he can to win her back. That person is Charmaine right?”

Ron nodded slowly avoiding their eyes.

Tavia looked curiously at Ron, her anger at Raymond forgotten. “How come they broke up in the first place?”

Ron couldn’t meet her eyes and looked down at the table, “I don’t know. Why don’t you ask Charmaine?”

Suddenly Tavia’s eyes turned serious and she glared at Ron, “Raymond is the guy that cheated on her isn’t he? He’s the one that caused her to commit suicide four years ago!”