Any Man I Want (20 page)

Carter—Saturday, July 24—7:14 p.m.

 

 

“M
r. Parks, Ms. Montgomery—over here!” Katrina adjusted the lapel on my jacket of the simple black linen suit I was wearing and ran her hand down my tie.

“Did I mention I like you in black and white?” She tilted her head and tossed her long mane of artfully tangled curls over her shoulder. She clasped my hand and gave the photographers a pose they would love.

“I hope so, since this is a black-and-white party. I'm just trying to keep up with you, diva. That dress is a miracle of modern science,” I murmured under my breath as Katrina and I made our way up the red carpet outside of her party. As guest of honor, she could wear whatever she damn well pleased. My girl was in a skintight dress of bright red that was held together by tiny straps that crisscrossed up her back. The hem stopped an eyebrow-raising length up her thighs. A creamy expanse of leg drew the eye down to sky-high silver and red sandals with skinny heels. Not that she didn't always look great, but tonight she looked amazing.

“You like?” Her ruby-glossed lips curved upwards as we turned away from the last group of photographers and headed inside. The venue was a three-story industrial conversion I was working on. With no tenants in the building it was a blank canvas. The party-planning team had turned one half of the first floor into a party space with dinner seating, dance floor, lounge areas, and several stations for drinks and hors d'oeuvres. The walls of the space were wrapped in a white fabric and tiny white lights twinkled from above. Simply but elegantly decorated in silver, white, and black; Katrina stood out like a vibrant flame in her red dress. We made our way around the room meeting and greeting friends, family, and clients as we went. Interspersed around the room were giant pictures of Katrina throughout the years.

There was a gap-toothed six-year-old Katrina jumping off the diving board. A preteen Katrina falling down on the ski slopes. A picture of Katrina prowling the catwalk in Milan was mounted next to one of her swimming in the ocean as a teenager. Another picture showed Katrina talking to me on the sidelines of one of my football games. I paused in front of it; I think she had just turned twenty-one.

“I don't even remember this, do you?” I asked her.

She shook her head. “Only vaguely. But look at us.” In the picture we were standing in the middle of a flurry of activity. Amid all the hustle around us, we only had eyes for each other. I was staring down at her intently as she spoke animatedly.

“Well, that's a revealing photo,” I said. Here I thought I'd been so discreet all these years. Like Madere said, I had no poker face around her.

“Quite.” Katrina nodded. “So we've been into each other for years.”

“Apparently.” I grinned, not all that surprised.

Katrina looked back at me with equal delight. “Good thing we ended up together.”

“Damned good thing.” Over her shoulder, I saw Kevin Delancey striding into the party. “Last chance to ditch this whole ‘let's beat them at their own game' plan and let me and the fellas commence a beat-down.”

She pivoted on one heel and let out a deep breath. “Let's see how the night goes. We might do both.” She took a step closer to me and I tightened my hand at her waist.

“I got you. Now let's get this asshole.”

Katrina wove her arm through mine and pasted her brightest smile on her face. “Let's do this.”

Kevin paused, looking around. He also took the opportunity to let the two photographers we'd hired for inside the event click his better side. His glance landed on Katrina and his smile went tight around the edges. I watched as his eyes fell to our entwined arms. His face tightened even more. When he met my eyes, I allowed the satisfaction to show through.
Yeah, you messed up a good thing. I stepped in and I'm not letting go
. I could tell by the tightening of his lips and the hardening of his jaw that my message was broadcast loud and clear.

Katrina giggled and I glanced down at her. “What's amusing?”

“You need to behave,” she scolded under her breath.

“What did I do?” I asked innocently, knowing full well what I had done.

“You totally just sent him the eye-gaze equivalent of marking your territory.”

With an unapologetic shrug, I added, “So what if I did? Might as well let him and everyone else eyeing you up this evening know, you're off the market.” I wanted everyone to know she was mine.

“Oh yeah?” She stood up on tiptoe to look me in the eye. “You making declarations up in here, in front of all these folks?”

I touched my forehead to hers. “Most definitely.”

“Well, don't you two make a lovely couple.” Kevin Delancey stood in front of us, doing a really poor job of hiding the sneer on his face.

We stared into each other's eyes for another second before turning our heads toward Kevin. I noticed Beau and Roman standing nearby.

“Hi, Kevin,” Katrina said.

“Hey, Delancey. No date?” I asked silkily.

“I thought it best to ride solo tonight. I was so surprised you went through with a party. What with all the troubles you've been having?” Dude had zero chill. He just couldn't pass up the opportunity to stir the pot and see who took the bait.

“What troubles? There's no such thing as bad publicity. Sales at BellaRich are through the roof. I finally found a mutually satisfying relationship and fell in love with a man who... gets me. Plus, I look amazing. What troubles?” Katrina purred with a devil-may-care tilt of her chin.

Kevin's eyes narrowed. “Good for you, then. I was surprised to receive an invitation.”

Katrina shrugged. “Just because we didn't work out personally is no reason to cut all ties. This is business. No matter our differences, we're business people at the end of the day. Are we not?”

He nodded in acknowledgment. “Well, thank you for the invite. This is quite the turnout. I'll just mingle about. Happy birthday, Katrina.”

“Thank you so much for coming,” she cooed and smiled even brighter.

Kevin pivoted and strode away without another word. And suddenly, I knew that no matter how the night played out, I was going to have my say. “Katrina, excuse me for a moment, won't you?”

She tightened her grip on my arm. “CP, what are you about to do?”

I raised a brow and reassured her. “Nothing that requires bail.” With that, I disentangled myself and walked after Kevin. Beau sent me a look asking if he needed to come with me. I shook my head. Catching up to Kevin as he crossed the dance floor, I clapped my hand on his shoulder. “Step over here with me for a minute, Delancey.”

He shrugged my hand off. “That doesn't sound like a request, Parks.”

“Funny you should notice that. It isn't. Either step politely over here away from everyone else or we can discuss it right here out in the open. For everyone to see and hear. Either way, things will get said.” I crossed my arms over my chest and waited. That beat-down idea was sounding better and better.

Kevin decided to test whether I was serious or not by eyeballing me in the middle of the dance floor. I was done playing with this fool. I growled and took a step forward. He took a quick step back before pivoting toward the back of the room near the bathrooms. Katrina was surrounded by people, but took a second to send me a “what-the-hell-are-you-doing” look as I walked past. I winked, sent her a “don't-worry-about-it-I-got-this” look back and kept moving. This little talk was long overdue.

When we reached a quiet area behind two tall decorative trees, Kevin turned to face me. “What is it, Parks?”

“What do you think it is, Delancey?” I raised a brow.

“I don't know, some sort of dick-measuring contest?” he scoffed.

“It's not a contest when the outcome is so obvious. This is about your behavior. And how I expect it won't be repeated?”

“Is this some sort of reaction because I had Katrina first? Otherwise, I'm afraid I don't know what you're referring to.” So he wanted to play dumb. He was trying my patience. And I didn't have a lot to spare.

I squinted hard at him. “Okay, we can play it this way for now. Let's start by admitting between just us, that it's not who comes first. Particularly when that person took only ten uninspired minutes to come, at that. We both know it's the man who gets to be last, who actually lasts, who wins. Moving on, let's just say you don't really know what I'm talking about. Let's pretend you're not a needle-dick scumbag who badmouthed a good woman because she had the good sense to cut you loose.”

“Wait just a damn—” he interrupted angrily.

I held up my hand. “No, it's your turn to listen. I've been playing nice because that's the way Katrina wants it, but after tonight if you break bad with Katrina or any member of her family, you'll have to answer to me,” I stated firmly.

Kevin smirked and I stepped into his space. We were not going to play that way this evening.

“Don't get it twisted. I'm not like you. I had no silver spoon growing up; I used to hit people for a living. I would prefer not to take it there, but try it again and see what happens.”

“So you're a hood rat,” he jeered.

I shrugged. “If it makes you feel better to think so, sure. Know this: I will reach back to my hood roots and make you suffer in a million different ways if I deem it necessary. Delancey, I would hate to deem it necessary. Are we clear?”

“Since I don't know what you're talking about, I don't know what to say.” He sniffed and adjusted his tie. He took a step forward and I blocked his exit.

“I said... are we clear?” I reiterated.

“Crystal,” he ground out. “You're a Neanderthal. The two of you deserve each other.”

I took a step back and smiled widely. “Thank you. We think so too.” With a sweep of my arm, I motioned him back to the party. “After you, Delancey.”

“Parks, you haven't won anything here.”

“Actually, I've won everything, you just don't know it yet.”

“We'll see.” He rolled his eyes and strode away without a backwards glance. I noticed with no little amusement that he put as much space and as many people between us as possible.

The three tables closest to the front of the room where the large screen was set up were reserved for immediate family and close friends. One table held Madere, Pops, Gramps, Stavros and his date, Greg and Veronica. Another table held Shawn, Tara, Yaz, Fredrika, Danila, and other members of our staff. I walked over to the table where Kat stood with Jewel, Belle, Roman, Beau, Chris and his date.

Belle snickered as Kevin practically sprinted past. “He ran out of there like the hounds of hell were on his tail.”

“Looked like you were about to swing on old boy,” Chris said.

“It was a near thing,” I admitted.

“Well all right, we're off to quite a start,” Katrina said, smirking.

“I hope you're ready for round two, because something wicked this way comes,” Jewel announced, indicating the door. Renee walked in wearing a short white sequined tank dress. She entered the room not even a full ten steps behind Madison Archeneaux, the CEO of Royal Mahogany. Not subtle, if you knew what to look for. She scanned the room and then her steps faltered when her eyes met Kevin's and then they looked away from each other. Then they spent the next few minutes sending surreptitious glances in each other's direction.

“They are the worst spies ever,” Roman complained.

“No double-oh-seven about them at all.” Beau sucked his teeth.

“Kind of pisses me off that it took us so long to put it together,” I added in disgust.

“Well, now that we have and the gang's all here,” Katrina said, “let the games continue.”

Katrina—Saturday, July 24th—8:03 p.m.

 

 

N
o matter how the night turned out good or bad; it was one I would never forget. That I knew for sure. I glanced around, taking mental snapshots. Beau, elegantly clad in a white suit with black piping that only he could pull off. Belle, stunningly garbed in a color block black and white sheath dress. Roman, pulling off a charcoal-gray jacket over black shirt, tie, and pants. Jewel, glowing in a silver blouson-style dress that hid the beginning of a baby bulge.

Madere and Pops were resplendent in black, chatting with Gramps and Stavros. Chris was dapper as ever in a perfectly tailored ivory sport coat. The decorated white lights descending from the rafters gave the room an elegant feel. Smiling waiters carrying platters of juicy shrimp and whatever other succulent appetizers the team had picked out.

And of course, Carter. He resembled a chocolate-dipped Greek god. I would never forget the look on his face when he had Kevin hemmed up in the corner. He looked ready to slay dragons for me. All of that “I don't need a man to ride to my rescue” attitude went out the window as I watched him taking Kevin to task on my behalf. I had to admit, I liked it. I liked it a lot.

Just as I liked the expression on Jewel's face as she moved toward Renee. Renee Nightingale was an attractive woman with a smart brain and all the potential in the world, so I never understood why she seemed determined to live constantly immersed in drama. When I was working with her at Royal Mahogany, I knew she had a flair for public relations and marketing. She was a natural and great at her job, but often seemed to let her attitude and personal demons spill over into her professional behavior.

Speaking of professional, Madison Archeneaux appeared in front of me with a chagrined smile on his face. He was nattily attired in a summer-weight black suit with a subtle light-blue pinstripe. “Katrina, you look lovely as ever.” He leaned down to kiss my cheek.

“Thank you, Madison.” I struggled not to flinch and to keep an expressionless face as my mind flashed back to one of his more adventurous moments on that tape with Renee. There were some things that absolutely should not be immortalized on film.

“Not to bring up any unpleasantness, but I wanted to tell you how sorry I am that your name ever got mixed up in my unfortunate divorce. I never encouraged that gossip,” he imparted earnestly.

I blinked at him; did he think I was stupid? “You certainly never discouraged or negated it either. I wonder why that was?”

He looked affronted. “I think it's better to remain discreet in matters such as these.”

“Oh, I completely understand. Completely. No worries, Madison. All's well that ends well,” I said graciously.

He paused, as if not sure I was letting him off the hook, and then smiled again. Yes, he definitely thought I was stupid. “Well, thank you for inviting me, Katrina. It's a spectacular event.”

“Oh, indeed. Grab a seat and get comfortable; we've got a few surprises in store.” I flashed an extra wide and pretty smile, trying to appear as guileless as possible. As he hesitated again, I gave his shoulder a pat to send him on his way. With one last uncertain nod of his head, he wandered off to find a table.

I turned just in time to see Veronica and Jewel herding Renee to a table not far from ours. Greg stayed seated.

“Greg. Roni Mae,” Renee greeted them, deliberately using a nickname Veronica no longer liked. “Still together, I see.”

“Somehow, we're surviving,” Veronica drawled with a sardonic roll of her eyes.

Greg raised a cocktail in Renee's direction. “Some might say
thriving
, but anyway. You know, Ray, they say if you don't have anything nice to say . . .” He turned back around and went back to ignoring her.

“I was just so shocked to get the invitation, knowing my history with the Montgomerys,” Renee gushed loudly, ensuring that everyone in a five-table radius could hear her.

“Well, we certainly don't hold grudges. You and I go too far back to let these little disagreements come between us. Don't you think?” Jewel poured it on.

“Of course. But Beau and Belle are good with me being here?” Renee asked skeptically.

Belle glided over to reassure her. “Oh, honey!” Her voice dripped with Georgia charm: “If we cut ties with every woman Beau ever slept with, we would never leave the house.”

I had to take a quick sip of water to keep from laughing out loud. Looking away, I caught Carter's attention. He too was struggling to keep a straight face.

Beau swooped in and dropped a kiss on Renee's cheek. “Belle exaggerates. You look lovely, Renee.
Absolument magnifique
!”

Renee preened under all the attention. To add a cherry to the top of the sundae, we'd invited Chris's teammates and Carter's former teammates who spoke at the foundation to sit at the table with Renee. One by one, the well-dressed athletes sat around her. As Kendrick, Spaulding, Paul, and Marcus chose seats at her table; Renee's eyes grew wide. You could tell from her expression that she thought her ship had come in. Invitation to an exclusive party, VIP seating, eye candy? She looked like the cat that ate the canary.

I couldn't wait to wipe that smug grin off her face. I leaned over and called out, “Hey, girl, I'll come over and chat after dinner. I love that dress!”

“Oh. It's an Arizona Wind. I'm sorry,” she said silkily.

Our smiles stayed in place at the mention of Belle's rival. The creator of Arizona Wind had stolen designs from Belle a few years ago. Belle and I exchanged a look. “Certainly enough business to go around.” I turned away before I gave in to the urge to slap her silly and slid into the chair Carter was holding out for me.

“You're thinking my ass-kicking, elbow-throwing is both justified and viable now, aren't you?” he whispered in my ear as he sat down beside me.

I had to clasp my hands together in my lap tightly and take a few deep breaths. “She's just so damn hateful for no damn good reason.”

Belle slid into the chair on my right and squeezed my hand. “Patience, sis. We're almost there.”

Yazlyn sent us both a look indicating that she knew exactly what we were thinking. She rose from her seat, wearing a stunning black bandage dress before striding toward the podium placed beside a large drop-down movie screen. She picked up the microphone. “If everyone will be seated, we'll begin dinner service. We'd like to thank everyone for coming out tonight to celebrate the anniversary of the birth of an extraordinary woman, Audelia Katrina Montgomery.” Applause rang out and I nodded and smiled, too anxious to truly enjoy it. “We'll let you enjoy your meal and then we'll show a short video made especially for the birthday girl's enjoyment.
Bon appétit
!”

Yaz winked at me as she glided back to her seat. The waiters came out and made an impressive presentation of serving a mixed field greens salad with strawberries, hickory-smoked almonds, and sunburst tomatoes.

They offered everyone a choice of red wine, white wine, champagne, or a nonalcoholic beverage of their liking. I glanced down at the plate and wondered how I would take a single bite. A glass of champagne appeared in front of me. I hadn't ordered any.

Carter nodded and pushed the glass closer to my hand. “Sip, Kitty. Slowly, for your nerves. Then eat. We got you.”

Suddenly, I knew it was all going to be okay. Carter, my friends, my family, people who genuinely cared about me, were all in this room. But, I still had to fight off the urge to swig the entire glass like a shot. I sipped and managed to make small talk as people dropped by the table to visit. I took several bites of the surf-and-turf dinner with asparagus tips and sipped a little bit more champagne. By the time Veronica and Beau got up to start the presentation, I was pleasantly mellow, but still had all my wits about me. Beau motioned for the press outside to be let in.

I reached for Carter's hand under the table. He grabbed it and squeezed. I turned to check on Madere and Pops. Madere had a mischievous grin on her face and Pops sent me a wink. I caught Chris's eye and he mouthed, “It's about to go down!” I smothered a giggle and turned back to the screen. Here we go.

Veronica had spent years hosting a late-night radio call-in show. Her voice was ideal for this kind of presentation. She was wearing a black-and-white pantsuit with a nipped-in waist and palazzo pants from last year's spring line. I made a mental note to try a similar one in crepe for next summer.

“Good evening,” she greeted the crowd of close to three hundred. The lights dimmed and a video started rolling on the screen. “Thirty years ago yesterday, an adorable baby girl was welcomed into the world by her parents, Alanna and Avery Montgomery, and looked upon with skeptical wariness by her older brothers Roman and Beau.” Pictures from our childhood flashed with humorous commentary from Veronica. Even I was amused, knowing what was coming next. They moved through my teenage years and into my early twenties with the same light-hearted tone. When they transitioned to my work with BellaRich, Beau took over the microphone. He cracked a few jokes about how my design aspirations had netted him a job, a wife, and a life. Then his voice slipped from easygoing and light to serious.

“The thing about Katrina that we hope is coming through is that she's a person who has worked hard to get where she is. She's a strong, independent woman with an unflagging moral compass. None of this was in question until I had the poor taste to become involved with this woman.” The next video on the screen was Renee dancing in her underwear with Madison Archeneaux.

Amid gasps, Chris's teammate Paul leaned over to Renee. “Yo shorty—is that you? You lookin' right!” His voice carried and snickers broke out. I had to cover my mouth with the napkin to keep from laughing out loud.

“What the hell is this?” Madison snapped. No one answered, as it was pretty obvious exactly what the hell that was we were looking at.

Beau continued. “Katrina's life was further complicated when these two people met.” The next video showed Kevin and Renee in an equally intimate situation. My jaw dropped open. I knew the two of them had hatched up a plot against me; I didn't realize they had quite gotten that personal. “Apologies for the R-rated nature of this portion of the evening, folks. Since Kevin and Renee felt at ease making up and dispersing false information about my sister, I feel just as at ease sharing some truths with you. Here's a conversation between Ms. Nightingale and Mr. Delancey.”

Kevin's voice came through the speakers loud and clear.

Beau cut the feed and signaled for the lights to come up. Kevin was making a break for the door. Renee was frozen to her seat and Madison Archeneaux stared glumly into his cocktail.

Captain Calvin stepped in front of Kevin. “Hold up there, partner.” He escorted Kevin out of the building.

Beau signaled to Tara and Shawn, and they started handing out flash drives to all of the media. “We're giving you information on various infractions Kevin Delancey committed over the course of the past ten years. From just plain-brewed to all kinds of wrong to downright illegal—it's all on there. Over the past year he has participated, with the help of Renee Nightingale, in a conspiracy to defame my sister and devalue BellaRich, all in an effort to purchase it for a lower price. I don't know which of these actions are criminal, which are civilly liable, and which are just despicable actions. But we have people here from a number of different agencies who are going to figure it out. Some of you are going to be asked to leave. The rest of you are welcome to stay—we're about to cut a step up in here. And by the way, happy birthday, Kit-Kat!” He threw back his head and laughed.

The room broke out into nervous laughter as the Beyoncé song “Grown Woman” came on. Reporters rushed forward to ask questions. Renee pushed her chair back and I hopped up quickly to intercept her before she could go too far.

“What?” she said defiantly, eyes flashing with malice.

“Well, you tried it,” I declared with a smirk.

“I've never liked you,” she hissed and stalked away. Captain Calvin had someone waiting to take her away for further discussion as well.

“The feeling has always been entirely mutual,” I called after her and spun away to sing along with Bey, “
I'm a grown woman, I can do whatever I want
!” I raised my hands over my head and spun around before landing in Carter's lap. I threaded my arms around his neck. “This is the best birthday ever.”

He grinned down at me. “Glad you're enjoying it. You want to talk to reporters?”

I sighed. “Not really, but let's make it quick. I want to dance with my guy.” I stood up, pulling him with me, and walked over to where the media were lined up.