Clayton grinned. “Yes, babies, meaning more than one.”
He tilted her chin up with a knuckle. His expression was serious. “Trust me, Syneda, and know that I would never deliberately hurt you.” His tone suddenly became fierce. “Believe that I love you with all my heart and soul, and that I will love you for all eternity. And that I will always be here for you.”
He stepped back and, ignoring the fact there were other shoppers in the store, some more curious than others, he opened his arms to her.
Syneda stepped into his embrace, and he drew her to him. Reveling in his touch, she clung to him. “Thanks for loving me, Clayton.”
He tightened his arms around her. “Thank you for letting me love you.” After some moments had passed, he checked his watch. “We have a few more stores to hit before dinner.”
Taking her hand in his, he asked, “Ready?”
She nodded.
“Then let’s go, baby.”
“Are you certain you don’t mind having dinner here?”
Syneda smiled. “I’m positive. I know about your past reputation and that it included other women, lots of them. And since this was your hangout, it wouldn’t surprise me to run into a few here tonight. That really doesn’t bother me. I’m woman enough to get beyond that. Besides, we are here for a worthy cause.”
“True,” Clayton said as they entered Sisters. They were meeting Justin and Lorren and Dex and Caitlin for dinner. Each year on the day after Thanksgiving, the local chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority sponsored a tree-decorating event at Sisters. Each ornament was individually purchased and placed on the tree and came with the name and address of an underpriviledged child they would sponsor for Christmas. The place was packed and Clayton was glad for the turnout.
“Welcome to Sisters, and I understand congratulations are in order, Clayton.”
Clayton smiled down at Netherland Brooms, the attractive owner of Sisters. “Thanks, and yes, they are. I would like you to meet Syneda Walters, my fiancée. Syneda, this is Netherland Brooms, but we all call her Nettie. She’s the owner of Sisters.”
Nettie took Syneda’s hand in hers. “I’m glad someone finally hooked this guy on in,” Nettie said to Syneda, grinning.
Syneda smiled at the woman’s comment. “Yeah, and I’m glad I was fortunate enough to be the one to do it.”
“The two of you make a lovely couple, and I wish you much happiness.”
“Thanks.”
Nettie turned to Clayton. “Your brothers and their wives are here. They have been quite busy this year, haven’t they?”
Clayton laughed, knowing she was referring to the pregnant state of his two sisters-in-law. “Yes, it appears they have been pretty busy.”
Clayton and Syneda followed Nettie over to the table where the Madaris party was sitting.
“We were wondering when the two of you were going to get here,” Dex said, smiling. “Justin and I can’t starve our ladies too long, don’t forget they’re each eating for two.”
“Sorry,” Clayton said, grinning. “We lost track of the time shopping.”
“The ring!” Lorren suddenly exclaimed. “You got your ring!”
Syneda nodded, beaming happily and holding her hand out for the others to see. “Isn’t it gorgeous?”
Lorren and Caitlin released oohs and aahs. Justin and Dex gave their brother nods of approvals.
The hostess came and took their order and within a reasonable time, their dinner was served. Afterward, Justin ordered champagne to toast the engaged couple.
“Well, well, well, look who just walked in,” Dex said, slanting a grin in Clayton’s direction. “And look who’s with her.”
Clayton turned and rolled his eyes to the ceiling, while muttering a silent curse. Why did his cousin Felicia have to show up now? And of all people, Bernard Wilson was with her.
“I’m sure she appreciates you sending Bernard her way,” Justin said, grinning.
Syneda lifted a brow after seeing an uncomfortable look on Clayton’s face. “Is something wrong?”
He shrugged. “No.”
Clayton heard the sounds of Justin and Dex chuckling and glared across the table at them.
Syneda looked around her. Her attention focused on Clayton’s cousin and the handsome man who was with her. They had seen them and were headed over to their table.
“Hi, everyone,” Felicia said when she reached the table. “Glad to see everyone out for a good cause. Let me introduce Bernard. But I think he knows everyone already.”
Bernard smiled as they sat down to join them. “I met everyone at that party for Senator Lansing, except for you,” he said to Syneda. “We were never officially introduced,” he said extending his hand to her. “Bernard Wilson.”
Syneda took the hand he offered. “Syneda Walters.”
“Soon to be Syneda Madaris,” Felicia said, smiling. “And thanks for asking me to be in the wedding.”
“The two of you are getting married?” Bernard asked Syneda in surprise, letting his gaze move from her to Clayton.
“That’s right,” Clayton said, sipping some of his champagne. “Why?”
“But I thought…”
He didn’t finish his statement when the hostess came to take the newcomers’ order.
They got into talking about other things. Dex and Justin began enlightening everyone about the small airplane the brothers had purchased together.
Bernard couldn’t help noticing Syneda and the amount of candy and nuts she was nibbling on. And that was after she had finished eating a slice of coconut pie with vanilla ice cream.
Syneda felt Bernard’s gaze on her and stopped munching. She lifted a brow. “Is anything wrong, Bernard?”
He smiled at her. “No, I was just noticing how much you’re enjoying those nuts. You do know they’re fattening, don’t you?”
Syneda heard Dex and Justin clear their throats. She raised a brow to Bernard. “They’re fattening?”
“Extremely fattening since they’re filled with oil. I know how hard it is to lose weight and how it’s even harder to keep it off. You’ve done an excellent job, and I admire you for it.”
Syneda smiled at him. “Thanks, but you must have me confused with someone else. I’ve never had a weight problem. I can eat like a horse and never gain a pound.”
He raised a brow at her before turning to frown at Clayton. The sly smile Clayton gave him let him know he’d been had. “And I guess you are not wearing colored eye contacts,” Bernard said drily.
Syneda grinned, wondering why he would think she was. “No, I’m not. Why would you think I was?”
“Because I was deliberately led to believe you were. In fact, I was led to believe a number of things about you that evidently aren’t true.”
“Really? And who would tell you untrue things about me?”
Bernard laughed, shaking his head. “Someone who evidently felt a need to protect his interest.”
Syneda raised an arched brow, then realization dawned. She turned to Clayton and glared at him. “Would you like to tell me what’s going on?”
As if on cue, Justin and Dex stood and, turning to their wives, suddenly suggested they use that time to select their ornament for the Christmas tree. Felicia and Bernard quickly decided to do the same.
When the table had cleared, Syneda asked Clayton again. “Would you like to explain what’s going on? What did you tell Bernard about me?”
Dark eyes looked at her. “He had plans to hit on you that night, so I decided to take action.”
“By telling him I had a weight problem and wore contacts? And just what else did you tell him?”
Clayton shrugged. “I told him that wasn’t your natural hair color.”
“You did what! I don’t believe you did such a thing.” Syneda glared at him. “Why all the lies? I could have handled the likes of Bernard Wilson that night.”
“I’m sure you could have. I just didn’t want him near you, that’s all.”
Syneda shook her head at Clayton’s admission. It was hard to believe he had been jealous. She then remembered his behavior in Florida. At the time it hadn’t made sense. Now considering everything, it did.
After a few minutes, she couldn’t help the smile that stole across her lips. She should be furious with him but wasn’t. He was at times her nemesis, but mostly her friend. He was her lover and soon, in seven months, he would be her husband.
“What am I going to do with you, Clayton Madaris?”
“Love me.”
She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “Heaven help me but I do that already.” She took his hand in hers. “Come on, let’s go purchase our ornaments and help decorate the tree.”
Clayton’s alarm went off at six o’clock Monday morning. He missed Syneda already. It had been hard putting her back on the plane for New York yesterday afternoon.
He got out of bed and went into the bathroom. He returned to the bedroom moments later when the sound of the phone interrupted his shower.
“Hello.”
“I hear congratulations are in order.”
Clayton chuckled. “Good morning, Alex. I see news travels fast.”
“Yes, especially when a fellow bachelor defects. Trask called last night and I told him the news. He asked me if you had gone crazy or something.”
Clayton laughed. “The next time you talk to Trask, tell him I said I’m not crazy. I just happen to be a man very much in love. His time will come one day, so will yours.”
“I hope not. Besides, speaking for myself, I promised your kid sister on her thirteenth birthday I’d wait for her to grow up,” he teased. “Congratulations, anyway. The only saving grace for you is I happen to think the woman you’re marrying is first class. It’s about time you noticed it.”
Clayton couldn’t help but agree.
“The reason I’m calling so bright and early is because I have that information you wanted. I have the names of the other two investigating agencies, as well as the identity of Syneda’s father.”
For some reason, Clayton felt uneasy. “And?”
“I’ve located him, Clayton, and you won’t believe in a million years just who he is. And I prefer not having this conversation over the phone. Are you free for breakfast?”
“No. I have to be in court by eight-thirty. How about lunch?”
“Lunch is fine, and I prefer somewhere private.”
Clayton frowned. “Sounds serious.”
After a moment of hesitation, Alex said, “Depends on how you look at it. I’ll let you decide.”
“All right. We’ll have lunch in my office. I’ll order sandwiches.”
“Okay, and remember I don’t do mayo, and I do just a tad of mustard.”
“Okay.”
“And Clayton.”
“Yeah?”
“I’m tired of turkey.”
Clayton shook his head, laughing. “Got it.”
“I
understand congratulations are in order.”
Syneda lifted her gaze from the paper she was reading and saw Thomas Rackley standing in the doorway of her office.
An easy smile played at the corners of her mouth. “Thanks. I guess I don’t have to ask how you found out, do I?”
He grinned, shaking his head. “Office gossip is at its best today.”
She leaned back in her chair. “I assumed that it would be.”
Thomas stepped inside her office and saw the radiance of her smile. He cocked his head to the side and studied her for a moment. “You’re happy, aren’t you?”
The smile on Syneda’s face widened. “I think I’m happier than anyone has a right to be.”
He weighed her answer with a critical squint before his eyes grew openly sincere. “I’m glad. You deserve to be happy. I’m glad you met someone and fell in love.”
“It wasn’t easy.”
Thomas chuckled. “And no doubt you gave the poor guy pure hell.”
Syneda tried suppressing the grin that crossed her face. “No doubt.”
His smile deepened into laughter. “I’m glad he hung in there.”
The amused look left Syneda’s eyes when she thought about what Thomas had just said. Clayton had hung in there when most men would not have. “I’m glad he did, too.”
Clayton gave Alexander Maxwell a long, penetrating stare. He was absolutely speechless and had been since Alex had provided him with the information he’d wanted, especially the identity of Syneda’s father.
He stood and walked over to the window and looked out. His mind felt bruised by the bitter truths Alex had just hit him with. Of all the men who could have fathered Syneda, it was hard to believe the one man he would never have suspected in a million years was the one.
“So what are you planning to do with this information?”
Alex’s question abruptly invaded his thoughts. Clayton shrugged heavy shoulders. He felt like the weight of the world was sitting on them. He turned to Alex. “I don’t know.”
“You’re surprised, aren’t you?”
Keeping Alex’s gaze, he nodded, his breath feeling heavy in his chest. “Weren’t you?”
“Sure, I was. When I decided to do a little further investigating, surprise isn’t quite the word I would use with what I found out. Hell-shocked is more like it. This was one of the most challenging puzzles I’ve pieced together in a long time.”
“I believe you,” Clayton said, returning to his seat behind the desk. “Is there any way you could be mistaken about any of this?”
“No. That’s why I went the extra mile on this one and located Syneda’s mother’s friend, that nurse, Clara Boyd, who conveniently disappeared after Jan Walters died. I knew there had to be a missing link someplace. And now when you really think about it, you’ll agree that Syneda is the spittin’ image of her father.”
Clayton nodded as he absently traced the pattern of the wood grain across his desk. “Just for sanity purposes, let’s go over all of this again.”
Alex nodded, understanding completely. “All right,” he said, stretching his legs out in front of him, trying to get comfortable in the chair. That wasn’t too easy for his six-foot-four frame. “Those other two private investigators are based in Washington, D.C. That immediately told me something. Whatever was going on was somehow linked to the political scene. I just didn’t make Syneda’s connection until Senator Lansing’s name popped up. Then I figured out that one of the investigators was trying to get the lowdown on the senator.”
He stood when the chair became too uncomfortable. “Since it seems Senator Lansing was dating Syneda’s mother during her senior year of college, the year Syneda was conceived, it appears he’s her father. A father who didn’t claim his child. It’s my guess they plan to release their scoop to the media. When they do, all hell is going to break loose, and Syneda will be caught right smack in the middle. I can see the headlines now, and they definitely won’t be positive for Senator Lansing. He’ll have a lot of explaining to do.”
“What about the other investigator?”
“I believe he’s working for the senator. I think Senator Lansing somehow got wind of what was going on and decided to check things out for himself. Both investigators are turning in what they think are accurate reports.”
Clayton rubbed his chin. “Accurate reports? That’s a laugh.”
“Yeah, and the only person who knows the truth, besides you and me, is Senator Lansing.”
“Let’s not forget Clara Boyd.”
Alex’s face hardened as he remembered his interview with the woman. She had broken down and told him the truth under his intense questioning. “Yeah, some friend she turned out to be.” He sat back down after stretching his legs some. “So, going back to my earlier question, what are you going to do with the information?”
Clayton stood. “I’m going to do everything I can to protect Syneda. She’s been hurt enough. The first thing I’m going to do is to see Senator Lansing.” He leaned over his desk and punched the intercom button. “Serena, book me a flight to D.C. as soon as possible.”
Senator Lansing looked up upon hearing the knock on the door. “Come in.”
Braxter walked in. “The investigator’s report is here, sir,” he said, handing the senator the huge envelope he carried. “It was delivered a few moments ago.”
The senator nodded, taking the packet Braxter handed him. “Have you read it?”
“No. I considered it a private matter.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it.”
“Just keep in mind, Senator, someone intends to ruin your reputation if they can with that same report.”
The senator rubbed a hand across his face. “I haven’t forgotten. And, Braxter, please hold my calls for a while. I want to go through this report immediately.” He checked his watch. “It’s almost closing time. You can go on home if you’d like.”
Braxter shook his head. “There’s something I need to work on. I’ll be out front if you need me.”
“Thanks.”
“Oh, yeah. On Sundays I always buy newspapers from major cities in Texas to see how well you’re doing in the polls. This article appeared in the society column of a Houston paper and caught my attention.” He handed the newspaper clipping to the senator. “I thought you might be interested.”
The senator scanned the article that announced Texas attorney Clayton Madaris’s engagement to fellow New York attorney Syneda Walters. The wedding was planned for June of next year.
“It seems Syneda Walters will be marrying Jacob Madaris’s nephew,” Braxter said, breaking the silence in the room.
Senator Lansing took a deep breath. “Yes, it appears that way, doesn’t it. I’ve known Clayton Madaris a long time. He’s a fine young man and an outstanding attorney.”
Once Braxton left, closing the door behind him, the senator pulled the papers out of the packet and began reading.
Laying aside the packet that had just been delivered to her, Celeste stood and walked to her bedroom and sprawled out in a chair next to her bed. She raked a hand through her shoulder-length hair, wondering why she felt so awful.
The job was completed. She was sure the packet in her living room contained information Senator Harris would be eager to get his hands on. Although Emery Fulton, her friend from college who had done the investigative work for her, hadn’t told her exactly what was in the report, he had said it contained some information on Senator Lansing that if released to the media, could be damaging.
Standing, she walked back into the living room and picked up the packet. She should call Senator Harris and let him know that she had the information he’d paid her to get. But for some reason she couldn’t make herself pick up the phone and do that.
For the past two years she had cultivated a pretty good life for herself. It was a life she enjoyed with the material things she had always wanted as a child but never had. Thanks to a mother who ran off and left her with an alcoholic father at the age of twelve, she had learned to survive without help from anyone. And she had never wanted or needed anyone.
She had met Senator Harris a couple of years ago when he had come into her travel agency to arrange a cruise for him and his wife. It didn’t take long for him to figure out that in her profession, since she came in contact with a lot of people, especially by planning trips for those in political circles, she could be an asset to him.
At first he had only been interested in inside information on some of his supposedly close friends. She had passed information to him about Senator Mat Williams’s affair with a woman young enough to be his daughter, Senator Paul Dunlap’s daughter’s abortion, and Senator Carl Booker’s son’s drug addiction.
He had paid her well for the information she had obtained with Emery’s help. But this assignment involving Braxter had been the first that she had gotten personally involved with to the point of going so far as to sleep with someone to get information. And since the day Braxter had discovered the truth, her life had not been the same. Somehow his pain had become hers, especially knowing she’d been the cause of it.
She picked up the phone to make the call to Senator Harris and then slammed it back down. She just couldn’t do it. The amount of money he had paid her no longer mattered. She would pay back every penny of it to him.
She went into the bedroom and slipped into her coat. Going back into the living room she picked up the packet, grabbed her purse, then walked out of the door.
Nedwyn Lansing leaned back against his desk chair as he released a long-drawn breath. Suddenly all the anger he had ever felt in his entire lifetime hit him with the force of a tidal wave.
How could this have happened? How could such a mistake be made? How could Jan’s child be turned over to the authorities when her father was very much alive and would have wanted her had he known about her?
He shook his head to calm his temper. There was no doubt in his mind that Syneda Walters was Jan’s child. The report clearly named Jan as Syneda’s biological mother and gave the reason she’d been placed in a foster home after Jan’s death. Her father had not come to claim his child.
He picked up the phone knowing the one person he had to call immediately. He paused when there was a knock on his door. He then remembered that Braxter had not yet left.
“What is it, Braxter?”
Braxter opened the door and came in. He immediately noticed the intense expression the senator wore. “I just got a call from security downstairs. Clayton Madaris is here to see you.”
“Clayton Madaris?” The senator shook his head slowly, glancing down at the report before him. He sat silently for a moment before saying, “Have security send him up.”
Clayton frowned when he stepped into the senator’s office and saw the other man standing there. “I was hoping to get a chance to speak with you privately, Senator.”
The senator nodded. He then proceeded to introduce the two men. “Braxter is my top aide, Clayton, and we can talk openly in front of him. Besides, it’s about time I let him in on what’s going on, since I have a pretty good idea as to why you’re here. Let’s sit down.”
Once everyone was seated, Clayton began. “I’m sure by now you’re aware someone is trying to ruin your political career, Senator.”
The senator’s gaze didn’t flicker from Clayton’s. “Yes, I’m aware of it. What I would like to know is what’s your connection, and how do you know so much about it?”
Clayton breathed an annoyed sigh but calmly contained himself. Although he had known the senator a number of years due to the senator’s close relationship with his late uncle Robert and his uncle Jake, Clayton understood his need to be cautious in certain situations. This was one of those situations.
“My connection is the woman I plan to marry. Someone is planning to use her as a weapon in an attempt to destroy your credibility with the people. The reason I know so much about it is because I hired a private investigator to find her father for me.”
“And you think you’ve found him.” It was a statement rather than a question.
“I know I have.”
The senator took a deep breath and stood. He paced the room several times before coming to a stop in front of Clayton. “And you believe I’m your man, don’t you?”
Clayton’s gaze never left the senator. “No. I know for a fact that you’re not.”
The senator raised a surprised brow. “Do you?”
“Yes. My investigator is a very thorough man who loves putting together puzzles. The only reason I came here before going to see her father is to get some answers about a few things.”
“If you’re going to ask me if he knew about her, the answer is a definite no. There’s no way he would have known and not claimed his child. He was too deeply in love with Jan. In fact, he still loves her. Her dying changed nothing. The second week of May of each year, on the date they met, he tortures himself by first visiting her grave, then later he tries to erase the pain by drinking himself to death for two days. And he’s not a drinker. I’m the only one he’ll let see him that way. And I make it a point to go visit him every year in May to help him through that painful period.”
Braxter had been sitting quietly listening to Clayton and the senator, trying to follow along and piece together what they were talking about. The only thing he understood was the explanation for the senator’s mysterious trips each May.