Key To My Heart (Love Conquers All) (24 page)

Clearing her throat, Lois said, “Bea, what is there for us to talk about? I haven’t seen or heard from you since Poppa’s funeral.”

“Well, I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am for the way I’ve treated you and Ellen. I was going to call her after I talked to you. Perhaps the three of us can get together.”

Tears suddenly filled Lois’s eyes. Her voice quivered when she spoke. “Bea, Ellen died last year from colon cancer. I tried calling you. Left a message with your housekeeper, but you never called me back.”

“Oh, no. I’m so sorry, Lois.” Tears spilled down Beatrice’s cheeks. “If I had known…” Beatrice’s voice trailed off.

Beatrice remembered that afternoon her housekeeper gave her the message that Lois had called.
Probably calling for money,
she’d thought as she rushed out the house to go shopping.

Lois had been so hurt when Beatrice never called back. She did not want to believe that her baby sister was still the same selfish and mean-spirited woman she was as a young adult, but apparently that was exactly the kind of person she was.

“Bea, I was calling you because Ellie wanted to see you before she died. She wanted to tell you she was sorry for anything she might have done to make you dislike her so much. She died wanting you to know she still loved you.” Letting out a deep breath, Lois tearfully revealed the truth about how she felt about Beatrice. “You’ve always been so mean, Bea, thinking the world and everyone in it should bow down to you. Ellie and I tried to understand you because Momma had died giving birth to you. We figured if we loved you a little harder, you would be OK. But nothing we did was good enough for you. All you did was run to Poppa with lies about how badly we treated you.”

“I am so sorry, Lois. Do you think you can forgive me?” Beatrice asked, her voice thick with tears. She couldn’t believe her sister had died a year ago and she hadn’t even known it.

“It’s a little too late, Bea. I don’t know if I could ever forgive you for not answering my call. Ellie was dying. She needed you. And like always you were too wrapped up in Bea’s world to give a damn. I have to go, Bea. My grandbaby is crying. You take care of yourself,” Lois said before hanging up the phone.

Beatrice stared at the phone in her hand for a long time before placing it back on its base. In that moment she realized that she really was going to be alone, unless she found some way to make up with Langston.

Standing in the doorway leading into the kitchen Langston gazed at Ava as she shuffled around the kitchen preparing breakfast. A smile curved his full lips as he took in her appearance. Her long hair was up in a ponytail, and the ivory-colored silk robe she wore stopped at her knees, showing off her shapely legs. A pair of pink bunny slippers that squeaked whenever she walked graced her feet. Zoe had come home with the same pair the last time she stayed in Philly. At the time the squeaking noise grated on his nerves when Zoe went running through the house. But now the squeaking wasn’t such a nuisance.

Langston stifled a groan as Ava went to the fridge, opened the door, and bent over, searching for the eggs. Blood rushed to his manhood as the silk fabric of her robe rose, giving him a glimpse of lace panties. He was tempted to knock everything off the kitchen table and take her hard and fast right there.

Weeks had passed since he and Ava had kissed, let alone touched each other. Every time he thought about how his mother had come into his home spewing her hatefulness, he wanted to punch something. He and Ava had come so far, and she had begun to open to him. But since that day she had put her shields back up. It wasn’t that she was snappy toward him or anything. She just seemed to steer away from any intimate contact.

Well Langston wasn’t having it. Ava was his, and he wasn’t going to let anyone come between them, not even Ava herself. Before the year was out, she was going to be his wife.

With confidence, Langston swaggered into kitchen. Taking the eggs from Ava’s hand, he advanced on her until he backed her up against the counter. Setting down the eggs, he placed an arm on each side of her body, trapping her.

Grinning down at her, his voice came out in a sexy, deep murmur. “Good morning.”

Ava’s lower belly quivered. The man smelled so good and looked so darn handsome in his Armani suit. She’d really been trying hard to avoid Langston, trying not to become intimate with him again. But doggone it! He was making it impossible! “Morning,” Ava mumbled, not meeting his penetrating gaze.

A spark of mischief twinkled in his dark eyes as his gaze dropped to her heaving bosom. Ava gasped when he pushed her further into the granite countertop, bringing his aroused manhood to rest against her belly. Lifting a large hand, Langston opened the top of her robe. Ava shivered when the back of his hand grazed the mounds of her breasts.

Searching for anything to say that would get her out of this current predicament, Ava stammered, “You better stop so I can finish breakfast.” Grinning at her, the flick of his wrist released the belt on her robe. As he slid her robe and her baby doll pajama top off one shoulder, exposing a breast, Ava nervously said, “Zoe’s going to be coming down any minute.”

“I only need a minute,” he whispered before leaning down and taking a perky nipple into his mouth.

Placing her hands on his sturdy, muscular shoulders, Ava moaned as his tongue circled, sucked, and nibbled the sensitive peak. Her head fell back and her mouth fell open in a haze of passion as his tongue trailed a path to the other breast, paying it the same attention.

Ava felt Langston’s lips form into a smirk when she grabbed the back of his head, holding him firmly against her breast. If he wasn’t making her feel so good, she’d smack him upside his head for being so cocky and arrogant.

A soft moan of disappointment escaped her when his lips left her breast. She didn’t stay disappointed long, though, as his lips found hers. Ava welcomed the deep thrusting of his tongue. Wrapping her arms around Langston’s neck, Ava stood on the tips of her toes, further deepening the kiss and crushing her breasts against his chest.

Langston let out a groan. He could feel Ava’s hard nipples against his chest. Reaching down, he lifted Ava off her feet. Automatically her legs wrapped around his waist, bringing his erect manhood snuggly against her center.
Oh, man, this was a bad idea
, Langston thought as Ava’s hips slowly rotated.

Squeak-squeak-squeak . . . squeak-squeak-squeak.
The sound of tiny, running footsteps grew louder. Zoe was awake.

Breaking the kiss, Langston dropped Ava to her feet like they were two teenage kids getting caught in the act. Flustered, Ava’s hands fumbled to readjust her night clothes and robe. Langston ran a large hand down the front of his suit and tie.

“I’m gonna kill you, Lang,” Ava hissed between clenched teeth. What was wrong with him getting her all hot and bothered while she was trying to cook breakfast? Not to mention there was a seven-year-old running around the house.

Langston let out a short chortle. She wasn’t all that mad at him. She had called him Lang. “Girl, you know you liked it.”

Ava’s hands flew to her hips. Just as she was pointing a finger in his face, ready to tell him that the next time he needed to keep his lips, tongue, and hands to himself, Zoe came bouncing into the room.

“Good morning, Mommy and Daddy!” the child sang as she leaped into Langston’s arms.

Nuzzling the side of her face, Langston greeted, “Good morning, Love Bug.”

Ava stood on her tiptoes and kissed the child on her cheek. “Morning, my Zoe.”

Zoe bunched up her face, giving her mother a peculiar stare. “Mommy, you smell like Daddy’s cologne.”

Langston covered his mouth with his fist to pass off a laugh as a fake cough. The wide-eyed, mouth-hanging-open look on Ava’s face was priceless.

Ava looked to Langston to help her out of this jam. She wanted to box his ears when he didn’t say anything, but stood there with that simple smirk on his face. Rolling her eyes at him, she thought,
That’ll be the last time you fill me up in this kitchen.

Plastering a smile on her face, Ava rubbed Zoe’s cheek. “I was just giving your daddy a hug before he left for work. That’s why I smell like him.”

“You’re not having breakfast with us, Daddy?” Zoe asked, pouting and forgetting all about Ava smelling like Langston. She liked it when they all had breakfast together.

“No. I have to go into work early today.” Glancing at Ava, he winked. “Your mommy made sure I had a little taste of something this morning.”

What! Oh, you just wait, you little dirty dog.
“Come on, Zoe, get down so Daddy can go to work,” Ava said. The sooner she got him out of here, the better. Even though she was pissed with him right about now, her body was still tingling.

Langston gave Zoe quick butterfly kisses on the forehead and cheeks. Ava smiled. Zoe repeated the same gesture to her daddy. One thing she could not deny, the man loved his daughter. And for that, he would always have a piece of her heart.

“Stay here, Zoe, while I walk your daddy to the door,” Ava told Zoe as Langston set her down on her feet.

Ava left the kitchen with Langston on her heels. Once they reached the foyer, Ava spun around on him. “What is wrong with you?”

Hunching broad shoulders, he innocently replied, “What?”

“Lang, don’t make me slap you upside the head. You keep your hands to yourself.”

He lifted a thick brow, staring at her. She wasn’t saying that when she was moaning and cradling his face in her breasts.

Throwing her hands up in the air out of frustration, she snapped, “Well?”

Langston didn’t bother to answer her. Before she knew it, he reached out, grabbing her around the waist and kissing her hard, stealing her breath away.

Ava stumbled backward when he let her go, dizzy from the soul stirring kiss. This man was driving her crazy. Shame on her, but she wanted him to take her right there in the foyer. Looking at him, she saw that his eyes were heavy with desire. He wanted her too.

“Get out,” she whispered. Because if he didn’t, she would be tempted to drag him up to his bedroom for a quickie.

Staring down into her face, her well kissed, swollen lips were begging to be kissed again. “You sure you want me to go?” he asked.

Nodding, she said, “Yes.” But her mind screamed,
NO!

Langston chuckled. Her eyes told a different story. “I’ll see you this evening.”

“Bye.” Closing the door behind him, Ava slumped against it.
I better pull it together,
she told herself as she pushed away from the door. Squeaking back into the kitchen, she thought,
Yup, this man is going to drive me crazy.

“Mr. Warrington, there’s a Mr. Colin Shepard here to see you,” Christina said over the intercom.

“Thanks, Christina. Send him in.”

Langston saved and clicked out of the excel file he was working on. His meeting with Mr. Shepard, the hospital’s CEO, had been postponed several times due to Langston’s hectic schedule. Langston supposed that was a good thing. If he had come face to face with the man weeks ago, he was liable to have choked the bastard with his bare hands.

“Come in,” Langston called out to the knock at the door.

“Langston, how are you?” Mr. Shepard grinned, certain he’d been called regarding a hefty donation to help build the new geriatric wing at Georgetown Memorial Hospital.

Standing, Langston reached across his desk and shook the man’s hand. “I’m doing well,” Langston said. He motioned to the chair in front of his desk. “Have a seat.

Taking his own seat, Langston settled his large frame into the supple leather desk chair. Making a tent with his hands in front of his face, he stared at the hospital administrator, struggling to quell the anger that was threatening to erupt. “Listen, Colin, I don’t have a lot of time, so I’m just going to make this quick. I’m resigning my position as board member over at Georgetown Memorial. And Warrington and Warrington will no longer be making yearly donations.”

The color drained from Colin Shepard’s face. He didn’t understand what Langston was saying. Frankly, he didn’t care if Langston resigned as a board member. There was always some wealthy philanthropist standing in line willing to take his place. But the loss of the generous monetary donation would greatly affect the hospital’s operating budget.

“I-I don’t understand,” the man stammered. “Your family’s firm has been donating money for years. We depend on those funds.”

“I’m sure you don’t understand. So I’m going to help you,” Langston clipped out. By the time he finished tearing into the hospital administrator for the role he’d played in denying Ava the chance to hold Zoe, the man was drenched with sweat.

“Mrs. Warrington…your mother…said the baby should be immediately removed from the delivery room.”

Langston gritted his teeth when the man said “removed from the delivery room” as if his child was an object. The muscle in his jaw twitched as he spoke through clenched teeth. “Is it standard hospital protocol not to let the birth mother hold her child?”

“W-why, no. Only if that’s what she wants,” Colin stammered.

Dragging a large hand down his face, Langston growled, “So you gave the green light to your staff to deny a mother the right to hold her child? Is that what you’re telling me, Colin?”