CHAPTER 32
E
veryone else had left, but Nathan was still at the office. He twirled a pen, deep in thought as he looked at the view from his corner office on the seventeenth floor. What Broderick’s East Coast contact heard was true. Because of country club connections and old money clout, Nathan was in danger of losing the Morris Environmental project—a lucrative potential contract that had helped get him promoted—to an Ivy League grad several years his junior. If that happened, then not only would the company lose big money but a year’s worth of research, networking and relationship-building would have all been for naught. Crazy thoughts that had troubled last night’s sleep continued to plague him and today’s conversation and research only deepened his concern. Instead of running from problems, Nathan usually raced toward them. The quicker he reacted the faster they got resolved. He reached for the phone and scheduled an appointment with his contact at Morris. After reconfirming the time and date, he made another call.
“Dr. Sullivan speaking.”
“Dr. Sullivan, this is Nate, Randall’s brother-in-law.”
“Nate! Call me James, man. Randall told me you might be calling.”
“I’ll do just about anything to shut my sister up. She’s the one who keeps hounding me to get a checkup, even though I told her that lately I’ve felt fine.”
“I’ll be glad to work with you, Nate, but I’m curious as to why you don’t just go to your regular physician?”
“The main reason is I don’t have time.” He told James about his promotion and his hectic schedule. “I remember your treating Mom privately and since I have a business trip to New York coming up I was hoping you could do that for me. I could tell Sherri the results and shut her mouth . . . about my health, at least.”
James laughed. “You have a lovely sister, Nathan. Now your brother-in-law on the other hand . . .”
“Straight hoodlum. I’d give him the shirt off my back.”
“He’s a good man. Now, let’s talk about this appointment . . .”
Jessica frantically pushed the elevator button, hoping to escape without having to deal with Vincent. After catching Nathan still at work and finding out he couldn’t come over tonight, and tomorrow was leaving on a last-minute trip, she’d stayed late to help with a large data entry and indexing project,just for something to do. Now she wished she’d left early. Being around Vincent’s natural, happy-go-lucky nature seemed to illuminate the sadness of finding out she wouldn’t see Nathan tonight and knowing she wouldn’t hear from her sis.
“I wasn’t sure you heard me, beautiful. Thanks for holding the door.”
“No problem.” She watched the descending numbers, her mood sinking along with them. She thought to get off and take the stairs. As she reached toward the elevator buttons, Vincent caught her arm.
“Scared to be alone with me?”
She turned to give him a smart answer and encountered eyes filled with affection and concern. To her surprise, instead of curse words a sob burst from her throat.
Vincent sprang into action, wrapping her tightly in his arms. “Hey, it’s okay,” he whispered as if to a child, wiping her tears and rocking softly. “I’m right here.”
The breakdown ended as quickly as it had begun. Jessica pushed away from him, embarrassed and angry at herself. “Thanks, but it’s nothing. I’m just . . .” She couldn’t continue, couldn’t think of a word or a lie or anything to say that would stop the tears that seemed intent on flowing.
They reached the parking lot. Jessica immediately recognized Vincent’s BMW in its usual reserved spot. He bypassed it and continued walking with her.
“I’m not going to leave you like this. You’ve been on edge for weeks.”
“I’ll be all right.”
“Maybe, but I won’t.” She reached her car. He stepped forward and placed his hand on the door. “I know something’s bothering you. Even though you look like a movie star, I can see the pain beneath the makeup.” She continued to stand there, not meeting his eyes. “A burden is lighter when shared. Do you want to meet for a drink and talk about it?”
“I just want to go home.”
“That’s fine. Text me your address and I’ll meet you there.” He began walking, then stopped and turned. “And if you don’t, I will find you. Trust me on that.”
Fifteen minutes later, Vincent and Jessica sat in her living room with glasses of wine.
“Thanks for bugging me until I agreed to let you come over. I need to talk to someone, but there’s no one I can trust.”
“You can trust me.”
She looked at him, her bright doe-eyes shining with the hope this could be true. “I want to believe that. It’s the only reason you’re here. If you ever betray me . . .” Her words faltered as she remembered similar words being said by Sissy last night.
“My word is my bond,” Vincent said. “Whatever you share will stay between us.”
She took a breath and a drink, staring at but not seeing the muted TV turned to VH1. “On Friday . . . I got engaged.”
“You have my sincere condolences.”
Such an unexpected answer delivered in such an overtly somber tone made Jessica burst out laughing. “You’re stupid.”
“I’d do anything to see you smile. And I was only partly joking. Any man would be lucky to marry you, but I was hoping that man might be me.”
“You just met somebody who you said you wanted to date.”
“What I said is that I’d go out on a second date with her, and that’s only because you aren’t available. Damn, engaged? You’re really off the market now. If you’re happy, I guess congratulations are in order.” He eyed her silent countenance. “But it doesn’t look like you’re happy.”
“It’s complicated.”
“Coming from one newly engaged, that doesn’t sound too promising.”
“My . . . I have some . . . family members who don’t want me to marry him.”
“Why not?”
“They have their reasons.”
“Maybe, but at the end of the day they aren’t going to be married to Nathan. You are. So you need to go with how you feel.”
“Even if she’s . . . if they’re threatening to cut me out of their lives?”
“That’s a strong ultimatum. They must have a damn good reason, or at least think they do, to take a position that hard.”
“I understand their position. They don’t understand mine!”
“Then you have to stick with the decision that will make you happy.”
“That’s just it. No decision I make will be the right one. There’s more to it, stuff that I can’t talk about.”
“Then let’s not talk. Come here. Let me just hold you in my arms until you feel better.”
“That sounds good, Vincent.” He reached for her. She stood abruptly. “In the vulnerable state I’m in right now, it sounds too good. Thanks for listening and for coming over but . . .”
“Now that I’ve made you feel better, you’re going to kick me out.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I’ve told you before that I’m here for you. I mean that.” He walked to the door. “I also meant what I said about keeping a confidence. I’ll handle what we discussed the same as I would attorney-client privilege.”
She followed him to the door. “I appreciate that.”
He turned. They hugged. Jessica placed her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder as he rubbed her back. Lower. Slower. Pulling away before his desire physically made itself known.
“Nathan’s a lucky man. I hope he knows it.”
Jessica waved as Vincent neared the hallway stairs, thinking that if he knew the whole story he’d realize that he, not Nathan, was the lucky one.
CHAPTER 33
N
athan multitasked, determined to keep the engagement he’d committed to this Friday night. It had been a rough week, but his trip to New York had been productive and for once he had no work on his weekend agenda.
“No, I didn’t get to Broadway, or any other entertainment venue,” he said, talking via speakerphone while he shaved. “It was a one-and-a-half-day trip and all business. I’m glad I didn’t miss you, though. How long will you be in town?”
“A week or so, I’m thinking. Now that you’ve mentioned being in one of my favorite cities, I might take a weekend to see friends in New York.”
“Then how does a weeknight work for meeting up? If nothing else, we can have a quick drink or light meal. Plus you can meet . . .” He stopped in mid-shave, surprised to hear his front door open and close. He looked at the clock, picked up his cell phone from off the counter, and walked to the top of the stairs just as Jessica stepped inside. “Develia, let me call you back.”
“All right, darling. Don’t forget. I can’t wait to see you.”
“Me too.” He ended the call.
Jessica looked up. “Who was that?”
“Come here, babe!” He opened his arms to welcome her. “You’re here early but no worries. I’m almost done.”
“The errand I ran didn’t take as long as I thought . . . or as long as
you
thought,” she muttered, with no move toward him.
Nathan dropped his arms, shook his head, and returned to the bathroom.
Instead of defusing the situation, his dismissive gesture pissed Jessica off. Gone all week, barely called her, and the first thing she hears is him on the phone with a random? She stomped up the stairs, rushed into the en suite bathroom and shut off the water he was using to shave. “Why don’t you want to answer my question? Who was that chick on the phone?”
Nathan calmly turned the water back on and placed a towel under the steaming hot stream. “I have no problem answering your question.” He wrung out the water and pressed the hot towel against his face. “What I don’t want to do is argue with the woman I’ve been missing all week, especially after fourteen-hour days, tense business meetings, and nights spent alone.What I’d like is a hug and a welcome home.” Jessica continued to stand there, waiting. “No?” He shrugged. “Okay.”
He reached for aftershave and splashed it on his face, followed by a special cream. Rubbing a strong hand across a smooth jawbone and satisfied with the result, he put away his shaving equipment and left the bathroom. Jessica wasn’t far behind.
“The woman I was talking to is from the Bahamas. Her name is Dev.” He walked into his large, custom-made closet and began to dress.
“How’d you meet her?” Her body was as stiff as the closet door she stood next to.
“At a club I went to on New Year’s Eve.”
“During our vacation?” She shifted her body weight and crossed her arms.
“By then our vacation had turned into my vacation.”
“Didn’t take you long to get over our argument, I see.”
“I wasn’t over what happened. But I was in the Caribbean and it was New Year’s Eve.”
“I brought the New Year in alone.”
“That was your choice.”
“No, it was yours. I asked you to leave with me.”
A silent Nathan finished buttoning his shirt and walked to the tie rack.
“You must have fucked her since it’s something you felt the need to hide.”
“The call was on speaker and that didn’t change when I saw you. Does it look like I’m hiding?” He turned his attention to tying his tie without waiting for an answer.
“Had I not walked in on your conversation would I have ever known about her?”
“As a matter of fact, yes. I would have introduced her when I took you with me to meet her for dinner and drinks. And since I’m sure you’ll assume the worst, she’s not in town just to see me. She has business in the area.”
She looked pointedly at his groin area. “Is that what she calls it?”
“What the hell is wrong with you? Did something happen while I was gone that I need to know about? Because I don’t need this type of drama tonight.”
Jessica calmed her voice. “Since I haven’t heard from you since Wednesday, it didn’t feel good to come in and hear you talking to another woman. That’s all.”
“I didn’t call you because I knew I’d see you in an hour. I didn’t call her either.” He turned and looked at her a long moment, his expression unreadable. “Let’s go. We’ll be late for dinner.”
On the way to the restaurant, not one word was said. But their thoughts could have filled a library.
The evening did not go well. Steve was his usual affable self and Allison was warm and friendly despite the fact that there’d been no romantic spark between Nathan and Olivia, the cousin she’d tried to set up. No matter. It would have taken the heat of a five-alarm fire to thaw the chill between Nathan and Jessica, especially when a still angry Jessica spoke only when asked a direct question and even then she answered with as few words as possible. Nathan and Steve kept up a lively banter, but when Allison asked Nathan and Jessica to join them at a jazz club, Nathan declined.
He’d hidden his chagrin well while in front of company, but once in the car, Nathan exploded. “I can’t believe the way you acted tonight, even after I told you about my week and made it clear that I wanted a peaceful evening. If you didn’t want to come here and meet my friends, you should have let me know.”
“I did meet them.”
“Yes, you did, unfortunately, and acted uncivilized to a very good friend of mine and his new lady. Being rude and antisocial was uncalled for, Jessica. That type of behavior not only makes you look bad, but affects me, too.”
“So I was supposed to laugh and chitchat like everything was fine between us when you didn’t talk to me in the car? I’m not going to pretend just to make you look good. I’m always going to keep it real.”
“Real, huh? Is that what you call it?”
“That’s exactly what I call it.”
“I got it. Tonight I meet the
real
Jessica Bolton.”
An uneasy quiet descended as Nathan drove through the rain-soaked streets of Atlanta, as Friday night revelers filled Peachtree Boulevard, heading here and there. At the loft, Nathan bypassed the garage entrance and stopped by Jessica’s car.
“Why are you stopping here?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“You’re putting me out?”
“No, you did that yourself.”
“What? Because I wouldn’t—”
He threw up a hand in frustration.
She flinched.
His hand came down slowly as he looked at her. “You thought I was going to hit you?”
“It wouldn’t have surprised me.” She got out of his car and into her own, and sped away.
Nathan watched her leave and then pulled into the garage, drained. Last weekend he proposed to a woman he hadn’t known long, but thought he knew well enough to share the rest of his life with her. Tonight he felt like he’d dined with a stranger. That she was also the woman he loved and his fiancée was a major problem. Before they got married, Nathan vowed to himself, it was one that would get solved.
A part of her regretted the argument before her car left his block. Sissy hadn’t returned her calls. She hadn’t seen Nathan all week. Last night Jessica was glad she hadn’t heard from her sister. She’d traded dreaded thoughts of poison for fantasies of passion and had counted down the hours to being in her lover’s arms.
Then she’d heard the woman’s voice.
Why did I get so angry?
She knew the answer. The sound of a woman’s voice in Nathan’s house had triggered bad memories. Walking in as they conversed took her right back to many such moments during her marriage, when Edwin would talk on the phone with one of his many women. She could be sitting right beside him and he’d put the call on speaker, blatantly throwing his infidelity in her face.
Jessica and Edwin were sitting on a loveseat in their theater /game room when his cell phone rang.
“What’s up, sexy?” He put the call on speaker.
“I don’t know,” a sickeningly sweet voice purred through the phone. “But I know what I want to get up . . . that thick, stiff piece you’re working with.”
She immediately recognized the caller’s voice.
I can’t believe he got with that NBA groupie.
She gave him a look of disgust and prepared to rise. His large hand gripped her shoulder. She couldn’t move.
He shifted, spreading his legs as his dick hardened as if on command. “That can be arranged.”
Again, Jessica tried to leave. This time, Edwin yanked her back by her hair.
“Name the time and the place, baby.”
“Stay by your phone. I’ll hollah back in ten.”
“I’ll be right here, wet and waiting.”
He sneered at Jessica. “Yeah, get that pussy ready for me.” Ending the call, he turned to Jessica. “Did I say you could go anywhere?”
“Why do you think I want to sit here while you talk to one of your whores?”
“I don’t give a damn what you want. It’s all about what I want.”
He reached out and flicked her nipple. She shrank away from him. Wrong move. He quickly pinned her on the loveseat, ripped off the thong she wore beneath a spandex mini and once he’d pulled out his rock-hard dick, plunged it inside her. She knew better than to fight him, had no thought to voice an objection. So she did what she’d learned to do when just ten years old. She took her mind someplace else, acted as though the assault was happening to somebody else.
When he was done and finally left the house, she took a long shower, but after scrubbing for half an hour she still did not feel clean.
By the time Jessica had driven the seven minutes to her house and entered her condo, regret was receding and justification was gathering steam. Whether or not she’d overreacted, the fact remained that Nathan had been talking to a female. And not just any woman but one he met in paradise on New Year’s Eve! She decided to take a shower, and while under the spray justification wavered a bit and regret gained an edge. It may not have been the best move to embarrass Nathan in front of his friends. Steve seemed like a good person, and when Allison had tried to engage Jessica, she’d appeared genuine
. While I acted like an asshole, and kept it real.
“Real stupid,” she muttered, getting out of the shower and dressing for bed. She was tired of thinking: about tonight, the engagement, the assignment, the whole sordid mess. She wanted someone to come and take care of her, to protect her and tell her what to do. Someone like . . . Shutting off her mind from depressing thoughts, she climbed into bed and reached for the TV remote. Beside it was the burner phone. In spite of her resolve not to think about her, Jessica picked it up and realized the battery had died. She plugged it in, turned it on and set it back on the nightstand.
A few seconds later an indicator pinged. Again, and then a third time. Jessica snatched up the phone in disbelief. Missed calls! From Sissy. She hit Redial, feeling better already. She’d effed up with her boyfriend, but her sister had called!