The Arrangement

by Cassie Verano

  Pulling my hands through my hair, I risked a glance at Lake and asked, “What do you want from me?”

  “What I’ve always wanted. You. And before we rehash that same argument, I just want the chance to change your mind. Don’t give up on me. Let me continue having one date at a time to change your mind. Am I worth the risk for a shot at love, Z?”

  My heart banged wildly around in my chest.

  “Love?”

  “Love. I love you, Z. All I want to know is...am I worth the risk?”

  Confidence burrowed deep within under the layers of fear that it had been hiding under and poked its head out. Like a growing flame fanned by the winds, it increased in strength until it pushed its way up from my belly, through my chest, up into the tunnel of my throat, and out of my mouth.

  But logic and reality set in.

  “I don’t know, Lake. I’d like to say yes, but...I’m still struggling with the thought of turning away from a guarantee to a, maybe.”

  “Let’s just try this temporary arrangement. You and I date until either I change your mind, or your wedding date arrives, and you’re walking down the aisle toward him.”

  “Okay,” I breathed out.

  The invitation he offered struck a chord of fear in my heart. Was I about to do this?

  CHAPTER 18 – XIOMARA

  WHILE I’D AGREED TO date Lake, we had spent little time together. I was busy at the office and seldom had time for dates on the weeknights or weekends.

  Yet, somehow Lake was never too far. Sometimes he’d pop up when I least expected him to. Or he might just send me a quick text to check in on my day or even have flowers delivered to me at the office.

  And each time that I saw him, it stirred up a little more anticipation within me. The anticipation of our next encounter.

  As I sat in a suite at The Golden Arena in Durham, he was running through my mind. The possibility that he was somewhere near drove me crazy.

  And while I should have been paying attention to the game that played out on the court below, I wasn’t thinking about the players. Nor was I paying attention to the excited fans that shared the suite with us.

  Russell had invited me to the basketball game between the Dragons and the Atlanta Blaze. He’d been planning this date night for almost three weeks.

  It wasn’t really a date, but a business meeting. He was entertaining business constituents on behalf of his father, which was also part of his company’s collaboration with Lake’s charitable giving committee.

  There were three other couples besides us in the suite tonight.

  I’d dutifully entertained and responded as expected, nodding my head and saying yes in all the right places. There were even a few times when I would engage in intelligent conversation. But tonight, I was all burnt out.

  I didn’t want to be here, and I didn’t care to be watching the game. My mind was full of thoughts about the dinner party at Lake’s mansion. It would happen the week after Christmas.

  I’d finally given in to Russell’s request to go away for the weekend, and it coincided with the dinner party that Lake invited me to. I had difficulty deciding what to do, but I knew I had to decide soon.

  As much as I wanted to be with Lake, my priority was dealing with the impending marriage and the issues Russell and I was facing.

  A part of me felt guilty for not mentioning the dinner party to Russell.

  He and I had an agreement that we could do what we wanted in our private lives. And that included being involved with other people. But we also knew that we would have to keep everything low profile to avoid drawing attention to ourselves in the media.

  When we’d given our relationship a chance and started dating, we tried to be intimate. It hadn’t worked for me. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t turn me on.

  And truthfully, he wasn’t either.

  That bothered Russell, and he’d tried to excuse it away until he gave up.

  For me, it was a relief because I no longer had to drum up something I just didn’t feel. His attention turned back to his personal life, and we agreed to date for appearance’s sake only.

  An event at Lake’s was a private affair that I wasn’t worried about getting out to the media. But I also worried there might be guests there whom Russell knew. It was a simple decision; I needed to go away with Russell over the weekend.

  “Are you ready?” he asked, sitting beside me and taking my hand in his.

  Russell pressed a kiss to my cheek. Turning to send a stiff smile his way, I said, “Sure.”

  Looking around, I noticed that the game ended, and his constituents were picking up their things and preparing to leave.

  “Thanks so much for having us, Russell and Xiomara. I had a blast,” one of the men’s wives named Natalie said.

  “Great, I’m glad you could come out. We must do this again sometime soon,” I lied.

  “Yes, we should,” she agreed with no more intention of actually making it happen than I had.

  “Hopefully, the next time, not only can The Dragons pull off a win, but maybe they can avoid having another player added to the injured list,” Russell sneered.

  “I wonder how Chambers will handle this one,” Natalie’s husband, Mike, said.

  With two minutes remaining in the third quarter, the team’s starting guard had ended up on the injured players’ list, along with another of their star players who’d landed there earlier in the season. All night everyone had been making projections about how the injuries might impact the rest of their season and their chance to make it to the playoffs again.

  “Marc and I enjoyed ourselves,” Sandra Tyler, another woman, said, hugging me before we exchanged air kisses.

  I said my goodbyes to the other two couples as they left before grabbing my purse and walking to Russell’s side. When we opened the doors to the suite, I could see the other fans who held suite tickets pouring from their rooms as well.

  “Traffic’s going to be a nightmare. We should’ve escaped before now,” Russell said, looking around and grabbing my hand in his.

  “Did you call for the car to be pulled out front?” I asked.

  We were taking a chauffeured limo for the night. Our plans also included heading out to dinner, but I was tired and ready to go home.

  “Uh, yes,” he said, glancing at his watch.

  Slowly we made our way through the crowd, trying patiently to get to the elevators.

  “Z?” I heard behind me.

  Whipping my head around, I smiled when I saw Lake walking towards us. My heartbeat sped up, and my palms grew clammy. I pulled my hand from Russell’s and wiped them down the sides of my jeans, trying to calm my reaction to him.

  I’d never come face to face with Russell’s sexual partners. He guarded that part of his life carefully, and I’d always tried to give him the same respect that he gave me in that area.

  “Hi, Lake!” I greeted with a smile.

  “Didn’t know that you were into the sport,” he whispered in my ear as he returned my greeting with a hug.

  I simply laughed and pulled back from the hug.

  “Darden,” he said, exchanging a handshake with Russell and a nod.

  “Thanks for getting me that meeting with your people. I brought a group of interested parties to the game tonight. Too bad they didn’t win,” Russell said.

  Lake gave a brief nod of his head before saying, “Yeah? Well, there will be other opportunities.”

  “I’m sure there will be. Well, I look forward to working with you soon.”

  Lake bobbed his head from side to side. “Maybe. Or you might work with my team.”

  “Either way, I look forward to it,” Russell said.

  Lake’s gaze turned back to me, and I could see the cool questioning look in his eyes, despite the smile on his lips.

  “I was sorry to hear about Omari Johnson’s injury. Have you all heard anything back yet on his diagnosis?”

  Lake pulled a hand down his face and shook his head, pl
anting his other hand firmly on his hip. That pose gave me the perfect view of his hard chest muscles, and the flat planes of what I knew were tight abs underneath that crisp white dress shirt that he wore.

  The first three buttons of his button-down dress shirt were unbuttoned, giving me a slight glimpse of the dark hairs on his chest. My eyes went to his Adam’s apple as it bobbed up and down, and I wanted to lick that spot.

  Not only did he smell good as hell tonight, but he looked so damn good, too. In that tailor-made royal blue suit that he was wearing, I shifted to squeeze my thighs tight.

  “He’s still with the doctors right now, and they don’t have a word. I just left the locker room with him, the medics, and the coaching staff. They’re about to transport him to the hospital, and his wife and the coach will accompany him. I’ve told them to keep me posted.”

  “Wow. I can’t imagine how difficult this is for him or the rest of the team. I’m really sorry, Lake. This season means a lot to you guys, and...your players.”

  I knew that Lake had a compassionate heart. He always had held a heart of gold that was nothing more than a humble servant’s heart, despite the wealth that he accumulated. So, if he never said a word about his concern over his players, I still would’ve known how he felt.

  “Thanks, Z.”

  Reaching out to pat his shoulder, I said, “Stay focused and positive. You were always the one that told me whenever you send out positive energy, you’ll get that back. I’ll be sending out positive energy for you guys, too.”

  His eyes darkened, and he smiled at me. “Thanks, Z. That means a lot coming from you,” he said in a low tone as he rubbed the back of his neck.

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Well, uh...I think we’d better be getting home, honey. I’m tired, and I’ve got an early day tomorrow, and I know you do, too. Besides, today’s been a long one,” Russell said, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and pulling me closer to him.

  His actions surprised me. Showing affection towards me wasn’t something that Russell and I had cultivated between us. On the few occasions it occurred, I’d known to expect it. And even then, it was something that took some time to get used to.

  I looked up at him, my eyebrows dipping down as I forced a smile to my lips. “Um, yeah...sure, Russ.”

  He ran his hand up and down the ball of my shoulder a few times before he leaned down to kiss my lips. I pulled back slightly in surprise, at the same time that I heard a subtle rumble deep in Lake’s throat, which also caught me off guard.

  Pulling away from Russell’s grasp, I said, “Good night, Lake. Keep me posted on Omari’s status, okay?”

  Lake didn’t respond immediately, his dark gaze glaring at Russell, who was oblivious to the spark he’d ignited in Lake. I could see the vein throbbing in Lake’s forehead and the way he worked his jaw back and forth. I prayed that Lake would just keep his cool. There was no room for jealousy or volatile behaviors.

  “Lake?” I prompted again.

  “Uh...yeah, sure,” he said before turning around and marching away.

  Inhaling deeply, I turned around to head back toward the elevators. I could feel Russell right behind me, and his hand rested gently at my waist by the time we arrived at the elevators.

  The crowd had lessened, so when the next available elevator arrived, we could embark. Russell said nothing on the ride down to the main level, as we weren’t the only ones in the elevator.

  Even after we’d made it to the lobby, making our way through the diminishing crowd, he still said nothing. It wasn’t until we were safely in the confines of the limo being brisked away from Durham and back to the sleepy town of Sunset Harbor that he finally spoke up.

  “Is that something that I should concern myself about?” he asked.

  “What are you talking about, Russ?” I asked, removing my shoes and pulling my feet onto the seat with me.

  “That moment between you and Lake Chambers. The energy. Does he want you?” he asked with a tone that showed the idea had never occurred to him before.

  “No,” I replied in a bored tone, staring out the window. “We’ve been friends since middle school. He’s just a good friend, someone that I care about. That’s all.”

  Russell shifted to the seat beside me.

  “Have you ever been with him before?”

  “What?” I asked, whipping my head around to stare at him in shock and disbelief.

  “I’m just asking, is there something between the two of you. Something that I might need to be aware of?”

  “No,” I lied. I wasn’t even sure why I did, but I honestly didn’t think that was the time to share the news with Russell.

  “Look, I’m sorry. It’s not like I want to pry, but the Dragons made it to the playoffs last year. Despite their injured list, we have every reason to believe they’ll make it again this year, so he’ll be in the media spotlight. The media will focus on him from every corner. I don’t want us caught off guard, making us look like fools. If you two are out and about, you need to be aware of cameras lurking at every turn. This is important,” he emphasized with a sigh.

  “Oh, that’s rich!” I scoffed with cynical laughter.

  “What?”

  “You’re going to have the nerve to lecture me on my sex life when we know what this is? When we both know that you’re with several women, often?”

  I never judged Russell about his sexual proclivities because I didn’t believe in judging people. Anyone could sit around all day and judge other folks, but how easy was it when that finger was pointed back at you?

  I didn’t believe there were perfect people in the world. Everyone has secrets, sometimes even some skeletons we’d like to keep hidden away. No one is in a place to judge someone else. But I also wouldn’t have him judging me.

  “Xiomara, what I do in my private time has never leaked to the world. And whom I do it with no one has any interest in. So, you don’t have to worry about me being careless or my sex life impacting you, I assure you. I’m very careful about what I do.”

  “As I stated before, Lake is just a very good friend,” I insisted.

  In the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but recall how friendly Russell was with my father. And I didn’t trust him not to let this news accidentally leak to him.

  “Well, if that’s the story you’re sticking to, my only suggestion is to watch yourself around him when others are near. Standing there watching your exchange, I could see it in his eyes he wanted you. And you? Let’s just say that two mountains peaked under your blouse with just one look from him. Not to mention that he looked ready to rip my head off when I tried to kiss you.”

  “What?”

  “Xiomara, can I be honest with you?”

  “Please, don’t stop now,” I said, taken aback by the turn the conversation had taken.

  “If we’re about to get married, I need to know what’s going on. And that back there? That wasn’t friendly energy. It was anything but, and I don’t have a problem with whom you’re dating but just keep me abreast of what’s going on. Don’t leave me in the dark. That’s all I ask.”

  “Look, let’s just call it a night. I don’t feel like grabbing anything to eat.”

  “Okay, but we have to talk, Xiomara. Did you even decide about our weekend getaway?”

  “Yes,” I said as my stomach sank. “I’ll go.”

  “Good,” he replied, grabbing my hand. “I think this is the best thing for us.”

  Turning to the window, my gaze drew outside to the passing lights. But I saw nothing except a road of heartache ahead.

  CHAPTER 19 – LAKE

  “WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL us that your sister was in town?”

  I sat my silverware down on my plate and met my father’s stern gaze.

  “I didn’t know that she hadn’t told you,” I said.

  My sister had come to town in October, left for a while, and then returned at the beginning of December.

  She had spent most of her time with c
lose friends or hanging out at my house. Unfortunately, she’d refused to tell our parents on her own. My mom had run into her at a little boutique in our town.

  My father stared at me, and I returned his gaze unflinchingly.

  Clearing her throat, Harlow spoke up. “I asked Lake not to say anything. I decided that I’d tell you guys when I was ready.”

  “When you were ready. And you’ve been here for how long?”

  Sighing, she said, “Three weeks this time, Dad.”

  “Three weeks, and you’re just coming to see your mother and me on Christmas day?”

  “Steven, please, as you said, it’s Christmas. Can we do this some other time?” my mom spoke up from the other end of the table.

  “No, we can’t. We can do this today. We gave our pampered children the best of everything in life. They never learned to appreciate the little things. They don’t appreciate their parents who’ve given them everything. One’s a liar, and the other avoids us like the plague,” my father said.

  Rolling my eyes, I struggled to control both my temper and my breathing.

  “What is it you want from us, Dad?”

  “I want you and your sister to show a little respect and appreciation for all that your mother and I have done for you,” he seethed.

  “Lake,” Harlow warned with a subtle shake of her head. She had always been the peacekeeper between my father and me.

  My mother had tried in the earlier years, but I soon realized that it was only a facade. She didn’t care as long as our arguments didn’t spill out into the public arena so that others could see the chip in our flawed family.

  “No, if he’s got something on his mind, let him say it,” my father urged.

  Pushing my plate away, I shook my head. Grabbing my napkin from the table, I dabbed at my mouth and tossed it back onto the table.

  “Can we please just have a Merry Christmas for once?” Harlow plead.

  “Yes, Steve, leave it alone,” my mother chimed in, to my surprise.

  But the anger brewing in my father’s eyes let me know that would not be the case.

  “No, I think if our son has something to say, he should say it.”