No Greater Loyalty

by S. K. Hardy

  For the last two years, Keisha had gone all out for Dominick’s birthday. It was almost tradition now, but with everything going on, of course there would have to be a change of plans.

  Keisha shrugged. "I don’t even know if Dominick would be up for doing anything, so..."

  "Why don't you just plan something here in Vegas," Aleesha suggested. "Maybe rent a room at a nice hotel for the weekend, pamper yourselves, maybe catch a couple of shows. Just relax."

  "That's a great idea," Jerra joined in.

  Keisha smiled and sat up warming to the idea. She'd already cancelled their flight and hotel reservations in the Bahamas, which was a trip she'd planned six months in advance, but this sounded doable.

  Keisha nibble on her lips. "Do you think Dominick would agree?"

  "Why not? Of course, it won’t be a surprise because you’ll have to tell him, but it’s only going to be for a couple of days," Aleesha said.

  "Besides, you guys could use a little private time," Jerra added.

  Keisha’s nod of agreement came quick. "Yes, we could. I'd been looking forward to having some alone time with Dominick to just reconnect...although we've been 'reconnecting' pretty good since last night." A dreamy expression crossed her face as she thought about how much they'd made up for the dry spell that had taken over in their sex life lately.

  "Oh please, don't even go there. I go for my six week checkup Wednesday, and once I get the green light I plan on putting a serious hurting on my husband, believe that!" Aleesha's body tingled just thinking about it.

  "Girl, please, you'll be lucky if you're able to walk straight by the time Marcus finishes with you," Keisha snickered.

  They went back and forth with lascivious jokes before eventually returning to the subject of Keisha and Dom's upcoming getaway. Soon after, they heard the men coming back inside and smoothly changed the subject. About a half an hour later, the two couples collected their kids and told Marcus and Aleesha goodnight.

  Outside, Dom buckled Christian into his car seat and made sure Samantha had her seat belt on before climbing behind the wheel of their car. After backing out, he glanced at Keisha. Russ had stayed and kept guard over the house while Benny followed them to Marcus's house. Dominick could tell that Keisha seemed to be a little bit more relaxed with the set up.

  He held his hand out, smiling when she curled her fingers around his with no hesitation. "You okay?"

  With her head leaning back on the headrest, Keisha nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. I really think everything is going to work out, Dominick."

  "It will, baby. I promise you that."

  Keisha returned his smile then turned her head to look out of the window. A comfortable silence fell between them the rest of the way home. What she told Dominick was true, she did believe that everything would be okay; to get through this, she had to. Keisha was determined to do her part to reassure Dom and make sure he didn't worry about his family. She would take care of home. The only thing she needed him to do in Mexico was take care of himself and come back safely.

  CHAPTER 22

  Later that night, Jerra turned over and looked at the numbers illuminated on the clock again. Darrell still hadn't come to bed. Missing his warmth beside her, she threw the covers back and left the bedroom in search of him.

  Frowning as she made her way down the stairs, Jerra thought about how he'd been acting earlier. The entire time they'd been at Marcus and Aleesha's house, Darrell had laughed and talked with everyone, but Jerra could sense something was on his mind. As a matter of fact, he'd been preoccupied for the last couple of days...ever since he'd had that conversation with his mother.

  Jerra knew he was working through a lot so she was trying to give him space to do that, especially after gently questioning him a time or two with little success. She'd thought about asking Tina what they'd talked about, but decided it was best to just leave it alone. Darrell would come to her when he was ready to talk.

  Jerra looked in his 'man cave' first, fully expecting to find him there, but when she saw he wasn’t, she headed to the family room. Blowing in frustration, she then went to the kitchen. Passing the French doors leading to the outside entertainment area, she paused when she saw a movement by the pool. Peering through the glass panes, she saw Darrell standing by the pool.

  Her eyes narrowed as she watched him take a long drag of a cigarette then lift his head slightly and exhale. That was another thing that sent up a red flag. Darrell had stopped smoking over five years ago the moment he found out Jerra was pregnant. Even with all the stress surrounding Tina these last few months, it still hadn't triggered him to pick the nasty habit up again.

  However, something had. But what? Opening the door, her bare feet were silent as she made her way to the far side of the pool.

  Darrell heard her approach but didn't turn around. With one hand in the pocket of his gray sweat pants, he tilted head to the side a bit so that he could see her as soon as she came into his line of vision. Jerra slipped her arms around his waist from behind and rested her cheek against the middle of his back. She inhaled, enjoying the subtle sexy scent of his cologne.

  "Couldn't sleep?" she asked.

  Darrell took one last drag of the cigarette before dropping it on the concrete tiles. Stepping on it with the toe of his shoe, he shook his head. "Nah. Not tired, I guess. What are you doin' up?"

  "You know I'm restless if you're not there beside me," Jerra smiled, sprinkling little kisses over his bare, muscular back.

  "You mean you restless until I break you off a piece of this dick. After that, you sleep better than baby Addy," he teased.

  Giggling, she nodded. "Uh-huh. That too. So how 'bout it?"

  Darrell chuckled. "Tell ya what, give me a few more minutes and I'll be right up."

  The smile slowly disappeared from Jerra's face. "Baby, what is it? Tell me."

  "Just some shit I'm tryin' to work out in my head before I put it into words and say it out loud, J. You know? It's like..." He paused and sighed before shaking his head. "I promise we'll talk tomorrow. Okay?"

  She hesitated for a moment before answering, but really, what could she do? She couldn't make him talk to her if he wasn't ready. "Okay, but you know you can come to me about anything. No matter what it is."

  Darrell turned around and loosely rested his hands on her hips as he stared down at her. "I know, sweetheart. I promise. Tomorrow."

  Jerra relaxed and nodded. "I'll see you when you come to bed."

  Darrell leaned down and gave her a soft kiss before patting her butt when she turned to leave.

  Jerra looked over her shoulder before she went inside and saw that he was once again staring out into the darkness. Closing the door, she stood watching him for a few moments. Jerra knew whatever was troubling him had to do with the conversation he'd had with Tina a couple of days ago. She hoped he meant it when he said they would talk tomorrow because she planned on holding him to it. The two of them were stronger as a unit when there was a problem. Together, there wasn't anything they couldn't work out.

  Just as she was getting ready to walk away from the door, she saw him pull his cell out and stare at it. After a few minutes, he punched in a number and brought the phone to his ear. Jerra tilted her head to the side as she watched him. Who was he calling at this hour? She shook her head as she dismissed the question. It could only be Marcus or Dominick.

  But she couldn't see him calling either of them this late. Marcus had just gotten the baby and the kids home and Dominick was going through a lot with this situation regarding that Melania woman and his son. So…who was he calling?

  Trying to shake away the uneasy feeling she felt, Jerra headed out the kitchen to go back upstairs. It was no big deal. All she had to do was ask him if she wanted to know.

  However, as she climbed back into bed to wait on him, Jerra couldn't stop herself from shivering with apprehension. After pulling the blanket over her, she absently rubbed her neck where the prickling sensation seemed to have taken up permanent resi
dence. As much as she tried to convince herself that nothing was wrong, the telltale sixth sense that had served her well during her years as a defense attorney told her different.

  She closed her eyes tightly as the tingling sensation persisted. In the courtroom, it had always been an indication that a defendant on the stand was being untruthful or trying to hide something they didn't want her to discover; more times than not, her instinct was dead on.

  Why was she feeling that way now about Darrell?

  Darrell stared at his phone. He’d been contemplating making this phone call for the last two hours. If he was going to do it, he needed to do it now and get it over with.

  After Tina revealed the identity of his father a couple of nights ago, he'd done a little digging into Isaac Pattel and the Pattel family. Tina had mentioned she'd tried to contact Darrell’s brother at Pattel Industries, so that's where he'd started his search. He'd discovered that Pattel Industries was only one of the company's under the vast umbrella of the Pattel Corporation.

  The usual information was public knowledge and readily available, but when Darrell started probing into some of its other holdings, an icy hand of dread had gripped him tight and refused to let go.

  The Pattel Corporation owned an array of diverse businesses, everything from restaurants, a franchise of fitness centers…and nightclubs. Its latest acquisitions were nightclubs he knew very well: Club Fantasy in New York. Club Bliss in Atlanta. And Club Ecstasy in Vegas. What were the odds that his father's company owned clubs that he helped cultivate and build into successful businesses?

  Although, Darrell had sold his share in all three clubs to his former business partner, Bryan Hargrove, right after he and Jerra got married, Club Ecstasy would always hold a special place in his heart because it was where his world drastically changed for the better.

  Years later when he met Jerra, he'd willingly let that part of his life go, and that meant selling all three of the successful clubs. Bryan eventually sold them to a foreign investor. Or at least, that's what he'd been told.

  He didn't find out until much later that yes, foreign investors had bought fifty percent...but Roni had ownership of the other half. Years later, how had the Pattels come to completely own all three?

  Again Darrell looked at the number he'd pulled up on his phone, his thumb hovering over the connect button. He couldn't help but think that shit always had a way of coming full circle. Tina, his sperm donor...and now Roni.

  Bryan had told him everything he knew about the business deal that had transpired between Roni and the Pattels. Apparently the transaction had been recent. After the Europeans sold their part of their holdings to the Pattels, Roni had refused to entertain any offer from them for a long time until recently.

  Bryan reluctantly divulged to Darrell that she had met someone and it was pretty serious. She wanted to just let go of any excess baggage and enjoy life and her new relationship so she’d decided to sell.

  The thing that caught Darrell’s interest in all of this though, was the fact that Roni had met with one of the Pattels personally a couple of days ago, but that was all Bryan would say on the matter. He felt anything more should come directly from Roni.

  Darrell had been going back and forth trying to decide whether or not to call her about it. To be honest, he’d never expected to talk to Roni again. They'd said all they had to say to each other a couple of years ago when he’d flown to the Caribbean. That decision had almost cost him his marriage and his wife's trust. Was this…curiosity about the Pattels worth taking the risk of possibly losing Jerra for good this time? Even if his reasons for calling Roni were purely innocent, it still could cause irreparable harm to his relationship.

  But it was just a phone call. Nothing personal. After he found out what he wanted to know, then that would be the end of it. Ten, fifteen minutes tops.

  Quickly coming to a decision, he connected the call and brought the phone to his ear. Darrell cleared his throat as he waited. It should be around 6 a.m. there. Thinking about the time difference made him wonder if it was a little too early to be calling, but he immediately dismissed the thought. She'd always been an early riser...

  "Hello?"

  He heard the hesitance in her voice when she answered. She knew it was him and was probably wondering why he, of all people, was calling.

  "Roni? It's Darrell."

  A brief heavy silence fell between them before Roni answered. "I know. How are you? Is everything okay?"

  "Yeah, yeah, everything's good. I'm fine. Family's fine. How are you?"

  "I'm well, thank you."

  "Good."

  Again the polite quietness crept between them. Each recognized how stiff and formal things sounded between them, even more of a reason to make this quick.

  "I, uh, guess I was the last person you expected to be callin' you."

  "Well...sort of," Roni laughed.

  "I know this is going to sound strange, but I'm callin' in reference to Club Ecstasy. Or rather, the company who bought it along with the other two clubs."

  It was clear Darrell had taken her by surprise once again. "Okay," she answered slowly. "What about it?"

  "I spoke to Bryan earlier today. I'm a little shocked your cousin didn't try and warn you that I'd be calling. I know how protective he is when it comes to you."

  "Ohhhh, that's why he was calling me. I was actually unavailable to take the call when it came through, and by the time I was able to call him back, it was too late your time. However, you have me now..." She paused as her tongue tripped over itself when she heard how that sounded out loud. "I...I mean...you have me…on the phone, not..."

  “It’s okay, I know what you meant,” Darrell said in a low voice.

  On her end, Roni dropped the phone down to her side and took a couple of deep breaths before bringing it back to her ear. Looking over her shoulder at the sleeping figure in the bed, she asked in a quieter, voice, "What can I do for you, Darrell? What did you need to know about the Pattel Corporation?"

  "Bryan said you didn't know the Pattels prior to selling them the clubs, but that you'd recently met with one of them?"

  "Yes, I did happen to meet a member of the family by chance here on the island, but…"

  "What was his name?"

  Darrell's eyes narrowed as he took out another cigarette and lit it. After he and Tina first had the conversation about Isaac Pattel, Darrell realized he hadn't even asked her what his brother's name was, but it hadn't been hard to find out. All he'd had to do was Google it. With a few strokes of the keys, he'd been able to learn that his brother's name was Lorenzo. Lorenzo Pattel. The two Dominick had mentioned last night, Lucas and Hawk, had to be his first cousins.

  "Roni?" he prompted after she still hadn't answered.

  "Uh, I'm sorry, can you hold on a moment, Darrell?"

  "Sure."

  He heard a slight rustling on her end then the unmistakable muted sound of her speaking to someone with a deep voice. She must have put her hand over the phone. Darrell had been bringing the cigarette back up to his mouth, but froze when it dawned on him that she had company.

  "Hey, Roni, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt..."

  More fidgeting on her end before she responded to something the person asked her in a slightly breathless tone.

  "Um, no, no, there's no need to apologize, but do you think I could possibly call you back, say 9 a.m. your time?"

  "Of course, you can call me at this number."

  "Okay, thanks. And Darrell..."

  "Yeah?"

  "It was good hearing from you, but I know something's wrong. It’s all in your voice."

  Darrell didn't speak for several uncomfortable seconds. Roni had always known him so well. "It’s, um, it’s personal."

  “Oh.” Roni sounded taken aback. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to pry.”

  Darrell sighed heavily, knowing how that had sounded. "I mean..."

  "No, no, you're right. Again, I didn’t mean to pry. When I call back
, I'll tell you whatever I know, which isn't much but I hope it helps."

  "Roni..."

  "Talk to you soon." The next instant, she hung up.

  Darrell gripped his cell phone tightly and pressed his lips together. Now he felt like a jackass, but there needed to be a set boundary between them. For a moment, he'd been tempted to tell her about what he’d learned from Tina, but that wouldn't be fair to Jerra. It was bad enough he'd called Roni, but she'd dealt with that family firsthand, and he trusted her to be discreet about his inquiry.

  Taking a last drag of his cigarette, he dropped it to the ground then put it out. Now the question was whether or not to tell Jerra he’d called Roni. She wouldn’t understand, and in all fairness, he couldn't say he blamed her. Tomorrow afternoon, he would talk to her and tell her everything about who his father was. The two of them would work through this together.

  As far as his contact with Roni…it was probably best to keep that to himself.

  CHAPTER 23

  Lorenzo Pattel stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom of his hotel, his only piece of clothing a pair of Calvin Klein black boxer briefs. He turned his head to the side, lifting it slightly, to shave off the last bit of shaving cream from his strong, masculine jawline. Lorenzo was completely oblivious to the handsome features staring back at him.

  All his life, he'd worn his good looks with a casualness he took for granted. His sepia toned skin was an odd canvas for his beautiful silver-grey eyes. The combination of dark skin and light eyes usually made people do a double take, but Lorenzo was used to being stared at and rarely noticed the attention his coloring received.

  Several inches over 6', his body was fit and muscular, and he took pride in keeping it that way. He exercised every day, whether it was jogging, lifting weights, or kickboxing with his trainer. It was a personal choice to stay healthy and keep in shape, and he'd committed himself to religiously doing just that.