by Lisa Jackson
La Jetta, who was standing behind the front counter, popped her eyes open in surprise. At first, Kaycee tensed up, but it wasn’t long before she gave in and wrapped her arms around his neck, receiving him completely.
Diners in the area began to clap and howl, bringing the rest of the staff from the back. Realizing that they had let the cat out of the bag, Kendrick released Kaycee, allowing her to slide down the length of his body.
“I guess our secret is out now,” she said with a smile, hiding her blushing face in the crook of his neck.
“I’m sorry, I know we said we wouldn’t, but I wasn’t thinking about anyone or anything except being closer to you,” he murmured against her ear.
The staff surrounded them with questions. “It’s about time!” Otis barked. “I could have told you there was something between them.”
“Oh, shut up, old man!” Charlotte hollered. “You wouldn’t know love if it came up and bit you on the butt!”
Everyone laughed.
“Is that right?” he asked with a wicked grin and shook his head. “Remember those words.”
Kaycee noticed Charlotte pause before shooing him off with a wave of her hand.
The story of Kendrick and Kaycee’s newfound love was repeated throughout the day to customers and second-shift staff members who had not been fortunate enough to have witnessed it firsthand.
Later, after they closed down, Kaycee decided to leave her car parked and ride home with Kendrick. Kaycee was grateful that he was driving his pickup truck with the bench seat, which meant that she could snuggle against him as they drove home.
Kendrick turned on the jazz station. Kaycee couldn’t think of a better way to end the evening than to be listening to some soothing music while wrapped in her lover’s arms on their way home.
That night they decided to stay at his house. He pressed the garage-door opener and parked the truck beside his Jeep.
Like a gentleman, he got out and walked around, opening Kaycee’s door. Arm in arm, they entered the house. Once inside, he turned on the television in the family room then went into the kitchen to find something to drink.
Kaycee slipped out of her shoes and curled up on the sofa underneath a chenille throw.
Kendrick returned with two glasses of champagne with strawberries floating it. He handed one to Kaycee.
“Hmm, what’s this?” she asked, taking a sip.
“Just relax,” he replied, sitting down beside her. He pulled her against his chest and sighed thoughtfully.
“I wish it could be like this all of the time,” Kaycee said, as if reading his mind.
“It can be.”
She turned to look up at him with question in her eyes.
“How?” she dared to ask.
“We can move in together,” he replied.
Kendrick’s words were not what Kaycee wanted to hear and she moved away from him. She was seeking something more permanent. Kendrick’s words made the joy and contentment that she had been feeling moments earlier dissolve.
“You don’t want to live together?” he asked.
She shook her head in confirmation. “I can’t do that. Moving in with you would be like taking steps backwards.”
“Did you live with Paul?”
“No we did not, thank goodness,” she exhaled with relief. Their breakup would have been much worse if that had been the case. “He was too conservative for that.”
“What are you?” he challenged.
She stood from her spot on the couch and paced the floor. How could she tell him what she was truly thinking without starting an argument? However, she could not and would not compromise her beliefs for a man again. She’d done that once before and had ended up wasting years of her life.
“Kendrick, I love you, but I can’t live with you. I have too much respect for myself to live with a man without a commitment.”
Kendrick stood up beside her. “So you don’t think we are committed?”
“Not in the way that it should be if we were to live together.”
“And how is that?” he asked.
“Well, I think that when a man and woman come together to make a home, they should be joined in a committed legal relationship like marriage.”
He walked closer to her. “So, you’re telling me that you think the only way a man and woman should live together is if they are married?”
Kaycee bit her bottom lip nervously. The man standing before her was everything she wanted, and her words could possibly end the soul connection that they shared. The thought frightened her, bringing her close to tears. She closed her eyes, preparing herself for whatever he had to say, and nodded. When she opened her eyes, Kendrick was kneeling on the floor before her.
“I feel the same way, too.” He held up an emerald-cut, icy-white diamond in a platinum setting. “Kaycee Jordan, will you make me the happiest man on earth and be my wife?”
Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. Her breathing speeded up as tears surfaced in her eyes. One after the other, they began to roll down her cheeks.
Kendrick took Kaycee’s left hand and slipped the ring on her finger.
“So, what do you say?” he asked.
“Oh, my God!” she cried. “Are you for real?”
“Very.”
She began to sob.
Kendrick pulled her down on his lap and kissed away her tears. “Kaycee, I know it’s only been a few months, but it seems like years. At first, when Amanda passed, I couldn’t see being married again, sharing my intimate thoughts with another woman.
“But, when I met you, I knew God was giving me a second chance at love, and none of the obstacles—our age difference, work relationship—made me change my mind.
“We are so good together. You are the missing piece to my puzzle. I can’t see my life without you in it.”
Kaycee’s head fell forward against his shoulder and she wept for joy.
“Hey,” he lifted her chin with his forefinger, “are you going to tell me yes or what?”
Through tear-streaked eyes she nodded emphatically. “Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!”
She put all of her weight against him and they stumbled to the floor where she proceeded to confirm her response.
Chapter 24
Kendrick thought he was going to pass out. Either that or rip off their clothes and make love to Kaycee right there in the vestibule. He took a step back, surprised and very pleased at the vision before him.
Kaycee looked as delicious as the candy she was known for making. The dress she wore looked as though it had been designed especially for her luscious body. The neckline of the dark-chocolate garment dipped enough to show the right amount of cleavage accentuated by a simple yet elegant diamond necklace. It stopped at the knee, displaying her smooth legs, which he could imagine wrapped around his waist.
He gazed back up to her face; she had fashioned her hair into a sexy, layered Mohawk style and her gorgeous eyes made him weak every time he looked deeply into them.
“Are you just going to stand there or do I get a kiss?” she asked with her hands on her hips.
“You ain’t said nothing but a word!” he exclaimed, giving her a big, hearty squeeze. Their mouths connected with tenacious hunger. For a hot second, he thought about skipping the whole evening event and going straight upstairs to his bedroom where they could make love again. The thought brought forth all sorts of positions that he had on reserve.
Kaycee interrupted his fantasizing with a tap on his shoulder. “Kendrick, if we keep it up like this we will never be able to go anywhere.”
“I can’t help that you’re so fine,” he teased, with a pat on her rear.
She smiled. “Thank you, but I’m excited about this evening. I’m looking forward to finally meeting some of your friends.”
He released his hold with a shrug. “I would call them associates more than anything, but nevertheless, it is an honor to escort such a fine, sexy woman.”
“No, it’s an honor to be with s
uch a distinguished and handsome man,” she retorted, slipping her arm through his.
Kendrick glanced down at her hand and the brilliant ring on her finger. It made him both excited and proud that soon they would be husband and wife. Once they had become physically involved, Kendrick had been more determined than ever to make an honest woman out of her. She was a real lady and he didn’t want to make light of that by suggesting that she compromise her principles to be with him. The pair decided a two-month engagement was long enough. Both preferred an intimate ceremony with family and close friends. Kaycee had already begun to pore over wedding magazines for gowns. They wanted their day to be very special.
After gathering her purse and the keys to his Jeep, the couple exited the house with nothing more than a promising outlook on their new lives.
The pier on the lake was filled with people loading into the large cruise boat. Warm yellow lights were strung along the deck, casting a seductive glow.
From the minute they entered the vehicle, Kendrick and Kaycee could not keep their hands off each other. It started with Kendrick rubbing on Kaycee’s knee and continued with her distracting him as he drove, by caressing and stroking him in between stolen kisses.
Kendrick was grateful that they had made it to their destination without causing an accident.
“You are a bad girl!” he told her with a swat on the butt as they exited the Jeep.
Kaycee just laughed, enjoying the sensual teasing of the evening and looking forward to the promise of similar pleasure later in the night.
Kaycee was so drunk from their escapades that she didn’t pay attention to any of the signage welcoming the partygoers aboard. All she could see was Kendrick leaning above her, with the look of love in his eyes.
They continued tickling each other here, tapping there, like mischievous little children, as they boarded the vessel and stopped at the table where Kendrick handed over his tickets.
It wasn’t until they went inside the ballroom located in the middle of the boat that Kaycee really took in the atmosphere. Although on a smaller scale, the boat’s opulence was reminiscent of the Titanic, with ornate light fixtures and rich brass railings and trim.
“Baby, this is nice,” she said in awe.
Before he could reply, Kendrick felt a firm hand on his shoulder and turned around to find two of his high-school buddies.
“If it ain’t Mr. Football!” one of the men joked.
“Ronald Pierre!” Kendrick shouted and gave the man a brotherly hug.
“What’s up, K?” chuckled the other man, who looked to be about as tall as he was round.
“Is that you, Shrimpy?” Kendrick asked. He couldn’t believe that the man standing before him weighed about a buck fifty in high school when he’d played kicker on their football team.
“I can’t believe you made it after all these years!” Ronald exclaimed. “I thought you made Cali your home.”
“I did,” Kendrick replied. “But I came back to be closer to my daughter.”
Ronald and Shrimpy’s eyes fell on Kaycee.
“Look at you with a daughter,” Ronald began. “Baby girl, your daddy was a trip back in the day.”
Kendrick’s eyes widened at Ronald’s mistake. He was about to say something when Kaycee sweetly corrected him. “I’m sure my daddy was a trip back in his day, but let’s not talk about him. I would rather hear the dirt on my fiancé, here,” she said, stroking the lapel of Kendrick’s suit jacket. She pretended to dust it off before standing on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his mouth.
Ronald and Shrimpy’s eyes bucked. Ronald peered at Kendrick for confirmation, and he nodded, amused at the looks on their faces.
Pulling Kaycee within his embrace, Kendrick proceeded to introduce them.
“Fellas, meet my fiancée, Kaycee Jordan. Kaycee, this is Ronald Pierre and Doug Waters, aka Shrimpy.”
“Nice to meet you, boys,” Kaycee said sweetly.
“I don’t mean to sound too forward but—hot damn!” Ronald shouted.
Laughing, he and Shrimpy gave each other high fives.
“Seriously, you got any friends?” Ronald asked.
Sidra immediately came to mind, but went out just as fast. Her soon-to-be-mommy friend would have a fit if she brought Ronald home as a prospect.
“Sorry,” she replied sweetly.
“So, who’s all here?” Kendrick asked, looking around.
“Folks you probably don’t remember and if you do, you don’t want to see,” Shrimpy said, taking a sip of his drink.
“So, Shrimp, where’s Loretta?” Kendrick asked. Last he’d heard, Shrimpy and his common-law wife had finally got married after fifteen years of shacking up.
Shrimpy replied with a throat-cutting motion, indicating that they were through.
Kendrick laughed. “I thought you two had finally got it together.”
“I did, too,” Shrimpy answered. “But apparently, she was getting it together with the cable man, as well, because she upped and left with him out of the blue.”
“I keep telling him it was the free cable!” Ronald joked.
The group laughed. At that moment three women approached. One could tell that they had been beautiful, but fast living had aged them beyond their forty-eight years. Even so, they seemed dead set on maintaining looks that did nothing to compliment them.
The one in the tight red dress stepped forward. The clinginess of the material revealed she wasn’t wearing a girdle, judging by the bulge protruding around her waist. She wore long micro braids that draped over one shoulder.
She looked around at the group and smiled. “Hey fellas, when did you all get in?”
“Sonji Nelson,” Ronald greeted, looking her over from head to toe. When she turned away he shuddered in disgust.
“Hey, Ronnie, Shrimp,” she replied with a nod then looked over at Kendrick with a gap-toothed smile. “Hey, Kenny.”
“Sonji.”
Sonji was the girl all the football players had gone to for a good time and she had obliged them. She didn’t care as long as it meant she could be associated with them. After all these years, it appeared she hadn’t changed.
“So, who we got here?” Sonji asked, noticing Kaycee standing there for the first time.
“Hi, I’m Kaycee Jordan,” Kaycee introduced herself with confidence.
“Kaycee is Kendrick’s fiancée,” Ronald announced, giving Shrimpy a high five again.
The women collectively gasped.
Sonji studied Kaycee for a few seconds. “Did you say your name is Kaycee Jordan?”
Kaycee nodded.
Sonji shook her head with a slow smile. “Well, I’ll be. It is a pleasure to meet you, Kaycee Jordan,” she said, singing her name.
Kaycee didn’t understand where Sonji’s strange behavior was coming from, but she returned the salutation. The three women walked a short distance before Sonji stopped them and started talking. All three turned to look at the pair and took off cackling like a group of hens.
“What was that all about?” Kaycee asked, perturbed.
“Don’t worry about them,” Kendrick replied. “Let’s go get something to drink.”
Kendrick announced that he would meet with the men later in the evening as they departed for the bar.
As they walked along, Kaycee leaned into his sturdy torso. She wanted more than anything to feel comfortable in his setting. She knew people would have suspicions about her age, but to actually verbalize them was something different. It lacked the tact and class that she was accustomed to. Now she knew why Kendrick referred to them as associates.
Kaycee knew she could use a drink. When they stopped at the bar, Kendrick ordered a white wine for her and a beer for himself.
They sat on the stools before the bar and he pulled her toward him and began to rub her back soothingly. He was grateful that Kaycee’s back was to the crowd because he could see that they were the topic of conversation.
When stares came his way, he boldly returned
them, which quickly caused them to be averted. The only reason he regretted attending this event was his desire to protect Kaycee’s feelings.
By the time they’d had a second drink, Kendrick was ready to go. He reached over and smoothed Kaycee’s bangs.
“This scene is boring me. Are you ready to go?”
“Actually, it’s been fun being the center of attention.”
His mouth dropped open in surprise. “You—you recognized that?”
She turned to him and smiled. “Kendrick, I know hateration when I see it.”
She gazed around the room without looking at anyone in particular. “Which is why I think we should give them a reason to flap their gums.”
She stood up and wiggled her hips between his knees. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she boldly claimed his mouth with her tongue. Kendrick was thrown off by her outright behavior, yet turned on all the same, and he pulled her tightly to him.
Thoughts ran through his head. Everybody would have to recognize that she was his choice and that she was his, and no one else’s opinion mattered.
At least, that’s what he thought.
“Kaycee Janae Jordan, what in the world are you doing!”
Kaycee turned around to find a fuming Russell and Katherine Jordan.
Chapter 25
Kaycee’s face contorted with confusion. “Mama, Daddy, what are you doing here?” she asked, dropping her arms at her sides.
“The question is what are you doing here?” her mother asked sharply.
“I thought you had a reunion to go to.”
“This is the reunion!” her mother hissed with exasperation.
The blood drained from Kaycee’s face, and she squeaked softly. “This is?”
Russell stepped forward, his arms crossed before his chest authoritatively. “You better do some explaining and you better do it fast!” he barked.
Kaycee flinched at the harsh tone he used. She had never known her father to talk to her in such a way. As a result of their loud voices, people began to crowd around them, causing Kaycee to grow hot with embarrassment.
“I came with my fiancé, Kendrick,” Kaycee announced.