“You don’t have to tell me twice.” They shared a smile and filled their plates. She continued to observe her sister. Although Iyana was her usual upbeat self, Randi could still see remnants of pain. At thirty-two, Randi was one year older and had always looked out for Iyana. She hated to see her hurting.
“Are you investigating that construction site fire?” Iyana asked as the two settled in the family room. She turned on a rerun of The Color Purple. “The news reports imply it was arson.”
“Yep. That’s why I was late.” Between mouthfuls, Randi filled her sister in on the basics without getting too detailed. “I’m meeting with the owners tomorrow.”
“That won’t be fun. I know I would be pissed off if somebody torched all my hard work. All that money gone down the drain.”
“No, it won’t.” Once again, thoughts of her first encounter with Cedric surfaced, from his curt manner to the intense way he had stared at her. She really wanted to know what he’d been thinking. Or maybe she didn’t. Randi glanced up to find Iyana viewing her curiously. “What?”
Iyana angled her head and narrowed her gaze. “There’s something about the way you said that.”
“I don’t know what you mean. I just agreed with you that the conversation won’t be fun.”
“Have you met the owners yet?”
“Briefly yesterday. Why?”
A smile spread across Iyana’s lips. She forked up some rice, chewed, then asked, “What does this owner look like?”
Randi shrugged. “He’s a nice-looking guy, maybe mid-thirties.” In reality, Cedric was fine with a capital F. And though he wore the owner’s hat now, his muscular body let her know he had done more than sit behind a desk. She could imagine how many women had stopped to watch him while he worked on some building. Not many men could make her stop in her tracks, but Cedric Hunter had not only done that, he’d also invaded her thoughts. She jumped when she felt something hit her cheek. Randi glared at her sister. “Why are you throwing chips at me?”
“Because I called your name three times and you’re so busy thinking about that owner, you can’t hear me.”
“What?” She waved her off. “I’m not thinking about Cedric.” She muttered a curse. That was all the ammunition Iyana needed.
Iyana’s grin widened. “Thanks for providing confirmation. Obviously, the brother is more than good-looking to have you all drifting off into space.”
Randi didn’t respond.
“Cedric, huh?”
“I told you I met him yesterday, along with the co-owner, Lorenzo Hunter.”
Iyana set her plate on the coffee table, wiped her hands on a napkin and picked up her phone.
Randi bit into a chip. “What are you doing?”
“Looking him up. What else would I be doing? The news said the company’s name was...” She made a show of thinking, then snapped her fingers. “Hunter Construction.” Her fingers moved rapidly over the keyboard and a moment later, her eyes widened. “Have mercy! Is he the one with the locs or the one with that sinfully sexy smile? I mean, both of them would make a sister sell her soul for a touch. All this chocolatey goodness and those killer dimples, mmm-mmm. I guess the construction business does a body good.”
Randi shook her head and chuckled. “You do have a way with words.” She leaned over to see the photo. Just as she had suspected, the smile transformed Cedric’s already handsome face.
“Hey, just because I’ve spent the last two months painting muscles and whatnot on bodies doesn’t mean I don’t recognize the real thing when I see it.” Iyana worked as a movie makeup artist. “And you didn’t answer my question.”
“The latter one.”
“I see why you were all in la-la land. He’s sure to melt all that iciness you’ve built up since—”
“Don’t even say his name, and you’re one to talk.” Randi had spent the better part of a year trying to forget the fiasco of her so-called relationship. She refused to be with any man who couldn’t accept her and her job...as is. If that meant being labeled an ice princess, as Iyana sometimes called her, Randi would wear the name gladly. At least her heart would be intact. Sure, she wanted to find the one, but she was done settling. “In any case,” she said, refocusing on her food, “the only thing I’ll be discussing with the Hunters is the fire.”
Still looking at her phone, Iyana said, “Whatever. All I know is this brother looks like he could thaw a blizzard.” They burst out laughing.
Randi lifted her glass in a mock toast. “I’ll concede you that point.” She sipped the sangria. “This is really good. What else is in it?”
“Pineapple and orange juices, and the fruit.”
“You’ll have to give me the recipe.”
“I’ll write it down before you leave. Back to those fine men. Are they brothers?”
Randi had wondered the same thing, since the two favored each other, but as she’d told her sister, their only conversation would be a professional one and that question didn’t fall within that scope. “I have no idea. Now, can we just eat and watch the movie? You’re making me miss my favorite parts.” She’d see Cedric tomorrow, and that would be soon enough.
* * *
Cedric and Lorenzo spent the balance of the weekend trying to move resources around and putting together ads for temporary workers, then they hit the ground running Monday morning. Cedric had spoken to Preston and, as he suspected, the man was not happy. He couldn’t blame Preston because he felt the same way. Before heading out to one of his other sites, he met Preston at what was left of the strip mall frame.
Preston shook his head and let out a deep sigh. “The police have any leads?”
“Not yet. I’m meeting with the fire investigator this afternoon, so hopefully I’ll know more then.” Mentioning the fire investigator made Cedric think of his reaction to Randi. He hadn’t expected a woman, and he definitely hadn’t expected the jolt of sexual attraction that hit him. Preston’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
“This is going to set us back weeks and I already have the tenants lined up. How long will it take to clean up and restart?” The planned South Sacramento mall would house business and medical offices, a restaurant and coffee shop.
Cedric glanced around the property. “At least three to four weeks, minimum. I’ll have to order more lumber and I won’t know how much is needed until I get inside.”
“Thank goodness for insurance,” Preston muttered.
“Agreed.” Cedric hoped they didn’t have to haggle with the insurance company and wait forever for them to cut a check. He peeked at his watch. “I need to get across town to another site. I’ll let you know what the investigator says.”
“Thanks, Cedric.” Preston stuck out his hand.
“We’ll try to keep as close to the original schedule as possible.”
Preston chuckled. “You always do. That’s why I like working with you.” He had used Hunter Construction for two other commercial buildings previously.
“And we appreciate your business. I’ll be in touch.” Cedric and Preston went to their respective cars and Cedric drove out toward Rocklin to check the progress of the manufacturing warehouse. His cell rang five minutes into the drive. He connected the Bluetooth. “Hello.”
“Hey. You and Preston still at the site?” Lorenzo asked.
“We just left.”
“The insurance company called back and we have to wait until we get the fire report before they can do anything. I sent some photos already.”
Cedric merged onto the freeway. “I figured as much.”
“Speaking of the fire report, I hope your attitude is better when you meet with Ms. Nichols today.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know exactly what I mean. You almost took the woman’s head off.”
“I did not.”
Lorenzo l
et out a snort. “Yeah, you did.”
“Well, she had us standing there forever and I couldn’t get her to admit it was arson, even though you could smell the gasoline fifty feet away. She’s the one being difficult.”
“Maybe, but your problem goes deeper than that.”
He frowned. “Meaning?”
“You’re attracted to her, plain and simple. Not that she’s going to give you the time of day now.”
“The only thing I need her time for is to let me know when I can get back onto that worksite,” he lied. His cousin knew him well and that momentary pause when she introduced herself had been a dead giveaway.
Lorenzo’s laughter came through the line. “Is that what you’re telling yourself? I can’t wait to see how this plays out.”
“There’s nothing to play out.”
“Whatever. See you when you get back to the office.”
Cedric disconnected. If he were being honest with himself, part of him wanted to see her to find out if the vibe he felt flowing between them had been his imagination. Randi had been the epitome of professional during their interaction, but he sensed something, saw it in her eyes for a split second. He turned up the music and refocused on the road. He’d deal with Ms. Nichols later.
Forty minutes later, Cedric pulled into the worksite. He donned a hard hat, climbed out of the truck and sought out the foreman.
“Hey, Cedric.”
He spun around at the sound of his name being called. The foreman, William Coleman, waved from the other side of the site and Cedric started in his direction.
Will met Cedric halfway. “I heard about the fire. If you need me to help with the cleanup, let me know. I can work a few hours in the evening and on the weekend.” Will had worked for the company for as long as Cedric could remember. When Cedric and Lorenzo had taken over the company and needed to fill their old supervisory positions, they’d offered the construction supervisor job to Will, but he declined, citing he’d rather be outdoors than cooped up in an office every day.
“I appreciate that, Will. Is everything running smoothly here?”
“Yes. No hiccups. We should be finished by summer, right on schedule.”
Cedric and Will pored over the blueprints for several minutes, discussing next steps, then did a walkthrough of the site. More than a few of the workers expressed their willingness to help get the burned-out worksite up and running again. Cedric truly appreciated his employees and considered them family. If it turned out that he did need to pull some of them in to assist, each would get a bonus in their checks.
He said his goodbyes and headed back to the office, but not before stopping at the Sandwich Spot in Roseville to get his favorite, the Throw Down—marinated chicken, barbecue and teriyaki sauces, mozzarella cheese, lettuce and tomatoes, all on a soft roll. He splurged and ordered a side of fries, too. Between the late hours he’d worked over the past couple of weeks, all the food he had consumed at his grandmother’s birthday party and today’s sandwich, Cedric would need to spend extra hours in the gym to work it all off. He had been only three times in the last fourteen days. Thinking about the gym reminded him that he needed to schedule a time for his cousin Khalil to come back up and see the progress of the fitness center he’d contracted them to build. Khalil owned two Maximum Burn gyms in LA, and was expanding to the northern side of the state. The gym would be ready by the end of summer.
Cedric arrived at his office later than he anticipated and had only fifteen minutes to eat before his meeting with the fire inspector.
“Hey. You went to the Sandwich Spot and didn’t tell me?” Lorenzo said, entering the office. “You know that’s wrong.”
Cedric unwrapped half of the sandwich and took a hefty bite without answering. It tasted so good he groaned.
Lorenzo reached over and snagged a few fries.
Cedric sighed and pushed the other half of the sandwich across the desk. “Don’t say I’ve never given you anything.”
Lorenzo laughed, but quickly snatched it up. “Aw, thanks, cuz.”
They ate in silence for a few minutes before Cedric wondered aloud, “Do you think she’ll confirm the arson? I’ve racked my brain all weekend and can’t come up with one reason why someone would deliberately set fire to the building.”
Lorenzo shrugged. “I hope she’ll have something to tell us. I’ve wondered the same thing. I also thought about whether it had something to do with Preston and not us.”
Cedric popped a fry into his mouth and chewed slowly. “I hadn’t considered that. Maybe someone who wanted that piece of land?”
“Or something,” Lorenzo said, reaching for another fry.
“Why are you stealing my food? Didn’t you have lunch?”
“No. I had to meet with Joanne this morning, check on the community center building and deal with the insurance company.”
Cedric shook his head and moved the bag of fries closer to himself. “You already have half my sandwich, so you’re not getting any more of my fries.” He checked the time. “We have about five minutes.”
Lorenzo ate the last bite of the sandwich and stood. “I’m going to get some water. I’ll be right back.”
Cedric rolled the chair back, reached into the mini refrigerator he kept in the office and retrieved two bottles of water. “Here.”
“Thanks.”
He finished the last few fries and drained the water bottle, then disposed of the empty packaging before popping a mint. His intercom buzzed. “Yes, Loretta.”
“Your four o’clock is here.”
“Thanks. I’ll be right out.” He was up, around the desk and halfway across the office before he caught himself and slowed his steps. He told himself he was eager to see Randi only to find out what information she had on the fire. But that went right out the window the moment their eyes connected. “Ms. Nichols.”
“Mr. Hunter.”
Cedric felt the same underlying attraction he’d experienced on Saturday. “Right this way.” He stepped aside to let her enter his office. Today, she wore the same work boots and another pair of jeans that hugged her curvy bottom. He followed the sway of her hips, then waved her into one of the chairs across from his desk. “Please have a seat.”
“Thanks. Detective Warner had planned to be here, but got called away.”
Lorenzo offered a greeting and took the chair next to her.
“So it was arson, right?” Cedric asked.
Randi nodded. “Yes. The fire was set in three different places—at both ends and behind the structure. Evidently, someone wanted the entire building to go down.”
He leaned back in his chair. The fact that it hadn’t burnt to the ground meant the fire department arrived quickly, and he couldn’t be more grateful. Having a third of the building burned was bad enough, but if they’d had to start from scratch after eight months of hard work... Cedric didn’t even want to think about it. “But why?”
Randi shifted in her chair. “I’d hoped one of you could shed some light on the situation. Have you had any problems lately?”
“Nothing lately, no,” Lorenzo said.
Cedric sighed. “I can’t think of one reason why someone would do this. Our employees are like family and, for the most part, get along well on the job.”
Randi divided a glance between Cedric and Lorenzo. “No disgruntled employees, no one you’ve fired recently who might be holding a grudge?”
“I haven’t fired anyone. Zo, you fired that tech last year.” He tapped his finger on the desk, trying to remember a name.
“Joey Abrams?”
“That’s him.”
“Do you think he would do something like this?” Randi asked.
Lorenzo shook his head. “No. He was far too lazy. I couldn’t even count on him to spend fifteen minutes going over the contractor’s work order, let alone walk the entire site. Bes
ides, last I heard he’d changed fields completely.”
She wrote something on her notepad. “I’ll have Detective Warner check him out anyway. Can you think of anyone else?”
Cedric and Lorenzo both said no. Then Cedric asked, “Is there something you’re not telling us, Ms. Nichols?”
Randi handed them a photo.
Cedric’s heart nearly stopped. “Where did you find this?”
“Near one of the points of origin. So, again, are you sure there isn’t anyone who comes to mind who might have a grudge of some sort?”
He shook his head slowly, still trying to make sense of the photo. On one of the two-by-fours, he could make out the first three letters of his name. The only visible letters before that were ay. And the only word that came to mind with those letters was pay. Someone wanted him to pay for something. But he had no idea what. Or why.
“I thought that fire would destroy all the evidence,” Lorenzo said.
“Not necessarily. It distorts it, but we look deeper than the norm. This is a crucial piece of evidence. I’m sure whoever set the fire didn’t expect this to survive, but fire is unpredictable.” She asked several more questions that mirrored the detective’s. “I’ll need to rule out everyone who’s worked at the site, and that includes fingerprints and background information. I’ll need the same from both of you.”
“You think I’d burn down my own site?” Cedric asked incredulously. He tossed the photo across the desk. “What about this?”
“I’m not saying that at all. This is just standard procedure.”
She held his gaze without flinching, piquing his interest even more, despite his anger. He rose from his seat. “I’ll have my assistant pull together the information. Is there anything else you need?”
“Not at the moment.”
Lorenzo’s assistant, Tanya, knocked softly on the door and poked her head inside. “I’m so sorry to interrupt. Lorenzo, your wife is on the line and she says it’s important.”
“Thanks.” Lorenzo hopped up. “Ced, I need to take this. You can handle the rest without me?”
Not taking his eyes off Randi, Cedric said, “Yeah, I can handle it.”
Spark of Desire ; All for You Page 3