The Savvy Sistahs

by Brenda Jackson

  After hanging up the phone she glanced over at Grey. He was looking at her with those deep, dark eyes of his. “Don’t look at me that way, Grey.”

  He couldn’t help but smile. “And what way is that?”

  “Like you want to take me back to bed.”

  He chuckled. She was beginning to read him so well. “But I do want to take you back to bed.”

  She nodded. To be completely honest, she wanted him to take her back to bed, too. But she had a lot of work to do and like she’d told him, with the Florida Classic next week things were already getting chaotic. “There’s always tonight,” she said saucily, as she slipped into her jacket.

  He chuckled. “Yes, and I’m looking forward to it.”

  “The Man” looked at the vial of acid that would be used to teach Brandy Bennett a lesson. Brandy thought she had it all but would find out she was wrong when what she considered her most valuable asset, her beautiful face, was destroyed. No man would look at her with wanting and desire in his eyes, ever again.

  Now all that had to be done was to calculate things just right to get her alone, which might be hard since her current lover was always hanging around her. But a way would be found around that.

  It was time to make a strike.

  Brandy pushed the papers on her desk aside. She knew without being told that Grey was on the other side of her closed door, probably reading a magazine or something, waiting for her to come out.

  She glanced at her watch. It was almost noon and she was beginning to feel hungry. The phone on her desk buzzed and she reached over to pick it up. “Yes, Donna?”

  “I have Ms. Osborne on the line for you.”

  Brandy sat up straight in her chair. She had tried reaching Carla earlier. “Thanks, please put her through.”

  A few moments later she heard Carla’s voice. “Carla, you okay, girl?”

  Carla sighed deeply. “Yes, I’m doing fine although stress levels and tensions are high around here. And to make matters worse, my attorney called a few minutes ago to let me know Jesse had obtained a court order to see Craig tonight.”

  “Tonight?”

  “Yes, tonight at my place.”

  Brandy frowned. “When he sees Craig he’ll immediately know that he’s his, Carla.”

  “Yes, I know,” Carla said, shifting uneasily in her chair, wondering what Jesse would do after finding out the truth.

  “Have you spoken to your mom yet?” Brandy asked, recapturing Carla’s attention.

  “She’s supposed to return home today and I plan to go see her later.”

  Brandy could clearly hear the anger in Carla’s voice. Deciding to change the subject she asked, “Have you heard from Amber?”

  “No, have you?”

  “No, not yet,” Brandy said. She looked up when Grey opened the door, walked into her office, and closed the door behind him. She watched as he sat in the chair on the other side of the room. “I’m hoping she’ll give us a call with an update on Cord Jeffries’ condition.”

  “Me, too. Well, I got to run. I’m meeting Sonya for lunch.”

  “Okay, you take care, and if you need me always remember I’m just a phone call away.”

  “Thanks, Brandy. I appreciate that.”

  Michelle buzzed Carla the moment she ended her phone conversation with Brandy.

  “Yes, Michelle, what is it?”

  “Ms. Morrison called while you were on the phone with Ms. Bennett. She said that the two of you would be doing lunch at her place instead of at a restaurant and she expected you there at noon.”

  Carla nodded. “All right. Anything else?”

  “Yes. Mr. Devereau’s attorney also called to confirm that Mr. Devereau would be at your house at six.”

  Again Carla nodded. “Thanks for the messages, Michelle, and when I leave for lunch I won’t be back until tomorrow.” She needed to go home and prepare Craig for Jesse’s visit.

  After ending her conversation with Michelle, Carla got up from her desk and walked over to the window. It was such a beautiful day outside, another beautiful day that the Lord had made, and no matter what, she had to believe things would work out for her.

  She had to believe it.

  Carla arrived at Sonya’s place exactly at noon. “Hey, what gives? I thought we were meeting at Macadia for spaghetti,” she said entering Sonya’s condo.

  “We’re still having spaghetti from Macadia but I decided to do the take-out thing instead,” Sonya said. “This gives us privacy. Besides, I rather not be in a public place when you kick my butt.”

  Carla turned around and lifted a brow. “Kick your butt? Sonya, what are you talking about?”

  Sonya sighed. “You’re going to find out soon enough. The question is, do you want me to tell you on a full or an empty stomach?”

  Carla noticed just how nervous Sonya was, which wasn’t at all like her. Maybe they needed to talk before eating. “I think you better tell me now.”

  “Are you sure? You may want to leave as soon as I tell you what I did.”

  Carla chuckled, trying to bring a lightness to their conversation. “Hey, remember I’m the one who loves to eat. No matter what you have to say, I still plan to eat my spaghetti. So come on, let’s sit down and you can tell me what’s going on.”

  The two women sat on the sofa facing each other. A few moments later, after Sonya got the nerve to speak she said. “I’m the reason Jesse Devereau is here, Carla.”

  Carla’s forehead bunched into a curious frown. “How are you the reason? Are you saying you’re the one who sent him that letter?”

  Sonya shook her head. “No, but I know who did.”

  “Who?”

  “Your mother. At least that’s what I’ve been told.”

  Carla nodded. She had figured as much, although she hadn’t wanted to believe that her mother would do such a thing but after reading the newspaper article about her mother selling her stock to Jesse, nothing surprised her. “And how did my mother know about Jesse? Did you tell her?”

  Again Sonya shook her head. “No, I would never have done that.”

  “Then how did she find out?”

  “She heard it from Dalton Gregory.”

  Carla’s eyes widened. “Dalton Gregory? But—but how would he know anything about Jesse being Craig’s father?”

  Sonya glanced down at her hands that she had folded in her lap. “I told him.”

  The room got quiet and Carla thought she had misunderstood what Sonya said. “You told Dalton Gregory my secret? Our secret?”

  At Sonya’s nod, Carla stood. “Oh, Sonya, how could you have done such a thing? You know how that man feels about me. He thinks he had every right to take control of the company after Clark died, and you know how he and Clark as well as my mother manipulated things to keep me out.”

  Tears misted Sonya’s eyes. “I know, I know, and my only excuse is that I was drunk that particular night that he ran into me at a Sylvester’s. It was that same night I was upset because I felt you were spending more time with Brandy and Amber than you were with me. Dalton caught me at one of my weakest moments, I was both drunk and horny and you of all people know how I have a tendency to think with my thang and not with my brain. Had I been in my right mind that night, Carla, I would have seen that he only wanted to screw me to get information about you. But I didn’t see it then. I saw him as a man who wanted to spend time with me. I’ve always known he was a jerk but that night it didn’t matter since I was so depressed about things.”

  Sonya inhaled and tried to stop tears. “And now that I know how much damage I’ve caused, as well as how much I’ve hurt you, I can’t stand it. You’ve always been my best friend and now I’ve screwed up things and know you’ll think that you won’t ever be able to trust me again. I’d never do anything to hurt you or Craig; you have to believe that. And when I realized what I’d done, I confronted Dalton about it and he’s the one who told me about your mother’s part in it. I even tried making things right by going to s
ee Jesse Devereau, but that man is as stubborn as they come and he wouldn’t listen to anything that I had to say.”

  Carla breathed in deeply. Sonya was crying in earnest now, and Carla gathered her friend in a hug. “Hey, it’s all right, Sonya. I know you didn’t mean to tell but you’re going to have to stop doing that, you know.”

  Sonya pulled away slightly to wipe tears from her eyes. She looked at Carla. “Doing what?”

  A small smile touched Carla’s lips. “Thinking with your thang instead of your brain.”

  Sonya couldn’t stop laughing as she wiped her eyes. “God knows I’m working on it, believe me.”

  Carla nodded. “And for Pete’s sake, in the future try to be more selective.”

  Sonya saw amusement lurking in the depths of Carla’s eyes but she also saw seriousness there, too. “Trust me, I was drunk that night. Otherwise, I would not have given Dalton Gregory the time of day. But you’re right, and I promise I’ll do better.” She then studied Carla. “What about us? Are we okay?”

  Carla leaned back against the sofa. “Yeah, we are. I’m not saying I’m not disappointed…but then I’ve been disappointed with you before, Sonya, like the time you set me up on that blind date and told the guy that I was you.”

  Sonya couldn’t help but laugh out loud when she remembered that. Moments later when her laughter subsided she looked at Carla. “Forgive me?”

  Carla nodded. “Yes, I forgive you. No matter what, you’re my very best friend who has a problem she intends to work on, right?”

  Sonya smiled. “Right.”

  Carla nodded again. “I know you love me and Craig and wouldn’t intentionally do anything to hurt us. In fact, I know how protective you are of us and I appreciate that. I always have.”

  After saying all of that, Carla sighed. “So come on and let’s eat. I’m starving.”

  Sonya laughed as she and Carla embraced again.

  Carla went to see her mother as soon as she left Sonya’s place. She could tell by the look on her mother’s face when she opened the door that she was surprised to see her. Without waiting for an invitation to come in, Carla walked passed her.

  “Mom, we need to talk.”

  “No, we don’t. In fact I’m expecting someone, Carla. Maybe some other time.”

  Carla met her mother’s gaze. “Just answer one question for me and then I’ll leave.” She tightened her hand on the straps of her purse. “Why, Mom? Why did you do it? Why did you send Jesse Devereau that letter?”

  Anger filled Madeline’s face. “I sent it because I felt that he had every right to know. Every man should know about any child he fathered.”

  Carla shook her head in disagreement. “That was my decision to make and you should have respected it. You had no right to send him that letter.”

  “I had to tell him. I wanted to contact him and tell him about our baby but your father wouldn’t let me.”

  Carla gazed at her mother. There was a faraway look in her eyes and Carla suddenly knew that her mother wasn’t talking about Jesse Devereau any longer but about someone else.

  “Who, Mother? Who did you want to contact?”

  “Mark Singleton.” She said the name like she expected Carla to know it. “I met Mark one night at a charity event and fell in love. We had a brief affair and I got pregnant. But I made a decision not to tell him about the baby since I was engaged to marry your father.”

  Carla gasped. “You had a baby from another man?”

  Madeline smiled. “Of course, how on earth could you assume that Clark was Craig’s child?”

  Carla’s head began spinning with her mother’s revelation. “Did Dad know?”

  Madeline chuckled. “Not for six years, then his mother told him. I decided I wanted Mark to know he had a son and wrote him a letter. Your grandmother found it and read it and took it straight to your father. He was livid and left. When he came back later that night he’d been drinking and forced himself on me and I got pregnant with you. I never wanted another child. Clark was all I ever wanted. You have always belonged to your father because he knew I never wanted you, not after what he’d done. The only man I ever loved was Mark.”

  “I hope I’m not interrupting anything but the front door was standing open so I walked on in.”

  Carla turned to see Jesse Devereau standing there. Evidently he was the person her mother had been expecting. She wondered how much of their conversation he’d heard. Right then she really didn’t care. She was still in a daze over everything her mother had said. Now Carla knew the reason she and her father had been so close while on the other hand, her mother had always treated her like dirt; mainly because in her mother’s mind she was dirt. And she now knew the reason her mother had been so obsessed with her telling Jesse that she’d gotten pregnant.

  She needed to leave before she did something stupid like start to cry. Her mother and Jesse Devereau were the last two people who she wanted to see her tears. “No, Jesse, you aren’t interrupting anything— not anything at all.”

  And with that final statement she walked past him and out of the house.

  Chapter 21

  Amber glanced around Cord’s apartment. A bachelor definitely lived here. It was fairly neat and decorated in earth-tone colors. The living room was huge and spacious with several paintings on the wall by African-American artists as well as a wall-to-wall bookcase. For a man who claimed he didn’t have time to read, he sure had a lot of books.

  Cord saw what had claimed her attention and said simply, “I acquired most of those while in college, and the others are there just to impress. I heard that the intellectual type turns a woman on.”

  Amber arched a brow. She wondered why a man who looked like Cord thought he had to use books to impress a woman?

  She had left the hospital after meeting with Dr. Phillips who had given her a list of Cord’s do’s and don’ts. He had given her Cord’s address and told her that he would make sure Cord got checked out of the hospital and home by noon. He suggested that she take care of whatever she needed to do before arriving.

  She had gone home, changed clothes, and packed a few things in an overnight bag. Then she had dropped by the bookstore to let Jennifer and Eileen know of her plans and to advise them of where she would be if they needed her.

  She had also made it a point to stop by the hotel to see Brandy and tell her of her plans as well. She could tell Brandy had been surprised she would go this far to help a man she barely knew. But her friend didn’t say anything other than that she would let Carla know and to call if she needed her.

  “Do you want to see the guest room?”

  Cord’s question interrupted her thoughts. “Yes.”

  She followed him down a narrow hallway and came to a bedroom directly across the hall from what she assumed was his bedroom. She couldn’t help taking a quick peek inside his bedroom and saw that he had a king-size bed with huge pillows.

  “Think you’ll be comfortable in here for the next four days?”

  Again his comment recaptured her attention and she stepped into the room and glanced around. It was nicely decorated with the same earth-tone colors that seemed to flow throughout the apartment. The double bed had a comfy look and she could see herself getting a good night’s sleep in it.

  “I’ll be fine. It’s a nice room,” she said when things had gotten too quiet and the air surrounding them had gotten a little too warm. Cord was dressed in a pair of jeans and an Orlando Magic T-shirt. For some reason she’d assumed he would be in pajamas since Dr. Phillips had said he needed to rest.

  “Thanks. I had to get all new furniture after my divorce.”

  Amber swung her head around and looked at him, surprised. “You’re divorced?”

  “Yes.”

  Amber nodded. That bit of information made her realize just how little she knew about him. “For how long?” she asked, thinking she needed to know.

  “A little over a year. Her name was Diane.”

  Amber nodded again. S
he wondered if he and Diane were still good friends. Some exes did remain that way. She had tried it with Gary, but found out all he wanted was the opportunity to get laid every once in a while.

  “Are the two of you still pretty friendly?”

  Cord chuckled, but Amber picked up on the fact there was more anger than amusement in his chuckle. “Not on your life. She left me for one of my clients and almost destroyed me and my business in the process when she emptied our personal and business bank accounts.”

  Amber sighed. Betrayal. Why did marriages have to end that way? She heard the bitterness in his voice and knew how if felt to be betrayed by someone you loved and trusted. “I’m divorced, too, and have been for almost three years. My ex’s name is Gary and he betrayed me with another woman. I came home early from work one day and caught them…right in the act.”

  “Ouch. That must have hurt pretty damn bad.”

  “Yeah, it hurt like the dickens but I’ve gotten over it. Even after the divorce, I thought it would be best if Gary and I remained friends. But it didn’t take long to see that our meaning of being friends was different. So, I thought the best thing to do was move away and start over. That’s how I came to live in Orlando.”

  “From where?”

  “Nashville.”

  Cord leaned against the dresser. The casual stance showed off his long limbs, hard muscles and manly form. “After college I lived in Atlanta but the accounting firm I was working for decided to downsize and Dev talked me into joining him here.”

  “How long have you and Dr. Phillips known each other?” she asked curiously.

  Cord smiled. “Dev and I were friends in high school. He and his Dad took me in after my grandmother died when I was seventeen. We were living in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina at the time. After high school I went to Atlanta to attend Clark University and Dev went to Howard, but we went home to South Carolina for the holidays.” He chuckled softly. “Mr. Phillips would not have had it any other way.” Then Cord momentarily got quiet and said. “He died last year of a heart attack. He was sixty and had been working too hard and refused to slow down.”