No More Playas

by Brenda Jackson

  “Fifteen thousand dollars! I don’t have that kind of money.”

  Edwina snorted as she walked across the room to the glass of gin and tonic she had sitting on the table. She picked it up and took a swallow before saying. “Sure you do. Use your brains. You have three brothers who are rolling in dough. Just ask them for the money. I’m sure they’ll accommodate you.”

  “I’m not asking them for money.”

  Edwina fired up a cigarette and blew out smoke. “Then try earning it on your back. With Simon as a teacher, I’m sure you’re pretty good at it.”

  Carrie placed her hand on her hips. “Does it not bother you that the man who you thought was your boyfriend was molesting your daughter right under your nose?”

  Edwina tossed her drink down and set the glass aside. “Yeah, I was real torn up about it when I found out,” she said chuckling. “But he didn’t have anything on me, since I was screwing his best friend behind his back.” She smirked. “Old Charlie and I used to make out like a bunch of dogs in heat. It’s a wonder I never got pregnant again.”

  Carrie shook her head, not believing that was something her mother wanted to boast about. “Why? Why did you do it? Why did you leave Gary in the first place? Pop loved you. He would have given you anything.”

  She took another drink, swallowed deep. “Is that what you heard? Hell, Jeremiah didn’t give me anything. I wanted to go out and have a good time, but he was always working and when he wasn’t working, he was too tired to party. He thought working and paying the bills was all that mattered. He knew when he married me that I was a party girl, but he figured I would change. He thought if he kept me pregnant, I wouldn’t have time to think about going out and having a good time. Hell, it lasted five years, but then I decided enough was enough.”

  “Is that why you had an affair?”

  “Damn right. But even that backfired on me. Met a man named Patrick, we went at it for six months and then I got pregnant with you. I convinced Patrick to take me away with him when he split town and he did. But once he found out you weren’t his kid, he dumped me.”

  Carrie, who had been flipping through some outdated magazine, looked up. “If I’m not this person named Patrick’s child, then are you saying I’m really Jeremiah’s daughter?” she asked, hoping she’d heard right.

  “Yeah, it must have happened one of those nights I felt obligated to fulfill my wifely duties so he wouldn’t find out about Patrick.”

  Joy and elation raced through Carrie. They were emotions she couldn’t show at the moment, or Edwina would find a way to use them against her. Jeremiah had always said she was his. He had believed it, and so often she had prayed it to be so. “How did this Patrick guy find out I wasn’t his child?”

  Edwina blew out more smoke. “You got sick, almost deathly ill and needed blood. Your bloods didn’t match. Didn’t even come close. Boy was he pissed. Raped me the same night he found out, beat the crap out of me the next day, and then he ran off, leaving me high and dry while you were still in the hospital, without a dime in my pocket.”

  Carrie met her mother’s gaze. “You could have left me too, deserted me. Why didn’t you?”

  Edwina shrugged. “I thought about it then changed my mind. I figured you were my meal ticket. One of the nurses in the hospital felt sorry for me, took me home with her, and offered me a place to stay until you got better. Even convinced me I needed to go to church. But that soon got old and I split town after she found out I’d gotten into her bank account and took money out of it, almost five thousand dollars.”

  Carrie shook her head. Her mother had just admitted to being a thief. Not a nice admission to have recorded. “I remember all the men there were in your life.”

  Edwina chuckled. “Yeah, so many I lost count. But it didn’t matter. I kept a roof over your head and food on the table.”

  “And now you want money from me or you’ll let everyone know that I was sexually abused as a child. Doesn’t the thought of that bother you?”

  Edwina shook her head. “Not in the least. Worse things could have happened. Mary’s man had her daughter pimping for him at one time, so consider yourself blessed. I took care of you pretty good in your early years, so you have no reason to complain. But now I need money.”

  “For drugs?”

  “Yeah, for drugs and for whatever else I want to use it for, not that it’s any of your damn business. Just make sure you pay up by the first, or I’m sending those pictures to the newspapers as well as this company on the Internet that posts those kinds of photographs.”

  “And you would actually do that? Send those pictures off to them unless I pay you one hundred thousand dollars? Not only ruin my life, but your sons’ lives, as well?”

  “In a heartbeat because none of you were my children. You belonged to Jeremiah. He worked day and night for his children and not for me. And as far as the money goes, don’t forget it’s been increased to fifteen thousand per photo. And I won’t take anything less than one hundred and fifty thousand.”

  Carrie slowly crossed the room to stand before her mother. “I hate to tell you this, but I don’t plan to give you one red cent.”

  “Yes, you will or your brothers—”

  “Already know,” Carrie said smiling. “I told them, and they don’t love me any less.”

  Rage appeared on the woman’s face. “Then let’s see how they deal with the entire world knowing. I’m sending those photographs to the newspaper. I’m sure the reporters will have a good time with it. In the course of their investigation, I can see them hounding your brothers at their offices, asking for statements, giving you all kind of grief and such.”

  “I don’t think so,” Carrie said slowly, opening her coat and easing out a mini-recorder. “Our entire conversation was captured on tape. This is your ticket to jail if you try doing that. If those photographs end up with the media, so will this tape. I don’t think you’ll want to see yourself on television that way, as one of the America’s Most Wanted.”

  Without saying anything else, Carrie walked to the door and opened it. To Edwina’s horror, six men walked in. She recognized her sons immediately. She also recognized the man who’d come calling with Carrie the other day. The one she figured to be her boyfriend. The last man she didn’t know. He was the one who stepped forward and spoke.

  “Ms. Montgomery, I’m Agent Mills with the FBI. It’s a good thing for your sake that I’m here on unofficial business; otherwise, I would be hauling you in for extortion attempts. But we’ve recorded some pretty damaging material, and I want to advise you of your fate if you proceed with your plans to expose those photographs.”

  Later that night, back at the hotel, Carrie stood at the window and stared out into the quiet night. She couldn’t help but think about what had happened after her brothers, Connor, and Agent Mills had arrived at Edwina’s place.

  Edwina had gotten scared shitless after Agent Mills had advised her of what could become her fate. She had dashed into the bedroom and gotten what she claimed were all the photographs along with any negatives. She had almost sworn on her mother’s grave to leave the Montgomery family alone.

  Carrie had felt sorry for her brothers. If they had been secretly harboring any pleasant memories of their mother, she was sure those memories came to a silent death while listening to their taped conversation. She had not only ruined the life of a hardworking man who had loved her but had tried to destroy her children’s lives, as well.

  “Come back to bed, sweetheart. I miss you keeping me warm.”

  Carrie turned and smiled. Connor was sprawled on top the covers, naked and fully aroused. “Are you sure that’s why you want me to come back, to keep you warm?”

  “That’s part of it.”

  When she walked back toward the bed, he grabbed her wrist and tumbled her down on the mattress with him. “It’s been one hell of a day, hasn’t it?” she asked, thinking that things had been pretty hectic since arriving in L.A. that morning.

  “Ye
s, but we got a lot done today. I honestly believe Edwina won’t be bothering any of you again. Agent Mills was pretty convincing.”

  Carrie remembered. “Yeah, he did lay it on rather thick. But that’s what Edwina needed to hear. Any judge and jury would gladly toss her in jail and throw away the key. She always talked bad, but when it came right down to it, she was nothing but mouth.”

  Connor had to agree. “And now you know Jeremiah is your real father.”

  Carrie smiled. “Yes, but the possibility that maybe I wasn’t his never bothered him. From the time I returned home, he had opened his house and heart to me as his daughter, not knowing the truth, and for that I will always love him. He’s a good man. It’s too bad my mother never appreciated him.”

  “Yes, it is a shame, isn’t it.” Connor’s hand slipped beneath her gown to caress her breast, the tip of his thumb teasing her nipple. He liked the sound she was making with his touch. It was a sensual sigh. “You like that?”

  She chuckled. “I like everything that you do to me, Connor.”

  “That’s good, because over the course of the next one hundred years, I plan to do a lot.” He stared deep into her eyes. “I love you.”

  Carrie thought there weren’t any words for what she was feeling at that very moment. “And I love you, too.”

  He removed the gown from her body and tossed it aside. “Are you ready to discuss wedding plans?” He asked her the question at the same time he slipped his hand between her legs.

  “Umm, yes, but not at this particular moment,” she said, sinking back into the mattress. She sucked in a sharp breath when his mouth began teasing her at the corner of her lips before lowering farther to her chest. There his lips found her breasts and he began feasting on them, laving the nipple with his tongue. And when his mouth moved lower as it trailed a hot, wet path down her chest to her belly, her entire body began trembling.

  Carrie cried out in pleasure the moment he slipped his tongue inside of her, and it was at that moment that she lost touch with reality. As shudders raced through her, he shifted positions, mounted her, and entered her body, and when he began moving back and forth, a fresh wave of desire washed over her again, making her need just that much stronger.

  She closed her eyes as the man she loved made love to her. He had helped to destroy her demons, and now he was fulfilling a need that only he could satisfy.

  “Connor!”

  When the explosion hit the both of them simultaneously, Carrie knew that they shared a bond that would never be broken. Any reservations about marrying him, not being good enough for him, melted away. She was his, and he was hers, and that was all that mattered. Tomorrow was New Year’s Eve, and she wanted them to start the New Year off right. And deep down inside, she knew that they would.

  34

  Asia, Sean, and Lance

  Asia glanced over at the door when she heard the knock. It was New Year’s Eve, the day Sean was to come for her decision. She inhaled deeply before crossing the room to open the door. Telling him about her and Lance wouldn’t be easy, but Lance was right. She owed him her complete honesty, and the truth was that she was in love with Lance and would marry him.

  As soon as Asia opened the door and Sean saw her, he knew. I’ve lost her began echoing in his head. In a way, he had known it the moment he had stepped off the elevator. He knew he had gambled, but more than anything he had wanted her to be sure of her feelings, to be certain of them.

  “Hi,” she greeted him.

  Hi, yourself.”

  She moved aside. “Come on in. I’ve been waiting for you.”

  He walked into her apartment and glanced around. The place looked the same, but he knew things were different, things he couldn’t see.

  “Would you like something to drink?”

  He gave her a smile. A forced one, but a smile nonetheless. “No, I’m fine.” Deciding not to prolong the inevitable, when she closed the door behind him and turned around, he came out and asked, “What’s your decision, Asia?”

  He studied her, how she nervously began toying with her watch and felt it, a cloak of guilt was draped over her shoulders, weighing her down, which could only mean one thing. But he had to hear it from her anyway.

  “I appreciate our friendship, Sean, you’ve always known that,” she said, holding his gaze. “You’ve always wanted more, but I never thought I could give you more, and then something happened and I convinced myself that I could, but it was a lie.”

  She sighed deeply before continuing. “The reality of it all is that I’m in love with someone else, and I can now admit that I fell in love with him months ago, although I tried fighting it. I have now accepted my feelings for him.”

  “It’s Montgomery, isn’t it?” he asked, his tone low yet direct.

  She nodded. “Yes. I love Lance. I’ve seen him, spent time with him, and I’m certain of my feelings for him and of his for me.”

  “And if he were to hurt you again?”

  “He won’t. He’s changed, but then so have I. We want to be together. We want to get married.”

  Sean felt his world come tumbling down. He wanted to hold her. He needed to touch her one last time. He reached out and took her hand in his, knowing this was all the touching he’d get. “I love you. All I ever wanted was for you to be happy.”

  She shook her head. Tears formed in her eyes. “I know, and I appreciate that. I appreciate you.”

  “But you don’t love me.”

  “No, I don’t love you. At least not that way. I love you as a friend and always will.”

  For the longest moment neither of them said anything. Then Sean broke into the silence and spoke again. “If he ever hurts you, he’ll have me to deal with. Let him know that, okay?”

  Asia wiped a tear from her eye. “Trust me, he already knows it.”

  “Good.” He then leaned over and placed a kiss on her cheek. “Take care and have a happy New Year.” Without giving her a chance to say anything else, knowing there really wasn’t anything left to be said, he left.

  Lance paced the confines of his condo, checking his watch for the umpteenth time. He had arrived back in Chicago from Los Angeles hours ago and had tried to call Asia but didn’t get an answer at her apartment in New York or on her cell phone.

  Today was the day she was supposed to talk to Sean. Had she done so already? Had the man accepted what she said? Was he giving her a hard time? Damn, where was she? He knew they had decided to see each other New Year’s Day, but he wished they could be together when the New Year rolled in. There was a chance that Sean would have wanted to take her out to dinner, though.

  Jealousy was a new emotion for him, but he knew that when it came to Asia it would be one he would undoubtedly feel every so often. She was his, and he was possessive and didn’t care who knew it.

  He turned when he heard a knock at his door. He cursed. The last person he wanted to see was one of his brothers. They had departed ways at the airport and they had headed to Gary to tell Pop what had happened in Los Angeles. That was hours ago. Had one of them decided to drive back to Chicago to spend the night on the town as a way to bring in the New Year?

  Knowing it had to be someone he knew—otherwise, the person would not have gotten past security—he snatched open the door.

  “Hi, expecting someone?”

  A surprised smile curved the corners of Lance’s mouth. Instead of providing his visitor with an answer, he pulled her inside, slammed the door shut, and began kissing her like a starving man. After that nasty episode in Los Angeles involving his mother, he needed this, the expulsions of certain emotions that only Asia could bring out in him. Not breaking the kiss, he bent and picked her up in his arms and headed straight for the bedroom.

  “No extravagant dinner this time?” she asked when he finally let go of her mouth to place her on the bed, referring to her first visit to his home.

  The corners of his lips turned up in a smile as he began removing his shirt. “No, we go straight into dess
ert, Chocolate Temptation.”

  “Oh.” Asia remembered Lance’s brand of the dessert, including just how he’d served it.

  The feminine scent of Asia engaged Lance’s already heated senses, and after removing all of his clothes and proceeding to remove all of hers, he began kissing her all over, feeling her body tremble beneath his lips. Her coming to him today was a surprise, but one he was overjoyed with.

  Tonight he planned to taste every inch of her, and then he would join their bodies in the most special way possible. He needed her. He wanted her. He loved her.

  She moaned his name. And he loved the sound of it from her lips. He shifted positions to settle between her legs, covering her body with his warmth. The tip of his shaft touched her hot worn anly core, and its moistness confirmed she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

  “Asia?”

  She met his gaze the moment he entered her, screamed out his name as he went deeper inside of her. She arched her body as if she couldn’t get enough of him just like he couldn’t get enough of her. She felt good. She felt like heaven. She felt like his.

  He thrust, holding her gaze, whispering words of love to her, establishing a special rhythm with her, setting the pace, the tone, the passion. Giving them what they both wanted.

  He groaned out her name when his body became a mass of red hot desire. He needed her like he needed his next breath, and he would spend the rest of his life making up for all the pain he had caused her.

  Every cell in his body felt fired, ignited, and ready to explode. His heart began pounding in his chest, and every emotion he possessed began swelling out of control. “I love you!”

  He groaned out the words and then threw his head back as his body continued to stroke her, love her. And when he felt her body buck, knowing the same passion that had overtaken him was consuming her, he felt her muscles clench and tried to waylay another orgasm that was ready to pound into him. He gritted his teeth, but it was no use. More desire than he’d ever experience before ripped through him, and there wasn’t a thing he could do to stop it. He spilled into her at the same time that he brought his mouth down to hers and kissed her deeply, thoroughly, and completely.