“Something wrong?” James asked when they locked eyes.
“No,” she said. “Nothing’s wrong.”
A smile spread across James’s lips. “You really wanted another steak, didn’t you? You don’t like the chicken, huh?”
She set her wineglass down. “I like the chicken, and everything is wonderful. The food, the company, everything.”
James scooted his chair closer to hers. “So what’s with the long face?”
Jade placed her hand on his thigh. “You make me feel things that I never thought I’d feel. It’s like you provide what I’ve been longing for, and I keep looking around the corner, waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
“You’re borrowing trouble,” he said. “I think you should stop that.”
She wanted to say that she would and that she would let things come as they may, but that was not the kind of woman Jade was. She did borrow trouble, even if being with James seemed like the most natural thing to do. But was it too good to be true?
Jade squeezed his thigh and returned to her meal. “You’re right,” she said. “I should stop.”
Later that night Jade lay in James’s arms, unable to sleep. Her mind just kept wondering if she was really going to find happiness with James Goings. She didn’t tell him that this evening was one that she’d dreamed of. James made her feel safe. He gave her everything that she had missed growing up. Everything that she had missed in her relationship with Stephen. James made her feel as if she was a priority, and that was something that she’d never felt before. With Stephen, she had felt like an obligation that he didn’t really want to deal with. Jade had known long before the story showed up in the paper that things with Stephen had been changing, but she hadn’t wanted to be alone. Looking over at James, Jade wanted him to be her everything. But how were they going to make this relationship work when everyone seemed to be against them being together?
One thing is certain, she thought as she turned and faced James. At least he’s not hiding a wife, girlfriend, or baby mama, like Serena alleged.
The next morning James woke up before Jade did. Her warmth in his arms made him not want to move. Were he given a choice, he’d lie with her like this all day. He brushed his lips against her forehead, then slipped his arms from around her and got out of the bed, hoping not to wake her up. James had noticed that Jade had tossed and turned for hours before she’d drifted off to sleep last night. If she was resting now, the last thing he wanted to do was disturb her. James headed into the kitchen and dialed Kenya’s office. He knew his sister-in-law was in, despite the fact that it was just a little after seven.
“Kenya Goings,” said a female voice.
“Aren’t you up bright and early this morning?”
“Well, had I stayed at home a minute longer, I would’ve killed your brother,” Kenya said in an exasperated voice.
“What’s wrong?” James asked.
“Actually, he kept talking about how you’re making a huge mistake with this woman from Vegas. I told him he needs to mind his business, but that fool wasn’t hearing me. Then I had morning sickness, and Mo was standing outside the bathroom, trying to be helpful but getting on my nerves,” she said. “So, what’s the deal with you and the Vegas showgirl?”
“Did he tell you she was a showgirl?” he asked incredulously. “That dude is tripping.”
Kenya sucked in a breath. “Honestly, I’m not even going to repeat some of the stuff Maurice said about your friend. Trust me, you don’t want to know.”
James slapped his hand against his forehead in frustration. “Your husband has issues. Jade is a woman who runs her own business. She makes me happy, and I hope I make her happy, too. She is the reason why I’m calling.”
“Really? What’s going on?”
“She needs some legal advice. Do you think you can fit us in today?”
“Umm,” she said. James heard her typing on her computer. “I have an opening around ten.”
“Cool. We’ll see you then,” he said.
“James,” Kenya said, “you deserve to be happy, and don’t let anyone—especially your brother—tell you otherwise.”
“Thanks,” he said. “That means a lot coming from you.”
“Well, I hate to cut this lovefest short, but I have some briefs to get ready and file with the clerk of the court before nine,” she said. “I’ll see you guys at ten.”
When James hung up with Kenya, he had a smile on his lips. His sister-in-law was a good friend to him, despite the incident that had happened between them when she thought that Maurice had cheated on her. He turned to head back to the bedroom, but Jade met him in the hallway, with nothing but the bedsheet draped seductively over her naked body.
“You know, when I woke up and you weren’t there, I thought last night was a wonderful dream,” she said.
James closed the space between them and pulled her against his body. “Is that so?”
She nodded and smiled. “But luckily, I was wrong. I did sleep in your arms all night.”
He brushed his lips against hers, then said, “You know, we can have breakfast in bed, because Kenya can’t see us until ten.”
“What I want to do in bed right now has nothing to do with breakfast,” she said, then dropped the sheet.
In one quick motion, James scooped Jade up in his arms and dashed into the bedroom.
After spending half of the morning making love, Jade and James pulled themselves out of bed in order to make it to Kenya’s office for their ten o’clock meeting.
When they arrived at her office, James spotted Maurice in the lobby. “Jade”—who was getting on the elevator—“you go ahead and go up. I need to talk with my brother,” he said as they approached the elevators. James grabbed Maurice by the elbow. “What’s up?”
Maurice looked from James to Jade and shook his head. “You tell me,” Maurice said. “I came to surprise my wife and make sure she was all right, and lo and behold, my brother and his woman are here.” Sarcasm flowed through Maurice’s words like a river.
“I spoke to your wife this morning. It seems like you can’t stop talking about me and my woman,” James retorted.
“James, what do you really know about Jade Christian and her crew?”
James furrowed his eyebrows and shook his head. “We’re not going through this again.”
“I hired a private detective,” Maurice said. “And in twenty-four hours, he found out that those women are known for bilking the rich and famous out of their money. Especially that Serena Jacobs, and you know what they say about birds of a feather. How did you and Jade meet? Do you think that you running into her was an accident?”
Running his hand over his face, James wanted to write his brother off, but the things he said made more sense than he wanted to admit.
“And Jade was involved with who before you two started sleeping together?” Maurice said pointedly.
“Mo,” James said, holding his hand up, “why are you so invested in what I do and who I do it with?”
“Because we’ve been down this road once, and I don’t want to see another crazy bi ... James, if I’m wrong about her ...”
“You are, so why don’t you take all this energy that you’re putting into nosing around my life and put it into making sure the Panthers don’t trade your ass,” James said as he pressed the elevator up button.
The doors opened, and the brothers stepped onto the elevator. Maurice glared at James. “That was a low blow.”
“And calling Jade a showgirl wasn’t?”
“I forgot, you and Kenya tell each other everything,” Maurice said, with a laugh.
“That’s not funny,” James said, fighting back his own laughter.
“Whatever, man. I know you and this girl are having a good time right now, but what are you going to do when this thing runs out of steam?”
James cast a sidelong glance at his brother. “When did you get a crystal ball, and why haven’t you used it in your own damned life?”
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“Stop comparing this situation to what happened with Lauryn,” Maurice said.
“As soon as you stop doing it, I will,” James snapped. “This isn’t even about you. Or is that the problem?”
“Not this shit again,” Maurice grumbled.
“Yes, this again. You have to be the center of damned attention, don’t you? Or is it that you’re the only one who can have a stable relationship and a family? The rest of us are just supposed to be envious of what Maurice has, because we mere mortals will never have that.”
“That’s bull and you know it,” Maurice snapped. “But if I see you walking into fire, am I just supposed to let you get burned?”
“If that’s what I want, then yes,” James said. “And you’re going to show Jade some damned respect.”
Before Maurice could reply, the doors to the elevator opened.
“We’ll finish this later,” Maurice said as he bounded toward Kenya’s office.
James shook his head and followed his brother to Kenya’s door. “You know Jade’s in there with her, right?” James asked as he grabbed his brother’s elbow.
“And?”
“Mo, Jade is a potential client. What are you going to do? Just burst in there?” James asked.
“Why are you so insistent on involving that woman in our lives?”
James shook his head. “I’m sick of trying to explain myself to you.” He sat down in one of the chairs outside of Kenya’s office. Maurice sat beside him.
“All right. Fine,” Maurice said. “You do what you want to do with that chick, but mark my words. This relationship is a mistake.”
James wanted to punch his brother, choke him, or just push him down a flight of stairs. Then he thought about it. It was as if their roles had been reversed. James had said far worse to Maurice when he and Lauryn were together. But the difference was he’d been right.
What if Maurice is right now? the skeptic in James asked. He rubbed his neck and turned away from his brother. Jade wasn’t running game, she wasn’t trying to use him, and Maurice needed to mind his own damned business.
CHAPTER 16
Jade watched Kenya as she typed information into her computer, and she felt hopeful. Hopeful that there was a law somewhere that would allow her to atone for her stupidity and get her money back.
“A lot of courts do look seriously at verbal contracts,” Kenya said as she printed a document. “I’ll bet he’s going to use the gift defense.”
“The what?” Jade asked.
“In a lot of these cases that I’ve seen, when a woman sues a man that she used to date, he claims that she gave him money as a gift.”
“Trust me, that fifty thousand dollars was no gift. I thought it was an investment in my future.”
Kenya pulled her reading glasses off and stared at Jade. “Just one question,” she began. “Why didn’t you get something in writing?”
Jade sighed. She’d been asking herself that same question since she’d seen the picture of Stephen in the AJC. Shrugging, she said, “A serious lapse in judgment? I thought we were in love with each other. The last thing I expected was to be replaced by a bootleg Barbie doll.”
“This is a costly mistake,” Kenya said. “But he still took your money, and that’s wrong. We can get this lawsuit filed and maybe get a court date for next month some time.”
“How much is this going to cost me?” Jade asked, a little surprised that Kenya had taken her case when several other attorneys had turned her down.
“Don’t worry about that,” Kenya replied. “This man needs to learn a lesson, and I’m more than willing to help teach it.” She extended her hand to Jade. “Besides, he tried to take advantage of my mother-in-law as well, so I’m guessing this is a pattern with him.”
Jade enthusiastically shook Kenya’s hand. “Thank you so much.”
“Don’t thank me until I win,” Kenya said. She handed Jade her business card. “If you have anything that shows you were his employee and you two had more than a personal relationship, I’m going to need that.”
“I have some old pay stubs and W-two forms from the restaurant,” Jade said. She wished she had listened to Alicia when she’d told her to find another job once she and Stephen began sleeping together. Hell, she wished that she had walked away from Stephen when Alicia had told her that he’d tried to pick her up.
“All right,” Kenya said. “And I play to win, so Stephen is going down.”
Jade smiled brightly. “I like how that sounds.” In the back of her mind, Jade wondered how in the world Kenya dealt with being Maurice Goings’s wife.
Kenya and Jade walked out of the office, talking as if they were old friends. But their chatter stopped when they saw James and Maurice standing toe-to-toe, arguing.
“You’re acting like a damned fool!” Maurice boomed.
“Learned from the best, because you are a damned fool,” James shot back.
Kenya rushed toward the battling brothers and grabbed her husband’s arm. “Do I need to remind you two that this is a place of business? Why are you two out here acting like Neanderthals?” she demanded.
Maurice cast a sidelong glance at Jade but held his tongue.
“Let’s go,” James said as Jade walked over to him.
Jade looked from him to Maurice and shook her head. “Maybe we all need to sit down and talk,” she said. “Kenya just took me on as a client, James and I are going to be seeing each other a lot more, and I don’t want you two to keep fighting.”
“Sounds logical to me,” Kenya said.
Maurice and James remained silent.
“Guys,” Kenya said, “stop acting like children and come into my office.”
They headed into Kenya’s office, and Kenya perched on the edge of her desk, looking at the frown on her husband’s face and shaking her head. “What’s the problem?” she asked.
Maurice looked in Jade’s direction. “Tell me something,” he began. “How much money do you and your friends make from all these men you take advantage of ?”
“What?” Jade snapped. “You’re mistaken.”
“Serena Jacobs is your friend, right?” Maurice continued.
“So? Since when am I responsible for what someone else does?” Jade retorted.
“Yeah, Mo,” James said. “I mean, do you want to be judged by the company you keep? Remember when the city thought you were the second coming of Rae Carruth?”
Kenya waved her hand. “Don’t go there. Look, guys, we’re going to be a part of each other’s lives for the immediate future. I’m not going to mediate arguments every time the four of us get together.”
Maurice looked from Jade to James. “All right. I hope I’m wrong about you, Jade. My mother raised me better than this, so if you make my brother happy, then I guess I should mind my business.”
“Thank you,” James said.
“But,” Maurice said, “don’t let me be right.”
Kenya reached out and smacked Maurice on the shoulder. “Be nice.”
“I am being nice,” Maurice said, sounding like a child that had been scolded by his mother.
James and Jade chuckled quietly. It was now obvious to Jade how Kenya dealt with being Mrs. Maurice Goings. She held her own with him and stood her ground when she needed to.
“All right,” Kenya said. “Now all of you can get out of my office, and I can get to work.”
James rose from his chair and crossed over to his sister-in-law, then gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “Thanks,” he said.
Maurice stood and opened the door for the couple as they left. Jade glanced at him, wanting to tell him that he was wrong about her and her friends. Instead, she kept her thoughts to herself as she and James said good-bye.
“How did things go with Kenya?” James asked once they were in the parking lot.
“A lot better than they seemed to go with your brother.”
James fanned his hand as if he were swatting away an annoying gnat. “Maurice is just being M
aurice. You know, he had the nerve to hire a private investigator to check up on you and your friends.”
“What?” Jade asked incredulously. “How could he invade my privacy like that?”
“I know,” James said. “But you don’t have anything to hide, do you?”
Jade stopped walking, placed her hands on her hips, and glared at him. “I know you better be joking. Or ...”
James crossed over to Jade, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her on the neck. “Of course I was joking. Why is this bothering you so much?”
“Because I don’t want to have your brother looking at me as if I’m some leech on your neck, and I don’t want you caught in the middle, having to choose.”
“That’s not going to happen,” James said. “Maurice will get over it, and you and I are going to be fine.”
“The stuff he said about Serena ...”
“I don’t care. You’re not Serena, and whatever she has done or is doing has nothing to do with you.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m glad you feel that way.”
James pulled Jade against him and thrust his pelvis into her. “I’m feeling a lot of things right now.”
“You are so bad,” she whispered as she felt the thickness of his erection.
“Let’s get out of here and have lunch in my bed,” he breathed against her ear.
James didn’t have to say another word as Jade grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the parking lot.
CHAPTER 17
James and Jade entered his house, locked in each other’s arms. She craved his touch as he opened the front door, and didn’t want to wait until they were in the bedroom to feel the heat from his hands and the passion of his kisses. As soon as they stepped into the foyer, she slipped her hand inside his slacks. The move excited James even more than he already was. She gently stroked his shaft up and down. A soft moan escaped his throat as he backed against the wall. She unbuckled his slacks and slid them down his hips. His erection sprang forward from his boxers. Jade continued to stroke him as she dropped to her knees. Softly, she breathed against his pulsating manhood; then she took the length of him into her mouth.
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