“Somebody’s got a bee in their bonnet,” Kent mumbled as he wiped my lipstick from his lips.
Shaking my head, I crossed my arms over my chest. This shit could not get back to Steve. Damn!
“Kent, that never happened.”
“What never happened?” he asked frowning.
“That kiss. It was a mistake. I belong to someone, and you and I are just friends. Got it?”
He nodded his head slowly. “A mistake. Yeah, I got it loud and clear,” he said as I ran from the room.
It was time to do damage control.
CHAPTER 3 – MADISON
“What the hell was that in there, Madi?” Nicole hissed.
We had just finished witnessing the bouquet toss, and my sister had pulled me aside to talk with me about “the kiss.”
Kent had conveniently disappeared, and he and his close friend, Nolan, were hanging at the bar. Two women, I’d never seen before approached them. But there was nothing I could do about that. He was a free man, I was engaged, and I had one pissed off sister in my face.
“Nic, calm the hell down, will you? Do you have to be overly dramatic about everything?”
“I do when I find my engaged sister kissing a man that isn’t her fiancé! Especially a man that’s a well-known whore.”
“Wow! Really, Nic? Did you have to go there? He’s my best friend, not to mention your brother-in-law.”
“And as such, I love him for who he is in my life, but I won’t have him jacking up yours. I’m calling it like it is. We know the man has a parade of women in and out of his life, not to mention his bedroom. Why would you want to get caught up in that?”
I felt a headache coming on. As much as I loved my big sister, she could be a drain on me at times. For some reason, she thought she was my mother whenever my mom wasn’t around.
“I’m not getting caught up in anything, Nic. I don’t know what the hell happened back there. He’d pissed me off about something he said while we were dancing. I left. He came to apologize, and the next thing I know, we were kissing, and I didn’t stop him.”
I wouldn’t tell the bullshit lie that I didn’t know how it happened. I knew. I wanted it as much as Kent did, but I wouldn’t tell her that either.
“Madi, you have a good man. A damned good man who loves you, is there for you, supportive of you, and he’s going to take good care of you. You and Steve are going to go on and make a beautiful family like Grey and me. Don’t throw that away for a fling with Kent.”
I laughed. “Whoa, how the hell did we get from a kiss to a full-fledged fling?”
She shook her head. “Don’t underestimate the power of those Black brothers. They’re sexy, fine as hell, and they will say some shit to make you drop the panties,” she said, leveling a gaze at me.
“Okay, TMI. I don’t need to hear about you and Grey’s sex life.”
“Okay, then ask my sisters-in-law. I’m sure Blake had no intention of being caught up with Mitch. Hell, he was a walking nightmare for her. And then poor Alex, shit, she and Grant didn’t even know each other an hour before he was all up in that.”
I laughed. “You’re doing too much,” I said as I started walking away.
She pulled me back by my arm and turned me around to face her.
“Madi, I’m serious. I’ve seen Kent at work. And when he wants something, he won’t let up. And the way his eyes have been feasting on you all day like you’re his next chicken dinner, all I’m saying is people’s hormones, and emotions tend to get out of control at a wedding. That’s what happened with Grant and Alex. Don’t break up your relationship because of a moment.”
“I’m not breaking up my relationship, Nic. At least not for the reasons you think,” I muttered.
Her eyebrows dipped down quickly as she jerked her neck back. “Are you thinking of breaking up with Steve?”
I couldn’t stand the outraged tone of voice she was using. Man, she needed to chill with that shit.
Sighing, I said, “No, but if I were, it wouldn’t be because of Kent Black.”
“What reasons would you have to break up with a man like Steve Cross?”
“He’s not perfect, Nic. I know you, Mom, and Dad thinks he is, but he’s not.”
“Okay, Madi, I’m not saying he’s perfect. No one is, not even Grey. But...he’s a good man who loves you and wants to take care of you.”
“I don’t need a man to take care of me, Nic. I’m perfectly capable of providing for myself. But what I do need is a man that makes me his priority and doesn’t place me on a shelf until he’s ready to take me off of it and showcase me.”
“You know you’re acting spoiled, don’t you?”
When I was younger, that was the thing that Nicole, my brother Zion, and my mom would always say to me when they felt I was stepping out of line. My dad always had my back, though. But I was a grown woman now and had to stand up for myself.
“Why, because I want his time, his attention, and he continues breaking promises and dates to me because of the law firm? Or his elusive partnership? Or the fact he only has time for me when he needs me to accompany him to some event? Which part of that am I spoiled about?”
“Okay, Madi, go ahead and mess up a good thing if you want to. Don’t say I didn’t warn you when he gives your heart back to you on a platter. If you’re sitting there crying because you caught him with another woman, or you’re lonely because he’s moved on and grown bored with you, don’t say I didn’t tell you. He’s at the bar with a couple of women now. So, yeah, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Nicole said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I won’t say it, Nic. Because you’re going to make sure you do,” I said, storming away from her.
I was heated. Why did Nicole think I was about to throw everything away for Kent?
What no one understood was I was not happy in my relationship, and I hadn’t been for some time. And it had nothing to do with Kent. I’d seen the changes in Steve over the last year, knew that some nights he didn’t return to his place, and smelled the scent of other women’s perfume on him at times. He explained it all away, but I knew my instincts weren’t wrong.
He’d become cavalier in his attitude towards other women, and he treated me as a second-thought rather than a priority. Why should I give myself over to accepting those behaviors when I was so much more before?
I’d been airing my grievances to Steve for a year, and I’d tried talking to my mom and sister, but they were consistently on Steve’s side.
Grabbing another drink from a passing waiter, I returned to my table, where I sat fuming alone for two minutes.
“You good?” a voice behind me asked.
I turned in my seat to offer a warm smile to my brother-in-law, Greyson. If you want to talk about good men, he was a good man.
“Yeah, I’m fine, Grey.”
“You know your sister told me what happened,” he started.
My eyes widened, and he placed a hand on mine. “Don’t worry; Nicole won’t tell anyone. She told me because I saw Kent go after you, and then Nic went after you and came back pissed.”
Shaking my head, I said, “Grey, she’s blowing it out of proportion.”
He chuckled. “My wife does tend to be emotional at times. But you’d know that since you grew up with her.”
“Yeah, I do.”
“I’m not condoning how she’s handling it, Madi, but I am saying be careful. I don’t know the status of you and Steve and what you’ve got going on with him. That’s not my business. But I know my brother, and he never has the greatest intentions when it comes to women. I’ll be the first to admit he’s grown up a lot in the last few years, but settling down? He’s not ready for that. And I know you, Madi. I love and respect you, because you’re my little sister, too, now. I won’t tell you what to do when it comes to him, but I will tell you what I’ll do when it comes to you. I promise you, if Kent breaks your heart, I’ll break his ass.”
I giggled softly and smiled at him
. “Thanks, Grey. But I’m a big girl, and I can handle myself pretty well.”
“I know you are, and I know you can. But if you want to protect your best friend and my little brother, I caution you to tread carefully. One mishap and I’m kicking his ass,” he said.
“Duly noted,” I said, taking another sip of my wine.
“Can I have this dance?” Greyson asked, extending his hand to me as he stood.
“But of course, big brother,” I said, winking at him and taking his hand.
He led me to the dance floor, and we danced for the first two minutes of the song, not uttering a word. I knew he intended to soothe my rattled nerves.
I smelled him before I heard or saw him. My nostrils were flaring at his scent, and my hormones were kicking wildly all over the place.
“Big bro, your wife looks like she needs someone to dance with right now. And since I’m no longer eligible, I’d say you’d better go do your duty,” Kent said from behind me.
Greyson sighed. “Protect,” he said, leveling an earnest gaze on me.
“Okay,” I said, smiling before allowing Kent to take my hands in his.
The smile slipped quickly from my lips.
“Your sister just danced with me and gave me the blues about you. She wants to make sure I stay as far away from you as possible. Told me I wasn’t good enough for you. And once she issued that little directive, I beelined my ass right over here to you,” he said with a smirk.
“Don’t you have a few fans to entertain?”
“I’m not entertaining anyone or anything but thoughts of you and me,” he said.
“There’s no me and you. I’m engaged, and you...well, you were just flirting with those women at the bar.”
“Wasn’t flirting. Just answering a few questions and kicking it with them, that’s all,” Kent said sincerely.
“You’re not done causing trouble yet?” I asked, looking into his flashing green eyes.
“Can’t seem to help it. Especially where you’re concerned,” Kent said, his gaze dropping to my lips again.
“Why, KB?”
“Why not? You always have me acting out.”
“Me?” I said, my eyes widening.
“Yeah. You’re the reason I stay in trouble, Mads. Every time I’m around you, I can’t help but lose my mind.”
I laughed. “You’re so full of bull, Black.”
He frowned.
“Sorry,” I apologized.
Kent didn’t like being called by his last name. It was important to him that he forge his own identity. Ever since he had relocated to Atlanta, he’d combined his investments with his inheritance from both his maternal and paternal grandparents to start a new building project.
His father had taught him how to invest his money when he was eight. Kent had made some smart financial decisions and was a wealthy man. But he lived a relatively humble life in some respects.
Although he loved flying around the world and buying flashy cars, he mostly saved and invested his money. I was thankful he had outgrown that phase where he spent money on wild parties, paying for rappers to come and perform for his friends.
“How’s the condo project coming along?” I asked, shifting to a safer topic.
“Everything’s good. We’re still working on locating the perfect spot to build. An area that’s going to give us the type of space we need to build a work, live, play area.”
“Something like Atlantic Station? One of those billion-dollar projects that creates a traffic nightmare? Like at the Mercedes Benz stadium,” I said.
I recalled how ludicrous the traffic in that area was while they were building the venue.
“Mads, any time there’s any type of major construction project going on whether it’s commercial or residential, along with the expensive price tag come all types of headaches. Obtaining permits for the city, ensuring it’s within the zoning regulations and the traffic nightmares that are going to hold people up. Honestly, there’s no way around it; however, we are looking at a plan that will allow us to do the majority of our work during the hours most people are at work and school, between ten and three, on the weekends, and after hours. I’ve considered all that, and wherever we build, I don’t want it to be a hassle for existing residents, business owners, and their patrons.”
“Good, because there’s been a lot of construction going on in the area where I volunteer at with my students, and it becomes a real hassle at times,” I said.
“Well, I wouldn’t want to be the reason you went through any hassle,” he said, teasing me and tugging a lock of my hair.
Recently I had begun offering dance programs to underprivileged kids in South Fulton. I volunteered along with a few of my dance partners I had corralled into helping me. A grant offset the cost of the program and the equipment.
For me, dance was more than an art. It was a physical expression of my mind and spirit communicated by my body. An outlet to express me to the world and to work through convoluted emotions and problems in my life.
I believed everyone should have that ability if they so desired. Too often, impoverished children weren’t afforded the same opportunities as wealthier kids. It wasn’t because the money wasn’t there. Money was readily available for most things people wanted to do.
No, the problem was people didn’t care, and they were too lazy to do something about it. I wasn’t foolish enough to believe I could change the world, but I wanted to create change in my corner of the world, one kid at a time.
CHAPTER 4 – KENT (3 Months Later)
My mother enjoyed having her family together every opportunity that presented itself. This celebration was the first time since Alexandra and Grant’s wedding, we were together. I know that she cherished these things, but there were a million places I’d rather be than stuck in a boring ballet.
My father insisted we all be here to celebrate my mother’s birthday, which was a quieter affair than anything we ever attended for him. The performance was nearing an end, and the next stop would be dinner at The Caldwell House, an exclusive dinner club our family visited annually for my mother’s birthday.
Eyes tuned in to my phone, I was making plans for where I would be once this dismal affair was over. My buddy Nolan was throwing a party tonight, and I planned to be there.
No one paid these things attention when we visited. Nicole, Greyson, and Blake were the ones that were as consumed by the performance as my parents were.
Mitch was struggling to pay attention because his hand kept inching its way up his wife’s thigh towards her crotch. Unfortunately, the program that rested on her lap wasn’t hiding my brother’s shenanigans well.
Grant and Alexandra made no pretense of paying attention to the performance. They couldn’t keep their lips off one another long enough to pretend they were interested in the production. I wasn’t sure why they even showed up for the night. They might as well have stayed on their honeymoon.
My father had yet to acknowledge Alexandra’s presence in our family as a member of the family. Although he had attended their wedding, we all knew that was because my mother would have accepted nothing less. Their ceremony had been a large elaborate affair held in Hawaii.
Surprisingly there had been no drama, and our mothers had gotten along well. It was apparent our fathers did not care for one another, and my father stayed away as much as possible. But Grant and Alexandra were happy, and I guess in the end, that was all that mattered.
I didn’t get my brothers. How in the hell had they all been locked down into marriage? Sex with one woman for the rest of my life? Hell, no. That was like a lion locked in a cage and served nothing but chicken daily. I needed multiple women to satisfy my different cravings. And making love? What the hell was that, anyway?
Nope, my only concern was smashing a woman until I eventually grew tired of her, which would happen sooner rather than later. I know my family thought I’d settled down, but I hadn’t. Not really. I didn’t host the wild parties I used to host anymore
, but I enjoyed life.
And I planned to enjoy some sexy woman I might meet at Nolan’s tonight. That was my hope anyway.
Emma, my date for the night, was captivated by the performance unfolding on the stage before us. I would drop her off after dinner and then head someplace else for a night of fun.
Emma was a good girl and a surgical intern. One of those old family friends of ours, my father kept hoping I’d settle down with one day. But there were no plans for that in my future. We had been friends for a long time, and we both knew neither of us was interested in the other. We couldn't have a future together.
I leaned towards my mother, who sat in front of me.
“Mom, how much longer is the performance?”
My father turned his steely gaze my way, but I ignored it. My impatience had been an ongoing battle between us since I was a child. It was nothing new. And my mother, as she had the habit of doing, always responded lovingly with patience.
“We have another half an hour, dear,” she replied, reaching back to pat me on the cheek.
I sat back in my seat, groaning, my attention on my phone once more. Approximately five minutes passed before whispers, and excited murmuring drew my attention again.
As I glanced around at my family, everyone’s focus was on the stage, goofy smiles pasted on their faces. I looked up to see what had them rapt with attention, and my eyes landed on a vision of beauty. All the other dancers fell away as a solo light beamed upon her.
With grace and poise, she moved across the stage as though she owned it. Long, muscular limbs expressed beauty and confidence words alone would fail to convey. The music and dance united in her body. There was nothing more magnificent than watching her at this moment.
As though pulled by a magnet, I found myself balancing on the edge of my seat, my body one tense muscle. She was an art form, and I was the student, determined to memorize and understand every line, every stroke, every angle of her composition.
Smooth: The Sons of Victor Black: A BWWM Romance Page 2