Quentin looked up at him with his mouth open. “Mr.—Mr. Germaine,” Quentin stuttered. “This is a major undertaking. I’ll need more time.”
“Not really.” Delvin walked over to his car, where his driver quickly opened the door. Before he stepped in he said, “Mr. Daniels, you have exactly forty-eight hours to put this in motion. Those documents you’re holding are the contractors I’ve already commissioned to start work in six hours, and my financial planner is waiting for your call. I suggest you get started because in seventy-two hours, my family and I are moving in.”
Just before the car door closed behind Delvin, he heard Quentin screeching into his cell phone, “Glasetta, drop everything you’re doing and get into the office ASAP!”
Chapter 24
Tailan’s headaches were her constant sidekick. They became more frequent with each passing week. Work was stressful, and she was busier than ever. Tailan was shocked at the daunting amount of work that David had actually been doing behind the scenes. Now that she had replaced him, she was expected to add his responsibilities to her own. The pressure was intense, especially now that she was expected to repeat the success of the Soul Express tour.
Every single member of The Vets, all eleven members of M-LAS, most of them virtually unknown authors, Lutishia, and Malcolm, all hit the New York Times bestseller’s list within seven weeks of each other. Now the publishers—the ones who swore up and down she would fail—were ringing her phone off the hook to accomplish the same feat for their debut and mid-list authors. The publishers couldn’t fathom that the reason those authors single-handedly achieved more than The Divas was because they supported each other on the tour and after.
Tailan was humbled by the success, and she should’ve been squealing for joy, but at the moment she couldn’t do anything but reach for some pain meds.
Work was not the only cause of her elevated stress. Home was bringing up the rear and dumping tension in her lap too. Neena and Devi were sensing the strain. The thick cloud of unease was hard to miss.
Delvin was the only ray of light in her girls’ day. When he came to collect them every day to spend time with Jason and Ariel at their grandmother’s house, Neena and Devi would sail out of the house so fast, they often forgot to say goodbye to their parents.
Work and the girls would’ve been bad enough, but those issues were only the edge of the moon crater. The deep pit of tension resided squarely within the intimacy Tailan shared with Amir—the sexual intimacy. She was in trouble, and she knew it. Not even Delvin knew her body like Amir did. And her body could never lie to him. Amir was certain their bed play was a well-orchestrated act on her part. He was every shade of miserable.
Something had to be done. Her family situation, her love life couldn’t continue this way. Yes, without question she loved her husband. During the past four weeks what really made her nervous was the alarming idea that she could actually still be in love with Delvin—a fact Amir had pointed out. Now her decision to work on her marriage was making both her and her husband miserable.
Tailan needed to wash away all of the nagging thoughts. She stepped into the shower. At least there, she could find some relief from the tension knotting every muscle in her body. Twenty minutes later, Tailan reached for a towel, wrapped it around herself, and stepped out.
Amir stood right in the doorway. She almost screamed from his abrupt presence. “Since the girls are not here, I wish to speak about the incident with my family.”
Tailan felt her cheeks burst with heat. Amir’s family had invited Neena to a family event and excluded Devi. When word got back to Delvin, he snapped. She had prayed this on-going issue with Amir’s family would pass. This time, Amir saw things through a different lens and she hoped that the fact that he did see would force him to act.
“Delvin threatened to go over there and deal with it himself since you obviously haven’t,” Tailan warned, moving past him and into their bedroom. “I’ve told you for years that they treated Devi differently. Now Delvin wants the nanny to accompany her every time they go to see your people.” She turned to him. “If things keep going like this, he’ll probably go for full custody. I won’t lose my daughter because of your family.”
“It took his outrage and the look of pain in Devi’s eyes to see the truth for myself. I understand. It’s been real subtle before, but now …” He stepped closer to her and kissed her damp shoulder. “For my part in our daughter’s pain, I am sorry, and I vow that my family will honor and treat Devi the same as Neena. And if they cannot, then I will have no other choice but to break off from them.”
Her heart softened. Amir was again making a great sacrifice for her and the children they loved. Going against the traditions of his people was not an easy road for him to take. And ever since that televised kiss, his people had been strangely silent on issues related to the marriage they deemed “inappropriate.”
“I cannot control what they do,” he said. “But I can control how we respond to it.”
Tailan caressed his flawless golden face. “It’s all I’ve ever asked for, Amir.”
He continued to rub her bare shoulders. “There is one more thing I wish to discuss.”
She moved closer, letting the warmth of his body seep through the cloth of the towel.
“Yes?” Tailan whispered.
Amir looked directly into her eyes and said, “I will permit you—with no consequences—to be with him. One. Time.”
She flinched and jumped back as though she’d been punched. “What?!”
“Go to him,” he said calmly. Only his eyes revealed the depth of his anger. “Do what you need to do so we can return to normal.”
She dropped to the bed and shook her head. “That’s not what I want.”
Amir stood over her, looking down, his eyes determined and steadfast. “You have never accepted any of the men in the poly community. You have had plenty of choices. What is it about him? How can someone so selfish, so self-centered, still hold a place in your heart?”
“You don’t understand him,” she replied, holding her anger in check. “He’s not selfish, just … single-minded.”
“Selfish,” he confirmed. “His needs before yours. I bet his lovemaking reflects this too.”
Did it?
She had always had vicious orgasms with Delvin. She never gauged whether hers came before his—it never mattered. Because what Delvin brought to the table was more than what was between his legs.
Amir continued, his grin a perfect display of white teeth. “I have a proposition for you … go to him. Let him”—he grimaced—“make love to you. I want you to know the difference between what he can do for you and what a man who worships your temple can do. Does he worship you, my love?”
Tailan could only blink up at him as she struggled to find the words.
Her slow attempt to come up with something prompted Amir to add, “There will be no consequences to our marriage—”
She gasped and parted her lips to speak, but he held up a hand to halt anything she could say.
“But I do have one stipulation.”
Tailan sighed.
“I would like to watch.”
She was on her feet before she could blink. The action was so swift, the towel stayed on the bed. Naked, Tailan faced her husband and gasped, “You have lost what’s left of your mind!”
“Have I?” he shot back, gripping her shoulders and pulling her into his hard chest. “Or are you afraid I might be right? That he is selfish. His needs before your own.”
“He would never go for another man watching him that way.”
Amir’s eyebrow winged up his forehead. “You only say this because you are not a man. A man secure with his sexuality and his love-making skills will rarely shy away from a challenge aimed at both.”
He slid his hands down Tailan’s exposed back, kneading the tight knots he found there. Tailan wanted to kick her own behind as a whisper of a moan escaped.
“His ego will not let him refuse
,” Amir added. “Especially if he thinks it is how he can have you and how he can show me he is the better man.”
Amir’s mouth massaged her lips as his strong, knowing hands slid easily over her hips.
“But … what …” Tailan stammered as the kiss ended. “What are you trying to prove?”
He nipped at her chin and glided his tongue down her neck. “That once you have sated your lust, your need for love will be even greater.”
“How can you be sure?” Tailan moaned. She was almost too distracted by his hands and by what his mouth was doing to her upper body to finish this conversation.
Amir fisted her curly hair and leveled his sultry eyes to hers. “Because when I am with you, inside you, it’s always love—never lust. Always about me loving the physical part of you, when I already adore and love the rest of who you are.”
Amir never lied to her—not with his words or his body.
“You could lose me,” she gasped, holding his stare.
He abruptly released her, leaving her body aching for more. Amir walked to the window. “I can never lose what did not belong to me in the first place,” he replied. “But until you know this, we cannot move forward, whether Delvin is in our lives or not.”
Tailan padded over to him and spooned his back with her naked breasts. “You couldn’t love me and send me—”
“That is where you are wrong,” he said in a soft tone. “I love you more than you will ever know or understand. I am setting you free to see the real Delvin Germaine.”
He turned to her and cradled her face in his hands.
“You have been fantasizing about him for years. The Great Love who got away.”
Tailan’s lids dipped, concealing the ugly truth those words revealed.
“So go to him,” he whispered. “He will send you back to me—this time, for keeps.”
She shook her head. “I can’t do this.”
Amir kissed her again, only this time it was soured by his pain.
“You can, and you will.” He moved away from her to leave their bedroom. “Those fantasies come between us more than you realize. If I was not in the picture …”
She whirled to face him. “Doesn’t mean I would go back to him.”
Amir opened the door and stepped through it. Before he closed it and the topic, he confirmed, “I am the only thing standing between your true forgiveness of him and your complete submission to him. So I am removing myself from the equation.” He wagged his finger. “But just for one night. Then we will discuss returning our marriage to monogamy.”
Tailan ran to the door just before it closed and yanked it back open.
Boldly she declared, “You’re playing games, using me as a pawn. All because you don’t like him.”
“This is not about if I like or dislike him,” he countered, coming back to her so he could stroke a hand across her face. “This is about how easily you can forget that his love was only balanced by how he could command your womb.”
Well, he does have a valid point there.
“Then how can you ask to watch him with me?”
“I want to know that you finally understand the man who has been in your head is not the man in your bed. Not the man you have dreamed about for seven years. I do not want you to assimilate, justify it, and brush it off.” Amir reached for the door again, preparing to close it. “If I witness it, you have no choice but to own up to who he is right now. You have never lied to me, and I do not expect you to start now. If you feel it, I will know it. If I lose you in the process … well, then at least I did not lose you to a memory.”
“No woman is worth what you’re putting yourself through, Amir,” she confessed.
“You are wrong,” he said, planting a soft kiss on her lips. “You are worth that and more. He forgot that. I will not.”
“I think you’re underestimating him.”
Amir’s lips lifted at the corners. “For your sake, I hope so. For mine, I hope not.” He kissed her again and pulled the door to close it. Just before it clicked, he added, “Bring him to our home, and I will lay down the terms by which your liaison will take place.”
Chapter 25
Tailan’s hand was trembling when she entered Delvin’s house down the street. She closed the door with a soft click and took in the extensive work that had been done on the place. Delvin had provided her with an insane amount of money to furnish and style the home exactly as she wanted.
But he made a small request that the house reflect the family who lived there. So Tailan had decorated the home with loving care, respecting the diverse cultures that represented his family. She smiled as she moved to the den, taking in the African-American artwork alongside the East Indian influences of Neena’s people. Although Tailan had no love for her Asian ancestry because of how her father’s people viewed her, she wanted her daughter’s Asian heritage to be honored.
The colors were warm and cozy. The furniture, inviting and sturdy. The massive kitchen was filled with stainless steel appliances and all the modern conveniences. The den was the social hub of the house and most likely where she would find Delvin. If he wasn’t visiting his mother with the kids, on the days his schedule permitted, he was often with them in the den playing a game or reading to them.
Today was no exception.
Delvin was stretched out on an area rug playing Sorry! with Devi, Neena, and Ariel. She lowered to the floor to watch them, but mostly took in how wonderful Delvin was with the three of them—how patient, loving, kind, and most of all, fair. It was refreshing to see both of her daughters being treated well after dealing with Amir’s family.
He shifted on the rug, looked up at her, and frowned. “Is everything all right?”
“Just wanted to have a word with you in private, please,” Tailan replied.
“Okay.” He turned back to the girls and smiled. “Just let me finish beating Neena real quick.”
“I don’t think so,” Neena piped in and knocked his piece off the board and back to start.
Delvin’s eyes bulged, too shocked to believe it. “What—” He retraced Neena’s strategy. “Ah, that was just wrong, little girl.”
All three girls giggled at Delvin’s incredulous expression. They were the sounds she wished would echo in her own home.
“I won, Mama,” Neena exclaimed, grinning as she wrapped her arms around Tailan’s midriff.
“Yes, you did,” she replied, smiling down at her daughter. “And he doesn’t seem too happy about it.”
“I want a rematch,” Delvin grumbled playfully as he stood.
Ariel joined them, but timidly hung back as always, reaching out for her father’s hand instead. She looked exactly like Gabrielle. She had her bone structure, almond brown eyes, willowy frame, skin tone, and lips. The other two ran to Bridgette, the nanny, who was putting the finishing touches on lunch.
Delvin turned to her and said, “Bridgette’s got lunch ready. You head on over. Tai and I need a moment.”
“Uh oh. It’s time for the adults to talk adult stuff again,” Ariel mused, causing Tailan to smile.
“Something like that,” she confirmed. “But it won’t take long. I promise.”
Bridgette collected the rambunctious band and took them to the dining room. As squeals of oooh’s and ahhh’s echoed back to the den, Tailan announced, “My husband has given me permission to spend time with you.”
Delvin’s left eyebrow shot up. A second later he was closing the door. He turned and said, “How generous of him to finally be fair about things.”
“No, he wants to make sure you’re out of my system. For good.”
Delvin pushed himself off the door and stood mere inches from her. “I’ll never be out of your system,” he said, his tone defiant. Tailan gasped. His finger stroked across her chin, eliciting an all too common response. “You belong to me.”
She stepped back. “I belong with him.”
Delvin’s lips lifted at the corners. “Then why are you here?”
&n
bsp; “Good question.” She swerved around him and headed for the door.
“Come back here,” he commanded, the words sliding through his teeth.
Tailan snatched open the door.
Delvin slammed it closed again. He pulled her away and warned, “Woman, if I have to chase you, it will not be nice.”
She whirled to face him. “I shouldn’t have come.”
“But you want to—” he said, bringing her into a embrace. “Come, right?” He pressed closer, letting her feel the massive erection growing in his jeans.
Tailan tried to wiggle free but only succeeded in creating the most shivering friction down below. “Delvin, don’t make this so difficult for me.”
Delvin’s tongue swiped across her lips. Tailan nearly pulled it into her mouth, she was so turned on.
“He will always come second,” he bragged.
“See, that’s where you’re wrong,” she answered and finally freed herself from his grasp. Tailan called upon all her will to level her breathing. She lowered onto the leather sectional and said, “He was hurting over the recent death of his wife, but found a small corner of his heart for me. Amir stepped in and handled his business and yours.” She crossed her legs, reclined deeper into the sofa, and relished the annoyed expression on Delvin’s face. “So, contrary to popular belief, it’s you who’s runner up in this camp.”
A vein throbbed at Delvin’s temple. Several spans of time passed before he said softly, “He says that you can be with me?”
“Yes.”
Delvin stood in front of her, his eyes assessing her practiced breathing, her false bravado. “He’s going to regret it.”
The more she thought about it, the more she was forced to admit, “Somehow, I think I’ll be the one with regrets.”
His breathing hitched, and his hands fisted at his sides as he growled, “Oh, I don’t think so.”
Too quickly, Delvin had Tailan up off the sofa and was pulling her to the door.
* * *
Delvin needed a place to pounce. Moving down the hall, his mind fired up with several scenarios. His skin was ready to scream, his erection was on the verge of busting the zipper of his jeans. Just as he cleared the dining room, Delvin saw a way to get what his body was dying for. He tightened his grip on Tailan’s wrist to ensure she would not make a scene as he said to the kids, “Hey guys, mom and me will be right in the basement. I want to show her the new additions since the last time she was here.” He pulled her quickly. “We’ll be right back.”
Was it Good for You Too? Page 16