“What?” Zanaa looked from one to the other and her brow rose in disbelief. “You got to be kidding? The two of you look nothing alike.”
Sheyna’s gentle laugh rippled through the air. “Sad, but true.”
“Girlfriend, I feel sorry for you.” Zanaa gave her a sympathetic smile as she reached down and patted Henric’s head.
Scott turned to the curvaceous beauty and frowned. “Wait a minute. What’s wrong with me?”
Zanaa ignored his comment and took a seat on the stool beside Sheyna. “Did you know your brother is a thief? Between him and his dog, I can never find my Wednesday newspaper. Before they moved next door, I actually got to read the weekly sales ads.”
Eyes crinkling with laughter, Sheyna replied. “I’m not at all surprise. Scott has always had a habit of taking things that don’t belong to him.”
He looked at his sister with his mouth wide open and noticed she was trying to keep a straight face. “Name one time!” he dared.
“Thanksgiving, when Daddy made his sweet potato cheesecake, I cut myself a piece and tried to hide it at the back of the refrigerator,” she countered then turned to Zanaa. “Don’t you know when I got ready to leave I found my slice missing. When I dropped by Scott’s condo the next day, I found the plate in his sink.”
Zanaa gasped playfully. “Scott!”
He shrugged and grinned. “Hey, when it comes to my dad’s cheesecake, it’s every man for himself.” The two women laughed and he joined in.
While Zanaa and Sheyna engaged in light conversation, Scott finished his burgers and watched her lush mouth move beautifully.
Zanaa’s lips were moist…red…sexy as hell. Scott had never seen Zanaa smile before but when she did, her entire face lit up and he found her to be even more breathtaking. The bobby pins were gone and her long brown hair hung loose, brushing her shoulders, showing off a round face, and high cheekbones defined by deep dimples. When she laughed her cute little nose crinkled, causing heat to flame to all parts of his body. What was it about this beauty, he asked himself, eyes clinging to her face. He wasn’t sure. However, he had every intention of finding out.
By the time he had finished the last burger, Zanaa rose and slid a hand across the seat of her sweatpants. “I better get back. I left my door unlocked and a bathtub full of water that’s getting cold.”
Smiling, Sheyna raised a hand and waved. “It’s good seeing you again. If I am in the area this weekend, I’ll stop through. I really want to see the Winter Wonderland you’re creating.”
Zanaa made a show of crossing her fingers. “Wish me luck.” As she moved toward the back door, Scott sprung from his seat, reached for the knob, and opened it for her. Her eyes traveled the length of him before she raised her hand and pointed a slender finger in his direction. “Stay away from my newspaper,” she warned then rolled her eyes and turned away.
Scott pushed the door close behind her then turned and faced his sister. “See how much love there is between us?”
Sheyna giggled. “I can see this is going to be interesting. Finally! A woman who can resist my brother’s charm. This I’ve got to see.”
Chapter Three
Zanaa hung up the phone and smiled at the couple sitting across the desk from her. “Good news! There was a cancellation at the Cavalier Hotel. The princess ballroom is available on February fourteenth.”
“That’s wonderful!” the female screeched.
“I thought you would be happy to hear that.” Zanaa was pleased to see the tears of joy streaming down the future bride’s face. For a second there, she was worried she wouldn’t have been able to deliver the last minute change. Thank goodness luck was on her side. She reached for a manila folder and placed its contents on the desk. “I have put together a portfolio for the two of you to look over. As you can see, it will be a Valentine’s Day to remember. Cupid, red hearts, chocolates, roses…you name it, you’ll have it.”
Latoya looked through the file then her gaze traveled over to her fiancé, Darrius. He stared at her with adoring brown eyes before pressing his lips against hers in a kiss. As Zanaa watched the couple, she couldn’t help feeling envious. Even a total stranger could tell they were madly in love. She would give anything to have a man look that way at her and really mean it, but she was smart enough to know that kind of love was a rare find.
Latoya squeezed her fiancé’s large hand. “Everything’s going to be perfect,” she squealed. Darrius nodded in agreement.
For the next half hour, Zanaa went over all of the wedding details.
She took pride in her work and the expressions on their faces said how pleased they were with everything she had put together. After the contract was signed, Zanaa smiled across the desk. “Once again, congratulations to both of you on your engagement. Leave all the worries to me.” They rose and Zanaa shook hands with the happy couple.
“Thank you so much for all your help. I don’t know what we would do without you,” Latoya replied with a teary-eyed smile.
“That’s what I’m here for; to make sure your big day is unforgettable.”
They scheduled to meet the following week to select china. Zanaa walked them to the front door and, with one last envious glance, she bid them goodbye.
As soon as they were gone, she stepped over to the white leather sectional sofa, surrounding a large espresso coffee table, and straightened the array of wedding albums that showcased some of her finest events.
“They look happy,” said her efficient twenty-something assistant, Ashley.
Zanaa turned toward the reception desk where Ashley was decorating a small tabletop Christmas tree and nodded in agreement. “Yes, they do and that’s why I enjoy my job so much.”
“I hope I can be so lucky,” Ashley said with a hint of envy as she brushed a blonde curl from her face. Zanaa gave her a sympathetic smile.
Her assistant had been dating a man who couldn’t even hold onto a job. After six months of supporting him while he claimed to be job hunting, Ashley finally sent the bum packing. Not a moment too soon. As far as Zanaa was concerned, Ashley shouldn’t have allowed him to move into her apartment in the first place.
“Have you confirmed the flowers for Saturday?”
Ashley nodded. “I did that this morning. I also checked with the caterer and the bakery. The limousine is scheduled to pick up the bride from her house at eleven. Relax, everything is ready for Saturday. As always, everything is going to be fantastic.”
Her assistant had been with her for almost two years and not once had she regretted hiring her. “Thanks, Ashley. What would I do without you?”
“I hope you never find out,” she retorted, her blue eyes sparkling.
Zanaa chuckled. “Go ahead and get out of here. I’ll be leaving as soon as I finish up some paperwork.”
“In other words, you’re not leaving before seven or eight tonight.
You really need to stop working so hard.” Ashley gave her boss a worried look.
“That’s why I get paid what I do,” Zanaa said with a dismissive wink then moved toward her office. She stepped into the large room decorated in soft pastel colors of blue and beige, took a seat behind her desk, then leaned back in a large chair. Ashley was right; she did work too hard. But that’s what made Proposals a success.
Ever since she was a little girl, she had fantasized about gowns, beautiful receptions, and a wedding fit for a princess. At age twenty, Zanaa already had an A-line gown picked out for her big day. She also knew she wanted to be married along the Rehoboth Beach shore then honeymoon in Europe. Only she never had any luck with relationships. The same couldn’t be said about her sisters.
Zanaa reached for a bottle of water and took a thirsty drink, then released a heavy sigh. Surrounded by her beautiful mother and tall, gorgeous sisters, she had always felt like the ugly duckling in comparison.
With hips too wide and breasts too large, although she was pretty enough to turn the heads of countless men, none were what she needed or wante
d in her life. And after Cole and several others bozos she had dated, it was going to be a long time before she found it in her heart to trust another man.
The phone rang in the other room, reminding Zanaa she had far too much work to be done and little time to waste daydreaming. She had a successful business to run and plenty to be proud about. After five years of investing long hours, she could finally measure her business’s success.
And to think no one thought I could do it.
In fact, her family had thought her crazy leaving Clarendon, Virginia and moving to Wilmington, Delaware where she bought a beautiful condo with a view of the Brandywine Zoo. As far as Zanaa was concerned, she wasn’t doing bad for a thirty-year-old woman who’d made the decision after graduating college not to return to her small hometown.
Instead, she set her sights on starting her own life.
Ashley buzzed the intercom, breaking into her reverie. “Zanaa, you have a call on line one.”
She put on a professional face then reached for the receiver.
“Proposals, Zanaa Reynolds speaking.”
“Girrrrrrl,” her best friend Leah Lange sing-songed. “I just drove passed your complex. Who is that fine ass man I spotted walking to the mailbox?”
“What’s he look like?” Zanaa asked, as if she didn’t already know.
“Tall, dark and handsome with locs.”
Leaning back in her executive chair, Zanaa released a low groan.
“You must be talking about my next door neighbor, Scott.”
“Scott? That fine man lives next door to you!” she cried in exasperated disbelief. “Why is this the first time you’ve mentioned him?
He’s gorgeous! Puhleeze tell me he’s single.”
Zanaa rolled her eyes even though she knew Leah couldn’t see her. “If you want to call parading a different woman into his condo every night being single, then I guess so.”
“Damn, not the settling down type, huh?”
“Absolutely not. He’s a wolf.”
“Really? I’ve never met a wolf in real life before.”
“Yeah…right. You know the type, handsome with sex appeal dripping from his pores,” Zanaa grumbled.
“He sounds very intriguing. Please tell me more,” Leah replied eagerly.
“What’s there to say? He moved in three months ago and has been a pain in my ass ever since.”
There was a brief pause. “Sounds to me like he likes you.”
Just the idea of him liking her sent an annoying tremor along her spine. “Well, I don’t like him,” Zanaa replied and tried to push the feeling aside. “He’s a predator. All he dates is women who look like video hoochies. Don’t ask me to fix the two of you up.”
“So what are you trying to say?”
“No, no. I didn’t mean it like that,” Zanaa corrected with a laugh.
“I mean he dates simple-minded women who show up wearing long trench coats and stilettos. It’s obvious since I’ve never seen the same woman twice he only goes after women with one thing in mind, and that’s sex.”
There was a pause. “I don’t know…a man that sexy, I just might consider.”
Zanaa sighed. “I take it you and Andre are on the outs again.”
“No, Andre and I are officially over. There is nothing worse to me than a man who’s a terrible tipper. At dinner last night he left the waitress two dollars!”
“That is bad,” she giggled.
“Bad? That’s embarrassing.” Leah huffed. “As soon as he turned his back, I set a ten on the table.”
“Good for you.” Leah worked her way through college as a waitress at a small greasy spoon restaurant so she knew what it was like to depend on tips to make a living.
“How about meeting me for happy hour at six? What about going to Lucy’s?”
Zanaa glanced down at her watch. It was almost five, which would give her enough time to finish up a few notes and still make it to their favorite restaurant in time. “Sure. I’ll see you then.”
She got back to work, adding a new appointment to her planner then started jotting down some ideas for a couple of swimmers who wanted to get married in a pool. She chuckled at the idea. They wanted the minister to dress as a lifeguard.
As she glanced down at her calendar, Zanaa realized tomorrow would be another busy day for her. She had an appointment to meet with a future bride to go over the guest list. Currently, there were over three hundred names for a wedding that could only accommodate half. As of right now, Proposal’s calendar was booked solid through July. Knowing her services were in high demand gave Zanaa a warm feeling. She was doing something she loved and was being paid well to do it.
Her computer chirped, indicating she had a new email message.
She swung around on the chair, reached for her mouse and clicked on the mail icon.
Are you engaged??
Eyes wide with shock, Zanaa stared at the email from her sister Barbara. She had forgotten all about the lie she had told Madea. Goodness!
Barbara. She had forgotten all about the lie she had told Madea. Goodness!
What in the world had she been thinking? That’s the problem. She hadn’t been. When Madea told her Cole and Monica were planning to spend the holidays in Clarendon, she panicked and said the first name that came to mind. Scott.
Zanaa nibbled nervously on her bottom lip as she tried to think of a way to respond to the email.
Madea had promised not to tell anyone. They had always managed to keep secrets from her mother and sisters before, so why hadn’t Madea this time, she fumed. If her younger sister knew about the engagement, then that meant her mother knew as well. Zanaa blew out an angry breath.
Now what do I do?
For the past two years, Madea had tried marrying her off to every single bachelor in Clarendon, Virginia. Zanaa spent so much time ignoring their advances she barely had time to enjoy the holiday with her family.
For one ridiculous moment, she thought by telling Madea she was dating it would buy her some time. But Scott? Now that the entire family knew about her engagement, there was no way she could admit the truth. Instead she needed to come up with a solution quick, fast and in a hurry.
*
“I can’t believe you told Madea you’re engaged!” Leah had tears in her eyes from laughing so hard.
Zanaa sipped a glass of white wine and scowled across the table.
They had been at Lucy’s for almost an hour before she shared her dilemma with her best friend. “Very funny. You’re supposed to be trying to help me.”
“I know, I know. I’m sorry. It’s just so funny. Don’t you know old people can’t hold water, especially news that juicy?”
Zanaa sat there and silently sipped from her glass while she waited for her best friend to get it together. They had been roommates at the University of Richmond where she had gotten a degree in marketing while Leah major in pre-law. The two had been inseparable ever since and when Leah moved to Wilmington, Delaware to attend law school, Zanaa when Leah moved to Wilmington, Delaware to attend law school, Zanaa came down for a visit and realized it was the perfect spot to open Proposals.
“Okay, sorry about that,” Leah began and her face sobered. “So what are you going to do? Are you planning to get the cutie pie next door to help you?”
“Hell no! I just need to find a way to tell Madea the engagement was called off.”
“Zanaa, why don’t you just tell them the truth?” Leah asked as she tucked an auburn kinky twist behind her ear.
“Because I don’t want them to feel sorry for me. They’re going to think I am so desperate for a husband that I made one up.”
“Damn girl, I hadn’t thought about that.”
Zanaa reached for a chip, dipped it in salsa and brought it to her lips while she tried to think. “I’m just gonna have to fake a break up. I’ll tell them I caught him with another woman.”
Leah shook her head at Zanaa. “Then they’re really going to feel sorry for you. Two fiancés,
dumping you for other women? I don’t think so.”
Shaking off the depressing thought, Zanaa shrugged a slender shoulder and said, “Yes, but at least it will be a different kind of pity. This way I can justify my reasons for wanting to stay single.” The more she thought about it the better it sounded. It wasn’t like she had given herself much of a choice at this point. “Now that Monica and Cole are going to be there, there’s no way I’m letting them know I’m still single.”
Leah took a long sip before commenting. “I think it would be easier to ask cutie pie to pretend to be your fiancé.”
Zanaa gave Leah a nasty look as she stuffed another chip in her mouth. “I would never let him have the satisfaction.”
Leah chuckled. “You can fool some people but you can’t fool me.
I’m your best friend and I see the way your eyes lit up the second I mentioned him.”
“They did not,” she protested.
Her sienna gaze narrowed knowingly. “Sorry, chica, but yes they did. You like him more than you want to admit. Maybe your being engaged to him is destiny.”
engaged to him is destiny.”
“Maybe you need to give Andre a second chance,” Zanaa teased, knowing good and well it was the best way to silence her dear friend.
Frowning, Leah replied, “How about this? The day you decide to marry your neighbor is the day I’ll call Andre and invite him to my house for dinner.”
“You’re on.” Laughing, they reached across the table and shook hands.
On the drive home, Zanaa’s cell phone rang. She glanced down then groaned when she realized it was her mother calling. Feeling like a chicken, she let the call go to voice mail. Now what? She had gotten herself in a mess and somehow she had to figure a way out. Until then, she was going to have to dodge her family.
She pulled off I-295 and came to a complete stop at the intersection and glanced around at the buildings strung with Christmas lights and the wreaths hanging on the doors. She loved her neighborhood. The community consisted mostly of professionals who preferred the maintenance free living that condos provided.
In Her Neighbor's Bed (The Beaumont Series) Page 3