Harlequin Kimani Romance January 2018 Box Set

by Reese Ryan

  “It wasn’t that bad.”

  “It wasn’t that good, either. Think of what it’ll mean to be with Angela. You’re the good guy of the league. You don’t need a woman you’ll have to defend all the time.”

  “Who says I’ll have to defend her? I care about her. This isn’t a teenage crush and I’m not jumping into something because my hormones told me to do it.” He was tired of being judged because of one bad decision when he was much younger.

  “Are you sure? The incident at the club? You broke up with Bridget after being with her for years. I’m not sure you’re really thinking with the head on your shoulders versus the head below your belt. Make sure you know what you’re doing before you go after her. Bridget is still interested. She cares about you. Don’t let go of a woman who’s doing something and going somewhere, because of a pretty face and a tight body.”

  Isaiah glared at his brother. “She’s more than a pretty face. And she’s going somewhere. Angela worked as an advocate for kids in the foster system before the incident at the club cost her the job. She’s also a damn good bartender and using the money she makes at the club to finish graduate school. Just because she isn’t a lawyer, doesn’t mean she’s a lesser person.”

  He didn’t regret paying her rent. He would do it again if it made things easier on her, but listening to Tim malign her position made him realize he shouldn’t have made a big deal about her quitting. She was a lot more than her job. He was just as wrong by diminishing her to just that.

  Isaiah stood abruptly. “I’ve got to go.” He hurried toward the door.

  “Isaiah, are you sure?” Tim called after him.

  “Yes, I’m sure.” He walked out and nearly ran into his mother on the other side of the door. She wore the look in her face that she had when she’d picked him up at the police station for chaining himself to a fence for love. “Mom, don’t try to stop me.”

  She held up a hand. “I’m not. I like Angela. She’s a smart woman and she likes you.”

  “Then you know I have to go after her and apologize?”

  “I just want you to be happy. And to be sure. It’s unfair to her and Bridget if you change your mind later.”

  Isaiah nodded. “Bridget isn’t the woman I fell in love with.”

  CHAPTER 24

  Angela shoved the key into the door of her apartment. “Cory, for the last time, I’m not talking about Isaiah.” She pointed at him and glared when his mouth formed the start of a but. “No buts. I’m done.” She pushed open the door and entered the apartment. “I’ll order a pizza and we can watch a movie or something. We can have our own fun.”

  Cory huffed but didn’t say anything else. He’d asked a million times in the car why she fought with Isaiah and why they’d left. He’d thought it was the money, and while she was still annoyed about that she wasn’t about to explain that besides the money, Isaiah had a problem with her serving drinks at a strip club. He’d met her there, for goodness sake!

  This was why she didn’t date men she met at the club. They always got a chip on their shoulder eventually and thought their manhood would be in question because of her job. She’d hoped Isaiah would be different. It hurt that he wasn’t.

  Her home phone rang soon after she and Cory were settled on the couch to pick a movie, him still sullen about leaving and her still aggravated.

  She answered and the familiar recording that told her she had a collect call from the jail made her stiffen. Her brother. He didn’t call much, and hadn’t called since Heather hightailed it to New York.

  “It’s your dad,” Angela said before accepting the call. Cory perked up on his side of the couch. He faced her with an eager look on his young face.

  “Hey, Angela, how’s it going?” Darryl’s deep voice said without a trace of true interest in her well-being.

  “Darryl, what’s up? Are you okay?” She wished she could act indifferent, the way he could, but her concern seeped through. He was the only family she had left besides her aunt, whom she didn’t really consider family anymore. Even though he’d done something stupid and left her and Cory in a lurch, she couldn’t stop caring about her brother.

  “Yeah, everything is good. Just calling to check in.”

  She relaxed just a little and smiled at her nephew. “Cory is here. Want to talk to him?”

  Cory’s eager expression turned into a happy grin and he held out his hand to take the phone.

  “Nah. Not today,” Darryl said quickly.

  Angela frowned. Cory read her expression and his hand dropped. “Really?” she asked. “When was the last time you spoke to him?”

  “Look I only have a few minutes. I can’t spend a lot of time listening to him talk about girls and stuff.” Darryl’s voice rose and agitation filled his tone.

  She didn’t give a damn about his time. What small amount of time he got should be spent telling his son he was sorry for screwing everything up. “I can’t believe you,” Angela snapped. “He’s right here.”

  Cory jumped up and ran down the hall. His door slammed a second later. “He was here. You hurt his feelings. Seriously, Darryl, I’ve tried to be on your side. When you went to jail, I didn’t want to think you were a terrible father but to refuse to talk to Cory? Damn, why did you call?”

  “I called because Heather isn’t answering my calls. I think she’s laid up with a man.”

  Angela rolled her eyes. “News flash, the judge broke you two up.”

  “Save that bull. She’s also talking about not coming back. What do you have to say about that?”

  Angela’s world tilted. She leaned forward and placed her forehead in her hand. “What? Are you sure?”

  “That’s why I’m calling. Have you talked to her?”

  Angela thought about the last time she’d heard from Heather. “Not since she dropped off Cory. She said she would be back.”

  “Well, you better check. I think she’s done with us.”

  “I’ll call her now.” There wasn’t anything else to say to Darryl. They ended the call and Angela immediately called Heather’s number. She didn’t get an answer so she gripped the phone and waited for the voice message.

  “Heather, this is Angela. I need you to call me immediately. I spoke with Darryl. He said you’re planning to stay in New York permanently. What about Cory? You can’t just leave him behind like this. Call me.”

  She ended the call and cursed. Cory didn’t deserve any of this. What could possibly possess Heather to forget about her child and stay in New York? Angela really hadn’t expected her to return before the start of school, but she had thought that before they really got into the year, Heather would return or at least send for Cory.

  Cory’s door cracked open. His dark eyes looked out at her. “Mom’s not coming back?”

  Angela really wished she could have five minutes alone in a room with Heather for the wounded look in Cory’s eyes. “I don’t know, Cory. I’m trying to reach her.”

  “What happens if you don’t reach her?”

  Angela took a deep breath. She didn’t know the answer. Heather disappearing didn’t automatically put Cory in her custody. They’d have to go through the system to provide Angela with any legal rights, but would Darryl or Heather really sign off on that? The entire situation was complicated.

  Someone knocked on the door. Angela glanced from Cory to the front door. “I don’t know,” she said before going to answer it.

  Isaiah stood on the other side. At once she was happy and angry. She wrestled with the urge to jump into his arms for comfort and slam the door in his hypocritical face.

  His eyebrows drew together and he stepped closer to the entrance. “What happened? Are you okay?”

  His concern pushed her closer to the jump-in-his-arms side of the debate. Before she could do anything she had to know why
he’d come. “What are you doing here?”

  “I won’t accept that we’re done before we even had the chance to get started,” he said. “I’m falling in love with you, Angela, and because of that, I won’t let one disagreement be the end of us. If you feel even a little bit of the same for me, then I know you don’t want this to end, either.” He put his palm against the door and pushed it farther open. He didn’t come in, just stood close enough for her to smell his cologne as he stared into her eyes. “Do you feel the same?”

  She couldn’t say no. Not when her heart raced and tendrils of happiness as strong as steel wormed their way into her heart. He was falling in love with her. He hadn’t just been talking earlier. If he loved her, and he’d come here to apologize, maybe they could make this work.

  “I feel the same,” she said softly.

  A huge smile broke out on his face. He swept her into his arms and kissed her. She allowed herself the moment to be happy. To bask in the pleasure of knowing things with Isaiah would be okay.

  He kicked her door closed and carried her into the apartment, his strong arms around her waist and hers around his shoulders.

  “I’m glad someone’s happy.” Cory’s angry voice interrupted their moment.

  Angela pushed on Isaiah’s chest and he let her go. Guilt for her moment of joy when Cory’s world had crumbled rose up. “Cory, being happy about one thing doesn’t mean I don’t care about your problem.”

  Isaiah stood behind her with a hand on her shoulder. He pulled her back against his chest. “What problem?”

  Cory crossed his arms. His lips pressed into a tight line and he looked away. Angela glanced back at Isaiah. “My brother called. Heather—Cory’s mother—told him she’s not coming back, and that she’s not sending for Cory. I tried to call her, but she didn’t answer.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  Angela shrugged. “I don’t know. There are a lot of things that’ll need to be worked out.”

  “I’m not a problem to be solved,” Cory said angrily.

  Angela went back to him and placed a hand on his arm. “I’m not saying you are.”

  Cory jerked away. “I don’t need your pity.” He spun away and stomped back to his room.

  Angela took a few steps after him, but Isaiah stopped her with a hand on her elbow. “Give him a few minutes to calm down. Tell me what else happened and then I can try to talk to him.”

  She looked at Cory’s door, then nodded. “Nothing else to tell. On top of that my brother didn’t even want to talk to him on the phone.”

  “What?” Anger flared in Isaiah’s eyes. He threw a look at Cory’s door. “I’ll stick around tonight and we’ll somehow convince him everything will be okay. We won’t leave him high and dry.”

  Angela nodded and Isaiah pulled her into the comfort of his arms. There was so much more they needed to talk about, but she and Isaiah’s problems could wait. Tonight, they needed to make sure Cory understood he wasn’t alone.

  CHAPTER 25

  The sound of something crunching woke Isaiah the following morning. He jerked up and a sharp pain shot down his back. He groaned and rested his head back. He was on the couch in Angela’s living room. The last thing he remembered the night before was resting his head in Angela’s lap while they watched a movie. They’d finally convinced Cory to come out of his room and hang with them, but only after he made them promise not to talk about his mom or dad. They’d agreed, feeling Cory needed time to process. There was a blanket over him, which meant he must have fallen asleep and Angela left him where he was.

  Stifling a groan, Isaiah turned his head in the direction of the crunching sound. Cory sat on the chair next to the couch eating cereal from a bowl. He lifted his chin in a what’s-up motion and shoveled another spoonful of cereal into his mouth.

  Isaiah eased into a sitting position and tried to massage the kink out of his neck. “Could you chew any louder?”

  Cory half chuckled. “I thought you’d be sleeping in Auntie’s room since you made up.”

  He’d thought so, too. Her bed was much preferable to the short couch. “I don’t mind the couch.” He rolled his neck to loosen the knots. He leaned his forearms on his legs and really took in Cory. “How are you doing?”

  Cory shrugged. “All right, I guess.”

  “You guess? Remember what I told you. You can talk to me. What’s going on in your head?”

  Cory broke eye contact to stare at the cereal in his bowl. “I’m mad…at my dad and my mom.”

  “I can understand that.”

  “They don’t miss me at all,” Cory continued. “The only person who ever misses me is Denise.”

  “Denise? The girl from camp?” He’d expected Cory to say Angela.

  Cory nodded. “It’s like she’s the only one who cares, but it shouldn’t be like that. My mom and dad should care.”

  Isaiah slid over on the couch and gently bumped Cory’s knee with his hand. Cory looked up and Isaiah met his eyes. “She’s not the only one who cares. I care. Your aunt cares. You understand that, don’t you?”

  “I guess,” he mumbled.

  “No guessing. Know it. We’ll figure this out, but regardless of what happens, we both have your back. Got that?”

  Cory nodded and he looked a little more convinced than he had a second ago. Angela’s bedroom door opened and she stepped out. Her hair was pulled back into a loose knot and she wore a pair of turquoise pajama pants with a white T-shirt. The pajamas weren’t sexy in the typical sense of the word, but that didn’t stop thoughts of cuddling with her in a comfortable bed and all her soft curves against him from popping into Isaiah’s head. He wanted to jump up, cross the room and pull her into his arms.

  “Good morning,” she said as she walked into the room. “I heard you two talking and figured I’d better get up and make breakfast.”

  She stopped at Cory’s chair, placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned down to kiss the top of his head. Cory twisted away, but he had a smile on his face. “I got breakfast.”

  “I see that,” she said. She met Isaiah’s gaze. “Want anything more substantial than cereal?”

  “I do, but you don’t have to cook. Why don’t we go out for breakfast? Then we can get back to my place and have lunch with my family before they leave later today.”

  Angela bit her lower lip. “Breakfast is fine, but I can’t do lunch. I’ve got to get back here and finish registering for school before going in to work tonight.”

  Isaiah’s body stiffened. “Work?”

  She must have heard the tightness in his voice because she crossed her arms. “Yes. Work.”

  “Do you really think you should be working tonight?” He looked pointedly at Cory, who was once again focused on eating cereal.

  “What else should I be doing? I’m the one who has to keep the roof over our heads.”

  “In case you forgot, for the next six months your roof is paid for.”

  “That’s not my only bill. My first payment to the school is due at the end of the week.”

  Unease swept through Isaiah. His next words were going to piss her off. “That’s covered, too.”

  Her jaw dropped and her arms uncrossed to fall at her sides. Cory looked between the two of them, stood and went into the kitchen. Smart kid to avoid the shots about to be fired.

  “You paid my tuition?”

  “I told you I would help.”

  “I was willing to forgive the rent, but this. What the hell, Isaiah? Are you trying to make me dependent on you?”

  He shot to his feet. “Of course not.”

  “Because you’ve got another think coming if you think I’ll let you turn me into one of those women completely dependent on her man. You won’t control my life only to drop me later with no way to support myself once
you move on.”

  He held up a hand and tried to process her accusations. “Move on? I just told you I’m falling in love with you. Who the hell says I’m moving on?”

  “Love is respecting my wishes. Not going behind my back.”

  He pinched the bridge of his nose. “We’re having the same damn fight we had yesterday. I thought we were going to make this work.”

  “Only if you admit that what you did was wrong.”

  “I won’t because it wasn’t. My woman needed my help and I gave it to her.”

  “See, there you go again. Your woman, as if I’m some pet you have to take care of. I’ve been blindsided before. Not again.” She stomped across the room to her purse and pulled out her checkbook. “How much do I owe you?”

  “Don’t be silly. You can’t afford to pay me back.”

  She turned and threw the checkbook at him. It hit him in the chest and fell to the floor. “Damn you, Isaiah! I won’t let you control my life.”

  His own anger spiked. Isaiah glared at the ceiling and gritted his teeth to keep from screaming in frustration. When he looked back at her his body was rigid. “I don’t understand where this is coming from. You want me to apologize for paying your bills? Fine, I apologize, but I’m not going to sit by and do nothing. Things are about to get hard with Cory. Quit working at that club and let me help out.”

  “We’re back to that now? That’s what this was all about?” Her voice dripped with accusation. “Tell me you care, show me all the things you’re doing for me, tell me what I’m going to do.”

  “Will you stop being paranoid and trying to turn this into some plot to control you.”

  She pointed to the door. “Get out.”

  “What?”

  “I want you out of my face before I throw something harder than a checkbook at you.”

  Isaiah’s frustration snapped. His neck hurt, he was tired and he needed to leave before he said something equally ridiculous. “I’m gone.”

  “Good.”

  He glared at her, but she raised her chin defiantly. Shaking his head, he snatched up his keys and stalked out. He stood with his back to her door for a second, angry, frustrated and confused. What the hell just happened? Her dead bolt snapped into place. Was it even worth it to try and make things work with someone so stubborn?