Won't Go Home Without You

by Cheris Hodges

  “Nurse Bazal?” Dr. Kelly Andrews asked when she spotted Kamrie outside of Logan’s office. “Everything all right?”

  “I was just looking for Dr. Baptiste. Haven’t seen him in a few days and . . .”

  “Is this about a patient? I’ve taken over for him for the near future. He’s taken some time off for some family issues.”

  Kamrie raised her right eyebrow. “Is that so?”

  Kelly chuckled. “You’re really going to play this game? The rumors are swirling about you, Logan, and your son. Pretty sure his wife isn’t happy at all.”

  Kamrie ran her hand across her smooth brown face. “So, you listen to gossip now?”

  “Is it really gossip when you’re spreading it?” Kelly shook her head and started down the corridor. “If you have any information on patients, let me know.”

  Kamrie seethed as the doctor walked away; her plan wasn’t working at all. Logan’s marriage should’ve been beyond repair. She knew about Robin Baptiste’s medical issue and the fact that she couldn’t have a child. The fact that she and Logan had a son should’ve sent Robin running to a divorce lawyer.

  Clearly something had happened since she sent the DNA test to her six months ago. She hadn’t seen the comely lawyer popping up at the hospital with impromptu lunches or dinners. Logan’s mood had been shitty, to say the least.

  She’d expected that he would’ve fallen into her arms and lamented the end of his marriage. Then they would’ve raised her son together. She’d have the status of being a doctor’s wife and the money to do what she wanted.

  Kamrie knew what it was like to suffer through not having enough money to make ends meet. Her mother worked three jobs after her father dropped her for a younger woman. Pretty didn’t pay the bills, she’d learned at an early age. But her good looks would be enough to get the attention of men with money.

  It had worked in Atlanta, until it didn’t.

  She headed down to the cardiac unit to start her shift. She’d find out what was going on with Logan soon enough. Even if that meant she’d have to officially go public with the news about their son.

  Chapter 4

  Robin didn’t feel like a matron of honor as she slipped into her silver gown. It was a beautiful dress and fit her perfectly. But being on the cusp of a divorce from a man she still loved with all of her heart made her feel less than honorable.

  “You look amazing,” Alex said as she joined Robin at the mirror in her bridesmaid gown. The deep red color made Alex glow and Robin wondered if they should switch roles.

  “Thanks, and you are just glowing in that red.” Robin wiped her eyes. “Alex, is it wrong that I still love him?”

  Alex wrapped her arm around Robin’s shoulder. “Who am I to judge? But this is really hard to swallow.”

  Robin wiped away a tear. “Tell me about it. And you know what he’s concerned with right now?”

  “The division of y’all’s assets?”

  Robin almost laughed at her sister. Of course, business-minded Alex would think that. “No. His reputation. He claims he and Kamrie never had an affair and if he pushes too hard to get another DNA test or go to court he’s going to lose what he’s worked for at the hospital.”

  Alex took a slight step away from her sister. “Well, Robin, he’s not completely wrong.”

  Robin shot her a questioning look. “Are you serious? I think our marriage is more . . .”

  Alex held her hand up. “Listen to me, Logan worked too hard to become a doctor, you even sacrificed for his career. Why wouldn’t he want to protect that from this bitch?”

  “Did you just curse?”

  “Maybe I’m in denial, but I don’t believe Logan did this. An affair?” Alex shrugged. “He doesn’t seem like the kind of man who would do that. Not when he came here while you two were in undergrad and asked Dad for your hand in marriage.”

  “He did that?”

  Alex folded her arms across her chest. “You’re telling me that you didn’t know about it?”

  She shook her head.

  Xavier University’s basketball team was one of the historically black colleges playing in a basketball tournament at the TD Arena. After the first round, XU had been eliminated. Logan had some free time and he decided to visit the Richardson Bed and Breakfast. Alex and Sheldon had met Robin’s boyfriend a few months earlier when the two visited on spring break.

  Sheldon was impressed with the young man who loved basketball but had an eye on becoming a doctor and not putting his eggs in the NBA basket.

  When he appeared in the lobby of the bed-and-breakfast, Alex had been looking for Robin to be there as well.

  “Logan. What are you doing here?” she asked as she walked over to him.

  “Clearly not winning the basketball tournament,” he said with a laugh. “How are you, Alexandria?”

  “Call me Alex. And I’m good. Is Robin here too?”

  He shook his head. “She had a huge project at school that she needed to get done. I was wondering if Mr. Richardson is around.”

  Alex raised her right eyebrow. “You better not be here to tell my dad that you got Robin pregnant.”

  Logan waved his hands as if he were landing a jet. “No! Come on, man! I’d let Rob do that on her own,” he quipped.

  Alex relaxed. “Dad’s actually in a meeting right now. But what’s going on?”

  Logan placed his hand on her shoulder. “You are nosey, huh?”

  “It’s called concern.” Alex walked over to the desk and placed a RETURN SOON sign up. “You know, I like you, Logan. Don’t mess it up.”

  “That is the last thing I want to do. Where’s the little one?”

  “If Nina heard you call her that, she’d try to fight you. I think Nina is at the school doing something with the newspaper staff. This writing thing is probably going to be more than a passing fad for her.”

  “So, you’re the only one who’s sticking with the family business?”

  Alex shrugged. “Maybe Yolanda will decide to be my partner one day.”

  The two headed toward Sheldon’s office and made it in good timing. His meeting with some potential investors had just ended. When Randall Birmingham blew past Alex, she muttered a string of curse words that shocked Logan and Sheldon.

  “Daddy, that man is a snake. Why was he here?”

  Sheldon waved his hand. “I’ve dealt with worse, but it’s nice to watch people play their hand.” Looking at Logan, Sheldon smiled. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

  Logan extended his trembling hand to Sheldon. “Well, Mr. Richardson, I wanted to talk to you about something important.”

  Sheldon rocked back on his heels. “The next words out of your mouth better not be Robin is pregnant.”

  “No, no! Not until we get our degrees and careers going. Mr. Richardson, I love your daughter. And with your permission, I’d like to marry her.”

  Alex released an excited squeal. Sheldon pulled Logan into a big bear hug. “As long as you promise to love my daughter and treat her right for the rest of her life, you have my blessing.”

  Robin wiped her eyes as she listened to Alex’s story. “I can’t believe he did that.” She remembered that the week after the basketball tournament Logan proposed.

  “That’s why all of this is hard to believe.”

  “Yet, you were so sure Clinton was using Nina to steal the bed-and-breakfast from Dad.”

  “Totally different. That was business and I was wrong. I don’t think I’m wrong about Logan.”

  Robin reached for the zipper on the side of her gown and hoped that her sister was right. “Maybe I should meet with him and try to talk about what’s going on. But I still can’t wrap my mind around a woman telling this big of a lie without a ring of truth being in it.”

  Alex was about to speak when Yolanda walked over to them. “Oh, we might outshine the bride, y’all.” She spun around, then looked at the serious expressions on her sisters’ faces.

  “What’s going o
n, and if either of you say nothing, I’m going to scream.”

  “Yolanda, stop being so dramatic,” Alex said. “We were talking about our baby sister about to walk down the aisle.”

  Yolanda sucked her teeth. “Bullshit.”

  Robin shrugged. “I’m going to meet with Logan and talk about things.”

  “Like the fact that he cheated on you and made a baby with some bitch?”

  Alex pinched Yolanda. “Shh. People are staring and you’re out of line.”

  Yolanda snatched away from her big sister and turned to Robin. “Listen, he doesn’t deserve your forgiveness.”

  “This is why no one likes to tell you anything. Stop jumping to conclusions,” Alex said as Robin walked away.

  “If a DNA test isn’t a conclusion then . . .”

  “Why don’t all of you shut up?!” Robin exclaimed. “Damn.” She ducked into a dressing room and removed her gown.

  * * *

  After the fitting, Robin allowed her bickering sisters to head back to the bed-and-breakfast without her. She walked around Charleston Harbor and thought about the good times she and Logan spent there. An hour passed before she pulled out her phone and called him.

  “Rob?”

  “We should talk. Are you still in Charleston?”

  “Yes. Robin, what I said on the beach . . .”

  “I want us to be alone when we talk and that means away from the bed-and-breakfast.”

  “Where are you now?”

  Robin sighed. Did she really want him to come to a place that had so many warm memories for them? What choice did she have? Robin had such a head full of steam that if she saw Logan, it would be ugly. “I’m at the Charleston Harbor.”

  “I’ll be right there. Give me ten minutes.”

  “All right. There’s a café on the corner and I’ll be there.”

  * * *

  Logan probably should’ve told Robin that Sheldon had given him a room at the bed-and-breakfast—even though he had no intentions of staying there—but he was so happy that his wife wanted to talk to him that he just wanted to get to her before she changed her mind.

  Their last conversation hadn’t ended well and to have a do-over was a blessing. And he was definitely going to play beat the GPS today. His phone said he’d arrive at the Charleston Harbor in twenty minutes, but Logan got there in fifteen. He looked for the café Robin said she’d be in and found it quickly. He was happy to find a parking spot close to the door. Walking in, he saw his wife sitting at a table near the entrance.

  “Robin,” he said as he crossed over to her.

  She started to stand but didn’t. “Do you want a coffee? I ordered you one, just in case.”

  “Thank you,” he said as he took a seat across from her.

  She seemed to study his face as they sat in silence for a few moments. Robin broke the silence. “Why didn’t you tell me about your trip to Charleston to ask my dad for permission to marry me?”

  “What?”

  “Alex told me about it. How could you love me that much and then let this happen?”

  “Listen to me, Robin. Nothing happened and I don’t know what I have to do to get to the truth.”

  Robin folded her arms across her chest. “You and that woman were friends. How friendly did it get? Because I can’t wrap my mind around the fact that she’d pretend to have your baby if she didn’t sleep with you at least once.”

  “I didn’t. Since the day we got married and I took my vows, I’ve never wanted another woman.”

  “Guess you had enough in college,” she sniped.

  Logan shook his head and tried not to laugh. He had to admit that his romance with Robin had had a rocky start. But the moment he’d looked into her eyes and seen them sparkle, he’d known she was all he needed.

  “You’re really going to go there?”

  “Maybe you haven’t changed from that cocky basketball player who could have his pick of women.” Her laugh eased his nerves. “At least you thought you could.”

  “You’ve always been the only woman I wanted. The only one I knew I couldn’t live without.” He took her hands in his and began to sing New Edition’s “Candy Girl” off-key.

  Robin burst into laughter, just as she’d done when he’d serenaded her that day at Xavier.

  Robin had decided that Logan Baptiste was an asshole, and if he thought she was going to be one of those airhead groupies who followed him around campus like a lovesick puppy, he was wrong.

  She had options. And she didn’t have to go out on a date with him. And she should’ve told him no. But here she was waiting for him to show up.

  I’m just going to leave. Robin stood up and headed for the restaurant’s exit when she heard New Edition blasting. She stopped still and watched Logan dance into the restaurant, dressed in a black Members Only jacket and leather hat. He took Robin into his arms and spun her around.

  “My girl’s like candy, a candy treat.”

  Robin laughed and placed her hand over his mouth. “You’re lucky that you are smart and can move the ball down the court. Singing is not your thing.”

  Logan kissed her palm. “But you’re my candy girl, now and forever.”

  “What about Tasha Taylor?” Robin raised her right eyebrow. “She was happy to tell me that she could have you back anytime she wanted.”

  “You’re the only one who can have me anytime she wants. Trust me on that.” He pulled her against his chest. “Be my candy girl.”

  “I’ll be your only girl. Because I don’t share.”

  He kissed her forehead and she melted. “Why don’t we take our food to go? I want my dessert first.”

  “And just what do you plan to have for dessert?”

  Logan offered her a wily smile. “You.”

  “Let’s do it.”

  When Logan met Robin’s glance, it was as if they were sharing the same thought. “Rob, please believe me.”

  She dropped her head. “It’s so hard. Logan, I’m hurting so much thinking about you having a family with that woman and . . .”

  “There is no family with her or anyone else. You are all that I need.”

  Tears filled her eyes and Logan’s heart broke. The last thing he wanted was to see Robin cry behind a lie. He’d wiped her tears when the doctor said cancer. He’d held her as she sobbed when she was told that her ovaries had to be removed. He’d kissed her tears away when she saw that little girl in his arms at Whole Foods.

  “Robin, please believe me. That isn’t my child.”

  “Then why? Can you explain away the DNA test?”

  He dropped her hands. “I can’t, but I can tell you the truth. You are the only woman I’ve been with for a decade. The only woman I’ve craved and loved.”

  “Then why is this happening?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She leaned back in her seat and shot him a cold look. “That sounds like such bullshit.”

  “But it’s the truth. Ask yourself, have I ever lied to you? Why would I start now, Rob?”

  She inhaled sharply. “That’s what I can’t figure out.”

  Logan’s heart dropped. Losing Robin’s trust was a price he would never accept. But being this close to her and feeling her softness reminded him how much he missed her.

  He lifted her chin, forcing her to look directly into his eyes. “Robin, I love you.”

  “I-I love you too.” She stroked his cheek and sighed. “What are we going to do?”

  “Let’s take this coffee and go talk in private. I have a room . . . .”

  Robin shook her head. “You know if we leave together, we’re not going to do much talking.”

  “If that’s what you want, then we can not talk.”

  “I don’t want to talk. I want you.”

  Logan had never heard sweeter words.

  Chapter 5

  Robin held Logan’s hand as they walked out of the café. She couldn’t explain why she all of a sudden wanted to be with her husband. Maybe it was hear
ing the story about him coming to town when they were dating to ask for her father’s permission to marry her. Maybe it was the memories of their romance or the fact that she missed him more than she wanted to admit. There was a part of her that didn’t believe her husband had cheated on her. But that DNA test didn’t lie. And if he wasn’t Kamrie’s child’s father, then why was she doing this to them?

  “Are you all right?” Logan asked as they approached his car.

  “I-I was just thinking. My God, Logan . . .”

  “What? Robin?”

  “Let’s just go.”

  “Babe, if you’re having second thoughts, it’s fine.”

  She offered him a half smile. “Not having second thoughts, but I’m having all kinds of thoughts.”

  “You want to go back inside and have dessert? I don’t want you to . . .”

  She pressed her body against his and brushed her finger across his lips. “Watching my sister get ready to be a wife reminds me why I did it. But I’m . . .”

  “Do you regret being my wife now?”

  “Should I?” She raised her right eyebrow.

  “No, and I don’t know how many ways I can tell you. I love you now just like I did the first moment I set eyes on you.”

  “Double R.”

  Logan laughed and nodded. “Double R. You have always been something.”

  “And I was not a rough rider. You just thought I gave you a hard time because I wasn’t falling all over your Nikes.”

  “True.”

  “I just knew how to hide it better.” She thrust her hips into his. “Your ego was big enough without me adding to it.”

  “But I backed it up, right?” Logan brought his lips down on top of Robin’s. She reveled in the soft sweetness of his lips. Allowed her body to melt into his and savor his touch as his hands roamed her back.

  Breaking the kiss, she smiled at him. “Yes, you did.”

  “We’d better go before things get really out of control.” Logan released her, then opened the door for her. Robin slid into the car and watched her husband walk over to the driver’s side. She’d missed him more than she wanted to admit. But what would happen if he wasn’t telling the truth about him and Kamrie?