by M. Skye
Milan’s ex-boyfriend Adrian was someone they met in high school. He was very controlling and abusive toward Milan, forcing her to give up everything and everyone she knew. He had cut her off from everyone until she met Jackson. He came in and rescued her, giving her a beautiful life and real love. He proved his devotion to her repeatedly, and when Adrian cornered them with a gun, Jackson took a bullet meant for her.
“I feel good. We are so happy, but enough about me. What is going on here?”
Mia felt her heart fluttering. “Oh, God, Millie, things are great. We got everything out in the open, and now I feel better than ever.”
“It really looked like you reconnected; I got an eyeful. I thought someone was killing you.” She laughed. “You hadn’t updated me, and I thought you were here all alone.”
“I had no intention of doing this, but I’m so glad I did. We’re so in love.”
“So, you know I hate to ask an awkward question, but how did Jake take the news? Weren’t you two practically engaged?”
Huffing quietly, Mia’s eyes widened. “No. He asked, but I never said yes. It just didn’t feel right. It never did.”
The girls talked and caught up for a few more minutes while the guys brought the rest of the bags in. Mia took Sydney from Milan’s arms, lifting her in the air, complimenting the curly-haired beauty. She was the mirror image of Milan as a baby and was an incredibly happy child. Her bubbly three-month-old daughter inherited Milan’s bright gray eyes and dark curly hair. Although she took most of Milan’s features, her beautiful caramel complexion was that of her father’s. Jackson was an incredibly handsome man with chiseled features and dazzling hazel eyes, and he treated Milan like a queen.
“So, what did he say when you broke the news?”
Mia turned away from Milan’s watchful stare and inhaled deeply.
“Mia?” When she still didn’t respond, Milan gasped loudly. “Oh, Mia, you haven’t told him, have you?”
“I want to, but I can’t do it over the phone.”
“I understand that, but you have to do it sooner rather than later. These things have a way of coming back to bite you. I can’t believe Tyree is letting this ride.”
“He understands, and since he is still engaged, he can’t say much.”
Milan shrugged, nodding her head awkwardly. Mia knew this situation was more complicated than she first believed. “So, what are you two going to do about all this? It could get messy, and I don’t want you mixed up in some crazy drama. This isn’t like you to be sneaking around with your own man.”
“I’m not afraid, Millie. Being with Tyree is what I have wanted since we were kids. I love him.”
“Well, then that’s all there is. I’m going to be here for a week, and I’ll help you sort through this mess.”
“I’m so glad to have you here.”
The girls hugged, and Mia closed her eyes, feeling secure in her cousin’s loving embrace until they heard what sounded like raised voices outside. When Jackson walked inside with a sorrowful look on his face, Milan stood, securing Sydney in her arms. She walked toward the door. “Babe, what’s wrong?”
Before he could respond, Tyree came storming inside with Jake right behind him. Both guys looked like they wanted to strangle the other, and Mia felt herself walking backward. The room was dead silent, and everyone was waiting for her to respond. When Jake stepped forward to touch her, Tyree almost charged at him until Jackson stepped in, grabbing him from behind.
“Dimples, I missed you.” Jake smiled, giving Mia a gaze that made Tyree almost snap.
“Dimples? Aw, hell.” Jackson sighed. “Come on, man. Let’s let her talk to him. We should get some air.”
After being pulled from the house, a reluctant Tyree followed Jackson outside, trying to regain his composure. Making sure he had his feelings in check, Tyree pulled himself together momentarily, and both guys headed to a nice cool spot to talk privately. Once outside, Tyree leaned against the house, trying to calm himself down.
“Look, I’m sorry I just lost it there. That dude pisses me off. He used something I did to steal my wife. I just got her back and seeing him walking in here like some saint made me snap.”
Jackson sighed crossing his arms over his chest. “I get it. If some man ever tried to get next to Millie, I would kick his ass. I don’t know, dude, but it’s not cool.”
They walked around the house with Jackson trying to calm Tyree down. He was telling him all about their life in Los Angeles when they walked up on the side of the house that Kyan’s room was on. Tyree was listening, but something caught his eye. He had gotten to the point where he only heard every other word. When he looked further, he saw the footprints leading up to his son’s window.
Jackson stopped talking and looked at the footprints as well. “These yours?”
Tyree shook his head now realizing that Kyan’s screaming may have been warranted. Someone could have really been in his room that night. He now feared for the safety of his son and the woman he loved. Tyree saw the confused expression on Jackson’s face and looked back, trying to mask his fears. “Look, you guys should let me help you take your things up to the main house. I think you will be more comfortable there.”
Tyree could tell Jackson was suspicious, but he didn’t push. He just nodded, accepting the excuse. “Yeah, I’ll tell Millie; but what are you going to do about your girl?”
“I need to get in there and check on things, but I’m talking her into not being here tonight either. She is going to argue with me, but it is for the best. That way they can stay up all night catching up.”
“Your girl sounds a lot like Milan.”
“They are so much alike it’s scary.”
Jackson laughed and patted him on the back. “You good?”
“I’m good.”
Tyree and Jackson walked inside to find Mia sitting uncomfortably on one of the barstools and Jake on the couch. Tyree tapped Jackson’s shoulder, pointing him to the stairs Milan was standing on, and he walked away, pulling his wife with him.
Jake was sitting, salivating over Mia, and Tyree fought down the urge to punch him in his face. Being in the room with both guys seemed to be a bit much for Mia and Tyree watched as she inched toward the kitchen. When Jake got up to follow her, Tyree walked closer, making his presence known.
“Jake, you’ll get your turn with Mia. I need to talk to her before I get out of here.”
Jake nodded in agreement, and Tyree took off after Mia. He found her pacing in the kitchen and walked up behind her, putting his hand on her back. He was wondering if she had second thoughts, but the way she leaned into him said otherwise.
“You okay, kitten? I just wanted to check on you.”
Turning, with her arms finding a resting place around his neck, she smiled weakly. “I just hate having to tell him like this with an audience. You might not care about him, but he was sweet to me. I don’t want to embarrass him.”
“He’s going to be embarrassed either way. He came all the way here for a woman who belongs to someone else.”
“Yeah, but he thinks we’re together.”
“He better not for long. He’s not sleeping next to you tonight.”
“I know. I just need some time alone, just me and him to break things off.”
“I’ll give you time. I want to take Milan, Jackson, and Sydney to the main house. I think you guys should stay up there tonight.”’
“Why?”
“More space and you have the maids up there. Don’t you want to impress your new family member?” he smirked.
Mia eyed him skeptically. “I thought you agreed not to lie to me. There’s more.”
“There is, but I’m not ready to share. Please just do this for me. You have to trust me.”
Watching her roll her eyes, he knew she never liked being left in the dark. “Sure, whatever. Just take Kyan’s clothes up when you go. Are you staying with me?”
“If you still want me after seeing old dreamy-ass Jake,�
� he teased.
“Of course I will. I told you we’re starting over.”
“All right, so if I leave you here, do you promise I won’t walk in and find you mounting him when I get back?”
Mia chuckled and kissed his lips softly. “I promise.”
Taking a deep breath, Tyree walked out of the kitchen. Mia followed him after taking a moment to collect herself. The situation was stressful, and she was glad Tyree had allowed her some time alone to have a mini meltdown. Watching Tyree walk up the stairs, she saw how Jake’s eyes followed him and then snapped back to her. She knew he was thrown by her stoic expression, and when he advanced, she stepped backward.
“Hang on. Let everyone leave, and then we can catch up.”
“That sounds great.” Jake grinned only to receive a timid smile from Mia.
Tyree and Jackson moved everything to drive it up to the house; and, before closing the door for the last time, Tyree looked at Mia, giving her an encouraging nod before disappearing. At that point, Jake slid off the couch and walked to stand directly in front of her. He ran his hand through her hair, and she shook him away.
“Jake, stop. We need to talk.”
“I’m listening,” he smirked. “Talk first, and then I want to take my woman upstairs.”
“That’s just it. I’m not going upstairs with you and, I’ve told you before, I will never have sex in this house with anyone other than Tyree. It’s disrespectful.”
“Yes, I forgot.” He sighed. “Well, now that he’s gone, we can go off just the two of us. It feels like it’s been forever.”
Jake was rattling plans off to her, and all she could hear was the beating of her heart in her ears. The feeling was getting extremely intense until she just blurted it out: “I’m back with Tyree.”
Jake looked like he couldn’t believe his ears. He looked as if he had heard her wrong. “What?”
“I can’t be with you. We don’t work, and it never would have because I love him.”
Mia saw the anger flicker in Jake’s dark brown eyes. His jaw clenched, and she saw his slender body tense while his creamy almond skin took on a red tint. He backed away from her, dropping his hands before looking back in her direction. “I won’t accept this. He lied to you, he used you, and you want him back?”
“I know what I said, but I was wrong. He loves me, and I was stupid. I’m so sorry I used you.”
Jake dropped the angry scowl and replaced it with a look of defeat. “I don’t want to lose you. I don’t think this is the end of us. Come on, dimples, I just really missed you, but I’m sorry for coming here when you clearly needed some time to yourself. Don’t let this get between us. Okay?”
“I’m sorry, Jake, but I can’t tell you I will be coming back to you. You are a great guy, and I should have explained that I wasn’t finished here. As much as I wanted to, I never let go of Tyree.”
“I’m sorry, Mia, but I’m not going to make it easy for you to leave me. We love each other.”
“I wanted to love you; it would have made things so much easier.”
When Mia backed away slowly, Jake almost broke down. He walked toward the door, pausing to look at her before opening it. “I won’t let you just walk away. You deserve me, and I deserve you.”
“Don’t do this to yourself. You should find a woman who can give you the love you deserve.”
“I just don’t see it. He may be doing and saying all the perfect things right now, but I feel like he will only let you down in the end and, when that happens, I’ll be there like always.”
“You should go home and focus on yourself. I wouldn’t be happy knowing you’re wasting your time waiting for me.”
“I’d wait forever for a woman like you.”
Offering Mia one last glance, he walked out. He stood on the porch for a few minutes and then walked back to his rental. He drove down the entrance slowly, and she just watched tearfully, hating that she had to hurt him. He was great, but he just wasn’t the one. Deep down, she felt he always knew this, even before she did.
Chapter Twenty-one
Karen sat quietly, and Asha knew she was trying to figure out what her visit was really about. She had been carrying on very strangely over the past few days, and she knew Karen wanted to know why. Asha had really taken this thing with John and Renee to heart.
While Asha sipped her tea silently, Karen cleared her throat, causing her to look up. “Why are you here? You know I love seeing you, but I know you’re dealing with something you need to let out.”
“I’m just checking on you. I know you must feel lonely with Dad out of town. Someone should keep you company.”
“Is that all, dear child? Your dad is upstairs. He got in late last night, swearing he has some big announcement to make.”
Asha’s tea glass found a position on the small table beside her, and she turned to stare her mother down. “What kind of announcement? What does he want now?”
Asha could tell her snappy tone had thrown her mother off, and she tried to scale it back, plastering a fake smile on her face. Despite her best attempts, Karen looked unconvinced.
“Asha, why are you really here? I know what you said, but you must know I’m not buying it.”
Looking at her mother, contemplating whether she should tell her all the suspicions she had about John and Renee, Asha sighed. She didn’t know if she should tell her that the resort John swore he was visiting was just a front. She and Terence had taken a quick trip down there, and John was nowhere to be found.
John was sneaky. At first, they thought everything he told Asha when he finally called back was on the up and up. He somehow had the direct calls from his room transferred to his cell, but Asha was no fool. She knew something was off and decided to pay a visit to this so-called golfing trip.
It wasn’t hard to obtain a key to his suite, considering he had booked the room under the company’s expense account. All she had to do was flash her badge to the building, and the key was turned over quickly. The maid informed them that John had only been at the room one day and he didn’t even stay the night. He had only stopped in for a few hours and disappeared. The only contact they had with him after that was when he called in to settle the bill.
Asha just couldn’t believe her father could be so manipulative. She knew he thought he was in the clear, but she was hot on his trail. She had Terence digging into every possible avenue he could to find out what the extent of John and Renee’s relationship was. She didn’t want to believe they were still trying to deceive Tyree, but all the signs pointed to it.
Asha had picked up her tea glass and was sipping from it slowly when Karen made a hissing sound, snapping her out of her thoughts. When they locked eyes, Asha saw the worried expression on her mother’s face, and she felt horrible. She could tell she was wondering why she was so displeased, but she couldn’t tell her anything without solid proof. She couldn’t ruin over thirty years of marriage without being completely sure.
Just as Asha was about to make up an excuse explaining what she was so riled up about, John came speeding down the stairs. When he raced over and pulled Karen from the couch, lifting her in his arms, Asha stood and set her glass down suddenly. Both John and Karen looked at her in confusion. John slid Karen’s feet back to the floor and walked over to stand in front of Asha.
“What’s wrong, sweetie? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost. Come and tell me what is going on with you. I feel like I’ve been so far out of the loop with you kids this past week.”
Asha huffed, thinking how right he was. If only he knew how out of the loop he was. “Things have been interesting. We have had so much to put into perspective.”
“Like what, doll face? What has been going on around here?”
“I should be asking you the same thing,” she sniped.
John leaned back and placed his hand on his chin. “What has gotten into you? What is going on with my sweet girl? Tell me what’s wrong.”
Asha opened her mouth as if to say som
ething but closed it suddenly, thinking that this wasn’t the proper time to get into their issues. “Nothing, Dad. I’m just a little out of place with the changes happening at Livingston. We don’t know to what extent it will affect us yet. It could be bad, and I feel horrible for Mia and Rick. I can’t believe you didn’t know anything about this.”
“You know I can’t be everywhere at once. I’m sorry I needed a break, and this happened. I’m not God; I can’t fix everything.”
His statement disgusted Asha and, before she could think, she blurted out her frustrations: “You sure like to act like it.”
“Asha, just what are you talking about?”
Standing and recovering her senses, Asha crossed her arms over her chest. “Dad, how could you let this happen? You knew if Richmond got his hands on any part of that company what he would do. How could you allow this? You said you handled him.”
“I thought I had. I don’t know what happened, but I can assure you I will get to the bottom of it, doll face. I can’t have you thinking less of your old man behind this. I know what the company means to you.”
“It means everything, Dad,” she hissed. “It’s just as important as our family; it’s our legacy.”
“Exactly, which is why I will fix this. You have nothing to worry about, my sweet. I never want you to worry your pretty little head about this. In fact, how about you take a few weeks off and take my granddaughter and Terence on vacation? We will have this all resolved by the time you get back. I’ll just need your signature placing me in charge of your affairs for a while.”
Asha and Karen both looked at each other, trying to figure out what John was up to. When she shook her head slowly, he huffed in aggravation.
“Dad, I’m not going anywhere. I am a part of the business, and I will roll with the punches. I am not a quitter, and I think you know that.”
John didn’t notice the hidden meaning in her words, but Asha knew Karen had instantly. Asha was on to something big, and it was undoubtedly going to wreak havoc on whatever John had up his sleeve. The determination she had was the same determination she saw in her mother over the years; it was where she had gotten it from.