Love Me Forever

by Serenity King

  “If this is one of those touchy-feely places, I’m going to kick your ass,” Jarred said.

  “You and what army are going to kick my ass?” Langston sniffed.

  “The army of left and right,” Jarred said, balling his hands into fists and lifting them one at a time.

  “Whatever. Lock up. I’ll meet you at the elevators downstairs. I need to collect my briefcase and jacket.” Langston stood and walked to the door.

  “I’m going to give Brice a call before I leave, so give me about ten to fifteen minutes.” Jarred settled back in his chair.

  “Doubt if you’ll be able to reach him, but will do.” Langston stepped out of the office.

  Jarred watched the door close behind him and then took out his cell phone and dialed Brice’s number. The phone rang three times before his brother answered, with a barked, “Hello.”

  “What the hell is wrong with you?” Jarred asked, irritated. “You were supposed to be in the office.”

  “Who says I wasn’t? What do you want?” Brice huffed. It seemed as if he didn’t want to be bothered.

  “If you can snatch yourself away from whatever or whoever it is that has you over the top, Langston and I are going to some spot that you took him to in Jersey.”

  “Heavens?”

  “Heavens what?” Jarred asked.

  “That’s the name of the lounge—Heavens. What time are you leaving?”

  “We’re out of here in about fifteen minutes.”

  Before Jarred could say another word, Brice tersely said goodbye and hung up.

  I’m going to choke the daylights out of him one day, Jarred thought as he gathered up his belongings. He made sure to also collect the Tempest documents. He had endless hours of work ahead of him, but Langston was right. It was a Friday night, and Jarred was long overdue to let loose. Sure, he had the occasional romp, so to speak, but most of his dating for the past two years was to appease his bruised ego over his failed relationship. It had been a while since he’d just hung out and enjoyed a night out with the guys. He wasn’t in favor of the bar scene much anymore. He’d been there, done that in college. Now he needed a place to just sit back and relax and not worry about expectations from anyone.

  Jarred locked the office, then took the elevator down to the ground floor, where Langston was waiting.

  “Are we taking your car or mine?” his brother asked.

  Jarred shrugged. “It doesn’t matter to me.”

  “Well, look who has decided to join us.” Langston smiled.

  Jarred glanced over his shoulder and saw Brice coming through the door of the stairwell, appearing out of sorts. The jacket of his dark Armani suit and his tie were hanging over his shoulder. He looked like he’d sounded on the phone: miserable. Brice had inherited their mother’s silver-gray eyes, and his complexion was a shade darker than Jarred and Langston’s honey-wheat skin tones. His rumpled appearance only confirmed to Jarred that all three of them were at their wits’ end.

  “I’m taking my own ride. I may leave with company, so I’ll meet you two there,” Brice said as he walked past them.

  “Where are you coming from?” Jarred arched a brow at his baby brother. Brice had led him to believe that he’d been in the office, but not that he was still present.

  “IT department. I told you I was here,” Brice replied.

  “What were you doing in IT?” Langston asked.

  Brice stopped, turned around and glared at them. “Working. Now, are we going to Heavens or not?”

  “Yes, but what has you in such a foul mood?” Langston inquired.

  “I’m not in a foul mood. I’m in a bad mood, plain and simple. So, are we going or am I to find my entertainment elsewhere?”

  “By all means, bro, let’s ride.” Langston gestured toward their parked vehicles.

  “I’m just warning you two. The minute somebody hands me one of those ‘get in touch with your inner self’ pamphlets, I am kicking both of your asses,” Jarred interjected, pointing at his brothers.

  “You might whip Langston, but you ain’t beating me,” Brice snorted.

  Jarred playfully punched his shoulder. “You may be taller than me and Langston, but I can still drop you, baby bro. Don’t let me school you out here in these streets.”

  “Man, listen to you trying to act hard. Dude, we grew up in the suburbs,” Brice retorted, and sent them all into a fit of laughter.

  “How far away is this place?” Jarred rounded the car to the passenger door.

  “About forty-five minutes to an hour, depending on traffic,” Langston said.

  Jarred climbed into the passenger seat, put his briefcase on the floor in front of him and sighed deeply. He loved his brothers, but they drove him crazy.

  The smooth sound of Kenny G was playing through the surround sound. Yes. Jarred rested his head back and relaxed to the flawless notes the saxophone belted out.

  Chapter 2

  They pulled into the packed parking lot of a one-story building surrounded by dark, tempered-glass windows. A hand-painted sign that hung above the door read Heavens, with musical symbols on each side. A line snaked out the door and down the walkway on three sides of the building.

  “It’s crowded tonight,” Langston said.

  “Appears that way,” Jarred responded.

  “I’m going to follow Brice. He knows this place inside and out. He’ll know where there’s parking.”

  “I thought you’d been here before?”

  “I have. It’s just been a while.”

  They found parking a block away from the lounge. Jarred was surprised that by the time they walked back around to the club, the crowd had practically disappeared.

  “Where did all those people go?” he asked.

  “Most probably weren’t allowed inside, so they left. There is a dress code. No jeans or sneakers. Business casual is the preference,” Brice said, as they walked up to the door.

  The bouncer, a tall man with a large build and a buzz cut, stood there. “Brice, my man! I haven’t seen you here in a little bit. Go on in. You know your table is always available.”

  “Thanks, Norman. How’s it going?”

  “I can’t complain. The lady herself is here tonight. You all are in for a treat.” Norman smiled.

  “She’s back?”

  “Yep, and on fire. Go on in. She’ll be on in a few.”

  “Thanks, man. I’ll talk to you later. By the way, these are my brothers, Jarred and Langston. Langston’s been here before with me, but you weren’t on duty,” Brice said.

  “Nice to meet you. Go on inside.” Norman waved Brice through. Jarred and Langston followed on his heels.

  “Is there anyone he doesn’t know?” Jarred whispered to Langston.

  “Our brother does get around. I’m wondering who this she is.”

  “I can hear you two,” Brice snorted.

  “So?” Jarred and Langston responded simultaneously.

  Brice led them to a table in front of a dimly lit stage. A gold Reserved sign sat on the table.

  Jarred glanced around the lounge. The place seemed like one giant booth, with leather seating and lit candles in rust-colored holders giving the room an orange glow. Very cozy, he had to admit, very relaxing. This was a place one would want to come after a hard day. The round table that he and his brothers occupied could easily fit eight people.

  “So who is this she the bouncer was referring to, Brice?” Langston asked.

  “You’ll see, Lang my boy.” Brice smirked.

  “If you call me Lang again, you won’t be seeing anything or anybody,” Langston countered.

  Jarred chuckled. Brotherly love. What can I say? Nothing, and that’s what I’ll do. Say nothing.

  A big, circular spotlight li
t the center of the stage, and people began to stand and clap.

  Jarred eyed all of them suspiciously. There was no one on the stage. A few moments later, a lone figure walked out into the center and Jarred’s mouth dropped open. The woman had legs that went on for days. They were displayed in a formfitting black dress with a deeply cut V neckline and a long, almost waist-high split up the side. Her natural hair was styled in a thick, wavy bob that stopped at her shoulders. Her skin tone was slightly darker than caramel, but lighter than pecan, more like cinnamon. Her body was to die for, and her smile shone brighter than the stage lighting.

  “If you don’t close your mouth soon, bro, you are sure to attract flies,” Brice said.

  “You all sure know how to make a lady feel loved,” the mystery lady said. Her voice was so sultry and soulful, a shiver of awareness coursed through Jarred.

  He could do nothing but stare at her, spellbound by her presence. He squinted his eyes and leaned forward to get a better view. Upon closer inspection, he recognized that there was something familiar about her, then it hit him like a sack of bricks.

  “Hey, isn’t that—”

  “Nerd Girl,” Langston finished.

  “Be quiet, you two. Her name is Nevealise not Nerd Girl,” Brice said angrily.

  “We know her name, Brice,” Jarred countered. “It was just an expression and you know it. We all called her that back then.”

  The last time Jarred saw Nevealise, she was headed to Cambridge for her freshman year at MIT. Jarred had known from his sister that she had a crush on him. Nevealise had been Kat’s friend and math tutor, and was often at the house. Kat had kidded him often enough about her friend’s crush. However, he had no interest in the young woman who, at eighteen, was six years his junior. Jarred remembered he’d called her “Jailbait.” At the time he considered her far too young for him. Besides, he was already in a relationship with Lainey.

  Well, I’ll be damned. Little Nevealise Tempest has grown into a stunning woman.

  She used to come around with her father, and usually had a book in her hand. He and his brothers had dubbed her “Nerd Girl” because she was always spouting something she’d discovered in a book, and was a whiz at equations. Her visits with her father were what led her to become his sister’s tutor. If he remembered correctly, she was two years older than Kat, which would put Nevealise at around twenty-eight now. No longer jailbait. If he was honest with himself he’d admit the moment their eyes met, he wanted to drag her offstage and have his way with her.

  “What the hell is she doing, singing in a club? Didn’t she graduate from MIT?” Jarred murmured.

  “Damn, she is fine,” Langston declared.

  Just then Nevealise bellowed out a soulful rendition of Joss Stone’s “Put Your Hands On Me.”

  That voice. It held Jarred captive. He couldn’t turn away even if he tried. Not only was she beautiful, but her singing was glorious.

  “Does her old man know that his daughter is a lounge singer?” Jarred asked.

  “None of her family knows. For the record, she isn’t only a singer, she owns the place. Hence the name,” Brice told them.

  “Who cares whether or not her family knows? She’s good,” Langston said, bopping to the tune.

  Like magnet to metal, Jarred and Nevealise’s eyes met and lingered. She was the first to break eye contact as she finished the song and transitioned directly into another. This time she sauntered out into the crowd, stopping at their table to place a kiss on Brice’s cheek. She flashed Jarred and Langston a quick smile, then continued mingling with the other guests. For the first time in his life, Jarred was jealous of his youngest brother.

  “Don’t get your hackles up, big brother. Nev and I are just friends,” Brice snorted.

  “What are you going on about, Brice? What hackles?” Jarred said, unable to take his eyes off the woman.

  Langston chuckled. “Who are you kidding? You practically came out of your seat when Nerd Girl kissed Brice’s cheek. That scowl didn’t help, either.”

  Jarred sent Langston a scathing look that could have melted iron. “What I don’t understand is why are we killing ourselves with her father’s mess and she’s out here having the time of her life?” he retorted.

  “You can’t blame that on her. Her father never wanted her to have any dealings with the business, even after she graduated top of her class at MIT. She did what she had to do, and she does it well,” Brice said proudly. “Besides, it’s our mess now. We acquired the company, remember?”

  Jarred didn’t say anything further. He sat back and listened intently as she sang. He would have been content listening to her all night if he didn’t have an erection that was making it impossible to be comfortable no matter what he did. He squirmed in his seat, trying to adjust his trousers, which were continually growing tighter.

  He gazed at Nevealise just as she moved her head in their direction. His lips lifted in a slow smile, and then he winked at her, causing her to miss a beat. Not that anyone would notice. Oh, but he did. Gotcha! It appeared he still had some kind of effect on her. My night has just taken a very interesting turn, he thought, and he hoped to enjoy it to the fullest.

  Chapter 3

  Nevealise startled a bit as Jarred Manning winked at her. What was he playing at? Better yet, what was he doing here? Although she hadn’t seen him in years, Nevealise didn’t figure Heavens would be a hangout for the oldest Manning brother. Closing her eyes, arms stretched out in front of her, she let the smooth sounds of Ella Fitzgerald’s “Cry Me a River” run flawlessly from her lips. After she finished her number, Nevealise opened her eyes to another standing ovation.

  “Thank you, thank you.” She smiled, looked around the packed lounge, bowed and then walked offstage, but not before she caught the eye of Jarred again. He was standing, smiling and clapping heartily along with the crowd. Taking a deep breath, she briskly exited and headed to her dressing room.

  Nevealise flashed the bodyguard standing by her door a quick smile, and proceeded inside. She plopped down on the chair in front of the vanity and mirror, and released a long breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding. She placed her hand on her abdomen, trying to calm the butterflies having a party in her stomach. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. The hazel eyes that stared back at her showed how she felt: nervous.

  “Oh, goodness,” she chanted a few times, before picking up the bottle of chardonnay she always had waiting for her when she left the stage, and pouring a couple ounces into her tulip-shaped wineglass. She sipped a little bit at a time, wanting to savor the taste.

  Seeing Jarred Manning again had stirred up feelings in her that Nevealise thought she’d long forgotten. Feelings she had long ago filed away as her first teenage crush. Tonight Jarred’s bold stare had her insides quivering straight to her core, causing her to cross her legs, trying to stem the vibrations she felt there.

  Nevealise had felt daring as she’d sauntered out into the crowd and stopped at their table. She’d kissed Brice on the cheek, only to look up and catch Jarred’s molten gaze. Her eyes instantly zoomed in on his full, kissable lips. Her sassy move to show the brothers that she was no longer the girl they often referred to as “Nerd Girl,” that she was in fact a woman in charge of her sexuality, had backfired on her.

  Who was she kidding? At the mere presence of Jarred she’d become a nervous wreck, almost dropping in a dead faint to the floor. It should be a sin to be so fine. The handsome devil knew he’d gotten to her when he’d winked at her. Although she’d recovered quickly, she’d missed a beat in the number she was performing. Jarred had arrogantly smiled and lifted his glass to her.

  Enough thinking about Jarred Manning. She needed to bring her body under control. Nevealise was reacting to him like she was a sexually charged teenager. Her mind knew that; however, her body moved to its own beat, and
was having the hots for Jarred Manning.

  Sighing deeply, Nevealise took another sip of her wine. “Ah, just what I need,” she murmured, then leaned back in the chair, lifted her face to the ceiling and closed her eyes. The wine usually calmed her after a performance, and tonight she needed it more than ever. The sight of Jarred in the audience had frayed her nerves. What was he doing here? “Ugh!” she cried. “Get out of my head, Jarred!”

  Nevealise jolted at the knock on her door. The sound vibrated like a thunderbolt in the peace and tranquility of her quiet dressing room. Her hand pressed against her chest, trying to stem her racing heart. Mentally shaking herself, Nevealise got up and looked at the closed door.

  “Who’s there?”

  “It’s me, Nev. Can I come in?”

  Nevealise smiled at the briskness of Brice’s voice. He always sounded as if he was angry or in a hurry. While attending college Nevealise had become friends with an engineering student, Jasmine Greene, who unbeknownst to her was dating Brice Manning. Lovers of the written word, Jasmine and Brice would often drag Nevealise along to lounges and clubs to listen, and sometimes participate, in song and the spoken word. It was during those times with Jasmine and Brice that she’d discovered her passion for singing.

  Jasmine and Brice were the only two people outside her immediate family who were aware of her disdain for her father, and their tumultuous relationship. To this day Jasmine was still Nevealise’s best friend, and Brice had become more of a brother than a friend. He was the person who’d helped her make Heavens a reality, investing in her talent as well as her business.

  “Nev, are you all right? Can I come in?”

  He was alone. What a relief. She sat down, smiled and called out, “Sure. Come on in, Brice.”

  Nevealise watched as the door slowly opened a bit and Brice stuck his head in. That surprised her, because he usually just walked in.

  “What are you doing?” She frowned.