Guarding His Heart

by Synithia Williams

  “Besides,” Charlotte continued, “you know what to look for when it comes to no good men. If you say Asia’s new boyfriend is decent, then Sabrina should go along with it.”

  “She did.” After he reassured her a dozen times that Asia’s boyfriend had no evil plot to break their oldest daughter’s heart. “I don’t think Asia has to worry about that. She does have to worry about her mom killing her. She’s still in trouble for sneaking out to meet him at a party. That’s uncalled-for.”

  He’d made sure Asia understood he wouldn’t stand for that either. The car they’d been considering for her sixteenth birthday was firmly off the table. He was especially proud of the way he hadn’t wavered when the tears had flown.

  Charlotte laughed and patted her legs. “The oldest is always the wild one. At least Paris isn’t like that.”

  Kevin nodded. “Thank heaven for that.” Asia’s little sister was more into fantasy novels and reading than boys. That might change in a few years, but for now he was thrilled.

  “Well, if you calmed down Sabrina, then why were you frowning?”

  He shook his head. “No reason.”

  Grandma C gave great advice, but he didn’t discuss his affairs with her. He would figure out a way to see Jasmine again.

  He’d held her briefly. That swift touch and quick kiss had gone through his mind almost as frequently as he’d thought about dropping the ball. Both had been recent major disappointments. He was handling the situation with his deteriorating joints, and he would also figure out why Jasmine had run off when there was obviously a spark between them.

  “It’s a woman, isn’t it?” Charlotte asked in a knowing voice. Her piercing gaze held laughter.

  He should have known she’d guess the problem anyway. “I know a lot of women,” he hedged.

  “I see the reports. I know you do. But this woman must be special.”

  Kevin didn’t want to think about the reports his grandmother had seen. He was considered a wild child in the league. The media liked to document his dating life as evidence of his carefree lifestyle. They assumed he dated different women because he liked the playboy lifestyle, not because he refused to get serious and disappoint another woman.

  “Can we talk about something else besides women?”

  Charlotte leaned back in her seat. The humor didn’t leave her expression. “Fine, just don’t run off and marry her before I get to meet her.”

  The idea was so ludicrous Kevin laughed hard enough to bring a tear to his eye. “I am never getting married again.”

  “That’s what you think. He—” she pointed to the sky “—may think differently.”

  Kevin nodded and looked over the spacious, manicured backyard instead of arguing. He doubted the Big Guy upstairs had a personal interest in his abysmal love life. If that were the case, his marriage would have worked out, or at least his relationship with Hanna.

  His mother had prayed hard enough for both. She’d be giving him a lecture about finding love and happiness right now if she hadn’t gone to the West Coast to visit the twins.

  Kevin preferred to focus on quick flings. No feelings to attach. No expectations of more. He was old enough to admit the marriage to Sabrina hadn’t been wise. They’d been young and in love but hadn’t really gotten out of their small town to see the world. Things with Hanna had been good, but he hadn’t loved her. He didn’t think long-term relationships were in the cards for him and he’d accepted that. He didn’t have to play baseball to recognize that he’d had two strikes in the relationship department. He wasn’t playing to lose.

  “I spoke with Robert Taylor yesterday at the grocery store.” His grandmother changed the subject. “He says work is almost complete on the new community center. That’s going to be great when it opens. Exactly what the town needs. He told me to thank you for the donation.”

  “Mayor Taylor doesn’t have to thank me. This is my hometown. I’m happy to help.” Forgetting where he came from, where his mother and grandmother still lived, wasn’t an option. He’d grown up here, therefore he’d always be invested.

  “I know. Still, I want you to know people around here appreciate what you do.”

  “It’s what anyone would do.”

  “Not everyone. You should go down there and see the work before you leave town.”

  Kevin didn’t go into the small town much when he visited, if at all. He came home to visit family, not to sign autographs and take selfies with fans. But he was curious to see some of the changes that had taken place over the past year or so. “I will.”

  He’d donated a hundred thousand toward the renovations of the old community center. That’s where he’d learned to play basketball and found sanctuary after school until his mother or grandmother got off work. In the years since he’d gone to the league, the town had started to dwindle. He’d given money where he could to support the opening of new businesses and renovate downtown. His donations had paid off. The town was experiencing a surge in regrowth.

  Charlotte nodded, obviously pleased with his decision. “Good. Also, before you go, take a look at the old farm across town. I’ve got a guy interested in buying it. Says he wants to put a drive-in theater over there.”

  Kevin raised a brow. He shifted sideways on the porch step to look at his grandmother. “A drive-in?”

  She nodded. “Yep. Apparently, people like that sort of thing again. The land is just sitting there. Might as well make some money off it.”

  A thought hit him. Kevin sat up straight. “Grandma C, is the old house still on that land?”

  “Not unless it sprouted feet and walked off. Why? That house ain’t nothing but ruins now.”

  Ruins or not, the house might fit a certain sexy photographer’s project standards. “Still, if you’re selling, we might want to find a way to save it for future generations.”

  “Boy, you’re crazy. How we gonna save my granddaddy’s old cabin?”

  With pictures taken by a woman he couldn’t wait to see again. He could slap himself for not thinking of this before. He hadn’t been to the old farm in years. Had forgotten about the place mostly because Grandma C never mentioned it. Now the old forgotten farm was just what he needed to see Jasmine.

  “Don’t worry, Grandma C. I know exactly how we’re going to save it.”

  Chapter 5

  “Dad says Kathy wants to see us.”

  Jasmine froze while putting clothes into her suitcase. She jerked her head toward her sister.

  Jada sat on the floor with her back against Jasmine’s bed. She tossed the yellow stuffed elephant Jasmine had owned since she was five up into the air and caught it on the way down. Her natural hair was pulled up into a curly puff at the top of her head and she had the nerve to look better in the off-white sundress Jasmine had purchased for herself a month ago.

  “What? Why would Kathy want to see us now?” Their stepmother hadn’t reached out to them in years. After divorcing their father when Jasmine was sixteen, Kathy had moved across country and remarried a year later. She’d had a new life and a new family.

  “I don’t know. She’s divorced again,” Jada said flippantly.

  The announcement should have elicited some emotion from Jasmine, but the only one that clicked was irritation. Twelve years postdivorce did not endear her to Kathy. “Getting another divorce shouldn’t be the reason she suddenly decided to reach out to us. I haven’t seen her since I was sixteen. I’ve moved on.”

  Jasmine went back to folding clothes to be packed. She would be spending most of the summer down south, documenting homes. Common sense said to travel light because she’d be moving around a lot, but ten years in the fashion industry also meant an extensive wardrobe. Jada was supposed to be helping her separate essentials from nonessentials, not getting her blood pressure up with a conversation about their former stepmother.

  Jada spun around o
n the floor until she faced Jasmine. She held up her hands in a don’t-shoot-the-messenger fashion. “Hey, I’m just telling you what Dad said. It’s up to you if you see her or not.”

  “Then the answer is not. I don’t need to see Kathy and I don’t want to.” Jasmine held up a bright multicolored skirt she’d picked up in LA last year. The waistband was fitted, accenting her curves, and the hem brushed the floor. “Take or leave?”

  “Take,” Jada said with a thumbs-up. “You may go to a cookout.”

  Jasmine raised a brow. “A cookout?”

  “It’s the South in the summer. If you don’t go to someone’s cookout, I’m going to be mad at you.”

  Jasmine laughed, folded the skirt and put it in her bag.

  Jada’s laughter faded. They were quiet for a few seconds. She stopped tossing the bear. “I’m going to see her.”

  Jasmine spun around and crossed her arms. “Why?”

  “Because she helped raise us. I don’t remember Mom, but I remember Kathy. I want to see her.”

  Jasmine barely remembered their mom. She’d died when Jasmine was five and Jada was two. All she really had were memories of Kathy, too. Followed by the pain of her walking away after the divorce. Kathy made her choice. They weren’t her family. Regardless of the memories, Jasmine never had to see her again. “Well, I don’t. She’s not our mom and she made that perfectly clear.”

  “Okay, obviously you have some things related to Kathy that you need to work out,” Jada said with a hint of attitude. “Talking to her might help.”

  “Talking to her won’t help.” She tossed a shirt at Jada. “And I don’t have things to work out.”

  Jada caught the shirt before it hit her in the face. “Sure.” She examined the shirt and shrugged. “I’m keeping this now. That’s what you get for throwing clothes.”

  “As if you need a reason to steal my clothes,” Jasmine said without heat. Jada had been “borrowing” her clothes for years.

  “True. So are you excited about the trip?” Jada rolled up the shirt and put it in her purse sitting next to her on the floor.

  “I am. I’m also nervous about what’ll happen when I finish. Who really wants to see a bunch of old houses?”

  “You’re acting as if your pictures won’t be beautiful,” Jada said, as if people loving Jasmine’s work was inevitable. “Or that you won’t include the stories of these families. People are going to love it.”

  Jasmine walked over and sat on the floor next to Jada. “Spoken like my true number one fan.”

  “Card-carrying member of the Jasmine Hook fan club,” Jada said with a finger snap.

  Jasmine chuckled and rested her head on her sister’s shoulder. Jada was her biggest fan and source of support. She was the only one Jasmine let see her fear of possible failure. The only one she trusted. Jada gave her advice, listened to her vent and laughed when times were good. Jasmine didn’t know what she’d do without her sister.

  “Keep stealing my dresses,” she said, tugging on the dress her sister wore. “And I’m going to revoke your card.”

  “Nope, that’s what comes with the VIP membership.”

  They both laughed. Jasmine’s ringing cell phone interrupted the moment. She lifted her head and shifted to her left in order to pull the phone from her back pocket. The number was unfamiliar, but since she was traveling soon, she didn’t want to ignore any unknown calls.

  “Hello?”

  “Jasmine? It’s Kevin.”

  Her eyes widened. Her heart bucked like a wild stallion. She scrambled off the floor and crossed the room. “Kevin? How did you get my number?”

  Jada got up and moved toward Jasmine, curiosity all over her face. She mouthed, “Who is Kevin?”

  Jasmine waved her off and went to her bedroom window.

  “Rafael gave me your number,” Kevin answered.

  She was going to kill Rafael. He’d told her she needed to get back in the dating game. He was right about that, but she wasn’t sure if Kevin was the right person to jump in with. That didn’t stop the excitement pulsing through her veins from his call.

  “I didn’t expect to hear from you again.” She’d figured he would move on after she brushed him off. She had written down his number, and she’d looked at that slip of paper dozens of times in the past two weeks.

  “I had to when it became obvious you weren’t going to call me.”

  “I’ve been busy.”

  “And I’ve been thinking about you.” His voice was like warm velvet against her skin. Soft, smooth, seductive.

  She’d been thinking about him, too. That kiss. How brief it had been. How a guy with baggage wasn’t good, not even for short-term flings. “I’ve sent the pictures of you over to Sports Fitness with my recommendation for the cover. Have you seen them yet?”

  His low chuckle sent a vibration through her midsection. “You’re going to just ignore me saying I’ve been thinking about you, huh?”

  Hell yes. If she didn’t, she’d be pulled back into flirting with him. “I’ll send the pictures if you haven’t seen them.”

  “I saw them. They’re good. Though I don’t know which one you suggested for the cover.”

  “You’ll like it.” She loved it. A great shot of him jumping with the ball in his hand as he dunked it into the net. Every muscle of his body at play, showcasing the fluid motion he’d accomplished effortlessly. He’d had a smile on his face that showed just how much fun he had playing the game.

  “I trust your judgment, then,” he said. “Your pictures are actually why I’m calling.”

  She bit her lower lip and tried to hold back her grin. The compliment about trusting her judgment was simple enough. He should trust her judgment. She was the professional photographer after all. But she’d also had her judgment questioned by subjects a lot over the years. Hearing him say it so effortlessly made her appreciate the words even more.

  “The pictures from the photo shoot?”

  Jada jumped up onto Jasmine’s bed and watched her closely. She waved her hand for Jasmine to come closer and mouthed who is it? again. Jasmine put a finger to her mouth.

  “No, the pictures for the project you told me about,” Kevin said. “Capturing and recording homes owned by freed blacks after the war. I’ve been thinking about that.”

  “You have?” Surprise crept into her voice. Sure, he’d seemed interested in her project, but she hadn’t expected him to think about it after they parted.

  “I know of a place that you might want to capture.”

  “Where?”

  “My family’s old farm. My grandma is going to sell the property. I don’t see a reason to keep it, but I do think it’ll be a good idea to record the history before it’s no longer in the family. Will you consider including this in your project?”

  Okay, asking her to photograph his family’s old property was probably a ploy to see her. But having a property tied to a well-known and well-loved professional athlete wouldn’t be a bad thing for the exhibit or the book.

  And it’s not like you don’t want to see the man again.

  “I didn’t realize you had a family farm.”

  “I grew up on the land but not in the old house. My grandfather was a farmer. My dad tried his hand at it but was never very good. After he left, my mom and grandmother stopped altogether and got jobs at the local textile mill. When I made it professionally, I moved them both to a new house and haven’t looked back.” He paused and she heard him grunt. “You didn’t ask for all that.” He sounded bashful.

  “I’m glad you told me all that.” Kevin was more than the outgoing ballplayer. His biography said he was born in a small town in South Carolina, but until then, she hadn’t pictured him as a Southern boy with country roots. That intrigued her. The urge to know more about him grew.

  “Are you interested?”

 
In a lot more than just taking photos. “Where’s the house? I’m going to Georgia this afternoon to meet with Mr. Tatum, the man I told you about who’s saving slave cabins. I’ll be there for about a week.”

  “South Carolina in the Pee Dee region. I know that probably means nothing to you. I’ll just send you the information,” he said. Excitement crept into his hurried reply. She pictured him smiling and her own lips curved. “I’m in town for now, but I’ve got business in Atlanta and then Jacksonville. I can be back in town to meet you the week after next.”

  He didn’t have to meet her. She could get the information from him, take her pictures without him and get any information on his family via email. On the other hand, talking to him face-to-face and learning what she could from him was the most logical choice.

  “I’ll think about it,” she said while her mind reworked her schedule to include a trip to his place. He didn’t need to know how eager she was to see him again. “Let me see how the meeting with Mr. Tatum goes. I may check out some of the places he mentions after we talk. Depending on how long that takes, I’ll consider it.”

  “Does that mean I should look forward to you calling me?”

  His cocky, hopeful tone sent heat rising in her cheeks. “I’ll call you.”

  “And will you be thinking about me?”

  Damn, how did he do that? Make his voice sound like sex, temptation and a demand all rolled into one? If she weren’t going to think about him, which was already doubtful, she’d be dreaming about his voice whispering in her ear anyway.

  “I’ll be thinking about your family’s property,” she said.

  “And I’ll be thinking about that kiss,” he countered. “Talk with you soon, Jasmine.”

  The call ended. Her body tingled everywhere. Everything felt heated, and giddy anticipation made her heart rate flutter. Kevin knew what he was up to. He wanted her, and because their chemistry was undeniable, he wasn’t going to let up. She wanted him, too. Couldn’t deny that. Not when her body still buzzed from a freaking phone call.