“Is that so?” she asked when they broke the passionate kiss.
Solomon winked at her. “Yes, because I want you so bad right now, I don’t give a damn about this shoulder.”
“We’d better get on the road,” she said as she placed her hand on his chest, stopping another kiss. “Or we’re not going to make it out of here today.”
“Would that be such a bad thing?”
“Yes,” she said as she took a step back from him. “So, let’s go. I’ll even spring for dinner tonight.”
“Says the woman who owns a restaurant,” Solomon said as they headed out the door.
Carmen sat up in her hospital bed as best she could, straining to hear what the detectives outside her door were saying.
“New York has the more pressing charges,” she heard the NYPD detective say.
“But our district attorney has ordered that she gets evaluated in a mental hospital,” said the Avery County detective. “And she’s still a suspect in a murder case in our jurisdiction.”
“She’s a fugitive from New York,” the detective boomed.
“Well, if you’d done your job, she wouldn’t be here and we wouldn’t have a dead woman on our hands.”
The door to the room opened and a nurse walked in to check her vital signs. The woman looked as if she was nervous to be alone with her.
“I don’t bite,” Carmen said. “This is all a misunderstanding between me and the man I thought loved me.”
“Okay,” the nurse said as she placed the blood pressure cuff on Carmen’s arm.
“Have you ever loved someone and then they betrayed you? Told someone to hurt you?”
The nurse removed the cuff and wrote the reading on the chart. “I can’t say that I have.”
“Well, I’m going to make them all pay,” Carmen said. She grabbed the nurse’s hand. “I’m going to win.”
“Ugh, okay,” the nurse said as she pulled away from Carmen and dashed out of the room.
She heard the nurse tell the police that “the patient in there is crazy as a loon.” Carmen smiled. Her plan was working. If she could convince the North Carolina authorities that she belonged in a mental hospital, she could get to Solomon and that woman. Then they will pay.
Solomon wiped his mouth with the cloth napkin at Hometown Delights, the restaurant that Kandace and her friends owned in Charlotte. Yes, the food was good, but he wasn’t feeling the chef, who kept coming to their table to specifically check on Kandace. It was obvious to Solomon that Devon Harris had designs on his woman.
“How was dinner?” Kandace asked Solomon.
“Great. But next time, we’re ordering takeout,” he said.
“Why?”
“That way we can eat without the interruptions,” Solomon said as he watched Devon walk over to their table again.
Kandace placed her hand on Solomon’s thigh. “Are you jealous? You have nothing to be worried about.”
“Kandace,” Devon said when he stopped at the table, “how was the meal?”
“It was terrific, as usual,” she said.
Devon rocked back on his heels and smiled. “You were always my muse,” he said.
Solomon cleared his throat and said, “The chicken was a little dry.”
Devon glanced at Solomon. “Thought you had the steak?”
“I thought you were the chef and not the waiter,” Solomon said. “But here you are at the table again.”
“What’s your problem, man?” Devon asked. “Kandace and I work together. And because of you she’s been through hell.”
Kandace rose to her feet and said, “Hey, what’s going on here?”
Solomon shook his head and sprung from his seat. “Ask your chef,” he said as he bolted out the door.
Kandace sighed with frustration and looked at Devon. “You have been overly attentive,” she said. “What gives?”
“Are you sure you should be with this guy?”
“That’s rich coming from you.”
“That was a long time ago and I was young and made mistakes. I took this job hoping that we could reconnect,” he said.
“I don’t go backward,” Kandace said as she grabbed her keys and purse. “But to answer your question, I am sure I should be with Solomon.” She sprinted out the door and found Solomon leaning against the wall. “Solomon,” she said, placing her hand on his chest, “why are you acting like a baby? And if this is how things go when we run into each other’s exes, I’m guessing I need to wear track shoes when we go out in New York.”
“I know I overreacted, but I could see what that dude was doing. Besides, I remembered you telling me that you two had something going on, and he looks like he wants to get it started again.”
“It doesn’t matter, because the only person I want to start something with is standing right here,” she said as she pressed her lips against his.
“Make sure he knows that,” Solomon said.
“You want some dessert?” she asked.
“What do you have in mind?”
Kandace grinned. “It involves a lot of licking. And it is packaged to go.”
“I’m in love with this idea,” he said as they headed to her car.
As they got in the car, Kandace caught a glimpse of Antonio Billups walking into the restaurant. She wondered briefly if he was there to meet Serena. Kandace really wanted to see those two work out the issues between them. She knew her friend was falling hard for Antonio, no matter how she tried to deny it.
“I have to make a quick call,” she told Solomon as she cranked up the car. Kandace grabbed her BlackBerry from her purse and dialed Serena’s number.
“Hello?”
“Serena, there’s a situation at the restaurant you need to take care of.”
“Are you working when your boyfriend is in town?” Serena asked.
“We had dinner there. Just get over here. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Kandace ended the call, then turned her phone off.
“What are you up to?” Solomon asked.
“Just meddling in my friend’s life,” she said. “The usual.”
Solomon shook his head and laughed. “You guys are too much,” he said.
“I’m going to show you too much,” she said with a smile.
Solomon leaned back in the passenger seat of her Lexus IS. “I would’ve never taken you for a sports car driver,” he said as they pulled up to Kandace’s place. “I figured you as a practical SUV woman.”
“That was just a rental,” she said. “I have a need for speed.”
“Not always. There is one thing you do really slowly,” he said.
“And what would that be?” she asked as she shut the car off.
Solomon took her face in his hands. “You kiss me really slowly,” he said, then leaned into her and pressed his lips against hers. Kandace took Solomon’s bottom lip between her teeth and ran her tongue across it. She slowly kissed him, her tongue swirling around his until they were both heady with desire and anticipation. Kandace pulled back from him, looking into his eyes. She saw desire, passion, and it spurred her own want.
“Can we quickly get out of the car?” she asked as he dropped his hand from her face.
“Yes,” he said as he opened his door. Kandace followed Solomon to the door of her town house and fumbled to find her house key. Once she opened the door, Solomon backed her against the wall and untied her trench coat. He loved the fact that winter in Charlotte didn’t mean women had to dress in heavy layers. He removed her black sweater dress in one quick motion, but he left her black knee-high boots on.
“Damn, so sexy,” he said as he drank in her image. Solomon ran his hand down the center of her chest. Her skin was like the finest silk underneath his fingertips. “You’re more than sexy, you’re beautiful.”
“Solomon,” she moaned as she took his hand and kissed his fingertips. “I want you so badly.”
He slid his hand down to her lacy black panties, his fingers dancing around the waistband, and she tre
mbled as he slipped his hand inside. “You have me, now and forever,” he said as his finger found its way to her wetness.
Kandace moaned as he parted her wet folds of flesh. He teased her sensitive bud with his finger, stroking her slowly and deliberately until she screamed out his name.
Her love rained down on him and he pulled his finger out, licking her sweetness as if it was the nectar from mythical Mount Olympus. Solomon doubted he could make it upstairs to Kandace’s bedroom, because he wanted her now. Wanted to dive into her sticky sweetness. Taking her hand, he led her to the stairs and backed her against the third one from the bottom. He pulled her legs apart and planted himself between her thighs, licking desire until she shook from satisfaction. Kandace squirmed against him, lifting her hips into his kiss as he greedily licked and sucked her.
She moaned his name over and over again as she exploded against him over and over again.
Kandace tugged at the button and zipper on Solomon’s pants and used her feet to pushed them down to his ankles. Solomon inched up her body, licking his lips. Kandace shivered as she felt his erection against her thighs. “Solomon,” she moaned as she pressed her body against him. For a second, Solomon thought about taking her without protection, taking her and possibly filling her belly with Solomon Jr.
Not until you marry her, a voice said in his ear. It startled him, made him pull back from her and stare down into her angelic face. She’s the one. She’s the woman I’ve been looking for.
“What’s wrong?” she asked when she opened her eyes and saw Solomon staring at her.
He stroked her cheek, then leaned down and kissed her lips gently. “Nothing’s wrong,” he said when he broke the kiss. “Everything is right. I love you, Kandace.”
“What?” she asked, not trusting her ears.
“I love you,” he said as he kissed her neck. “I love you.”
Kandace knew logic should’ve taken over. How could he love her? How could he love her after such a short time? The same way you love him, she thought. Kandace wrapped her arms around his neck as his mouth covered hers. She wanted to tell him that she was in love, wanted to tell him that she loved him too, but fear stopped her. Caused her to keep her mouth closed around his lips. Kandace wrapped her legs around his waist, deepening her kiss and hoping that she could convey her feelings to him without saying a word.
Solomon pulled back before he lost his control. “Protection,” he said. “And since it’s in your room, let’s take this to the bed.”
“All right,” she said as she rose to her feet and walked slowly up the stairs. Solomon smiled as he took in the sight of her shapely bottom and quickly followed her up to the bedroom. A sliver of silver moonlight shone through the thin curtains and the light danced off Kandace’s skin, giving her an angelic glow that made him harder than he ever thought possible. Solomon nearly tripped over his feet as he rushed to his overnight bag and snatched a condom out of the pocket.
When he was covered, Solomon bolted to the bed and joined Kandace as she unsnapped her bra and tossed it on the floor. “Lie down,” she told him. “I wouldn’t want you to strain your shoulder.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said as he lay on his back. Kandace mounted him, guiding his erection into her wetness. Solomon moaned as he felt her tighten herself around his pulsating manhood. She rocked her hips and rolled her body against him. Up and down she thrust, and Solomon mirrored her movements. Fast, then slow like Coltrane’s sax, and intense like Miles’s horn. She was so wet and so hot. Solomon relished the feeling as he wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly. Kandace ground against him until she felt as if she was about to explode. Solomon could feel her body tremble against his as she leaned forward, pressing her breasts against his chest as the pleasure of her orgasm rippled through her body. She rubbed her lips against his collarbone and sighed.
Solomon stroked her hair and kissed her cheek. Kandace followed a bead of sweat down his chest with her fingertip. “Is it really possible for us to be this happy?” she asked.
“You don’t think we deserve it?” Solomon asked. “And if you think this is happy, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
“I love you, Solomon,” she said.
He smiled brightly, happy to hear those words slip from her lips. But in true Solomon Crawford fashion, he said, “Why don’t you tell me something I don’t know?”
“Ooh, you’re lucky you’re still nursing a wound or I would kick you out of this bed,” she joked.
“But I have no doubt you’d welcome me back,” he replied.
Kandace laughed. “You’re too much. Still the same cocky asshole I thought you were.”
“But you love me,” he said as he kissed her gently on the lips.
CHAPTER 27
The Superior Court judge in Newland, North Carolina, read the documents on his bench and then cast a glance at Carmen. She didn’t look capable of such horrible crimes, but after twenty years on the bench, he’d seen baby-faced killers and beautiful women who had committed horrific crimes. He cleared his throat, then said, “I’m ready to render my ruling.”
Carmen’s public defender tapped her fingers on the table as she waited for the judge to issue his ruling.
“I’m ordering that the defendant enter the Behavioral Health Center in Charlotte for a thirty-day evaluation. At the end of the evaluation period, I will take the doctor’s findings into consideration before ruling on the defendant’s extradition to New York,” he said.
“Your honor,” the assistant district attorney from New York County said as he stood up. “New York County has the most serious charges against this defendant. We can have our doctors examine her, but she needs to face the—”
“Mr. Becoats, I understand you have serious charges against the defendant, but I have a concern for her mental state. Before she goes anywhere, she will be evaluated. I don’t want to hear anything else on the matter,” the judge said, then banged his gavel. “Next case.”
Carmen hid her smile. This was even sweeter than she imagined it could be. Going to Charlotte would put her close enough to Kandace to make her suffer. After she disposed of her, then she’d get back to New York and make Solomon pay for turning his back on her. Still, she’d get the one thing she always wanted from him before she slit his throat. Maybe I can steal some Viagra from the hospital and spike his drink. Then he’ll have no choice but to make love to me, she thought as the sheriff’s deputy led her to a holding cell.
Carmen didn’t pay attention to her public defender telling her what the ruling meant and when she could expect to be shipped to the hospital. Carmen was too busy imagining jabbing a knife into Kandace’s chest.
Solomon sat in the waiting room of the clinic wishing he could skip physical therapy today. Despite the fact that he was on time for his appointment, he still had to wait for some reason. This would not be happening in New York, he thought as he walked up to the receptionist. “Excuse me—how much longer?” he asked.
“I’m not sure,” she said. “Your doctor is working with one of the Panthers right now.”
“Oh great,” Solomon said sarcastically. As he went back to his seat, the door opened and Carolina Panthers star wide receiver Maurice Goings walked into the waiting area. Hope this means Philadelphia is going to win Sunday, he thought, looking at Maurice as he talked on his cell phone.
“Nah, coach, I’m cleared to play,” Solomon heard him say.
“Damn,” Solomon muttered as he picked up an old copy of Sports Illustrated. Maurice glanced over at him and nodded as if he thought Solomon was a fan. Before Solomon could say anything, he was called back to the exam room.
“Sorry about the delay, Mr. Crawford,” Dr. Elis Sanford said.
“Yeah, I’ve been waiting an hour.” Solomon tried to keep his tone even since this man was about examine him.
“I would suggest that you schedule your appointments for Tuesdays. It’s a lot slower here then.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Solomon
said. The doctor began the examination of Solomon’s shoulder but didn’t start therapy that day because he felt the shoulder wasn’t healed enough to begin rehabilitation.
“The last thing you want to do is rush a tendon injury,” Dr. Sanford said.
“I’m just hoping to get better sooner rather than later,” Solomon said.
“Well, I think we can make that happen with my course of treatment. I’m going to prescribe you a mild pain reliever,” the doctor said as he wrote a prescription. “And I’ll see you in a week.”
“On a Tuesday,” Solomon said.
The doctor nodded and smiled. “Yes, next Tuesday,” he said as he handed Solomon the prescription slip.
Solomon walked up to the front desk, paid the fee for the service, and then pulled his phone out to call Kandace.
“Hello?” he heard Kandace say.
“Hey, babe, I’m all done at the doctor.”
“All right, I’m wrapping things up at the restaurant, so I’ll be right there. What did he say about your shoulder?”
“It’s too soon to start rehab, so no lifting you up on the wall tonight.”
“Funny,” she said. “I’m leaving now.”
Solomon ended the call and headed outside. He was surprised to see Maurice Goings signing autographs for some nurses out front.
“Hey, guys,” Maurice said, “make sure you check out Hometown Delights when you get ready for lunch. The food is great.”
“I’ve been there,” one of the women said. “I was hoping to see that fine Devon Harris.”
The other two women laughed. “Me too,” another woman said.
Solomon leaned against the wall and muttered, “Should’ve been there last night.”
Maurice turned around and looked at Solomon. “You say something, my man?”
“No, just talking to myself,” Solomon replied.
One of the nurses looked up at Solomon. “Aren’t you Solomon Crawford?” she asked. “Oh my God, I see you on E! all the time.”
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