by S. K. Lessly
But Michaels wasn’t stupid either. He needed to regroup.
Michaels stared at Andrew for a long moment before he backed away and signaled to Robert that they were leaving.
“Okay, Pierce,” Michaels began. “We’ll play this your way. I expect to have the proper paperwork, along with Ms. Montgomery’s proposal, on my desk in a day or two.”
Andrew moved closer to him, lips tightened with suppressed wrath. “No, you will contact my office in a day or two and my assistant will put you and that son of a bitch on my schedule whenever I have the fucking time. Then we will sit down and we will discuss what’s best for that little girl, understand?” Andrew then lowered his voice for only Robert and Michaels to hear and warned, “My advice… Don’t leave here and try to grow a set of balls; that’s the last thing you want to do. Goodbye, gentlemen.”
Andrew left the two standing by the booth and moved purposefully between the tables around him, taking a hesitant and visibly shaken Nyla with him. He weaved his way through the curious patrons, passed a confused Lori and moved to the back of the kitchen.
“Hey, you can’t-,” Rock started to say, but stopped instantly when he saw that Andrew was with Nyla.
Andrew turned to a frowning Nyla as she snatched her hand from his.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” she asked through clenched teeth, eyes narrowed and nose flared.
Andrew, unexpectedly turned on, tried not to smile at her. The anger and aggression that was rolling off her in that moment made her undeniably stunning to him.
Nyla smacked his arm. “Answer me, damn it.”
Andrew took a deep breath and said to her, “Yes, of course, I know exactly what I’ve done. You’re welcome, by the way.”
Nyla moved closer to him and pointed her finger at his chest. “You’re welcome? I can’t believe you. You’ve just made me lose my daughter to that bastard and you want me to thank you?” she reprimanded.
Andrew stepped closer, closing the gap between them. “No, I saved her from that bastard. You were going to sign over your rights to him without so much as a fight.”
“How do you know I haven’t put up a fight? You don’t know me. You don’t know what I’ve been through. How can you just butt into something you have no clue about?”
“Nyla, I know exactly what’s going on. You were about to sign a document that would have robbed you of your rights to ever see your daughter again. Do you know that? Did they tell you that? Did you even bother reading what you were about to sign?”
Nyla didn’t answer, but the look on her face told him everything he needed and already knew.
“Yeah, see what I mean? They knew that if they scared you enough, you would sign anything without question.”
Nyla shook her head as tears started to pool in her eyes. “No, that’s not true. Robert wouldn’t do that to-”
Andrew couldn’t help but frown. “Please, Nyla, you’re smarter than that. You know damn well he would. Hell, he was about to.”
“But he said…”
Andrew bent his knees in order to meet her eye-to-eye.
“He said what? That you guys could work something out later, just sign this now and in, let’s say a month or two, you guys could start talking about visitation?”
Andrew watched as tears began to fall from her eyes as she closed them. A shudder wracked her body as he knew the truth of his words finally hit home.
The bitterness of her reality choked Nyla as she tried to swallow her shame. How stupid could she have been? Robert didn’t have it in him to do right by her. Deep down in her soul, she knew that, but she couldn’t help herself. She wanted to believe that she was wrong. Nyla had a big heart. She tried to see the better in people, believing in giving second chances to right wrongs. It was the idea of giving people just enough rope to hang themselves that drove her. However, she gave Robert too much rope, and instead of hanging himself, he used the extra rope she gave him against her.
Andrew, feeling the anguish that started to engulf her, moved his hand to the side of her cheek and wiped underneath her eyes. He shifted his other hand to the left side of her cheek and repeated the gentle touch.
Seeing her broken, exhausted and deflated, he heard himself say to her, voice low but strong, “I’m sorry this is happening, but I’m not sorry for butting in.”
She opened her eyes, looked up at him, and he could see, truly see, just how much she’d been raked over the coals by Downs. He hated what he saw in her eyes. She was giving up, but he wouldn’t let her.
“I will not let them take her from you, I promise you that,” he assured her. “I will do everything in my power to make sure that doesn’t happen. Whatever it takes…” He paused, and keeping the connection with her, added, “I know I’m asking for a lot, but I need you to trust me. Can you do that?”
They watched each other; Andrew trying desperately to convey that he’d meant her no harm, that she could trust him, and Nyla was doing everything in her power not to melt in his arms. She knew the moment that he sat down next to her and took over the meeting that she could trust him. She felt it the instant they first laid eyes on each other. But she needed to be a smart woman. Her past failures couldn’t be repeated by trusting someone blindly. That didn’t work for her in the past, so what assurances did she have that it wouldn’t happen again?
That’s simple, she told herself, This man is nothing like Robert.
It was the way he looked at her, how he was touching her that made him different.
Finally, Nyla nodded and replied softly, “I trust you.”
Relieved, Andrew swallowed the urge to seal this moment with a kiss. He stepped back from her, reached into his inside suit jacket and produced his wallet. He pulled out his card, which read his personal information and phone numbers, and handed it over to her.
“You get off at three, right?” he asked. Nyla nodded and he continued, hoping she didn’t realize he knew her schedule. “Okay, my office address is on this card, along with all of my phone numbers. Come by my office right after work so we can get started.”
Nyla shook her head. “I have to get my daughter right after work. I don’t-”
“That’s fine. Bring her with you. I don’t mind. Just be there today after work.” He moved past her and realized that half of the wait staff and the cook were all staring at him. He ignored them, turned, and instructed, “Make sure you do not speak to anyone but me or my assistant, understand? No one is to call you. If they do, give them my name and number and instruct them to call your attorney.”
Nyla frowned and shook her head. “I don’t even know your name. I mean, I…” She looked down at the card, reading his name, then back up at him, and for the first time since she’d known him, he smiled.
“It’s Pierce. Um… Andrew. Andrew Pierce. I’ll see you this afternoon, Nyla Montgomery.”
The moment John Michaels and Robert Downs made it to their cars, Robert looked at his lawyer over the hood of his Bentley.
“So, that’s it? We’re just going to tuck our tails in and run?” Robert bit venomously.
John had paused before he opened his own car door.
“Yes, we are. You don’t want to fuck with Pierce. Hey, I’m ruthless and, if I had more time, I could probably come up with something to handle this but Pierce; man, he’ll come up with something more that will bury you alive. I’m not trying to get into a fight with him; not over this. You lost Robert; take that shit like a man. I’ll call you when I schedule a meeting.”
Robert watched his lawyer climb inside of his cheap ass Lexus and drive away. Robert turned his attention back on the diner.
I be damned if I’m letting this shit ride, Robert thought.
Robert Downs didn’t know the meaning of losing. As he started the motor of his car, he thought of a plan that would teach that smug lawyer and that stupid cunt bitch just who he was.
Chapter 3
Nyla crawled out of her old, beat up Dodge and ambled toward the doo
r of Mama Joe’s Daycare Center.
The rush of the door as she opened it brought the screams, laughter and cries of about forty little ones to her ears.
She smiled. She had missed her little girl since the moment she dropped her off this morning. Se’Nya was her life. She’d never imagined that anyone could make a baby as wonderful as her ten-month-old, much less herself, but she had. She was a beautiful, chunky baby with golden brown skin, wild, curly, light brown hair and big questioning gray eyes that had the power, it seemed, to look straight through you.
People had told her that some babies had the knack to sense evil in others. Just how dogs could smell fear on people, babies could sense when a person didn’t have a pure and good heart. Nyla felt her baby had that gift. She didn’t care for strangers at all and didn’t trust anyone until she was around them for a long time. If she didn’t get a good vibe from a person, she’d let you know.
Nyla shook her head and chuckled softly at a painful revelation. If only Se’Nya could have warned her about Robert, she’d probably be better off. Nyla stopped at the infant room and peered through the glass door. Se’Nya was sitting in one of the bouncers, smashing her juicy hands on the buttons surrounding her. Nyla smiled as she watched her.
“She’s beautiful just like her mother,” said a deep voice behind her.
Nyla jumped slightly, not from the unfamiliarity of the voice behind her, but his closeness. Nyla turned and looked up into a set of deep brown, almost black eyes. They were smiling at her as she relaxed.
“Hey, Darrius. What are you doing here?” Nyla asked.
Darrius Clint gazed into her hazel eyes as the swell of his chest prevented him from taking a breath. He pushed her hair from her eyes, a cancellation prize for what he truly wanted to do. There was no doubt in his mind that he wanted her. Unfortunately, he had yet to see his affections returned.
“I’m here to pick up Baby Girl. Remember you asked me this morning if I could pick her up for you?”
Nyla stared at Darrius for a moment before she closed her eyes and groaned. “Oh, yes, I do remember. I’m so sorry. Today was the day from hell, so Rock let me off early, and I completely forgot to call you.”
Darrius frowned. “Yeah? What happened at work today?”
Darrius and Nyla met four years ago when she first moved into her current third-floor apartment. Darrius no longer lived in her building, but he made it his mission to see her every chance he got.
For years, Darrius had been a good friend to her. He was always there when she needed someone and never minded it, especially when Nyla became pregnant with Se’Nya. He was there for the late night cravings, Lamaze classes, and Nyla’s bouts of depression when she realized she would be doing this alone. Darrius was also the first one to see Se’Nya when she was born.
Nyla loved Darrius. He was one of the few people in her life that she could count on, that she could depend on. It was Darrius and Dee Dee who continued to be there for her. She trusted them with her life, something that she didn’t do lightly.
A few of her friends, as well as Darrius’, had questioned their friendship. They wondered why Nyla and Darrius hadn’t taken their relationship to the next level. For a while, they both would say that they were just friends and that their friendship was too precious and good to taint. But, recently, she could see that Darrius no longer felt that way. He was becoming clingier and more demanding.
Nyla knew that Darrius was a catch. Darrius was very attractive with a hard muscled body to boot. He was past six feet, with dark skin and beautiful white teeth. His smile was charming and could render a woman helpless with said charm. If you meant something to him, he would do anything for you. If he didn’t like you, you knew it. His parent’s taught him how to treat a woman right. He was respectable. He’d open doors, give you his coat if you were cold, and made sure you were well taken care of. He was a woman’s wet dream, especially when he wore basketball shorts. From the look of the calm swell in the front of his shorts, there was no mystery that the man was gifted.
Nyla’s friends, especially Dee Dee, also thought it was insane that Nyla hadn’t jumped on Darrius. They called her a fool for passing a chance to potentially be worshipped and pleasured every night of her life.
Unfortunately, Nyla just didn’t see Darrius like most women did. She wanted more than just the physical desires that an attractive man evokes. Nyla felt like Darrius wanted to be with her, and granted she did love him, but she wasn’t in love. Nyla believed in love at first sight. She thought she had that with Robert, but eventually learned that what she was feeling was the excitement of a man like him wanting her.
After a few months into the relationship with Robert, she knew nothing would come of their relationship. She wished she had broken it off with him sooner. But, if she had, she wouldn’t have her baby girl. She wasn’t sorry about having her daughter, not at all.
Darrius shifted his weight, trying to hold back his growing frustration with this woman before him. If she would just get a clue and cooperate, shit would go so easy for her. He looked through the glass window at Baby Girl and grinned. For that little girl’s sake, he’d have to make Nyla see that he knew what was best for them, before it was too late.
Darrius put his arm around a cagey Nyla and broadened his smile. “Hey, why don’t I take my two favorite ladies out to eat? You can tell me all about your day, and I can get my time in with both of the women in my life.”
Darrius didn’t wait for her to respond. He quickly opened the classroom door and went straight for Se’Nya.
Nyla watched for a second as Se’Nya stared at Darrius as if she didn’t know the man. He talked to her a bit and made her laugh before he picked her up.
Huh? That was strange.
Se’Nya had been around Darrius all of her life, and yet Nyla had never noticed her behave that way towards him before today.
“Maybe I’m just tired,” Nyla wondered to herself.
When Nyla walked into the room and her daughter saw her, Se’Nya squirmed frantically, trying desperately to get to her mom. She cooed, laughed, and reached out for Nyla.
Nyla laughed and took her daughter in her arms.
Darrius smiled. “She must have missed her mama.”
Nyla kissed her daughter on her cheek and held her close, breathing in her daughter as the feeling of home took hold of her.
She asked Darrius, without looking at him, “Does she always treat you like that when you come and get her?”
Darrius shrugged. “Most times, but you know how shady she can be.” Darrius hustled to the door. “Come on. Let’s get something to eat. I’m starving.”
Nyla watched him go, then looked down at her babbling baby. Nyla kissed her forehead. “You’re not shady. Are you, sweetie?”
In answer, Se’Nya gave her a wide toothed grin and smacked her face.
The moment Nyla arrived home, she dropped heavily onto her couch. She had been going for over twelve hours and needed to get off of her feet. She had to practically beg Darrius to take them home instead of getting ice cream. She had had a long and stressful day. All she wanted to do was relax before she had to do it all again tomorrow.
Darrius had taken them to a buffet restaurant, one of Darrius’ favorite places to eat. The moment they sat down and she told him all about what happened; she wished she kept her mouth shut.
She had to listen to Darrius go on and on about Robert, how he wasn’t shit, how her taste in men sucked. She didn’t tell him about the help from Andrew or what that help meant to her; she just mentioned she ended up finding a lawyer to help her. When Darrius asked how much the lawyer was going to cost, she really didn’t have an answer. She just told him that that would be worked out tomorrow. In truth, she had no idea. It wasn’t something that she and Andrew had talked about, and when she spoke to his assistant today, Bertha, it wasn’t mentioned then either. She had every intention of talking to Andrew about everything, but when she arrived to his office Bertha told her that he got ca
lled away for a meeting at the court house. For a split second, Nyla let the seed of doubt plant in her mind that he really didn’t want to help her. However, she quickly dismissed that idea. She truly believed that if Andrew didn’t want to help her, he wouldn’t have stepped in at all.
After Nyla bathed and put Se’Nya to bed, Nyla googled Andrew Pierce, Attorney at Law. Thirty-minutes later, she was more confused than ever. There’s no way he would be able to help her. He practiced corporate law, not family law. She also knew, from just reading about who he worked for that she would not be able to afford him.
She started to panic. What if believing in a man she knew nothing about was the biggest mistake of her life, again? A lump caught in her throat as she thought about losing her one true reason for living?
She shook off the fear of the possibility.
I need to think this through.
As she showered and climbed into bed, she tried to convince herself that declining Andrew’s help was the best thing to do. However, as she settled deep into her pillow, she knew it wouldn’t be that simple. Andrew had been the focus of her deepest desires ever since she laid eyes on him. His strength, his demeanor, and his adverse confidence that threatened to choke everyone around him was sexy as hell to her.
The way he took charge and put both Robert and his high-priced lawyer in their place; man, if she wasn’t so freaked out and scared, she would’ve jumped him right then and there. She was attracted to him; there was no doubt about that. But it seemed to be more than that. She felt a stronger pull toward him today, something that she had never felt before. She would always get nervous when she was close to him, but for some reason, today it was stronger, and it seemed to get stronger the longer he stayed close to her.
She’d been thinking about the tender way he touched her all night it seemed. She hadn’t thought about anything else but how good it felt to have his hands caressing her, creating an abiding need to have him in between her thighs. She felt wrong for having these feelings for someone that she knew belonged to someone else. It wasn’t her style, but for some reason, she couldn’t help herself. Of course, she would never act on those feelings, but oh how she wanted to. Just looking into his eyes, she wanted to believe that he wanted her just as much as she wanted him. She wanted to believe that the gentle way he looked at her meant he felt the same as she did.