Open Your Heart

by Cheris Hodges

“Why do you have to say his whole name?” Yolanda interrupted.

  Nina shrugged. “Because it’s funny. So, you and Charles have been in his home for over a month and I’m supposed to believe nothing is going on? Okay, then.”

  Yolanda groaned. “Yes, there is something going on and it’s crazy because when we’re alone together, he’s a different person. But when we get in front of people, he acts as if I don’t matter at all.”

  “Or maybe he’s just doing his job when y’all are out in public? Is this even ethical? He’s supposed to be a bodyguard, not your boyfriend.”

  Yolanda tossed a packet of soy sauce at her sister. “He is not my boyfriend!”

  Nina swatted the package away and laughed. “Whatever you say. But let’s get serious for a minute,” she said. “Who’s after you?”

  Yolanda sighed and thought about not telling Nina the whole story. But her sister didn’t become a successful journalist because she stopped asking questions.

  “It’s a lot worse than I thought. The shooter, Danny Branch, is a legend in Richmond. But Chuck found out that he’s a criminal the cops just won’t touch.”

  Nina pulled out her smartphone and Yolanda assumed she was Googling the man.

  “So, what are you going to do?” Nina asked. “Hell, he’s a civic leader.”

  Yolanda crossed over to her and took Nina’s phone from her hand. “Didn’t I tell you this is my problem to solve? All you need to be thinking about is your wedding.”

  Nina rubbed her hand across her face. “I can multitask.”

  “Not this time. Your only task is to be a beautiful bride on Christmas Day. Charles and I can handle this.”

  All Yolanda had to figure out was how to handle her heart.

  * * *

  Charles wasn’t sure if he was seeing someone move in the shadows or if the wind was stirring up dead leaves. He followed the rustling and saw a cat. Damned cats were going to give him a heart attack. Maybe not the cats, but worrying about his feelings for Yolanda had him on edge. Things were going to change real soon. Once he found someone in Richmond to arrest Danny, they’d go on about their business.

  Then what? he thought as he walked back to the house. What happens when she no longer needs me? She’s going to be in Charlotte and my business is in Charleston. I’d be a fool to think that she won’t meet someone else who can give her what she needs. But I need her, and I have to figure out how to make her understand that. But is now the right time for that? I know what happened the last time I put my feelings before a case was done, and I can’t let that happen again.

  Charles unlocked the front door and walked into the house. He heard Yolanda and Nina laughing in the kitchen. He admired the Richardson sisters’ relationship. Although they could fight with each other like cats and dogs, the love they shared was evident. He almost felt sorry for the man who had broken Robin’s heart. If her sisters could get ahold of him, he’d be in big trouble.

  But Charles wasn’t worried about that too much, although he knew Yolanda would somehow end up going back to Richmond before it was time because that’s where Robin lived. Maybe he could talk her out of making that mistake but he highly doubted it. He headed for the kitchen, and when he walked in the laughter stopped.

  “Everything all good in here?” he asked.

  Nina smiled at him. “Oh, we’re fine, and to show you that there are no hard feelings we left you a whole bunch of veggie fried rice.”

  “I don’t think you made a good point there, ma’am,” Charles said with a grin.

  “You don’t eat much anyway so you should be glad we left you anything,” Yolanda said.

  Charles bit back a comment about how much he had eaten over the last month but now wasn’t the time to go there. But when he raised his right eyebrow at Yolanda the blush on her cheeks showed that she had gotten the message.

  Maybe Nina felt something in the air because she yawned and then excused herself from the kitchen.

  Alone with Yolanda, Charles struggled not to kiss her. “How are we going to do this?” he asked after the silence in the room became too thick.

  “Do what?”

  He cleared his throat. “Get ready for your sister’s wedding and convince everyone that you’ve been hanging out in Italy.”

  “I have to be at the bed-and-breakfast to prepare for Nina’s wedding. That can’t be avoided.”

  “Just so we’re clear, you’re not going back alone. I know you’re mad at me right now, but I’m going with you.”

  Yolanda rolled her eyes. “For me to be mad at you would be assuming that I actually give a damn,” she said.

  “When you want to have a real conversation about anything else just let me know.” Charles grabbed a container of the vegetable fried rice and headed to the microwave to heat it up. He could feel Yolanda watching him, and as much as he wanted to say more to her and explain why everything had changed, he knew she wasn’t ready for that kind of conversation. So, he just let it go.

  * * *

  In a perfect world, the week leading up to Christmas with Yolanda would’ve been a celebration like nothing Charles had experienced since he was six. He tried not to think about the last month they’d spent at his home, waking up together. Him posing for those swim trunks that she was allegedly going to design. But all he could do now, while staying at the Richardson Bed and Breakfast, was stay in contact with Madison and find out what was happening in Richmond.

  “I don’t understand how you allowed her to change your rules,” Madison said when he told her that they were at the family property and not his house. “Chuck, tell the truth, you care about her, right?”

  “I do and I’m trying not to make the same mistake. . . .”

  “This isn’t Hillary. And I know I’m the last person to tell you to let the past go, but do that.”

  “Have you?”

  “You got closure when that bastard who killed Hillary went to prison. I haven’t gotten my justice for my sister, but I will.”

  “Madison, you can tell me how I need to let go of the past, but you can’t do the same.”

  “That man is still out there and I’m going to find him and put a stop to his reign of terror. I’m getting closer to stopping him.”

  “What happens if you don’t get closure, Madison?”

  “Then I guess I’ll be a sad sack like you. Chuck, I’m going to make him pay and no one is going to stop me this time.”

  “Do you know who he is?”

  “I have to go,” she said, and then the call ended.

  Chapter 26

  Christmas Eve at the Richardson Bed and Breakfast started out so much differently than Yolanda had expected. The family breakfast had been marred by the appearance of her soon-to-be former brother-in-law, Logan Baptiste. When Robin disappeared with him, Yolanda wanted to follow her sister and ask her what the hell was wrong with her. She’d even grabbed the keys to her father’s car and was about to track her down before Chuck stopped her at the door. She tried to push him aside, but he wouldn’t move. “Don’t do this. I need to find my sister,” Yolanda said.

  “What are you doing?” he asked. “You find her and do what? What just happened with your sister and her husband has nothing to do with you.”

  “Will you just get out of the way?” Yolanda snapped.

  “Yolanda, you’re not going anywhere. You’re supposed to be keeping a low profile because this time we don’t know if we have been followed here. I’ve already said that you were going to have to follow my rules if you wanted to be here with your sisters.”

  “Do you know what he did to her?”

  Chuck sighed. “I hate to sound harsh, but that isn’t my concern. Give me the keys.”

  She glared at him for a few seconds before thrusting the keys in his hand. “Fine, I’m going to my room and I’ll be in there alone.” As she flounced down the hall, she noticed that Alex had seen their exchange. “What?” she snapped at her sister.

  “I didn’t say a word,” Alex
replied calmly. “But he’s right. Whatever Robin and Logan are doing right now has nothing to do with any of us.”

  “Are you really going to let her . . .”

  Alex held her hand up. “This is one time when we have to follow her lead. Yolanda, they’re married, and I’d like to believe that he hasn’t done what he’s accused of. What would you really help if you got up in their faces adding fuel to the fire they’re trying to fight?”

  Yolanda was really taken aback by Alex’s stance. She figured she’d be the first one telling Robin to dump his trifling ass. After all, DNA tests didn’t lie, and according to Robin she saw a test that said Logan was the father of that nurse’s baby. How could anyone forgive that? “Well, I guess . . . Fine.”

  “Want some coffee and muffins?”

  Yolanda hitched her eyebrow at her sister. “Why are you being so nice?”

  “Because it’s Christmas, heffa. And we need to focus on Nina’s wedding. Lord knows there is enough drama with you and Robin to derail that girl’s day.”

  Yolanda bit back her sarcastic comment in the spirit of the holiday. “I’ll take some coffee if you spike it. Obviously, I won’t be leaving this place until Nina and Clinton are hitched.” She looked over her shoulder and saw Chuck was watching her every move.

  When Alex and Yolanda headed back to the dining area in the family section of the bed-and-breakfast, they found Sheldon and Nina talking about the upcoming NFL playoffs.

  “Just like old times,” Yolanda said as she nudged Alex. “She starts talking sports with Daddy and we get the chores.”

  “Don’t remind me,” Alex replied with a laugh.

  Nina rolled her eyes. “Are you jealous because I’m Dad’s favorite?”

  “How about we don’t start this today. Y’all do want Santa to stop by tonight, right?” Sheldon said with a hearty chuckle. That’s how he’d been stopping arguments with his daughters on Christmas Eve for years. He filled a plate with bacon, eggs, raisin toast, and fruit, then rose from his chair.

  “Where are you going, Dad?” Yolanda asked.

  “I’m not going to let Clinton eat Pop-Tarts when I know he’s in his office trying to sneak a peek at his bride,” he replied. “Besides, I need to have a heart-to-heart with my future son-in-law.”

  “Tell him I’m counting down the minutes until I’m Mrs. Clinton Jefferson,” Nina said.

  Yolanda rolled her eyes and hid her laugh. She knew that her sister and Clinton spent last night together making a lot of noise until eleven-fifty. Meanwhile, she’d tossed and turned all night wishing Chuck would’ve gotten off the sofa in her room and joined her in the bed. But she was the one who said they needed to keep it professional.

  You did it to yourself and now you simply have to deal with the fallout, she thought as she joined Nina at the table.

  Alex took Sheldon’s empty seat at the head of the table. She glanced over at Yolanda. “You’re really going to be rude and not invite Charles to join us?”

  Yolanda rolled her eyes. “He’s a grown man and if he’s hungry, he can see the food.”

  Alex shook her head but kept silent. It didn’t take long for Chuck to walk into the dining area. After he told Alex and Nina good morning, he took a seat at the table next to Yolanda. She closed her eyes as his masculine scent overpowered the delicious smell of breakfast. How many times had they eaten breakfast at his place? Only, he’d been shirtless, and she’d cooked the shrimp and grits in one of his white T-shirts that hit her right above the knee.

  What a difference a month made. Yolanda eased her chair a couple of inches away from him. If Nina or Alex noticed her move, at least they had the good sense not to say anything. As did Chuck. He just ate his breakfast.

  “So, are we opening a gift tonight or no?” Nina asked.

  “You’re going to bed so Santa will still come, and you won’t have bags under your eyes tomorrow,” Alex said. “I know if you and Yo-Yo stay up, there is going to be a lot of wine missing from the cellar.”

  “Like it isn’t already,” Yolanda quipped. “Ooh, you know what, we should have mimosas.”

  Alex looked down at her watch. “I need to go check the reservation arrivals, but you two have fun.”

  “Do you even know what that is?” Yolanda asked.

  Alex pointed her finger at her sister. “I’m not doing this with you today. Some of us still have to work.”

  Chuck tapped her knee as if he knew Yolanda was on the edge of an explosion. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, he did calm her down.

  “Just make sure all of you are around at eight so we can watch The Wiz,” Nina said, then stood up and mimicked some of Michael Jackson’s moves as the Scarecrow.

  Alex shook her head. “Only because you’re getting married tomorrow.”

  “How sweet of you, Alex,” Nina said sarcastically. “And there’d better be popcorn with lots of butter and sugar.”

  “You know, you are making a lot of demands for somebody who needs to be resting and relaxing,” Yolanda said. “And if you even think about trying to sneak up to the office to see your fiancé, I’m going to take that Wiz DVD and throw it in the ocean.”

  Alex clasped her hands together. “Now that is a good idea. Because you know your sister lacks self-control—a trait that both of you share,” she said.

  Yolanda decided not to reply to Alex’s argument starter. It was Christmas Eve, one day until Nina’s wedding, and she hated to admit it, but Alex was right. Yolanda’s self-control was being tested right now in ways she had never imagined . . . all because of Chuck Morris.

  “All right, I’ll see you guys later,” Alex said.

  Chuck stood up and started clearing the dishes from the table. Nina smiled. “You don’t have to do that. It’s actually Yolanda’s job.”

  Yolanda rolled her eyes. “Don’t you have some kind of spa ritual or something to do? Go away.”

  “I’m going to watch the NFL pregame show. You two behave.”

  Alone in the dining room, Chuck and Yolanda silently cleared the table. He looked over at her and said, “Merry Christmas.”

  “Merry Christmas to you, too. Are you often away from your family on the holidays?”

  “We don’t really do big celebrations anymore. It’s just another day.”

  Yolanda couldn’t imagine holidays without her family. Even after her mother’s death, Sheldon tried to give the girls a somewhat normal Christmas and it had been that way ever since. Nina wouldn’t say it out loud, but she covered sporting events during the holidays because it was hard for her to hear about memories that she wasn’t a part of with their mother.

  “What’s with the radio silence?” Chuck asked.

  “I was just thinking about how today changes a lot for our family. Nina is going to have a Christmas memory that will last forever for her, and she won’t have to hide behind her job anymore to avoid the holidays with us.”

  “Well, why did she do that to begin with? I figured the Richardsons had the most elaborate holiday celebrations of anybody in Charleston County.”

  Yolanda shrugged. “It used to be like that before Mom passed. And Nina doesn’t admit it out loud, but she feels some kind of way about her lack of connection to Mom’s memories.”

  When Chuck drew her into his arms, that was when Yolanda knew she was crying. Okay, so it wasn’t just Nina who missed the connection with Nora Richardson.

  Pull it together, girl, she thought as she pulled out of Chuck’s embrace. “Sorry, I get a little emotional when I think about Christmas and my mom. Didn’t mean to pull you into this.”

  “It’s okay,” he said, then stroked her cheek. Yolanda shivered and wished she hadn’t been this open with him. “Do you want to talk about it?”

  “I don’t want to talk, but doing what I want to do would make everything we’ve said recently a lie.”

  “Yolanda,” he said quietly. “We have to focus on what happens when we go to Richmond.”

  “I know that, but . . .” W
hat was the harm in a Christmas kiss? She stood on her tiptoes and brushed her lips against his. Chuck pulled her closer and deepened the kiss. He ran his hands up and down her back. She nearly lost it when he ran his tongue across her bottom lip. This either had to stop or be moved to her room.

  Yolanda pulled back from him. “I thought I saw mistletoe,” she quipped.

  “You’re funny,” he replied. “We can’t do this again. The last thing that I want is for your father to walk in and catch us.”

  “Don’t tell me that you’re one of those men afraid of my dad,” she said with a smirk.

  “I know how men are about their daughters, so yeah.”

  Yolanda took a step back from him and expelled a sigh. “You’re right. And we don’t want that smoke,” she said. “Come on, let’s go and raid the kitchen.”

  “I’d love to, but I have to make a call.”

  She nodded and wondered if he was walking away from her only because he wanted her just as much as she wanted him.

  * * *

  Charles walked out of the bed-and-breakfast and looked toward the ocean. That woman drove him crazy and he had to make sure he stayed on task. He pulled out his phone and called Madison, since he knew she was the only other person who was working on a holiday.

  “What’s up, Chuck?” she said when she answered the phone.

  “Have you talked to anyone with Richmond PD?”

  “Merry Christmas to you, too,” Madison said.

  “Yeah, yeah,” he said. “Come on, I’m being serious. Yolanda’s ready to go to the police about Danny and I don’t want to lead her to slaughter.”

  “Got you. Well, something interesting happened over the last month. The police are finally investigating the disappearance of his ex. There was a little blurb about it online. I’ve been trying to find out who the main detective is and why this case is back on the radar.”

  “Okay. I know that’s important to you and I feel like you’re the reason this case is back. But I need details. After her sister’s wedding, Yolanda plans to make her statement.”

  “Jeez, you’re acting as if you can’t wait to be rid of this woman. What happened?”