by A. C. Arthur
“Well, I don’t think that’s your call.”
“She’s my sister.”
Sam nodded, agreed. “That’s not debatable. But she’s very important to me.”
“Like a business deal or another notch in your bedpost?”
Usually it was the father who posed these questions, guarded his daughter’s heart and virtue like this. Dealing with the sister was challenging but not entirely impossible.
“Like a woman whom I’m in love with.”
“Bullsh—”
“Monica?” A stern voice came from behind her and had Sam’s gaze rising just above Monica’s shoulder to meet with Paul Lakefield.
Monica cleared her throat. “Hi, Dad.”
“That’s not business-appropriate language you were about to use.”
“No, it wasn’t,” she said, casting Sam an irritated gaze. “He’s trespassing.”
“I don’t think so,” Paul said, stepping past Monica into Karena’s office. “He’s looking for Karena, I suspect. And I believe I know why. Leave us alone,” he said without even turning to face his daughter again. His tone solicited no argument from Monica as she quickly left the room without another word to Sam.
“Have a seat, son,” Paul motioned to Sam.
Going behind Karena’s desk again, Sam took a seat in her executive chair while Paul sat in a guest chair. The man looked as if he had a lot on his mind. Sam only hoped it wasn’t a lot that involved him.
“Karena’s out of town.” He began sternly.
“So I heard. Do you know when she’ll be back?”
“I’m not really sure. She doesn’t talk to me much about things that aren’t business-related.”
“You sound bothered by that fact.”
For a minute it looked as if the older man’s shoulders slumped. “I think I am. My daughter and I aren’t close.”
“I got that impression.”
“Did you? Do you know why we aren’t close?”
“Not really.”
“Because I’m an idiot,” he said simply. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m not too old or too self-confident to admit my shortcomings.”
“I didn’t think so,” Sam said, trying to keep his voice level so as not to offend.
Paul rubbed his hands down his face and just for a second looked extremely tired. “Raising three daughters isn’t easy.”
Sam had to chuckle. How many times had his father fretted about something Lynn or Bree did? And now with Bailey in the picture, Lucien seemed to worry just a bit more. Luckily Bailey had stopped working so hard on the Chester case and started spending more time with the family so Lucien could keep a closer eye on her.
“I hope to experience it myself one day.”
“You want kids?”
“Yes, I do.”
“You want kids with my daughter?”
Blunt. To the point. Accurate. Sam was beginning to like Paul Lakefield.
“Yes, I do.”
Paul smiled. “I figured as much. That first day I saw you two together I knew I was about to lose her. It’s not a good feeling when a man watches another man take his place in his daughter’s life.”
“I could never take your place.”
“It might be a wise move on your part, son. I don’t think Karena and I related very well. Monica and I are a bit closer because she’s the oldest, she’s so driven, so cutthroat, like a son would be.”
His words touched the alarm bell in Sam’s head. “But she’s not your son, she’s your daughter.”
“I know. Scared the hell out of me the moment she was born. I didn’t know what to do with a girl. She was so fragile and so sweet, I didn’t want to mess her up. So I let Noreen deal with her. Then Karena came along and I knew I was going to lose my mind. Another daughter to protect from the ugliness of the world.”
Understanding the meaning behind the man, Sam added, “And then you had Deena.”
Paul chuckled. “She was a month premature and has been on the move ever since then. I swear I don’t think there’s a second in the day that girl slows down. From one thing to another she moves, but she’s as happy as can be while she’s doing it. It’s funny, but I don’t worry about her as much. Deena knows exactly what she wants and she’s not about to let me, her mother or anybody else stop her.”
Paul Lakefield loved his daughters. No matter what the three women may have thought, he loved them, Sam thought, possibly more than he ever would have loved a son.
“Karena’s afraid and she doesn’t handle fear well.” He’d been gazing off somewhere then brought his stare back to Sam. “I think you scare her.”
“That wasn’t my intention.”
Paul shrugged. “Alienating my daughters wasn’t mine, either, but it seems I did a pretty good job of it.” His lips spread into a smile. “But you’ve got time to fix it. At least I hope you plan on fixing it.”
“That’s why I’m here. A wise man once told me that a man can never be too self-confident that he can’t admit his shortcomings.”
With that Paul’s smile grew. He leaned forward in his chair, extended a hand to Sam. “You’re a good man, son. A good man for my daughter.”
Sam accepted Paul’s handshake and his vote of approval. Now if he could only find the woman to tell her.
Chapter 27
Karena was dead tired. She’d spent the past week in Dallas coordinating the move of a new bronze sculpture collection they would be displaying over the holidays at the gallery. It was an impromptu trip scorned by the fact that she missed Sam terribly.
She missed the sound of his voice, the touch of his lips on hers, that eerie way he knew what she was thinking before she even said it. She just missed him. And she thought she might just be the biggest fool in the world for running away from such a perfect man.
Backtrack, rewind—Sam Desdune was not perfect. He was arrogant and bossy and self-serving and compassionate and caring and loyal. He was the man she’d fallen in love with.
Dammit, each time those words filtered through her mind she grew warm inside. Then reality set in and she shivered. Sam was out of her life, he’d given her a choice. She’d chosen and he’d walked. Right or wrong on either part, he was gone.
Emptying her suitcase was a tedious task and one she was not enjoying in the least bit. Her ringing doorbell was a welcome distraction.
“Hey, girl, you finally back in town. I haven’t seen you since you stood me up for breakfast weeks ago,” Deena said, coming into Karena’s apartment like a whirlwind.
The entire time she talked she moved. Pushing past Karena at the door, stripping off her leather jacket and dropping it on the couch, then picking up the television remote and turning it on before plopping down in the center of the living room floor, crossing her legs Indian style.
Used to this entrance, Karena simply closed the door and walked into the living room. “I have chairs, Deena. You’re too old to be sitting on the floor like some kindergarten student.”
Channels flicked with the speed of light across the television screen as Deena began talking again. “Those chairs look too perfect to sit on. I told you that when you bought them. It’s like a showroom in here instead of being a home. Anyway, I didn’t come to talk about your furniture.”
Still, her words had Karena looking around. She’d liked her furniture when she ordered it out of the catalog. But Deena had a point, it didn’t feel like a home. Not like Sam’s house did.
“I have some news.”
Despite her previous words, Karena found herself dropping to the floor next to her younger sister. “I hope it’s good.”
“Of course,” Deena said, momentarily taking her gaze from the screen and smiling at Karena, who was now right beside her. “You know I was looking for an agent, right? Well, in the meantime I sent my story to a couple of publishers. I didn’t really think anybody would like it.”
Karena smirked. “Yes, you did. You told me they were going to love it when you wrote the first sentence.
”
Deena nodded. “That’s right, I did. Okay, well one of the publishers did like it and they called me and made me an offer. I took the offer and now my book is going to be published. And the best part is they needed a book to fill their schedule, so my project has been fast-tracked. It’ll be released in four months instead of the usual year it takes for a book to go through the publication process.”
She would have continued talking if Karena hadn’t grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her close for a big hug. “Oh, Dee! I’m so happy for you. So very, very happy. I told Mama I thought you’d found your niche!”
“Okay, K, you’re choking me.”
“Oh, sorry,” Karena said, releasing her hold but rubbing a hand over her sister’s shoulder-length hair and cupping her cheek. “I’m so proud of you, Dee. I’m so very proud of the way you go get what you want despite what anybody says or does. You’re such an inspiration.”
“What? Wait. Hold on. Has this congratulatory speech just turned to something else? What’s up with you, K?”
Tears had already begun to well up in Karena’s eyes and she tried to look away. But Deena was fast. She grabbed her by the shoulders and held her still. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” Karena sighed. “Everything and nothing,” she added finally.
Deena switched off the television and turned back to Karena. “Start from the beginning and talk slowly so I don’t miss anything.”
That was funny coming from the woman who talked a mile a minute. But Karena did just that, telling her sister about the first time she’d met Sam in Noelle’s kitchen, to the last time she’d seen him on the airstrip at LaGuardia.
“So there, that’s my love life in a nutshell.” She sighed after a half hour of talking. Reaching up onto the couch, she pulled one of the pillows down, cradled it in her arms and agreed with Deena. This furniture should have been in a showroom, not a living room.
“Hmm, you know what you have to do, right?”
She’d begun rocking back and forth, cradling that hard-ass pillow as if it were a life preserver keeping her from drowning in self-pity. “No. What?”
“You have to go get your man,” Deena said as if it were as apparent as the sun setting outside.
“The man gave me an ultimatum, Dee. Why would I want to be with someone like that? What if he thinks that’s how to get his way with me all the time? I can’t keep giving in. I’ll lose myself if I do.”
“You lost yourself a long time ago, girl.”
“What?”
“The minute you decided Mama needed to do something better with herself you embarked on a crusade to save Noreen Lakefield instead of to be Karena Lakefield. I saw it and figured you and Monica both had a few lessons to learn. So I kept my younger-sister mouth shut. But now you’re in trouble so I’m going to lay it on the line. Stop using Mama as an excuse. She’s not the reason you’re afraid to fall in love and commit to a man.”
“Wait a minute. I don’t think you know what you’re talking about.”
“None of you ever do. But I see and hear a lot of stuff being the youngest in this family. I see that Daddy doesn’t know how to communicate with us even though he loves us. The females in his life have just completely thrown him for a loop. I see that Mama is finally coming into her own, on her own terms, in her own time. But then I knew she’d get there. That’s why I never harassed her the way you did. I see that Monica is going to self-implode if she doesn’t get off her high horse soon. And I see that you are on the precipice of either moving forward with your own life, or getting stuck in the same type of rut—despite your warnings to Mama—that you assumed she was in all these years.”
Karena could only blink. Deena had said a mouthful, nothing unusual. But her words made sense, her insights were right on target. And she was the baby of the family.
“I…I don’t know…what to say.”
“That’s funny, you and Mama are usually the ones who do know what to say to me.” Deena chuckled, her deep dimples adding a light to her smile that was hers alone.
“Anyway, as I was saying before, you need to go get your man. It’s obvious he loves you or he wouldn’t have wasted his time with the ultimatum. And it’s obvious you love him or you wouldn’t be sitting on this floor whining about the nerve he had to talk to you that way. So I say you pack your bag and head straight to his house.”
“I can’t move in with him, Deena. I need my own space.”
“So don’t move in with him. Yet. But drop those guidelines you proposed. There are no guidelines to falling in love.”
“How do you know? You’ve never been in love.”
“Didn’t I just sell a romance novel? Girl, please. I wrote one hell of a love story. I know what I’m talking about.”
Karena couldn’t help but laugh, but in the next hour she listened attentively to her romance-author baby sister’s advice on how she should fix her relationship with Sam.
Unfortunately she couldn’t take Deena’s advice. Trent and Tia’s wedding was later today.
Chapter 28
Christmas Eve, Las Vegas, Nevada
The Mt. Charleston Resort was a sophisticated, yet quaint, venue. Of course, the Donovans had rented the entire resort to accommodate Trent and Tia’s wedding.
Karena had checked into the room she would be staying in tonight with just enough time to shower and change into the dress she was wearing to the wedding. The late arrival was due to the indecision that had plagued her in the weeks since receiving the invitation.
It had come one week to the day she’d walked out of Sam Desdune’s life, for good. It wasn’t that she didn’t love him. That cruel twist of fate was alive and breathing each day she awoke. The more pertinent issue had been if she could live up to what he expected of her. But after talking to Deena and doing some heavy soul-searching on the plane, Karena had decided that it wasn’t about being what people expected you to be, but about remaining true to herself. She couldn’t be what her father wanted, or what she thought he wanted. She could only be her. And she couldn’t base her life’s goals on her mother’s choices. She had to find her own happiness.
But what could she do to be happy?
Each time she asked that question, Sam’s face had ultimately appeared in her mind’s eye. Unfortunately, now, after leaving the upbeat and always-optimistic aura of Deena Lakefield, she thought that ship had possibly sailed. Sam wanted a woman who was sure of herself and ready for the commitment he offered, and that’s what he deserved.
So why was she here? In Las Vegas at the wedding she was sure he would also be at. Her invitation had stemmed from her relationship with Noelle and the fact that her mother had, in her own lifestyle change, contacted Beverly Donovan to discuss their families joining together in a philanthropic endeavor. Sam’s, however, would come from the fact that he was as close to Trent Donovan as family and they were business partners. There was no doubt in her mind he was here. All the doubt rested on whether she could handle seeing him again.
She passed a huge elegantly decorated ballroom as hostesses garbed in chocolate-brown gowns and matching bolero jackets guided guests to the Canyon Terrace, where the wedding would take place. It was Christmas Eve and still a very comfortable fifty-six degrees in Vegas, so an outdoor ceremony wasn’t as strange as she’d originally thought upon arriving.
Rows of white chairs occupied two sides of the terrace while a rose-petal-filled runner stretched down the center to stop at an arch loaded with cream-and-beige-colored flowers. The seats were just about full, since it was only ten minutes until five o’clock and the wedding was slated to start promptly at five. Hurriedly Karena slipped into one of the back rows, taking a seat at the far end.
Only a few minutes after she’d sat music began to play. It was an instrumental version of an old classic, “Ribbon In The Sky” by Stevie Wonder.
Henry and Beverly Donovan stepped out onto the terrace pushing a double stroller. Several guests oohed and aahed at Linc and Jade�
�s twins, Torian and Tamala. Almost eight months old now, the two little girls were the epitome of little princesses with their frilly pink hats and satin dresses.
A tall woman with beautiful blue-gray hair pulled back into a neat chignon stepped onto the runner next. She, too, pushed a stroller. This one was a dark brown, decorated with beige lace. The baby inside could not be easily seen. So just like several of the other guests, Karena found herself lifting slightly out of her seat to get a glance.
Trent and Tia had welcomed a baby boy to the Donovan clan just one week before Thanksgiving. Immediately after the birth, Tia had set her final wedding plans in motion, Noelle had informed her. Trevor Donovan had his father wrapped tightly around his finger already.
Speak of the devil, Trent Donovan eased onto the terrace without his normally brooding stare. Today, he looked handsome as ever dressed in a tuxedo the color of buttermilk, a silk tie that matched the chocolate color of the hostesses’ gowns and a brown calla lily boutonniere on his lapel. He even cracked a small smile as his younger brother, Adam, stepped beside him wearing a dark brown tuxedo and the two of them began walking down the aisle.
Next came the bridal party. Noelle was escorted by Maxwell Donovan, Trent’s cousin. She looked great, her strapless mocha-hued dress hugging her upper body then flaring out with a gathered skirt. Karena smiled because in addition to her outer beauty there was a glow about Noelle as she moved down the aisle, an aura of happiness that seemed to float along with her. Karena was jealous but inhaled deeply and focused on the reason why she was here instead of the mistakes she’d made in the past.
Wearing the same dress as Noelle, Jade Donovan was escorted by her husband, Linc. They looked so domestic and so right together.
Two of the cutest little girls she’d ever seen followed, tossing more flowers onto the runner minutes before Camille Davis Donovan made her entrance. She was elegant in her dress that mimicked Jade and Noelle’s perfectly except for the deep chocolate-brown color.
Then the music changed to another instrumental tune, “A Whole New World” by Regina Belle and Peabo Bryson. The minister lifted his hands for everyone to stand and Karena’s heart pitter-pattered in her chest as a beautiful Tia St. Claire stepped onto the runner with her father holding her shaking hand. Slowly they moved down the aisle, just as slowly, almost as if with each step, Karena’s heart broke a fraction more.
