Betting On Love

by Hodges, Cheris

  She playfully slapped his shoulder. “Just when I thought you were sentimental.”

  “I’m a man, so there’s only so much sentimentality you’re going to get from me.”

  “I have something to tell you,” she said.

  “What’s that?”

  I love you, she thought. But she said, “I don’t want to freak you out, but I’m thinking about moving to Charlotte to run our restaurant.”

  James licked his lips, then smiled. “And why would that freak me out?”

  “Because I don’t want you to think that I’m trying to force you into something that you’re not looking for or ready for.”

  “First of all, I can’t be forced into anything. If I didn’t want to be with you, we would’ve never made it past Vegas. Secondly, I have real feelings for you, and if you’re going to be in town, that’s going to save me a lot of money on gas.”

  “Let’s be honest. What are we doing?” she asked. “I don’t want to be hurt again.”

  “And I would never do anything to hurt you,” he replied as he stroked her cheek. “You mean a lot to me.”

  Her heart leapt for joy at James’s declaration. Granted, he didn’t say those magic three words, but Jade was confident that they were heading in the right direction. She knew she could give him her heart and not worry about finding out about him and another woman in the Charlotte newspaper.

  James made her feel safe, and that meant more to Jade than anything else. She wrapped her arms around him even tighter.

  The next morning James did just what he’d told Jade he liked to do: he watched her as she slumbered against his sheets. He wondered if he should’ve told her last night that he was falling hard for her. You mean a lot to me, he thought. What kind of crap is that? I’m lucky she didn’t bolt out of the bed and leave. That is what you tell a friend, not the woman you’re falling in love with.

  James had never been a man who wore his emotions on his sleeves. Confessing that he was falling head over heels for a woman wasn’t something that he did. Love didn’t last in his world. He’d seen what had happened to his parents, and even though Maurice and Kenya seemed happy now, he remembered how much pain Kenya had been in when their relationship ended the first time.

  Still, he didn’t want to miss out on something special with Jade because of other people’s mistakes. And then there was Stephen. Was she really over him?

  We have time, he thought. It’s not as if I’m going to ask her to marry me tomorrow.

  Jade began to stir in the bed. He reached over and stroked her cheek; then her eyes fluttered open.

  “Good morning, beautiful,” he said.

  “Morning yourself,” she said as she stifled a yawn.

  “Let’s get dressed and grab some breakfast,” he suggested.

  Jade shook her head. “Let’s stay naked and lie right here.”

  “You won’t hear any arguments from me,” he said as he kissed her cheek and nestled against her.

  “Sorry. I’m just not a morning person,” she said. “But you seem to enjoy the mornings.”

  James shrugged his shoulders. “It isn’t that I enjoy the morning. Most days I don’t have a reason to stay in bed.” He squeezed her bottom. “Today is different, though.”

  Jade smiled and brushed her lips against his. “Really?”

  “Oh yeah.”

  “So, you mean to tell me, you don’t have women beating a path to your door?”

  “It doesn’t mean I let them in,” he said, with a smirk. And I don’t let too many people spend the night.

  “I hear you, Mr. Goings.”

  “So, what are we going to do next weekend?” he asked.

  “Next weekend?”

  “Yeah, when I come to Atlanta.”

  She smiled brightly. “Anything you want,” she said. “As long as it doesn’t include a trip to Chez Marcel.”

  James groaned. “I wouldn’t take a dog there,” he said. “That bastard. Then again, maybe I do owe Stephen a debt of gratitude.”

  “What?” Jade asked, raising her right eyebrow. “What could you possibly have to thank him for?”

  “For being the jackass who let you go,” he said as he squeezed her waist. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to eat his cooking.”

  She laughed and kissed him again. “Well, when you put it that way, I should thank him, too.”

  “Really?”

  “Uh-huh. Because had he not been a jackass, I would’ve never gone to Vegas, and I would’ve never run into you in that scandalous dress.”

  “That was a beautiful dress,” he said. “As a matter of fact, where is it?”

  She slapped him on the shoulder. “You’re so bad.”

  “And you love it.”

  I love you, she thought again and nearly let those words slip from her lips. But she just smiled and nodded.

  It was after eleven before they got out of bed, got dressed, and headed out of the house. Had it not been for Kenya’s call, James and Jade would’ve stayed in bed all day, ordering pizza and Chinese food in between lovemaking sessions. But Kenya insisted that the couple join her and Maurice uptown for brunch.

  “Your sister-in-law is nice, but I’m not sure your brother really wants me around,” Jade said.

  “Don’t worry about Maurice. He’s trying.”

  “Really?” she said, still smarting from the fact that he’d had a private investigator look into her past. It wasn’t that she had something to hide, but it was such an invasion of privacy. Especially when she didn’t want anything from James but his love.

  “Mo is going to behave. Besides, that man is so happy to have a baby on the way, he’d have brunch with the devil in the hottest pit in hell without complaining.”

  “That’s reassuring,” she said.

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Let’s just hope he’s as happy as you say, because I feel too good to let Maurice get to me this morning.”

  James kissed her on the cheek as they headed out the door. “Give the man a chance,” he said. “Mo is really a nice guy.”

  Jade nodded but wasn’t ready to totally agree with James.

  They drove to Kenya and Maurice’s uptown condo. Jade was impressed by the building as soon as they walked into the lobby.

  “Expensive digs,” she remarked as James waved to the doorman.

  “That’s what Charlotte does. It moves the poor out of uptown so that they can build these high-rises that only millionaires can afford.”

  “A page out of Atlanta’s gentrification book,” she said. “Why don’t you live uptown?”

  “I like to mow the lawn. What can I say?”

  Jade imagined James outside in the summer, shirtless and sweaty, riding a John Deere mower. She wouldn’t mind bringing him a cool drink of water or even working alongside him, planting a few rosebushes. Growing up, she’d always wanted a yard with lush green grass and blooming flowers. Even though she lived in a trendy neighborhood in Atlanta and didn’t have a yard, she knew that when she moved to Charlotte, her place would have a big yard. Though she wouldn’t be the one cutting the grass; she’d just plant flowers.

  Kenya met the couple at the door of the penthouse. “I’m going to kill your brother,” she said to James. “Good morning, Jade.”

  “What did he do now?” asked James.

  “Just come in and watch,” Kenya said.

  Maurice bounded into the foyer. “Kenya, will you please sit down. You need to take it easy.”

  Kenya raised her eyebrows at James as if to say, “See what I mean?”

  “Mo,” James said, “she’s pregnant, not an invalid.”

  Maurice glared at his brother. “Shut up. Hi, Jade.”

  “Hello,” Jade said.

  “Are you going to serve us brunch?” Kenya asked. “If so, then I will sit down.”

  “The food is on the table,” Maurice said and pointed everyone toward the dining room.

  James and Jade looked at each other and laug
hed. “Do you think they’re going to make it nine months?” she asked.

  “Nope,” James replied.

  “I can hear y’all,” Maurice said as he pulled a chair out for Kenya. “What’s wrong with me wanting my wife to be calm and relaxed?”

  “Maurice, whatever,” Kenya said in an exasperated sigh. “I just know that you better not show up at my job with your overprotectiveness.”

  “I make no promises,” Maurice said as he doled out scrambled eggs and turkey bacon.

  “You know what would set this brunch off?” Kenya said as Maurice handed her a plate.

  “What’s that?” James asked.

  “Your mother’s cinnamon buns. I love that icing,” Kenya told them.

  Jade, who was sipping orange juice, dropped her head and coughed as James glanced at her.

  Kenya looked from James to Jade. “What?”

  “Nothing,” Jade said. “We love the icing, too.”

  “Why didn’t Ma come last night?” Maurice asked.

  “She said the new girl at the bakery had a family emergency,” Kenya said. “But don’t worry. She already knows that she’s going to be a grandmother.”

  “I want to thank you two,” James said. “You took the pressure off.”

  Maurice laughed. “Whatever,” he said. “There was never any pressure on you, anyway.”

  “Here we go,” Kenya said. Then she turned to Jade. “These two have a running competition on everything. It’s been that way since we were little.”

  “So, you guys grew up together?” asked Jade.

  Kenya nodded. “It’s been a journey knowing these two. Are you originally from Atlanta?”

  “No,” Jade said. “I was born in Louisiana, but home was everywhere. My parents worked on riverboats.”

  “That sounds exciting,” Kenya told her.

  Jade offered her a fake smile and didn’t reply. She didn’t want to talk about her childhood and everything that she had missed. “Thank God for college,” she finally said. “A riverboat life gets old quick.”

  Kenya bit into her bacon and shrugged. “I’m sure it did. So you went to school in Atlanta?”

  Jade nodded. “Yes, Spelman College.”

  “I graduated from Clark Atlanta,” Kenya said, then looked pointedly at Maurice. “Even though I didn’t want to go to a college that had a scholarship named after my mother.”

  “Who’s your mother?” Jade asked.

  “Angela Taylor. She’s an editor at the AJC.”

  “She spoke at Spelman once. She has a powerful presence,” Jade said. “She’s the reason my friends and I started our investment club. All these years later, it’s paying off.”

  “That’s right. You guys are opening a restaurant,” replied Kenya.

  Jade nodded. “We’re actually trying to get Devon Harris to be our chef.”

  “I love his show,” Kenya said. “Maurice, isn’t he in town this weekend?”

  Maurice rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Every night she watches this guy on TV, but do you think she cooks any of that stuff ?”

  James shook his head, and Kenya tossed a napkin at him. “Maurice didn’t marry me for my cooking,” she said, causing Jade to laugh.

  After brunch Jade and James headed back to his place. While she knew she should’ve been reaching out to Devon, as she’d promised Kandace she would, Jade wanted and needed some more alone time with her man before she got down to business.

  CHAPTER 22

  As soon as Jade and James walked into his house, her cell phone rang. “Hello?” Jade said.

  “Jade Christian?” a male voice said.

  “Yes, and who’s calling?”

  “Devon Harris. I heard you’ve been trying to reach me.”

  Jade smiled and grabbed James’s shoulder. “Devon, don’t act like this is just a business call. How have you been, and why have your people been giving us the runaround?”

  “That’s my agent’s way,” Devon said, with a smile in his voice. “How are you and the girls doing?”

  “Great, but you know we need your help,” she said. James looked at her quizzically. “The chef,” she mouthed to him.

  “Do you have dinner plans?” Devon asked.

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Then you need to come by Mez, as my guest.”

  “Make it plus one and I’m there.”

  Devon groaned. “You’re not still with Stephen Carter, are you?”

  “You knew about that?” she asked. “But to answer your question, no.”

  “Great. Then I’ll see you and your guest around eight, and we can talk,” he said. “By the way, how’s Kandace?”

  Jade paused. How was she supposed to answer that? “Fine,” she finally said.

  “Tell her that I asked about her,” he said.

  “Why don’t you just call her?” Jade probed.

  “I have to go. See you at eight.” He hung up before Jade could say anything else, causing her to believe even more strongly that Kandace and Devon had some serious unfinished business.

  “Is everything all right?” James asked, noting Jade’s furrowed brows.

  “Yes,” she said, offering him a smile. “That may have been the answer to my prayers.”

  “Here I thought I was the answer to your prayers.”

  She smacked him on his shoulder. “Silly. Do we have dinner plans?”

  “Well, I was hoping that you were going to feed me,” he said, with a wink. “But if you need to go out, go ahead.”

  “We’ve been invited to dinner,” she said. “Devon Harris wants us to be his guests at Mez.”

  “All right,” he said. “I’ve been meaning to try the food at the EpiCenter.”

  “Devon is working with Mr. Woods, and hopefully, he’ll want to run his own kitchen.”

  James smiled, clearly impressed with Jade. “My little businesswoman is making moves.”

  “Well, I’ve got to make up for my lack of judgment with Stephen.”

  James wrapped his arms around her waist. “Everything happens for a reason, and we all make mistakes.”

  She nodded and leaned into him. “You’re right.”

  “But,” he said, his voice simmering with sensuality, “we have a lot of time before dinner. We can get an early start on dessert.”

  “Let me get the icing,” she replied, with a smile.

  Hours later Jade and James emerged from the bed, satisfied and ready for dinner. She dressed in a formfitting pair of black slim-leg pants and a baby blue tuxedo shirt. James, seeing that Jade was looking very sexy, yet businesslike, decided that his jeans and sports coat weren’t going to cut it.

  “Let me be your arm candy tonight,” he said as he pulled out a brown suit and coral shirt.

  “Arm candy?”

  “Yeah,” he said, with a grin. “I look good and will make you look even better.”

  Jade ran her hand over James’s arm. “I can’t argue with that.”

  After James was dressed, they headed out to the popular eatery. What they didn’t know was that the restaurant was hosting a private party that catered to the elite of Charlotte.

  “It’s a good thing I did change my clothes,” James said after the maître d’ checked their names off the list.

  “Devon didn’t tell me all this was going on,” she said as they were led to a table in the center of the restaurant, which was marked CHEF’S TABLE.

  The maître d’ took the other chairs away, indicating that Jade and James would be sitting alone. “Enjoy your meal,” he said, then walked away.

  The restaurant was dimly lit, giving an ambiance of romance. James slid his chair closer to Jade and placed his arm around her shoulder. “It looks like we have some competition,” she said, referring to the restaurant.

  “Are you guys going for an upscale type of restaurant or something more down-home?”

  “It depends on Devon, Serena, Kandace, and Alicia. I’d like to make sure it’s something that appeals to everyone.”


  James nodded. “Makes sense, and keep in mind, Cherry is an emerging neighborhood that has people from all walks of life.”

  A waiter walked over to the table and placed an array of appetizers in front of the couple. “Compliments of the chef,” he said.

  “Thanks,” James said. He picked up a succulent piece of shrimp and held it out to Jade to bite.

  “Umm,” she moaned. “This is good.”

  James bit off a piece of the shrimp himself and agreed. “This guy is good.”

  Dinner came next, along with a bottle of chardonnay. James and Jade dined on grilled chicken breasts marinated in a cilantro-lime sauce, wild rice, and tender vegetables.

  “I wonder what he can do with a steak,” Jade mused as she sipped her wine.

  “That’s my girl,” James said.

  “Does this wine taste funny to you?” she asked as she set her glass down.

  James sipped his wine and shrugged. “Tastes fine to me.”

  She waved for the waiter and requested a glass of water. Seconds later Devon Harris was walking toward their table, carrying a glass of water. “Ms. Christian, how are you?” he said as he set the water in front of her. Jade rose to her feet and gave the six-foot-two chef a quick hug.

  “I’m very well. This is James Goings,” she said. Devon extended his hand to James, and the two men shook.

  “How was dinner?” Devon asked.

  “Great,” James said.

  “Yes, it was,” Jade said.

  Devon smiled. “That’s what I like to hear. Would you guys like to tour the kitchen after dessert?”

  “Umm, James?” asked Jade.

  James shrugged. “Why not?”

  “All right,” Devon said, smiling at the couple. “It’s nice to meet you, James. I’ve got to get back.”

  “Nice fellow,” James said once Devon was gone. “Doesn’t look like a chef, though. The Bobcats could use him running the point.”

  She laughed. “I guess that’s why his show is such a hit. People like looking at him.”

  “How do you two know each other?” James asked, with a hint of jealousy in his voice.

  “He and Kandace used to date. I think they’re still in love with each other, but they’re fighting the feeling.”