by Tina Martin
“Yes, I am and I’m going to stay after her which brings me to the reason I’m here.”
“What’s that?”
“Have you worked with any reputable private investigators recently?”
Royal chuckled. “Don’t tell me you’re thinking of having her followed.”
“No, not at all, but I do need a private investigator. Do you know of one?”
“Yeah. One sec,” Royal browsed his cell phone contacts. “Yeah, here he is—Tucker Harlow—he owns Piedmont Investigations. Do you want to write it down or should I text it to you?”
“Text it to me,” Regal answered. “Thanks, bruh.”
“Yep. No problem.”
* * *
Regal spent the rest of the day working on the design for the new housing unit – the initial three-level design – tweaking it for final review with Ramsey. While he poured his energy into it, he thought about Felicity. He wondered what she was doing at the moment. Did she have a good weekend? Was she able to relax and regroup for another work week? And how was she dealing with the daughter situation? He wanted to call her to get answers to all of these questions, but at the same time, he didn’t want to disturb her or cause her any sort of extra stress or anxiety. Besides, they were finally in a good place, he felt, where they could at least view each other as friends but he wanted to be so much more.
He wanted to be her comfort.
Her support.
Her strong tower.
Her man.
He leaned back and rubbed his eyes. Holding her in his arms Saturday night made him realize how much he actually wanted to be there for her. And she’d said something that actually bruised his heart – that she was used to being alone. No one should ever be accustomed to being alone and lonely, especially someone like her.
His phone rang and he looked at the display to see the caller. It was Piedmont Investigations – a much-needed distraction.
“Mr. Harlow, how are you, Sir?” Regal answered.
“I’m well, thank you. Is this Regal St. Claire?” he asked for confirmation.
“It is.”
“Okay. I just wanted to make sure who I was talking to. I usually get all of my work from your brother, Royal.”
“Yep. I asked Royal for your information because I need you to do some work for me—personal, not business.”
“Okay. What ya got?”
“I have a friend who’s looking for her daughter whom she gave up at birth. I need to know if the girl was adopted or if she’s in the foster care system. Now, my friend had hired a P.I. who told her that her daughter was adopted, but I don’t believe a word that man said. I managed to get her file from him and I would like for you to look into it for me.”
Tucker sighed heavily. “Honestly, Regal, I stopped doing cases like this. It’s hard not to get wrapped up in custody disputes and such so I chose to stay away.”
“I understand that, Tucker, but this is important to me. If you can make this one exception, I’ll be willing to pay double your normal fee.”
He sighed again. “Okay. I’ll see what I can do, but forget about paying double. I’ve been working with your brother for years. You’re good people.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate that.”
“You mentioned you were able to get the former investigator’s working file.”
“Yes.”
“How fast can you get the documents to me?”
“I can scan the entire file to you right now,” Regal told him.
“Good.” Tucker gave Regal his email address.
“Perfect. I’ll have them over to you within the next few minutes.”
“I’ll be on the lookout for them. Hey, and one more thing before you hang up…do you want me to work with your friend directly, or am I running everything through you?”
“You can work with her directly. Her name is Felicity James. Just don’t tell her I hired you.”
“So when she inquires about how I was able to obtain her information and such—?”
“Just say the previous investigator turned over the case to you as a show of good faith.”
“Alright. I can do that.”
“Good. I’ll have the files coming your way shortly.”
Regal got up and immediately began sending the documents to Tucker. Once he completed them all, he put the file in the bottom drawer of his desk and called the police department to report a case of stalking. He would make sure Donald McConnell never did this to another woman. The man belonged in jail, not roaming the streets looking for his next victim.
Chapter 17
“Oh, you got Starbucks this morning,” Zandra said when she saw Felicity walk into the office. She looked happy, not worn out and stressed. Must’ve had a good weekend, especially since she had somebody sending her gifts and whatnot.
“Yep, and I brought you one so you can be boujee right along with me.”
“Thanks, girl.”
“You’re welcome,” she replied. “Has anything urgent come up so far?” Felicity asked, looking through a small stack of mail Zandra had placed on the counter.
“Nope. Nothing urgent. You did get a package though.”
“I got a package?”
“Yes, ma’am,” she said cheesing. “I put it on your desk.”
“Okay. Thanks.” Felicity strutted to her office. She saw the fruit and chocolate arrangement sitting on her desk and a smile immediately came to her face.
She lowered her briefcase and pulled the card to see who it was from.
Dub, I haven’t spoken with you since Saturday. I hope you’re doing well. BTW, I’ve never tried one of these fruit arrangements. I hope there’s nothing in here that tastes like rubber balls. *wink*
Felicity chuckled then picked up the phone to dial his number.
“Well, well, well—the dead has arisen,” he said upon answering.
“Hi, Regal.”
“Hi, Felicity James. To what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call?”
“I got your package—I mean the fruit. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Didn’t you and I have a discussion about leaving the nicknames alone?”
“I don’t recall such an agreement.”
She playfully squinted her eyes. “Sure you don’t. Anyway, I was planning on calling you this morning since I heard from Danella late last night.”
“Late last night…thought you didn’t work on weekends?”
“I don’t, but I wasn’t doing anything Sunday night, so I reached out to her. I would have called you last night, but I didn’t want to inconvenience you.”
“It’s no inconvenience. You can call me anytime day or night and trust me when I say I don’t extend that offer to just anyone.”
“I do appreciate it but I respect your time as being valuable as do mine. And while we’re on the subject of time, thank you for hanging around Saturday. I was a mess and I apologize for not keeping things professional. I know you didn’t have to stay, so—”
“It was my pleasure. You’re going to learn very quickly that if you feed me, I’m all yours.”
Felicity grinned. “Then you better hope Danella can cook.”
“What? Oh. Danella. Right.”
“I had a very good conversation with her yesterday afternoon. I didn’t ask her anything upfront—it was just a casual conversation in which I found out she’s very close with her parents. She considers herself a daddy’s girl and according to her, they all go on a family vacation once a year and her parents are still together and happily in love. She says she wants what they have.”
“Hmmm...okay.”
“I’m sensing a little apprehension on your part but I’m here to tell you—Danella is the real deal, Regal. It doesn’t get much better.”
“Therein lies the problem. I know for a fact that it gets better.”
“But you haven’t even met her yet.”
“Doesn’t matter. I can pick up on vibes.”
Fel
icity chuckled. “There are no vibes, silly. I repeat—you haven’t met her yet.”
“I wasn’t talking about vibes with her necessarily.”
“Look, Regal, I know you’re the ish and all, but you’re not going to find perfection.”
“That’s not what I’m looking for. I’m in search of my best possible match. My soulmate.”
“And I’m telling you, I think that’s Danella. Look—how about I put a date on the calendar for Friday?”
“Cool. Where are we going?”
“We are not going anywhere.” Felicity sighed. “Regal, are you serious about this because I feel like you’ve been putting off this date?”
“I am serious, sweetie. Just kidding with you. Go ahead and put a date on the calendar for next week Friday.”
“Next week? Why not this Friday?”
“I’m golfing this Friday.”
“You can’t reschedule golf for this very important date?”
“No.”
“Alright. I’ll check with Danella to find out if next Friday suits her schedule and I’ll let you know.”
“Okay. I’ll be waiting to hear from you.”
Felicity got to work right after she hung up with Regal. She called Danella to confirm that a date for next Friday would be okay and once Danella confirmed that it was, Felicity drafted an email to Regal:
To: Regal St. Claire
From: Felicity James
Subject: Date Confirmation – Danella Murphy
Regal,
I have confirmed with Danella that she will be available next Friday for your first date. A few pointers to keep in mind:
1. You should pick her up at 6:30 p.m. Do not be late.
2. Please bring her flowers, preferably roses.
3. Be a true gentleman and open the car doors, restaurant doors, pull out her chair, etc.
Also, you should already have a restaurant planned in advance. If the restaurant of your choice requires a reservation, you should make that in advance as well. Also please refrain from referring to Danella by made-up nicknames. For instance, do not call her Nelly, Nella, Danny-girl or nothing of the sort. If you have any further questions ahead of your date, please call me. If for any reason you have to cancel, please give a 48-hour notice.
Good luck!
Felicity James
Certified Matchmaker | Wedded Bliss, Inc.
___________
Felicity sighed. Setting up two people whom she thought were excellent matches made her proud, but this time, why was she feeling a wave of melancholy after setting Regal up with Danella? She picked a juicy strawberry from the bouquet Regal had sent to her. She knew why this time was more challenging than the others. Like Gianna said, Regal was a good man. A catch. He was the kind of man who, although at times acted like a pure fool, had integrity. Values. He loved his family. Wanted children. She had no doubt that he would treat his woman like a queen.
That got her to thinking about how different her life would have been if she didn’t fall for Demontae. He’d presented himself as a decent man, but when it mattered, he dipped. Would men like Regal and his brothers behave that way? Absolutely not. His brothers had already proven they were good men. Regal couldn’t be too far off, right?
She looked at her inbox when she saw an email response come through from Regal:
To: Felicity James
From: Regal St. Claire
Subject: Re: Date Confirmation – Danella Murphy
Reading your email, I can’t help but wonder if you curated this message just for me or if you send this type of communication to all of your male clients.
Please advise.
Regal St. Claire
Senior Architect | St. Claire Architects
___________
She replied back with:
To: Regal St. Claire
From: Felicity James
Subject: Re: Date Confirmation – Danella Murphy
It’s a standard message. I tailor it to the needs of my clients.
Have a good day.
Felicity James
Certified Matchmaker | Wedded Bliss, Inc.
___________
Felicity took a pineapple chunk that was shaped like a flower and bit into it. The juice splashed on her desk. This fruit was delicious and every time she ate a piece of it she thought of Regal. She sighed. Danella Murphy was one lucky girl.
Chapter 18
Regal analyzed the drawing he had printed. If anything was off, no matter how small, he’d tweak it. He often teased Ramsey about being a perfectionist, but as an architect, he was the same way – it came with the profession. He’d adjust the slightest detail no matter how minor.
“Ay, are we still on for golf tomorrow?” Ramsey asked walking into Regal’s office.
“Yeah, man. I’ve been going hard on this drawing all week. I need to get out of here for a little while and reset.”
Ramsey grinned a little. “How are things going with Felicity?”
“I think we’re in a better place, but when I flirt with her, it goes right over her head because she thinks I’m really into this Wedded Bliss process. She’s already set a date for me and this woman named Danella for next Friday.”
“Your plan is backfiring.”
“Big time.”
“That only means you need to reevaluate some things, or you could go through with the date with Danella. Who knows? You may like her.”
“Nah. I don’t want to go out with her. I know who I want.”
“Is she the one? Felicity I mean. Is Felicity James your one?”
“Yes. She’s my one.”
Ramsey crossed his arms. “Who knows you better than me, Regal? Let me tell you what I know about you.”
“Tell me what you know about me,” Regal said all ears.
“You’ve never sweated a woman. You’ve always given off the impression that you wanted a family—love, happiness, a woman that can cook—but this is the first time I’ve actually seen you all messed up over a woman.” Ramsey was pacing the area in front of Regal’s desk when he said, “And something else I know is, you can nab any woman you want. Any woman. But you chose this woman. You’re willing to go on fake dates just to be in contact with Felicity. At some point, and I believe that point is now, you’re going to have to make a definite move and do something that would leave no doubt in her mind that you’re interested in her.”
“I’m trying to tread softly man. She’s more complex than I thought. She—she—” Regal hesitated to say anything about Felicity’s personal business regarding her daughter with Ramsey being that Felicity warned him not to.
“I know about her daughter,” Ramsey said. “She told Gianna on Monday.”
A wave a relief washed over Regal. “Good. Now I can speak in detail about my hesitancy to go all-in.”
“I’m listening.”
“She has a daughter. She’s in the process of trying to find her so that in itself has me feeling like I’m in her way if that makes any sense to you. She’s focused on her daughter. I’m focused on her. I don’t want to come between her and her daughter. What room is there for me in all of this?”
“Would you accept her daughter as yours?”
“In my mind, I already have which, in itself is crazy because Felicity doesn’t know how I feel about her yet and I haven’t met her daughter.”
“The simple solution would be to help her on this journey. If she kept this a secret for so long, especially from her best friend, then chances are she’s still struggling with it more so than you may think. And as for this issue she has with her parents—use your strong family ties to help her see the importance of hers.”
Regal nodded in agreement. “Looks like I’m going to be busy.”
“Yep. I still need that drawing though.”
“I got you.”
“Alright, man. I’m heading out. I’ll have my cell if anything comes up.”
“Okay. Later. Oh, and thanks for the advice.”
�
��Hey, it’s about time I returned the favor, huh?”
* * *
Felicity had reached out to a few people concerning her case but had heard nothing back so far which is the reason she had hired a private investigator to begin with. It would be challenging to focus on work and looking for her daughter but she couldn’t stand around and do nothing. She scrolled through her recent call log, looking for the number she’d dialed for North Carolina adoption information when a call from a number she didn’t recognize came through.
Hoping it was someone calling her back, she quickly answered, “Hello?”
“Good evening. I’m looking for Felicity James, please.”
“Who’s calling?”
“The name’s Tucker Harlow of Piedmont Investigations. I’m reviewing some information concerning your daughter.”
“Wait—you’re a private investigator calling me about my daughter? How do you know anything about her? How did you get this number?”
“Well, it seems that the last P.I. you hired—Donald McConnell—feared you would try to sue him so he released your case to me.”
“But I—”
“I can assure you that my business is accredited, my record is clean and I will find your daughter, Ms. James.”
“Why should I trust you? Donald turned out to be a perv.”
“As I said, Ms. James—my record is clean. My name is Tucker Harlow. You can Google my company to read reviews and—”
“I’ll do that and if I find you acceptable, I may call you back.”
“Okay. I’ll be right here.”
