by Pat Simmons
Since they were teenagers, the Logan boys were often referred to as the Jackson Five of acapella. That was courtesy of his mother who was now a retired music teacher. She had often paraded them in front of gatherings, churches and other events to brag about her sons’ talents. That was before dating and college got in the way and played a part in disbanding them to Bernadette Logan’s displeasure. By then they had already branched out to a wide range of music. They could hear a song once and sing it note for note. Every now and then, whenever all of the brothers were together, somebody would make a request.
“Since you got me up here, I’ve got this,” Drake told Stephan, thumbing his chest.
Stephan shoved a microphone in Drake’s hand. Without another word, Drake walked confidently to the center of the stage. Once he had Pepper’s table within view, he began.
“Okay, ladies. I’m man enough to admit that most of the time a woman is right,” Drake said. He lifted the microphone to his mouth and tossed a look over his shoulder. He laughed at his brothers’ bewildered expressions as cheers erupted throughout the room. “So, I’m going to follow the advice of one singer Vivian Green, and tell her she’s beautiful.”
A few women screamed, “Yeah!”
His objective was all about sealing the deal with Pepper, so he sang his heart out. “Pepper, you’re beautiful and in that outfit, you absolutely take my breath away.” Drake lowered his voice only to be drowned out by claps and more screams of encouragement as if he was about to perform a striptease.
C HAPTER THREE
No Drake didn’t. Pepper’s mouth dropped open. Was he serious? The moment would have been so romantic if it weren’t so embarrassing. How many people were looking at her besides Drake? She couldn’t break his spell to find out. How did she and Drake go from light banter over dinner at a public event to a private declaration in a room full of witnesses? If a spotlight dare find her, she was going to hide out under the table until the janitors were about to lock up. She wasn’t used to public shows of affection from any of her dates.
Monica appeared beside her in a huff as she commandeered Drake’s seat. “If I had known that dress could make a man sing to me, I would have gone shopping with you.”
Within minutes, Pepper whirled her head around to see Drake’s sister-in-law, Paige, flop on the other chair, sandwiching her in.
“Wow,” Paige whispered, clearly in awe. “In the four years since I’ve known Drake, I’ve never heard him sing like that, and my brother-in-law can sang. I overheard Monica. I don’t think your dress had anything to do with it. It’s you. But if the dress—our dress—is the culprit, just remember I brought you two together. Stephan has never sung to me like that and he can croon, too.” She folded her hands, pleased, as if they were long-time friends instead of dress twins.
Pepper groaned. Even the chatterboxes next to her couldn’t pull her away from Drake as he weaved her name throughout the song. Pepper was on uncharted territory tonight. First, she flirted with Drake, now he was serenading her. Did she come off as easy? Pinching the tablecloth, Pepper debated if she should bolt to the nearest exit. “This isn’t happening,” she mumbled, shaking her head.
“But it is,” Monica confirmed, nudging her.
“Why?”
“Do you really want me to respond to that?” Monica asked.
Not really, Pepper thought.
“It’s that dress!” Monica said, answering anyway.
“Hmmm.” Paige jumped in. “Maybe, but Drake definitely likes you—seriously.”
The vibes between them were undeniable, but was this his idea of transparency, a prelude to a relationship or a serenade to sex? Too bad because she had walked with God too long to stumble over a fine, charming and talented man, so sleeping with any man before marriage was not on her agenda. Pepper continued to get worked up over the uncertainties. She was breaking out in a cold sweat and she was more than twenty years away from menopause.
This definitely wasn’t included in the price of her admission. Pepper’s expectation for the night was to congratulate her students on receiving scholarships and supporting her best friend because Monica was trying to reach a number of ticket sales. Plus, enjoy a tasty meal, a little networking, and a speech before the presentations was included in the program, but Drake was hypnotic. The word beautiful would always be synonymous with him after that night.
Monica and Paige continued to ooh and ahh. The enthusiastic applause that erupted around her was deafening as Drake held the last note until his breath gave out. Monica and Paige leaped to their feet, clapping and cheering. For a moment, Pepper couldn’t move.
When she managed to stand, the women’s hugs and kisses prevented her from escaping as Drake and his brothers exited the stage. Luckily for her, there was no shortage of women that were detaining Drake with their accolades and probably phone numbers. Pepper experienced a bout of annoyance. Was he hers to claim? Did she care? Should she care? Yes, her conscious answered for her as flashes of warning lights popped in her head. Drake wasn’t far away as he towered over most of his admirers. She watched as his eyes searched for hers then locked on her. Her heart skipped then did a somersault before it settled down.
“The man is a hero in my book. If he hadn’t bought the rest of the seats at my table, it would have been the first year I didn’t meet my commitment on the scholarship fundraiser,” Monica said.
“He did what?” Pepper’s neck whipped around.
“He didn’t tell you?” Monica asked Pepper incredulously.
“No. He just said your ticketholders backed out.”
Monica chuckled. “I would phrase it that Drake bought them out before any of them would come through. He scribbled a check for more than a thousand dollars.” She laughed louder. “His sister-in-law and I exchanged knowing looks when the deal went down. Of course, Paige’s husband warned us to butt out of it. Drake’s smitten.”
“And Drake’s paper won’t bounce,” Paige chimed in.
And Pepper had the nerve to complain earlier that none of the men she knew would spend a hundred dollars on a ticket. I’m in trouble. Back to temptation that never looked so fine.
“The Logan men are unstoppable when they make up their minds about something—at least that was the way it was with my Stephan.” Paige smiled.
“And knowing Pepper, she’s thinking of excuses to push him away,” Monica said.
“Thanks for the heads up.” Drake appeared at her side with hands stuffed in his pants pockets.
She jumped in surprise and shock.
His polished appearance was altered with his tie loosened. He didn’t take his eyes off her. One minute Pepper had Drake in her view, fighting off the pack. The next thing she knew, he had snuck up on her. Suddenly, she experienced a brain freeze as if she had gulped down a frozen drink.
“Good thing I’m resilient, so give it your best shot, Miss Trudeau,” Drake issued his challenge. Monica and Paige gave Drake thumbs up, then they scattered.
Pepper swallowed. She definitely understood the saying “a deer caught in the headlights.” Her best shot? Clearly, she was out of her league. More women seemed to be clawing their way to get to Drake, so Pepper used them to make her getaway. Unfortunately, her shoes were new, and she wasn’t accustomed to speed walking in them.
Her heart pounded as she got closer to the escalators. As soon as she stepped on, she heard Drake calling for her. She ignored him. Pepper was almost at the landing when heavy footsteps clashed against the moving metal stairs coming her way.
“Pepper, wait!”
She didn’t as she got off and headed for the street entrance to the parking garage. Drake’s long strides overpowered hers. She didn’t slow down.
“I’ll accept that you didn’t hear me.”
Suddenly his earlier charming personality seemed arrogant. That’s when Pepper spun around and squinted. “Me and a whole room full of people heard you. I think the song and your voice are beautiful, but…what do I look like, that I’
m desperate for attention?”
Oh, she enjoyed attention like any other woman, but privately. Otherwise, she would be on somebody’s catwalk as her mother had tried to push her to do as a child, but Pepper had been too shy. Her reaction tonight proved that she still hadn’t grown out of it.
His lips formed a perfect “o,” and he stuffed his hands in his pants pockets. “No, I steer clear of desperate women, housewives, hood girls, and anything or one associated with desperate. I simply think you are beautiful.”
“Humph. Thanks for the compliment, but your declaration was embarrassing in a room full of strangers. You don’t even know me.” She stuck a fist on her hip.
“It was not my intention to embarrass you, just to ward off the weak competition. Just meeting you and not knowing you are small technicalities that I plan to correct this very moment if you don’t run away like Cinderella.”
Pepper was fuming. This man took too many assumptions for granted. When it came to relationships, she kept it private. That’s why she never understood men who proposed in a public place like a restaurant or ballgame or even in front of family members. Pepper opened her mouth, but couldn’t form the words to chew him out in a way she wouldn’t have to repent for later.
He reached out and took her hand. “If I deserve a slap tonight, I’ll turn the other cheek and enjoy the sting.” He brushed a soft kiss on it and waited for her response.
Slap him? Drake quenched her protest with his touch, which was like a tranquilizer. Lord, deliver me from evil, she prayed silently.
CHAPTER FOUR
The slap wasn’t physical, but the punch to Drake’s ego was powerful. Pepper snatched her hand out of his grip, then jutted her chin and sashayed away. “What did I do?” he mumbled, because he was really clueless. He preferred not to let Pepper go, but he didn’t chase after women.
Should he make an exception with Pepper? While pondering his options, he returned to the ballroom and had no problem finding partners on the dance floor, but boredom soon kicked in. Drake was ready to go, so he hunted down his brother who rode with him.
Noticing his sudden sullen mood, Tyson, Drake’s older brother by two years, tried to rally him. “Cheer up, bro. With all those babes falling at your feet, there are definitely plenty of fish for you to reel in from the water,” Tyson advised as they walked outside.
“Yeah. Maybe you’re right. There were some hotties there tonight, but—”
Tyson nodded. “Yeah, plenty of those too,” he said, referring to a woman’s backside.
But once they were inside the parking garage and Drake was behind the wheel of his SUV, he stared out the window, mulling again over the night’s events. He went through the motions of clicking on his seatbelt, but he hadn’t turned the key in the ignition. Pepper’s reaction to his serenade still baffled him. Women liked to be wooed, so what happened?
“Come on, man,” Tyson ordered. “I would like to get home before breakfast.”
Drake frowned. Starting the engine, Drake followed the exit signs back out to the street. He slammed on his brakes when the driver of a Mercedes jetted in front of him.
Tyson snapped his fingers. “Would you pay attention, dawg?” He huffed. “I would have to be the unfortunate one to have to deal with you after that woman dissed you. That was a bold move, though, back there. The way you were singing your heart out, I thought you were about to propose.”
“Shut up, Ty.”
But Tyson didn’t. “As usual, you’ve got good taste. She was a top model quality if I’ve ever seen one. I did see her in that dress and she definitely outshined Paige, but before I could make a move on the lady, you had her all to yourself at the table. Humph, lucky dog. How did you manage that?”
“Money talks.” And Drake didn’t regret spending the money. It was a write off anyway.
“Talk about scaring away the competition. Man. Of course, I would’ve been more subtle in my approach, but that was never your way with anything.”
“You just can’t zip your lips, can you, dude? There was a reason I blackened your eye when we were teenagers,” Drake fumed.
“Yeah? If I remember correctly, your arm wasn’t sprained after that by accident either.”
Before long, the brothers were outbesting each other, recanting their childhood antics until Drake relaxed. They chuckled. The two talked trash all the time, but let someone look like they wanted to mess with one Logan brother? Then the five came together as a united front.
Humph. “She mentioned transparency, but I guess my open-book approach didn’t work.” Drake couldn’t keep his mind off Pepper.
“Nope, not by the way Pepper was walking away from you instead of hugging you like almost every other woman in the room. You would have done better not to mention any names when you sang, then brotha… Whew, you could’ve taken your pick of the babes. That’s what I would have done.” Tyson patted his chest and glanced out the window. “I would rather remain a closed novel around women. Give them too much information and they assume the relationship is on a countdown to the altar. Each sexual partner doesn’t equate to a relationship. I haven’t met a woman yet who makes me want to think permanency.”
Drake tuned out Tyson’s ramblings and concentrated on driving down I-170. He couldn’t get rid of his brother fast enough. The oomph she possessed set her apart; Drake just couldn’t put his finger on it, but something about her provoked his emotions and it was more than sexual. The attraction was there. He was convinced, but it was as if Pepper didn’t know what to do with it.
His thoughts were on Pepper’s hair, her dress—oh, she was a knock out—her smile, perfume, and the twinkle in her eyes. Drake blinked and realized he’d almost passed up his Olivette exit. Checking his rearview mirror, Drake made a beeline for the exit ramp. “You know, as for the other fish or beauties that are in the water, I’m not going to let Pepper, the rare Allardi Clownfish, get away.” Drake was determined to capture her affections.
“Man, there’s no need to add more fish to your aquarium.” He paused and glanced out the window. “Hey, you passed my house three blocks ago. Either get your act together and pursue this Pepper woman—without freaking her out—or pull over and let me drive. Clearly, you need a designated driver. Listen, man, get Paige’s take on Pepper’s reaction,” Tyson said, finally offering some useful advice as if he knew where Drake’s mind had drifted.
Maybe Tyson had a point. “Hmm,” Drake said, thoughtful as he pulled in front of Tyson’s house. “I’ve got a plan and my mind is working out the details.”
Tyson shook his head. “Pitiful. What a waste of brain cells.”
CHAPTER FIVE
It had to be a dream, Pepper guessed as she woke Sunday morning drowsy and disoriented. Blinking, she glanced across the room and the evidence of her reality check was lying in her chair. The dress—her dress. “Yeah, you started this,” she fussed at the silent culprit.
She stared at it longer than she should have, and the memories of Drake’s ballad resurfaced. A part of her accused herself of overreacting; another part warned her that she was out of her league with a man who oozed with a double portion of masculinity. Some women, no doubt, would cheer her on to enjoy the ride. Only the Holy Ghost within her could keep her from yielding to that much temptation.
If she was in a long-term relationship and her boyfriend would have sung to her like that, she still would have been embarrassed by the public attention, but ecstatic with his affections, but the extent of her relationship with Mr. Logan was an hour over dinner, for which she paid her own way.
“That was yesterday. Today is a new day,” she said with a new resolve as she threw back her cover, stood, then slid to her knees. She thanked the Lord for waking her up, which she never took lightly since a friend of her coworker’s died in her sleep years ago from a seizure.
She showered then fixed herself breakfast, still trying to dismiss the previous night’s events. Back in her bedroom, she rummaged through her closet for something to wear
to church, selecting a black dress. She was mourning the loss of her common sense.
Once she finished combing her hair and applying her makeup, Pepper scooped up the outfit she wore the previous night to put in the trunk of her car for her next trip to the cleaners or dumpster, which came first.
Arriving at Fulfilling God’s Promises Church a half hour later, Pepper waited as an usher scouted out an available seat for her. As she approached the pew, the build and haircut of the man she was about to be seated next to seemed familiar. Her heart jumped. How much of a coincidence would it be for Drake to have bribed an usher to have her sit next to him? Pepper chided herself for her foolish thinking. Although she had been a member of the congregation for a couple of years, Pepper never sat in the same section or pew twice in a month. It was another one of those quirks about her that she couldn’t explain.
The man in question glanced her way as Pepper entered the pew. It wasn’t Drake. Pepper exhaled with mixed feelings: disappointment and relief. Get a grip, girl. She bent to her knees, said a prayer of thanks for being in the Lord’s holy place again and slid into her seat. When the choir stood to begin the praise prelude to the sermon, so did Pepper, dismissing all thoughts of the very fine and charming Drake Logan.
Next, visitors were acknowledged and the announcements made. Then her pastor, Elder Hammond, came to the pulpit. “Good morning, church.” He waited for them to respond. Elder Hammond made comments about some current events, then paused and cleared his throat.
Sliding a pair of dark-rimmed glasses on his nose, Elder Hammond opened his Bible. “Do any of you remember the saying, ‘You can’t always believe your eyes?’ I’m here to remind you that you can’t. We’re living in a time where I’m cautioning you to take a closer look. The devil can transform himself into an angel of light. Turn your Bibles to 1 John 4:1–3: ‘Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.’
