The Game of Seduction (Arrington Family Series)

by Candace Shaw

“Oh, babe I can’t. Meeting with my producer, Jeff, before I leave. We need to go over some things.”

  “Isn’t he going with you to New York?”

  “Um … no. He’s got wedding stuff to do.”

  She found that odd the producer of the show wouldn’t be there, but then again she didn’t know much about producing televisions shows either.

  “All right. I’m going to go get ready to meet with Megan.”

  “I’ll be up in about forty-five minutes.” He sped up the machine and wiped the sweat from his brow.

  Perfect. I’ll be gone in about thirty minutes.

  She raced up the three flights of stairs, rinsed her hair, and blow dried it halfway, especially at the roots since she was going be outside in the cold, threw on some slacks and a sweater and a newsboy cap. She grabbed a pea coat, her boots, and purse and headed down to the garage all in thirty minutes. She needed to get away, and she didn’t want to see Rasheed at the moment. She wanted to believe him and part of her did, but after their conversation she needed time away from him.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Bria sat in Megan’s conference room in her downtown Atlanta office going over material samples for drapes and duvets for Rasheed’s home. While everything was so beautiful, her heart was no longer in it. Why was she helping decorate a house that wasn’t even hers?

  She sighed and tried to look interested in whatever Megan was explaining to her about the weight of the different fabrics and curtain rods, but Bria couldn’t get her mind off of the conversation she had earlier that morning with Rasheed. Plus, she found it odd the producer wasn’t going to New York, and Rasheed sure was in a hurry to ask her when she was returning to Memphis. She thought at one point he wanted her to take the job at the wellness center so she would be in the same city as him considering Sports Fanatic was based out of Atlanta. He would now be spending more months in Atlanta than in Memphis which was one reason why he wanted his home livable.

  “Earth to Bria,” Megan sang and waved her hand in front of Bria’s eyes. “I asked you do you agree with my decision about the shutter blinds in the dining room and the kitchen or do you like the ascot valances better for the kitchen?”

  “Oh. I’m sorry. My mind was somewhere else.”

  Jade strutted in with Starbucks coffee and handed it out to Bria and Megan. “Girl, where? On the fine ex-basketball player you’re dating. If so, I don’t blame you.”

  “Well, I was thinking about him, but not for the reasons you think.”

  “Chile, what did he do?” Jade ran her hand through her that was cut like Halle Berry’s in the movie Boomerang.

  Bria explained to them the conversation from that morning, and now she didn’t know what to do.

  “If it were me, I’d say burn down his mansion Left Eye style, but only after Megan and I decorate it, and we get paid. However, I don’t want to see you go to jail, so scratch that idea.”

  Megan shook her head at Jade. “Maybe he really was telling the truth.”

  “I thought so too until I asked if he wanted to go to dinner this evening, but he has a business dinner with his producer before he leaves for New York later on tonight.”

  “Where are they meeting for dinner?” Jade asked.

  “I didn’t even ask. I can call and find out.”

  “No. Then he’ll think you don’t trust him.” Jade grabbed her cell phone. “Give me a minute. I’ll find out.”

  “How are you going to find out?” Megan asked.

  “Don’t you know me by now? I have my connections. Wade Greene, the other sportscaster on Sports Fanatic, and I met about decorating his townhome in Decatur. He’s the client Rasheed referred to us. Anyway, Wade’s assistant, Becky, is friends with Rasheed’s Atlanta assistant. I’ve gotten in good with Becky, and I’ll just call her and have her ask. I’ll be right back.” Jade grabbed her cell phone and coffee and hurried out of the conference room.

  “Can she really do that?” Bria questioned.

  “She does it all the time. Ever since college, she’s had the connections and power to finagle to get what she needs. How do you think we got this great office space? It usually only works with men, but we’ll see.”

  Ten minutes later, Jade pranced back in with a wide smile, sat back in her seat, and crossed her long legs.

  “Ladies, never underestimate me and my power of persuasion. I just found out that Rasheed’s assistant made reservations for two at the Sundial Restaurant on top of the Westin for 5:00. So then I called and made reservations for three under my name for 5:30.”

  “Jade, you want Bria to spy?” Megan asked.

  “I wouldn’t call it spying. We have to eat, and we can eat anywhere we want to. Besides, Bria needs to know what’s going on with this brother before she gets hurt. I hope he was telling her the truth. He has her decorating mansions and what not, yet he has a place in Buckhead where he takes his honeys. Trust me, I know the game.”

  “I hate to agree with Jade, but she’s right. I need to know what I’m getting myself into. We’ve haven’t been together long, so I can cut my losses and move on, but I’ve already fallen in love with him.”

  Jade reached over and placed a comforting hand over Bria’s. “For your sake, honey, I hope he’s not cheating on you. I’ve never been in love and don’t plan to be anytime soon, but you seem as if you really love Rasheed, and I honestly think he loves you, too. If you don’t want to go to the Sundial, we don’t have to.”

  “No, I need to go. I need to see with my own eyes if he’s been lying or not.”

  For the rest of the afternoon, she pretended to look over the fabric swatches, but her heart was racing in anticipation. Rasheed had texted her that he loved her and would see her before he left for New York. She simply texted back “okay” and then turned off her cell phone.

  *****

  “This is absolutely beautiful.” Rasheed held up his mother’s bracelet. “You do beautiful work, Mrs. Harris.”

  “Thank you,” the older lady smiled. “I knew your mother very well. I know she’d want her bracelet to be exquisite for the young lady you’re giving it to.”

  Mrs. Harris set the bracelet back in the black leather case on the jewelry store’s glass counter. Rasheed admired it once more. The new diamond in the middle was flawless, flanked by the two new emeralds on either side. He decided since he’d taken the first diamond out to make an earring for himself, he would have the emeralds made into earrings for Brooklyn and give them to her for her upcoming birthday.

  “Mrs. Harris, thank you for shutting down your store for me on such short notice today.”

  “No problem. Anything for Elaine’s son and one of my best customers over the years. Now, you mentioned this morning that two or three carats were out of the question and you can handle much more. How about something between ten or twenty carats? I have a flawless yellow diamond around twenty carats.”

  She pulled out a case from under the counter, unlocked the case, pulled out another case from it, and pushed in a computerized code.

  “Damn, it takes all that to open that case?” he asked as he stared at about twenty diamond engagement rings.

  “When most of these rings are worth well into the millions, yes. This case is usually locked in a special place with a security guard guarding it among other precious jewels.”

  Rasheed glanced over to the two security guards that were flanked on either side of the door to the store. He nodded to them, and they didn’t budge.

  “Where did you get them from, Buckingham Palace?”

  “You were always a jokester, just like your father.” She took out a ring and held it up before placing it on her finger. “What about this one? It’s twenty carats for five million.”

  “Whoa, sister. You gonna give me a heart attack. One of the reasons why I still have most of my millions is because I don’t spend them on extravagant things. Besides, she’s a doctor. That would be too big for her. Plus, she has small fingers. I was thinking about something aro
und five carats.” He scanned the case and smiled when he saw a ring that reminded him of Bria. It was classy and cute like her. He pointed to it instead of touching it. He was scared Mrs. Harris would slap his wrist or the case would shock him with some type of laser because it didn’t recognize his finger.

  “Very wise choice, young man.” She handed him the ring. “This is a five-carat, flawless princess cut diamond. It’s 1.5 million, and you did say money’s no object.”

  He admired the ring. It was perfect for Bria. Not too small. Not too big. It was just right for her dainty finger.

  “You’re right. When I want something I get it, and Bria deserves the best. I’ll take this one. Send the bill to my accountant. I’ll call him in a few to give him a heads up so he won’t have a heart attack.” He knew Derek would’ve wanted to be consulted first, but at the end of the day, it was Rasheed’s money that he also kept track of.

  “Perfect. I’ll wrap everything up for you. Have a seat in the waiting area. I’ll have Christi bring you a glass of champagne.”

  “Tell her to bring the whole damn bottle. I just spent my entire salary this year from Sports Fanatic, but it was worth every penny.”

  Rasheed took out his cell phone to send Bria a text message. When he didn’t hear back within ten minutes, he decided to call her, but it went straight to voice mail. He left her a message.

  “Hey, Bree. I’m having dinner at 5:00 with Jeff at the Sundial on top of the Westin hotel. He called earlier to tell me he’s bringing his fiancée, Cindy, you know, the cheerleader you saw me chatting with. Since she’s coming, you should come too. I just had the reservations changed to four people under Vincent. I can’t pick you up because I have an appointment at 3:00 that I’m headed to in a few. Can’t wait to see you, baby. I love you. Call me back.”

  He clicked off with a huge smile. Everything was perfect. They would eat dinner with Jeff and Cindy and then once they left, they would head down to a suite he reserved for the evening at the Westin Hotel. He would present her with the bracelet and a plane ticket to fly to New York with him the next morning. At the game the following evening, he would pop the question during halftime.

  He smiled as everything had been falling into place. He’d almost gotten caught that morning but was glad that Bria believed him and trusted him enough to know he would never do anything to make her beautiful smile leave her beautiful face. He loved her too much.

  *****

  Bria held her breath as she stood in the glass elevator of the Westin Hotel with Megan and Jade on either side of her. It was a little after 5:00, so she assumed Rasheed would already be there with Jeff, at least she hoped. She had decided if he was indeed there with Jeff, she would turn around and say nothing. If he was there with some woman, she didn’t know what she would do.

  They stepped off of the elevator and into the lobby area of the Sundial. The hostess smiled as Jade gave her the information, and they were shown to their seats. Jade had already informed the hostess to seat them away from Mr. Vincent’s table but close enough to where they could still see him, just not the other way around.

  As they sat down, Bria spotted him right away alone, sipping on a cocktail—probably rum and Coke—and looking at his cell phone. A few minutes went by, and he was talking on the phone and checking his Rolex but still alone. She started to breathe a little easy until he stood and hugged a woman and her heart dropped. It was that damn cheerleader from the game that he claimed was his producer’s fiancée.

  A waiter interrupted her thoughts as he stood in front of her blocking her view from Rasheed and the cheerleader.

  “We’re not ready yet,” Jade interjected before Bria was going to yell “move out the way.” “Just bring some waters, please.”

  He nodded politely and walked away.

  The ladies continued watching as Rasheed and the cheerleader talked and laughed like old friends. Their waiter came over, the girl said something, and they all laughed.

  Bria felt her heart sinking and breaking, but she refused to cry.

  “Bria, we can leave if you want to,” Megan suggested, reaching for her purse.

  “No. I want to see everything so if he tries to lie and beg me to forgive him, I’ll know with my own eyes that he’s nothing but a dirty dog that can’t be trusted.”

  Rasheed was doing most of the talking, probably laying on the charm and the lies. Whatever he was saying, he was excited about it, and his face was sort of glowing like a pregnant woman. Damn. Was he that happy to be with some young, bubbly cheerleader? Then his face lit up even more when he pulled a black velvet box out of his suit pocket, and slid it to her.

  “Oh no he didn’t,” Jade said, with a slight neck roll.

  The girl clapped, opened it, and pulled out a bracelet and held it in the air before putting it on, admiring it. A tear came to Bria’s eye when she realized whose bracelet it was or whose bracelet he said it was. She felt herself get weak in the knees and faint as the cheerleader oohed and ahhed over the gold clasp bracelet that he said belonged to his mother.

  “We need to go,” Megan said.

  “Wait a minute,” Jade said. “Bria, what do you want to do because I got your back.”

  Bria was numb. She couldn’t think, breathe, or move. “That’s the bracelet he told me belonged to his mother, and she made him promise to give it to the woman he loved. But I see now that was one big lie. Because if that was the case, he would be giving it to me.”

  Megan rubbed her back. “What do you want to do?”

  “Girl, what are you going to do because I have things in the trunk of my car for situations like this, and I always carry something in my purse. Don’t let this pretty face and bougie attitude fool you. I grew up on the streets of Atlanta. I will and have cut a ho, and will do it again. Just let me know what you want to do.”

  Bria whispered. “I want to leave.”

  *****

  Damn.

  Rasheed checked his watch and his cell phone for the millionth time. It was almost 6:00, and he hadn’t heard from Bria at all. This wasn’t like her. Her cell phone was off and the voice mail box was now full with all of his messages. He kept looking toward the door thinking she would enter at any moment. Jeff had finally made it up to the restaurant after finding a parking space.

  Rasheed sipped his second rum and Coke and tried to listen to Jeff about the upcoming game and the players who did and didn’t want to be interviewed. Rasheed wasn’t really concerned with that. He’d played with most of them at one point, so even the ones who didn’t want to be interviewed would speak to him.

  But that wasn’t the reason for his discontent at the moment. He was wondering where the hell Bria was. The bracelet box was burning a hole in his right jacket pocket and the ring box was in the other. By 6:45, he figured she wasn’t coming. Jeff and Cindy had left at 6:30 and Rasheed followed at 7:00, racing to his home to see if she was there. She just had to be there. They had left each other on a good note that morning, he thought. Sure, she blew up about the phone call with Mrs. Harris, but he couldn’t tell Bria the nature of the call. It would’ve ruined the surprise.

  When he pulled into the driveway, he pushed the garage button praying to see her Lexus SUV, but it wasn’t there. All kinds of questions ran through his mind as he ran through the house upstairs to the bedroom. Maybe she was out with Taylor or Megan. Maybe she was at the Sundial looking for him, and he’d somehow missed her.

  Everything looked normal in the bedroom. The bed was made, the drapes were closed, but when he looked at the nightstand on her side of the bed, her Kindle Fire wasn’t sitting there. His heart stopped for a second, and he took a deep breath as he walked into the bathroom and saw all of the toiletries from her vanity were gone. He opened the door to her closet, and it was bare except for a piece of paper sitting on the island in the middle of the closet with a Tiffany box on top of it.

  He grabbed the paper and sat down on the floor to read it as his legs went weak from the crippling of his heart.


  Rasheed,

  I can’t do this any longer. I’m going back to Memphis tonight. Please don’t try to contact me. Just let me move on.

  Bria

  He balled it up and threw it across the closet. He opened the Tiffany box and saw the necklace he’d given her for Christmas when they were just friends. When everything was cool between them. When she was his best friend. When she was the one person he trusted to tell everything to. He couldn’t figure out what the hell he’d done wrong.

  He looked at his keys sitting on the floor next to him, and then he looked at his watch. He grabbed his cell phone as his adrenaline rushed through his veins, and he called his main assistant.

  “Emma, I need you to be the personal assistant of the year,” he said to his assistant based in Memphis. She’d been with him for over ten years. She was a sweet lady that reminded him of his mother.

  “What can I do for you, Mr. Vincent?”

  “I need a private jet ASAP to take me from Atlanta to Memphis. I need to be on it within the next hour. It’s an emergency.”

  “I’ll call you back in a few.”

  While he waited, he tried calling Bria again but an automated computer voice kept telling him the voice mail box was full.

  “Dammit!”

  When his cell phone rang fifteen minutes later, he prayed it was Bria, but it was Emma.

  “Mr. Vincent, there will be a helicopter arriving at your home in about twenty minutes to take you to a private air field. I also arranged for a car to take you wherever you need to go once you arrive in Memphis.”

  “Perfect, I’m going to go downstairs and wait now. Thank you, Emma.”

  Bria meant everything to him, and he wasn’t giving up without fighting for the woman he loved.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Bria drove and cried along the interstate to Birmingham, Alabama. She had about five more hours before she made it home to Memphis. After she returned to Rasheed’s home, she threw all of her clothes into her suitcases, and what she couldn’t fit in them, she threw into the backseat of her SUV.