by Amore
ANYTHING FOR
YOUR LOVE
WRITTEN BY
AMORE
ANYTHING FOR YOUR LOVE
AMORE
Copyright © 2015
NICETY PUBLICATIONS
Facebook: AmoreTheAuthor
Twitter: @AmoreTheAuthor
www.NicetyPublications.com
This novel is a work of fiction. Any resemblances to actual events, real people, living or dead, organizations, establishments or locales are products of the author’s imagination. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are used fictitiously.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission from the publisher and writer.
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any Web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication, and may no longer be valid.
Acknowledgements
Dedication:
This book is dedicated to The Sisters whose unique personalities help craft my characters! Love you Ladies!
Acknowledgements:
I want to thank my husband, Abdul who always encourages me and my son, Alex who steals my pencils whenever I want to write (yes, I still use pencils!). I want to thank my family, friends and the Devastating Divas of Delta, who all read, critiqued, loved and encouraged me with a special mention to my mom, Pam. I lovingly want to thank The Sisters (Tami, Jada, Jennie, Tracey, Syreeta and Roz) who walked with me, step by step through every page. I also want to thank the staff at RPIC, especially China who NEVER let me lay down my pencil and the staff at Nicety Publications for saying yes! Remember: With God, all things are possible! Until next time!
Love,
Amore
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 1
Alexander Love eyed each of the twelve men and women assembled in the courtroom's jury box, careful to make eye contact with each one of them. They were not only about to decide the fate of his client, but the outcome of this case would determine if he would make partner. He had just delivered his closing argument, and it was a stellar performance if he did say so himself. His confidence was high, but he knew better than to let that show to the judge or jury. He had no problem showing to opposing counsel.
As he turned to return to his place at the table, he glanced over at the seasoned attorney he was up against. A faint smile touched the corners of his mouth. This case was as good as won. He found his seat, assumed a classic attorney expression, and waited. It was the moment of truth.
After just twenty minutes of deliberation, all parties concerned returned to the courtroom. The jury foreman handed the single sheet to the bailiff, who in turn handed it to the judge. The judge read the verdict in silence, and then asked the foreman to announce the finding.
Alex always loved that moment. The tension in the room was so thick, one could almost reach out and touch it. He could feel time slowing around him as a supreme feeling of satisfaction settled in his bones. He drew in a deep breath and waited.
“Congratulations, Mr. Love,” Thomas Sinclair said as he shook his new partner’s hand. “You’ve worked extremely hard, and we are certainly glad to have you as part of the family.”
“Thank you, Tom. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” Alex replied with a triumphant gleam in his eye while turning in his chair. He had just won yet another high profile corporate sexual harassment case.
Alex, at thirty three, had just become the youngest partner at Sinclair & Michaels. Now, Sinclair, Michaels and Love, LLC, was one of the most successful law firms on the east coast based in Philadelphia, PA. The law firm handled many of the tri state area’s high profile cases and the client list was extensive. Alex, in a short time, had become one of the most sought after trial lawyers on the east coast. His commanding presence and smooth, melodic voice made even the judge’s eyes glaze over.
“Alex, that last performance in court was amazing. I believe it’s your charm that persuades a jury more than anything else,” Bradford Michaels chuckled as he also shook Alex’s hand.
“Thank you, Brad,” Alex replied smoothly. He had mastered the art of turning the courtroom voice on and off, which had become sort of a parlor trick around the office.
“Let’s go out for drinks tonight to celebrate,” Brad suggested. Needing a break after all the hours spent working on the case, Alex and Tom agreed.
After the two men left his new corner office in a high rise building in Center City, Alex sat back in his new high back leather chair. A partner’s chair. He couldn’t wait to call his parents because he knew his dad would be extremely proud.
The office was located on the tenth floor. Sinclair, Michaels, and Love encompassed the entire floor. He swung the chair around to look out of the window over the city. The sky was bright and the day was warm. Philadelphians were busy going about their day nine stories below, and he smiled at the sight. He had not been that content with his life in a long time.
His office was done with understated masculinity. The wide floor to ceiling windows had automatic, multilevel, between the glass blinds. His oversized, rich mahogany desk had carved detail work down the sides and over the legs. There was a six-person conference table and a private restroom off to one side. To the other side was a leather love seat, coffee table, and a small walk in closet. The wall near the conference table held massive amounts of law books. He had read nearly every one.
Right near the love seat was a small drink cart, and built into the wall was a flat screen television and a mini refrigerator. One could live there if they needed to, which was what he often did.
His desk was extremely neat and always organized. A flat screen, desktop computer sat off to the left, flanked by an extreme office telephone with a thousand complicated buttons. His laptop sat in its designer carrying case on the floor next to the desk. It was the mobile office that he used quite often.
He had worked hard to get there. Late nights and early mornings were normal for him. Relationships were fleeting, but casual, non- committed affairs had been a part of his life. He found he was quickly growing tired of that life.
Shaking his head and smiling to himself, he picked up the private line on his desk. He dialed his parents' number, mostly by route. The number had been the same almost all of his life.
“Mom, get Dad on another phone.” He waited until he heard his father pick up another telephone. “Mom, Dad, it is official. I’ve made partner!”
Abigail Love screamed with excitement. Michael Love congratulated his eldest son, proud he had chosen to follow in his footsteps. Michael was also a highly respected, successful attorney, just a few years from retirement. Immediately, and true to form, Alex’s mother put the party planning wheels in motion. She told Alex there would be a family gathering Saturday at the family home in Cherry Hill, NJ. Alex knew there was no need to protest because Abigail Love would not take no for an answer. She lived for throwing parties.
She would invite his siblings, Madison, Tyreese, Christopher, and Joi, and all his cousins, aunts, uncles, and friends. Alth
ough the Love family really didn’t need a reason to get together because they were so close anyway, Abigail loved it when they did.
Alex thought about his four siblings. He knew his parents were proud. They were all professional and loved what they did. Madison, his oldest sister after him, was thirty-one and a certified public accountant. She worked for a major accounting firm, also in Philadelphia. Tyreese who was thirty, and Christopher who was twenty-nine, operated the hottest restaurant in Philly known as The Love House. At their restaurant, Ty and Chris had the perfect recipe. Ty was the chef with a master’s degree in culinary arts, and Chris ran the business end with a master’s in business administration from Howard University. Alex had helped them a few years prior get it off the ground and business was phenomenal. Joi, the baby at twenty-seven, was the next up and coming OBGYN. She had delivered countless babies and worked diligently with couples that were struggling to conceive. Everyone was single, although Alex knew his mother was patiently waiting to become a grandmother. His mother’s voice brought him back from his thought about his siblings.
“Is four p.m. alright, Alexander?” Abigail asked.
“Yes, Mom, four p.m. is fine. I’ll be there. And no, mother, I will not have a date, nor do I want you to find me one.” He knew the offer was coming because he never brought women around his family.
Alex’s mother was a professor of psychology at one of the most prestigious colleges, University City in Philadelphia. He often had lunch with her and she always had a ‘promising young lady’ in mind for him to date. That was her not so subtle way to tell him to get on with it.
Alex dated off and on, but his career was center stage. At 6’3” and 220 pounds, he was a formidable force in the courtroom. He, as were all the Love children, was the color of rich milk chocolate with thick, wavy, near black hair he kept cut close. His shoulders were broad and he had a trim, athletic waist. His features were the things underwear models were made of. He had full lips and a chiseled jaw line. His nose was straight and perfect for his face. Not too thin, not too full. His cheeks were perfectly placed just under his eyes.
His eyes gave the impression that somewhere along the family line, someone was of Asian decent. His eyes, as well as all of Abigail’s children, were a unique light brown with dark brown, low lights. They were the kind of eyes that brought women to their knees and he knew it. Alex, his brother, and cousins played basketball together weekly. Sometimes, his sisters and female cousins would play, but mostly, they used the time to keep up with each other’s lives. Alex kept in shape because if Ty and Chris won the weekly game, there would be no end to it.
Alex thought about inviting Amanda to his mother’s celebratory event, and then thought again. He and Amanda had just ended their casual affair two weeks prior. He never told her he was being considered for partner. He saw the dollar signs in her eyes the moment she found out he practiced law. He never really mentioned her to his family. She was a past time and he knew the relationship was not going anywhere. There was no need to start a bad habit at that point. Alex shook the thought of Amanda away and decided it would be best to just enjoy the time with the family he loved so much.
Later that evening after drinks with Sinclair, Michaels, and a few other co-workers, Alex walked the few blocks to his brownstone in Old City. One of the reasons he brought the place was because it was so close to the office. He loved it. It had wide, open spaces and a modern kitchen, which Ty and Chris loved. The bedroom of Alex’s house was a loft that looked out over the dining room. He had hired an interior designer when he moved in, and was glad he did. Otherwise, his mother would have done the job and although he loved her very much, she was a little obsessed with animal prints. Really not his style. He chuckled at the thought of his mother. His family was truly blessed to have her.
*******
Saturday morning arrived bright and early. It was already sixty-eight degrees at eight a.m., and Alex knew the July day would be a hot one. The phone rang and he knew who it was immediately.
“Good morning, Chris,” He said without moving from his position on the bed.
“Alex! Get up, man! We’re trying to get a game in before this afternoon,” Chris replied, not remotely fazed by the irritation in Alex’s voice. Chris had always been an early riser, and some things never changed.
“Alright, which gym?” “Sports club, 17th Street.” “I’m there, thirty minutes.”
“Cool.” Chris ended the call.
Thirty minutes later, Alex walked into the gym to be greeted by all his siblings. His cousins, David, Flex, Sean, and Brian were there also. David was thirty-two and a sports agent, and Flex was thirty and a multimedia publisher, and they were the children of Anthony and Celeste Love. Their sisters were Ami who was twenty-seven and an actress, Nicolas, a twenty five year old engineer.
At thirty-one, Sean was a proud member of the Philadelphia Police Department serving as detective, and Brian, at twenty six, was also a member of the department as a forensic detective. They were the children of Jonathan and Hannah Love. They also had a sister named Hannah who at twenty-seven, recently returned home from living in Texas for a few years. She worked for the FBI as a special agent/profiler. No one really knew what she was doing when she was away from home, but she called faithfully and visited often when she lived away. They all conveyed congratulations to Alex for his recent achievements.
“So, Maddy, you come to hang with the big boys?” Alex said with a chuckle.
“Whatever, Alex. I can beat you guys with my eyes closed!” Madison replied. He knew she was right. At 5’10”, Madison was one of the most dazzling women he knew. She could have easily been a model, but decided accounting was her passion. It seemed all of them were a little unconventional. He was always a little concerned for her because she spent way too much time at the office. She handled his financial affairs as well as for Ty and Chris’ restaurant. She also handled all the taxes for the family, which amounted to a huge task at the beginning of each year.
“All right, Maddy, let’s get it on!” He teased.
Two hours later, with Maddy being the second highest scorer after Alex, the game ended. After all the trash talking and pushing, the cousins and siblings solidified their love with just a game. That kept them together.
“See you all at Mom’s later,” Alex said as he headed toward the door.
Chapter 2
Alex rarely drove his jet black Navigator, but was glad for the space and the air conditioner. At four p.m., it had reached eighty-four degrees with high humidity outside. It felt more like ninety-four degrees. Alex was dressed in white linen pants and top. It was beautiful against his chocolate skin.
The brothers arrived at the Love home thirty minutes later and the backyard BBQ was in full swing. Abigail hired cooks and a DJ. She celebrated in grand style and everyone knew exactly what to expect from her. Alex had a good-sized immediate family. His father was the oldest of three, who all married and had three or more children. Summertime was always fun since they were all close in age and had always lived near each other.
Everyone congratulated Alex on his new position and the party kicked up a notch. His mom and dad, who were very much in love, danced and ate, and everyone seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves.
After a while, Alex noticed his cousin, Ami, Uncle Anthony and Aunt Celeste’s oldest daughter, were not there.
“Aunt Lest, where’s Ami?” Alex asked her after searching her out amongst the crowd.
“Oh, baby, she is on her way. You know she just landed her newest major movie role not too long ago and had to fly back out to L.A. She called this morning to let me know she would never miss her favorite cousin’s party,” She replied.
Alex felt relieved. Ami had been his favorite female cousin since they were little. No one could figure it out, but they stuck together like glue. Alex knew as the oldest of all the children he needed to look out for everyone, and he didn’t mind the job.
Moments later, Ami walked in with all
her splendor as usual, and greeted her cousin. It wasn’t Ami’s grand entrance, though, that moved Alex somewhere deep inside, but the woman that accompanied her. She was amazingly bewitching. She was astoundingly statuesque at 5’7” with caramel colored skin. She was curvy with long, light brown hair that fell perfectly around her shoulders. Alex took in full view of her as she stood greeting people with a seductive, backless A-line sundress and killer heels that took his breath away. He was a sucker for sexy shoes. She turned to greet him with dark chocolate eyes with golden flecks that were stunning. Her almond shaped eyes were perfectly accented by high cheekbones and gorgeously shaped lips. She didn’t wear a lot of make-up, and he immediately loved that fact. Her smile was mesmerizing and warm, the kind of smile that made you long to see nothing but happiness on her face.
“Alex, excuse my manners,” Ami broke into his thoughts. “This is my friend, Jada Whitman. She’s a film producer in L.A. We met a few months back and became good friends. I told her about you and how Aunt Abbie gives the greatest parties, and invited her along.”
Jada extended her hand to shake Alex’s. When their hands connected, Jada felt something hit her that was unexplainable.My goodness, he’s beautiful, She thought. Then, immediately hoped the words never came out. A warm feeling slid down her spine, spread throughout her body, and made her unconsciously smile.
“Alex, nice to meet you, and congrats on your partnership,” Jada said, finally finding her voice.
“Thank you, Jada. Nice to meet you, too,” Alex replied. Jada thought the sound of his voice covered her like her favorite warm blanket on the coldest winter day.
The two stood there looking at each other for what seemed like forever, until Ami broke in. “Yeah, well, Alex is really into his career and we’ll talk about that later. Jada, come meet my brothers.” As Ami walked away, she turned to look at Alex with an, ‘I’ll talk to you later...’ look. Ami was the only one, besides Ty, who could read Alex like he was a wide-open book. He didn’t doubt that she would talk to him later.
