Accidental Heartbreak (The Accidental Series, Book 2) (10 page)

“You’re a real piece of work, Donovan.”

Donovan smirked. “I only took her out to
show her a good time because she’s always sad. You
should
be
thanking me. You’re the one who broke the girl’s heart. I can only
assume that’s why she moved here…to start new and get away from
you. After all these years, you’re still in the game, playing
women. Don’t you think that’s a little old now?”

“You don’t know what you’re talking
about.”

Donovan blew a frustrating breath. “Of
course I do. I asked Shayla flat out why she was here. She said
something to the effect that she had feelings for
someone
and
they
didn’t reciprocate those feelings. So I’m assuming
they
is you.”

Silence. Carter didn’t have a response. He
was processing it all.

“I’m honestly surprised she would even
consider having a relationship with you. She must not know the
Carter I know – the Carter who kept a little black book and could
call any chick in there at any given time. The Carter who slept
with five different women in the same week. Remember that?”

Carter rubbed his right hand across his
shadow of a mustache. Donovan was bringing up old college stuff.
Those things were true but they happened over a decade ago. “A lot
has changed since college, Donovan. I’m not the same man I used to
be.”

Donovan thought about the smile on Shayla’s
face last night at the beach, and he was satisfied he could do
something Carter had failed at – he made her happy. “Look, man, all
I need to know is if she’s moving back to Charlotte. I had a hard
enough time filling that position, so the sooner I can find a
replacement, the better.”

“What makes you think she’s headed to
Charlotte?”

“Where else could she be going? She doesn’t
have any family. The few people she know live in Charlotte.”

It irked Carter to no end that Donovan
seemed to know so much about Shayla after only knowing her for a
week. “I wish you would’ve called me last night and told me you saw
her leaving. I wouldn’t have flown here had I knew she wasn’t
here.”

Donovan smirked. “Why didn’t you call
her?”

Because I knew she wouldn’t answer the
phone
. “I wanted to surprise her.” Carter finished off his
coffee and looked at his watch. “Anyway, I’m going to get out of
here. And, by the way, I don’t need you watching her anymore. If
you have any of her contact information, get rid of it.”

Carter left so quickly, he didn’t give
Donovan time to respond. He only had one thing on his mind, and
that was finding out where Shayla had run off to. He was beginning
to panic as he sat in his rental car, hoping she was okay while at
the same time wanting to dial her number, talk to her and find out
firsthand where she was. But he knew she wouldn’t answer the phone
and that would only cause him more anxiety.

He pulled up a list of contacts in his cell,
found Rebecca’s number and dialed it, anxiously waiting for her to
answer while starting the car, heading to the airport to find
another flight back to Charlotte.

“Hello,” she said, drowsily, having just
awakened to the sound of her cell ringing. She could kick herself
for forgetting to turn off the ringer. Her shop was closed today
since she would be attending the Fall floral convention this
afternoon, and today was the first day in a long time she could
sleep in.

“Hey, Rebecca.”

“Carter?”

“Yeah…sorry to disturb you so early in the
morning…just need to know if you’re expecting a visit from Shayla
today.”

“I haven’t heard from Shayla all week, but
before she quit, she had paid to come to a floral convention this
afternoon at the Omni. But like I said, I haven’t heard from her so
I don’t know if she’s coming or not.”

“Okay, Thanks.”

“No problem.”

Carter dropped his cell in the passenger
seat. His head was spinning. Shayla had him feeling so many
emotions. Now he was worried about her. How did he ever let her get
away?

He drove to the rental car return, dropped
off the car then with his overnight Louis Vuitton bag on his
shoulder, he walked up to an airline representative, asked if he
could get a flight back to Charlotte today. She told him there
would be one leaving in an hour and he paid for the ticket,
followed the maze through security then found a seat at the
gate.

Still overcome with worry, he picked up his
phone and called his aunt.

“Hey, Carter,” she said. Sounded like she
was in a good mood.

“Jackie, have you heard from Shayla?”

“No. Why? Is everything okay?” she asked,
hearing the panic in his voice.

“Don’t know yet, but I hope so.”

“What’s wrong?”

“She left her hotel late last night and I’m
trying to figure out where she’s headed.”

“How do you know she left the hotel?”

“A friend told me.”

Jacqueline grunted. “Carter, don’t tell me
you got somebody watching her?”

“Yeah…well I had somebody watching her, but
I flew out here this morning to see her and she’s not even here. I
think she’s back in Charlotte but I’m not sure.”

“You tried calling her?”

“She’s not going to take any calls from
me.”

“How do you know if you haven’t tried?”

“Because I know, Jackie.” Carter sighed,
felt knots dance in his stomach again. He glanced at his watch. He
still had at least another thirty minutes before boarding. “How
about you try and call her for me?”

“Carter—”

“I need to know that she’s okay,
Jackie.”

Jacqueline sighed. “Ah’ight. Hold on.”

She clicked over to an empty line and dialed
Shayla’s number.

After a few rings, Shayla answered, “Hi,
Jackie.”

“Hey, Shayla! I was just calling to see how
you were doing?”

“I’m doing well,” she said, sitting on the
white-sheeted bed in Indian style with the TV remote in her right
hand. “It’s funny you called. I’m actually in Charlotte right
now.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Un huh…staying at the Marriott for a
convention this afternoon.”

“How nice. You sound like you’re in good
spirits.”

“I am. I think moving to Norfolk is just
what I needed.”

“When are you heading back?”

“Right after the convention. Maybe I’ll get
a chance to stop over and see you before I leave.”

“I would love that, honey. Anyway, let me
let you go. Call me later, okay?”

“Okay. Bye.”

Jacqueline clicked back over. “Hello?”

“I’m still here,” Carter said. “You get
her?”

“Yep. She’s fine…said she was in town for a
convention. She’s staying at the Marriott.”

So she is going to the convention that
Rebecca mentioned
, he thought, breathing a sigh of relief.
“Thanks Jackie.”

“You’re welcome.”

Carter checked his watch again. It wouldn’t
be long now and he’d be on the plane, heading back to Charlotte to
find his woman.

Shayla stepped into the banquet hall at the
Omni, scanning the room for Rebecca. She wanted to get there
earlier than 2:30 p.m., but the five-hour drive from Norfolk last
night left her physically and mentally exhausted. And why was she
going to the floral design show anyway? She’d chosen a new
profession since moving to Norfolk. And she was definitely making
more money. But since she had already paid the non-refundable,
one-hundred and twenty-five dollar fee she might as well had kept
her spot. Plus, it would give her the opportunity to see
Rebecca.

“Hey, Shayla! You made it,” Rebecca said
gladly, standing up from her banquet seat. She was sitting at a
round table draped with a white table cloth and crystal vase
overfilled with white lilies. White candles surrounded the vase,
but none were lit.

“Hey,” Shayla said, walking quickly to the
table and embracing her friend.

“I didn’t think you were going to come.”

“I didn’t think I was going to come either,”
Shayla admitted. “I made up my mind late last night.”

The women sat down.

“It’s a good turnout,” Rebecca commented,
moving streaks of blonde hair behind her ear. “This is the same
format from last year. They serve us a late lunch, then start the
webinar. After that, they’ll have live demos and invite people from
the audience to join in. They will also give you individual
lessons, but you have to pay extra for that. It’s worth it though.
I did it a few years ago and learned how to tie the perfect floral
bow.”

“Cool.” Shayla looked around the banquet
hall. “This is a little lavish isn’t it?”

“Well, I guess the organizers are trying to
generate interest from the public and from the looks of things, it
seems to be working. There are
way
more people here this
year than there was last year.”

Shayla looked around, briefly. “What time is
it over?”

“Goodness, Shayla. You’re ready to leave
already?”

“No. Just curious.”

“I think it’s over around nine.”

“Okay. That’s not too bad.” Shayla took a
sip of water and scanned the area again.

“So how’s the new job?”

“It’s going okay, actually. I’m still
getting used to working in an office setting again, but other than
that, the work seems to be right up my alley.”

“You find an apartment yet?”

“No. Not yet.” Shayla took another sip of
water.

“Well, you’ve only been there for a week.
I’m sure something will turn up.”

“Yeah. I’m in no hurry,” Shayla said,
noticing the ballroom was filling up quickly. There must’ve been
about a hundred people there, if not more. They were all dressed
casually which made Shayla believe she was overdressed. She wore a
pair of black slacks, a white blouse and suede, teal pumps with
matching earrings. Rebecca had on a pair of blue khakis with a lime
green tank top.

So maybe I am a bit overdressed
,
Shayla thought, but she wouldn’t concern herself with it.

“You got here last night?” Rebecca
inquired.

“Yeah…pretty late. Girl, I was driving and
yawning…had to stop for coffee to stay awake.”

“Where are you staying?”

“At the Marriott. I would’ve stayed here,
but I’m trying to save money and I got a better deal at the
Marriott, so…”

Shayla’s mind drifted off to thinking about
the hotel in which she was staying. Back in February, she laid
homeless out on the sidewalk in front of the hotel. Now she was
guest at it. She’d thought long and hard about this last night, as
she tossed and turned, thinking of how the man she was madly in
love with saved her life here. How he breathed air into her lungs
in front of this very hotel. Now he was out of her life and she
accepted that. It was tough to swallow, but she accepted it.

“Oh, yeah. That’s what I meant to ask you.
Did Carter find you this morning?”

Brows furrowed, Shayla asked, “What do you
mean?”

“He was looking for you.”

“Looking for me?” Shayla asked, taken
aback.

“Yeah. He called me very early this morning
asking if I heard from you…sounded like he was worried.”

Shayla grew quiet. She’d been living in
Norfolk for eight days. Why would Carter pick last night to inquire
about her? “Well, I don’t know why he was looking for me, but I’m
not gonna concern myself with it.”

“You probably should because I kinda slipped
up and told him you may be coming to this convention today, so—”
Rebecca’s thoughts were interrupted by the image of a tall,
strikingly gorgeous man, stepping in the ballroom, rocking a
three-piece suit. It was only when he got closer that she realized
who it was. “Speak of the devil…”

Shayla followed Rebecca’s eyes straight to
Carter. The eyes of every woman in the room must’ve been on him,
and rightly so. The man was fine, rocking a black suit, red necktie
with a white dress shirt, looking even more handsome than he did
the last time she laid eyes on him. And he had on those sleek,
rimless glasses again that complemented his jaw line, giving him
that polished, professional look while still enhancing his
attractiveness. He was simply breathtaking, she had to admit, but
she wouldn’t gush over a man that was out of her reach. A man who
didn’t want her. And what the heck was he doing here?

Shayla sighed. “Why on earth would you tell
him I was gonna be here, Rebecca?”

“I told you…he was worried when I spoke with
him.”

Shayla sighed again and rolled her eyes.
“I’m leaving. I can’t stay here with him.”

“Shayla, you know y’all got some unfinished
business to take care of.”

“No we don’t.” Shayla slid her purse strap
on her shoulder.

“Shayla,” Rebecca said, before Shayla could
stand up. “Look, you can’t keep running away from your problems.
You already moved to Virginia to get away from him and now you’re
running again? Aren’t you tired of running? You have to face
him.”

“Why?” she said, agitated. “Why do I need to
face him, Rebecca?”

“Because you love him. And I think it’s time
you stopped pretending that you don’t.”

Shayla closed her eyes briefly to fight back
tears and compose herself. She hung her purse on the back of her
chair. Looking up, she immediately locked eyes with Carter as if by
instinct. He was standing two tables away and she could feel her
stomach cramping at the thought of him joining her and Rebecca at
their table. He was ballsy and arrogant enough to do something just
like that.

Shayla heard his voice as he spoke to
someone nearby.

That voice. That intoxicating, satisfying,
calming voice.

The sound of it sent shockwaves down her
spine, yet it angered her that he had that kind of effect on her
body because she knew she couldn’t have him. It was her hope that
he just came to speak and leave. But when he pulled out a chair,
directly across from her, she knew he’d be staying a while. She
couldn’t bring herself to look up at him now, and if she could help
it, she wouldn’t.