All Up In My Business (35 page)
Read All Up In My Business Online
Authors: Lutishia Lovely
Toussaint and Malcolm looked at each other. Ace stood and headed for the door.
“Ace, wait!” Diane rushed over to stop her husband, grabbing his arm before turning to Chardonnay. “How do you know this? Did you see him that night? And if so, why didn’t you tell the police?”
“Because I didn’t see anything that night.”
“Then how do you know who it is?” Victoria asked. “Because Q told me when he called me last night. We used to … hang out. We’re friends. He called me because he knows I work for y’all. He wanted to find out what was going on.”
“That’s why you’re here?” Candace asked, a myriad of emotions crushing her heart, anger being the strongest. “To spy for your … lover?” Candace had no doubt that that was how they’d “hung out.”
“No! I’m here to help you.” Malcolm cursed. “You’re here for money.”
“Yes,” Chardonnay answered. “I’m single, two kids and another on the way. Ain’t no shame to my game of putting food on the table.” When no one responded to that, she went on. “Quintin left the state, said he’s not going back to jail. He wouldn’t tell me where he was, but he did tell me who was with him.”
“Who?” was the collective question from the room. “Shyla Martin.” You could have heard a pin drop. “Now,” Chardonnay said as she crossed her arms. “Y’all still think I’m here just trying to get all up in your business? Or can I work for y’all a different way … and get paid?”
A READING GROUP GUIDE
ALL UP IN MY
BUSINESS
Lutishia Lovely
ABOUT THIS GUIDE
The suggested questions that follow
are included to enhance your group’s
reading of this book.
There was love but also sibling rivalry between Malcolm and Toussaint. How did this hurt their relationship? How did it help it?
Malcolm married young and felt trapped in his marriage. Was he justified in feeling this way? Did Victoria contribute to his unhappiness and, if so, how?
Victoria became wrapped up in her children and in the process neglected her husband. Do you know women like this? Has it happened to you? And what part, if any, did Malcolm play in this alienation?
Toussaint was a player who felt fine in having multiple partners because he never lied about being monogamous. Do you know people like this? Is it okay to engage in sex with multiple partners as long as this is known up front?
Yes, Alexis is smart and gorgeous, but why else do you think Toussaint was so attracted to her?
Alexis had reservations about dating Toussaint. Would you date a known player and, if so, under what conditions?
Shyla wanted to become a permanent part of Toussaint’s life, so she flew to LA to take their relationship to the next level. How far have you gone to secure a relationship or take it to the next phase?
Were you surprised to learn that Candace was having an affair with her trainer? When did you begin to suspect their relationship?
What do you think about how Adam reacted to Candace’s betrayal? Should he have taken her back? Why or why not?
Was Adam justified in ruining Q’s business? Was Q justified in the way he retaliated?
After being rebuffed by Adam, Joyce went after Malcolm. Was it all about the money, or did Joyce and Malcolm develop real feelings for each other?
How do you feel about Victoria hiding her pregnancy from Malcolm?
He wanted to divorce her, but the Livingston legacy kept Malcolm and Victoria together. Do you think their marriage will survive?
Speaking of the legacy, do you think it’s possible for a man to stay faithful for ten, twenty, thirty years? Do you know of a long-term couple who have achieved this?
Atlanta has been referred to as the “black gay capital,” with down-low brothers a part of that mix. Both Jon Abernathy and Bobby Wilson dated women. Bobby swore he was not gay. What do you think about this? Were they bisexual? Can someone sleep with someone of the same sex and still be heterosexual?
Zoe believed that Chardonnay had a chance at love with Bobby. What do you think?
Chardonnay believed that Zoe was attracted to Bobby. Was she? Is it ever okay to go out with someone your friend has dated? Why or why not?
How do you feel about Chardonnay using Adam’s shooting for financial gain? Is she a shameless hustler or a shrewd businesswoman?
Stay tuned for a second helping of Lutishia Lovely’s new series, which follows the hot tempers and tantalizing temptations of a family whose restaurant is
the
place for a tasty meal ….
Mind Your Own Business
Coming in September 2011 from Dafina Books
Here’s an excerpt from
Mind Your Own Business …
.
“W
hy can’t a woman be on top?” Bianca Livingston demanded, tossing shoulder-length, naturally curly hair over her shoulder. She stood over her brother as if ready to strike, looking totally capable of kicking butts and taking names. Her quick smile, short stature, and girly frame had caused many men to underestimate her—to their peril. But anyone seeing her now—shoulders back, hands on hips, and perfectly tailored black suit and four-inch heels—would believe her capable of running almost anything. “I’m as qualified to run the West Coast locations as you are, even more so, matter of fact.”
“You’re qualified to run the kitchen,
maybe,”
her older brother retorted. Jefferson suppressed a smile. He’d taunted Bianca from birth, and did so now. Her fiery personality was the perfect foil for his laid-back teasing. But even with his ongoing provocations, this time Jefferson’s antics masked the seriousness of his quest. He had every intention of being the Livingston who moved to LA to establish the Taste of Soul restaurants both there and in Nevada. He just didn’t like confrontation, or competition. He’d quietly made his bid to run the West Coast locations the same way he cooked his ribs—low and slow. “Isn’t that why you spent the last nine months in Paris?” he queried to underscore his point. “Learning the fine
art of cooking so that you could give our soul food some class?”
Actually, Bianca had fled to Paris to get away from the chain around her neck otherwise known as Cooper Riley, Jr., her fiancé. But only one other person knew this truth. Initially, forestalling the marriage everyone else believed was a fait accompli was also why she’d expressed interest in running the West Coast locations. But now, after months of talking with her cousin Toussaint, her confidant and the brainchild behind their company expanding out west, Bianca wanted to relocate to continue spreading her independent wings, expand the Livingston dynasty, and make the brand shine under her direct supervision.
“Need I remind you that I have not only a culinary certificate from Le Cordon Bleu, but I also have an undergrad and a graduate degree in business administration?”
“No, little sis, you don’t need to remind me.” Jefferson’s smirk highlighted the dimple on his casually handsome face, his tan skin further darkened by the August sun. His brown eyes twinkled with merriment. “But do I have to remind you that I have a double master’s in business administration and finance?” After receiving an MBA at Morehouse, Jefferson had garnered a second one from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Bianca, knowing that she couldn’t go toe-to-toe when it came to her brother’s education, tried a different route. She walked away from Jefferson and sat in one of the beige leather chairs in the artistically appointed office. Reaching for a ballpoint pen that lay on his large and messy mahogany desk, she adopted a calmer tone, yet couldn’t totally drop the petulance in her voice. “Jefferson, the only reason Dad is promoting the idea of your heading up the location is because you’re the oldest.”
“And the son—don’t forget that. You know Dad doesn’t want to see his baby girl fly too far from the nest.”
“Okay, probably that too,” Bianca conceded. It was no secret that when it came to her father, Abram “Ace” Livingston, she was the apple of his all-seeing eye.
“Besides, how are you even considering relocation when you’ve got a fiancé chomping at the bit to get married? Cooper has been more than patient with you, Bianca. Not many men would let the woman they love move to the other side of the world, even if—as you successfully argued—it was for the union’s greater good. What did you call it? Increasing your company value and the marriage’s bottom line? As if being a Livingston isn’t value enough? No, Bianca, Cooper allowed the wedding to be pushed back once already. He’s not going to delay it a second time, and you know he isn’t moving to LA.”
Bianca abruptly rose from the chair where she’d been sitting and walked to the window. “You’re probably right,” she said, quickly wiping the tears that had leaped into her eyes. “If everyone has their way, I’ll be married in six months with a baby on the way in nine.”
But how can I marry Cooper after what happened in Paris?
“Hey, sister, are you all right?”
Bianca jumped. She hadn’t heard Jefferson rise, hadn’t been aware that he’d walked from his desk and joined her at the window. “Actually, no, if you want to know the truth. Jeff, I—”
“Hey, man … Oh, Bianca, I’m glad you’re both here.” Toussaint Livingston burst into Jefferson’s office and rushed toward his cousins on the other side of the room. “We need to roll to your parents’ house right now. Emergency family meeting.”
Their conversation forgotten, both Jefferson and Bianca turned and talked at once. “What’s the matter?”
“What’s going on?”
Bianca’s heart raced with concern. “Why are we meeting at Mom and Dad’s house, Toussaint, and not in the conference room?”
Toussaint turned and headed for the door. “That’s what we’re about to find out. I’ll meet y’all there.”
Fifteen minutes later, Toussaint, Jefferson, and Bianca joined their family members in the living room of Ace and Diane’s sprawling Cascade residence. Toussaint’s parents, Adam and Candace, and his brother, Malcolm, were already there.
Toussaint and his cousins were the last to arrive, and as soon as they sat down, Ace cleared his throat and stood. “We’ve got a situation,” he began without preamble. A pregnant pause and then, “Somebody’s stealing company funds.”
Reactions were mixed, with bewilderment and anger vying for top billing.
“Who is it?” Bianca angrily asked, ready for battle though the culprit remained unnamed.
“We don’t know,” Ace replied. “But it’s definitely an inside job.”
The family members looked at one another, a myriad of thoughts in each of their minds.
Who could it be? How did this happen? Is the guilty party somehow connected to someone in the room?
One family member even pondered the unthinkable:
Is the thief one of us?
“What kind of money are we talking about?” Toussaint asked. “Hundreds, thousands … more?”
“
Several
hundred thousand,” Ace replied, his tone somber and curt.
Again, responses were symphonic.
“What the hell?”
“Who could do such a thing?”
“Oh, hell to the no. We’re not going to take this lying down.”
“You’re absolutely right, baby girl,” Ace said to Bianca. “We’re not going to stand for this at all. Nobody steals from our company, takes from our family, without feeling the wrath of a Livingston payback.”