Betting On Love (12 page)

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Authors: Cheris Hodges

BOOK: Betting On Love
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“I thought I asked you to get out of my office,” he said.
“James, let me explain... .”
“Explain what, Jade? That you're a child and you had to go ahead with this scheme against Stephen? I told you there were other ways to get your money back from Stephen. My sister-in-law is willing to help you get your money back. But this, this is too much.”
“Too much?” she asked.
“Just go. Obviously, you're not the woman I thought you were.”
“What are you saying?” Jade asked, anger flickering in her eyes.
“I don't think I can be any clearer,” James said, then stormed out of the conference room.
Jade started to follow him, but she stopped herself in the conference room, with a queasy feeling in her stomach. Slowly, she walked down the hall and met up with her friends.
“Were you able to get through to him?” Kandace asked.
Jade shook her head somberly. “He's very upset,” she said. “He thinks we're playing a game.”
Serena rolled her eyes. “We can find someone else to broker the deal.”
“And I know a chef that will come here and work in this restaurant,” Alicia said. “We can get it renovated and everything.”
“Then we should just go to the owners ourselves,” Kandace said.
Jade pressed the elevator button. “Let's just get out of here.”
As the doors to the elevator opened and the women stepped on, Jade saw James slam into his office. The cold glare he gave her made her shiver as the elevator doors closed.
 
 
Amber rushed into James's office, not bothering to knock on the door. “What happened?” she asked.
“The deal fell through.”
“What?” she said, not attempting to mask her disappointment. “But they seemed so ready to ...”
“Amber, it's done. Sorry that I got your hopes up,” he said.
“Wow,” she said sadly. “Do you still need that lunch reservation?”
“Nah. Wait a minute. Why don't I take you to lunch? I know it doesn't make up for the commission that you lost, but it's the least I can do.”
“Thanks,” she said, then walked out of the office.
James picked up the file he'd been reading, but his mind wasn't on work. It was on Jade and her friends. Just what in the hell were they thinking? Granted, he didn't want to see Stephen bring his pompous ass to Charlotte, but Roderick didn't deserve to be screwed by these women and this game of cat and mouse they were playing. And why did Jade feel as if she had to do this? He'd thought that he'd changed her mind about getting her pound of flesh from Stephen. What did this mean about her feelings for the man? He'd seen this too many times. Too many women claimed to hate a man and then ended up in his arms when the smoke cleared. Even if she didn't end up with Stephen, why would he want to be with a woman who was so vindictive?
Stephen did steal from her. I guess I'd be pissed off, too, but there are other ways to do things,
he thought as he picked up the phone to call Roderick. As he was dialing the number, his cell phone rang.
“Yeah,” he said, without looking at the caller ID screen.
“James, it's Kandace. Can we talk?”
“About what?”
“My friends and I want to purchase the restaurant, and Alicia knows a chef who can come in and make a go of the restaurant.”
“Knowing what I know about why you all want to buy this restaurant, I find it hard to believe that you're being honest with me.”
“If we're willing to invest more than a million dollars in this, why do you feel as if you have any right to question me?” Kandace snapped.
“I'll call Roderick and the bank. We can get this rolling,” he said. Part of him wanted to ask about Jade, but he didn't.
“Jade's going to meet you in your office at two p.m. with the check and everything,” Kandace said.
Before James could protest, Kandace hung up the phone. Part of him wanted to see Jade, but he still had too many questions about her character and where her heart was.
 
 
Jade grabbed Kandace's shoulder as she heard the tail end of her conversation with James. “Why did you do that?” she demanded. “I don't want to go to his office for anything.”
“Whatever. You didn't drive to Charlotte to let a misunderstanding come between you and this man that you can't stop talking about,” Kandace said.
Serena rolled her eyes. “I think he showed you who he really is. He didn't even give you a chance to explain—”
“Serena, shut up,” Kandace said. “This is Jade's business, and she likes this man.”
Alicia folded her arms across her chest. “Are we really buying this property? Because if we are, then there are some things I need to start getting in order.”
All eyes were focused on Jade, who didn't say a word.
“This is our chance to put all our investment money to use,” Kandace said. “Remember when we were in college and we started this account? We said that we were going to start our own business one day. Thank God we got out of the dot-coms before they went bust. That money is just sitting there. Now we have a chance to teach Stephen a lesson and make a profit.”
“Fine,” Jade said. “I'll take the check to James, but I really think this is the last time that I will see him.”
“Hallelujah,” Serena said. “And can we make a promise that none of us will ever mix business and pleasure again?”
“Yes,” the other three women said.
“Can we go get something to eat?” Alicia said. “We should check out what our competition is going to be.”
“I heard Ruth's Chris is pretty good,” Serena said as they got into their cars.
“Then that's where we're going,” Jade said as she slid into the driver's side of her car.
CHAPTER 13
James and Amber sat near the wide window in the front of the restaurant. “So you're serious?” Amber asked, with a wide smile on her face.
“Yes, the sale is back on, and you're going to get your commission,” James said as he reached for his glass of water.
Amber clapped her hands, trying to keep her composure. “This is great,” she said. “That money is going to come in real handy. But I have to ask you. What's the deal with you and those women? It's like you all know each other or something.”
James took a sip of water, then set the glass beside his napkin. “We do. Actually I met them in Las Vegas and ... It's a long story,” he said.
“Oh,” Amber said, understanding that she needed to leave it alone.
James turned and looked out the window and saw Alicia, Serena, Jade, and Kandace walking up the sidewalk.
I'll be damned,
he thought.
Amber noticed his glance and turned to take a peek out of the window. “So, which one of them do you like?” she asked. “I'm thinking the one in the middle.”
James looked and saw that she had pointed out Jade, who was tossing her hair back. He couldn't help but think how soft Jade's hair had felt against his cheek when they'd lain together in bed. Jade had a lot of soft places on her, starting with her hair, then her lips, and every inch of skin on her body felt like silk. But he had to wonder about her heart. Was she just as cold as Serena and Alicia? Had she let the situation with Stephen change who she was?
“Am I right?” Amber asked her silent boss.
James nodded, despite himself. “Her name is Jade Christian,” he said.
“And I'm guessing she is the one you were supposed to have lunch with.”
“Yeah, but I'm beginning to have second thoughts about her,” he said in a whisper.
“What?” Amber asked as she leaned into James so that she could hear him more clearly.
 
 
Serena tapped Jade on the shoulder repeatedly. “Would you look at that?” she said, nodding toward the front window of the restaurant. “It's James and his assistant about to kiss.”
Jade looked at the window and her jaw dropped.
That son of a ... I guess I was wrong about you, James.
“We don't have to eat here,” Alicia said as she noticed the pained look on Jade's face.
“No, we're going to eat here, and I'm going to give him a piece of my mind,” Jade snapped. “You know he had the nerve to try and call me out, and all the while he's been sleeping with his assistant.”
“I hate to say I told you so,” Serena said. “But I told you that he was going to be a different man in Charlotte than who you met in Vegas. That's just how men are. On vacation they are one way but—”
“Please shut up!” Kandace said. “They were just talking. Damn! Jade, don't let Serena and her bitterness make you jump to conclusions. That's his assistant. They are probably having a business meeting. And if you're going to go up in this restaurant and act a fool, let me know and I will go someplace else for lunch.”
“Me too,” Alicia said.
Jade looked back in the window and saw James looking at her. Did she see a longing in his eyes? How could that be when she'd seen him kissing that girl? Or had they kissed?
“Can we go in?” Serena said. “Standing on this sidewalk isn't going to—”
“All right,” Jade said, turning her back to James. “Let's eat and get the hell out of here.”
Kandace tapped Jade on the shoulder. “Don't forget, you have a meeting with James at two. So, get yourself together and head to his office and get our property.”
“And when do we get to tell Stephen that his dream of owning a restaurant in Charlotte is over?” Alicia asked as they waited for the host to seat them.
“Let me handle that,” Jade said. “That's the least I can do to that bastard.”
“Can you record it?” Serena asked. “I want to see his face when he finds out that he's been played.”
Jade glanced over at James's table.
Why is he looking over here?
“Jade,” Serena said.
“What?” Jade mumbled.
Serena noticed her friend's stare and shook her head. “Get over it, girl. You have bigger fish to fry.”
The host led the women to a table that gave Jade a perfect view of James and his “date.” She should've known something was going on with him and his comely assistant. But how cliché was that for the boss to be sleeping with the secretary?
“Should I go over there and say something to him?” Jade said, more to herself than to her friends.
“Yes,” Alicia and Kandace said in unison.
“No,” Serena replied. “He's not your man. You two had a fling in Vegas. Let it go.”
What if I don't want to?
Jade thought as she looked at him. James locked eyes with her, and Jade knew she was going to have to go over and say something to him. Rising to her feet, she headed to his table without saying a word to her friends.
James watched Jade as she walked over to his table. He hoped there wasn't going to be a scene, and he willed himself to keep his attitude in check. Amber looked up and saw Jade coming their way.
“I'm going to powder my nose,” she said seconds before Jade arrived at the table.
“You didn't have to drive your girlfriend away,” Jade said once she reached the table.
“Amber is my employee,” James said.
“So you kiss all your employees?”
“What the hell are you talking about?” he asked through clenched teeth.
Jade leaned into his ear. “I saw you and Amber.”
James raised his right eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”
She pointed to the window. “Right there.”
James shook his head. “You must be having hallucinations, because Amber and I did not kiss. We were simply talking.”
“Sure you were,” she said. “You know what? You had the nerve to talk about me and what I was doing, but you're just as—”
“Jade, really,” he interrupted. “You're going to do this in the middle of this restaurant? Aren't you coming by my office later? Can't we just talk then about what you think you saw?”
Placing her hands on her hips, she backed away from James. “Fine. I'll see you at two.”
As Amber returned to the table, she noticed that James didn't look too happy. “Is everything all right?” she asked.
“Fine.”
Before they could say anything else, a blond waitress came over to take their orders. James smiled as Amber ordered a grilled chicken Caesar salad.
“You have something against steaks?” he asked after he ordered the rib eye steak lunch special.
“I don't eat red meat,” she said. “But everyone talks about this place, so I figured I might as well try it out. And since lunch is on you, how could I say no?”
James laughed, but he couldn't help thinking about how he and Jade had shared steak dinners that night in Vegas. The dinner had been great, but dessert had been even better.
“James,” Amber said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Yes?”
“Have you called Roderick and told him that the deal is back on? Where is your mind?” Amber asked.
James stole a quick glance at Jade and her friends. There was no question as to where his mind was.
“Well?” Serena said when Jade sat down. “What did he have to say for himself ?”
Kandace shook her head. “Serena, can we please get through lunch without you telling us about the evils of men?”
Serena rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. “You know, you all can say what you want about love and falling for this man or that man. But in the last twelve months, all of you have been crying over some dude.”
“And you haven't, because super Serena doesn't allow anyone to get close to her,” Jade said.
“Ladies,” Alicia said, “this is not the place to have this kind of discussion. People are looking at us as if we're the stars of
Sex and the City
.”
Jade and Serena looked around the restaurant and saw that a few patrons were staring at them and soaking up every word they were saying. One of the older women sitting closest to their table shot Jade and her friends a condescending look and shook her head.
“You're right,” Jade said. “We're making asses of ourselves right now, and that old lady over there looks as if she's going to have the manager kick us out of here.”
Serena cut into her grilled chicken. “All I'm saying is the next time any of you come crying to me about some guy, I'm going to remind you all of this.”
Kandace and Jade looked at each other and laughed. “You know,” Kandace said, “this reminds me of college.”
“Please,” Alicia said.
“It does not,” Serena said. “At least in college, you were expected to make mistakes. We're adults and—”
“Excuse me, ladies,” the waiter said as he walked over to their table. “Does anyone need a refill?”
“We're fine,” Alicia said, with a smile. The waiter nodded and walked away.
The women finished their meal in silence, until Jade noticed James and Amber leaving. She could've sworn she saw him put his hand on the small of Amber's back. “Just look at that,” she mumbled.
“You're just getting on my nerves now,” Alicia said. “Obviously, you like this guy. Stop acting like Serena and go talk to him.”
“I'm going to talk to him at two and give him the check for the restaurant,” Jade said, with a bit of an attitude.
“We're not talking about talking business with the man,” Kandace said.
Serena snorted. “If you were smart, you'd limit it to just business.”
Jade ran her fingers through her hair and looked down at her steak. The last time she'd had a steak was the first time she and James met. How had everything just blown up like this? When they left Vegas, they were supposed to be on their way to starting something special, something real. He had to realize that this thing with Stephen was strictly business and that it had nothing to do with them. But what was the deal with him and the assistant?
After lunch Alicia, Serena, and Kandace headed back to Atlanta, leaving Jade to handle James alone. Paying for the property wasn't the problem; Jade just didn't know if she was going to be able to get through to him. She had to explain to him that she wasn't in love with Stephen and she just wanted her money back. And maybe a pound of flesh for her heart being broken for all of Atlanta to see.
Jade slid into her car, glanced down at her watch, and saw that it was 1:30. Just what was she going to do for the next half an hour? She decided to drive by the restaurant she and her girls were about to purchase. She was looking forward to owning something, even if she didn't have a clue about running a restaurant.
As she pulled up to the building, she was surprised to see Stephen and a woman standing in front of it. They looked as if they were arguing, and Jade couldn't help but smile. She brought her car to a stop and exited it. She approached the duo without being seen.
Stephen was visibly livid. “What do you mean someone outbid me on this property?”
Jade looked at him and drank in the features that used to drive her crazy. His skin was still the color of creamy caramel, and his sparkling gray eyes still looked as if they could see through her soul.
As he waved his hands in the air, she thought about how those big hands used to massage her shoulders as she sat at the desk in his office, balancing the books. At the time his touch had been something that she craved. But sex between the two of them had been as exciting as watching paint dry. Stephen had had to be on top. And despite the size and warmth of his hands, foreplay had been a foreign concept to him. Stephen always did what made him happy and satisfied his needs.

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