Authors: Cheris Hodges
Betting On Love (17 page)
“I got two words for you,” James interrupted. “Lauryn Michaels.”
Maurice rolled his eyes. “When are you going to let that go?”
“As soon as you stop acting as if you've never made a mistake. That's what Jade did, and she admits it.”
“Whatever. So, you two got into a fight over Jade, I take it?”
“Something like that,” James admitted. He sighed and told Maurice the entire story about Jade and her friends purchasing the restaurant that Stephen had wanted to take over in Charlotte.
“So, those women had a million dollars to spend on a restaurant that isn't even worth all of that? And they did it so Stephen couldn't bring his bland food to town? Umm, I think I'm starting to like Jade more and more.” Maurice laughed. “Seems like she's making up for her lack of judgment.”
“You
would
think something like that,” James said as he took a seat on the edge of Amber's desk. “If she's over him, why the need for revenge?”
would
think something like that,” James said as he took a seat on the edge of Amber's desk. “If she's over him, why the need for revenge?”
“Because some women are vindictive and evil. Maybe your dream woman is one of them,” Maurice said.
“Whatever. He stole from her.”
“Isn't that why my wife took her case? Kenya's actually going to Atlanta this afternoon.”
“Maybe you should go with her,” James suggested snidely.
Maurice slapped his hand against the desk and laughed. “You know I am, and I'm going to tell Ma all about your new girlfriend.”
James pointed his finger in his brother's face. “You'd better not.”
“I owe you. Who told Ma that Kenya and I got back together? Not me. It was you. Turnabout is fair play, dude.”
James shook his head. “Hell no. I can imagine what you're going to say to Ma about Jade.”
Maurice smiled. “I guess you'll find out when she calls you.”
James tossed a pen at his brother, who caught it as if he were on the football field. “Don't play with me.”
“I'm not going to say much. I mean, it's Ma.”
“You just better not play the showgirl card again,” James warned. “Why are you here, anyway?”
“I came to drop off these contracts from the city,” Maurice said. “This morning I actually got up and did some work.”
James took the folder from his brother's hands and looked over the paperwork. “I'm impressed. No wonder it's so damned cold outside.”
“Shut up. Anyway, what are you going to do about Stephen? Because you know that jerk isn't going to just go away.”
“I'm not worried about him,” James said. “Besides, he's going to have his hands full with Jade and her crew.”
CHAPTER 19
Jade walked into Kandace's office, smiling as if she'd won a huge Powerball jackpot.
“Maybe you need to spend more time in Charlotte with James,” Kandace said when she noticed the look on her friend's face. “But I won't say that in front of your evil friend.”
Jade waved her hand as if to swat away a fly. “I'm not concerned about what Serena thinks about me and James. He's special.”
“Um, let's get out of here. I want something sweet and fattening,” Kandace said, then patted her hip. “Even if I don't need it.”
“Girl, please, you could stand to put a little meat on your bones.”
“Says the chick with the perfect figure,” Kandace joked. “There's this bakery in Sweet Auburn that makes delicious cinnamon buns that melt in your mouth.”
“Really?” Jade said. “So, I guess that means you're driving.”
“How about I'll pay your fare on MARTA? I'm not losing my spot in the parking lot,” Kandace said as she rose from her seat.
“Fine,” Jade said. “But you should really try to drive more often. Then maybe you'd increase your skills.”
“I know you're not talking. Didn't you come to a complete stop on the interstate a few days ago? What driving coach taught you that skill?”
“Whatever,” Jade said. “I've been thinking about our restaurant today.”
“Uh-huh,” Kandace said as they stepped onto the elevator. “We're going to need a great general manager. Someone who's good with customers, chefs, and money.”
“Let me guess. You're willing to move to Charlotte and run the place.”
Jade smiled and nodded. “Yes, and before you say I'm following James, I want to point out that I was going to be hands-on when Stephen was opening a restaurant in Charlotte, too.”
“Sure you were, but I doubt that you were going to move there.”
“That's true, but it's not as if I have a job here. Why not? I can protect our investment and make sure we get the most bang for our buck.”
“And you can bang James Goings as much as you like on the side,” Kandace said, with a smile. “I think it's a good idea. But what about your CPA firm?”
“The only thing that came out of my relationship with Stephen is the fact that I know I love working in the restaurant industry.”
“That's good,” Kandace said. “At least we'll know that the person running our restaurant isn't going to rob us blind.”
“That's right. We're going to split the profits, and we're going to make a lot of money,” Jade said.
“We'd better. Not that I think this isn't a good investment, but that was all our money, which we've been saving for years. I hope that we make it back.”
“We're going to make it all back. Charlotte's a growing city, and you know people don't cook anymore. If we make our restaurant down-home and upscale, we can appeal to the whole city.”
Kandace nodded, impressed with Jade. “You have been thinking of something other than James. Good job.”
“Anyway,” Jade continued, “I'm going to Charlotte this weekend, and I'm going to spend a few days in town and look at some of the most successful restaurants in the city and see what they do best and what some of their weaknesses are.”
“And while you're there, you're going to wrap yourself in James's arms and let him make mad, passionate love to you,” Kandace said, as if she were reading from a script.
“Don't hate me because I have a man.”
“A good man,” Kandace said. “I like James. I feel like he's a good guy for you.”
“That's good to hear. I'm glad one of my friends is happy for me,” Jade said as they headed out the door.
Kandace and Jade made it to the MARTA station just as the train was pulling in. “Perfect timing,” Kandace said as she paid their fares.
They got on the train and took the first pair of empty seats they found.
“So,” Jade said, “have you found Devon?”
“Yes,” Kandace said. “Or I found his people, who are giving me the runaround. I can't help but wonder if he's just avoiding me.”
“Maybe you should let Serena try and get in contact with him.”
“And mix oil and water? I thought we wanted the man to run our kitchen. You know what? You're going to be the general manager. You get in contact with him. I'll give you his contact information, and you handle it.”
“Fine,” Jade said. “I've always liked Devon. What ever happened between you two?”
“I really don't want to have this conversation. Especially on the train.”
Jade looked around and noticed that an older man in a seat near them was hanging on their every word. She nodded at the man, who quickly turned forward in his seat. Kandace and Jade broke out laughing.
“Too funny,” Jade said.
“It's the South. People listen and voice their opinions, especially on the train.”
“Well, we're not going to be on the train forever, so you buy the sweets, I'll buy the coffee, and you spill your guts.”
“How about no to the gut spilling, but yes to the coffee?”
Jade shook her head and silently vowed to get to the bottom of Kandace's situation with Devon.
Â
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“Well, this is a surprise,” Maryann said as Maurice and Kenya walked into the bakery. “What brings you two to Atlanta?”
“I'm working on a case here,” Kenya said as she hugged her mother-in-law.
Maurice hugged his mother when the two women stepped apart from each other. “And you know, I wasn't going to let her come here alone,” he said after kissing his mother's cheek.
“It's good to see you two, together and happy,” Maryann said, with a wide smile on her face. “Mo, since you're here, why don't you take over the register for me so Kenya and I can talk?”
“I already know about the party this weekend,” he said as the women headed for a table near the window.
“He's so nosy,” Kenya said. “Can't keep anything from him.” She gave her mother-in-law a wink.
Maryann scrunched up her face, and Kenya leaned into her. “He doesn't know about the baby yet,” she whispered.
Kenya shook her head.
“Good.”
Seconds later, after Maurice had taken his spot at the register, the bell chimed as Jade and Kandace walked into the bakery.
“I love this place,” Kandace said. “In the morning you can barely get ...”
“What?” Jade asked as she followed her friend's gaze.
“Isn't that your man's brother at the register?” Kandace whispered.
“Let's go someplace else,” Jade said.
Before they could leave, Maurice spotted them at the door. “Jade?” he called out. “What a surprise.”
Jade and Kandace walked to the register and smiled at him. “It's more of a surprise to see you working,” Jade said.
“My mother and my wife wanted to talk about me without me hearing it,” he said.
Kandace grinned. “Your mother? Wow, I never had a clue that this was your mother's place. I come here all the time.”
“These pastries are addictive,” Maurice said. “I'm sorry. What's your name?”
“Kandace Davis,” she said, extending her hand to him. “It's nice to meet you, but I got to tell you, I can't stand the way you light up the Falcons' secondary.”
Maurice laughed. “Just doing my job,” he said. “What can I get for you ladies?”
“Where's James?” Jade asked.
“In Charlotte,” he said. “He was talking about you this morning.”
Jade wanted to ask Maurice why he was being so nice to her, but she figured that he was just trying to put on an act for his mother.
“Can we get two of those big cinnamon buns?” Kandace asked. “And my girl is paying for two large cups of coffee.” She nudged Jade in the ribs.
“All right,” Maurice said. “And I'll take care of this.”
“No, we're going to pay our own way,” Jade said as she reached into her purse and pulled out her credit card. “This is for the buns and the coffee.”
“Jade,” Kandace said in a whisper. “What's wrong with you?”
“Nothing,” Jade said as Maurice ran her credit card through the machine.
Maurice fixed their orders and handed them to the women. “Here you go,” he said, then handed Jade the receipt for her signature.
She signed it quickly and offered Maurice a plastic smile.
Gold dig that,
she thought bitterly.
Gold dig that,
she thought bitterly.
“Hey, Ma,” Maurice called out. “Come meet James's girlfriend.”
“What?” Maryann said, looking at the counter. Jade's face heated up, as if someone had lit a match underneath her chin. “Maurice,” she growled.
Maryann walked over to the counter and stood in front of Jade and Kandace. “Hello, ladies,” she said.
“Hello,” Kandace said as she broke off a piece of her pastry.
“Hi,” Jade said.
“So,” Maryann said, rocking back on her heels, “who's dating my son?”
Jade laughed nervously. “That would be me. I'm Jade Christian,” she said.
“You're very pretty,” Maryann said. “It's nice to meet you.”
Kandace laughed. “Mrs. Goings, I love this shop, and these buns are just divine.”
“Well, thank you, and you can call me Maryann,” she said, but her eyes never left Jade's smiling face.
“I had no idea that you owned this place,” Jade said. “I was hoping that James and I would see you together.” She turned and shot an evil look at Maurice, who was smiling like the cat that ate the canary.
“Let me tell you something about my boys,” Maryann said. “They like to tell each other's business. Do you know how I found out that Maurice and Kenya were back together? James came in here and told me over a batch of blueberry muffins.”
Jade laughed, still nervous that she'd met James's mother without him. What if he didn't want his mother to know about them? And did James really call her his girlfriend, as Maurice had said?
Kenya walked over to Jade, with a smile on her face. “Don't let Maurice bother you,” she said. “He's harmless.”
“If you say so,” Jade replied. “Are you here about the case?”
“Yes, I'm filing it with the clerk today if things don't go right with Stephen's lawyer. I'm going to try and broker a settlement. One thing I've learned about people is that they don't want a lot of bad publicity.”
“Stephen probably isn't going to care,” Jade remarked.
“You aren't talking about Stephen Carter, are you?” Maryann asked.
Jade nodded.
“That is one misguided cookie,” Maryann said as she stepped behind the counter, relieving Maurice from his duties. “Can I get you ladies anything else? Kenya, you want to try one of my new creations, lemon-blueberry tart with vanilla icing?”
“That sounds good,” Kenya said as she walked to the counter.
Jade and Kandace took a seat at an empty table near the window. “So, you really don't like Maurice, huh?” Kandace asked.
“He doesn't like me, either. Do you know that he had us investigated?”
“Investigated?” Kandace flashed a look at Maurice and shook her head. “What did he have us investigated for?”
“Because he thinks we're a band of gold diggers out to steal his brother's money and use the Goings name for our own purposes. That's why I didn't want to get these cinnamon buns for free. However, you will be giving me my money back,” Jade said.
“Whatever,” Kandace said as she took a big bite of her bun. “I don't turn down free food, so you're out of luck this time.”
Jade rolled her eyes and took a small bite of her bun. The sweet pastry melted in her mouth, and she took an even bigger bite. “This is great,” she mumbled between bites.
Kandace nodded. “That's why I'm a size ten now.”
“And there's nothing wrong with your shape. What's really going on with you right now?” Jade asked.
“Nothing,” Kandace said. “As a matter of fact, we'd better get going so that I can give you Devon's contact information and before I order another bun.”
“I'm getting one to go,” Jade said. “By the way, does this whole âI hate my body' kick have anything to do with Devon?”
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