If I'd Only Known (Milan Women Series Book 1) (21 page)

When
Perri opened her eyes again, she saw Barrington sitting across from her,
staring like he was just seeing her for the first time or something. She closed
her eyes trying to recall when he'd even gotten there. Then it came back to
her, the migraine, his stopping by unannounced, him picking her up, the couch,
seeing his face, then . . . nothing . . . until this very moment.

“Feeling
better?”

She
opened her eyes and peered at his gorgeous face. He looked worried. She
frowned. “I'm gonna be just fine,” she hoped that eased his concern.

“That's
not what I asked.”

Perri
wet her lips, her throat was getting sore and her mouth was dry as cotton. She
tried to sit up straight but her head would not comply. Having no choice but to
lie back down, her eyes involuntarily shut again.

“I
guess I got my answer.” He knelt down beside her. “You need anything?”

“Water,
please.”

“I
should have thought of that.” He stood. “Be right back, baby.”

“Perri,
are you still taking medication for those migraines?” he asked, returning with
a glass of ice water with a straw stuck down inside it. He held the glass, and
with his free hand, gently slipped it behind her neck and lifted her head to
make it easier for her to drink the water.

Licking
her lips, she allowed Barrington to guide her head back down on the throw
pillows he'd no doubt propped underneath her head earlier. “No.”

“Okay,”
he drawled out the word, “why not?”

“Didn't
need to; before today, it'd been nearly two years since I last had one.”

Barrington
lowered his eyes then met her gaze. “So, I helped bring this on?”

“That's
not what I meant, Barrington.” She needed to sit up.

“Don't
move,” he gently urged her back down. “I know you didn't mean it that way,
baby. But obviously I'm causing you unnecessary stress, and for that, I'm
sorry.”

“Apology
accepted, though it's not necessary. It's not your fault if I allow myself to
get worked up over nothing.”

“Perri,
I don't wanna be the one to stress you out. I want to make you happy, only,
it's not as simple as I first thought it might be,” he admitted.

“You're
not stressing me out, baby.”

“I'm
not making you happy, either.”

“It's
not your job to make me happy. Happiness is a choice and I have to first decide
that I'm gonna be happy, Barrington. That's not your problem to deal with, it's
mine. And I will deal with it,” she promised.

“Why
can't I be part of the solution? Let me help you, Perri.”

“You
can't help me, Barrington. I need to work through this on my own.”

“No,
Perri. We need to work through this together; we are both the reason there is an
it
to work through anyway. Just let me be here for you, help you sort
through whatever it is you need to. I promise not to put more pressure on you.”

“I
appreciate the offer, Barrington. Really, I do.”

“But?”
he prompted.

Perri
smiled and decided, “No buts.” Her heart warmed as a smile spread across his
luscious lips, causing her to lick her lips, thinking of his sweet kisses.

“Girl,
you better stop that if you don't want me to take advantage of your physical
weakness at the moment,” he teased and then chuckled.

Perri
tried to laugh but her head was not having it. “Don't make me laugh. It's too
painful at the moment.”

“Sorry,
baby. Just glad to see I can still make you laugh, though. It's been a minute,
you know.”

“Yeah,
I know. Too long,” she admitted.

There
was a knock at the door.

“You
expecting someone?” he asked.

“It's
probably my sister dropping Imani off.” She tried to get up.

“Don't
you move, Perri,” Barrington ordered for the third time. “I'll get it.”

“Perri—”
Tyler stopped seeing a beautiful pair of yellow-green eyes that matched those
of her niece. “Oh, you're not my sister.”

Barrington
laughed. “No, I suppose I'm not.” He reached for his daughter. “Hey, baby,
how's my Cupcake? Daddy missed you.” He kissed her soft cheek, inhaling her
baby scent.

Tyler
walked in, closing the door behind her. “I'm assuming you're Barrington.” She
knew he was. Who didn't?

“I
am.”

“I'm
Tyler, Perri's little sister.” She held out her hand and they shook.

“A
pleasure to meet you, Tyler,” he gingerly rubbed Imani's back. “Thanks for
watching her for us and bringing her back home.”

“Not
a problem.” Tyler smiled at the image of father doting over his daughter. She
suddenly missed her own parents. “Where's Perri?”

“Lying
on the couch, she doesn't feel well.”

Tyler
immediately headed for the living room, “Perri?” She frowned when she saw how pitiful
her sister looked. “What's wrong, honey?”

Perri
tried to smile but it hurt too much. “Migraine,” she whispered.

“You're
kidding me.” Tyler glared at Barrington and said to Perri, “It's been at least
a good two years since you got one of those.” Looking back at her sister, she
gently sat on the edge of the couch. “You want me to stay with you?”

“No,
honey, I'm fine.”

Tyler
frowned. “You're not fine, Perri, or you wouldn't be laid out on this couch
looking like someone hit you over the head with a baseball bat.” She glared at
Barrington again.

“Stop
fussing over me, Tyler. It'll pass, it always does.”

“But
you're not taking medication for it anymore, Perri, which means it won't go
away quite so soon, if at all before noon tomorrow.”

“I
hadn't thought about it like that.”

“Well,
you should. You need someone here with you, at least to watch Imani.”

“I
can watch her.”

Perri
and Tyler looked at Barrington, who was busy rocking Imani.

“She's
almost sleep, anyway.”

“That's
not necessary, Barrington.” Perri looked at her sister for backup. “Tyler can
stay over; she already knows what to do should Imani need something over in the
night.”

Barrington
tried to hold his temper in check, “Perri, I'm capable of tending to my
daughter's needs.” He glared at both the sisters. “And yours too.”

Perri
knew that look on Tyler's face. She was about to go off on Barrington. She
touched her arm, “It's all right, Tyler.” She tried to smile. “You go on home.
We'll be fine.”

“But—”

“I'll
call you if I need you,” Perri promised to cut off her forthcoming protest.

Knowing
it was pointless to argue with her sister when her mind was made up, Tyler
sighed exaggeratedly. “Okay, Perri.” She glanced at Barrington. “Only if you're
sure you don't want me to stay over?”

“I
want you to go home and call Madear. She's worried about me and you know how
she can be at times like this.”

“Yeah,”
Tyler chuckled, “all up in your business.” She laughed out loud.

“Exactly
and you know I would laugh too, but my head, girl.”

“Enough
said.” Tyler stood and leaned down, planting a kiss on her sister's forehead.
“I love you, Perri. I'll let Madear know what's up. Call if you need me.” She
stopped in front of Barrington, gazing down at her niece. “Auntie's leaving
now, sweetie. I'll see you next week.” She bent to kiss her forehead.

Barrington
opened the door for her while saying, “I'll take good care of them both.”

“You
better,” she warned. Barrington nodded with a sheepish grin. Reading his mind,
Tyler added, “Only the needs to get them through the night.”

They
laughed.

“I'll
be seeing you around then?” Tyler said, already outside the door.

“Count
on it,” Barrington assured her.

“Good
enough.” Tyler closed the door behind her.

“You
did what?”

“Stop
shouting, Perri, I'm standing right in front of you.”

“Yes,
but you're not close enough for me to reach up and slap you.”

Barrington
chuckled. “You need to go ahead and get dressed. My folks are expecting us in
two hours, but I need to make a quick stop at the studio to pick up a rough
draft of our next CD.”

She
couldn't believe his nerve, acting like her going to meet his parents was the
most normal thing in the world. Why would she want to meet his parents? All
they probably wanted to do was rake her over the coals for not telling their
precious son about his daughter, their granddaughter, in the first place.

Knowing
exactly what dangerous path her mind had taken, he assured her, “They only want
to meet you, Perri, talk to you. Get to know you, you know.”

“No,
Barrington, I don't know. All I know is that you have no business making plans
for me without my knowledge or consent.”

“Would
you have given me permission had I asked?”

“No.”
She wasn't gonna lie.

“That's
exactly why I didn't bother to check with you first.”

“That's
no excuse for roping me, backing me into a corner, and then watching me
squirm.” she squinted, giving him the evil eye. “You're enjoying this.”

“I
sure am.” Barrington chuckled. “Don't act like it's the end of the world,
Perri. I mean, worse things have happened to you. You act like you're going to
the whipping post or something.” He laughed when she rolled her eyes at him.

“That
would depend on whose eyes you're looking through, now wouldn't it? Considering
I can only look through my own eyes, the way I see it, you set me up. You know
it. Admit it.”

But
Barrington denied it, “I did not set you up, baby. What would be the purpose?
Like it would accomplish anything other than making you even more guarded
around me.” He shook his head ruefully. “No, Perri, you're wrong about this
one. I know I'd be an absolute fool to risk setting you up and losing you for
good.”

“Who
told you, you even had me.” It wasn't a question.

He
laughed. “Always the smart-mouth beauty,” he quipped. “I don't mind. I know I'm
getting next to you when you continually deny it, but your body always lets me
know exactly what time it is.” He smirked knowing she didn't like his
observation one bit.

“And
what time might that be, Barrington? No, wait,” she held up her hands to stave
off his reply, “let me take a stab at the answer; it’s the time just before you
seek the overbearing wolverines on me.”

That
smart-ass comment irritated him. “My folks aren't like that,” he snapped at
her. “You don't know them, Perri, so I'd appreciate you not judging them before
you do.”

“And
I'd appreciate you not trying to force feed them down my throat, or vice versa.
But since it seems neither of us is getting what we want without a fuss, let's
just shelve it for now.”

“Does
that mean you're gonna go?” he asked full of hope.

“Like
I really have much of a choice; I'm sure you've already bad-mouthed me to them
enough and—”

“Hold
up, baby,” Barrington raised an impatient hand at her. “I don't put my business
in the street. I'm a grown man, capable of making my own decisions. I don't go
running home to mommy and daddy when my life takes a sudden turn for the
worse.” He wanted her to understand that right now. “You need to recognize,
baby,” he said none too friendly.

“Is
that a threat?” she asked, hoping it was just so she could justify not going.

“Call
it what you will. The point is my folks just found out they have a
granddaughter.” He shrugged. “Naturally, they want to meet her mother.”

“What
did you tell them?”

“Just
that you're going to be my wife,” he said with a wolfish grin he knew she would
take exactly as he meant to make it sound, because it was the truth; Perri
would be his wife soon.

“Please
tell me it isn’t so? What did you go and do, Barrington?”

He
laughed out loud. “Well, I did say exactly what I just told you I said to my
parents.”

She
glared at him. “What you did was lie to them.”

“It's
not a lie, Perri.”

“What
would you call it, Barrington?”

“Calling
things that are not as though they were; it's called speaking it into
existence.” He grinned at her.

Perri
had to laugh because she could see he was clearly serious. However, she did
inform him, “You can't go around
claiming
a woman who doesn't want you.
Because if you saying something enough times makes me change my mind and fall
into your arms, that Barrington, is called manipulation, pure and simple. And
there's nothing spiritual about it, either, just in case you thought taking a
spiritual principle and twisting it around to fit your need was okay.”

“You
tell me that when you're saying, 'I do’ and you will I’m sure.”

“Whatever,
Barrington,” she sailed right past him, went to her room, shut and locked the
door. Hearing him chuckle all the way up the hall, she smiled.

***

Twenty
minutes later, they were heading down the highway toward the studio.

“I'll
be right back, baby.” Barrington hopped out the Escalade.

Perri
reclined the seat and leaned her head back and, closing her eyes, she tried to
ease her jittery nerves. It still ticked her off that Barrington would pull a
number like this, so she knew to calm down before they got to his parents'
home. One thing Madear taught them was common courtesy, and she hadn't planned
on embarrassing herself with his parents and giving them any more ammunition to
fire her way. She jumped, startled by a tap on the window, and quickly grew
angry seeing the intruder's handsome face.

He
pretended not to see the irritated look Perri tossed him. “Would you like to go
inside with me,” Barrington offered when she rolled down the window.

She
stared at him blankly. “Why?”

His
response was a shrug and a, “Why not? Have you ever been inside a studio?”

“Not
a music one,” she admitted, somewhat curious as to what it might be like.

Barrington
reached inside, unlocked the door and held it open for her. “Come on, Perri, be
my guest.” He grinned pleased that he’d found a place of common ground with her
when she didn't refuse his invitation. He wanted to share every detail of his
life with the woman he loved and it just made sense that music was where it
should start since it made up the bulk of his life.

***

“That
was interesting,” Perri told him, snapping her seat belt.

He
looked at her. “I'm glad you enjoyed yourself.” Pulling back onto the highway,
Barrington headed for his parents' home.

“Barrington?”

“Yeah,
baby?”

“Exactly
where are we going?”

“To
Huntersville, baby,” he said with a practiced calm, knowing her inquisition was
coming.

“You're
not from Huntersville?”

“No,
as you already know I grew up in Chicago. That's where I, along with my family
made our abode until after we dropped our second CD; after the tour ended, Crush
and I decided to buy our folks a mansion wherever they wanted to live. They
chose Huntersville to be close to my grandparents on Ma's side and also her two
sisters who live there as well.”

“Hmm.”
Perri considered that information. “So, why'd you decide to move to Charlotte?”

Barrington
glanced at her before answering, trying to decipher if she were ready for the
truth. He'd soon find out, he thought, then said, “After we'd been apart a
year, I was still missing you so bad and still hoping that one day we'd meet
again, maybe pick up where we left off. At the very least, I'd know where you
were, hence, a greater chance at hearing it through grapevine if you ever
decided to get married. That way I'd know where to show up and object to you
marrying anyone other than . . . myself, of course.” He was shameless in his
true confession. He stole a look at her, quickly turning his vision back to the
road ahead. “You believe me?”

Perri
was actually flattered, but said, “Should I, Barrington?”

“You
should, Perri.”

“Why?”

“It's
the truth. Why would I lie about it? That would be plum stupid on my part,
considering no one I knew was able to get word to you for me, and vice versa
about your whereabouts. And I didn't know how you'd respond if I did find you.”

“Why'd
you wanna find me?”

“You
know why, Perri.”

“Because
you're controlling and used to having your way on all things,” she said.

Barrington
laughed out loud saying, “Nope.”

“You’re
sure about that?”

He
chuckled before saying, “Because I realized when I was already in the air that it
truly was a real possibility that you may end up pregnant since we hadn’t used
a condom our last time together, resulting in me failing to protect you the way
I promised I would. I didn’t want you to face the possibility of motherhood
alone.”

Hearing
him admit his knowledge that she could have been pregnant only managed to
infuriate Perri. “So, you weren't as surprised as you feigned that day at the
mall?”

He
knew he shouldn’t be surprised the way her mind processed newfound information,
jumping to her own conclusions, wrong as they may be. Waiting for the stop
light to turn green, he stared at her, and waited, wondering where she was
going with that line of questioning; at the same time, knowing where she was
going, and Barrington met up with her on the path of first-hand revelations. “I
was, too, surprised, Perri.” He shook his head. “Now, that's a strong-willed
man for you. I was so determined and sure we were gonna come full circle again,
so I went ahead and strategically positioned myself for when the right time
finally arrived, knowing it would hit me like a bull’s-eye. And where better to
settle down and be close to you than right here in Charlotte?”

“Oh,”
she said, sorry her curious mind had thought to even ask.

“What's
wrong, baby?” He felt her uneasiness.

“Nothing,”
she lied. “Just nervous about meeting your parents, that's all.”

Barrington
knew that was not all, but let it go for the moment. Pulling into his parents'
driveway, he cut the engine and turned to Perri, announcing, “Here we are.”

Perri
took in the lovely view. “This is definitely a mansion,” she stared at the huge
house planted on at least twenty four acres of land. “It's beautiful.”

“The
folks love it, that's all that matters.” He got out, strolling to her side, and
opened the door. Extending his hand, he said, “Shall we?”

She
blinked and stared at his hand but made no move to take it. “I don't know about
this.”

Sighing,
he gently took hold of her hand, guiding her from the car. “It'll be fine,
baby.”

“How
do you know?” She looked up at him for answers.

Bending
to kiss the tip of her nose, Barrington simply said, “Trust me, baby.”

“I
want to.” Perri looked up at the huge house, then back at him. “Do you promise
not to leave me alone the entire time we're here?”

Instead
of laughing like he wanted to, Barrington agreed, “I do.”

“Say
it, Barrington.”

He
did laugh this time, then parroted, “I promise, Perri, I won't leave you alone,
baby.”

Before
he could insert his key, Linda opened the door. “Hey, baby.” She hugged him
tight. “She's beautiful,” she whispered in his ear.

Barrington
smiled, gently ushering Perri forward. “This is Perri Milan, Ma.”
My future
wife,
he mouthed standing behind Perri.

“Hello,
Mrs. Knight.” Perri extended her right hand, forcing herself not to squirm when
she felt Barrington’s familiar hand encircle her waist.

“Will
you let the girl breathe, boy,” Linda scolded her son. Then she surprised Perri
with a hug. “Please call me Linda.”

“Okay,”
Perri awkwardly returned her hug.

“Barrington,
Linda, let the lady inside,” Bobby was now standing at the door.

“Welcome
to our home, pretty lady.” He also hugged her. “I'm Bobby.”

“Thank
you, Bobby.” Perri smiled, truly feeling welcomed.

“Hello,
Perri,” Crush greeted when they entered the formal living room.

“Hi,
Crush. Long time no see.”

Crush
hugged her and said, “It's good to see you, baby girl.”

Relived
he wasn't mad at her, Perri smiled. “Good seeing you also.”

He
grinned. “So, what's your girl up to tonight?”

Perri
laughed, hearing the excitement in his tone; he still had it bad for her best
friend and that pleased her. “Journey's babysitting Imani for me.”