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Authors: Lutishia Lovely

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BOOK: The Perfect Deception
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CHAPTER 12
“W
here’s Jessica?”
It was New Year’s Eve. Everyone was in the dining room, fixing plates from a small breakfast buffet.
Nathan served himself a huge helping of fried conch. “Good morning, Sis. My baby is going to sleep in this morning. I’ll take a plate up when I leave.”
“Hmph.”
“What’s that reaction about? She can’t catch some extra z’s without you tripping?”
Sherri bypassed the meat trays for a scoop of freshly cut fruit. “I’m sorry. I guess I can’t expect her to be friendly toward me just because she’s with my brother and staying in my home.”
“She’s been unfriendly?”
“She’s been cordial, and definitely opens up more when she’s with you. I guess I’m just used to seeing you with a different kind of woman.”
“Here we go again. Like your girl Renee.”
“Or your ex, Kaneka.”
“Oh yes. You loved Kaneka, and look how that turned out.”
“Who knew that her bubbly personality covered up a lying, cheating, conniving skank?”
Nathan cracked up laughing.
“Never mind. It’s probably me.”
“Give it time, Sister. Just give it time.”
 
In early afternoon, Nathan met Sherri and Randall at the beach. The family had been joined by two couples who owned properties nearby. The children were off doing their own thing and Miss Elaine was talking on the phone to her good friend Ms. Riley, before joining the group later that day.
Sherri walked over. “Still no sleeping beauty?”
“Jessica’s not down here?” Nathan looked around.
“Haven’t seen her.”
“She left the room. I assumed this is where she was headed. No doubt she’ll be here soon.” Nathan looked over to the umbrella-covered tables set up near the water and up to the cloudless sky. “Man, this is the life!”
Sherri linked her arm through his. “Yes, it’s pretty amazing. Come on over. I want to introduce you to my neighbors. Good people. One couple is from Canada and the other lives in Michigan.” They reached the table just as drinks were being poured. “Everybody, this is my brother, Nathan.”
“How’s everybody doing?” They all exchanged greetings. “Now, where is my drink?”
 
Jessica studied herself in the mirror, believing that she’d finally achieved the right look.After catching a side view of herself in the one-piece with matching wrap, she’d decided it didn’t have the right amount of
wow
and had gone back upstairs to change into the other one she’d brought. It was the end of one year and the start of another. She was with a wonderful family and the best man she’d ever met. She wanted to please him, be the sexiest woman on the beach, and do him proud.
Donning her cover-up and slipping into low-heeled mules, she made her way down the rocky path that led to the home’s private piece of paradise. Quickly spotting the group beneath the colorful umbrellas, she slipped out of the heels and relished the feel of warm sand beneath her pedicured feet. The view was as pretty as a postcard. A warm breeze tossed her shoulder-length curls. Looking up, she saw Nathan’s gaze fixed on her. She offered a shy wave. He gave a nod. Her heart skipped a beat.
 
She looked like a goddess, or a nymph, coming toward him in dazzling white. Against her sun-kissed bronze-toned flesh the contrast was amazing. The cover-up she wore was long and sheer, so he could glimpse just enough of her juicy cleavage to make him want to forego the afternoon activities and return to the room. A sideways glance confirmed what he’d imagined: all eyes were on his girl.
She walked straight to him. “Hey.”
“Hello, beautiful. I thought you’d beat me down here.”
“At the last minute, I decided to change my outfit.”
“Baby, I don’t know what you had on before, but this right here is exceptional.” He gave her a hug.
She whispered in his ear. “I hoped you’d like it.”
“Everyone, this is my lady, Jessica.” Everyone offered a hello. “I’ve been waiting on you, baby. I want to get in the water. Would you like a drink first? We’ve got a nonalcoholic fruit punch and another mix with a kick.”
“No, I’m good. The water looks amazing, though. Let’s go in.”
“All right, y’all. We’ll be back.”
“Should I leave my cover-up here?”
“Sure.”
She shimmied out of the see-through material and placed it on a lawn chair. Reaching for Nathan’s outstretched hand, they turned toward the beach.
A gasp stopped him.
Nathan turned around. “What happened?” He watched his sister snatch up Jessica’s throw and hurry toward them at the same time he witnessed the wives divert their husbands’ pointed stares.
He followed their gaze to . . . Jessica’s big bare ass.
“I can’t believe you came out here like that,” Sherri quietly hissed between clenched teeth. She moved them farther away from the group. This needed to be a private conversation. “That suit is not appropriate!”
“We’re on a private island!” Jessica looked from Sherri to Nathan. “Babe?”
He took another peek at the round orb now competing with the sun for showiness. “She looks fine to me, Sis. The kids aren’t here and we are on a private stretch of beach.”
“With company.” Sherri enunciated each consonant and vowel. “Women and their
husbands
.”
Jessica shrugged, moving closer to Nathan. “And I’m here with my man. What’s the problem?”
“If you don’t know, I don’t have time to tell you. Not right now. Just go change.”
“We didn’t know there’d be company, Sherri.”
“Nathan’s okay with it and that’s all that matters.” Jessica reached for Nathan’s hand. “Come on, babe. Let’s go swimming.” She turned to leave.
Sherri grabbed her arm. Jessica snatched it back. Undeterred, Sherri took a step and got right in her face. “
I’m
not okay with it and this is
my
property. So you can either change or leave—your choice.”
“Nathan?”
“It’s not worth the drama, baby. Go change.”
Jessica crossed her arms. “You’re going to side with your sister?”
“This is her place and we are here at her invitation.”
“Which doesn’t excuse you from not having my back.”
“Or backside,” Sherri sarcastically quipped.
“This is just the type of bullshit that keeps me from having female friends. If I’d come down naked, you’d have a reason to be upset. But for showing just a little skin, you are seriously overreacting.”
Had Sherri been a piñata, this is when she would have burst. “Do. Not. Tell me how to react. Coming down here with your ass out is not cute. So like I said, you have two choices. You can go change, or you can go pack.”
Sherri won the ten-second stare-down.
Nathan sighed. “Jessica, go put on something different.”
“Okay,” was Jessica’s eventual reply. She took the cover-up that Sherri held, placed it over her arm, and started toward the path to the house. Nathan walked with her. Grumbling followed them both, no doubt the wives telling their husbands to place eyeballs back in sockets.
Nathan increased his pace to keep up with a fast-walking Jessica. “Sorry about that, babe. My sister is all about appearances.” Silence, punctuated by huffing breaths and crunching sand. “I liked the one-piece you wore a few days ago.”
They reached the top of the steps. Jessica whirled around. “I can’t believe you!”
“What?” Nathan threw his hands up in surrender.
“Really? Your sister jumps down my throat, you jump on her bandwagon, and now you want to act like you don’t know what’s wrong?” She slipped on her heels and continued toward the house.
“That wasn’t about taking sides. It was about keeping the peace.”
Another stop.Another quip. “Do I look peaceful right now?”
Nathan stepped up and opened the door. Jessica stepped through and headed straight for the stairs and to their guest room, immediately stripping off the offensive thong swimsuit. After throwing on a pair of skinny jeans and a bright pink halter, she rolled out her suitcase, slammed it on the bench at the end of the bed, and then walked back into the closet to yank clothes from hangers.
Nathan looked on with mouth agape. “What in the hell are you doing?”
“What does it look like?”
“Jessica, baby, you need to calm down. This has gotten out of hand.”
“No, what’s out of hand was your sister being disrespectful. I’m not a child to be snatched and grabbed and told what to do.”
“I’ll talk to her about that. She shouldn’t have put her hands on you, but—”
“For almost eight years I was controlled: what to wear, what to eat, where to go and how I should behave once I got there. Disobey and I’d get a black eye or fat lip for my trouble. Those days are over!”
She jerked open the dresser drawer to retrieve her lingerie.
“Don’t you dare compare me to that monster you married. I’m not him, okay? But neither am I the man who’s going to condone something that’s wrong just to make you feel good!”
“When you saw me you said I looked amazing!”
“I believe the word was exceptional.”
“However you felt changed as soon as your sister came over with her judgmental attitude. She was probably just mad because her husband saw something he wanted.”
She marched into the en suite bathroom with Nathan close behind.
“And that makes you feel good? To get the attention of my brother-in-law?”
“There’s nothing wrong with being appreciated.”
“You can’t be serious right now! After the way my family has welcomed you into our—”
A knock interrupted their increasingly loud tirade.
Nathan walked to the door. “Hello, Mom.”
“What’s going on in here, Nathan? I was headed to the stairway and could hear your voices all the way down the hall.”
“Sorry about that. I didn’t know we were so loud.”
Miss Elaine removed her oversized floppy straw hat. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes, we’re fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Is Jessica with you?”
“Yes. We’re, uh, getting dressed.”
“Okay. I’ll see you two down at the beach.”
By the time he turned around, Jessica was finished packing and had closed her bag. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“To the airport.”
“On New Year’s Eve? You think you’re going to get a flight out?”
“If not, there are hotels nearby.”
“Baby, don’t run off like this. We’re having a good time. I don’t want you to go.”
“Your sister doesn’t want me to stay.”
“Don’t worry about her. She’ll cool down.” He watched as Jessica looked around to make sure she had everything. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and lowered his voice. “I’m sorry she grabbed you, okay? I’ll get her to apologize.”
“Right after you?”
“Maybe you should apologize for showing your ass!”
“You know what? Never mind. I need to get out of here.” She pulled the suitcase off the bench and headed for the door.
“How do you expect to get to the airport?”
“The same way I came.”
“The car service? No. I won’t be a part of your childlike tantrum, helping you take off just because you didn’t get your way.”
“Fine. I’ll catch a cab.”
He beat her to the door. “Jessica, don’t do this.”
“The only way I’ll stay is for you to stand up for me, not your sister.”
“Fine. Later, I’ll have a conversation with her and let her know that her actions were not appreciated.”
“No, Nathan, now. In front of the same people who saw her belittle me.”
“They didn’t hear what was going on.”
“You think they’re stupid and didn’t know what was up when she all but threw the cover-up at me?”
“She didn’t throw it exactly . . . babe!”
Jessica headed for the stairs, phone in hand. “Yes, can you connect me with a taxi company?”
Nathan followed her downstairs and out the door, where she sat on a bench near the circular drive. “I can’t believe you’re acting like this.”
“And I can’t believe how you’re acting.” Her call was connected. “Yes, hold one minute. Can you please give me the address here?”
“Jessica, hang up the—”
“Just give me the damn address!”
Nathan rattled it off, even as he wondered where his sweet Jessica had gone and who was this witch who’d slipped into her skin. She repeated it to the operator. “You realize that you’re making a big mistake, right?”
“Oh, I’ve made the mistake? I’m not the one who threw you under the bus.”
“You are being completely irrational! We’re here with several other couples. You come out showing your ass. The wives start tripping and my sister asks you to go put on some damn clothes. You’ve ruined what up to now has been the perfect vacation. The fact that you don’t get it makes me wonder who I’ve been dating the past few months, and whether or not I’ve ever known you at all.”
A nonresponsive Jessica kept her eyes glued to her phone.
“For the last time, I’m asking you to stay. If you don’t, things won’t be the same when we return to Atlanta. We need to work out whatever this is,
now
.”
This got her attention. “Are you breaking up with me?”
“I’m asking you not to leave. I’m asking you to stop acting like a . . . to stop being so angry and come back inside. We can change out of our swimsuits and rejoin the group. I’ll apologize for both of us and all will be well. I hear they’ve organized a fabulous fireworks display for New Year’s Eve. When I view it, I’d like you to be beside me.”
“Why don’t you go in there, pack your bags, and be beside me when I head for the airport. We can have our own special New Year’s celebration . . . just the two of us.”
“So now you want me to leave, too?”
BOOK: The Perfect Deception
11.46Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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