The Second Time Around (8 page)

He nodded. “We talked about it last night.”

Brenna wasn't about to explain how much it hurt her that her aunt shared her feelings with Jabarie instead of her. “As much as I missed being on the coast, I love living in Dallas,” she stated in an even tone.

Shifting slightly on the blanket, Jabarie studied her profile while she gazed out onto the ocean. Intense heat flowed to his groins as he remembered making love to her on that very blanket. He shook the thought off and quickly reminded himself that the beautiful woman sitting beside him was the same person who had walked out on him. She had made a mockery out of him then went on to start a new life that she loved. New friends. Her own bookstore. What she was trying to say was that in her perfect new world she had no room for him, or them. She had gotten on with her life while he was still here, in Sheraton Beach, trying to figure out how to get his life back. He couldn't forget her or maybe he didn't want to. One thing for sure, Brenna was imprinted on his brain. And, to his dismay, for some reason what she had done didn't seem to matter anymore. It didn't matter that after all these years Brenna continued to haunt him, and he thought about her more often than not while he was awake and again while he slept. The problem was he couldn't go on because there was still unfinished business between them. Somehow she had cursed him and if it was truly over, he had to find a way to free his mind once and for all.

Brenna glanced over at him and it was as if she had read his mind. The lonely look in her eyes screamed she wanted the same things. Before he realized what he was doing he had lowered her back onto the blanket and covered her mouth with his.

Trouble, Brenna knew, came often when you least expected it. She'd known being around Jabarie was a bad idea from the exact moment he spotted her in the bookstore window. Though he'd broken her heart, her body couldn't seem to remember what the heart knew all too well, and even it wasn't listening at the moment. He was just too damn tempting. And she'd always been able to resist temptation. Except when Jabarie was involved.

The pressure of his lips against her own tempted her and she willingly gave in to the impulse. What harm was in kissing, anyway? However, as he rolled over and lined their bodies together, she realized her lips were saying one thing and her body was screaming something altogether different. Her nipples hardened. Her bud throbbed down low. She was woman enough to know what her body was trying to say.

As Jabarie deepened the kiss, she couldn't help parting her lips and inviting him deeper. He took the invitation and her body yearned for more than she intended to give him. As soon as his tongue slipped inside her mouth, she forgot about the protective barrier and how badly he had once hurt her.

His heat surrounded her. She felt feminine, sexy and alive in a way that no other man had ever made her feel. Her stomach muscles churned and knotted while the walls she'd built carefully around her heart began to crumble.

No other man had ever held her so tenderly. She'd forgotten how intimate it was to lie out on the beach with a man. She'd forgotten how the brain shut down and hormones took over. She'd forgotten how it felt to be wanted.

Finally, Jabarie pulled back and gazed down at her.

She didn't want it to stop because she knew she would make sure it never happened again. She closed her eyes so he could not see how vulnerable she was. So that Jabarie wouldn't be able to read her thoughts she'd tried to shut away, Brenna reached up and cupped the back of his head, urging his face toward hers.

He deepened the kiss and it felt like it had gone on forever. Everything inside her body sprung to life and became conscious of everything she was feeling and yearning. When she was seconds away from turning to putty, Jabarie rained light kisses on her mouth, cheek and neck then pulled back slightly to stare down at her again. This time Brenna kept her eyes wide open, wanting to make sure everything that was happening was real and not just another one of her dreams. Staring across, his eyes watched her carefully.

The sound of children playing, startled her into releasing him and sitting up on the blanket. She felt unkempt and tried to smooth her hair back into place.
Goodness, what in the world was I thinking?

“Well…” he said.

Obviously, Jabarie wasn't sure how to approach the situation. Talk about the store, or revisit his love for books, she thought. But she couldn't. Her mind was in shambles. Her heart still raced and her nipples were still hard and erect.

“Yes, well, I better go. I'm meeting Sheyna for dinner,” she said, as she grabbed the book and rose. “When you get done hanging out, would you please leave the blanket on Aunt Nellie's porch?”

“Sure.” Quickly, before she could get away, Jabarie reached up and grasped her hand. “Why are you running off?”

“I'm not running. I just don't want to talk about what just happened.” She was surprised by her outward display of calmness although her stomach churned with uneasiness.

“That's the problem. You don't want to talk and until we do neither of us are going to be able to get on with our lives.”

She snatched her hand from his grasp. “Jabarie, that's where you're wrong. I've gotten on with my life a long time ago.”

He ran a hand across his head. “Then prove it by having dinner with me on my father's yacht next weekend?”

Brenna pursed her lips. Jabarie was starting to sound like a broken record. “I already told you, no.”

“And I'm not going to stop asking until you say yes.”

Brenna frowned. “You are so stubborn.”

“Good.”

“Why is that good?” she asked and couldn't keep the shiver from her body.

“Because eventually you'll have to say yes, just so I'll leave you alone.”

She couldn't help smiling. “Goodbye, Jabarie.”

“Brenna, I—”

“I've got to go,” she said, cutting him off; then she walked away and didn't look back. She'd always prided herself on her self-control and now she knew that confidence was false. She'd been in control before because she hadn't been tempted.

“This isn't finished,” Jabarie called after her as she moved across the sand.

Jabarie sat there for the longest time, watching her leave. After everything that had happened between them, he wished to God it wasn't so, but his mind and body had already decided he had to be with Brenna. Seeing her and kissing her was never going to be enough. Being around her stirred emotions he had hid away a long time ago, and nothing in his life was ever going to be normal again until he reached inside her soul and found out what had happened all those years ago. He also wouldn't be satisfied until he had her honey brown hair spread out on his pillow and he was buried deep inside her sweet body with those shapely legs wrapped around his waist.

Lying back on the blanket, he folded his arms beneath his head then closed his eyes. Yep. He wasn't going to be happy until he got exactly what he wanted. He just hoped that once he had her squirming beneath the weight of his body, he could finally find closure and get on with his life. However, something stirred inside his chest and he had a sinking feeling that it wouldn't possibly be that easy.

O
n Wednesday, Sheyna came storming out of Jace's office just as Jabarie came around the corner.

“You okay?” he asked.

She stopped long enough to glare up at him. Her chest was heavy. She was fuming. “You need to send your brother on a long vacation because he's impossible.” With that she turned on the heels of her red stilettos and he watched as she stormed down the hall to her office at the end. Shaking his head, he thought the red suit was an appropriate replica of her mood.

“What's wrong with her?” Jabarie asked as he stepped inside his brother's spacious corner office. Jace was sitting behind his large mahogany desk with his head buried in a report.

He shrugged a shoulder beneath his navy blue suit jacket. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

The fact that he didn't look up indicated there was more going on than he cared to admit. While moving farther into the room across plush royal blue carpet, he observed Jace rubbing his hand vigorously across his neatly trimmed goatee. A clear indication that something was bothering him.

At thirty-three Jace had managed to recruit some of the most talented hotel managers in the world. He was a salesperson and damn good at staffing. However, the day-to-day work environment was an area he had no business dealing with. Sheyna's job was employee relations manager; she worked on incentive programs and building the morale of their employees. When an employee had a problem she was the go-to girl. And because of her, employee retention was up considerably. Although the two rarely ever saw eye-to-eye, she was too damn good at what she did for Jace to step on her toes too often.

“You're quiet. I know you didn't come here to watch me review benefit packages,” Jace commented, breaking into his thoughts.

Jabarie moved over and took a seat across from his desk and grinned. “Maybe I just came down the hall to watch my big brother in action.”

“I doubt it.”

He chuckled then glanced up at the mahogany paneling covering the wall of his office before saying, “Guess who's back?”

“Who?”

“Brenna.”

Jace looked up from his desk. “Your Brenna?”

Jabarie met his brother's surprised look then replied with a frown. “She's not my Brenna.”

“You know what I mean,” Jace replied impatiently.

He leaned back into the plush chair. “Yeah, that Brenna.”

Jace's sable-colored eyes, studied him. “Does that mean the two of you finally talked?”

Jabarie ran a finger under his collar and loosened the tie that had tried to choke him for the better part of the afternoon before answering, “No.”

“Why not?”

His brother had made no secret of his disappointment that Jabarie hadn't gone after Brenna demanding an explanation.

Jabarie leaned back in his chair and met his brother's gaze. “Because she doesn't want to talk to me.”

“And when has that ever stopped you before?”

“In case you've forgotten, she left me,” he said angrily.

Jace snorted rudely. “And with good reason.”

“What?” he asked, startled by his brother's confession.

“You dated her and for years she had to deal with mom and dad snubbing their nose down at her. She never felt comfortable around them and you never did anything to make sure that she did,” Jace added, glaring at his brother. “Hell, I would have taken the money and run myself.”

“What are you talking about? I loved her. I was ready to spend the rest of my life with her regardless of how against it Mom and Dad were.”

Jace gave him a look filled with contempt. “Then if that was the case, you wouldn't have let her walk out of your life. You would have gone after her and brought her back kicking and screaming. Instead you let her go then spent the last five years blaming her instead of yourself.”

Jabarie rose, refusing to sit and listen to this, and stormed out the door, but not before hearing his brother call after him and say, “If anyone owes her an apology, it's you.”

“I have one word to describe Jabarie. Stubborn,” Brenna replied with a groan.

She and Sheyna were sharing a booth at a small bar and grill, sipping apple martinis and eating wings.

A smile tipped Sheyna's lips as she glanced across the table at her best friend. “What else is new? He's always been stubborn. So is Jace. It must run in the family.”

“But this is worse than stubborn,” she began between chews. “He's been calling and popping up at either the store or Aunt Nellie's all week. He's determined to get me back in his bed.”

“And what's so wrong with that?”

“I don't want to start something I have no intentions of finishing. I have a new life in Dallas.”

Sheyna took a sip of her drink. “You can't blame the man. The two of you were engaged.”

“But we're not,” Brenna interjected as she brought the wing to her lips and took another bite.

“That didn't stop you from kissing him.”

Color filled her cheeks and she regretted ever saying anything. “I never said I wasn't attracted to him.”

“So date him,” she said and licked her fingers.

Brenna waited until their waiter had exchanged their empty water glasses for full before responding. “Why start something that I have no intention of finishing?”

Sheyna shot a straight no-nonsense look. “You're only here until Ms. Nellie gets better, so why not enjoy yourself and Jabarie while you're here?”

Brenna shook her head. “I don't know.”

She met her gaze. “Oh my goodness! You're still in love with him!”

“I am not,” she quickly denied.

She chuckled and her eyes crinkled attractively. “Oh, yes you are.”

She didn't waste her time denying it. No doubt the truth was written all over her face. Brenna breathed in a deep sigh. “A part of me will always love him.”

Sheyna gave her a sympathetic smile. “Look, I love you, and other than Anika, I don't know what really went wrong between the two of you, but I know that a love like the two of you had only comes once in a lifetime.” She reached for a napkin and wiped sauce from her fingers. “I'd rather have loved and lost than never loved at all.”

Brenna's brow lifted. “Is that your way of telling me you're in love with Jace?”

She managed to look truly insulted. “Hell no. I can't stand that man.”

Brenna chuckled. “Whatever. Instead of being all in my business, I need to be trying to hook you up.”

“Don't even think about it.” She reached for her martini glass and scowled. “I tried to get him to start a new employee referral program and he rejected it. Sometimes I just don't understand that man.”

“Sounds like love to me.”

“Me and Jace?” she shuddered. “Never. Now you and Jabarie, that's another sad love song. Girl, enjoy your time here and that man. It ain't like you haven't slept with him before. He was your first and he can be your—”

“He's my only,” she confessed between chews.

Sheyna almost tipped over her glass. “What? You're kidding, right?” When Brenna shook her head, she leaned forward and dropped her voice down almost to a whisper. “You're telling me you haven't had one sexual relationship since you left this town?”

“Nope. Not one.”

“Well hell, you should be ready to have someone knock the cobwebs off.”

“Sheyna,” she warned then looked around embarrassingly.

“What are you ashamed of? A lot of women aren't getting any. Didn't you hear, black women are out numbered,” she added as she reached for another wing and took a bite. “Which is why I can't believe you're turning down the opportunity to get you some from a brother who is not only fine but was your first and only lover.” She shook her head. “I don't get it. Unless of course the brotha wasn't satisfying you…” she purposely allowed her words to fade off as she looked across the table.

“Goodness, no. I had no complaint.” Just thinking about having him buried deep inside her caused her to shift uncomfortably on the bench.

“Well, then. Enjoy.”

“I just don't want any misunderstandings.” She knew sleeping with him would stir up old emotions that were best left alone.

Sheyna reached for a napkin. “Then just do like I do. Lay down some ground rules. Let Jabarie know that this is a summer fling and nothing more. As soon as Aunt Nellie is better things are going back to the way things were. That way everyone is happy.”

She didn't know if she could pull it off, but at least it would satisfy the sexual yearning she felt every time they were in the same room.

“I'm going to give it some serious thought.”

“You do that.”

Quickly changing the subject, Brenna raised her glass. “Here's to your new house.”

Sheyna grinned and reached for her glass. “Thank you. This has probably been the most exciting day of my life before Jace spoiled it for me. But you know what, I'm not letting him get to me today.” She shook her head then tapped her glass lightly against Brenna's and took a sip. “Nope. This is my day. I have finally gotten what I always wanted. Me, Sheyna Marie Simmons, just closed on my first house.”

“And I'm so happy for you for getting everything you've always wanted.” Brenna brought her glass to her lips and wished she could say the same. All she'd ever wanted was one thing. Jabarie Beaumont.

After leaving Jace's office, the rest of the afternoon was a big waste. All Jabarie could do was think about what his brother had said and wonder if maybe there was some truth to it. He had allowed his parents to dictate his life for so long that maybe he hadn't defended Brenna the way he should have. He squeezed the pen in his hand until his fingers hurt.
Was I that blind and stupid back then?

At six, he decided to call it a day and instead of going straight to his empty condo, he dropped by a new bar and grill he'd been hearing about to have a drink. Luckily, he found parking in the small lot behind the building. He parked his Navigator then walked around to the front of the building. Even from outside he could hear the heavy thump of R&B music. He stepped inside and was quickly swallowed up by a lively crowd dancing. All of the tables lined the walls, allowing plenty of room for dancing. He moved over to the bar to order a drink when something told him to look over his shoulder. He turned around and spotted Brenna and Sheyna in a booth with two guys sitting across from them. His jaw dropped. She looked sexy as hell. He sucked in a deep breath as his mouth went dry.

Her hair was spiraled on top of her head. Stray curls caressed her neck and framed her shoulders. Where were her clothes, he wondered. She was practically naked in a mini dress. The front of her dress gaped open and his eyes were drawn to her tantalizing cleavage. He knew enough about dresses to know that beneath that thin material she wasn't wearing a bra.

The smile on her face said she was enjoying whatever it was the man sitting across from her was saying. She fluttered her lashes and perfected a pout that made his pulse race. He couldn't believe she was flirting shamelessly with that man. Just watching her look that way at someone else caused jealousy to bubble up inside him. He forced himself to take a deep breath then reluctantly listened to the voice inside his head who reminded him Brenna no longer belonged to him.

He moved over to the bar and took a seat where he could have a clear view of the table across from them. After ordering a cognac and a glass of water, he allowed his eyes to stray over to Brenna. His eyes traveled down to her slender legs that were sticking out from underneath the table, showing off the sexy strappy sandals on her feet.

He sat there for the next half hour sipping his drink, trying to think of a way to approach Brenna without pissing her off when he spotted Tyrone Cole, escorting Brenna onto the dance floor. He didn't like the way he placed his hand only inches above her butt. He moved closer to where they were dancing and glanced at Brenna who was staring over at Sheyna with a panicked look in her eyes. Focusing his attention on Tyrone, it didn't take him long to realize the man was drunk. What else was new? Since he'd lost his job at the plant he'd found another way to passed the time. Obviously, Brenna was eager to get away from him.

Quickly he moved over to the booth where Sheyna was sitting across from some guy with a receding hairline. As soon as he approached, the two glanced up at him looking equally surprised. “Will you excuse us a moment?” Without waiting for a reply, Jabarie took her hand and pulled her gently to her feet and they joined the other couples on the dance floor. It was a slow number so he draped his arms loosely around her waist.

“What are you doing here?” she asked with a knowing grin.

“You know why I'm here.” He forced a smile then glanced over his shoulder at the couple dancing on the other side of the floor. “Sheyna, you know Tyrone, right?”