Suite Temptation

“Wonderful! And so inspiring. And I must say you look successful, my sister. That suit is too sharp!”

“Thanks. Appearances do count, you know? If you dress the part and act like you’ve arrived, you’re halfway there,” Riana added with a confident tilt of her head.

“So true. Good advice. You took what could have been a defeat and made it work for you! Exactly what our viewers need to hear. So, I understand your company is now one of the top-grossing recruitment firms in the state.”

“Yes, it’s an exciting time for me.”

“How many recruiters do you have on staff?” Sheri wanted to know.

“Ten, and I have plans to expand into other markets very soon.”

“Can you tell us where?”

“I hope Houston first, then Waco, Amarillo, perhaps.”

While the camera continued to roll, Sheri leaned toward Riana, tapping her gold pen on the notepad on her lap. “What about your personal life, Riana? Anything you’d like to share with my viewers? Are you married, divorced, single? A working mom? My audience is always interested in hearing about the personal lives of busy career women like yourself.”

Riana gave her host a timid smile and lifted both hands, palms up. “I’m afraid I don’t have much to say on that subject. I’m single, not in a serious relationship and not really looking for one. Running my company takes all of my time and energy. I don’t see myself pursuing any romantic interests anytime soon.”

“Well, good luck. I’m sure you’ll be successful.” Sheri turned from Riana to address the camera. “Now, folks, I have to take a quick commercial break. Make that money, you know? But when we come back, Riana is going to give you tips on how to draft an effective résumé and tell you what you need to know before you go out on that next job interview.”

An hour later Riana was behind the wheel of her champagne-colored Lexus and headed back to her office, a seven-room suite on the twenty-third floor of the Crockett Building in the heart of downtown San Antonio. From her windows high above the city, she could see the famous Alamo, the bustling River Walk and the outline of Mission Concepcion, one of the oldest Spanish missions still around. Traffic was extremely heavy, as it always was during the summer months, when tourists crowded the downtown area in search of a glimpse of Texas history and a fun time in the fiesta-happy city.

When Riana pulled into her private parking spot in the garage adjoining her building, she remained in her car, taking a moment to reflect on her interview. She was relieved that her appearance on Sheri’s show was over and felt satisfied with the way it had gone. Riana got plenty of airtime in order to get her story out. Things were definitely on a roll!

Looking forward to the rest of her day, Riana got out of her car, took the elevator up to the twenty-third floor and pushed through the double glass doors of Executive Suites, Inc.

“Saw you on TV this morning,” said Tanisha, Riana’s efficient office manager, a dedicated sister who had been with Riana since the office first opened. A petite, fair-skinned young woman with a gentle voice and a steel trap for a mind, she took her job seriously, earning total respect from the staff. With Tanisha in charge, Riana never had to worry about any of her employees slacking off or taking advantage of the fact that Riana was often out and about, networking to bring in more leads. “Good job,” Tanisha continued. “The phones have been ringing like crazy.”

“Really?” Riana commented, accepting the stack of pink message slips that Donna, the receptionist, handed to her. Riana glanced through them, amazed at how quickly she was getting results from her appearance on Sheri’s show. Now, she better understood why those in business in San Antonio worked so hard to keep Sheri happy.

“The school district, two banks, your sister, Britt, and someone from the Allen Group called,” Donna prompted, referring to the pink slips in Riana’s hand. “Very important to call George Allen back today. His assistant said that he wants information about your services, and that he has a rush job. The man wants to talk to you ASAP.”

“Right,” Riana agreed, recognizing the name. George Allen was president of the Allen Group, well-known as a major builder of exclusive gated communities, skyscrapers, industrial complexes and huge shopping malls. His name and photo turned up regularly in newspapers and magazines whenever he broke ground on one of his trendsetting projects or donated a chunk of cash to a charitable organization. He was one of the ten wealthiest men in Texas, and his activities were tracked by national publications.

Riana stuffed the messages into the side pocket of her attaché case and headed down the hallway toward her office. Pausing at her door, she turned around and called back to Donna, “I’m gonna give Britt a quick callback first, and then please get George Allen on the phone right away.”

“And I want to hear what he has to say,” Tanisha interjected, crossing her fingers at Riana before disappearing back inside her office.

Seated at her desk, Riana punched the speed dial to her sister’s house, knowing it was best to call Britt back first, before her kids returned home from swimming lessons, the library, a Scout meeting or wherever they’d been shipped off to for the morning. Britt was a stay-at-home mom with five children under the age of twelve who lived in the suburbs with her husband, John, a mild-mannered veterinarian. Even though school was out for the summer, Britt didn’t let her children sleep late and watch television all day. She made sure they followed as rigorous a routine of activities during the summer months as they did when school was in session.

“Hi, Britt,” Riana greeted, distressed to hear her youngest niece, Wendy, wailing in the background. “What’s up?”

“Do you really want to know?” Britt said on the edge of a sigh.

No, not really, Riana thought as she listened to Britt’s rundown of her hectic morning. Typical suburban-mom stuff. Nothing Riana could relate to, but she held her tongue and let Britt vent for a few minutes, her monologue interrupted by attempts to shush Wendy. It was difficult not to hurry Britt off the phone, but Riana knew her sister needed the release of talking about her troubles with someone. Today, it was Riana.

“Anyway, the real reason I called…” Britt finally got to the point.

“Yeah, right,” Riana prompted, eager to get off the phone and call George Allen back. “I only have a few minutes. An important call to make.” Tapping her pen impatiently on her blotter, she waited.

“I know. You’re always so busy. Anyway, I saw your interview with Sheri Sherman this morning,” Britt started, voice dropping a few octaves.

“Oh? Good. What’d you think?” Riana asked, pleased that Britt, who took little interest in Riana’s business, had been watching.

“I’m worried about you,” Britt tossed out, her tone a bit accusatory. “Don’t you realize how dangerous it was for you to say what you did?”

“What are you talking about?” Riana asked, sitting up straighter, puzzled. Dangerous? What was bothering Britt, who overreacted to everything?

“I’m talking about your comment. About not having time for a personal life,” Britt clarified. “You just told the world that you’re not interested in men. It sounded so strange, almost as if you were, you know…gay or something. Why did you have to do that?”

“Oh, my God! Britt. How can you say that? You know that’s not what I meant.”

“That’s how it came off.”

“I simply said that I don’t have any interest in pursuing a serious romantic relationship,” Riana defended herself. “It’s the truth. So what?”

“Well, you’ll never get married if you keep broadcasting the fact that you’re too involved in your work to give a man the time of day. I don’t understand you, I really don’t.”

Stiffening her spine, Riana kept all emotion from her voice as she told her sister, “I’m not concerned about what people think. If I never get married, that’s fine with me, Britt. I’m perfectly content with my life as it is and I have no desire to complicate it by bringing a man into the picture.”

Britt’s remarks stung Riana. After hanging up the phone, she sat quietly, unable to believe what Britt had said. Me, gay? Not hardly, Riana thought, shaking her head, her mind suddenly turning to memories of the time she had spent with Andre Preaux. Even though it had been four years since she had felt Andre’s lips on hers and held his body close, it seemed as if she had made love to him only yesterday. Why wouldn’t those memories fade?

Chapter 2

Andre paused to catch his breath when he came to the end of his circuit on the jogging trail that wound its way through Hermann Park. Holding on to the back of a park bench, he began a series of stretching exercises while studying the rain clouds that were beginning to darken the jagged Houston skyline. The hot, humid day was coming to an end, and he was glad he had made it to the park in time to get in a good run before the evening rain took over.

Running cleared Andre’s head and gave him time to review what he had accomplished at the office. It had been a satisfying day at A. Preaux and Associates, his newly established urban planning and architectural firm located on the top floor of Prairie Towers, a six-story art-deco structure he had rescued from the wrecking ball.

He had prepared a bid proposal for a warehouse renovation project, completed the preliminary sketches for a city-sponsored health center, and prepared his presentation for a gathering of area business owners to discuss his vision for a strip shopping center. Of the projects he was currently working on, the city contract excited him the most. The government design would add another valuable reference to Andre’s short list of satisfied clients and add to his renovation fund for Prairie Towers.

Years ago, when the business center of Houston had suddenly shifted westward, companies had vacated office buildings like Prairie Towers for steel-and-glass towers that shimmered in the sunlight. Andre had watched the property deteriorate during punishingly hot summers and through tropical storms that had ravaged it inside and out, while praying that no one would snatch it up before he accumulated sufficient money to buy it. Last year he had managed to purchase the deserted building for a fraction of its value, using every cent of his savings and going into debt, with little left over for the major renovations it would require. Though Prairie Towers was in a fairly dilapidated state, its address still drew respect, and that was what mattered to anyone purchasing real estate in Houston.

Andre had great plans for the 1950s structure, deciding to do most of the work himself, but for now, the building remained vacant except for the top floor, which Andre had divided in half with one side used for his loft-style living quarters and the other half converted into his office space—with two desks, a computer, his drafting table and a bookcase—sufficient furnishings for himself and Lester Tremaine, his part-time assistant, and the only associate at A. Preaux and Associates.

Now, Andre scanned the buildup of cars lining Fannin Drive, ready to head home and add the last coat of sealer to the hardwood floors he had just refinished in his living area. Once he’d completed that work, his loft apartment would be fully renovated and he could turn his focus on the unfinished walls of his office.

“Traffic’s gonna be hell,” Andre muttered to himself as he mopped his face with a small white towel and finished his stretching routine. The darkening rain clouds served as a warning that the weather was surely going to make his rush-hour drive time even more sluggish.

Just as he was about to head to the opposite side of the park where he had left his newly washed Pathfinder, the first drops of rain hit the ground, and within seconds, a full-blown downpour erupted. Twelve dollars wasted, he thought.

Seeking cover, Andre jogged over to a nearby pavilion where a lone man was watching the rain.

As he approached, Andre recalled that the man had been under the pavilion when he had first arrived at the park, and had stayed there while Andre raced past him repeatedly during his six-mile run. The stranger didn’t look like a homeless person, and didn’t appear dangerous or threatening, so Andre relaxed, thinking that he might be an office worker who had come out to the park to simply get some fresh air.

Ducking under the shelter, Andre nodded to the stranger. “I knew it was coming,” he casually remarked to the man, who was dressed in neat khaki slacks and a white open-collar shirt. His fair complexion was ruddy, as if he’d been out in the sun too long without a hat, and his dark-blond hair, cut short and spiky, resembled a military buzz. Reflective black circles of glass shielded eyes that Andre sensed were sweeping over him.

“Typical July in Houston,” the man replied, coming over to stand beside Andre.

“Right,” Andre replied, easing back a bit while rethinking his earlier conclusion. His mind whirled back to a recent news report about a well-dressed mugger who had been spotted hanging out in city parks, waiting for unsuspecting victims to beat and rob. It seemed that no one could be trusted nowadays, but Andre hated to automatically assume that every stranger he met was potentially dangerous.

“Are you Andre Preaux?” the man suddenly asked in a strong, official manner, as if he had been waiting for Andre all along.

The question shocked Andre, who stepped away several feet and leveled a curious eye on the red-faced man, whom he now could see was lanky and slightly stooped. His shielded eyes told Andre nothing, staring back at him as if they were simply two black dots pasted on a face for show. “Why? Who are you?” Andre wanted to know, certain he had never seen this person before.

The man reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a slim black wallet, which he flipped open with one heavily freckled hand. “Charles Frazer, FBI. Are you Andre Preaux?”

Too startled, and too cautious, to speak, Andre moved his head up and down.

“Good,” the man said, turning away from Andre to walk over to one of the metal picnic tables in the center of the pavilion. Once he was seated, he motioned Andre over. “Sit down, please. I want to talk to you.”

“About what?” Andre asked, slowly making his way toward the table as he tried to grasp the inference of the FBI agent’s presence in the park. The man knew him. Had called him by name. What could he possibly want?

“It’s about your brother, Jamal Preaux,” Frazer clarified, removing his glasses to reveal pale-blue expressionless eyes.

“Oh.” The word erupted from Andre’s mouth, flying out like a tiny dart. He digested the agent’s comment, fearful about what was coming next. After having pushed Jamal out of his mind and out of his life for so long, Andre had begun to believe that no one knew about his estranged sibling, but apparently, the FBI did, and the realization was disturbing. “My half brother, you mean,” Andre corrected, cautiously taking a seat across from Charles Frazer.

“Okay, fine. Your half brother,” Frazer conceded with a slight smirk. Barely moving his lips, he went on. “When was the last time you saw him?”

That was a question that Andre didn’t want to answer, and one that he had hoped no one would ever ask. He could feel his pulse begin to race as he considered whether to cooperate with this man before he knew what was really going on. After all, he was not obligated to answer any official’s questions without a lawyer present, and how did he know that this man was really an agent with the FBI? “Why do you want to know?” Andre ventured, stalling, groping for any reason to avoid this conversation.

“Have you seen or heard from Jamal Preaux recently?” Frazer pressed, toying with his sunglasses, his blue stare cutting into Andre’s brown eyes.

Slowly, Andre forced himself to calm down, deciding to answer as truthfully as possible because to do otherwise would only make him appear as if he had something to hide, which he didn’t. “No. I haven’t seen Jamal recently.”

“What about his wife, Kay Lamonde Preaux? Heard from her?”

Again, Andre replied, “No,” his voice unexpectedly dropping to a whisper.

“You were in Jamaica last September, weren’t you?” Frazer pulled a small notebook from the pocket of his limp white shirt, thumbed to a page and studied it, as if verifying his facts. “September 2005? Did you see your brother then?”

Knowing it would be stupid to deny that he had traveled to Jamaica because it was so easy to check travel and passport records, Andre had no choice but to confirm the agent’s statement. “Yes,” he confessed. “I went to Jamaica in September. I saw my brother then.”

“What was the purpose of your visit?”

“Vacation.”

“Where did you see Jamal?”

“He came to see me at my hotel in Kingston.”

“Are you two close?” Frazer asked.

Andre hunched his shoulders, beginning to feel cornered. “No, not really.” Biting his lip, he paused, and then added, “We’ve had our differences over the years. I’d like him to come back to the States, bring his family and settle down here.”

“You ever talk about that with him?” Frazer asked.

“Yeah, sure. But I guess he loves the island life too much to give it up.”

“What does your brother do for a living?” Frazer plodded along, his tone growing more efficient with each word, his manner more insistent.

“I don’t really know,” Andre answered in a constricted voice, praying that he sounded convincing. “Odd jobs. He told me he repairs houses, does fix-up stuff. His wife, Kay, is an artist. Sells her paintings in a local market.”

“I see,” Frazer said as he made a few notations on a page in his notebook before flipping it closed and taking out one of his business cards, which he slid across the picnic table to Andre. “You still live at Prairie Towers?”

With a jerk of his head, Andre confirmed the man’s question, a coil of apprehension forming in his gut. This man knew where he lived. Knew he had a half brother living in the Caribbean. He’d intercepted Andre in the park. How long had the FBI been watching him? “Yeah, that’s where I live and where I work. My office is in the same building.”

“You own the building, right?”

“Yes, I do,” Andre snapped, not liking the way this interrogation was going.

“Where’d you get the money to buy a piece of property like that?”

“Where anybody gets money to buy something they want. I earned it. I saved it. Borrowed some from the bank.” Now, Andre was really getting pissed. What right did this man have to ask such questions, which he certainly didn’t have to answer? “What difference does it make how I financed my property?”

“Just wanted to know. For the record,” Frazer calmly clarified.

“Well, is there anything else you want to know?” Andre tossed out, raising his chin in a defiant jut, ready to be finished with this vague interrogation.

“Not right now, but stick around. I may want to talk to you again.”

“Why?” Andre demanded, now suspicious. “Let’s dispense with this cat-and-mouse bull. What’s this about? Do I need to get a lawyer?”

Agent Frazer’s features turned even more solemn and his eyes lowered into hooded blue slits, the first sign of emotion that Andre had seen. “Do you think you need one?”

“No, not at all,” Andre boldly countered, determined not to waver.

“Then, you have nothing to worry about, okay?”

“Sure, sure,” Andre replied as he picked up the card and studied it. “But can’t you tell me what’s going on? Is Jamal in trouble?”

“Well, let’s just say that he’s a person of interest in a complicated situation. He seems to have disappeared. Along with his family. We’d like to find him and his wife, ask them a few questions, that’s all.”

The self-assured expression on Frazer’s face told Andre that he wasn’t going to get more than that. “I’ll let you know if I hear from him,” Andre promised.

“Thanks,” Frazer replied before adding, “Looks like the rain has slacked off. I’d better make a run for it.” He slid his sunglasses back over his eyes and pushed up from the table, preparing to leave.

Andre didn’t move.

Frazer stepped out from beneath the shelter and looked up at the clearing sky, one hand in his pants pocket, his back still to Andre, and then he twisted his upper torso and turned around. “Don’t leave town without letting me know,” he called out over his shoulder, before hurrying across the wet grass to the parking lot where he got into a black compact car.

“I’m sure I won’t,” Andre said to himself, feeling as if he’d been kicked in the stomach. I should have known this day was coming, he thought, gripped with the same awful sense of dread that he’d felt the last time he saw Jamal.

Chapter 3

After holding for a full five minutes, Riana finally got George Allen on the line, and it was hard for her to contain her excitement when he finally told her what he wanted.

Swiveling around in her chair, she positioned her back to her office door and faced the sun-splashed windows that overlooked downtown San Antonio. A ripple of anticipation came over her as she took in the details of the most important assignment she had ever been offered. Adding George Allen’s company, the Allen Group, to her client list would be a major coup, and she didn’t care if he asked her to locate a multilingual nuclear scientist who could also sing the blues and write country songs, she was going to accept this assignment. No way could she underestimate the importance of snagging this account.

“So,” she finally said when Allen finished, “you’re constructing a minimum-security prison outside of San Antonio to be named Tierra Trace—specifically for adult women and female juveniles, right? Is this a federal project?”

“Exactly, my company was awarded the contract to design and build Tierra Trace, which will be closely monitored and controlled by government regulations. It’s an unusual approach, in that the complex will house inmates who have been selected to enter advanced professional training and college-level classes in order to reenter society and be productive. Minimum security, white-collar crime. It’s not going to be a place for people to simply sleep, eat and watch TV to pass the time.”

“Interesting,” Riana commented.

“The location and design of the various units within the complex will be crucial to the success of this project.”

“What’s the size of the complex?” Riana asked.

“It’ll be modest in size, divided into three distinct areas with separate buildings for adult women and juvenile girls. It will also have a small unit for pregnant women or those with newborns who need to keep their babies with them for a while. Lots of green space and utility areas all around. Each of these distinct groups has vastly different requirements and I am convinced that housing inmates with similar personal situations and similar needs will impact the success of this plan. This is the first of its kind in the country, and if it’s successful, others will follow.”

“It’s a most unique approach,” Riana said.

“Yes, it is,” Allen stated with pride. “It must be functional, have clean lines and incorporate all the high-tech security equipment and state-of-the-art sanitation requirements available, along with instructional and recreational areas.”

“How can Executive Suites help?”

“I want you to recruit a leader for my design team. I need a space-planning architect to help pull my vision together,” Allen said, and then added, “I’ve been thinking about using someone new to the industry, an unknown who can bring a fresh perspective.”

“You want me to recruit a novice architect who’s just launching a career? Why not go after the best, most experienced person for the job?” Riana wanted to know.

“When I saw you on Community Business Focus this morning, I was very impressed with your story. I thought, ‘Why not hire an up-and-coming search firm to use on this project? And while I’m at it, why not go after a hungry architect who really needs the work?’ This is not one of my bigger projects by any means, but it’s a very important one, and whoever comes on board will get a heck of a lot of exposure. I want you to find me an unknown with talent. I’m sure you can locate a professional who understands what I need and who can deliver.”