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Autumn didn’t know if she could make it outside without hobbling. Her feet were sore and painfully tender. She contemplated carrying her sandals, but canned the idea without giving it proper thought. She didn’t want to give Shante any more ammunition to embarrass her. Autumn put her heels back on, swiped her purse off the table, and without so much as a goodbye to Shante, headed for the exit.
“What are you going to do to keep yourself busy while you’re in D.C., L.J.?” Yvette asked as they emerged from the tent and into the starless night. She put her jacket on over her floral dress and zipped it up. The temperature had dropped considerably since they’d arrived at the estate hours earlier. A fierce wind was swaying the tent and rustling the oak trees shielding the expansive property.
“Hang out with Peter before Melissa lays down the law,” he answered. A deep chuckle ripped from his mouth when Yvette gave him a hard shove.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Yvette’s tone was harsh, but she was smiling.
“My grandfather used to say, ‘wedlock is a padlock’ and he was wrong about most things, but he was right about how miserable marriage could be. I bet Melissa will be giving Peter a curfew before the ink has dried on their marriage license.”
Yvette’s shoulders shook as she laughed. “Come on, L.J., marriage isn’t that bad. When you find the right person, it can be the best thing in the world.”
L.J. took a peek over his shoulder. Autumn was limping a few feet behind them. She hadn’t said a word since her exchange with Shante, and he wanted to bring her into the conversation. “What do you think, Autumn?”
I think these shoes are cutting off my circulation. If I don’t get to my car soon, you guys will be picking me up off the pavement! “I’m with Yvette,” was all Autumn could manage. She wanted to say more, but talking and limping was just too difficult. She needed to preserve her energy for the rest of the walk. Her car was still several feet away.
L.J. couldn’t overlook the aggrieved expression on her face any longer. He stared down at her feet, held prisoners by the pointiest shoes he had ever seen, and said, “You look like you’re about to pass out, Autumn. If your feet are hurting, I could carry you, you know. I don’t mind.”
The sparkle in his eyes and the smile he shared with Yvette wasn’t missed on Autumn. He was teasing her. She could barely put one aching foot in front of the other, but she wasn’t about to be the brunt of anyone’s jokes. Forgetting the sting, she wiped all traces of pain from her face, and fixed her mouth in a wide smile. “I’m just fine, thank you very much. Don’t worry ’bout me, L.J. I can make it.”
Her brusque reply made L.J. wonder if he’d done something wrong. She’d been acting strange ever since her run-in with her ex-boyfriend. It was as if she had gone through a drastic personality change in the space of an hour. She wasn’t nearly as amiable as she had been when they were chatting by the pool.
He could tell by the look on her face that she had a lot on her mind. No doubt, she was thinking about her ex. L.J. and Kellianne were as close as a brother and sister could be and he’d seen this predicament play out in her life many times before. Autumn’s ex had messed up and now she was in what he liked to call the I-hate-all-men-and-I’m-better-off-without-any-of-them phase. Because she loathed the opposite sex, including nice guys like him, she would rather suffer than accept his help. But L.J. didn’t blame her. From what he’d seen, her ex was the king of all jerks.
L.J. resumed his conversation with Yvette, not giving Autumn another thought. But when he heard her stumble, his head whipped around. Her mouth was set in the most unflattering of expressions and she was breathing as though she’d just finished running up a flight of stairs. He offered his hand, but she waved it away. “Okay. Suit yourself.” Then to Yvette, “How many children do you have?”
Yvette pulled out her wallet. Like a typical mom, she proudly showed off her daughters. She pointed at each picture and shared cute anecdotes about each child. “What about you, L.J.? Any rug rats?”
“Shoot!”
Yvette and L.J. turned around just in time to see Autumn stumble again. But before they could help her, she was back on her feet and dusting off her the hem of her dress.
“You okay?” Yvette asked.
Autumn could only nod. Averting her gaze, she spotted Yvette’s rusted, sky-blue minivan parked halfway down the block. It was hard to miss. It had a plethora of child-friendly bumper stickers, yellow Baby-on-Board signs and the silhouette of a safety seat in the back. “Do you want me to give you a ride to your van, Yvette?” Autumn asked, standing up tall and squaring her shoulders.
“No, no, that’s all right. I need to walk off the four slices of cheesecake I had. I’ll call you tomorrow, girl.” With a quick hug to her best friend, and a small wave to L.J., Yvette continued down the driveway and strolled through the open gates.
“Thanks for walking me to my car. It was really thoughtful of you,” Autumn said when they reached her car a half-minute later.
“I should be thanking you.” When her face clouded over, he said, “For saving me from Shante. I’d been trying to shake that woman all night!” They shared a laugh. “Why don’t I show you my deep gratitude by taking you out for a dinner? Say tomorrow night, around eight o’clock?”
Autumn couldn’t hold back her smile. “Very smooth.”
He shrugged his shoulders. “What? You have to eat and I have to eat. So, why can’t we do it together?” Hoping to persuade her, he offered, “You can choose the restaurant. Chinese. Mexican. Italian. Anywhere you want.”
More laughter passed between them. Autumn didn’t know much about L.J., but she liked that he could make her laugh. He seemed like a nice enough guy, but she couldn’t go out with him. It just didn’t seem right. She was fresh out of a relationship and he was, well…visiting. He didn’t call Washington home and before she knew it L.J. would be returning to Atlanta. Why bother? Autumn was set to decline his offer graciously when she saw Shante hustling and bustling down the driveway like an out-of-control wheelbarrow. The woman was dangerously close to toppling over, and Autumn was secretly praying for the fall.
L.J. held open the door for her. “So, what do you say?”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
Autumn kicked off her sandals and hurled them into the backseat. She gestured with her finger behind him. “Here comes reason number one.”
L.J. didn’t need to turn around to know who was coming. Shante. His chin dropped so low it was sitting on his chest. The woman reminded him of his pet rottweiler, Keys. She was frisky, loved chasing things and was hard to cuddle with. Shante wasn’t his type. In fact, she was the complete opposite of the women he normally dated. He needed to find a polite way to let Shante know he wasn’t interested. As L.J. watched Autumn’s car pull out of the driveway, he wished she was the one hanging all over him instead of Shante.
Chapter 5
“The quickest way to get over a man is to find a new one,” Melissa explained, marching in beat to music blaring from the television, “and I know just the man to cure you of the funk that you’ve been in.”
Autumn shot Melissa a leave-me-alone look. She retightened the elastic band in her hair and guzzled down some water. It was Saturday afternoon and the two friends were working out in the Grisbeys’ fitness room. Autumn reset the stationary bike for another thirty minutes, balanced the latest issue of Essence magazine on her lap and started peddling.
“All I’m saying is, get out of your damn apartment. You’ve been holed up in your place like you’re under house arrest and you’ve turned down all my invitations to get together. Shutting yourself away and moping around the house isn’t going to make you feel better, Autumn.”
Autumn continued reading. If she gave Melissa a chance, she knew her best friend would slip into Oprah mode and Autumn wasn’t in the mood for any more advice. Since breaking up with Tyrell, she had been getting plenty of unwanted counsel, and she had finally reached her breaking point. “I’m fine. I just don’t feel like hanging out, that’s all.”
Mimicking Tae Bo instructor Billy Blanks, Melissa set her feet in a defensive stance and raised her balled hands to chin level. Alternating between waist-high kicks and throwing punches that would make Lennox Lewis proud, Melissa grunted along with the ten on-screen participants and the fitness guru. Without breaking her kicking rhythm, Melissa tossed Autumn a look over her left shoulder. “Well, do you at least find him attractive?”
“Who?” she asked, knowing full well who Melissa was referring to.
“Who else?” Melissa replied with a snort. “L.J. Do you think he’s good looking?”
Do I ever, Autumn confessed, but not out loud so Melissa could hear. Autumn hadn’t seen him since the dinner party, more than two weeks ago, but she could remember every detail of his ruggedly handsome face. Wide eyebrows set above deep, slanted eyes with copper specks; a broad, slightly uneven nose and thick, kissable lips. His clean-shaved head appealed to her inner bad girl and his well-sculpted body testified to all the hours he must spend at the gym. The man had some really thick muscles on him.
Autumn wiped her towel across her face and then down her neck. “He’s all right.”
“All right!” Melissa shook her head in disbelief. “Broccoli’s all right. A knock-off Prada purse is all right. Vacationing in Cancun during spring break is all right. But men who look like L.J. are not all right.” She turned her attention away from the fifty-two-inch plasma-screen TV. “Confidence and intensity are unbelievably sexy, and L.J. has both in heaps. He has a gravity about him and he knows it, but not in a way that makes him arrogant, like Tyrell.”
Autumn nodded. “I agree, but it doesn’t really matter what I think of L.J. ’cause I’m not interested in him.”
Throwing a flurry of punches and following them up with back-to-back front kicks, Melissa grunted some more. “That’s your problem right there, Autumn. You play life safe. You do the same thing day in and day out and you take no risks whatsoever.”
Autumn made a face.
“Don’t look at me like that. It’s true. You’re too busy planning and organizing your life to actually live it. You go with the flow and don’t ever trouble the waters. What’s so wrong with going out with him or anyone else who asks you out?” When Autumn didn’t respond, she went on. “I should just keep my mouth shut. Do what works for you. You’re a settler. Always have been. Always will be. So, don’t try new things, or meet new people or step out of your comfort zone.”
Autumn didn’t want to exchange verbal blows with Melissa, but when she continued ripping into her, she couldn’t keep the lid on her frustration. “So, what do you suggest I do?” she asked not bothering to look up from the magazine. “Throw myself at L.J.’s feet like your shameless cousin?”
The image of Shante hanging all over L.J. like a praying mantis flashed in Autumn’s mind. She gripped the handlebars and began peddling with renewed energy. God, I couldn’t stand that woman. Shante Patterson was the most self-minded, conniving person Autumn had ever met. She had no respect for herself or the plight of professional women. The daily struggles of career women fighting to be treated equally in a male-dominated work force were foreign to the onetime model. Shante batted her eyelashes, wiggled her hips and flaunted her curves, and when she didn’t get what she wanted, she reminded people who her prominent family was.
Autumn would never dream of using her father’s name to advance her career. When her father had learned that she had accepted the junior accountant position at Monroe, his eyebrows had creased like old linen pants. “I golf on a regular basis with some of the company’s board of directors, you know. One call from me and they’ll see that you get a better position.” Autumn had refused. She had decided long ago that she was going to make a name for herself in the accounting world without her father’s influence or his endless list of connections, and as tempting as the offer was, she had turned it down. She’d had her fair share of crappy, low-paying jobs after graduating from college, but she had never once asked her father for help.
“You think I should go out with him and do the things Shante does?”
“Heck no!” Melissa stretched her toned arms from left to right, and then bent over and touched the tips of her size-six feet. “I’m not suggesting you should emulate Shante, but you could learn a thing or two from that cousin of mine. She’s not afraid to speak her mind and she doesn’t let people stand in the way of getting what she wants, either. She’s also strong-willed and fiercely competitive and that’s never a bad thing.”
“You may find this hard to believe, Mel, but I like my life just the way it is. And I refuse to change who I am just to get some man’s attention.” Autumn lifted her head and stuck out her chin to farther prove her point. “I don’t care how good-looking or successful a man is, I’m not going to play the beauty card or degrade myself for anyone.”
Melissa chose her words carefully. She didn’t want to upset Autumn, but her best friend needed to hear this. “No one’s asking you to. Just live a little. Stop saying no all the time and say yes every now and then. Try something new. Travel. Do that one thing you’ve always wanted to do.” Melissa flopped down on the pillow-thick exercise mat and stretched her legs in front of her. “Yvette and I are worried about you, Autumn. You’re turning into an old maid right before our eyes and you’re not even out of your twenties yet!”
The timer beeped, signaling that the thirty-minute cycle was over. Autumn shut off the machine, eased off the bike and then clutched the handlebars to steady her shaky balance. “Me, an old maid? Please. That’s absurd. I’m at the top of my career, I have friends and family who love me and I just bought a fabulous new condo.”
“But are you happy?”
Autumn bit down hard on her bottom lip. “Tremendously.”
“Really?” Melissa quit stretching and tucked her legs underneath her.
“Really.”
“When was the last time you did something exciting? Or tried something new?”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
Melissa leaned back on her palms. She searched Autumn’s honey-brown eyes, as if the answer she was looking for could be found there. “Will you just answer the question? And don’t say having your first bikini wax, either.”
Autumn thought hard for several minutes and came up with nothing. Truth be told, she wasn’t a risk-taker. She was a planner. A list-maker. An organizer. Having things prescheduled and neatly organized was how she had always lived her life and after twenty-nine years, she wasn’t about to change. Not for Melissa. Not for anyone.
“When you step out of your box you gain a deeper understanding of yourself,” Melissa said in her best psychologist voice.
“Is that why you’re rushing to get married? Are you afraid of becoming an old maid?” Autumn smoothed the base of her ponytail. Yanking out the rubber band, she shook her damp braids free and ran her fingers through marble-size knots.
Melissa shrugged. “Maybe, but my decision to marry Peter was made in my mind long before he ever asked. I just got to the place in our relationship where I wanted to spend all my days and nights with him.” Melissa’s eyes softened with care. “Just give some thought to what I said, Autumn. You deserve all the happiness you can stand and you deserve to be with a man who’s going to love you so good it hurts. I’m not trying to say L.J.’s that man, either, just open yourself up to the possibility of love. Don’t get stuck in the mind-numbing routine of work, work and more work. Have fun and be free while you’re still young.” She winked, her thin lips curved into the naughtiest of smiles. “You know what they say, girlfriend, variety is the spice of life.”
An awkward silence stretched into minutes. Then they returned to their individual workouts. Autumn lay flat on her back at one end of the mat doing sit-ups; Melissa alternated between lunges and jumping jacks. The next half-hour passed quickly and when Melissa shut off the DVD player and announced she was going to take a shower, Autumn was glad to see her go.
Autumn was slow getting to her feet. Stretching her arms high in the air, she rolled her head in short semicircles. She was trying not to take exception to what Melissa had said, but her feelings were hurt. Bruised. Deep down, she knew her best friend hadn’t set out to put her down, but that was exactly how she felt. The people she trusted most, the same people who were supposed to have her back, were pointing fingers at her. Laughing at her. Talking behind her back. Questions whirled around her head as her neck rotated. Who did Melissa think she was and where did she get off calling her a settler? Just because she’s getting married and Peter puts up with her drama doesn’t mean she’s a relationship guru, Autumn raged, kicking the dark-blue exercise ball halfway across the room.
Autumn was happy. Blissful even. More than satisfied with the life she was living. She had a complaint or two, but didn’t everybody? Fine, she wasn’t the most spontaneous person and it was true she shied away from trying new things, but that didn’t mean she was one girdle away from a nursing home. An old maid? Please. That was pure nonsense. Just because Melissa was unfulfilled with life and craved more adventure, didn’t mean she did, too. Autumn shoved Melissa’s off-sided comments to the farthest part of her mind, gave the exercise ball another good boot and marched into the guest bathroom. Cranking the cold-water dial to full blast, Autumn reaffirmed what she already knew to be true: she was doing just fine. Wonderful even. And no one was going to tell her otherwise.
Forty-five minutes later, Melissa and Autumn were showered, changed and eating lunch out on the patio. The sun had finally broken free of the clouds and hung high in the sky like a Goodyear Blimp. Autumn rubbed her forehead. They hadn’t been outside but ten minutes, and she was sweating like someone who’d been toiling in the sun since daybreak. Fanning herself with her hand, she drank from her glass of fruit punch. As predicted, the afternoon was turning out to be a scorcher and when the sun got this intense, there was only one place Autumn wanted to be—inside.
The elderly housekeeper refilled her empty glass and wiped down the sticky table surface with a wet cloth. Autumn smiled. “Thanks, Eliza.”
“You’re welcome Ms. Autumn. Now, can I interest either of you in some fresh fruit? I have sliced cantaloupe, water-melon, pineapple and guava.”
“That would be nice.” Melissa finished off her juice in one big gulp and deposited the empty glass on Eliza’s already-full tray. The round, fair-skinned Black woman promised to be back shortly and returned inside. “So, what do you have planned for the rest of the day? It would be a sin to waste such a sunny day indoors. This is ideal beach weather.”
Says who? Autumn knew exactly how she was going to spend the remainder of the day: inside her apartment with the air-conditioning on full blast. But Autumn wasn’t about to tell Melissa that. After the you’re-turning-into-an-old-maid-who-will-never-get-a-man speech, she was hesitant to share her afternoon plans. “I have some errands to do and some work—”
Melissa smacked the table with her right hand and startled Autumn. “What?”
“See, that’s exactly what I was talking about.” She shook her head, curls grazing her cheekbones and tumbling all over her face. “It’s a glorious afternoon and instead of doing something fun like going to the beach or for a stroll in the park you’re going to sit in your apartment. One day—” Melissa broke off, her face sparkling brighter than Fourth of July fireworks. She mindlessly fluffed her hair and then adjusted her shell-pink bikini top.
What the hell? Bewildered, Autumn peeked over her shoulder. Strolling across the grass wearing wide smiles and with tennis rackets in their hands were Peter and L.J. The two men could pass for brothers in their wrinkle-free T-shirts, knee-length black shorts and dark, rounded sunglasses. Ultra-casual and laid-back, L.J. looked more like the Adonis who had changed her flat tire and less like the ebony hunk she remembered from the Grisbey party. He was a shade above six feet, but with his long limbs and bulging muscles he seemed much taller.
Autumn snatched her towel from the back of her chair. If she’d known they were stopping by she would have put on a more respectable bikini—not a suit that barely covered her chest and served up a healthy dose of her behind. When Melissa had called that morning to invite her over, she had said that her parents were in New York and they would have the house to themselves. She’d neglected to mention that Peter and his best friend would be coming over. “Why didn’t you tell me we were having company?”
“Slipped my mind?”
Autumn wanted to heave Melissa into the pool. She didn’t believe for a second her best friend “forgot.” Melissa had a penchant for details and the sharpest memory of anyone she knew. This was no slip of the mind. It was a hook-up if Autumn had ever seen one. “If I’d known he was coming over, I wouldn’t have put this on,” Autumn said as she plucked at her barely there bikini top. “I can’t walk around in this. He’s going to think I’m—”
“Stop your bellyaching, Autumn. You look tasty.” Melissa licked her lips in an exaggerated fashion. “Relax. Take a breath. Better yet, get up and go for a swim. The water looks cool.”
“Are you out of your mind? I can’t prance around in high-heels and a teeny-weeny bikini. He’s going to think I’m showing off. Or trying to impress him.”
Autumn’s stomach muscles tensed. L.J. was closing in on her. The familiar scent of his overwhelming cologne brought her mind back to their sexy dance. She could still feel the warmth of his hands as he’d clutched her waist. The memory of his tender embrace transported her mind and body to another place.
Autumn fixed her eyes on the charming, soft-spoken man who had had a recurring role in her daydreams for the past fourteen days. L.J. looked like a man who’d just spent the last hour under the skilled hands of a masseuse rather than playing tennis. He moved with total ease. His voice carried across the lawn with buoyancy. Autumn pretended not to be touched by his presence, but she was. A bit too touched. Before she could properly get herself together, the two men were at the table offering greetings. She took a deep breath. Slipping on her sunglasses, she donned her ready-for-anything smile.
Melissa welcomed Peter with a tight hug and a kiss that lasted long enough to make L.J. and Autumn feel invisible. Greeting L.J. with the smile she reserved for her big-money clients, Melissa turned to Autumn. “Look who’s here, girl. You remember L.J., don’t you?”
Autumn suppressed an eye roll. What a stupid question. Of course she remembered him! How could she forget the man who’d rescued her on the highway and stirred all sorts of passions within? L.J.’s penetrating gaze unnerved her and the stifling heat didn’t help, either. The weather and intolerable humidity made it hard for Autumn to think, let alone formulate words and organize them into coherent sentences. She was sitting at the table as good as naked. Raising her towel higher, she crossed her arms underneath her chest. No sense in giving him a glimpse of something he would never see. “Nice to see you again, L.J. How have you been?”
L.J. smiled. That was all he could do. His tongue was twisted in knots and just standing upright seemed to require serious effort. Being in Autumn’s presence made him nervous. L.J. drank up every delectable inch of her. The brown-sugar skin; round, expressive eyes, slender fingers and trim arms. Autumn sat in a drool-worthy swimsuit fiddling with her napkin, oblivious to what she was doing to him. Her red-and-white bikini top made him think of a candy cane—and what he wouldn’t do for a lick. L.J. couldn’t remember the last time he was this enamored of a woman. It was as if she were a magnet and he was a paperclip trying to avoid getting stuck. But this thing he felt, this pull, was more than something physical. There was no denying the chemistry, but there was something else. He didn’t know what to call it yet. It wasn’t love. It wasn’t lust. What was it?
L.J. helped himself to a chair. “I’m good, can’t complain. You?”
“I’m fine. Thanks for asking.”
He thought of what to say next. He had been looking forward to seeing her all day, but now that she was sitting in front of him, his mind was blank.
When a few seconds passed without another word from him, Autumn picked up the newspaper lying in the middle of the table. She concealed the top half of her body with the entertainment section of the Tribune, and L.J. felt as if an iron door had slammed shut in his face.
“So, have you two ladies decided what movie we’re going to see?” Peter asked, squeezing his fiancée’s waist. “L.J. and I want to check out that new DMX movie.”
Autumn folded the newspaper. “Movie? What movie?”
“Did I forget to mention that, too?” Melissa flicked her hair over her shoulders.
“I hope you guys aren’t dragging us to see some sappy love story,” Peter warned, stealing a piece of bacon off his fiancée’s plate, “’cause I can’t take another movie where all the characters do is talk, talk some more, argue and then make up. I want to see something blow up!”
Melissa waved her hand absently in front of Peter’s face. “Honey, please. We’re going to see Head Over Heels. I heard it’s an adorable date movie and since it’s my turn to pick, that’s what we’re going to see.”
“Is that right?” Peter’s hand fell from around Melissa’s waist. He pointed at himself, then L.J. “What if we don’t want to see that one?”
“Then I guess you can sit in the car, because that’s what I want to see,” Melissa snapped back. “You didn’t see me kicking up a fuss when you dragged me to see that horrific war movie last weekend, did you? Or what about when you convinced me to wait in line an hour to buy tickets for that martial arts thriller? Don’t get me started, Peter. I’m not in the mood.” Switching gears and the tone of her voice, she said, “Now, do you want something to eat? The movie doesn’t start for another hour.”
Autumn had to give it to Melissa. She could out-argue anybody. She’d checked in on her at the courthouse a time or two, and watching her friend in action had given her tingles. Melissa could go up both sides of the opposing counsel, then turn on the charm for the judge and play the sympathy card with the jury. If Autumn was ever arrested, she’d want Melissa representing her. Autumn returned her eyes to the newspaper. She didn’t have to see the end of this scene to know how things were going to play out. They were going to see Head Over Heels.
Peter rubbed his hand across the base of his jaw, a devilish grin taking shape on his lips. His eyes were twinkling brighter than a star-filled sky and before Melissa could blink, Peter had scooped her up and tossed her high in the air. Nuzzling his stubbly chin against her neck, he whirled her around. “Now, who’s the man?”
Melissa struggled to get free, but she was no match for Peter. He outweighed her by a solid eighty pounds. “Peter Roland Delancy, put me down! Now! Right now! Or you’ll be sorry.”
“What are you going to do, big bad Melissa?”
When she wavered, he set off towards the pool.
