Sha'Kera Davis really can't catch a break. For the last three years, she has been living in England with her husband, Derek. He claimed it was for her to experience his culture, but a new baby wasn't exactly what she was expecting. After returning t...
I leaned against the doorframe of Lexi's office, waiting for her to hang up the phone. Her secretary was eyeing me like I was up to no good. I tried my best to ignore her. There was no need for me to get hostile with her. It's a wonder Dawn didn't take her old position back. She wanted to be with Lexi again, so why not be her secretary?
"Excuse me," someone said. "You're kind of in my way."
"That's sad, isn't it?" I muttered.
"Oh, I see how it is." The guy laughed. "Still as rude as ever."
"Mmm." I turned around and my eyes widened in surprise. I wasn't expecting him to be here. Now that we were practically face to face, he was even more handsome than the last time I saw him. He was taller than I remembered. Maybe we were standing too far from each other.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" Jordan asked.
"No reason. You kinda caught me off guard?"
"You? Surprised? You barely moved when I said you were in my way. I can see why no one finds it funny to scare you."
"I'm just a slow reactor."
"Yeah, whatever you say." He laughed again before lowering his voice. "That secretary is a real stick in the mud, don't you think?"
"I heard that!" The woman glared at us. I smirked. He wasn't lying.
"Good! I'm glad you can hear. Do your job." Jordan rolled his eyes. "It's women like her who give secretaries a bad name."
"What are you doing here anyway?"
"I'm partnering with Lexi for a new therapy project. She claims she needs a doctor's opinion. Honestly, she has the credentials to call herself a doctor. I don't know why she needs me."
"She does that a lot. I happen to be one of the many attorneys she has on her side. It's always for a just in case moment."
"And it'll always stay that way," Lexi said. "I don't exactly welcome the thought of fighting off a lawsuit."
"Eh, what can I say? I need some action every once in a while." I chuckled.
"You're so funny." She smiled. "I can't make it to lunch, though. I promised Jordan I'd give him the rundown of the project, then I'm due to be in a meeting right after that. It'll probably last for a while."
"It's all good. I'm probably just gonna head straight home and get some sleep. The kids are due back at any moment. I want to be home when Hayden drops them off."
"I've been seeing them around the city every now and then. They seem to be getting along great with their half siblings."
"I'm glad. I'll see you some other time then?"
"Of course!"
"You wanna hang out sometime?" Jordan asked. "I'm borrowing my father's yacht for the week."
"Ooh, I haven't been on a boat in a while," I said. "Count me in."
"I'll text you when and where to meet me. Unless you'd prefer I pick you up."
"Whatever floats your boat, mister."
I left Lexi and Jordan alone. Deep down inside, I had a bad feeling about their meeting. Jordan has never once been this friendly with Lexi. What exactly happened when I was gone? He was always hellbent on making her life a living Hell. I guess some people can change.
The wind was knocked out of me as I exited the elevator into the lobby. I sat on the polished tiles for a few seconds, contemplating whether I should get up or not. I guess it would be more embarrassing to continue sitting on the floor. Well, at least there weren't many people milling around the lobby today. I really would have been embarrassed.
I got up and prepared to scold whoever had knocked me down. It was sort of my fault for being distracted, but I'm sure they knew what they were doing. It's not that hard to move out of the way.
"Marcus?" I exclaimed in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"
"What's that look for? I can't come here and enjoy a massage?"
"When you know the owner...it's a little weird. Especially when you keep expecting her to cave and give you the best massage of your life."
"I can dream, can't I?"
"Abby would murder you, if she ever found out the real reason you came here."
"God, you're always going to see me as the villain, huh?"
"Yeah, it's a little sad, ain't it?" I shrugged. "This is how I will continue to treat you, if you don't stop trying to get me to be friends with Sha'Kayla."
"She misses you," he said.
"And? She can keep missing me. She should have thought about that before she ran off and did what she did with Luca. Did she really think I would continue being friends with her? I was being nice when I said she could keep hanging out with me and the girls."
"It doesn't make sense how you're friends with Luca, but not her."
"He begged for my forgiveness. He got on his knees and admitted that he was the worst man any woman could ever ask for. Did I ask him to do that? No. Did Sha'Kayla ever admit she was in the wrong? No. See the difference?"
"So you are friends with him?"
"I tolerate him. Besides, I have to keep tabs on him. Whenever he has his kids, it's imperative to know he isn't brainwashing them."
Marcus pulled me out of the way of a couple coming out of the elevator. I stared at his hand on my arm. Sometimes I have the sudden urge to hit people who randomly touch me. All he had to do was tell me to move. It's that easy. He dropped my arm.
"Look, I'm just asking you to give her another chance," he said.
"Would you want her to give me another chance, if I slept with her husband and pretended it was normal? That's not even half of it. Lexi was literally dying and she continued to meet with him in secret. She thinks I don't know, but she even met him in Lexi's house and tried getting friendly with her parents."
"When you put it like that..."
"Marcus, I love her, but she has to realize I'm not going to drop everything and forgive her time and time again. She hurt my best friend when she did what she did. She never apologized the right way. I can't keep being their mediator. So, until she can beg for forgiveness from the person she hurt the most, I'm going to continue to ignore her."
"Sha'kera!"
"I don't see why it's taken her this long. If I were her, I would have gotten it over with the moment Luca was allowed to see his kids again. It's always the pretty ones without a brain."
I left Marcus in the lobby, half expecting him to follow me. If he wanted to hear more of the truth, then I was more than willing to let him have it. Sha'Kayla is the last person I want to talk to right now. It's been more than seven years since that happened. It didn't take nearly as long for Hayden and I to accept our differences and focus on our kids' futures. I don't know what she's up to these days.
Since I had been thinking about Luca, I don't think it was a coincidence that I pulled up to his place. I hadn't registered what I was doing until I stepped into the lobby of the building and headed for the elevators. I stopped in place and frowned. Honestly, I should start living in the moment when I drive. I hate ending up at random locations. It's definitely dangerous to be preoccupied like this, while traveling from city to city.
"Well, I should check on him, since I'm here," I muttered.
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