Tender Touch (14 page)

“We did not get in the groove, I’ll have you
know. We’ve only just started seeing each other,” Jade said in a
prim voice.

Shaena looked a little disappointed. “Oh,
yeah?”

“Apart from wanting to know a man is the
kind of person I can stand to be with outside the bedroom, these
days you have to be careful,” Jade said.

“Yeah, yeah sure.” Shaena brushed aside the
threat of a lecture from Jade on men and safe sex. “Don’t try to
change the subject. You’ve got scorch marks still on your body,
sugar. Some kinda heated activity took place. Now spill it.”

“Well...” Jade leaned back against the plush
overstuffed pillows with a secretive smile.

“Girl, don’t do this to me!” Shaena bounced
on the sofa with frustration.

Jade giggled. “Much as I love seeing you
squirm, I’m dying to tell you more.” She closed her eyes and took a
deep breath. “Shaena, it was fabulous. Damon is all man.”

“Go, girl!”

Jade opened her eyes and stared into the
flames. “I don’t just mean sex appeal. He’s got a depth that I’ve
never know in a man before. He’s so much more than good looks.”

“Whoa, this is heavier than even I thought
it would get this fast.” Shaena lost her joking demeanor. “You’re
really into this guy, aren’t you? In a serious way, I mean.”

“Yes, and it terrifies me.”

Jade had been avoiding men for that very
reason. Not only did she fear being used again, she did not trust
her own ability to choose the right man. Look at how Nick had been
so successful in deceiving her. She suspected her need to love and
approval made her prey to wearing blinders when it came to romance.
How else could she explain not seeing what was so obvious in Nick?
And those little devils from the past were not gone simply because
she now knew they existed.

“I could lie to you and say from now on you
won’t get hurt. But hey, love is a gamble—plain and simple.” Shaena
shrugged.

“Thank you for those words of comfort, Dr.
Ruth,” Jade retorted.

“However,” Shaena said in an exaggerated
accent, “ven you give your heart, the joy it vill bring is worth
the risk. Only ven vee love are vee truly alive.” She held up a
forefinger for emphasis.

“Don’t quit your day job, babe. Show biz
ain’t for you.” Jade gave a shudder.

“That’s gratitude?” Shaena wore a smirk.
Then she turned serious. “But straight up, I’ve got a feeling this
is a real special thing between you. I hear it in your voice when
you talk about him.”

“I’m scared, Shaena,” Jade said in a quiet
voice.

Shaena grabbed her hand. “I’ve been there,
too. Don’t push away a good man. Happiness is too hard to find. I’m
still looking.”

“We’ve been through it, huh?” Jade patted
her friend’s hand.

They had comforted each other through
painful breakups with men they thought would be in their lives
forever. Shaena had said goodbye to a married man who’d promised to
leave his wife for three years. Jade helped her gather the strength
to end the affair that had no future or happiness. Not long after
Shaena held a sobbing Jade when she learned of Nick’s affair and
illegitimate child—a child that had been conceived and born within
the first two years of Jade’s marriage to Nick.

“And we survived,” Shaena said. “Stronger
and wiser.”

“I hope so, but I’m still not sure.” Jade
wanted to believe more than she could express. “Am I right about
Damon? That’s a question that echoes in my head at least once a
day.”

“What do you think?”

“He’s handsome, has lots of money and is
from a prominent family. What does he want with me? I’m on the
wrong side of thirty, not a size six and no supermodel.” Jade
rubbed her hands together.

“You’re only thirty-two, a baby. And the
man’s no snob or fool, either. He knows a good woman when he sees
one.” Shaena put down her empty coffee mug.

“I know, I know. Deep down I do feel good
about myself most of the time. It’s just...”

“Okay, time for the exercise.” Shaena tapped
her arm. “Let’s hear it.”

“Aw not now.” Jade groaned and let her head
fall back on the sofa pillow.

“Let’s hear it. Our self-love exercises made
a big difference for both of us. Go on, you know the drill,” Shaena
said in a commanding voice.

“No, no, no,” Jade whined.

“I’m going to be a real nuisance until you
do it.”

“Oh, all right!” Jade heaved a sigh. “My job
is... stimulating. I’ve just been promoted.”

“You were promoted because...?” Shaena
prompted her.

“Bill said he was impressed by the good
things my former boss said about me.” Jade sat up.

“Which was?”

“That I was smart, creative and took
initiative.” Jade felt pride in saying those words.

“And you did something to make him say those
things.” Shaena nodded.

“There was this one big project with the
feds, and I was able to work out a big problem that saved the whole
thing. I can’t believe all those brains in policy and planning
missed it.” Jade looked at Shaena.

“So you’re not stupid.”

“And Nick was pretty slick with the way he
fooled me. Could that man tell a good lie! When I think of how
naive I was then.” Jade looked up at the ceiling and shook her
head.

“Y’all started dating when you were
nineteen. Then you got married right out of college. What did you
know?” Shaena lifted a shoulder.

“Since meeting Damon, I don’t feel anything
when I think of Nick. It’s weird.”

“What do you mean?” Shaena reached for
another piece of gingerbread.

“No anger or resentment, nothing. I can even
laugh at how ridiculous he was at times. The man couldn’t pass by a
window or mirror without checking his look.” Jade chuckled. For the
first time in years, she could make a joke about him that was not
tinged with bitterness. She felt an emotional freedom, like a
weight had lifted. “Carrying around that kind of animosity saps a
lot out of you, Shaena.”

“Tell me about it. I’m still not over mine
yet.” Shaena stared ahead.

“Hey, now don’t you start. Gerald wasn’t
worth it any more than Nick.” Jade gave Shaena a nudge with her
elbow.

Shaena blinked and smiled. “You’re right.
Now let’s stop wasting time talking about them. Feel better?”

“As usual you know exactly how to make me
snap out of the old self-pity trance. Thanks, sis.” Jade gave her a
quick hug.

“You’ve been there for me, too.” Shaena
squeezed Jade’s hand then let go. A twinkle lit her eyes. “So when
do you and Damon move this thing to a higher level of
intensity?”

“We’re taking it one step at a time. Damon
has been hurt badly like me. And I know that isn’t an act. I’ve
heard the gossip about his ex-wife, Rachelle.” Jade fiddled with
her mug.

Shaena jumped on her last sentence. “Uh-huh!
You’ve been scoping out the man’s past all the time, trying to make
me think you were being so cool. Reel him in, honey.” She laughed
at the look of chagrin on Jade’s face.

“Oh, hush. Maybe I did want to know more
about him. That’s not strange.” Jade lifted her nose in the air.
Still she had to suppress a giggle.

“Good for you. You’ve got a bit of Lanessa
in you, child.” Shaena gave her a playful shove. “She knows how to
finesse a man.”

At the mention of her sister, Jade grew
sober again. “Speaking of Nessa, she’s got me worried. She seems
kind of shaky these days.”

“In what way?”

“I can’t put my finger on it. She’s just not
herself.” Jade tried to sort out the jumble of little incidents
that bothered her. “For instance, she’s always on edge. You can say
the least thing to her, and she freaks.”

Shaena waved a hand in dismissal. “Lanessa
has always been high strung. She’s a diva used to getting her way.
She’ll get over it. She always does.”

“I don’t know, Shaena. She’s acting
different this time. I’ve never seen Lanessa like that over
anything, especially a man. Even after her divorces, she bounced
back.”

“Lanessa has the will of an ox, baby. I’ve
no doubt she’ll be just fine.”

“But what bothers me is the way she’s just
drifting. Let’s face it, at thirty-four it’s time to settle down. I
think she wants to find a lasting relationship.” Jade had only an
intuition of this since Lanessa had not confided in her.

“What Lanessa wants is a man who will give
her anything she asks for,” Shaena said. “The girl will land on her
feet wearing four-hundred-dollar Italian leather pumps, and not get
one scuff mark on ’em.”

“You think so?”

“Sure. Isn’t this the woman who convinced
Patrice Lawrence that she was better off without her fiancé? And
this when the woman had tracked Lanessa down to whip her butt for
stealing him!” Shaena howled with laughter.

Jade joined her until they were both in
tears. “After Patrice had stolen him for another woman. Patrice
didn’t realize she’d been played until two weeks later, girl. By
that time Lanessa had moved on to somebody else.”

“Lanessa has more smooth moves than anybody
I know.” Shaena wiped her eyes. “She’ll be just fine.”

“I guess you’re right.” Jade recovered and
took a deep breath. “But I’m going to give her a call all the same.
Now what have we got?” She pointed at the movie cassettes.

“Shaft!”

For the rest of the evening, they enjoyed a
succession of classic black films and chattered away. Yet in the
back of Jade’s mind was the memory of sweet, brown lips covering
hers and strong hands that sent tremors of desire down the length
of her body. For the first time in years, the days ahead held the
promise of something wonderful.

* * *

“Marlene, I think you’re going too far,”
Oliver said with a slight frown. He stared at his wife, who sat
across from him.

“Do you want him to end up with this girl?”
Marlene’s lip curled in an expression of distaste. “Jade
Pellerin.”

“I don’t see why n—”

“And that mother of hers. So pretentious
with her fake cultured accent. She still has farm dirt under those
acrylic nails.”

“Nothing wrong with farming. Your
grandfather was one.” Oliver corrected her. “And so was my
great-grandfather.”

“Oliver, my grandfather was one of the
richest black farmers in Rapides Parish, who inherited land from
his white grandfather. Hardly the same thing as a sharecropper
digging sweet potatoes out of the dirt,” Marlene said with a toss
of her head.

“Is the girl after Damon for his money and
position?” Oliver had more concerns than pedigree. He worried about
the Cormier- Knight family fortune. Marlene had substantial money
from her family. Oliver not only passed on a thriving business to
Damon, but interest in several successful family businesses run by
his brothers in which he’d invested.

“Well, of course she is,” Marlene said in an
impatient tone. “Anyone can see it—except Damon. I’m sure he’d
eventually come to his senses, but it could be too late.”

“But I don’t know about this, Marlene. If
Damon finds out...” “He won’t for a long time. By then he’ll thank
me for rescuing him. Now let’s see. Ah, here it is.” She glanced
down at an address book with a floral fabric cover.

“Are you sure you should?” Oliver grew more
uneasy as he watched her punch in the number.

“Yes, now stop pestering me.” Marlene smiled
but not at him. “Hello, dear. How are you? Yes, it’s Marlene
Knight. Just wanted to see how you’ve been, Rachelle.”

Chapter 6

Lang crossed his arms. “Mike is on a short
leash, Tavis. Stop worrying. I’ve known him for a long time. Is
that why you came down here?” His voice held a note of amusement.
“I could have saved you a trip.”

Tavis tugged at the designer silk tie he
wore, even though it hung perfectly. He sat in one of the leather
chairs facing Lang’s desk. “Mike is a master schemer, Bill. I don’t
trust the man one bit.”

“He can’t do anything without us knowing,
now can he? I have the authority, so my signature has to go on any
changes in our plans. Mike’s okay—just likes to hedge his bets for
maximum benefit.” Lang was the picture of ease, sitting back
against the soft dark green leather captain’s chair.

“Yeah, maximum benefit for himself.”

“I’ve known Mike a long time, Tavis. He’s
not what I’d call a bosom buddy, but we’re worked together on at
least six major projects in the department. We understand each
other. Besides, if push comes to shove, he’s got as much to lose as
I do.”

“You think that’s enough to keep him from
selling you out?” Tavis still looked skeptical.

“You’re being too pessimistic. It won’t be
an issue because there won’t be a problem.” Lang got up to admire
the view from his window. “I have Secretary Chauvin’s complete
confidence since that meeting three months ago.”

Tavis sat forward with interest. “Tell me
about it.”

“We discussed the situation with hospital
beds and the critical need in communities like Easy Town, the Ninth
Ward in New Orleans. I can make exceptions to the moratorium on
approving more.” Lang turned back to smile at him.

“But advocates want more services in the
community so people can stay at home, not be placed in nursing
homes or hospitals.”

“No one cares what they think, Tavis.
They’re seen as flaming liberals who just want to spend tax
dollars. The conservatives control things in this state. That’s the
beauty of it. Plus the process is so boring and dry, no one pays
attention when certificates are issued,” Lang said. “Not even
Chauvin thinks much about it.”

“But what about Howard?”

“Got his hands full with straightening out
other messes in the department. And don’t forget our esteemed
lawmakers. Having legislators who own all or part of some of these
places helps quite a bit.”