No Other Lover Will Do (23 page)

“Are you sure this is what you want?” she asked. “Because if I fall in love with you, I'm going to want forever. I play for keeps.”

“I'm a keeper,” he said. “But you already know that.”

Kandace laughed. “I guess you're right about that,” she said, then leaned her head on his uninjured shoulder. “You are a keeper.”

When Solomon drifted off to sleep, Kandace slipped out of his bed and grabbed his BlackBerry to call her friends.

“Hello?” Jade said when she picked up her phone.

“Put me on speaker,” Kandace said.

“I was wondering who this was,” Jade said. “Hold on.”

“What are you doing to that man?” Alicia asked when Jade put the phone on speaker.

“He's sleeping. You women are crazy,” Kandace said. “Especially Serena.”

“I'm here and I can hear you. Sue me for looking out for you,” Serena said. “This guy has quite the tabloid reputation.”

“And if you were rich, so would you,” Kandace said.

“Not anymore,” Alicia said. “Serena is a changed woman.”

“Shut up, Alicia,” Serena barked. “We're not talking about me, we're talking about Kandace.”

“So, who was this psycho woman?” Jade asked.

“More importantly, where is she now?” Serena asked.

Kandace sighed and replied, “She's in a secure wing of the hospital. Too bad she's not in the morgue.”

“That's harsh,” Jade said.

“Well, what do you expect?” Alicia asked. “She tried to kill her.”

“Yeah, because of Solomon,” Serena said. “How could he not know she was obsessed with him? Men can't be that damned dense.”

“Are we still talking about Solomon? Because if we are, she was really good about hiding who she was,” Kandace said. “She had plastic surgery and took the identity of a dead woman.”

“This is like a bad Lifetime movie,” Alicia said. “But did he say anything about my seminar?”

“What is it with you and this seminar?” Kandace asked.

“Nothing,” Alicia said quickly.

“She's trying to prove a point,” Jade said.

“To who?” Kandace asked.

“Look,” Serena said, “are you serious about Solomon Crawford?”

“Maybe he's serious about me,” Kandace replied.

“Aww, hell,” Serena and Alicia shouted in concert.

“Guys, I think it's sweet,” Jade said. “Maybe you two ought to go on vacation. Then, Serena, you can stop obsessing over Antonio. And, Alicia, you can get a life and stop trying to prove how successful you are to the man who broke your heart in high school.”

“Okay, what has been going on since I left?” Kandace asked.

“Nothing,” Serena said.

“Jade is just being dramatic as usual,” Alicia said.

“Well, I'll deal with you guys when I get back to town,” Kandace said.

“Are you going to come over here tonight?” Jade asked.

“Umm, no. I'm going to stay with Solomon,” Kandace said, not wanting to tell her friends why she didn't want to go back to Carolina Serenity. That place was anything but serene to her now.

“So, you're going to sleep in that hospital room when we have this lovely suite? It's even named,” Alicia said. “What's the name of it?”

“The Wonderland Suite,” Jade said.

“That's okay,” Kandace said.

“Did something happen here?” Serena asked.

“Ah, not really. That was just the suite I was staying in when I first arrived.”

“Oh, because if this was where the shooting happened, we were going to have to move,” Alicia said. Kandace could almost see the disgusted look on her friend's face.

“All right, I have to go before the nurses put me out for talking on the cell phone.”

“Kandace,” Jade said, “we're really glad you're all right.”

“Yeah,” Serena said. “That was pretty scary hearing about the shooting here and not knowing if you were safe.”

“Okay, guys, no need to get mushy,” Kandace said. “I'm going back in to Solomon. But I'll come by for breakfast in the morning.”

“See you then,” Alicia said. Kandace ended the call and hugged herself tightly. She was so glad to have her friends around.

 

Carmen didn't know what time it was, but she could tell that most of the hospital staff was gone from the wing she was in. If she could break free of the handcuffs, she would get out of the hospital and find Solomon. She would make him pay for what he did to her. Then she would go after that bitch. Kandace stole Solomon's love from her and she was going to take him from her.

She closed her eyes as the door to her room opened. The nurse walked over to her and checked her vital signs.

“Help me,” Carmen whispered to the nurse.

“What?” the woman asked.

“My hands hurt so badly,” she said. “Can you take the cuffs off?”

“I can't,” the nurse said. “You're in police custody.”

“But I'm in pain,” Carmen whined.

The nurse pulled her hand from Carmen's and nodded. “I'll talk to the police officer,” she said.

“Thank you,” Carmen replied.
I wish I knew the police were outside the door. Even if that dumb nurse takes these cuffs off, how am I going to get out of here?

Moments later, the nurse and an overweight police officer walked into the room. “We can take the cuffs off for five minutes,” the officer said through a yawn. “But don't try anything. I'm going to be right outside the door.”

Carmen rolled her eyes. Her back ached from the bullet wounds and her shoulder throbbed from the surgery, so she played up the pain hoping the officer and the nurse would buy it.

The officer unlocked the handcuffs and walked out of the room. It was a move that shocked the nurse and Carmen. “Officer,” the nurse called as she quickly followed him out of the room. Carmen swung her legs over the side of the bed and realized that escaping out of the room wasn't going to be easy. She was hooked up to a blood pressure machine, a heart monitor, and an IV. Removing any of the equipment would set off alarms that would send everyone in to her room before she had a chance to do anything.
Damn it. How am I going to get out of here?
she thought as she looked at the maze of wires and tubes.

“Time's up,” the officer said when he returned to the room.

“Five minutes couldn't have gone by that fast,” Carmen said.

“No, but I just got a look at your charges. You're not going to be uncuffed again,” he said. “Lie down.”

Carmen did what he said. As he stood beside her to recuff her to the bed, her eyes were drawn to his service revolver. With her free hand, Carmen knew she could grab the gun and shoot her way out of the hospital. But she didn't chance it. Instead, she allowed herself to be chained to the bed like an animal.

In time, I'll make them all pay,
she thought bitterly as the officer walked out of the room.

 

The next morning, Kandace left Solomon's hospital room while he was being examined by the doctor. Jade met her at the hospital to take her to the resort.

“I can't believe you're leaving your man to have breakfast with your friends,” Jade said as Kandace slid into the car.

“I'm just going to the resort to tell you guys good-bye,” Kandace said with a smile.

“What if we want to stay and play in the snow?” Jade joked.

“Yeah right. I'm sure after one night away from Jaden you're ready to get back to Charlotte as soon as you finish your coffee.”

Jade laughed. “You know me so well. I'm sure Alicia and Serena are going to complain about how I spent last night talking and texting James. But the pictures he sent of my baby sleeping were so cute.”

“I bet,” Kandace said. “Motherhood looks good on you.”

“You think so? All right, tell me the truth. Are you really serious about Solomon?”

“I-I don't know. Maybe it's because of what we've been through but I feel this real connection with him and I believe we can be happy together,” Kandace said with a slight smile on her lips.

“What about his reputation and the fact that he lives in New York? How can a relationship work with you two?”

“Let's see, he has a private jet. And anything worth having is worth working for,” Kandace said. “So I'm going to make him work for me.”

“That's what I'm talking about,” Jade said. “But seriously, are you sure that you can trust this guy?”

“Did you ask all these questions about James before you married him?”

“Are you thinking about marrying this guy?”

“No, silly. But come on, I thought you would understand our unconventional relationship.”

Jade shrugged as she headed down the street. “I just don't want to see you hurt, and honestly, I was hoping for a reunion with you and Devon.”

“That was never going to happen,” Kandace said. “Once bitten, twice shy.”

“But he's changed and I know he wants you. I can't tell you how many times he's asked when you're coming back,” Jade said as they pulled into the parking lot of the resort.

“Why is he worried about me now? And, Jade, I hope you weren't encouraging that mess.”

Jade threw her hands up after putting her car in park. “I plead the fifth.”

Kandace hopped out of the car. “So, that means yes. What were you thinking? I don't want to be with a cheater.”

“But you're falling in love with an international playboy,” Jade pointed out as she followed Kandace in to the lobby. “Makes a lot of sense.”

“Jade, let me handle my love life on my own. I stood up for you and James when Serena and Alicia told the man to stay away from you.”

She nodded. “Okay, you did. But…never mind.”

“No, say it.”

“This guy has a lot more baggage than James came with, and I can't help but wonder if you're not in over your head,” she said, her voice filled with concern. “However, you're a grown woman and whatever you decide to do, I have your back.”

“That's good to know, because I really believe I'm falling in love with him. And he told me the same thing last night. Before you ask, he's not on the heavy pain medication anymore.”

Jade laughed. “I wasn't even thinking that. But it's good to know.”

They headed in to the resort café where Serena and Alicia had already started eating breakfast.

“Wow, thanks for waiting,” Kandace said.

“The aromas in here were so amazing and Jade drives so slow,” Alicia said in between bites of her homemade banana nut muffin.

“Yes,” Serena said as she took a sip of her latte. “She is slow.”

“Oh, shut up,” Jade said as she swiped a piece of Serena's blueberry muffin.

The four friends ate breakfast and to Kandace's surprise, neither Serena or Alicia said anything about her relationship with Solomon.

“I guess we'd better check out and head back to Charlotte,” Alicia said after the women finished eating. “Looks like everything is under control here.”

“Great, because I really miss my baby,” Jade said as she sipped a glass of milk. “And I don't appreciate you guys drinking all of this coffee around me.”

“No one told you to turn your body into a milk factory,” Serena said as she polished off her second latte. “Let's get our bags and go.”

Kandace froze in her seat. She didn't want to enter the lobby or ride up in the elevator to the floors with the suites. The reminders of the shooting would be too fresh. Were there still bullet holes?
Calm down. The hotel staff has probably patched everything up and there's no sign of the horror that happened in that suite,
she thought as she slowly rose from her seat.

Alicia saw the look on Kandace's face and nodded toward Serena and Jade. “You know what, I think I want more coffee,” she said. “You want to join me, Kandace?”

“Sure, I'll even buy,” Kandace said as she walked over to the counter.

 

Solomon smiled as the nurse removed his IV, but his happiness was short lived. A moment later Detective Myer entered his room.

“Mr. Crawford, you're looking well,” the detective said.

“Yeah, I feel like a million bucks. What did I do to receive a visit from New York's finest?”

“Well, we're working this investigation with the Avery County officials since we all have serious cases involving the suspect,” he said. “We have Chelsea dead to rights on the murder of her aunt and Danny Jones. Right now, she's facing attempted murder charges in this jurisdiction and she's a person of interest in the murder of the housekeeper.”

“So, what do you want from me?” Solomon asked.

“Do I need to leave? I was going to give Mr. Crawford a sponge bath,” the nurse said as she unplugged the IV machine.

“That can wait,” Solomon said as he pushed the button to raise his bed.

The detective nodded. “Yeah, I don't want to see that much of him.”

The nurse smiled and left the room. Solomon turned to Myer. “So, again, what do you want from me?”

“I need a statement. You feel up to it?”

“She shot me. End of statement. I'm trying to put all of this behind me and Kandace,” Solomon said.

“I'm going to need her statement too. Here's what I don't understand. How could you hire her and not know that Carmen De La Croix was an assumed identity?”

Solomon rubbed his eyes. “Her references checked out. What more could I have done? Maybe I acted hastily because I wanted to show up my brother. Carmen was my first big hire after taking over the business.”

Myer shrugged. “I guess I can understand that. She's not talking and I was hoping you could give me some insight into how I could get her to talk. She seems to think you two had a relationship, and I know your reputation of being a ladies man.”

“Wait a minute,” Solomon said. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Were you involved with her? Did you spur her on?”

Solomon cocked his head to the side and rolled his eyes at Myer. “I thought Carmen, Chelsea, or whoever she is, was my friend. We hung out, we worked together, but this goes back farther than her coming to work with me.”