The Game of Seduction (Arrington Family Series) (20 page)

“And what’s that?”

“Make love to the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on.”

Epilogue

Dr. Francis tapped his fork on his wine glass to get everyone’s attention in the dining room of the Arrington family home. All eyes settled on him around the table as he held up his wine glass.

“I just want to say that I am very glad we are all here celebrating Christmas Eve as well as Shelbi and Justin’s one year wedding anniversary. A lot has happened this year. Shelbi began her residency in January and Bria and Rasheed got married this summer. I’ve gained two sons-in-laws within a year and that is truly a blessing. I’m also glad that Darla and I have decided to semi-retire and give the reins over to Cannon and Raven who I know will run the practice as if I’m still there.” He touched his glass with Cannon’s who was on his right and everyone else followed suit before taking a sip.

Raven gave Bria a puzzled look as she took a sip from her water glass. “Why are you toasting with water? You love red wine.” Raven nodded toward Bria’s full wine glass.

Bria glanced at Rasheed who smiled and kissed her on her forehead.

“Well, you of all people should know, Raven, that it’s not a good idea to drink while expecting.” Bria smiled and patted her stomach.

“Oh my goodness! Why didn’t you tell me?” Raven asked.

“I’m going to be an auntie!” Shelbi exclaimed jumping out of her seat and hugging Bria.

Her mother walked over and gave her a hug. The men all shook Rasheed’s hand and gave him pats on the back.

“How far along are you?” Dr. Darla asked.

“Two months, Mother. We hadn’t planned on having a baby so soon after getting married but …”

Raven cut her off. “You two are always doing it like rabbits, so I’m not surprised. So, who’s your ObGyn?”

“You, of course.”

“Just checking. Come in next week for your first check up.”

“Yes, Dr. Raven.”

Cannon walked over to give Bria a hug. “And of course, I’m my nephew’s or niece’s pediatrician?”

“Yes, big brother.” She kissed him on the cheek.

Sean cleared his throat. “Of course, as the child gets older and you drive him crazy, he can come see me. I’ll throw in the family discount.”

“Sean, be quiet,” Raven said.

“Mom, Dad, you’re going to be grandparents. How does it feel?” Bria asked.

Dr. Darla wiped the tears from her eyes. “I’m so excited. I think I should just fully retire when the baby arrives. You’ll need my help,” she said hugging her daughter again.

“Now, Darla, we aren’t fully retiring until after Shelbi is done with her residency,” Dr. Francis said, kissing his wife on the cheek.

“Dad, Raven and I can hold down the fort if you two really want to retire,” Cannon said.

“Yeah, Dad,” Raven began. “You’ve been grooming Cannon and me since we first started working at the practice to eventually run it. Just think about it.”

“We’ll discuss it later,” Dr. Francis answered. “Right now, I want to celebrate my youngest daughter’s wedding anniversary and the fact that I’m going to be a grandfather. Plus, Cannon is going off tomorrow to help open another clinic in a village in Brazil. Son, I’m so proud of you and all you’ve contributed to the medical field.”

“Thank you, Father. You know I truly enjoy doing so. It’s a rough situation in some parts of the world. I just want to do my part to help.”

Bria smiled at her big brother. He was always lending a hand and helping others. She just wished he would take time for himself and relax, but he was always on the go. Unfortunately, that’s how he lost the love of his life years ago by taking on too many responsibilities and neglecting his relationship.

After dinner, the family did their traditional opening of one gift and sang Christmas carols around the Christmas tree while sipping eggnog.

Later on that night, Bria and Rasheed lay in front of their fireplace in their bedroom. He rested his head on her stomach as she rubbed his bald head tenderly. She was happy with her life at the present. A loving husband, a baby on the way, and a very prosperous year at the family’s practice. Because she was now incorporating naturopathic medicine, it drew in more patients who wanted an alternative method.

“What are you thinking about, Bree?”

“You and the baby. I’ve never been so happy in my entire life than I am at this moment, and I have you to thank.”

“Why, you’re welcome, my dear. I guess my game of seduction worked because I knew when I first saw you, you would be my wife. I love you, Bree.”

“I love you, Rasheed.”

The End

About the Author

Candace Shaw is the author of fun, flirty and sexy African-American contemporary romance novels.  She is a PRO member of Romance Writers of America and Georgia Romance Writers. She is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

When Candace is not writing or researching information for a book, she’s reading, window shopping, gardening, listening to music or spending time with her loving husband and their loyal, over-protective weimaraner, Ali.  She is currently working on the next novel in the Arrington Family Series.

Feel free to drop her line at
[email protected]
or visit her website at
http://CandaceShaw.net

*****

Arrington Family Series

Cooking Up Love: May 2012. Available as an ebook and in paperback

The Game of Seduction: August 2012

Only One for Me: Coming 2013

Chapter One of Cooking Up Love

“This is so delicious. Do you think they’ll let me have another one?” Shelbi Arrington asked the waitress at Chow Bella’s Italian Restaurant after she took the last bite of the tiramisu, savoring every sweet, sinful taste of the delectable dessert her hips needed to stay away from.

The waitress gave a sneaky look around the restaurant, then leaned over and whispered to Shelbi, “I’ll see what I can do.” She winked and hurried to the kitchen.

Satisfied with the response, Shelbi placed the to-go bag, which held the rest of her uneaten lunch, on the chair next to her purse. She had a habit of leaving her doggie bags and made an effort to remember this one. Her uneaten portion would serve as lunch tomorrow. She took out her iPhone and typed a few notes before tossing it back into her purse.

Shelbi rested her elbows on the checkered red-and-white tablecloth, making mental notes of the patrons and the decor. A few wrinkled their noses, one couple called a waiter over in disgust, and a group of businessmen checked their watches as they waited for the check. A party of eight in the corner booth was being serenaded with “Happy Birthday” by the waiters. Her favorite scene was of a small boy talking louder than anyone else, yet his parents still conversed and neglected to quiet him. The customers seated near gave the couple frosty stares, but they never noticed.

The waitress returned with a small bag, which she set on the table along with the check. She winked, and Shelbi winked back. She eased the smaller bag into the larger plastic one and tied the handles into a tight knot.

“Ms. Arrington, here’s the check. Your lunch is on the house, but the manager thought you may want it in case you need the information for your article.”

“Thank you very much, Lizzie.” Shelbi took the slip of paper from the black leather receipt holder.

“You’re quite welcome, Ms. Arrington. I feel honored to have served a famous food critic,” Lizzie said before leaving to serve another customer.

Shelbi laughed. As a contributing food critic for
Food for Thought
with
The
Memphis
Tribune
, she was nowhere near famous. Some of her articles were featured in the newspaper and on their website. Plus, she had a large number of followers on her personal blog,
Food Passions
, which she started during her undergrad years at Spelman, but she wasn’t famous.

She pulled her last five-dollar bill from her wallet, as well as all of the quarters at the bottom, and placed the money on the table.

Checking her watch, she had five minutes to dash to the next trolley that would take her home to her loft apartment at Central Station. There, she could kick off her heels, sip a latte, and eat the other tiramisu—sure to go straight to her hips—and type the article on the Italian restaurant and the other one from a few days ago.

Once at the trolley stop, Shelbi realized she had given all of her quarters to Lizzie. She dug around her purse for some loose change or a dollar, but all she found were eight pennies, her checkbook, and a half-eaten bag of Skittles. It was a fifteen-block walk from the trolley stop to her loft. She’d made the trip several times in tennis shoes with her jogging partner, but never in her sister’s Christian Louboutins and a dress.

The red trolley stopped in front of her, and the door slid open. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the trolley driver who had a crush on her and gave her free rides whether she had money or not. She hoped the driver would have pity on her.

 “Good afternoon…um…”—she glanced at his nametag—“Mike. It seems I have given all of my change as a tip to the waitress a few minutes ago. All I have are these few…” She stopped to hold out her hand. “Pennies.”

The driver tilted his head to the side and looked down at her hand. “All you gave the waitress was some change?” he asked in a harsh tone.

Stunned at his remark, as well as embarrassed at the line of people behind her groaning impatiently, Shelbi didn’t know what to say or do. She checked her wallet, hoping she had a dollar hidden somewhere.

“Move it, lady!” a man behind her shouted.

“Hurry up!” a lady with a crying baby screamed.

“I have a slice of tiramisu you can have,” Shelbi whispered. “Never mind.” She turned to go before she said something rude, or worse, cried from embarrassment.

“I’ll take care of it,” a deep, concerned voice to her left said. A whiff of intoxicating cologne floated by as the considerate stranger dropped a one-dollar bill into the trolley’s money slot.

“Thank you.” Shelbi looked up to see a chiseled, handsome face and a sexy smile that caused her breathing to stop. When their eyes met, an immediate rush of sensual excitement washed over her skin. She glanced at his hand that had just placed the money in the slot. No wedding ring, but it didn’t mean he was single. A man as chivalrous as him probably had women chasing him all over Memphis.

“No problem.” He placed his hand at the small of her back. “Let’s go sit down.” The warmth in his voice and his kind gesture made Shelbi forget about her embarrassing moment.

While on their walk, Shelbi assessed his at least six-foot-one muscular frame, curly yet wild black hair, and a fair complexion with a slight tan as if he had just come from the beach. He wore jeans with a rust-colored corduroy jacket and a cream T-shirt, perfect for the first day of fall.

Shelbi was used to the take-charge kind of guy thanks to her dad and her two overprotective brothers. However, the way the stranger glanced down at her, giving her a comforting smile, made her heart skip a beat or two and was anything but brotherly.

Once settled in their seats, Shelbi turned toward him and once again was blown away by his strikingly handsome face. Her breathing unsteady, she tried to concentrate on the woman holding a baby the next seat over. Instead, her eyes were drawn to the good-looking stranger with dark, thick eyebrows and a neatly trimmed mustache with a slight beard growing in. He was sinfully delicious. If he were dessert, she would’ve devoured him right then and there.

“Thank you so much for paying my fare. Where are you getting off? I can pay you back.”

He chuckled. “Baby, its only one dollar, but did I hear you say you have a slice of tiramisu?” He pointed toward the to-go bag in her lap.

“Why yes, I do, and you’re more than welcome to have it.”

“I’m teasing, but it’s nice to know you were willing to give it to me.”

Their eyes locked on his last four words. A heat wave rushed over her at the thought of
giving it to him
. Shocked at her thoughts about a stranger, she tried to stay focused.

“Well, you saved me from walking fifteen blocks in five-inch heels.” Laughing, she stretched one leg for him to see the heels on her shoes—well, her sister’s shoes.

“Hmmm…very nice…um, shoes,” the gentleman said followed by a wink and a slight biting of his bottom lip.

Shelbi raised her eyebrow as she caught his curious eyes perusing her toned legs before they settled on her face.

“So what’s your name?”

“Shelbi Arrington. And yours?

“Justin Richardson.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Richardson.”

She froze when their legs brushed as the trolley turned a corner, unleashing goose bumps all over her skin. She pretended to look out the window to hide the heat she felt rising in her face. She’d experienced these types of emotions before, but never within a five-minute time frame. In a few more moments, she would be at home, even though she really wanted to ride the trolley all afternoon with the handsome Mr. Richardson.

“I haven’t seen you on the trolley before. Are you new to the area?” he asked, studying her face carefully.

“I just moved downtown about four months ago. Before then, I lived in Nashville.”

“What brings you to Memphis?”

“I accepted a job at
The Memphis Tribune
as one of the food critics for
Food for Thought
.”

His thick, dark eyebrows rose slightly. “You’re a food critic? Critique any good restaurants lately?”

“As a matter of fact, I have. I went to Chow Bella’s for lunch today, and a few days ago, Lillian’s for dinner.”

He nodded. “So, did you like Lillian’s?”

“I can’t answer your question. You’ll have to buy a newspaper or go online to read my article on next Thursday,” she said, smiling at him.