Only One for Me (9 page)

“
Yep.” He grabbed his car
keys.

“
I’ll walk out with you.
I’m off to the hospital to deliver your next patient.”

Cannon and Raven, at age thirty-eight,
were the oldest of five siblings. They ran their family’s private
medical practice, Arrington Family Specialists, which their parents
started when the twins were in undergrad. The middle child, Sean,
was a psychiatrist, followed by Bria, an allergist who also
specialized in holistic medicine, and the youngest, Shelbi, who had
just completed her first year of her residency, would eventually
join the practice as an endocrinologist. Their parents had recently
semi-retired, working only three days a week, and would fully
retire once Shelbi completed her residency.

Once they made it to the parking lot,
he could sense the hesitancy in Raven as she stood next to his
black 745 BMW twirling her keys.

“
Soooooo … are you
nervous?”

“
A little. I’m taken aback
that I had no idea she’s been in town for six months or that her
mother had cancer, but apparently she asked Sherika and Doug not to
tell me.” He shrugged.

“
It won’t be so bad.
You’re just meeting with the coordinator to set up appointments and
what not. Plus, you’re only responsible for selecting tuxedos and
the groom’s cake. You really won’t have to see her again until the
wedding weekend.”

“
Don’t forget I’m planning
the bachelor party.” He grinned with a wink.

“
You should call Rasheed
to help you.”

“
Already did, but he said
since he was married to Bria and had a baby on the way, those days
were gone. However, he gave me the information I needed and offered
his private jet to fly to Vegas.”

“
Speaking of babies, I
gotta run before this one delivers itself.” She walked toward her
Mercedes. “I’ll call you when I have a chance.”

Thirty minutes later, Cannon sat in
his car in the parking lot of the wedding planner’s office,
strumming his fingers on the steering wheel. A few cars were there,
all of which had Tennessee tags, except a black two door Lexus with
Georgia tags and a sorority plate which was the same sorority
Yasmine belonged to. He could picture her driving the car—too fast
as usual—with her hair blowing in the wind and her favorite music
blasting. She was always carefree and bubbly, which he’d admired
about her. She enjoyed life and had taught him to do the
same.

He didn’t know much about her life now
except that she was an adjunct professor at Atlanta Memorial
University and also did educational consulting for the school
systems in Atlanta. Doug said she’d taken a sabbatical to move back
to Memphis temporarily to be with her mother.

Inhaling, Cannon opened the glass door
to the wedding coordinator’s office. A receptionist greeted him and
instructed that he go to the waiting room, which was through the
door on his right.

As he entered, he was greeted by soft
wedding music playing through speakers on the wall and a familiar
fragrance. He knew it instantly. It was Amarige, Yasmine’s favorite
perfume. Mixed with her ambrosia scent, it was always an
aphrodisiac for him. No one else was in the room except him and the
beauty with her head in “Modern Bride” and so engrossed in whatever
she was reading, she hadn’t noticed him.

His heart almost leapt out of his
chest and onto the magazine-filled coffee table in front of her.
She was a vision of loveliness, and he had a moment of déjà vu.
When he’d met her fourteen years ago, she was reading a book to her
first graders, not realizing he stood in the back of her classroom
mesmerized by the sweetest voice he’d ever heard and her soft,
angelic face. When she was alerted to his presence, she’d treated
him to her simply amazing smile, and he knew he had to make her all
his.

It wasn’t the first time he’d actually
met her. She’d been the geeky freshman daughter to his biology
teacher when he was a senior in high school. Cannon was always
cordial and spoke to Yasmine in the hallway. She wasn’t on his
radar, but it was something about her he’d found adorable and
intriguing. However, the day he arrived to read to her students for
a read-a-thon his fraternity sponsored, he definitely noticed the
young, sexy teacher.

Cannon let his eyes wander over her
and soak in her essence as he’d done that day in her classroom. Her
hair was shorter than he remembered, but still with natural curls,
and pulled back with a black head band. As always, she wore little
make-up, and he noticed a few new laugh lines as she smirked over
what she read. His gaze landed on her pouty lips that he’d spent
endless hours kissing and nibbling as she sighed his name the
entire time. Over the years, he imagined her lips on his or roaming
over other parts of his body with her tongue licking and taunting
him as if he were the most delectable dessert she’d ever
had.

Yasmine had been his everything. His
lover. His best friend. His rock. The one person he could depend on
to keep him focused. She believed in him and supported his goals to
the fullest. Throughout the years, he had replayed their last
conversation—well, argument—in his head, trying to figure out how
he could’ve steered it in another direction. However, he knew it
would have ended the same. He hated to admit that everything was
moving too fast for him, and deep down wasn’t mentally ready to get
married, but he never wanted to be without her.

As he stood there, he was hit by an
overpowering urge to draw her into his embrace and kiss her
intensely and ferociously until she couldn’t think
straight.

He cleared his throat, and her head
rose. Their eyes locked, and the smile she had worn faded and was
replaced with a questioning scowl.

“
Hello, Yasmine.” His
voice was steady; although, if looks could kill he’d be
dead.

“
What the hell are you
doing here?”

Okay, so maybe this isn’t
déjà vu.

Chapter Two

When Yasmine heard her name from the
familiar deep voice from the past, she thought she was dreaming,
for in her dreams was the only place she experienced it. Her heart
thumped against her chest as if it was ready to jump out, and the
simple task of breathing was the hardest thing she’d ever done.
Cannon Arrington stood less than twenty feet away from her, even
more handsome and debonair than she remembered. Feelings she’d
buried crept into her heart and mind, overwhelming her. Part of her
wanted to run, and another part wanted to curse him out. But her
aching heart wanted to fly into his warm embrace and exhale from
all of the years she’d spent without him.

Instead, she stayed glued to the chair
as her eyes roamed over him. His black trench coat was opened,
exposing a blue suit that fit his in-shape six foot one frame as if
it were made especially for him. His clean-shaven face was more
chiseled and defined. Gone were his boyish grin and innocent
features. He was all man now. His captivating presence in the small
room reeked of importance and respect.

Yasmine told herself if she ever saw
him again, she would be cordial. What happened twelve years ago was
in the past, even though he’d hurt her more than she could have
ever imagined. She’d managed to avoid seeing him by not coming home
to Memphis often. Instead, she would give her mother an excuse as
to why she should come to Atlanta or suggest they take a vacation
together.

Nonetheless, there he stood, holding
her eyes in a trance with his. Her skin was flushed and nausea
overtook her as he casually strode over wearing that damn delicious
smile as if they saw each other every day. Yasmine mustered up all
the strength she had left in her as he suavely approached. She
hoped she could keep her voice steady. Hoped he wouldn’t realize
she’d never fully gotten over him.

“
I asked you a question.”
She was surprised her voice didn’t crack, but she wasn’t going to
allow him to see her sweat.

“
I’m here to meet with the
wedding coordinator,” he answered matter-of-factly.

Cannon’s voice was
deeper,
sexier
—sending goose bumps trailing down her arm. His woodsy aroma
caught in her nose, reminding her of the times when his scent was
intertwined with hers as they made love.

“
But why? Doug’s brother
is supposed to meet me here. He’s the best man.”

“
Change of plans. I’m the
best man now.”

Before she could protest, the door
opened and the receptionist stuck her head in.

“
Ms. Jackson is ready.
I’ll show you to the conference room.”

Yasmine grabbed her belongings as
frustration deepened in her.

Why on earth is he the
best man all of a sudden, and why didn’t Sherika call to tell
me?

“
After you, Yasmine,”
Cannon said, stepping back so she could walk in front of
him.

A heat wave washed over her as he said
her name in a sexy, seductive tone. She found herself being extra
conscious of her appearance as he walked behind her. A winter white
sheath dress, which stopped at her knees with a black belt wrapped
around her waist, accentuating her curvy hips. Her mother had joked
that morning about how sexy she looked and was she trying to score
a man. Now, as Cannon cleared his throat a few times along their
walk, Yasmine wondered did he think the same as her
mother.

Moments later, they were settled
across from each other at the conference table, with Ms. Jackson at
the head going over the information for the wedding, but Yasmine
couldn’t concentrate. Even though she was looking at Ms. Jackson,
she could feel Cannon’s eyes on her, causing heat to ignite over
her skin.

“
So, is that okay with
you?” Yasmine heard the coordinator say, but wasn’t sure what it
was in reference to.

“
What?” Yasmine snapped
out of her daze as she glanced back and forth from Cannon to Ms.
Jackson.

Cannon, who could apparently listen
and stare at her at the same time, chimed in.

“
Can you do the cake
tasting Friday afternoon?”

“
Oh, sure,” Yasmine said,
trying to focus her attention on Ms. Jackson, but Cannon’s eyes
wouldn’t leave her face. She crossed and uncrossed her legs as
warmth shocked her womanly center. “Sherika likes amaretto and
vanilla flavors, so I have an idea of what she would
like.”

“
Perfect.” Ms. Jackson
flashed a smile and scratched something off of her to do list. “I
forwarded the picture of the cake the bride emailed me to the
bakery …”

Yasmine tuned out once again as
Cannon’s eyes trailed along her face and neck. She swore she could
feel the heat from his breath on her skin, and she reached for the
bottle of sparkling water the receptionist brought in earlier. She
decided to tune back into the conversation when Ms. Jackson
mentioned the music.

“
I’ll contact the wedding
bands I usually use to see if they’re available for that day. The
bride said as long as they can play “Ribbon in the Sky” for their
first dance, they’re hired.”

Yasmine’s heart sank at the mention of
the song. It was the song he had chosen for their wedding, and she
couldn’t stand to listen to it. She glanced at Cannon, who had
flinched. His Adam’s apple bobbed, and his eyes locked with hers as
she tried to hold back the tears. Placing her notepad into her
purse, she fished for her keys. She needed to escape
now.

“
Anything else?” Yasmine’s
voice croaked as she cleared her throat and took one more swig of
the water. Her mouth had turned to cotton.

Ms. Jackson closed her laptop and
scooted her chair back. “Nope, I think we’ve covered everything for
now. You two just let me know your progress, and I’ll do the
same.”

Moments later, Yasmine high-tailed it
out of the office building toward the parking lot with Cannon
behind her. When she stepped outside, the cold air greeted her and
she realized her coat was draped over her arm, but she didn’t care.
She needed to get to the car. She needed to get away from
him.

“
Yasmine …
wait.”

She hit the unlock button on her key
remote. “I have to go.” She opened the driver’s door of her Lexus,
but Cannon pushed it shut.

“
Not until you look at
me.” His voice caressed over her like silk as he stood behind her
with his hand still on top of the car.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to
face him. Her breathing stifled as she looked up at his handsome
face. It took everything she had not to run her hand along his
strong jawline up to his hair and twirl a finger around a
curl.

“
What?”

“
I know this has to be
uncomfortable for you, but I just hope we’ll be able to work
together to make Sherika and Doug’s special day
perfect.”

“
I don’t see that as a
problem considering there really isn’t a need to see or speak to
you again until the wedding weekend.”

“
Um … no. I’ll see you
this Friday at the cake tasting.”

“
Wait? What? Why do you
have to be there? I’m just sampling cakes for the bridal
cake.”

“
But Doug wants a groom’s
cake, so I told him I would take care of that. Weren’t you
listening to the conversation earlier?” he asked with a smirk and a
raised eyebrow.