Say You Need Me (27 page)

Hell, what was wrong with him? He didn’t want her to care, so why even reminisce about things that didn’t matter?

Or
did
he want her to care?

He was confused, messed up because of everything that had happened. He hadn’t expected to end up in Miami searching for his brother, much less meeting his brother’s ex the way he had.

Why the hell did she sleep with me and not with Cecil?

Darrell looked out at the scenic view of palm trees and pristine green lawn that lined the highway, trying to make himself think of something else—anything else.

Like Cecil. He was worried about him. The charges of grand theft were serious, and Cecil would no doubt do time. While Darrell had figured this was something his brother needed to smarten up, the thought of Cecil in a prison cell gave him a sick feeling in his gut. Cecil was too clean-cut for prison, and he couldn’t help wondering how he’d fare inside. Like the overprotective brother he’d al
ways been, Darrell wished he could make this problem right for Cecil.

You are not responsible for Cecil.
Darrell heard Serena’s voice, soft and supportive, on the wind.

Damn, when would he stop thinking about her?

It was almost hard to believe, but he missed her. Not that he hadn’t expected ever to miss her—how could he not miss that sweet smile?—but he didn’t expect to miss her already.

Yet he did.

Glancing at the passenger seat, he almost expected to see her sitting there. To know that she wasn’t left him with a hole in his gut the size of a basketball.

Darrell gripped the steering wheel and stared ahead at the endless stretch of road. He’d soon get over this feeling and go back to normal.

He had to.

TWO WEEKS LATER
…

“Who the hell did this?” Darrell bellowed, both
hands planted firmly on his hips. When all the staff in the restaurant’s kitchen stared at him in open-mouthed horror, he lifted the plate in question. “This burger needs a pickle on the side.”

“Uh,” one of his longtime waitresses feebly responded, lifting a jar of pickles, “I was about to cut some up.”

“Oh,” Darrell replied succinctly, feeling like a fool. “All right, then.”

With all his staff watching him, he marched toward the back of the kitchen and his office. Once inside, he closed the door and turned the lock.

Good God in heaven, what was wrong with him? For a full two weeks, he’d been in a funk—raising his voice over things that didn’t matter, double and triple-checking or
ders that were going out. He’d tried burying himself in doing payroll, but he hadn’t been able to think. So he’d gone back to wandering around the small hotel, mostly in the dining room, to make sure the guests were satisfied—until one of his bartenders pointed out that he was scaring the guests and suggested that maybe he take a few days off.

Darrell’s immediate reaction had been to tell the bartender to mind his own business, but he stopped himself short of saying exactly that when he realized that the very thought was so unlike him.

Besides, Jenny, his assistant manager, had told him that rumors were flying around about him having broken up with someone.

“Broken up with someone?” Darrell had asked, stunned. “I’m not even seeing anyone.”

“If you say so,” was all Jenny had said in reply.

Women. Darrell didn’t even want to know how they started their gossip or how far stories got exaggerated.

After he’d made a nuisance of himself in the kitchen, Darrell had started hanging around the front desk, hoping to make more of an impact there, but after hearing the restless sighs from his staff when he got into everything, he realized he was more of a pain than anything else.

Which made him wonder why, until this week, he hadn’t realized that the place could survive without him. He had a great staff—so why didn’t he take more time to enjoy himself, enjoy life?

The very thought made him remember Serena. Not that remembering her was hard. Everywhere he turned, he saw her, whether it was at a restaurant table or casually strolling outside.

And every time he thought about her, he wondered how it was possible for someone to get so completely under your skin after knowing them for such a short time.

A thousand times, he’d thought of calling her. A thousand times, he’d actually picked up the phone. But a thousand times, he’d hung up before punching in her home number.

What was he going to say to her?
Hi. Just checking in to make sure you’re not an emotional wreck after I took your virginity then practically ran out the door…
Anything he could say to her would sound lame.

Still, part of him craved simply hearing her voice.

Yeah, maybe he did need to take a few days off. Because he was infected with the Serena virus, and it was one he couldn’t seem to shake.

Darrell tried to pretend that he didn’t hear the collective sigh of relief in the kitchen when he told his staff that he’d be heading home early. He only hoped they’d forgive him his foul mood when he returned to his normal self.

He’d pick up a six-pack of beer on the way home, then sit outside and drink a few. When was the last time he’d done that? He smiled. Maybe he’d even buy some bread and walk the lake, in search of ducks.

Damn, Serena was everywhere. It was amazing how much she’d touched his life in the short time he’d known her. But at least she’d touched his life in a positive way, making him realize that it was important to take time to enjoy the small things.

After going to the grocery store, Darrell headed home, all set to have a relaxing evening for a change. But when
he pulled into the driveway, he saw Cecil standing on his doorstep.

Darrell threw open the car door and rushed out of the car. Cecil was already walking toward him.

“Hey, Cecil.” Darrell laughed, happy. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m out on bail.”

“Bail? I figured you weren’t getting bail when I didn’t hear from you.”

“I didn’t want to bother you.”

“Not bother me?” Darrell asked, mildly surprised.

“You’ve been bailing me out for years. I feel bad about that, ’cause I know you feel like you’re responsible for me—and you’re not. So I figured I’d go it on my own this time.”

Cecil’s words gave Darrell pause. After a moment, he said, “If you’re on bail, aren’t you supposed to stay within the county where you were arrested?”

Cecil gave a sly smile. “I know, but the police don’t have to know I’m not in Dade County right now.”

“Cecil…”

“Don’t worry. I’m heading back tonight.”

Darrell shook his head with chagrin. Would his brother ever play by anyone’s rules but his own? “So, who bailed you out?”

“Tamara,” Cecil responded with a sheepish grin.

“
Tamara?
” Darrell couldn’t hide his shock.

“Yeah, she let me sweat it out in the Dade County jail for nearly two weeks, but she finally got me out of there.”

“Are you talking about the same Tamara who you ripped off?”

“Uh huh. We’re working things out.”

Darrell shook his head with disbelief. “God, I don’t know how you do it.”

“I’m in love with her, bro.”

“Come on,” Darrell said sarcastically.

“I am. Really. She’s beautiful, passionate…what’s not to like? And she says when I get out of prison, she’ll leave her husband. Of course, he may be dead by then.”

Darrell rolled his eyes. For Tamara’s sake, he hoped Cecil wasn’t lying to her—or himself. “How’d you get here? Tamara drive you up?”

“I took the bus.”

“From Miami?”

“Yeah. Then I caught a city bus to your house.”

“Not stylin’ the way you’re used to, huh?”

A frown played on Cecil’s lips. “Not exactly.”

Darrell led the way to the front door. As he opened it, he said, “You have a lawyer, I take it?”

“Yeah. He says I can probably negotiate a lighter sentence if I pay my victims back. But I’ll still do some time.”

“What are you looking at?”

“Two to three years.”

“Man,” Darrell said.

“Could be worse,” Cecil pointed out. He shrugged. “And you know what, I’m kinda resigned to the fact. Of course, I don’t want to go to jail, but this whole experience has smartened me up. I’ll do my time, then get on with my life.”

“I can’t believe you.” Darrell sat at the kitchen table, and Cecil sat beside him.

“I had a long talk with Tamara, and…what can I say? I can’t live like this forever.”

Darrell could hardly believe someone had talked some sense into Cecil. Maybe it truly
was
love.

Whatever the cause, it was about time his brother grew up.

“You said you have to pay the victims back if you’re going to get a lighter sentence. How are you gonna do that? You already hawked the jewelry, right?”

“Yeah.” Cecil made the word three syllables, immediately putting Darrell on guard.

“I sense a but.”

“But that’s kinda why I’m here. I’m gonna need the car back.”

Darrell’s eyebrows shot up. “You gave me that car. And I just had it fixed up.”

“Sorry.” Cecil flashed a boyish grin.

It didn’t matter, of course. Darrell would give the car up in a heartbeat if it meant his brother was going to pay back his victims. “No problem.”

“I’m also going to have to sell all my homes.” He frowned. “Damn, I’m gonna miss that villa in Jamaica.”

“How many times did you get there?” Darrell asked, raising a dubious eyebrow.

“Not many, but it was nice knowing I had it for when I wanted to get away.”

“Like you had anything to get away from. Welcome to the real world, bro.”

“Whatever.”

“Did you pay Serena back her ten grand?”

“Yeah. She was the first person I paid back. I figured I owed her the most.”

“No doubt.”

Cecil gave Darrell a weird look. “You haven’t talked to her?”

Darrell opened a can of beer and took a swig. “Me?”

“Yeah, you.”

“Why would I?”

“Look, I saw how she looked at you and how you looked at her. We didn’t get to talk about it then, but I’m cool with it if you want to see her.”

“Who said I want to see her?”

“Why are you raising your voice?”

“I’m not rai—” Realizing that he indeed was raising his voice, Darrell shut up. He took another swig of the cold beer, then placed the can on the table.

“Serena and I, we weren’t really an item,” Cecil went on. “Oh, I liked her, but she was too sweet. I’m just letting you know it won’t bother me.”

“It’s not an issue.”

“All right.” Cecil paused. “I never felt good about scamming her.”

“Well, I’m glad you’ve seen the error of your ways. Any other surprises?”

“Man, you sure are in a funk.”

“Have a beer.” Darrell shoved a cold one into his hand.

“I’m gonna need the car back.”

“Uh huh.”

“Now.”

“Now?”

“I’ve got to start selling everything. The sooner I do that, the sooner I pay everyone back.”

“All right.” Just as Darrell had gotten used to the flashy car, he was going to lose it. Oh well. “I’ve got a few things in there. Let me grab them.”

Darrell went back outside. Cecil lagged behind him, drinking his beer.

Darrell was on his knees when he noticed the shimmer
of silver on the floor beside the seat. He thrust his hand down, reaching for the object, and withdrew a small silver bracelet.

Serena’s bracelet.

He’d seen it on her wrist. When had it fallen off? When they’d gone to the police station to give their reports after Jan and Rex had shown up?

“Shit,” Darrell said, rising.

“What?” Cecil approached him.

“This bracelet. It’s Serena’s. Damn, I have to return this to her.”

“Hey, I’m heading back to Miami tonight. I can do it.”

Darrell leveled a skeptical look on his brother. His heart was suddenly beating fast, and he wasn’t sure why. “Given everything, you don’t expect me to trust you to bring this back to Serena, do you?”

“Oh, come on.”

“No, I’m serious. This…” Darrell held up the bracelet, filled with star-shaped trinkets, for closer examination. “This could be another family heirloom.”

“Gimme a break. If you can’t see that bracelet isn’t worth more than a few dollars, you’re lying to yourself.”

Cecil’s comment gave Darrell pause. He eyed the bracelet closely. It didn’t look like it was worth a small fortune, but how could he be sure? What did he know about jewelry?

“I’m not going to take any chances.”

Cecil threw his head back and roared with laughter.

Darrell rolled his eyes. “You laugh now. It might be the last time you get to do so as a free man for a while.”

“Hey, that was uncalled for.”

“When are you leaving?”

“You’re going with me?”

Darrell’s stomach tickled with nerves. “Yes, I’m going with you. Like I said, I can’t trust you to deliver this to Serena. Bad karma, you know.”

“And how are you going to get back to Orlando?”

“I…” Darrell hedged. He hadn’t thought of that. “I can rent a car. Or catch a flight. They’re pretty cheap.”

“All because you want to deliver a bracelet to Serena that you could send via courier.”

“I’m not going to trust this to a courier. Packages get lost all the time. And if this is worth something…”

“It’s not,” Cecil replied. “Fifteen bucks, max.”

Darrell glared at him. “So, you steal a few pieces of jewelry and suddenly you’re an expert?”

“Going to Miami just seems a little…extreme.”

“Whatever.” Darrell was annoyed, and he wasn’t exactly sure why. “Can I go with you or not?”

“Yeah. I don’t mind the company.”

“Good. Then let’s go.”

“Sure thing,” Cecil responded, barely suppressing a laugh.

“Darrell.” His name escaped on a breathless whisper. “What are you doing here?”

The edges of Darrell’s lips lifted in a smile, and his eyes sparkled, as though the sight of her made his day.

“Hey, you. Maybe I can come in?”

Stepping backward, Serena said, “Of course.”

Darrell entered the apartment slowly, glancing around with curiosity—almost like someone seeing it for the first time.

Or someone who felt like a stranger here.

Serena’s heart filled with disappointment, but she didn’t let it get the better of her. At least he was here. Just seeing him did her heart good.

But it also made a lie out of everything she’d told herself over the past two weeks. She had tried to convince herself that she was remembering Darrell, thinking of him constantly, simply because they’d had spectacular sex.

Unforgettable sex.

Which, of course, was why she’d constantly thought of how it felt to be in his arms. Not to mention the tricks your heart played on you when that lover was your first.

But seeing Darrell now, feeling the erratic pitter-patter of her heart, she knew she was in love with him.

“I brought you something.”

Serena raised a curious eyebrow.

Darrell dipped his fingers into his shirt pocket. “This. It must have fallen off in the Viper.”

Serena looked at the steel bracelet with a blank expression.

“It’s a lucky thing I found it.” Darrell extended it to her, smiling proudly. “I don’t know how much it’s worth.”

Serena’s deadpan eyes went from the bracelet to Darrell. Was he for real? Any fool could tell it was a cheap little bracelet. She’d picked it up for ten bucks in the Grove, simply because she liked the star trinkets.

“You came all the way here to bring me this?” Serena’s tone was disbelieving.

“As soon as I found it.”

A laugh bubbled in Serena’s throat, but she held it down. No matter how much she wanted
not
to hope, she
couldn’t help herself. Maybe Kiana was right—a little time away, and Darrell realized that he couldn’t live without her.