Twelve Days of Pleasure, page 5
“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” Vanessa said softly, her eyes meeting Kendrick’s.
“Pretty lady, you’re not interrupting. We were just talking basketball,” Senior said.
Vanessa smiled. “Well, my money’s on New York to make the play-offs and take down Miami in the finals.”
Senior jumped to his feet, throwing his hands into the air. “That’s what I’m talking about! What did I say to you? Sounds like this lady knows her game!”
Kendrick and his brother Donovan jumped up with him. “There’s no way they’re going to take down Miami!” both exclaimed excitedly. “Not this year, or next year!”
Vanessa shrugged. “Miami’s days are numbered. Just wait and see.”
“How do you figure that?” Kendrick questioned. His eyes narrowed as he stared at her.
Vanessa moved toward him. “History.”
“A history of getting beat,” Kendrick intoned.
Vanessa smiled. “Not true. All of their matchups have been marked by aggressive play, defensive struggles, numerous foul calls and some intense physical play. You can trace that history back to Pat Riley and how he coached both teams back in the day. Both played hard and they went tit for tat. Now, granted, it took some serious reengineering of their roster to get New York back on point but this past year put them back on the map. They’re a solid team and they’re working together like a fine-oiled machine. They are going to serve them some serious game and I don’t think Miami is going to be able to keep up. Besides, it’s time they got their butts beat.”
“Now I know you don’t know what you’re talking about,” Kendrick exclaimed.
Vanessa smiled. “I bet you two courtside seats to a play-off game that I know exactly what I’m talking about.”
Kendrick grinned. “I’ll take that bet,” he said, seemingly intrigued that she had the nerve to challenge him.
Her smiled widened, her gaze still locked with his. There was a moment of pause as the family stood staring at them both.
Donovan interrupted the silence. “You need to check your girl, bro!
Senior laughed. “I like you, little lady. School these youngsters!”
Katherine shook her head as she laughed with her husband. “Vanessa, as you can see, my boys take their sports very seriously.”
Vanessa nodded, suddenly unnerved by the look Kendrick was giving her, his dark gaze seeming to strip her naked where she stood. She felt her breath catch in her throat. She was grateful when his mother distracted his attention away from her.
“I told Maitlyn you boys are waiting on her now. She said she’ll be ready in about ten minutes. But, Zakaria, if you don’t move that girl along you two are never going to get on that plane for your honeymoon,” Katherine said as she took a quick glance down at her watch. “And I imagine Miss Vanessa and that sweet baby need to be headed to the bus station soon, too. Kendrick, did you put all the bags in the car?”
Kendrick and Zak exchanged a quick look. “Yes, ma’am,” her son answered.
“Now, if you need to go on and take Vanessa, one of your brothers can run Zak and your sister to their plane.”
Kendrick shook his head. “We’re good. I can take them both.”
Zak nodded. “And, if necessary, I can always arrange for a limo. But you know how Maitlyn is, Miss Katherine. She’ll just go with the flow. If things aren’t perfect she will figure out a way to make them perfect.”
Senior nodded. “It’s a good thing she’s spending your money, Zakaria. I’d be hot if she were spending my money!”
The men laughed as Katherine shook her head. “Well, we’ll go check on her again and get everyone ready to say our goodbyes.” She reached for her husband’s hand and pulled him along behind her. “You all should come on in so we can give them a send-off,” she said, tossing the comment over her shoulder as she and Senior moved back inside the home.
Zak came to his feet. “I’ll see you two in a minute,” he said as he followed behind his new in-laws.
“I guess I’ll go, too,” Donovan intoned.
And just like that Kendrick and Vanessa were surrounded by quiet, nothing but a low breeze blowing through the porch.
Vanessa wrapped her arms around her torso, hugging herself tightly. “I really like your family,” she said, moving to take the seat his father had just vacated.
Kendrick nodded. “They’re a good bunch,” he responded, dropping down onto the cushion chair beside her. “So why were you looking for me?”
“I was hoping that you could tell me what’s going to happen next? I know we can’t stay here.”
“No, we can’t.”
“So where are we going?”
“You really are a worrier, aren’t you?”
“Don’t I have reason to be?”
Kendrick shrugged his broad shoulders. “You really can relax. You’re going to be fine. I’m going to make sure of it. I promised you that.”
Vanessa took a deep breath, holding it for a quick moment before she blew the warm air past her lips. Kendrick stared blankly at her again.
“What?” she said, catching his look.
Kendrick held up his hands. “Nothing. Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare.” He moved onto his feet. “We should go get Gabi ready. We need to leave soon,” he said softly. Then without another word he turned and moved back into his family’s home, leaving her sitting by her lonesome.
Vanessa sat in reflection for a few more minutes, staring at the late-afternoon sun as it began its slow descent in the bright blue sky. The days were starting to feel very long, one running right into the other. She had been able to sleep only in hourly increments since that night at the club when everything that could have gone wrong did. As the air cooled around her she suddenly felt as if time had come to a standstill and she was stuck in the midst of a tailspin with no way out. Inside, the family was consumed with joy and happiness, laughter ringing from room to room. In the midst of it she caught sight of Kendrick, little Gabrielle in his arms, her head resting against his shoulder. He didn’t seem to have a care in the world. Rising to her feet, she moved inside to join them.
* * *
“What do you mean the baby’s not going with us?” Vanessa snapped, her eyes darting from Kendrick to Zak and back. “Where is she going?”
“Zak and my sister are taking her to DC, to the Mexican embassy. The embassy is helping to find her grandparents and your mother has agreed to watch her until that happens.”
“My mother? You spoke to my mother?”
“I did,” Zak answered. “And we knew you were adamant about Gabi not going to a foster home, so your mother said they would ensure her safety at the embassy.”
“Zak and I will make sure she’s safe and sound until then,” Maitlyn interjected as Gabi toyed with the pearl necklace around her neck.
Tears burned hot against her lids as Vanessa struggled not to cry. She didn’t have the words to explain that Gabi was all she had left of a life that had once made sense. Gabrielle was her last connection to Alexandra and a friendship that had been her lifeline. Maitlyn moved to Vanessa’s side and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
“She’s going to be just fine,” Maitlyn assured her. “I promise.”
Vanessa nodded. She pressed a kiss to Gabi’s cheek and the little girl laughed, her hands clapping together excitedly as she pointed toward the luxury aircraft.
“’Pane!” Gabrielle squealed. “’Pane!”
“Airplane!” Vanessa said, forcing a bright smile onto her face. “Gabi’s going to ride in the airplane.”
“Gabi, ’pane?”
She nodded. “Yes. Gabrielle’s going on the airplane. And you be a good girl for Auntie Nessa, okay? Auntie Nessa loves you, Gabi!”
Maitlyn gave Vanessa another warm hug. Kendrick moved to Vanessa’s side as Zak escorted his new wife and the giggling little girl to the private aircraft. When the flight crew closed the door, the first of Vanessa’s tears dripped past her lashes. As they stood inside the hangar watching the plane taxi out to the runway her tears rained heavy from her eyes. By the time the airplane was in the air she was inconsolable.
Vanessa found herself thinking back to that night when everything had gone bad. Rihanna had been blasting through the speakers and everyone was up on the dance floor. The pulsating rhythms through the nightclub had the place turned out. With her hands waving in the air above her head, she’d been gyrating to the beat, her body rocking from side to side on the dance floor. The Waterside Savoy, one of the premier nightclubs in the Miami area, catered to an elite clientele and Vanessa had been enjoying everything about the VIP treatment, thanks to her best friend, Alexandra, and her husband, Paolo Medina. It had been a while since Vanessa had last had such a good time and it didn’t hurt that her date for the night was sexy as hell.
Marcus Bennett had been smitten and Vanessa had used that to her advantage, purposely flaunting her feminine wiles to get her way with the man. Since their initial introduction the four of them had lounged on the man’s luxury yacht four days out of seven. Marcus had been the kind of man few women could resist. That night they’d been dancing cheek to cheek and the man had had her feeling all kinds of right. Then things changed.
Marcus had wrapped a tight arm around her slim waist and had pulled her closer to him. His mouth had trailed from her jawline to her ear. “Step away,” he’d whispered as he’d given her a quick kiss on the cheek. “I need to handle some business.”
Vanessa had eyed the stranger who’d walked up behind them, the man looking out of place on the dance floor. For a brief second she’d wanted to protest, the music feeling too good to stop. But the look in both of their eyes gave her reason to hesitate and so she nodded her head instead. Besides, she’d had to pee and that moment had been as good as any. As she’d headed in the direction of the ladies’ room she had stopped to shimmy her hips beside Alexandra and Paolo, who were doing their own dirty shuffle in the middle of the crowd.
Alexandra had lifted her hands questioningly. “Where’s Marcus?” she’d shouted over the loud clamor of the music.
“Business,” Vanessa had shouted back with a quick shrug of her shoulders.
Paolo and Alexandra had turned to stare where she pointed. When Paolo bristled, suddenly moving in his friend’s direction, the two women had tossed each other a look. Concern had blanketed Alexandra’s face. The look in her eyes still haunted Vanessa.
She’d turned toward the ladies’ room, gesturing for her friend to follow, but Alexandra had refused, shaking her head no. “I just fought that crowd,” she’d said. “I think I’ll go back to the table and order us all another round of drinks.”
“Shots!” Vanessa remembered exclaiming. “Let’s do chocolate cake shooters!”
Alexandra had laughed, the last time Vanessa would ever see her best friend so happy. Then she’d turned around, following behind her husband.
As Vanessa had moved toward the bathroom the music shifted to a slow jam, the DJ spinning something relaxed and easy. The first gunshot silenced the sounds to a dull drone, as everyone seemed to hold their collective breaths. When Vanessa turned to look, someone shrieked. Then madness ensued. There was a frenzied rush for the doors, people screaming and yelling as shot after shot echoed around them. A man standing beside her had pushed Vanessa down to the ground, dropping harshly against her as the crowd scurried like roaches around them. Her face had slammed into the floor and she’d tasted blood when her teeth bit down against her bottom lip. The moment was surreal and when the clouds cleared, the last thing Vanessa remembered was Marcus Bennett turning an about-face in the doorway, his pistol still in his hand.
Vanessa shook her head, consumed by the memory as it filled her with emotion. Kendrick let her cry, wrapping his arms around her torso and pulling her to his chest. She sobbed into the front of his shirt and when she was all cried out, the last of her sobs shifting into sniffles, he was still holding tightly to her.
Chapter 5
“So, where are we now?” Vanessa questioned, swiping the sleep from her eyes. The private jet had landed just minutes earlier and was taxiing to a slow halt. Vanessa peered out the plane’s window, nothing about the landscape recognizable.
Kendrick met the look she was giving him, her eyebrows arched questioningly.
“Pleasure Island,” he responded.
“Pleasure Island?”
He nodded. “We commandeered Maitlyn and Zak’s honeymoon. No one will think to look for us here.”
Vanessa’s eyes widened. “Their honeymoon? We can’t take their honeymoon!” she exclaimed.
Kendrick shrugged. “It’s no big deal. Besides, it was my sister’s idea. She and Zak should be headed to Tahiti in the next hour or so after they drop off the kid. They won’t be missing out.”
Vanessa blew a deep sigh. “That kid has a name,” she said, annoyance pulling at her expression.
He smiled. “Sorry... After they leave Gabrielle with your mother they plan to honeymoon on the Polynesian Islands.”
There was a moment of pause as Vanessa took in the news. “I don’t have any clothes,” she said, the thought suddenly distressing her.
“It’s been taken care of. Maitlyn made some calls. You’ll have everything you need.”
She finally nodded. “So what do you know about this place?” she questioned, trying to recall everything she’d ever read about the luxury vacation spot.
Kendrick shrugged. “All I know is it’s expensive. My new brother-in-law has some deep pockets.”
“It’s a little more than that,” she said, suddenly remembering that Pleasure Island was an infamous couples-only retreat. Catering to an exclusive clientele, the all-inclusive resort was renowned for its secluded location, gourmet dining and 24/7 service and amenities. “I think I read somewhere that Jay-Z and Beyoncé come here every few months to keep the zing in their relationship,” she said matter-of-factly.
“Really?” Kendrick said with a deep laugh. “I’ll have to ask him about it the next time we shoot hoops.”
Vanessa’s expression was blank as she stared at him. She rolled her eyes. “You really don’t expect me to believe that you play ball with Jay-Z?”
He shrugged, his broad shoulders tensing slightly. “If you act right I might take you along the next time we get together.”
Vanessa’s expression remained unmoved. She shook her head. “It’s your lie. Tell it anyway you want,” she said.
Kendrick laughed again. “Okay, whatever.” He changed the subject. “This is what’s going to happen. We’re checking in as the newly married Mr. and Mrs. Sayed. Call me honey, I’ll call you baby, and neither of us will need to worry about remembering our fake names. You relax in the sun by the pool, I’ll do a little fishing, and in a few days I’ll escort you back to the States. You’ll testify and then I’ll take you home. Until then, I promise not to bite as long as you don’t.” He chuckled softly.
Vanessa stared at him, finding nothing to laugh about. He moved from his seat into the cockpit to speak with the pilot. There was something about the way he carried himself that unnerved her. His nonchalant attitude also prickled her nerves. But his gaze was soothing, like a warm blanket on a chilly night. He had beautiful eyes and she imagined many a woman had gotten herself lost in them. And then there was that damn smile.
He made everything sound so easy, as if they were doing nothing more than taking a short stroll down a long street. But despite his best efforts she was still filled to her limit with anxiety. The way her stomach was doing flips she sensed there wasn’t going to be anything easy about being stranded on a seductive island with the likes of Kendrick Boudreaux.
* * *
Pleasure Island was the epitome of luxury. Renowned for its ambience, the romantic island resort was living up to its reputation and they’d barely been there for an hour. The outdoor landscape was full and lush, bright green fronds skirting the endless water views. There was an abundance of exotic flora that scented the air and Vanessa stopped to sniff the hibiscus.
As she stared about, awed by their surroundings, Kendrick stepped back to watch her. There was something in her demeanor that he found intriguing. He found himself smiling as he watched the tension that had once furrowed her brow begin to slowly fade away. Her apprehensive expression shifted and he could almost see the weight of her circumstances being lifted off her shoulders. She suddenly looked in his direction and tossed him an easy smile before dipping her nose back into a sweet bouquet of orchids, cyclamen, tulips and anemones, the bright hues seeming to soothe her spirit.
* * *
Their private bungalow was at the far end of the resort. Inside, the decor was upscale and inviting. Sliding glass doors led to a secluded terrace with a hot tub and their own infinity pool. In the distance a stone-paved path led to an expanse of white sand. A pristine shoreline kissed the bright blue water on the private beach and they could see the sun starting to descend in the distance. It was the Garden of Eden in all its glory.
From the moment the duo was escorted to their suite, the experience was meant to tempt and satisfy their sensual pleasures and afford them the opportunity to explore and indulge all of their sexual fantasies. Every wish and desire could be entertained, from the most romantic to the most hedonistic.
The brochure encouraged whatever pleasures one could imagine. There were the “nude” and “prude” beaches, never-ending food and drink, massages and clothing-optional activities. And enclosed behind a decorative door in the tiled bathroom was a vending machine filled with erotic toys. As Vanessa stood staring at the vast selection she shook her head. There were some things inside that Vanessa couldn’t even begin to imagine.
