Julian

 

I grabbed the keys to the Bentley Bentayga, and my brother Josiah and I headed out the door. Josiah landed earlier that morning on an overnight flight from Chicago. I had plans to give another brother, Jonathon, a ring since he owned the fastest growing private security group on the east coast. But due to unforeseen circumstances, Jonathon was unavailable, so Josiah was my backup. When I first told Josiah I needed him to look after someone for me, he assumed Santana was a special friend of mine. But when he found out she wasn’t, he’d been all too quick to hop on the next flight out. My cell sounded at the same time we made it to the elevator.

“Talk to me,” I answered.

“Julian, hi this is Claudia. Jaden told me you were in Houston. Have you seen my sister by any chance?”

The elevator doors opened and Kelsey, my assistant, stood with a duffle bag on her shoulder. We stepped in quickly, and Josiah and Kelsey spoke as I took the bag off her hands.

“Yes, I’m on my way to pick her up now.”

Claudia became quiet.

“You are?”

“Yes, she’s doing a spread on me and A Few Good Men for the Houston Report. I’m surprised Jaden didn’t tell you,” I said evenly.

“He probably didn’t think to mention it. If you could, tell Desiree to call me. I’ve tried reaching out to her several times with no answer.”

I picked up on a strained undertone. “Is everything alright, Claudia?”

“With me, yes, but I saw her condo on the news a few minutes ago when I was changing channels. Apparently, the latest string of burglaries in Houston involved three local reporters from the Houston Report. What’s going on Julian, do you know?”

“Yes, it would be better if you spoke to Desiree yourself. I’ll tell her to call you.”

The elevator reached the garage floor.

“Well at least tell me she’s alright.”

“Yes, she’s fine. And I’m making sure she stays that way.

I heard her let out a breath.

“Okay, thanks for keeping an eye on her, Julian.”

“It’s my pleasure.”

“I’ll let you get back to it then,” Claudia said.

“You’ll hear from her in a few minutes.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Claudia disconnected the call and I slid my smartphone inside my jean pocket. The doors opened when we reached the ground floor, and the three of us stepped out. Walking in stride with me, Kelsey spoke.

“I’ve checked out of all the rooms, except for two since everyone will be traveling with you.”

“Which two rooms,” I asked.

“The two you requested; your suite and the one two doors down.”

“Thank you. Did you make the arrangements we spoke about this morning?”

“Yes, everything is in place.”

“That’s my girl.”

“Also, Mr. Drake is waiting for you at the entrance. Neither one of us were aware you would be driving.”

We pulled up to the Bentley, and I tossed Josiah the keys to a Jaguar I’d rented for him to drive around the city.

“Now you know,” I winked and dropped Kelsey’s luggage on the back seat while Josiah held open her passenger door.

Darrell Drake was my chauffeur. When I pulled behind the limo, Darrell quickly made his way to my window. I powered it down.

“Mr. Rose,” Darrell said, “Are you driving, Sir?”

“Good morning, Darrell. Why do you insist on calling me, Mr. Rose?”

“It’s the professional thing to do, sir.”

I tilted my head. “Have it your way. I’m taking the Bentley and I need to make a stop, so Kelsey here will keep you company until we get to the hangar.”

“Yes sir.” Darrell rounded the front of the Bentley and opened Kelsey’s door.

“If you need anything, call me.”

“I will,” she said.

I waited for Kelsey to get safely inside the limo. Darrell closed her door and got behind the wheel pulling slowly away from the curb. I followed, then made a left turn at the traffic light with Josiah trailing me. Reaching for the dial, I turned the stereo on, and Trey Songz pumped through my speakers.  

When I pulled to the entrance of the mall, I parked and jumped out dialing Desiree. The days were cool although the sun sat high. I leaned my back against the passenger door just as Desiree answered.

“Hey,” she said exiting the building. I watched her as she searched for me and I admired the delicateness of her curves as they took charge and rode the jeans she wore.

“Straight ahead, Bella,” I said. Santana cruised out and stood at her side. Josiah got out of the Jag and stood next to me.

“So that’s her?” he asked.

“The one on the right,” I said.

When Desiree kept her eyes my way, I wondered if she felt the heated tinge strike her as it struck me. The connection we had was profound, making me want to be with her always. I shook my head thinking I must be losing my mind or having a midlife crisis. The more I told myself it was just physical attraction, the less I believed it. As Desiree neared, I pulled my weight off the Bentley and met her halfway taking the bags out of her hands.

“Are you sure you’ve got enough?” I asked.

She smirked. “If that’s your way of telling me I bought the whole mall then you would be over exaggerating.”

I smiled. “I don’t know. These bags are heavy.”

She pushed off me. “Whatever.”

“I’m just messing with you girl.” My eyes roamed over her light brown skin and bare belly. I hadn’t had the chance to see her flat stomach on display before, and the piercing in her navel was a sexy touch to her already seductive look. I moved my eyes from her belly and landed on her lips then her light brown eyes.

“You’re beautiful,” I said.

She blushed. “Thank you. If you keep that up, you’re going to spoil me.”

“I’m counting on it.”

Josiah cleared his throat.

“Oh,” I put prayer hands together. “Forgive me. Santana, this is my brother, Josiah. He’ll keep you company while we’re away.”

Santana stepped closer to Josiah and offered her hand. My brother accepted it, bending down to place a kiss on the back.

“How are you, Santana,” Josiah asked.

“Doing just fine.” Santana blushed, and they stood there watching each other with their hands still linked. Amused, I brought my attention back to Desiree and found her watching me.

“Shall we?” I asked.

We all stepped to our respective vehicles, and I held the door open while Desiree slid in. At the trunk, I sat her bags inside before making my rounds to the driver’s seat.

The faraway look in her eyes made me reach over and tug her ear.

“Talk to me,” I said.

“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Looks like something.” I reached out to her again. “Someone was following you. Who is Cameron?”

Desiree blew out a harsh breath, and her bangs flew up.

“He’s my ex.” She glanced at me then back out the front window.

“Is he a problem?”

“I wouldn’t say so. I haven’t seen him in years until a couple of days ago. Now, he seems to be popping up everywhere.”

I frowned, reminding myself to keep a close tab on this Cameron character. Desiree turned to me.

“He’s nothing to worry about,” she reassured.

“I’m not so sure. You don’t think he would’ve gone to the extreme of breaking into your condo, do you?”

“Oh no, no, nothing like that,” she said.

I pulled off and headed for the highway.

“When we return, if you see him again, let me know.”

Desiree relaxed in her seat and folded her arms.

“Why?”

“Because I want to make sure you’re safe. Is that reason enough?”

She smirked. “I suppose so, but like I said, Cameron’s harmless. At least physically anyway.”

I caught the somberness in her voice and reached out to grab her hand. “One of the great things about life is we live, and we learn.” I rubbed the pad of my thumb in circles against hers. “Sometimes it’s best to have heartache now rather than for a lifetime.” I squeezed her fingers, and she smiled at me.

“You’re right. Doesn’t make it hurt any less.”

“Would you like to talk about it?”

Vigorously, Desiree shook her head. “Not at all,” she offered up a light chuckle.

“Whenever you’re ready then.”

I could feel Desiree’s eyes on me as I drove through the city. I exited the highway and pulled into Paws Pet Cemetery. The gravel road popped under the weight of the Bentley’s twenty-two-inch tires. I felt Desiree’s hand tighten around my fingers. Looking over to her, I squeezed back and pulled into a circular entrance to park on the side of the green grass.

“Jasper’s here?” Desiree asked.

“Yes, Bella.”

She let out a deep breath and turned to me.

“How? When did you have time to do this?”

“When it’s important, we make time.”

A flurry of emotions ran through her beautiful brown eyes, and they watered instantly. I reached unbuckling her seatbelt, pulling her over onto my lap. It was refreshing when Desiree came willingly, and her head rested on my shoulder. For about five minutes we sat in that spot unmoving. Sniffles came from her then she spoke.

“It wouldn’t have been so bad if he’d gone naturally, you know.”

My head rocked back and forth slowly. “I know.”

“Thank you, again.”

“Come on,” I said, “Let’s say our goodbye’s.”

I reached for the glove compartment and grabbed a few tissues from a small box of Kleenex, then opened the door and pulled to a stand while still holding on to Desiree. Sitting her down on her feet, I closed the Bentley door and we walked hand in hand to Jasper’s gravesite.

“I’m not dressed for this,” Desiree said tugging at her halter top.

“You are not dressed for the season period, but we’ll fix that soon enough.”

That pulled a tiny smirk to her lips. “You talk as if we’ll be together for a long time. Two weeks is lengthy, but sometimes you sound as if you’re making plans for a future we don’t have.” She looked at me sheepishly as if the words she spoke embarrassed her.

“You never know what the future holds, Bella, but time will surely tell.” A fluster of wind sailed around us as we stared at one another. When Desiree pulled her eyes away, they landed on a picture of Jasper I’d taken from a frame in her house. Desiree’s furry companion sat at her feet; his tail upright in the sway of a wag. Desiree’s unobstructed hand flew to her chest as tears sprang from her eyes.

Her hold tightened around my hand as she crouched down to a squat. I went with her, caressing her back while keeping our fingers linked.

“He was the best guy I’ve ever had.”

There was a solemn form of laughter and tears mixed as Desiree grieved over her lost companion. I hated seeing her tears. I’d never been an emotional man, but it tore me up to see her hurt that way. If I ever got my hands on the asshole who’d done this to her, I’d likely tear him to shreds.

I gave Kleenex to Desiree. She wiped her face and said a soft-spoken prayer over Jasper and reached out to swipe his face on the photo. Bringing her fingers to her lips, she kissed and blew out.

“Rest in Heaven, Jasper,” she said. We rose together, and I pulled her into my side brushing a kiss on her forehead.

“Are you ready,” I asked.

She nodded.

“Are you sure, Bella? Take all the time you need.”

She offered up a languid smile.

“We don’t have a lot of time, it’s,” she glanced at her wrist watch, “One pm. Our flight leaves in an hour. We should be at the airport now.”

“We’re taking my private jet. There won’t be a wait time, and if need be, we’ll leave later.” I kept my gaze on her. “Take all the time you need.”

Desiree buried her head in my chest and left it there for a few minutes. I closed my free arm, around her and we stood there resting in the sailing winds and quiet atmosphere. More time passed before Desiree pulled back.

“I’m ready,” she said.

I placed another kiss on her forehead and stepped to the side as we walked back toward the Bentley. Back on the road, I turned the radio dial and asked, “What kind of music do you listen to, Bella?”

“I’m not telling you,” she said smiling slightly.

“Why not?”

“Because you’ll laugh.”

She had my interest peaked. “Try me.”

Her eyes rolled bringing a chuckle out of me.

“Classical is my favorite.”

“Very interesting,” I said.

“I do listen to R & B, but there’s nothing like the sounds of the fluid, uplifting tones of classical music.”

“Did you grow up listening to classical music?” I asked.

“Somewhat.”

Her voice lowered. “My father would turn it on every morning before work. It was his routine to get the day started on a high note.” She smirked. “My mother would always say, all he needed was a little prayer, and he could skip the theatrics.”

Her expression lightened. “Claudia and I would be standing in the doorway watching as he strolled into the kitchen and pulled my mom away from whatever task she was doing at the time; which was more than likely fixing our breakfast and his lunch. Every morning she’d fuss, but every morning he’d pull her away to dance around the kitchen, hand and hand, at the strum of the bombastic sounds.” She chuckled. “I guess that’s when you can say I grew a love for that sound of music.”

Whenever Desiree broached the subject of her father, there was always a mixture of happiness and sadness. I changed the subject to lighten the mood.

“Claudia called my cell looking for you. She saw the report about your break in, and she’s worried.”

“I wonder why she didn’t call me?”

“She did, said she couldn’t get through.”

I turned into the entrance of West Houston Airport and drove through the security gate to the hangar. Desiree pulled her cell out and dialed a number.

“I’ll give you some privacy, Bella. When you are ready, I’ll be waiting.”

When she reached out laying a gentle stroke across my face, my temperature rose like the promise of a volcanic eruption. With an instant reflex, my hand covered hers.

“Why are you so nice to me,” she asked.

“I’d like to think that I’m nice to everyone,” I said.

“So you go around paying for pet burials and putting random women up in hotel rooms to keep them safe?”

“Desiree, there’s nothing random about you. I’m here because I want us to get to know each other better. You didn’t believe me the first time I said it?”

The sensitivity in her eyes was tangible.

“Make your call,” I told her. “We will have plenty of time to talk about this when you’re done. This is a fifteen-hour flight. You don’t need to make a stop, do you?” I joked.

Her perfect lips drew back into a smile, and I pulled her hand from my face and kissed her soft skin, then removed myself from the vehicle.

“Mr. Rose,” my chauffeur Darrell approached me. “You made it just in time. The pilot is ready, all your bags are on board, and the flight crew is on standby.”

“Thank you, Darrell. Is Kelsey on board, or did she take a commercial flight?”

“She’s on board, Sir.”

“There are a few things in the trunk that I brought with me so let the crew know we’ll be ready to pull off within fifteen minutes.”

“Yes, sir.”

I turned back to the car and retrieved Desiree’s bags, a few of them belonging to Victoria’s Secret. A vivid image of Desiree’s long, caramel legs and lacy underwear ravaged my thoughts.

“Yes, I promise,” I heard her say in her cell before shutting the door. At the trunk, I entered a code that released the lock. Inside, I pulled a single bag of luggage along with a few other bags that belonged to Desiree and sat the luggage on the ground. I closed the door and Desiree moved from the car to stand off to the side.

“I’m ready,” she smiled waving the phone to show proof that her call was finished. My gaze traveled over her flawless skin, sleek nose, and high cheekbones. Every detail of her statuesque frame held an air of perfection that I’d never witnessed before. More than that, I had a strange feeling Desiree didn’t know how breathtaking she was. Her beauty was mirrored on the inside and out. Traveling to Dubai, I was putting myself in a situation where I wouldn’t be able to show too much public affection. The religious foundation of the United Arab Emirates stood by core values that would land you in jail for offering a single kiss. It was ironic that keeping my hands to myself thus far hadn’t worked. And if that was any indication of my lack of restraint, then Lord help us all.