Recipe for Desire Read online

  The next morning, Devon woke up from a restless sleep, despite the fact that Marie spent the night sleeping like an angel beside him. When he’d started tossing and turning, he’d released her and watched her sleep before he’d gotten out of bed and went into the kitchen to clean up and work on a new recipe. After he had decided that his marinade had been too bland and didn’t go well with steak, he’d returned to bed. What had been bothering him had nothing to do with the fact that he could’ve gotten Marie pregnant, but the thoughts that he had about hoping that he did. Despite years of punishing himself for betraying Kandace and the self-imposed exile he’d been living in when it came to serious relationships, he did want a family. That had been clearer since Marie came into his life.

  Sitting up in the bed, Devon tried in vain not to wake Marie. Feeling her hand on his shoulder, Devon turned around and kissed her cheek. “Good morning,” he said.

  “Is it? Because you didn’t get much sleep, did you?” she asked, then yawned. “Do you want to talk about it?”

  He pulled her down into his lap and stroked her cheek. “You’re too good to be true. I keep you up all night, wake you at six A.M., and you want to talk about it.” Devon kissed her again, gently nibbling on her bottom lip.

  She placed her hand on his chest and pulled back from him. “You know, since you kept a girl up all night, I think you owe me breakfast and lots of coffee.”

  “It will be my pleasure. As a matter of fact, I’ve been neglecting my duties at the restaurant, so I’m going to go in and you’re coming with me, and you’re going to love what I have in store for you.”

  Marie raised her hand as if she were in a classroom. “I really can’t go out in the clothes I got photographed going to jail in.”

  Devon glanced at the clock on the nightstand. “I can take you home and you can change into something spectacular.”

  Marie snapped her fingers. “I don’t even have to go home. With everything that happened yesterday, I forgot about the shopping that Bria and I did. And I even managed to pick up a little red lacy number that I know you’re going to love. Wow me with breakfast and I’ll model it for you tonight.”

  “Consider yourself about to be wowed,” he said, then leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Want to join me in the shower?”

  She hopped off the bed and gave him a little shake. “You don’t have to ask me twice.”

  Devon followed her into the bathroom and joined her in the shower. It was quite a different scene from last night, even though Devon teased Marie’s nipples with his loofah sponge as they washed and prepared to head for the restaurant. As Marie dried off and tried to tame her hair, Devon pulled on a pair of cotton shorts and headed downstairs to his car. Marie told him to bring the Nordstrom bag in and not to peek in the others. He grabbed the bag and shook his head as he glanced at the others. He wouldn’t begrudge his wife a shopping spree every now and then. Wait a damned minute, he thought. Marriage is the last thing I need to be thinking about. Like Marie is ready to settle down.

  When he headed upstairs, Devon was greeted at the door by a naked Marie. “You know,” she said. “I’m more of a brunch girl.”

  Devon closed the door, dropped the bag at his feet, and scooped her up in his arms. “I like the sound of that,” he said as he scaled the steps and headed to his bedroom. After a quick romp that left them both breathless and wanting more, Devon and Marie pulled themselves out of bed and headed to Hometown Delights. Sundays at the restaurant were a quiet time, and since the economic downturn, they’d moved from serving breakfast to lunch starting at one P.M. Things usually got busy around two thirty when most people left church. Many Sundays, Devon ended up cooking for his friends and their families. Especially during the NFL off season when Carolina Panthers superstar Maurice Goings and his wife, Kenya, joined the party. Those breakfasts were like scenes from The Big Chill. He wondered how Marie would fit in with the group, especially since she and Jade had previously had words. Walking downstairs to the car, Marie yawned and tugged at her crude ponytail. “I need coffee,” she said.

  “That’s all you need?” he asked, then wiggled his eyebrows.

  “All right, Chef. You’re going to end up with a restaurant full of hungry people if I tell you what else I really need.” Marie reached into her purse and pulled out her cell phone. When she turned it on, she wasn’t surprised that she had several text messages, voice mail messages, and missed calls. Her phone beeped and chimed so much that she nearly regretted turning it on again.

  “The whole city must have missed you last night,” Devon quipped.

  “They should get used to missing me. I’ve come to a decision about my life,” she said succinctly.

  “And what’s that?” he asked as they climbed in the car.

  “I’m giving up this party-girl lifestyle,” she said. “Being with those women in the shelter and hearing Bria’s story has taught me the lesson that the judge wanted me to learn. If I’m going to make headlines, I want it to be because I did something to help someone else. Better yet, no more headlines. I want to learn to be selfless like this sexy guy I know.”

  “Who’s that bum?” he joked. “I’m glad to hear that, because I don’t like to see reporters hounding my woman.” My woman. What am I saying?

  Marie smiled, but tried to temper it. Still, she liked being called Devon’s woman. Especially when everyone she usually dated fell into the role of Marie Charles’ arm candy. Glancing at Devon, she knew he was more than eye candy or a living accessory. He was the real thing—wasn’t he?

  When they arrived at the restaurant, Devon wasn’t at all surprised to see the parking lot filled with cars—Alicia’s and Jade’s, and Antonio’s truck. “Looks like we’re going to have a full house for brunch. Are you ready for this?”

  “Guess we’re going to find out, huh? You guys are a strange group.”

  “We put the funk in dysfunctional,” he joked as he parked his car.

  Marie opened her door and smoothed her peach romper, and for the first time ever, she felt flutters of nerves as she entered a location. This wasn’t normal for the showstopper. But Marie was actually worried about the impression she was about to make on Devon’s friends. He crossed over to her and took her hand in his and then kissed it. Before they took another step, a car pulled into the parking lot, barreling toward them. Devon positioned himself in front of Marie, then yelled, “It’s a parking lot, jackass, not Charlotte Motor Speedway!”

  The door swung open and Solomon Crawford emerged from the car, then stalked over to Devon with a very pregnant Kandace waddling behind him, screaming for him to calm down.

  “What the hell is wrong with you, Crawford?” Devon hissed as the men faced off. Marie watched with her mouth agape; they were like two raging bulls. It was obvious Solomon and Devon hadn’t accepted each other as brothers.

  “Where is he?” Solomon bellowed.

  Kandace placed her hand on Solomon’s arm. “Solomon, please,” she pleaded.

  Ignoring Solomon’s rage, Devon turned to Kandace. “What is this all about?”

  She sighed. “Your father.”

  Devon’s shoulders sagged and he shook his head. “What now?”

  Solomon glared at Devon, took a deep breath, then said, “Have you seen that stupid blog, Dark Charlotte or something?”

  “Queen City After Dark,” Marie piped in. Solomon eyed her suspiciously and Kandace smiled at her once she recognized who she was.

  “Whatever,” Solomon snapped. “Your father has disrespected my wife for the last damned time, and now he’s put that bullshit out for the world to see.”

  “So what are you going to do about it? I’m sure Kandace has tried to tell you that my father and I don’t talk, don’t associate with each other, and I couldn’t really give a damn about him or where he is.”

  “You may not, but I’m not going to let this shit slide.”

  “Solomon,” Kandace said in an exasperated voice. “Will you just let this go?”

&
nbsp; “No. I let it go in the restaurant, but this is too much. Putting those insults out for the world to read about my wife is unacceptable.”

  “I’m afraid to ask, but what did he say?” Devon asked as he saw Solomon calming down. Marie had pulled the site up on her BlackBerry and read the article. If she had been Solomon, she’d be mad as hell, too. She handed her phone to Devon and his eyes grew to the size of quarters as he read: EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH FAMED HOOPSTER DEVON HARRIS, SR.

  On the hardwood of the NBA, they didn’t come tougher than Devon Harris, Sr. In the 1970s and 1980s, playing against Harris usually meant a couple of stitches. These days, the hoops legend has a softer touch, working with various charities in Atlanta, where he makes his home. But there is one battle that Harris knows he isn’t going to win. He’s been stricken with a deadly disease and he came to Charlotte to make peace with his son, famed chef Devon Harris, Jr. The senior said that he and his son have not spoken in nearly a decade.

  “I love my son, but he allows outside influences to alter his decision making. My son could’ve been better than me on the court, but he started dating this fortune hunter in college, and he allowed her to talk him into this cooking thing.”

  When asked who his son’s ex was, Harris revealed that she’s restaurant owner Kandace Crawford, wife of hotel mogul Solomon Crawford. He didn’t have kind words for Crawford.

  “She’s the worst kind of woman. Though she claims to be a businesswoman, she is nothing but a common gold digger. She latched on to my son nearly a decade ago, used whatever connection they have to talk him into basically becoming her fry cook while she went after a bigger wallet,” he said.

  Calls to Hometown Delights weren’t immediately returned.

  Devon angrily shoved the BlackBerry back into Marie’s hands. “I’m sorry,” he said to her when he noticed the startled look on her face. “I ought to sue this blogger and push my father into a shallow ditch!”

  “Devon!” Marie and Kandace called out in concert. Solomon smiled and stopped short of offering to drive Devon around to locate the senior Harris.

  Throwing his hands up, Devon said, “That man has gone too far. I became a chef to honor my mother. Had he paid any attention to me, he’d know that. Working here has done nothing but bolster my career, and he doesn’t see that.”

  “I’ve always hated your father,” Kandace said bitterly.

  “Join the club,” Devon said. “The line starts behind me.”

  “Do you have room for me?” Marie asked. Devon enveloped her in his arms and kissed her cheek.

  “You don’t even have to ask,” he said. Devon caught a glimpse of Solomon, who had a smug smirk on his face.

  “You know, Harris,” Solomon said. “I’ve been wrong about you.”

  Kandace shook her head. “One day my hardheaded husband will start listening to me.”

  “How were you wrong?” Devon ribbed.

  Solomon threw his hands up and shook his head. “I can admit, I was wrong about you holding a torch for my wife. Your father’s rant didn’t help.”

  “My father and I are nothing alike,” Devon asserted again.

  “I used to like that dude, except when he played the Knicks. Now, I see what a bitter asshole he is, and I thought my brother was bad.” Kandace popped Solomon on the shoulder.

  “Looks like I’m going to have to work extra hard to make sure we don’t become our parents,” Kandace said.

  “Your mom isn’t that bad,” Devon said as they headed inside. “Sure, she cries a lot, but that’s just women.”

  This time Solomon did slap Devon a high five. “Really?” Marie said with a giggle. “Not all women cry.”

  “Girl,” Kandace said, “don’t even bother. I’ve seen them both cry. One during The Color Purple on Broadway.”

  “Hey,” Solomon said. “That was supposed to remain between us.”

  Kandace winked at her husband, but didn’t say another word as they walked into the dining room.

  “Well, it’s about time,” Serena called out when she spotted Devon. “I didn’t think we were ever going to eat.” She glanced at Marie and then turned to Alicia. “I guess we’re supposed to be on our best behavior today.”

  Antonio stroked his wife’s shoulder. “Baby, I don’t think you can spell ‘best behavior,’” he said, then kissed her hand.

  She leaned in and whispered something naughty in his ear and then slipped her hand between his thighs. Antonio laughed heartily and said, “All you did was prove my point.”

  Devon wrapped his arms around Marie’s shoulders. “Let me introduce you to these crazy folks.” He started with Serena and Antonio. Then he pointed out James and Jade. Marie smirked at Jade. “Oh, we’ve met,” Jade said as she crossed over to Marie and shook her hand. “We still haven’t had that cup of coffee.”

  “I plan to be around,” Marie said. “We have time.”

  Jade smiled. “I like the sound of that,” she said.

  “You’re Richard Charles’ daughter, right?” James inquired.

  Marie nodded and braced herself for a comment about her exploits. James surprised her by saying, “I’ve worked on a housing board with him, and he’s always talked about his brilliant daughter. It’s nice to finally meet you.” He extended his hand to her. She shook it proudly. Marie was surprised her father had described her in glowing terms that way, but he’d always told her that she could do anything she put her mind to.

  Devon glanced around the room as Marie spoke with Jade and James. “No Maurice and Kenya today?”

  “Kenya and Mo are playing super aunt and uncle this weekend. They have Jaden and Nairobi, and I think they’ve gone to a petting zoo or something,” Jade said. She followed Devon’s eyes and noticed he was staring at Marie with a smile on his face. “She’s special, huh?”

  “That doesn’t even begin to describe it,” he said. “But I don’t know where we’re headed, you know.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Devon shrugged and was about to tell Jade about what happened last night, but Serena crossed over to them and handed Jade a champagne flute filled with a mimosa. “Excuse me, but can we get some pancakes or eggs to soak up the alcohol?” she asked. “You can go in the kitchen and we’ll be nice to your girlfriend.”

  “You and the word ‘nice’ don’t even go together. Hey, Antonio, how do you deal with this one?” Devon called out.

  “This Serena that you guys keep describing, I’ve never met her,” he said as he walked up to his wife and encircled her waist with his arms and kissed her on the back of her neck. Serena seemed to melt in his arms. “Besides, she’s only evil when she’s hungry.”

  “Maybe she ought to learn how to cook,” Devon teased. “Fear not, folks, I have a special breakfast dish for you to try this morn—” He looked down at his watch. “Afternoon, rather.”

  Marie walked over to Devon and whispered, “Should I come and help?” He smiled and then picked up an empty flute from the table. Tapping it, he called for his friends’ attention.

  Everyone focused on Devon, and even Marie eyed him with questions dancing in her eyes. “Write this down,” he said, then pointed at Marie. “Here is the first and only woman who has ever offered to help me in the kitchen.”

  Alicia and Serena tossed napkins in his direction while the men broke into laughter. “She’s a keeper then,” James called out. Devon turned and looked at Marie with a smile on his face. Yes, she is.

  “Well, are you going to take me up on my offer?” she questioned with a broad smile on her lips.

  He gave her a quick peck on the cheek and whispered, “You know you and me in the kitchen together is a combination that never leads to food getting cooked.”

  A slow smile spread across her lips as she nodded in agreement. “And, I’m supposed to be wowed today, anyway,” she said. Once Devon headed to the kitchen, Marie took a seat at the table near Kandace and Solomon. It didn’t take long for the other women to join them and for Solomon to head to
the bar with the other husbands. Alicia handed Marie a mimosa and gave Kandace orange juice in a champagne flute. “Since you can’t have the real thing, you can look the part,” she said.

  Kandace rubbed her belly. “Just a few more weeks. Solomon is hoping for a boy.”

  Serena swallowed a gulp of her drink and shook her head. “You know I love Solomon, but God is going to pay him back for his womanizing past. That’s my goddaughter right there.”

  Jade nodded. “And God help us if He decides to pay you back with a daughter, as well, Serena.”

  “Oh shut up, Jade,” Serena replied before they all started laughing. Alicia turned to Marie.

  “They really are as crazy as you think,” she said.

  “I always wondered what having sisters would be like. I’m guessing a lot like this,” she replied.

  “We also have a brother,” Kandace said.

  “So,” Serena started, “what are your intentions with him?”

  Marie nodded, knowing this was coming. “I really care about him and admire the man that he is.”

  The women looked around the table as if her words were unexpected. “Devon is special and you have to forgive us if it seems we’re a little in awe of you two being together,” Alicia said diplomatically.

  “In other words,” Serena said, “we’ve read your press and we don’t want to see you taking Devon down tabloid road.”

  “His father does a great job of that,” Kandace commented snidely.

  Marie nodded. “What is with that man? You know he had the nerve to call me a groupie?”

  “He hasn’t changed a bit. I got called that, too,” Kandace said. “Now, ‘fortune hunter’ is new.”

  Serena tapped her fingers against the bottom of her champagne flute. “What was it that he called us, Jade?”

  “Umm, a trio of harlots?”

  Alicia nodded. “He was always such a charmer. Welcome to the club, Marie.”

  “Looks like I’m in good company, so thanks,” she said with a smile as the women clinked their glasses. Marie’s gaze fell on Kandace as she stroked her stomach in a way that pregnant women do. In the deep recesses of her mind, she questioned if Devon’s anti-parenthood spiel had anything to do with the fact that his first love was carrying another man’s baby. Stop it; he is not harboring some secret desire for this woman. You’re starting to sound like Solomon. Marie took a swig of her drink and tried to focus on the conversation at hand. She loved how the women welcomed her into their fold and didn’t say much about her party-girl ways. Looking at them furthered her belief that she had wasted too much time trying to grab cheap headlines rather than using her skills for more positive things.