No Ordinary Love (G Street Chronicles Presents The Love. Lies & Lust Series) Read online

  “Have you reached a verdict?” I heard Judge Gillian ask.

  “Yes, your honor we have,” I heard the foreman say. Damon’s grip on my hand grew tighter. I felt the calming peace of victory as I waited impatiently for the woman to continue.

  “On the count of conspiracy to commit murder, We the Jury find the defendant: not guilty. On the count of kidnapping in the first degree: not guilty; unlawful confinement: not guilty; accessory to kidnapping: not guilty.” she sighed.

  Come again? I opened my eyes darting them in the direction of the woman. She lowered her head then sat down. I looked at Damon assuming I had heard the woman wrong. The expression of shock and disbelief on his face confirmed that I had heard correctly. They found Gator not guilty on every freaking count!

  “Are you serious?” I blurted aloud, releasing Damon’s hand. I rose from the covered bench staring at the jury. “Have you all lost your minds?” I screamed. “That son of a bitch is guilty, and each and every one of you knows it!” I breathed heavily while pointing at Gator. “How much did he pay you?” I accused as tears began to fall from my eyes.

  I felt Damon’s hand on my back. I heard his voice in my ear advising me to calm down, but his words were useless; all of my mental reasoning had evaporated. I felt a burning sensation inside of me as my anger overflowed. “You’re going to let this sick piece of shit get way?”

  Gator turned around looking at me with eyes swimming with what I can only describe as satisfaction.

  “Order!” Judge Gillian stated, slamming his gavel.

  “You think you’ve won?” I ranted, glaring at Gator.

  He stood slowly then adjusted his tie. He extended his hand to his attorney, and then leaned over and kissed his wife who was sitting on the bench behind him. “Is that all your honor?” He asked.

  The judge asked if all twelve members of the jury were in agreement. When they stated they were I excused myself; storming out of the courtroom with my husband following closely behind. There was a swarm of eager news reporters and camera men standing on the courthouse steps asking for my comment as I made my way towards my husband’s car.

  “I hope he burns in hell,” I mumbled.

  Damon ordered them to step back as he stepped quickly to my side. I knew that Gator had also made his way out of the courtroom because I could hear a bombardment of questions being asked, like: “How does it feel to be a free man?” “Did things go as you anticipated?” “And what will you do now that this is behind you?”

  As I looked back, I glanced up at the steps and locked eyes with Gator. He smiled brightly then winked his eye at me. Bastard! I thought.

  I climbed into the passenger’s side of my husband’s Range Rover, still attempting to process what had taken place in the courtroom. I watched as Gator strolled down the remaining steps with a smile on his face; followed by his wife and the media. There was a white-stretch limo with dark tinted windows parked against the curb in front of the spot where Damon and I were waiting for traffic to clear. Gator assisted his wife into the back of the car, and then walked away from the limo headed in our direction. What the hell? I thought to myself. He came up to the passenger side window, standing outside the door, staring at me.

  “See you soon,” he said. He chuckled then adjusted the lapels of his jacket before turning to walk away.

  I felt a breeze of air as my husband jumped out from behind the wheel then walked over to confront him. I felt the promise in Gator’s words and a fear of what their commitment might bring. I refused to be a victim to him or any of his shitty associates ever again. I reached underneath my seat, retrieving the 45mm Damon had hidden there. I opened the passenger’s side door then stepped out. Damon and Gator stood toe to toe engaged in conversation. I tightened my grip on the weight that I carried in my hand while moving in closer.

  “It’s not over,” Gator stated looking at me. “It’s never--” He didn’t get the chance to complete his sentence. I aimed and pulled the trigger letting off three rounds in the area of his heart. I watched as blood poured out covering the shinning alligator shoes he was known for wearing, and his body slumped slowly to the ground. A sharp, almost unbearable pain shot through my abdomen causing me to double over. The pain I was experiencing felt like I was being ripped apart internally. My heart began to race a mile a minute as I looked down at the pavement, staring at the small puddle of my own blood that was surrounding my feet.

  Chapter 2

  Octavia

  “Octavia…Octavia…baby wake up…” I heard a familiar voice say. “Octavia…” I opened my eyes slowly then exhaled when I saw my husband’s beautiful face. “Baby, are you okay?” Damon asked, stroking my cheek gently with his fingertips. He was kneeling beside the sofa where I lay on my side covered in a light chenille blanket. I stretched my legs out as much as my body would allow before rubbing my eyes. I was lethargic and slightly dazed as I focused on my surroundings and my vision became clearer.

  “I’m fine,” I finally answered, pulling myself up in an upright position. The additional weight my body carried at its core was an indication that I was still pregnant and the thoughts I had of Gator had been nothing more than a vivid nightmare. “What time is it?”

  “A little after one,” he said looking at his watch.

  “I can’t believe I dozed off that long,” I yawned. According to the time, I had been sleeping for approximately two hours. When I originally chose to lie down, it was my intent to catch up on some much needed reading while Damon took our daughter Jasmine to my parent’s house. However, from the looks of the book lying on the floor, I hadn’t made it past the cover. I love the fact that I’ve been blessed with the gift of carrying another child, and I know that there are many women out there who wished they could have the pleasure and joy that bearing a child can bring; but pregnancy number two was kicking my ass! I was tired all the time, my feet felt and looked like I was wearing floatation devices, and my nose had spread so far across my face that I could have sworn my face was preparing for a jet to land on it.

  Don’t get me wrong, I know I’m beautiful regardless of all that, and I want nothing more than to bring Damon’s and my unborn child in the world healthy and strong; but I’m anxiously counting down the joyous moment when I can have my body back.

  “Are you hungry?” Damon asked. The mere mention of food made my stomach rumble.

  “Of course,” I said, rubbing my stomach. “Do you even have to ask?”

  “Nope,” he laughed. “That is why I have the grill going as we speak: Chicken, shrimp, and steaks.”

  “So thoughtful,” I said sincerely. I watched as he picked up the slippers I wore earlier and slipped them on my feet; causing me to smile brightly. It was not only the little things he did that made me fall in love with him daily, but also the fact that my husband was nothing short of my super hero; protective, providing, and always there when I needed him.

  “You should expect nothing less,” Damon said. He stood up straight then extended his hands to me. I slipped my hands inside his warm palms, allowing him to help me up to my feet. The two of us walked hand in hand through our family room to the kitchen.

  “What were you dreaming about?” he asked as we reached the French doors leading to our patio. My mental flashback of Gator and the scene that unfolded in the court room sent shivers cascading down my spine.

  “About the trial,” I admitted.

  “What happened?”

  “It was crazy,” I sighed shaking my head. “They let him off and I went postal.” I filled Damon in on the details of the dream as the two of us stepped out onto the patio. I was greeted by the savory aroma of hickory and mesquite fogging the air while the sun shed a light shade from behind the puffy white clouds crowding the sky. As I told my husband about my dream, I intentionally left out the part where I miscarried. The last thing I wanted to do was put additional concern or worry on my husband’s shoulders.

  “You don’t have to worry about Gator now,” he said, pulling
out one of the chairs surrounding our patio table for me. “That part of our life is over.”

  Damon was right. Three months after Damon and I renewed our vows at his parent’s home in Georgia, Gator’s trial began. After three days of proceedings and only six hours for jury deliberations, Gator was found guilty of both kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder. The judge later sentenced him to life in prison. The trial was hard on both of us, but we made it through and justice had prevailed. Which is why I couldn’t understand why I was now having bad dreams about the man.

  “What if the dream was some sort of sign or warning?” I asked, shivering from the thought.

  “It was just a bad dream,” Damon said, kissing me on the top of my head. “Nothing more.” I leaned back looking up at him, finding comfort in his dark brown eyes.

  “You’re right baby,” I said shaking the thoughts from my head. “Just a dream.”

  He leaned down then planted a subtle, but sweet kiss on my lips. “No worries,” he said, pulling away then looking at me. “Okay?”

  “No worries,” I smiled in agreement. “So what were my parents up to?” I asked, changing the subject. Damon chuckled lightly while walking over to the outdoor kitchen. I waited patiently for his response while admiring his physique. If it were possible for any man to get sexier with every passing moment, Damon would be the man to pull it off. From the low-cut waves that now graced his head to the neatly-trimmed hair that surrounded his mouth and his flawless caramel-colored face. Even the casual look of the turquoise colored polo shirt, dark jeans, and Gucci sneakers he wore today couldn’t down play his sexy. I felt a tingling sensation in between my legs that caused my nipples to swell to the point that they ached. No matter how exhausted my pregnancy had me, the one thing that hadn’t changed was the longing I felt for my man.

  “When I left they were getting ready to take Jazz to the park,” he answered. He stood with his back to me while turning meat on the grill. “However, I think they were handling business when I got there.”

  “What kind of business?” I asked curiously.

  “You know…business,” Damon said, turning around to look at me. He raised his eyebrows then smiled. “The kind of business I plan to give you later.” He winked his eye then laughed.

  “Aw hell,” I blurted out, shaking my head. I knew that my parents were human, but a visual of them getting their freak on was not what I needed at the moment. “TMI…TMI!”

  “What?” Damon chuckled again. “Just because they’re members of the fifty and over crowd does not mean they don’t have needs. Hell, wait till we get their age. I’m going to still be beating it up and putting it down!”

  “I know they have needs,” I giggled. “But I don’t want to think about them. And please believe me baby…you can get it!” The two of us shared loving banter until the phone rang interrupting us. “I’ll get it,” I said easing up from my chair.

  “You sure?” Damon asked, watching me.

  “Positive.” I wobbled towards the kitchen, walking towards the cordless phone sitting on the kitchen island. “I’m coming!” I snapped, slightly annoyed by the blaring sound of the ringing phone.

  “Not yet,” Damon yelled from outside. “But you will be!”

  “Freak!” I yelled back. I picked up the phone then glanced at the caller ID seeing that the call was coming from the Ambiance.

  “Hello,” I answered.

  “Hi Octavia,” Tabitha said from the other end.

  “Hi Tabitha.”

  “Sorry to disturb you on a Saturday,” she said quickly.

  “There’s no need to apologize,” I said reassuringly. “What can I do for you?”

  “Have you talked to Amel?”

  “No, why?”

  “She hasn’t shown up for work.” Tabitha informed me.

  “What? That’s not like her.” I said, staring at the clock on the wall. Amel should have been on the clock over an hour ago. Since I made Amel General Manager of the Ambiance, she hadn’t been as much as five minutes late. Hearing that she was a no call, no show, instantly had me concerned.

  “I know,” Tabitha said, sounding equally concerned. “I was hoping you’d heard from her. I tried calling her and I got her voicemail. I left a message, but she hasn’t called back.”

  “Let me try calling her,” I said. “Give me a few minutes and I’ll call you back.” I ended my call with Tabitha and immediately dialed Amel’s number. The phone rang several times before going to voicemail.

  “Hey Amel, it’s Octavia. Call me when you get this message.” I carried the phone with me back on the patio where Damon was now pulling some of the chicken he had been preparing off the grill.

  “Everything alright?” He asked, turning around to look at me.

  “Tabitha called and said Amel didn’t show up for work,” I advised him. “And she’s not answering her phone—” My thoughts and my words were halted by the ringing of the phone. “It’s her,” I said, checking the caller ID. “Hello.”

  “Hey Octavia,” Amel said. There was something in her voice that confirmed my earlier concerns that something was wrong. Her voice was low and deep and she sounded like she was either congested or had been crying.

  “I was worried about you,” I said, “Tabitha called me when you didn’t show up for work--”

  “I am so sorry,” she said, cutting me off. “I meant to call her and tell her I wasn’t coming in. I think I’m coming down with the flu or something,” she said. “My head and stomach are killing me. I was sleep until you called. Octavia I’m so sorry...I’ll get dressed now and go in.”

  No the hell you won’t, I thought. The last thing I needed was for Amel and her germs to show up at the Ambiance and show out by spreading to the rest of my employees! “Don’t do that,” I said abruptly. “We have enough coverage and besides, if Tabitha needs help, I’ll go in. Get some rest and keep me updated.”

  “Okay,” she exhaled. “Thanks so much.”

  “No problem,” I said. “Let me know if you need anything.” After I ended my conversation with Amel I called the Ambiance to let Tabitha know Amel wouldn’t be in for the day and to let her know to call me if she needed me.

  “I got it Octavia,” Tabitha said convincingly. “Enjoy your day. Everything will be fine. Trust me.”

  “Thanks Tab,” I said. I was sincerely grateful for all of my employees and the dedication they showed not only to me, but in the service they provided to our patrons. I knew that even if Tabitha needed help she wouldn’t admit it. She was bent on proving that she could manage without me and Amel and she had proven before that she could. When I recently selected one of my new hires, a woman by the name of Marilyn, to be General Manager of the Ambiance 2, I had seen in Tabitha’s face that she was disappointed, but Marilyn was simply more qualified for the position.

  *****

  Damon had made my afternoon with the meal he prepared for us, and I was happy and full, at least for the moment, after devouring the grilled chicken, shrimp, and vegetable medley. The two of us had just retired to our home theater to relax and watch a movie when Tabitha called again.

  “Hello.”

  “Octavia, I’m so sorry to interrupt you again--”

  “Don’t be Tabitha,” I said, “its fine. What’s up?”

  “It’s Amel,” she exhaled, blowing loudly in the phone. “She came in and--”

  “She came in?” I asked shocked. This should have come as no surprise to me. Since Amel’s break up with Tarik, she had turned into somewhat of a workaholic. I think it was her way of compensating for the one thing we all need as human beings; companionship.

  “Yes,” Tabitha answered. “I thought you knew.”

  “No, I gave her specific instructions to stay at home.”

  “Well, she’s here and she’s not doing good,” Tabitha explained. “She came in and went straight to the bathroom and started throwing up. She’s been in there ever since…I’m worried about her Octavia. I tried to convince her t
o let Kaitlyn or one of the other girls take her to the ER, but she refused. I didn’t know what else to do so I called you.”

  “I’m on my way,” I said quickly. “Thanks for calling.”

  “No problem,” Tabitha exhaled again. “I’ll see you when you get here.”

  “She is so damn stubborn!” I said, shaking my head.

  “Amel?” Damon concluded, assisting me up on my feet.

  “Yes,” I said, looking at him. I had filled him in earlier about my conversation with Amel, and the thought that I had that she was going to abide by my request for her to stay home.

  “She learns from the best,” he replied, staring at me with raised eyebrows.

  “I know how to take a break,” I said.

  “I love you baby, but you’re addicted to work,” Damon said standing. “I’m almost eighty percent sure you’re going to give birth in one of your restaurants. I can see it now. You’ll pop lil’ man out, give him a kiss on the forehead, and get right back to grinding.”

  “You are crazy,” I laughed lightly. “And how do you know we’re having a boy? We could be welcoming another little diva into the world.” Damon and I had decided not to find out the sex of our baby. I was betting on a girl while he, on the other hand, was convinced our child was a boy.

  “I just know,” he said, pressing his palm against my belly. I instantly felt the flutter of the baby inside my belly moving.

  “We shall see,” I smiled. “We shall see.”

  “That we shall my love,” Damon said, “you want me to drive you?”

  “I’m good,” I said appreciatively. “But thank you.”

  *****

  I stepped inside the Ambiance and was immediately greeted by the sounds of chatter, clacking silverware and soft jazz. The atmosphere was lively, and it was obvious from the way the servers we’re weaving and maneuvering from one table to the other that business was going well. I smiled and waved at Kaitlyn; then headed directly towards my office. On my way to the restaurant I called for an update on Amel’s condition and Tabitha informed she was no longer sick to her stomach and she was now resting in my office. I was nearing the office door when it opened and Tabitha stepped out, closing the door behind her. She wore dark slacks and a crisp button down white blouse, the traditional uniform I had assigned to my lead hostess.