The Way You Love Me

“We have reservations,” she whined.

Justin’s jaw tightened. “I know that.”

He heard her blow an exasperated breath into the phone. “Well, we can cancel, and you can come here.”

That was the last thing he wanted to do, but he also had no intention of dragging out the inevitable. “Sure. I’ll see you as soon as I can.”

“I’ll make it worth your while,” she cooed.

“See you later.” He disconnected the call, stuck his phone back into his pocket and returned to the family gathered in the kitchen.

“Everything okay?” Dominique quietly asked while she sipped on a glass of wine.

“Yeah.” He reached for the bottle of wine and filled his own glass. Of his three sisters, it was Dominique that could always read him. There was a closeness between them that often rivaled the relationship between her and her twin, Desiree. Dominique was the wild one, or so most people thought. But underneath her diva exterior, she was insightful, caring and wise beyond her years. Meanwhile, it was Desi that had a passion for the dangerous world of race-car driving. When that little tidbit of information got to their father, he nearly imploded.

LeeAnn and Desiree were busy catching up and preparing dinner for the clan. Dominique slid her arm around her brother’s waist and peeked up at him above the rim of her glass. “What’s really going on?”

“With LeeAnn? I know what you know. Nada.” He gave a half grin.

“You know that’s not what I mean.” She gently nudged him in the side with her elbow. “What’s going on with you? I know that look.”

“You mean my strong jaw and charismatic smile.” He chuckled lightly and stroked his smooth chin.

“Don’t play with me.”

He blew out a breath. “Making some moves, that’s all.”

She arched a questioning brow. “That’s your final answer?”

He angled his body away from LeeAnn and Desiree to face Dominique. “Working out some things with Jasmine. She needs to understand where we stand.”

“How is that going to affect things at the office?”

He gave a half shrug. “We’ll see.”

“If it helps, I think you’re making the right decision. Jasmine is a woman for someone else. She’s all about Jasmine and getting ahead and latching on to name and money.” She clasped his upper biceps. “You have a vision, ambition and a commitment to society. I can’t see Jasmine ever being a part of that.”

Justin slowly nodded. “I agree. Don’t get me wrong. I care about her. Beneath all of the shine of her exterior, she’s trying to find her way. But she has been so spoiled by the life her parents have provided for her that she has no empathy for anyone who she believes has less than her. That’s a big problem for me. I tried to ignore it and hoped that it was just a facade, but it’s at the heart of who she is.” He slowly shook his head. “I know I’m not the one for her.”

“It’ll be fine. Was that who you were calling?”

“Yeah. We had reservations for dinner. I’d planned to talk to her at the restaurant. Unfortunately, I didn’t anticipate this...” He gave a slight tilt of his head toward his sisters.

“Hmm. So what are you going to do?”

“Meet at her place when we’re done here.”

“You know I got you covered if you need a ride-along,” she teased.

Justin chuckled. “Thanks, but no need. I’m good.”

“Well, I’m just a cell phone call away.” She winked and sauntered over to her sisters just as the doorbell rang.

LeeAnn wiped her hands on a paper towel. “That should be Preston.” She walked out and went to the front door.

“I hope so. Then we can get this party started,” Dominique said and refilled her glass of wine.

Moments later LeeAnn and Preston walked in arm in arm, with LeeAnn beaming at her husband like the day she married him.

“The gang’s all here,” Preston greeted, kissing the cheeks of his sisters-in-law and shaking Justin’s hand.

“Everyone but Rafe,” Desiree added.

“I’d hoped that he would be able to make it, but he has a gig in South Beach tonight at the Versace mansion,” LeeAnn said.

“He does get around,” Preston said with an air of admiration.

“All this small talk is nice, but will somebody please tell me what the hell is going on so we can eat?” Dominique said.

LeeAnn looked up at her husband, and he shared a “go ahead” nod.

“Well...we have news on a couple of fronts.” She drew in a breath and pushed out what they were waiting to hear. “We’re pregnant.”

“I knew it!” Desiree screeched.

“Congratulations, y’all,” Dominique added.

“Congrats, sis and you, too, Preston,” Justin joked.

They all shared hugs and kisses, and when the excitement died down to murmurs of happiness for the couple, LeeAnn took Preston’s hand. “There’s more.”

The room quieted.

“I was offered a position with the Department of State as Deputy Director of Environmental Policy Implementation,” Preston said.

A chorus of congratulations filled the air.

“Thanks. It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do, and serving in the Senate on the environmental committee paved the way.” He paused. “The position is in Kenya.”

“Kenya...as in Africa, Kenya?” Desiree asked, her voice rising in pitch.

“We leave in three weeks,” LeeAnn added.

Dominique put down her glass. “What? You’re moving to Kenya?”

“That’s a big move, brah,” Justin said. “You both ready for that?” He looked from one to the other.

“We are,” LeeAnn said.

“Hey, you have to do what you can to make a difference, and I know you will,” Justin said. He stepped to his brother-in-law and gave him a hearty hug. “Proud of you, man.”

“Thanks.”

“How long will you be gone?” Desiree asked, her voice cracking.

“At least a year. It could be extended. But for now, it’s a year.”

“What about the baby? You’re going to have the baby in Kenya?” Dominique asked, her dismay finally kicking in.

LeeAnn offered a tight smile. “Looks that way.”

“Dad is going to have a natural fit,” Desiree said.

“That’s why we wanted to tell you all first, get your support,” LeeAnn said. “You know Dad. He wants things his way, and he has Preston’s entire career mapped out.”

“You don’t really think that Dad doesn’t know, do you?” Justin said. “Nothing gets past him, and he’s right there in the mix in DC.”

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