“We can go and visit your grandmother this weekend and even stay for a few extra days if you’d like.”

He heard her take a sharp breath before she broke out into hiccupping sobs.

“I just want to go back to Miami for a while. I don’t really fit in here. I’m trying…but I don’t. I know this is your home…our home now. And…I will come back. I just really need a break from it all.”

The sound of her crying broke his heart. He felt a red haze of anger come over him. “What happened, Tonya? Did someone say something to you? Tell me, baby. I’ll kill them. I swear.” He’d never had a stronger urge to inflict damage on another person before.

She gulped. “I overheard Sari and Janice saying some things about me in the restroom. Stuff like that doesn’t usually get to me. I just need to go home for a while.”

“Fine, we’ll move back to Miami. I can be in Nassau in a half hour by jet. And we don’t have to go to any more of these events. I just wanted you to meet some people. But none of these people are worth knowing. You’re all that matters to me. Just stop crying, please.” He pulled her close. “Would moving make you feel better?”

“But this is your home—”

Cutting her off he said, “I’m just as at home in Miami as I am in the Bahamas. I’ve always spent my time between the two places.”

Didn’t she know that she was his home? Couldn’t she tell that home was wherever she was?

“Are you sure, because—”

“Positive. We’ll go back tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay. I don’t want to be a pain in the neck. I’m sure it’s just my crazy hormones all out of whack.” Turning, she snuggled her head next to his heart and wrapped herself in his arms.

“Trust me, you’re not being a pain in the neck. I just want you to be happy.”

Yawning, she offered a half-mumbled reply. “I just want us to be happy.”

He couldn’t think of a better way to ring in the New Year. Holding her closely, he closed his eyes in contentment, because they really wanted the same thing: to be happy together.

And for a while, they were.

Chapter 11

Over two years later

The pregnancy and the birth of their child brought Latonya and Carlton closer together, but not nearly as close as she wanted them to be. Moving back to Miami and spending a limited amount of time in the Bahamas made adjusting to married life a little easier. Even though Miami’s elite class wasn’t all open arms, either, Latonya at least had family and friends there who cared about her. The only time her new lifestyle didn’t leave her feeling cold was when she was in Carlton’s arms. He had a way of making her melt with just a simple touch.

They still couldn’t seem to get enough of each other. However, she felt as if something was missing and that it could all end as quickly as it started. Didn’t her own parents’ doomed relationship show her that things really didn’t last? Her father left even though she tried to be as good as she possibly could. Even though her mother bent over backward to please him, he still left them.

Carlton’s and Latonya’s child was two years old and they still had never said they loved each other. In her mind she knew that love was in the actions and Carlton behaved like a man happy and in love, at least with the family they’d built together. And it wouldn’t have been so bad if she hadn’t fallen deeply and completely in love with him.

Was it the sweet tenderness he showed her throughout her pregnancy and when she delivered Carlton Harrington IV? Or was it the way he interacted with their son as if he were the light of his life? If she was honest with herself, she had to acknowledge that it happened the first time he kissed her and it went deeper and deeper each time he did even the smallest thing, like touch her cheek or brush the small of her back.

The chemistry between them felt electric. It ignited the blood in her veins and shot through to her soul. She only hoped that it was enough to last. The realization that she had fallen in so deep made her feel as if she were treading water with a tenuous hold on everything.

Kissing her son lightly on his forehead, Latonya left his bedroom. Before joining her husband in their bedroom, she stopped at the door right next to little Carl’s room.

“Hey, Pamela, he’s sleeping. I’m going to go to bed now. Let me know if he needs anything or—”

Pamela looked up from the crossword puzzle she was doing and cut Latonya off in her soft Trinidadian-accented voice that had a hint of melody to it. “I will not. If I left it up to you, I’d never have a job to do. Now, go and spend some time with your husband and leave me to do my job,” she offered in a mock chastising tone.

Latonya smiled. They had a playful tug-of-war going on when it came to little Carl. Pamela complained that Latonya didn’t allow her to do her job enough. And Latonya gave her plenty to complain about and feigned innocence when called on it.

Although in her mid-fifties, Pamela had a youthfulness about her that clearly came from a lifetime devoted to taking care of children. Even though she wore her slightly graying hair pulled back in a harsh bun, there was nothing uptight or stuffy about her. Her honey-complexioned face was always smiling.

At first, Latonya had some hesitations about hiring the Caribbean-born woman. The elder Harrington’s issues with African-Americans made Latonya a little wary. She didn’t want someone taking care of her child who had problems with American blacks. Luckily, Pamela could care less about things like that. She cared about making children happy and making sure they were well adjusted. She also made the best curry chicken rotis Latonya had ever tasted.

“I know you think I’m crazy, but he’s sick,” Latonya hedged.

“Who, me? I don’t think you’re crazy at all. A little obsessive, maybe, but not out of line for a mother with a sick child.” Pamela softly chuckled. “But don’t worry, sweetie, if he wakes up and it seems like he has a fever or he’s not feeling well, I will tend to him and consult you. Deal?”

Realizing that was probably the most she would get from Pamela, Latonya reluctantly acquiesced. “Fine.”

She went to join her husband in their bedroom.

Carlton was leaving for a business trip in the morning and would be away for at least two weeks. It would be their first time being apart for such a long period of time since they got married. The achy pang in her chest let her know exactly how much she would miss him.

He looked up when she entered the room and smiled before putting his papers aside. “Is he finally sleeping?”

“Yes, after only five stories. The cold has him so irritable. At least his fever is down.” She stood in the mirror and took off her diamond stud earrings. Of all the jewelry she now owned, they were her favorite. Simple and understated, they had a quiet elegance. Carlton had given them to her on their first wedding anniversary.

“Well, that’s good. Maybe the two of you can come with me to Barbados, after all.”

She turned and glanced at him. It seemed like he really wanted them to join him. Surely he needed a break from his family.

She remembered how her father used to yell at her mother. Screaming that he felt like he was being suffocated. That he needed some space, some time away from her and them.

Latonya didn’t think she could handle it if Carlton ever felt that way about her. She reasoned the little break would be good for them. And when he came back the chemistry between them would still be strong.

“I don’t know. I think traveling might be a bit much for him at this point. He’s not fully recovered and I’d hate for him to relapse. Plus, you’d probably just be distracted with us tagging along.”

“Maybe I’d like to be distracted.” Getting up from the bed, he walked over, pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she leaned closely to his chest. If she didn’t do something to steel her heart soon, she would be leaving herself open for a world of hurt once he decided he needed his space or God forbid, wanted a divorce. Slowly and unwillingly, she pulled away.

“Well, I think you should rest for your travels tomorrow.”

His hand caressed her cheek. “I can think of lots of things I need to do before my travels, and rest is not even in the top five.”

Giving him her best interpretation of a sexy-and-sassy smile, she asked, “Oh, really?”

“Oh, yes, really. Baby, why don’t the two of you just join me next week? Two weeks is just too much time away.” He let his fingers glide through her hair.

“I know. Maybe this will be good. It’s been almost three years. Maybe it would be good for us to spend a little time apart.”

He was silent for a second. When he did speak his voice was strained and he didn’t look at her. “So, are you getting tired of me already?”

It was her turn to be silent, because she was so far from being tired of him it scared her, and she didn’t know how to tell him that without opening herself up to heartache when he decided to reject her. And he would end up rejecting her. Wouldn’t he?