“Stop clowning around, Jeff. Married life is fine. I’m completely and totally enamored with my husband.” Smiling even though she felt less and less sure of that statement, Latonya fiddled with her napkin.

“That’s too bad.”

She lightly kicked him under the table. “Oh, just be happy for us.”

“Hey. Ouch. Okay. I am. I always wanted you to be happy. I just figured someday it would be with me.”

She had to laugh at that. A real hoot, sometimes Jeff went too far. When she finished laughing, she realized Jeff simply sat there silently. He gazed at her intently, and for the first time she actually saw the want there. She’d always thought he was just a flirt. Studying him carefully, she asked, “Are you serious?”

“Yes, I’ve always been serious,” he replied somberly. “You just never noticed it, or never took me seriously before.”

“Well, I can’t take you seriously now. I’m married. And I am in love with my husband, deeply in love.” Taking a breath, she paused. She had never voiced the words out loud to anyone before, and saying them felt like lifting a heavy weight off of her chest.

“Well, I hope old Harry Tres knows what a gem he has in you,” Jeff offered ruefully.

Not able to respond because she didn’t know what her husband felt about her or their relationship, she took a sip from her iced tea instead.

Jeff must have sensed her uneasiness because he reached across the table and placed his hand over hers, caressing it tenderly.

Rubbing her hand, he smiled. “He lucked out, beautiful. He got the girl most guys only dream of.”

Forcing a smile and laughing, she tried to lighten the mood. “You know, I see why you are such a successful player. You sure know how to say all the right things.”

Jeff just laughed. “Fat lotta good it did me with you.”

“Boy, shut up.”

He simply smiled. “So tell me all about little Harry Cuatro.”

Pride pulsed through her veins. No matter what happened between her and Carlton, at least she had her son. No one could take that away from her. “Well, little Carl is the best little boy a mother could ask for. He’s smart as a whip.”

Nodding his head, Jeff agreed, “Well, of course. Look at his mother.”

“He’s adorable. I think he’s going to be quite the little heartbreaker.”

“Well, of course, look at his beautiful mother,” he repeated.

“No. Actually, he looks exactly like his father. He doesn’t take after me at all. It’s weird.”

“I’m sure he has more of you in him than you realize.” Jeff’s voice cracked and a slight cough escaped his mouth. His face started to flush and he covered his mouth as he continued to try to clear his throat. He started to pat his chest as well.

Latonya frowned. She hoped he wasn’t choking. But he hadn’t taken a bite of his sweet-potato fries or his burger in a while. He also hadn’t taken a sip of his iced tea. Yet, he didn’t appear well at all.

“What’s the matter? You don’t look so good.”

“I don’t know. I think something in this meal didn’t agree with me. I have some food allergies and that makes eating out a crapshoot sometimes. Maybe we should cut this lunch short.” His voice sounded heavy.

Latonya picked up her napkin from her lap and placed it on the table. Food allergies were nothing to play with. “Okay. Do you carry allergy medicine with you? Do you need me to help you get home? I know you’re not going back in to the office today.”

“No to all three. I’ll just have the host call me a cab and head home. If I need anything, I’ll give my mom a call.”

The lack of clarity and slight slur in his voice worried her. She knew people’s throats sometimes closed up and these kinds of allergic reactions often brought on respiratory failure.

“How about this? I help you out of here. I take you to the emergency room. I call your mom to meet us there. And you promise me you will make sure you always have some medicine with you from now on.”

She reached in her purse as she stood and dug out the antihistamine she carried with her for whenever her seasonal allergies acted up. “Here, take these.” She handed him two. “These should help some until we get you to the hospital.”

He took the pills from her and swallowed them along with some water. “There,” he said once he had swallowed them, “that should be fine.” Barely able to stand, he leaned against the table.

Latonya shook her head. “I’m taking you to the emergency room and that’s that.” She put her arm around Jeff so that he could lean on her for support as they walked out. She gave him the no-nonsense stare that she usually saved for little Carl when he misbehaved or exhibited the Harrington trademark willfulness.

It didn’t take Jeff long to realize that he could be home recuperating sooner if he just took the offer. He left money for the tab, even though she protested, and they left.

Carlton couldn’t believe his eyes. First he watched while Weatherby hugged Latonya as if he could barely stand to let her go. Then he watched the man gaze at her the entire time and clutch her hand like a lovesick puppy. The entire time he watched them, he kept thinking of his mother and her many lovers. How they all seemed to be so in love with her and she really didn’t care about any of them. The only person she ever cared about was herself.

Carlton told himself that he didn’t confront Latonya because he hadn’t wanted to make a scene in front of his very important clients. The truth was he didn’t want to see with his own eyes the proof that history was cruelly repeating itself. When his clients finally left, he watched his wife walk off with her arms around Jeff. He walked to the front of the restaurant and watched the two of them get into her car and drive off. He had hoped against hope, but it turned out that Grandfather had been right.

Steaming, it took Carlton a few minutes to figure out what to do next. Even if his wife didn’t love him, he wasn’t going to let Jeff Weatherby ruin his marriage! The thought made him realize that he was just like his own father. It wasn’t Weatherby’s fault that Latonya was a cheat!

When he made it back to Harrington Enterprise he headed right for Weatherby’s office, fully intending to tell him in no uncertain terms to stay the hell away from his wife. However Weatherby wasn’t in his office and a quick round of questions gave Carlton information that disturbed him more than seeing his wife leave with Weatherby. Weatherby had taken the rest of the afternoon off, calling in sick to complain of having an allergic reaction to something he ate at lunch.

Not believing that excuse, Carlton had the sudden urge to go home and see if his wife had made it back from her lunch date.

When he got there, Jillian informed him that Latonya wasn’t back yet. So, he sat in the front sitting room waiting for her. She showed up at around four-thirty in the afternoon with one small bag in her hands and seemed startled to see him. A warm smile covered her face.

“Hi. I wasn’t expecting you here. You’re home early today.”

“Yes. I am. And where were you?”

“I just did a little shopping.”

Eying her small bag, he asked incredulously, “Really? Shopping?”

“Yes. More like window-shopping. I really didn’t see a whole lot that I just had to have. Although, as always, Frances’s Boutique had a few things that tempted me.” She flashed a smile.

Taking note that Frances’s Boutique was located in the very neighborhood that Jeff Weatherby lived in, Carlton frowned. “Really? Is that all you did today?”

She shrugged. “Pretty much.”

His eyes narrowed. That she would stand there and lie to him made the blood boil in his veins. “Well what about your little lunch date with Jeff Weatherby?”

“What?” Her eyes widened.

“You heard me. I know all about your affair with Weatherby. Grandfather saw you with him last week, and today I had the pleasure of seeing it with my own eyes—” Carlton started.

“Mommy!”

The sound of little footsteps followed by adult footsteps halted his speech.