His harsh tone almost made Latonya feel guilty for having lunch with her grandmother. It never failed, whenever she started to feel upbeat and excited in her new life, the old man showed up to ruin things. She was convinced he had some sort of radar detector that beeped every time she got a little too comfortable being Mrs. Carlton Harrington III. Hearing the beep, the old man no doubt jumped in his grumpy-old-man mobile and raced to spoil any notions she had that she belonged and that she’d done the right thing in marrying his grandson.
Taking a deep breath, she mumbled, “Pamela, his nanny.”
“Mmm-hmm. Well, don’t let me keep you. Go on and continue whatever it was you were doing,” he sneered. “I’ll stop by and check on little Carl this afternoon.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll see you later, then.”
Latonya hurried into the restroom. The old man always made her nervous. Even though he pretended to tolerate her and clearly adored her son, she sensed an undercurrent of dislike and distrust and she didn’t know what to do about it.
The elder Harrington watched as the little slut went scurrying off into the restroom. He’d tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, especially when it seemed like Carlton was so smitten with her that he wasn’t going to leave anytime soon. The girl even appeared to be a halfway decent mother. But the other one had fooled them all by pretending to care about her child. That is, whenever she hadn’t been running off with her newest lover.
He would never forgive himself for standing by while that woman ruined his family. He wasn’t going to let it happen this time around.
The way that Jeff Weatherby looked at the girl, it would only be a matter of time before the tramp found her way to his bed.
In a few years he would be handing over even more of the responsibilities for running Harrington Enterprise to Carlton. That would mean Carlton would be traveling more. Leaving the girl to run around with God knows who, while he worked hard to give her diamonds, jewels and designer clothing.
Before the elder Harrington knew it, he had dialed Carlton’s cell phone number. If he could stop history from repeating itself, he had to try.
Chapter 13
Even though he was in the middle of a meeting, Carlton answered his cell phone. It had rung several times and he assumed it must have been an emergency. He excused himself to answer his grandfather’s call. His voice sounded urgent and upset.
“What’s wrong, Grandfather? Is something wrong with Latonya or little Carl?”
“No. But you need to get your tail back to Miami and see about that wife of yours. I just saw that fellow we put in charge of marketing groping and kissing her.”
Carlton’s heart stopped and dread seeped its way through his body. “What? You saw her kissing Jeff Weatherby? Are you certain? Where?”
“I saw her in public, hugged up and kissing him just now. She must not know how to act when you leave her alone and up to her own devices. I don’t know if others saw her or not. But you need to come home and straighten her out. It doesn’t look proper, and we have little Carl to think about now.” His grandfather’s voice sounded foreboding.
“Grandfather, do you realize the gravity of what you’re telling me? If there is any way you can be mistaken, then you need to let me know, because you’re leading me to believe that you saw my wife in another man’s arms. Is that what you’re telling me?” Carlton felt as if someone was sucking the air from his lungs. Each word he spoke strained, he tried to take deep, calming breaths.
“That’s what I said. Now, delegate the rest of the business affairs. Hell, I’ll fly in and finish it myself. You get home and handle your personal life. She cannot be seen making such a public spectacle.”
“Fine. I’ll be there this evening.”
“Good.”
Carlton’s eyes narrowed as he hung up the phone. His heart raced, and he felt an infusion of heat sparking fire through his veins. Before he realized it he’d broken the small cell phone into two separate parts. Stunned, he looked at the mangled instrument for a second before throwing it against the wall. He didn’t bother going back into the meeting to tell the men he’d be leaving. He had to make it back home to his wife.
By the time Carlton made it back to Coconut Grove, it was almost ten in the evening. He found his wife in little Carl’s room curled up on the bed. Their son was tucked under the covers; she slept on top with a book on her lap.
Carlton sat in the rocking chair by the bed. Gazing at his wife, he tried to imagine why she would be kissing Jeff Weatherby. The past three years had been better than he would have ever imagined given the way they started out. Happier than he had ever been, he didn’t want it to end. She was a great mother. She loved their son beyond measure. He thought she loved him, though she never said it. Her actions were that of a woman in love. Why would she risk ruining everything for a fling with Weatherby?
She must have felt his gaze, because she stirred, opened her eyes and looked at him. She stretched without disturbing their son and sat up in the bed.
Her whole face lit up when she smiled and his heart did a flip-flop. She seemed genuinely thrilled to see him. Could Grandfather be wrong?
“You’re back early.” Her voice was a soft, husky whisper. She slowly got out of the bed in a concerted effort not to wake up little Carl. She walked over to the rocking chair where he sat. “I’m glad you’re home.”
He took a moment to think before getting up from the rocking chair.
She wrapped her arms around him. “I missed you.”
In that moment, a life without Latonya flashed before his eyes and he didn’t like the thought of it at all. Deciding not to cast any accusations, he would wait and see if she was really having an affair with Weatherby.
If she were, then he wouldn’t have a choice. She would have to go. He would not relive his father’s mistake of trying to hold on to a woman who wanted to be held by others. If she wasn’t having an affair and it was just some crazy fluke, a misunderstanding on Grandfather’s part, then she wouldn’t have to know about his doubts.
He followed her into their bedroom.
Wrapping her arms around him again, she stood on her toes and kissed him.
“So, what makes me so incredibly lucky? Did the negotiations go smoother than you expected, or did you just miss us?” Moving in close, she gazed at him with those beautiful brown eyes.
Letting his fingers run through her silky mass of auburn hair, he thought about how he should answer her.
When it became clear to her that he wasn’t going to answer, her gaze faltered a little. He realized by the nervous expression on her face that he must be showing more of his feelings than he intended.
“What’s wrong?” She appeared as if she really cared.
“Nothing.” Pulling away from her embrace, he walked away, removing his suit jacket and tie as he walked toward the bathroom. “It’s been a long day, and a long flight. I’m just tired. I’m going to take a shower and then hit the sack.”
He left her standing in the middle of the room, went into the bathroom and closed the door. He leaned against the door for at least five minutes before he finally finished undressing and turned on the shower. It was all he could do not to go back out there, make love to his wife and beg her not to throw what they had away on some silly affair. However, his pride wouldn’t let him do that. Until he figured out exactly what was going on between her and Jeff Weatherby, he would keep his distance.
Chapter 14
Latonya woke up yet again to a bed without Carlton in it. She didn’t know what was wrong with him. He had come back from his business trip a different man, a colder man. He didn’t seem to want anything to do with her. Her worst fears were coming true. He must be tired of me.
