Naughty Before Christmas (Decadent Delight Series #3) (11 page)

“
Reginald, can I see you in the family room?”

He turned around to find
Lyric posing in the doorway with curves in every direction. “I’ll be right down,” he informed her.

Dereon waited until she had gone downstairs before saying,
“Damn, your interior designer is fine as hell! If I wasn’t engaged I’d be all over that.”

Reggie
rolled his eyes. “No, you wouldn’t. You’d be begging Christina to marry yo sorry ass.”

“
Ha-ha, I see you got jokes,” he chuckled. “That’s why Berlin got you all bent outta shape.”

“Whatever.”
Without another word, Reggie removed his gloves then headed down into the family room where Trey was all up in Lyric’s face. It was obvious he was interested in the chocolate beauty.

“
Trey, don’t you have work to do?”

He didn’t even bother to turn around.
“I am. I’m working on getting her number.”

Lyric
tried to act like she was annoyed, but it was obvious by the sparkle in her eyes, she enjoyed the attention.

Smiling, she sauntered over to the beige couch.
“I wanted you to see the colors for yourself before I start hanging the drapes.”

Reggie
gazed down at the yards of rich satin fabric in turquoise, chocolate and gold. It looked expensive… just like his wife.

“
It’s perfect.”

Her lips curled upward pleased at his comment
. The room had twelve-foot vaulted ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows. The furniture had already been delivered and was waiting to be positioned.

“
Let me show you what I have planned for your home office.” She signaled for him to follow the sway of her hips down the hall to the last room then he stepped inside. Quickly, his eyes swept the room. The accent wall had been painted a brilliant cinnamon. “I found a large, walnut desk that I would like to put over here and a round conference table right there.”

A grin twitched his mouth.
“You know what I like.”

Lyric
swung around, tsk-tsked, shaking her head at him as her sultry eyes locked onto his. “I know a lot. And I would be interested in learning a lot more,” she purred then threw herself into Reggie’s arms and kissed him hard on the mouth.

*  *  *

Berlin decided she was being ridiculous.

Reggie loved her.
She trusted her husband. The only woman he wanted was her and nothing meant more to him than her and that baby. At least that’s what Arianna had said this morning after she told her she was sick of watching her wallowing in self-pity, and complaining that her husband was having an affair. After the two had lunch at her favorite bistro in the Central West End, Berlin decided it was time to tell Reggie she had seen him outside the baby store with
that
woman
, and then give him a chance to explain. She was confident that there was a logical explanation.

She turned into the
Arbor Meadows subdivision feeling good about her decision. The important thing was communication. She had learned that a long time ago. There was nothing to do but talk even if she didn’t like what he had to say, although she had a feeling it had all been in her head.

She pulled onto Arbor Meadows Terrace and stared ahead at the house in awe. It was so beautiful she lost her breath every time she saw it. The house made a grand
impression and whoever had the luxury of buying it was going to be one lucky woman.

She
turned onto the circle driveway where several cars besides her husband’s work vehicle were parked. But it was the red Mercedes with personalized license plates that spelled CUTE that made her brow furrow with curiosity.

Berlin climbed out of her car,
leaving her purse on the seat, but hit the key locking the doors. She sauntered inside the house and the moment she saw the grand foyer, she gasped. So much work had been done since she had first visited the house two weeks ago. The colors were beautiful and definitely what she would have picked. Furniture had been delivered. She nodded in approval. A house that large needed furniture to showcase its space. She agreed with Reggie’s decision to have the house professionally staged before it was placed on the market for real estate showings.

“
Hello?” Berlin called out as she moved down the hallway toward the large family room. Trey practically jumped when he saw her.

“
Berlin, what are you doing here?”

“
Don’t act like I never come out and see what you all are doing,” she said as she glanced over at the beautiful draperies waiting to be hung. “These are gorgeous.” She caressed the rich fabric then turned her head in time to see Trey glancing over his shoulder nervously. “Where’s Reggie?” she asked.

He cleared his throat.
“Uh, I think he’s down the hall.”

Without another word, Berlin
moved in that direction, the heels of her boots clicking as she glanced inside one room after another, impressed with all of the work that had been done. When she reached the last door that was slightly open, she pushed it wider and what she saw caused her to scream.

Reggie was kissing a woman.

At the sound of her high-pitched cry, his head whipped around and he stared in horror.
This can’t be happening.
Her mouth dropped. Reggie had been kissing the same woman she had seen him with on the street in Clayton.

“
Babe, it’s—”

“
Save it!” Berlin cried dismissively. “This is the same bitch I saw you with at the Mexican restaurant.” Quickly, Berlin spun on her heels and hurried down the hall despite Reggie calling after her.

Dereon appeared at the top of the grand staircase and Trey was standing at the end of the hall.
“What happened?” Dereon asked.

“
Move!” she cried as she pushed passed Trey and headed for the door.

“
Berlin, wait!” Reggie called and he reached Berlin just before she could escape out into the cold. He grabbed her arm and she immediately shrugged it off.

“
Let go of me!” she yelled.

“
Berlin, babe, let me explain.” There was an edge of desperation to his voice.

She glared at him
in outraged disbelief. “Explain, what? Why you were kissing another woman?” she accused. “Sure, I can’t wait to hear that one,” she added sarcastically and planted a fist at her waist.

“
Kissing?” Trey repeated skeptically then laughed abruptly. “Yo dude, you were kissing my future wife?”

“
Shut the hell up!” Reggie barked then turned to his wife. “It’s not what you think,” he assured her.

“
What do I think?” she asked impatiently.

“
She kissed me,” he said urgently.

Berlin
rolled her eyes. “
Whatever
. Don’t try to insult my intelligence! It didn’t at all look like you were
resisting
.”

“
Boo, I’m serious.”

She scowled darkly.
“Reggie. Leave me the hell alone!” She then gave him a hard shove and practically ran out the room.

He hurried after her.
“Berlin, you need to listen to me! I’m not lying.”

Without breaking stride, she glanced over a shoulder.
“I don’t know what to believe. All I know is I gotta get away from here!” Her fingers were shaking a bit as she fumbled with the lock and doorknob. A few moments later she stepped outside into the cold.

“Wait
!” Reggie jammed a shoulder in the closing gap and burst outside. “Berlin, you don’t need to be getting yourself all upset.”

Berlin squeezed her eyes tight, allowing the tears to roll down her cheeks.
“Then please, just…” her voice cracked while she reached inside her coat pocket for her keys. “…just leave me alone.”

Reggie
stepped back and watched as his wife pulled out the driveway.

Damn, now how the hell did that happen? He dragged a frustrated hand down his face. He could be so stupid sometime
s. For the past two weeks, he noticed the way Lyric had flirted with him and the way her arm would brush against him whenever the opportunity arose, but he just thought it was no big deal. But when she had leaped into his arms and kissed him, he had been so caught off guard, he had no idea what had hit him until he spotted Berlin standing there watching him.

Damn
.

Reggie dragged a frustrated hand down his face.
He should have just been honest with his wife in the first place about the money and the house. If so, none of this would have happened. Shivering, he realized he was standing out in the cold without a jacket and stormed back inside.

“
What the hell just happened?” Dereon asked as he was coming down the stairs.

Reggie
walked over to the closet, grabbed his jacket and keys. “I’m getting ready to go find my wife.” He looked up to see Lyric sauntering around the corner, looking guilt-stricken. He glared at her, a muscle throbbing at his jaw.

“
I’m so s-sorry,” she stumbled. “I just thought…”

“
Save it. You’re fired! Trey, do me a favor and make sure she gets the hell outta my house!” With that Reggie hurried out to his truck. He needed to find a way to get Berlin to listen. A task that wasn’t going to be easy.

*  *  *

Arianna came around and took a seat beside her on the bed.

“
He’s asking about you.”

Berlin
rolled over onto her side too angry to look at her. “Too bad.”

A
fter she had stormed out of the Arbor Meadows house, Berlin had checked into a hotel, the last place Reggie was going to look for her, or so she had thought. She needed time to think and the last thing she wanted was to hear his lies. She knew what she saw. The image was embedded in her brain, and nothing was going to change that except for time.

He
’d been keeping something from you.

She had felt it in her bones and every time she asked him how his day was
, Reggie’s eyes had always seemed to shift to the floor like he didn’t dare look her way.

“
He said it was a big misunderstanding,” she heard Arianna say. “She was some interior designer he’d hired to get the house ready.”

“
Well, at least that explains the beautiful décor,” Berlin replied with a rude snort. “But what the hell does that have to do with them kissing?”

“
Reggie claims she kissed him. He had no idea.”

“
Yeah, right,” she said flatly.
Tell me another lie.
Reggie had been behaving suspicious for weeks. Sneaking around, and claiming to have been working on the house at all hours of the night. Now she knew why. Her husband had been having an affair. Berlin sat up on the bed, rubbing a hand across her pregnant belly. “I don’t want to hear anything he has to say!”

Her best friend looked skeptical.
“Sweetie, think about that baby. You can’t be getting all upset.”

“
I’m not, which is why I moved into this hotel. If I’m around him there’s no telling what I might do to him.”

She was quiet and Berlin was sure Arianna wasn’t a hundred percent sure she agreed with her decision but as her best friend she was going to support it regardless.

“You can’t hide here forever.”

“
Maybe,” Berlin mumbled although she knew she was being ridiculous.

“
There’s no maybe. You’re having a baby!
Reggie’s
baby.”

“
Don’t remind me.” She squeezed her eyes shut trying to block out the scene that still played before her eyes.

Frustrated, Berlin
rose and headed into the bathroom when she heard a heavy knock at the door.

*  *  *

Reggie double parked his Escalade then climbed out and hurried inside the hotel. He moved passed the front desk with determined steps. There was no point in stopping. He already knew where he was going. He was a man on a mission—to bring his wife home.

Reggie rounded the corner and rushed up the stairs.
According to Arianna, Berlin was only two floors up.

As he moved down the hall, he tried to think
about what he was going to say. He didn’t have a clue what, except the truth. He just hoped it was good enough.

He dragged
a hand down his face. Ignoring the signs and allowing Lyric to get that close to him had been a costly mistake. He should have known. He knew what flirting was and yet he had been so determined to get the house ready he had ignored the warning signs. And as a result, Lyric had caught him off guard. Unfortunately, before he had a chance to reject her advances, his wife had walked in and caught Lyric kissing him. As Reggie moved down the hallway, he could still see the shock and hurt on Berlin’s face. He would do anything to take that pain away.