Stefan (The Marquette Family Book Three) (4 page)

She wondered who he meant when he said someone close to him was a chef. Why didn’t he just say who? Did that mean she was a girlfriend? Sure, he said they would see only each other, but what did it mean in the grand scheme of things? They were secret lovers on his part. That meant he could have anyone in his bed back home.

Jealousy wasn’t an emotion Talicia liked to deal with, so she jammed it down and turned her thoughts to other things. The date was drawing closer for when her other partner would show up out of nowhere. She had to be mentally prepared. Come to think of it, Kevin had never come around when Stefan was there, which was good. She didn’t want the two to meet. There would be too much drama.

“Here we go,” Stefan announced, setting dishes on the table. “I think I overdid it since Shada taught us based on all the staff. Just give me a figure, and I’ll leave the money for groceries.”

“Oh, hell,” Tyjon groaned and grabbed a slice of bacon. “He did not say that.”

Talicia narrowed her eyes at him. “What, you think I can’t afford food?”

Stefan looked at her in confusion. “Clearly that’s not the case since you’re a business owner, and I’ve seen the club packed with customers.”

Her anger fizzled as fast as it surfaced. “Oh.”

He winked. “What I meant was I wasted your food, and it’s only fair I replace it. This meal won’t taste as good as leftovers.”

“Tyjon’s the only one that cooks around here, and it’s just me and him. He’s hardly ever home, so trust me those leftovers will come in handy when I get hungry tonight. They don’t have to be gourmet.”

His gaze slid over her figure, and she saw the fire ignite there. Talicia rolled her eyes.
Don’t even think about it. I’m sore.

He appeared to read her mind and sighed. “I’ll get Jerome.”

They scattered about the living room eating. Talicia noticed Jerome ate enough for three people, and Stefan wasn’t a picky eater either. Well, they were some big men. They needed a lot to keep those muscles going. Still, Stefan hadn’t exaggerated about cooking a lot. She found herself wondering again about who Shada was and about the restaurant business. Was it fun? Was it fast-paced and exciting like her club?

Stefan followed her into the kitchen to do the dishes. She rinsed while he piled dishes into the washer. “You seem comfortable in this small apartment. I imagine a billionaire lives in a mansion with servants.”

“Are you interested in knowing more about my life?”

She sighed. “You always ask me a question when I ask you anything. Never mind.”

He straightened and drew her into his arms. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

Talicia hesitated. If she asked him, there would need to be an equal exchange of information. As usual, she let the subject drop. “Are you staying another night?”

“I might be persuaded.” He kissed her, and she nuzzled closer to him.

“Stay.”

“For you, I will.”

Chapter Four

Stefan picked up the report for the fourth time. The numbers swam before his eyes, and he rubbed them. He set the sheet down and stretched, then picked it up again. Sure, he understood for the most part what he was seeing. He wasn’t a total idiot, and he’d gotten decent grades while in school. The problem was his interest. Why the hell did Creed have to force these stupid reports onto them every month, expecting them to go over the figures? Then to make matters more of a snorefest, his oldest brother wanted to discuss profits and losses.

Creed knew what type of man Stefan was. He didn’t consider himself to be irresponsible exactly, but he wasn’t the stuffed shirt type to remain stuck behind a desk either. The best idea he and his other brother Damen had was to purchase their restaurant, Marquette’s. Stefan loved it. He enjoyed spending almost every night serving their guests. On the special nights when he got to replace the regular entertainment, he thrilled in it. Music was his heart and soul.

He grinned thinking about how he’d once wanted to pursue a full-time career as a musician. Creed and Damen never discouraged him, but he was pretty sure they hated the idea. Their father had been a total waste of talent, and had neglected them and their mother as they grew up. His brothers didn’t want him to fall to the same fate. Stefan didn’t believe he would, but his life had taken a different turn anyway, and he didn’t regret it.

Voices outside his office door caught his attention, and Stefan welcomed the interruption. He set the papers aside and walked over about to open the door. His bodyguard’s words gave him pause.

“Why are you asking me about Stefan?” Jerome said.

“Not so loud, damn it,” Pete snapped. “Is he in there?”

“No.”

Jerome lied because he already knew where Stefan was. He always knew. Stefan found it annoying his bodyguard could lie with a straight face. Yet, it worked in this situation. As far as Stefan knew Jerome didn’t lie to him. Jerome was too blunt for that, but that’s the way he liked the man. Stefan might be impulsive, but what kept him from ruining himself and his brothers was the fact that he was an absolute excellent judge of character. He could read a person with just a bit of conversation.

“Well?” Pete pushed. “I have to tell Mr. Creed something. Where’s your boss been disappearing to the last few months?”

“I know you guys have all gotten close, and maybe you talk,” Jerome said. “That’s not me.”

“What are you talking about? I would never betray Mr. Creed.”

“Yeah, well why do you expect me to tell you Stefan’s business?”

“I just thought maybe it wasn’t that much of a secret and maybe Mr. Creed hesitated to ask him directly.”

Jerome laughed. “Now, I know you lying, bruh. Mr. Creed’s not scared of anybody, and he thinks he’s the biggest dog in this family. He would have just asked Stefan where he was going.”

Stefan had to suppress his own laugh at that point. Just as he thought, Jerome was always blunt and direct. At his words, Pete made a sound of irritation, but he was stubborn. He refused to accept that Jerome wouldn’t give up any information. After all, their bodyguards were trained to deal with any situation, including being pressed for intel on Stefan and his brothers. One of the other guards questioning him was a walk in the park.

Stefan thought of how he had slipped away from Jerome that one night to go to the club he had found out about. He should have trusted Jerome, but Jerome had ways of locating him, a simple way like tracking his phone. That knowledge still embarrassed Stefan when he thought back to it. Still, nothing had happened to him, and Jerome had stood off stage watching while he performed an audition.

That same night, Stefan met Talicia. For a moment, he forgot about the conversation going on outside his office door to recall the night he met her.

“Talicia Clay.” She stuck out her hand, all business and serious. “You’ll be the third to go on. Just give the band your music. They know practically every song in existence, and if not, they can wing it.”

Her strong grip had surprised him in a woman so tiny. She was built small and petite. He’d had to look down at her, but the way she raised her chin, almost in defiance and with the spark of anger in her eyes, he’d been intrigued.

“Stefan,” he’d responded and held onto her hand. Her eyes widened a touch, and then he saw the anger flare hotter. She tried to crush his fingers to let him know she wouldn’t go for any tricks. Stefan had only smiled. In the end, she jerked away. The men around her gave him dirty looks, but he ignored them. Talicia didn’t appear to be overly aware of them either, as if she didn’t see that they cared about her.

While Stefan waited for his turn to audition, he watched Talicia. Dressed in a staid business suit that hardly bumped out at the chest area, she didn’t appear very feminine. In fact, he was sure she didn’t wear a stitch of makeup. Her hair was styled with short tight curls, but it was the big brown eyes that drew his gaze so often.

Stefan saw something in Talicia he didn’t see often—a woman strong and hard on the outside but vulnerable on the inside. He had met plenty of women who had strong characters built by the hard knocks of life. Talicia wasn’t one of those. He would stake his life on it. She had built herself up on the outside to give the imitation of being something she wasn’t.

“Stefan, are you ready?” Talicia had called, and moved in front of him. He stared at her. She’d removed her jacket, and now he got a better view of her body. Thin but toned arms and small breasts that would feel nice under his palms. His cock stirred seeing her up close, but he cleared his throat and straightened in his chair. Good thing the club was dark. He didn’t want to offend her.

“I’m ready,” he said and rose to his feet. Damn, she was so tiny he could probably lift her with one arm. He’d like to try.

She glared at him, mouth tight, as if she read his mind. “Are you sure you want to do this? You’re not exactly the type to like or play our kind of music.”

“All music is my type,” he assured her. “If you have a problem with me being white…”

“Don’t be stupid.” She gestured. “Look around, we got a few. Sure, they grew up around black people and think a tan will fool somebody, but whatever. To each his own.”

He chuckled. “I’m happy with who I am. I just want to play and sing. If I can entertain some, all the better.”

She folded her arms over her chest, drawing her blouse tighter to those lovely breasts. “You have to impress me. Nobody else.”

He’d leaned way down toward her beautiful upturned face, and just when she grew startled like he would kiss her, he shifted his aim to the side and whispered in her ear. “I’ll do whatever you want to please you.”

“Don’t even,” she growled, but Stefan had spun away and performed just for her. By the time the night was over, he had her under him, and the two of them made love all night.

Of course, Stefan knew his impulsive proposal the next morning was crazy. Even crazier was slipping away from Jerome again after he proposed to Talicia. However, it wasn’t the first time he’d jumped over the edge to see where it got him. Not marriage though. This was a new frontier, and even he admitted to himself he’d crossed all lines. That was one of the reasons he kept his marriage to Talicia a secret from his family.

Stefan sighed and came back to the present. He returned to his seat with the report as Jerome finished his conversation with Creed’s bodyguard and stepped into his office. “Stefan, did you hear?”

“Yes.” He saw no reason to lie. “I appreciate you keeping my secret.” Jerome knew Talicia was his lover but not his wife.

“That’s my job, and as far as I’m concerned it’s none of their business what you do. So what you’re Stefan Marquette. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have privacy.”

Stefan chuckled. “Thanks. No one’s harassing you, are they?”

Jerome rolled his shoulders. “Don’t worry about it. I got you, and these are some pretty big shoulders should anyone get stupid enough to challenge me.”

“I doubt that will happen.”

Stefan shook his head, amused. He hadn’t chosen Jerome for the color of his skin but for his skill. Yet, as an African American, Jerome fit into Talicia’s club a lot better than he did. Stefan liked the man a lot and considered him somewhat to be a friend. He’d encouraged Jerome to call him Stefan and drop the mister. All the other guards stuck to a more formal address to his brothers and their significant others. Stefan did make sure Jerome stuck with Ms. Talicia for his wife as he never wanted Talicia to feel less than what she was.

“I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be going over there,” Stefan said. “The gig might be ending soon.”

Jerome nodded and took the seat Stefan indicated. “I guess that’s how it goes. You’ll get another one, but this time don’t sneak off and leave me behind. You can trust me to have your back.”

“I know.” Stefan talked about the performance, but what he thought about was his marriage. In the beginning, he intended to annul their marriage. In fact, at the time, he couldn’t believe he stayed so single-minded to have gone through with it or that Talicia had been carried along to say I do.

Their wedding night, he’d made love to her, and it was then he realized the fever she had started. He couldn’t stop touching her, kissing her, listening to her. Even in the club, he watched how she ran the place, with precision Creed could be proud of. Yet, she was always tense and on guard. The only time she relaxed was when he had her in bed. Then he worked to make sure she experienced intense pleasure. Not to mention his own.

Visit after visit, he told himself they would break it off and just dissolve the marriage. Yet, he knew the time for annulment was past. Now they were looking at the only way to break the connection being through divorce.

No, his mind shouted. If he gave Talicia a divorce, she would end the affair. He wasn’t ready for that to happen. Therefore, no divorce. Period. Stefan knew she wanted him, and his desire for her hadn’t lessened one iota in almost a year. If anything it had grown, along with his feelings for her. He couldn’t say for sure if he loved her. They spent so little time in each other’s presence, and when they did, it was all about lovemaking.

Even now, thinking about her, he got a hard-on. He wished he could see her more often, but his schedule didn’t allow it, and neither did hers. They were from two different worlds, and he doubted the two would ever meet. She didn’t want to come to him, and he wasn’t sure his family would accept her without hurting her first. No, he refused to allow them the chance. Talicia was far more vulnerable than she believed or anyone around her knew.

Maybe I’m being selfish. Am I embarrassed over her?

He thought about Talicia and didn’t think so. She was intelligent and successful. For the most part, she ran the club on her own, handled the finances, the management, hiring, marketing, customer service, all the various parts he and his brothers shared. If anything, he admired what she had done. Aside from all that, she was so damn sexy he wanted to make love to her on a nightly basis.

Would it be so bad if he pushed to get her to come to him? To reveal her existence to his family? He and she could get to know each other, and maybe the sexual relationship could become something that resembled the beautiful couple that Damen and Heaven were and that Creed and Shada strove to be.

No, he didn’t want to be tied down, stuck in one place. Not that he desired multiple women. From the first night he met Talicia, he’d been faithful to her. The idea of a steady marriage like what his brothers enjoyed also smacked of staying put. He was known for dropping everything and flying off wherever he wanted, whenever the mood struck him. So far, he’d hung around New Orleans and the restaurant. He loved it, but that might change tomorrow.

With a wife and maybe later a baby, he would be looking at a very different life. He was thirty-one. There was plenty of time to go until he settled down—if he did. Stefan recognized his impulse to marry Talicia had been partially driven by seeing how nuts Creed was over Shada. Then he had stumbled upon a black woman, found her irresistible, and suggested marriage. Creed would kill him if he found out. His older brother was somewhat of a bully as well, so he might hurt Talicia. Not physically, but emotionally. No, they were better as they were now. If in a few months, she pushed for a divorce, he would allow it. For now, he would hold onto her and enjoy the limited time they shared.

“You there, boss?”

Jerome’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. “Yeah, I’m here. Listen, I’m probably going to go back again soon. I’ll rearrange my schedule. I’m also going to make it a longer visit. I might take Talicia shopping somewhere or on a trip.”

“I can make the arrangements if you don’t want to ask your secretary in New York.”

Stefan hesitated. He’d depended on Jerome to arrange trips when he wanted to keep Creed out of the loop of his actions. Their corporate secretaries didn’t have the loyalty of his bodyguard, not when it came to Creed. “No, not yet. I have to talk to her about it. I’ll give her a call first. I just wanted to give you a head’s up.”

“All right then. Just let me know when you’re ready.”

A knock sounded on the door, and Stefan called out for the person to enter. Jerome made himself scarce. Damen stuck his head around the door. “Just checking to see if you’ve fallen asleep yet.”