Rivals in Paradise. Gwyneth Bolton

Leonard to get the job, and he certainly wasn’t going to allow Leonard to ride his coattails to a promotion. Leonard telling him about the position was not equivalent to his hard work and preparation giving him the experience and tools he needed to get hired into the position. He didn’t like at all what Leonard was insinuating.

      But rather than spoil the celebratory mood, Chase just made a mental note to watch Leonard.

      “It’ll be great, man. Just like old times when we ran the student government at FAMU,” Leonard added.

      Chase frowned. “I’m looking forward to the new job and developing my strengths in other areas. The change will be nice, and it will keep me sharp, help me keep my edge.”

      “There aren’t many men sharper than you, Yearwood, that’s for sure. Aside from that unfortunate election for president of the student government back at FAMU, you’ve pretty much accomplished everything you ever went after.” Leonard chuckled.

      Chase felt the veins in his neck pulse just a little as he arched his left eyebrow.

      Leonard laughed. “Hey, we all have to lose sometimes. You’d been on top all through undergrad. And you’re making big moves all throughout the business world now. Who cares about something as insignificant as the student government race from our undergraduate days? Although…” Leonard opened his mouth and closed it.

      Chase’s nostrils flared. Now he knew Leonard was trying to start something with him. Everyone who knew him back in college and still had the privilege of being in his inner circle of associates knew he did not talk about the student government association election that took place at the end of his junior year.

      Ever.

      It wasn’t just that he had lost the election.

      It was so much more than that.

      So. Much. More.

      It was personal, very personal. And he didn’t like anyone bringing it up.

      Rather than tell off an old friend he was now going to have to work with, Chase opted to change the subject. “So, Leonard, what can you tell me about Mainstay and the day-to-day work environment?”

      “Oh, I’m sure you’ll find it interesting. In fact, I’m betting you’ll find it more than interesting.” Leonard took a swig of his beer. “With the two of us there now, having each other’s back, it’ll be a lot like old times. A lot like old times…”

      “Our college days are over. We’re grown men now. Those days are long behind us.” Chase heard the slight edge in his own voice and wondered yet again if he was doing the wrong thing by joining a company where his old friend was also employed. Corporate politics could be complicated enough without bringing in the extra drama or building alliances before he even got a chance to learn the lay of the land.

      Friend or no friend, Chase wasn’t about to let Leonard pull him into any mess. “Well, I’m a quick study. I’m sure I’ll be able to assess the situation once I start in two weeks.”

      “Must be nice to be able to take a vacation,” Leonard said with a smirk.

      Chase paused because he thought he detected a slight shade of snide and a small dose of snark in Leonard’s voice.

      “I haven’t taken a proper vacation in so many years I almost don’t remember what a vacation is, and I haven’t been home to Dahinda for a visit in so long my mother has threatened on numerous occasions to disown me and find herself another son. I think two weeks on my home island is just what I need before starting a new job with a whole new set of demands.”

      Leonard rolled his eyes. “I’ll hold down the fort until you come on board. Once you’re there, I’ll fill you in on all the dirt and all the stuff you really need to know. But for now, it’s good to be working with you again, my friend.”

      Chase simply nodded and hoped that he wouldn’t walk into Mainstay in two weeks and find that he had made a huge mistake by taking this job offer instead of one of the countless others that had been offered to him when the business world got wind that The Wolf was ready to make a move.

      Cicely placed the pillow over her head and tried to block out the noise. Someone kept playing the same six bars of a song over and over again. It took her a couple of minutes to realize that it was her cell phone’s ring tone that was disturbing her sleep.

      She was at the Wyndham Hotel by Miami International Airport because that was the only hotel with a vacancy. The upcoming holiday and some teachers’ convention had the other local hotels filled to capacity.

      The singer’s voice and the song that used to be one of her favorites blared out yet again, and Cicely grabbed the phone. If it was that cheating, no-good Isaac, she was going to lose the little bit of religion she had and give him the verbal blasting he so richly deserved.

      “What?” Cicely snapped.

      “Well, hello and good morning to you, too, Cee Cee.”

      Cicely sat up at the sound of her older sister’s voice. This was the woman who had literally put her life on hold and made sacrifice after sacrifice so that Cicely could have all of the extras in life. Six years older than Cicely, Latonya had worked while she was in college to help keep a roof over their heads. Then she had literally covered everything that Cicely’s scholarships didn’t so that Cicely could attend FAMU and not have to worry about working. And when she had married a very rich and successful businessman, he had stepped in and helped take care of his new wife’s little sister and grandmother to take the load off of his wife.

      Although Latonya Stevens-Harrington would be the last person to expect any kind of gratitude for the things she’d done to help Cicely through the years, Cicely felt the weight of her indebtedness to her sister. She would never be able to repay Latonya for all that she had done for her.

      However…all that indebtedness didn’t take away from the fact that it was super early on a Saturday morning, and all Cicely wanted to do was sleep.

      “Morning, Peanut.” She called her older sister by her family nickname still, and she was probably the only person in the world that Latonya allowed to do so. “Can I call you back at a decent hour, say noon or so?” Cicely flopped back down on the bed and curled into the fluffy down comforter.

      “Sorry, no can do. Gran and I have been calling you all morning. We were worried sick about you. Gran said she called your condo numerous times. I finally found Isaac’s number and called him. He wasn’t answering. Then I called his cell after I didn’t get an answer on your cell. He said you broke up with him. He sounds horrible, by the way, really distraught. But you must have a good reason for breaking up with him, and I would never tell you to second-guess yourself. But do you want to talk about it at all? What happened? Why did the two of you break up so suddenly?”

      “She should have left that guy a long time ago! I never liked him. She should let me introduce her to someone worthy.” Carlton Harrington III’s big booming voice could be heard in the background. He must have been sitting, or, knowing the two of them, lying down in the bed right next to Latonya.

      Latonya shushed him.

      Cicely stretched out her legs and curled them back up. “Tell my darling brother-in-law that, although I love him to death, the I-love-me-some-alpha-jerk-reformed-playboys gene skipped me. I can’t fathom having anything in common with anyone he would introduce me to.”

      Latonya echoed Cicely word for word, and Carlton could be heard gruffly mumbling that his wife didn’t have any complaints. There was more giggling from Latonya, and Cicely didn’t even want to think what Carlton must have been doing to her sister to warrant all those girlish giggles. It was TMI too dang early in the morning.

      “That’s cold, Cee Cee. I thought we were better than that,” Carlton joked in the background.

      “Smooches.” Cicely made a kissing sound. “Now, if that’s all, I really—”

      “Oh, no, that’s not all. Gran and I have been