The Real Thing. Brenda Jackson

remember but would pretend that he did.

      A huge smiled appeared on the man’s face as he accepted Adrian’s handshake. “Oh, yes, of course. I remember now. And this is my wife Kathy,” he said, introducing the woman with him.

      Adrian shook her hand. He then turned to Trinity and smiled. “And this is a very special friend,” he said. “Roger and Kathy, I’d like you to meet Dr. Trinity Matthews.”

      Trinity couldn’t help wondering what was going on in that mind of Adrian’s. She soon found out when he said, “Trinity, I’d like you to meet Roger and Kathy Belvedere.”

      Trinity forced herself not to blink in surprise as she shook the couple’s hands. “Nice to meet you.”

      “Likewise,” Roger said, smiling. “And where do you practice, doctor? I’m familiar with a number of hospitals in the city. In fact,” he said, chuckling and then bragging, “my family is building a wing at Denver Memorial.”

      “That’s where I work. I’m in pediatrics, so I’m familiar with the wing under construction. It’s much needed and will be nice when it’s finished,” Trinity said.

      Roger’s smile widened. “Thanks. If you work at Denver Memorial then you must know my brother Casey. He’s a surgeon there. I’m sure you’ve heard of Dr. Casey Belvedere.”

      Trinity fought to keep a straight face. “Yes, I know Dr. Belvedere.”

      “Then I must mention to him that Kathy and I ran into the two of you.”

      “Yes, you do that,” Adrian said, smiling.

      After the couple walked off, the waiter approached with their beers. Trinity looked over at Adrian. “You knew he was going to be here tonight, didn’t you?”

      He looked at her. “Yes. And there’s no doubt in my mind he’ll mention seeing us to his brother.”

      Trinity nodded as she took a sip of her beer. Tonight was just another strategic move in Adrian’s game plan. Why was she surprised...and sort of disappointed?

      At that moment someone on a speaker announced that seating for the next show would start in fifteen minutes. As they finished their beers, she decided that regardless of the reason Adrian had brought her here, tonight she intended to enjoy herself.

      Four

      As he’d planned, after the show Adrian took Trinity to Andrew’s, a place known in Denver for having the best desserts. While enjoying strawberry cheesecake topped with vanilla ice cream, Adrian decided he liked hearing the sound of Trinity’s voice.

      She kept the conversation interesting by telling him about her family. Her father owned a medical practice and her mother worked as his nurse. Her two older brothers were doctors, as well, living in Bunnell.

      She also talked about her college days and how she’d wanted to stick close to home, which was why she’d attended the local community college in Bunnell for two years before moving to Gainesville to attend the University of Florida. Although it was a college town, the city of Gainesville provided a small-town atmosphere. She’d enjoyed living there so much that she’d remained there for medical school.

      She also told him how she preferred a small town to a big one, how she found Denver much too large and how she looked forward to finishing up her residency and moving back to Bunnell.

      He leaned back in his chair after cleaning his plate, admitting the cake and ice cream had been delicious. “Aw, come on,” he joked to Trinity. “Why don’t you just come clean and admit that the real reason you want to hightail it back is because you have a guy waiting there for you.”

      She made a face. The way she scrunched her nose and pouted her lips was utterly cute. “That is totally not true...especially after what Derrick did to Tara. The last thing I’d have is a boyfriend that I believed would wait for me.”

      He had heard all about the Tara fiasco from one of his cousins, although he couldn’t remember which one. He couldn’t believe any man in his right mind would run off and leave someone as gorgeous as Tara Matthews Westmoreland standing in the middle of some church. What a fool.

      “What happened to Tara has made you resentful and distrustful of giving your heart to a hometown guy?”

      She shrugged her shoulders and unconsciously licked whipped cream off her fork. In an instant his stomach tightened. Sexual hunger stirred to life in his groin. He picked up his glass of water and almost drained it in one gulp.

      “Worse than that. It taught me not to truly give my heart to any man, hometown or otherwise.”

      He studied her, seeing the seriousness behind the beautiful pair of eyes staring back at him. “But things worked out fine for Tara in the end, didn’t they? She met Thorn.”

      He saw the slow smile replace her frown. “Yes, she did, and I’m glad. He’s made her happy.”

      Adrian nodded. “So there are happy endings sometimes.”

      She finished off the last of her cake before saying, “Yes, sometimes, but not often enough for me to take a chance.”

      “So you don’t ever intend to fall in love?”

      “Not if I can help it. I told you what I want.”

      He nodded again. “To return to Bunnell and work alongside your father and brothers in their medical business.”

      “Yes.”

      He took another sip of his water when she moistened the top of her lip with the tip of her tongue. “What about your happiness?” he asked her, shifting slightly in his chair.

      She lifted a brow. “My happiness?”

      “Yes. Don’t you want to have someone to grow old with?”

      She turned the tables when she asked, “Don’t you?”

      He thought about the question. “I intend to date and enjoy life for as long as I can. I’m aware at some point I’ll need to settle down, marry and have children, but at the moment there’re enough Westmorelands handling that without me. It seemed every time I came home for spring break, I would have a wedding to attend or a new niece, nephew or second cousin being born.”

      “Speaking of cousins...mainly yours,” she said as if to clarify. “I’ve heard the story of how the Denver Westmorelands connected with the Atlanta-based Westmorelands, but what about these other cousins that might be out there?”

      He knew she was referring to the ongoing investigation by Megan’s husband, Rico, who was a private investigator. “It seems my great-grandfather Raphel Westmoreland was involved with four women before marrying my great-grandmother Gemma. Three of the women have now been accounted for. It seemed none were his wives, although there’s still one more to investigate for clarification.”

      He paused and then said, “Rico and Megan found out that one of the women, by the name of Clarice, had a baby by Raphel that he didn’t know about. She died in a train derailment but not before she gave the child to another woman—a woman who’d lost her child and husband. A woman with the last name of Outlaw.”

      He could tell by the light in Trinity’s eyes that she found what he’d told her fascinating. He understood. He was convinced that if there were any more Westmoreland kin out there, Rico would find them.

      Adrian glanced at his watch. “It’s still early yet. Is there anything else you want to do before I take you home?”

      She glanced at her own watch. “Early? It’s almost midnight.”

      He smiled. “Is it past your bedtime?”

      “No.”

      “Then plan to enjoy the night. And I’ve got just the place.”

      “Where?”

      “Come