Sweet Silver Bells. Rochelle Alers

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СКАЧАТЬ I did. Thank you for asking.”

      Joseph stared boldly at the woman, who’d exchanged her jeans and sweater for a navy blue pantsuit and white silk blouse. A light covering of makeup enhanced her best features: eyes and mouth. His gaze lingered on Crystal’s flawless dark complexion. He took a quick glance at her hands. She wasn’t wearing a ring, but that still didn’t mean she wasn’t married or involved with someone.

      His interest in the woman occupying the neighboring penthouse was a reminder of how, for the past two years, his life had not been his own to control. He hadn’t found time to embark on another relationship since his breakup with Kiara, but now that he was stateside his days and nights were more predictable.

      “Are you expecting someone?” he asked Crystal.

      “No, I’m not. Why?”

      “I see several people waiting for tables, and if we sit together, it would free up one for them.”

      Crystal’s gaze shifted from Joseph’s deeply tanned face to the couples standing at the entrance. She was seated at a table for two while he sat at a table seating four. “You may sit with me.”

      As he moved over to sit opposite her, Crystal inhaled the subtle scent of his masculine cologne. It was if she were seeing Joseph for the first time. Last night she hadn’t realized he was so tall. She was five-nine in her bare feet, and estimated he had to be at least three or even four inches above the six-foot mark. He was casually dressed in relaxed jeans, black Timberland boots and a white button-down shirt, opened at the collar under a navy blue blazer.

      The hint of a smile softened her mouth. “I see you’re Greek.”

      Attractive lines fanned out around his large dark eyes when he smiled. “Alpha Phi Alpha,” he said proudly, glancing at his belt buckle with the Greek alphabet. “Are you also Greek?”

      Crystal nodded slowly. “Alpha Kappa Alpha.”

      Joseph smile grew wider. “Well, Miss AKA, where did you go to school?”

      “Howard. And you?”

      “Cornell.”

      Her eyebrows lifted. “So you’re an Ivy Leaguer. I’m impressed.” It wasn’t often she met many African-American men who’d attended Ivy League colleges. Most she knew had enrolled in historically black colleges. “Are you active?” she asked Joseph.

      He flashed a set of straight white teeth. “Active and financial.” Since his return to the States, Joseph had rejoined his local chapter. He planned to drive to West Palm Beach one weekend each month to attend chapter meetings.

      Crystal glanced at a spot over Joseph’s broad shoulder. She didn’t want him to think her rude for staring. Despite the stubble on his lean jaw, there was something about his features that made Joseph almost too pretty to be a man. “I’m financial but inactive. Unfortunately,” she admitted, “I don’t have the time to attend my chapter meetings.”

      “Where is your chapter?”

      “Miami.”

      Leaning back in his chair, he crossed his arms over his chest. “So you’re a Gator.”

      Crystal wasn’t able to discern from Joseph’s expression whether he was being derisive or complimentary. “Is there something wrong with being a Gator?” she asked defensively.

      “Hell no, because you’re looking at a fellow Gator. Palm Beach,” he said before she could ask.

      She laughed softly. “It looks as if we’re truly neighbors in every sense of the word.” Crystal paused, and then asked, “What are you doing in Charleston?”

      Joseph picked up the menu, studying the selections rather than looking at Crystal. He’d never been one to engage in what he deemed inane repartee in order to glean information from a woman, yet that was exactly what he was doing with Crystal.

      “I’m here on business.”

      “So am I,” Crystal concurred.

      He glanced up, meeting her direct stare. “It appears we have a lot in common. We’re both Greek, Floridians and we’re in Charleston on business.”

      “That’s three for three.”

      Joseph angled his head. “What about your marital status?”

      “What about it?” she asked, answering his question with one of her own.

      “Are you single?”

      “I’m single and unencumbered.”

      A beat passed. “Is that the same as not having any children?” Joseph asked

      “It is.”

      He went completely still. “That’s four for four.”

      “What else do you want to know about me, Joseph?”

      There was another pause before he asked, “How long do you plan to be here on business?”

      “I estimate a couple of months.”

      The slow smile that spread over his features did not reach his eyes. Joseph thought about the odds of meeting a woman, an incredibly beautiful woman who was staying in the same hotel as his, on the same floor and with whom he shared much in common. If he’d signed up with an online dating service, Crystal would’ve been the perfect candidate. He wasn’t looking for a relationship, but friendship—something he hadn’t had in a while.

      And for him it had never been about how many women he could sleep with, because there had been more than he could count or remember who were more than willing to become his dessert after he’d taken them to dinner. He didn’t know why, but Joseph always thought about his sister and the lengths he would go to if some man sought to take advantage of her. His mantra of protect a woman as if she were your sister was never that far from his mind, and he knew that was why he’d continued to stay in his past relationship longer than necessary.

      “Five for five,” Joseph drawled. He’d planned to live at the hotel for the next four months; the tea garden’s manager who was overseeing wanted to return to Nebraska with his wife, where she would give birth to their first child.

      Crystal smiled as she glanced at the menu. It appeared as if she had more in common with Joseph than she’d had with Brian. The man with whom she’d lived eschewed fraternities and sororities, claiming they were socialized cults. The subject always started an argument where they wouldn’t speak for days. It wasn’t their only disagreement, but it was one subject she refused to allow him to vilify. Her mother had been an AKA and her mother before her.

      Her stomach rumbled loudly and she hoped Joseph hadn’t heard it. She motioned to a waitress standing several feet away. “I’m ready to order now. I’ll have grits with soft scrambled eggs and one slice of buttered wheat toast.”

      The waitress scribbled on her pad. “Would you like coffee, tea or juice, ma’am?”

      Crystal closed the binder. “I’d like green tea and grapefruit juice.” Joseph СКАЧАТЬ