Read Online Beale Street Blues by Angela Kay Austin - Free Book Online Page B

expression.
    If they sat in the theatre any longer, eventually, someone would ask them to help clean or leave. He didn't want to let her go, not yet. "Darling, let's go next door for coffee or dessert?"
    "I don't know. Do you think we should? With everything going on, I mean. Would that make sense?"
    "Probably not. You're right. But, it's just coffee." He reaffirmed, hoping she'd give in.
    "Only coffee." She smiled at him.
    "I promise. No games or tricks."
    "Just two co-workers having dessert." She paused. "Nothing's ever that simple. I'm sorry, Jaxon. Good night." She turned and walked away.
    As he watched her, he knew she was right, but he also knew he wouldn't be able to let her go. The pain that stole his breath begged him to run after her and kiss her. Hold her. Make her listen to him, but the rational side of his brain told him not to move.
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER EIGHT
     
     
    B arbara parallel parked at the end of the block between a car with the hood up and another one missing tires and just sat there and watched. Darling pulled into the driveway, hopped out of her car and popped the trunk. Who could she know in this neighborhood? As Barbara checked the clock on her dashboard, she clicked her door locks one more time. This part of Memphis was nothing like where she lived. There weren't nearly enough street lights, and if anyone set up a make-shift mechanic shop on her street she was sure they would receive a citation from code enforcement and be told to move it out, quick.
    Darling grabbed some bags out of the trunk of her car, then headed toward the front door of the brick house and unlocked it. What? Is this where she lived? Another car pulled in behind Darling's, and Barbara watched as Darling held the door for the older couple. After filling their arms with as many bags as they could carry, they ambled up to the front door overloaded.
    Barbara sat until the stare of the middle-aged man working under the hood of the car in front of her and the sunset made her uncomfortable. She decided sitting there made her too conspicuous and she should leave before someone asked any questions. But a hasty exit flew out the window when she turned the corner only to be caught by the red flashing lights and electronic gates halting traffic for the passing train. Her Range Rover didn't blend with the line of cars waiting on the train to pass.
    Can't spy on someone like that. Next time, I'll get a rental car.
    The drive to her part of town took forever even without traffic. As soon as she walked into her condo, she stripped her clothes off, tossed them onto a pile of laundry and lay naked across her bed.
    Now what?
    At the office, Darling dressed in designer clothes and flaunted stylish handbags as if she lived in Germantown somewhere. Instead, it turned out she lived with some old couple, probably her parents, in a neighborhood definitely not on the scale of Germantown. Why? What was she doing with her money?
    I should've followed her weeks ago! Her entire body tingled with anticipation at her discovery. This was the best thing that had happened to her in a while. There was no way Jaxon Slater would be interested in a woman that had nothing to offer him. Nothing to add to his family's fortune. Why else would the man still be single? On the other hand, Barbara may not have come from millionaires, but her parents had enough money to pay for her to attend private school and make sure she graduated from one of the best liberal arts colleges in Memphis.
    There may not have been a coming out party in her background, but she would fit into his world a hell of a lot better than Darling. She closed her eyes and replayed the last few weeks, his face a constant image in her mind. Jaxon Slater was attractive and rich, not like that bastard Rodney, but she could barely get a moment of his time. He preferred she follow protocol and speak with Darling, who would then speak with Rodney, who would then