stepsister. âYes, he is.â
Eddie frowned and turned to face her sister. She waited for Zakira to elaborate.
âHe really is as sweet and thoughtful as he is gorgeous and sexy,â she clarified.
Eddie shrugged. âThat would appear to be true,â she agreed, lightly.
âSure seemed taken by you, girl,â Zakira teased.
Edwina smiled. âYou are imagining things.â
âHa! Iâm not imagining the way your eyes were glued to him.â
âZ! I donât believe you said that,â Edwina replied, outraged. âAnd anyway, wasnât it you who said I should forget about men for a while?â
Zakira waved her hand. âNot when it comes to Trekel Grisani. I canât believe I never considered putting you guys together before. You couldnât tear your eyes away from him and he couldnât stop looking at you. Why deny it? The man is gorgeous and built. Unlike most of his colleagues, heâs a good, honest lawyer, and he seemed very into you.â
Eddie sent Zakira an exasperated look. âAs if I donât have enough problems with men,â she sighed, raising her hands.
Zakira leaned across the table. âWhat problems, Eddie? Tree is a very nice guy. Heâs sweet, gorgeous and intelligent. You donât come across a combination like that every day.â
âIâm sure youâre right. But Z, maybe you havenât realized that I only date black men.â
Zakira appeared dumbfounded. Then, she realized what Eddie meant. âHoney, Tree is black.â
Edwina leaned back in her chair and balled her fist beneath her chin. âDid we just talk to the same man? Tall, gorgeousâ¦white?â
âEddie, he is black. His father is Italian, but his mother is definitely a black woman. He doesnât have her coloring, but look at his features and you can tell.â
Eddie shrugged, but still appeared uneasy.
âEdwina you canât deny that you were attracted to him.â
âMaybe I canât, but Iâm just not ready for another man right now. Any man,â she said, sounding as though she were trying to convince herself.
âHe told me to show you right in, Zakira,â Carrie Shephard said as she opened the door to her bossâs office.
Tree was on the phone when his assistant escorted Zakira inside. He waved to her and began wrapping up his call.
She walked around the impressive penthouse office located in a posh silver skyscraper in downtown Richmond. She had not visited in a while, but she was always amazed by the beauty of Treeâs home. Everything was dark and oversized to accommodate his size. Still, both the office and the living quarters held an unmistakable aura of style and authority. She was studying a wall decorated only with pictures of Tree and Malik. If Trekel Grisani couldnât put her fears to rest concerning her husband, she didnât know who could.
âHey, you.â Tree said, as he headed over to Zakira. He leaned down to give her a warm hug.
âHi,â Zakira sighed.
A small furrow formed between Treeâs sleek brows and he pulled away. âWhatâs the matter?â
She came right out with it. âTree, do you know whatâs going on with Malik?â
âWhatâsâ¦going on with him?â Tree replied, watching Zakira suspiciously.
âMmm-hmm. Heâs been acting so weird for the past few weeks. I think he might be sickâ¦Can you tell me anything?â
Tree managed to slip his mask in place before Zakira could see that he knew more than he was telling. He had warned Malik that Zakiraâs intuition was keen where her husband was concerned.
Zakira took a seat in front of Treeâs desk and pinned him with her large chocolate stare. âTree, I know Malik is your client, but Iâm asking you as his wifeâ¦as your friend. Iâd appreciate anything you could tell me.â
Tree reclined in his chair and stroked the