wear well.”
He frowned back. “More than one day, that’s for sure. Apparently, she had to—”
“Who’s she?”
“Noelle Brown, the owner.”
Camille stared into his eyes for several seconds before her face spread into a wide grin. “Well, well…Tell me about this Ms. Brown.”
“Before you start cackling in glee, that’s Mrs. Brown.”
The smile disappeared. “Married? Humph, that’s too bad. I haven’t seen that look in your eyes at the mention of a woman in years.”
“Yeah, well, it won’t be that woman. You know how I feel about sharing.”
“Unfortunately,” she muttered, toying with the pleats of her skirt, “half of Philadelphia knows how you feel about sharing.”
Derrick decided to let the comment slide instead of getting into another argument about his lack of discretion last year, when he heard his then-girlfriend, Mira, was out club-hopping with another man. The media had made sure Derrick was aware of the situation and then sat back with their cameras ready and let Derrick be…Derrick.
Looking back, he would be the first to admit he did not handle it well, but controlling his emotions had never been easy. All he could remember was the pure rage he felt walking into the nightclub and seeing his woman pressed against another man on the dance floor. Later, Derrick would discover the man was Mira’s old college friend Byron, who also happened to be a happily committed gay man. By the time he discovered these facts, it would be too late to straighten things out with Mira. Because soon after, she would betray him on the front page of the Herald with the revealing exposé titled “The Man Behind The Myth.”
“Mira wasn’t the one anyway,” he muttered, feeling some need to defend his actions.
Camille twisted her mouth in a silent expression that spoke volumes.
“Did you see the plans for the Marquardt Building?” he asked, seeking to end the discussion regarding his troubled love life.
“Yes. When are you presenting them?”
“Next week.” He watched as she rubbed her right knee. “Are you okay?”
She smiled sadly. “Yes, just the cost of living too long.”
Derrick looked into the wise old eyes of the woman who’d come to mean so much to him and once again wondered where he would’ve ended up had it not been for the intervention of Camille Massey.
“Where would I have ended up if you hadn’t intervened in my life?”
Camille snorted. “You would’ve been just fine. You’re tough as nails, Derrick Brandt. You always have been.”
He huffed. “Who are you kidding? We both know I was a statistic just waiting to happen.” His eyes took on a faraway look as he remembered his troubled childhood. “If you hadn’t given me a job that day I showed up here.” He shook his head.
“Well, I did.” She rubbed her knee once more before struggling to her feet. Derrick was instantly at her elbow, gently steadying her. “And I have never regretted the decision.” She looked directly into his eyes, and Derrick couldn’t help feeling a sense of pride. She’d believed in him, and he’d gone out of his way to make sure she never stopped.
“Just keep me up to date on how things are progressing,” she said, heading to the door.
“All right, but not much should change between now and when we present the plans next week—”
She stopped and made a dismissive gesture with her hand. “Boy, I don’t care about the Marquardt Building! I’m sure you’ve got that completely under control. It’s your personal life that’s a mess.”
Derrick leaned against his desk and folded his arms across his chest. “Why this sudden interest in my love life?”
Derrick watched the brief sadness cross her face, but she quickly covered it with a smile. “Somebody needs to start taking a vested interest in it.” She started walking again. “Lord knows we can’t depend on your judgment.”
As Derrick watched her leave the room, he wondered if Camille had any idea just how close to the truth she really was.
Chapter 3
Together the couple leaned forward and gustily blew out the forty white candles on the beautifully decorated cake.
“Happy anniversary!” The room erupted in applause and well wishes for the happy couple standing at the head of the long, formal dining table.
As Kimber, Noelle’s older sister, stepped forward with a cake knife to begin dividing up the dessert, the crowd of family and friends gathered closer to offer hugs and congratulations to Gilbert and Claudia Brown. They were celebrating their fortieth wedding anniversary.
Noelle could not hide the wistful expression on her face as she watched her parents gaze at each other as if they were the only two people in the world. They had always looked at each other like that, and Noelle knew they always would.
She felt a tug on her pant leg. “Auntie.”
Noelle glanced down at her niece Lea, who was trying to get her attention.
The toddler grabbed the crotch of her pants. “Pee-pee, Auntie, pee-pee.”
Noelle quickly scanned the room and found her sister-in-law, Ann, standing with a group of family friends on the other side of the large dining room. Swooping the two-year-old up in her arms, Noelle quickly maneuvered her way through the crowd in her parents’ house.
“Hurry, Auntie, got go bad,” Lea whined, then promptly stuck the two middle fingers of her right hand in her mouth and began to suck on them like a pacifier.
Noelle quickened her pace. She knew from experience that once the finger sucking began, the clock was ticking. She elbowed and excused her way out of the crowded room and took the stairs to the second level, down the hall to the bathroom.
Once inside, she quickly slid Lea’s elastic waist pants down her short legs, along with the Huggies training diaper, and plopped the little girl on the toilet seat and waited.
After a moment, there was a small tinkling noise and then nothing.
Lea’s eyes lit up. “Auntie! Good girl!”
Noelle felt her heart swell with love and pride. “Yes, sweetheart, you are such a good girl.” She helped Lea re-dress and then hugged her close. “Look what you did. You’re becoming a big girl.”
Noelle lifted the small body up to the sink for hand washing, which was Lea’s favorite part of the process. She smeared soap on her hands over and over, playing in the water.
Just as Noelle exited, her brother, Raymond, came charging over into the bathroom carrying a little girl who was an exact replica of Lea.
When Ray and Noelle’s eyes met, the pair burst into laughter.
