Kept Secrets (Secret, Love & Betrayal Novel Book 2) Read online

  Her father only said a few words to her through her entire stay. On one occasion, he came into Taylor’s room to tell her that the insurance company had handled the claim with the young woman and that her car was totaled. He said she could buy herself a new car once she was better. However, it was his words of warning about her marriage that still stuck with her. It will be in your best interest to work it out.

  Taylor still shivered over the words, which were more of a threat than a command. After that, she never saw him much.

  She pushed her concerns aside when Libby entered the room and flopped down at the foot of the canopy-covered, king-sized bed. Pam followed right behind her and took a seat in the wicker chair in the corner.

  “What’s up, chica?” Pam asked as she started hanging up Taylor’s clothes in the closet.

  Taylor reached up to unbraid her two pigtails, and shifted on the bed. “Just glad to be back home.”

  “Yeah, your parents were holding your ass hostage,” Pam said, admiring one of Taylor’s maxi dresses.

  “They’re just concerned,” Taylor said, making a mental note to be sure that dress was still there when her friends left for the day. Pam was known for “borrowing” Taylor’s clothes and conveniently forgetting where she got them in the first place.

  Pam smacked her lips in disagreement … both to Taylor’s statement, and the fact that she pointed to the dress and then to the closet, making sure it was safely inside with the rest of her extensive wardrobe.

  Taylor had confided in her friends about what had led up to the accident. Although Libby was apprehensive about Taylor’s relationship with Kalon, she still rallied in her corner. Pam thought Kalon was the sexiest man in the world, and was always ready to hear about their juicy rendezvous. The only thing Taylor hadn’t shared with them was the fact she was pregnant.

  Rubbing her hands through her tangled hair, she reached for her new cell, which had arrived two days ago. “I need to call my hairdresser today. My hair is way overdue for a wash and cut,” she said.

  She dialed and placed the cell to her ear, booking an appointment. Then, she glanced over at Libby, who filled her in on the day-to-day work flow at Dynasty. Pam chimed in a few times, discussing the advertising department ideas. Taylor nodded here and there at the discussion taking place. “Great! Sounds like you ladies had everything under control in my absence.”

  “Yes,” Pam replied with a giggle. “We’re the bomb diggity.”

  Taylor smacked her lips at Pam’s analogy, but suddenly caught the quick glimpses Libby was giving Pam.

  “What’s wrong, Libby?” Taylor asked in a concerned voice.

  Taylor knew Libby like a mother know when their child is hiding something. Libby wasn’t good at keeping secrets; her doleful face told it all.

  Libby lay down on the bed and propped her face up with her hand. She was silent so long that Taylor opened the nightstand drawer and retrieved a brush. The tangles were refusing to budge, so she placed the brush on her lap and waited.

  Libby played with a loose string dangling from Taylor’s bedspread. “I need to tell you something.”

  “What do you have to tell me?”

  “I know you’re still recovering, but …” she began, but glanced at Pam, who nodded. “I saw Kalon yesterday …”

  Taylor took several deep breaths, her grip on the brush tightening. She tried to remain calm and not panic. The two women kept their gaze on her, and she put the brush back on the nightstand. Libby’s jaw tightened and she couldn’t seem to make eye contact. Whatever Libby was about to tell her, she seemed to be struggling to find the words by the way she kept shifting her body on the bed.

  “And?” Taylor hedged.

  Libby glanced over at Pam, who conveniently had her back to them, putting her full concentration on adjusting clothes that were already perfectly hung.

  Taylor asked again, “You saw him … and?”

  Libby exhaled slowly.

  “H–he was with so–someone,” she stuttered.

  “He was with a woman,” Libby confirmed.

  Taylor closed her eyes against the sharp ache that pierced her heart. She couldn’t let Libby know that what she had just said had just affected her, and she didn’t want to jump to conclusions. Kalon was a businessman and met with many clients; some were women.

  If you believe that, then why are you upset?

  Taylor tried to affect a nonchalant tone as she said, “Oh, that might have been a business partner.”

  Suddenly, Libby pulled into an upright position. “I guess he hugs all of his business partners and kisses them on the cheek,” Libby exclaimed in a tone that was equally as laid back.

  Pam’s head whipped around to face Taylor, who had frozen for a brief moment.

  All Taylor heard from Libby’s lips were hug and kiss. He had moved on. What did she expect? One month. He wouldn’t wait on her forever.

  Tears started to push their way toward her eyelids, and she blinked rapidly to prevent them from spilling out.

  “Libby’s not sure what she really saw,” Pam said in a lighter tone. “Let’s give him a chance.”

  Taylor waved off Pam’s words, hoping to silence her.

  Taylor didn’t need her friends to sugar-coat the situation. She had been living on her own since the age of nineteen, had opened her own magazine company, and by now she could handle whatever came her way. Putting herself in this situation with a sex symbol like Kalon was like throwing herself into a panther’s mouth. She knew the day she decided to open Pandora’s Box that it would have consequences. Now she had to deal with all the ugly, evil things that would surface. She rubbed her stomach.

  Taylor gazed out her bedroom window at her well-groomed landscaping and was silent so long that Pam and Libby slipped out of the room. From the distant gaze on her face, her friends knew when she needed to be alone. Entering her en-suite bathroom, she peeled her clothes off, entered the lavish ocean-blue stall, and turned on the shower. She tilted her face and let the first spray of cool water douse her. It quickly turned hot and she let it wash over her body. The satisfied moan that escaped her lips was in direct contrast to the pain that had settled in her heart.

  She rubbed her arms and legs, and ran a cloth around her now plump belly. Laying her palms against the marble-tiled wall, she let the water flow over her hair as she rested her forehead against the wall and wept.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  The weekend couldn’t come at a greater time for Kalon. He surveyed his empty refrigerator and scratched his head. He hadn’t set foot in a grocery store in a hot minute. Work had taken over his days, nights, and weekends, which kept his mind off the one thing he couldn’t have—Taylor. The thought of her still made his heart ache, but he couldn’t dwell on it, he had to keep it moving.

  Kalon snatched his keys off the fireplace and was out the door. Thirty minutes later, he pulled his car into the hybrid parking space and hit the alarm as he walked away. He had almost made it to the front entrance of the store before he gave his back pocket a pat and realized he had left his wallet in the car.

  Damn.

  Jogging the few feet back, he clicked the remote and reached across the passenger seat to retrieve his wallet from the driver’s side. He locked the car again and made his way toward Loom Food’s entrance. As he raised his head up from scanning his wallet, making sure he had his credit card, he discovered fate had dealt him a sweet hand.

  He only had a glimpse of her backside, but he knew exactly who those curves belonged to. She was standing still, leaning on a crutch, while watching a bagger place her groceries in the trunk.

  As though sensing his presence, she looked his way. They locked gazes from across the parking lot. In a hot flash, the longing in her eyes caused a sexual tension that stirred in his belly and shot straight to his dick. He advanced toward her and she snapped from her trance, maneuvered the crutch, and hopped into her car. Her Beamer sped out the parking lot before he could call out her name.

  **
*

  Taylor checked her rearview mirror as she sped away from the ghost. It had to be a ghost, she kept telling herself. She banged her steering wheel a few times with the palm of her hands. “Shit. Shit!”

  She glanced out of the side rearview mirror as she made the last turn toward her home. His car was directly behind her.

  “Shit!”

  Pulling up to her gate, she stabbed in the code, not waiting for the gate to open all the way before she whipped into her driveway. Kalon came through before it closed completely.

  Taylor tried to hurry to the door as fast as the crutch and her healing leg would let her. She fumbled with her keys and a sigh of relief escaped her lips when the door opened, but it was short lived. Kalon pushed through the final crack in the door and grabbed her waist.

  Taylor froze in her attempt to flee. Although she tried to take a few calming breaths to tamp down her fear, her body was trembling from equal parts anticipation, and excitement, too. Keeping her back turned, she was scared to face him; the thought of him disappearing had crossed her mind in that brief moment.

  Kalon slowly turned her around to face him, and her breathing became shallow.

  Her gaze fell to the hardwood floor and he lifted her chin with his index finger.

  “Don’t be afraid to look at me,” Kalon said in voice that was softer than she could ever remember.

  The moment she looked in his eyes, everything she once felt came rushing back. She wasn’t sure who moved first, but her crutch hit the floor with a thump. He molded his lips to hers, and their tongues found a magnetic rhythm. Neither one came up for air until it was necessary.

  Kalon kicked the door closed with the heel of his foot, but never took his hands away from around her waist. His hands traveled down her body and stalled at her mid-section. He palmed her breast and delicately squeezed her butt. A trail of clothes followed them as Taylor guided him to her bedroom. Her head was mush, and if this was a dream she never wanted it to end. She needed this; she needed him.

  She adjusted her stance so that there was as little pressure on her injured leg as possible as he gently pushed her against the wall. Her breathing hitched, became almost non-existent as she kept her focus on him. A faint sparkle of love was shining through his eyes, but she couldn’t be sure. Taylor refused to fall into a world of make believe again. Right now all she wanted to do was feel. Their undying heat for each other said it all.

  Taylor hurriedly stripped out of her clothes and Kalon did the same. She stood fully exposed to him for his taking. Kalon picked her up and laid her on top of the canopy-covered, king-sized bed. He looked down at her injured leg and frowned for a moment before adjusting his body so that he wouldn’t hurt her. Then he rained butterfly kisses around her chocolate breasts.

  Once the nipples were hard and ready for him, he covered her mounds with his thick lips and ran his hot tongue around the bud. “Your breasts are fuller,” he said just above a whisper.

  Taylor dragged his head back down to her erect nipple, so he could continue his assault. It felt too good. He wanted to talk about how her body was changing.

  I’m pregnant.

  Taylor flung her head back against the pillows, muffling her moans of pleasure by biting her bottom lip. She lost the battle the moment she purred like a kitten.

  When Kalon made his way down to her stomach, she froze. Her back became stiff as a board. He rained kisses all around the soft curve of her belly as if he knew she was carrying his seed. Taylor didn’t move until he went lower and gently flicked his tongue across her clit.

  She squirmed under his touch and he dove into her womanly folds. Latching on to her clit, he licked and sucked. She tried to get away; it was too much to bear. Kalon grabbed ahold of her inner thighs and slid her back down on the bed. His mouth was lethal and exactly how she remembered. Her fight was short-lived, and Taylor screamed Kalon’s name in a high-pitched tone. People could probably hear her eight blocks away.

  As her orgasms subsided, she peered at him through half-closed lids. Kalon towered over her, resting on his forearms. He ran his fingers through her rumpled hair and down the side of her cheek. He smashed his lips to hers again, letting their tongues mingle. Kalon nibbled on her bottom lip and sucked it into his mouth. The sudden act of force caused a heat that was unbearable in between her legs. She instantly became wet. She could feel the warm liquid rolling down her inner-thighs. Taylor was burning from the inside out, and only one man could put out this type of fire.

  Kalon entered her with one fluid thrust, and rocked her body back and forth. He stared down at her as he kept his thrusts at a medium speed. Her jaw went slack and he lowered his head to the pillow. She ran her slender fingers down the center of his spine.

  Taylor felt her walls tighten around his member and she knew it wouldn’t be long before she had another orgasm. Kalon’s thrusts and rhythm increased as her pussy muscles milked him for everything he had. She clawed his back and Kalon bellowed as their body fell into sync and they both came simultaneously.

  Kalon rolled over onto his back and gasped for air.

  This was not supposed to happen. She had fallen under his spell when she locked eyes with him at the store. Then he stalked her as if she was a long-lost prey. And now they both lay sprawled out across her bed.

  Maybe he was thinking the same thing she was at the moment …

  This was a mistake.

  ***

  The morning sun gleamed through the slats of Taylor’s pink vertical blinds. She opened her eyes to catch the glare reflecting from the mirror onto the dresser. The unspeakable things she did with Kalon the night before invaded her thoughts. She moved to get out of bed, but froze the moment a sharp pain in her right leg made it obvious that moving was not the thing to do. Last night she had felt no pain, but today she was feeling the aftermath of everything they had done.

  “Kalon,” she muttered.

  Rolling over on her side, she saw that Kalon lay with one arm behind his head and his curly chest hairs peeked through the top of the covers. She worked her eyes up to his face, finding that his dark brown eyes were locked on her.

  She almost forgot that he was even more handsome when he first woke up; that dimpled chin and kissable mocha lips. His hair had grown out—into a thick, wavy Mohawk—and he was rocking a nicely trimmed goatee. All male and ruggedly gorgeous.

  Seconds ticked by as they stared at each other with only a few inches between them. Taylor made the first move, bearing the pain to get out of bed and slip into her robe. He needed to leave—now! She hadn’t heard anything from him these past few months. True, she hadn’t called either, but the phone worked both ways.

  He hadn’t come to see her not one single time when she was laid up in the hospital. At one point, she envisioned that he was there, but she now knew that it was all a dream. Too much time had passed. Taylor needed him to love her the way that she loved him. And she would not tell him about the baby. She didn’t want him to stay for the baby; she wanted him to stay because he loved her.

  Limping over to the door, Taylor slid her red silk robe about her shoulders and tied the belt twice around her waist. The knee-high robe exposed the top of her thighs and Kalon’s eyes were transfixed on the piece of flesh.

  She pulled at the fabric to cover more of her thighs.

  “Kalon,” she said in a direct tone to get his attention.

  His tongue traced his bottom lip.

  “Hmmm?” he responded absently, his eyes still on her thighs.

  “You have to leave. I’m sorry, but this shouldn’t have happened.”

  Kalon’s head whipped up to lock a gaze on her. He sat up in the bed and folded his arms across his chest. “You want me to leave?” he snapped. “Really, Taylor, we’re back to the games?”

  Taylor’s jaw tightened and she balled up her fist. She was playing games? He was the one known as a womanizer. She was a fool to get knocked up by a player with no feelings.

  Waving her finger in the air, she
screamed, “I’m not playing any games with you, Kalon. You can’t just force your way back into my life after all this time and think I’m supposed to take you back with open arms.”

  Kalon pushed up from the bed, snatching up his boxers and jeans. He slid a white shirt over his head before buckling his jeans. He turned to face Taylor, but his chuckle made her take a step back.

  “You’re a really messed up individual,” he said. “You play with people’s hearts. You’re talking about you’re not playing games, but you’re the one who got involved with someone knowing that you were a married woman. You weren’t available physically or emotionally. I’m tired of this rollercoaster we’re on and I’m hopping off.” He gestured to her right leg. “Good luck with your health.” Kalon strolled past Taylor, leaving her stunned as he said, “I’m out of here.”

  She wobbled behind him as he walked out the front door, and shouted at the top of her lungs, “Adios, asshole!” Then, she slammed the door.

  ***

  Kalon sprinted toward his truck and was in the driver’s seat in seconds. He slammed the car door with too much extra force and the bobblehead doll of President Obama on the dashboard shook.

  “I don’t have time for this shit,” Kalon growled.

  The car roared to life and he shifted the clutch into drive, circling the horseshoe driveway and pulling to the edge of the gates to exit.

  Glancing across the street, Kalon noticed that a camera, which was sticking out of a parked red Ford Focus, was aimed toward his car. White lights flickered constantly in his direction. Kalon frowned and he accelerated into the busy intersection, trying to put as much distance between him and Taylor’s madness as possible.

  Something about that red car left a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.