Sweet Silver Bells

“There’s nothing wrong with a little casual dating.”

“I’ll think about it, Mother,” Crystal lied smoothly.

Two months was hardly enough time for her to meet and become romantically involved with someone, and what Jasmine termed as casual dating usually meant seeing someone for a month. It would take her more than a month to truly feel comfortable enough to take their casual dating to the next level.

“Hold on, darling. The gatehouse is ringing me.” Seconds later, Jasmine said, “I have to go. My driver is here.”

“Have fun, Mother.”

“I will. Love you, darling.”

“I love you, too.” She ended the call, staring at the live fern in a painted glazed pot on a corner table. The words her mother found so difficult to say when Crystal was a young girl now came so easily from Jasmine. She’d wanted Jasmine to be like the mothers of her friends and cousins who got up and prepared breakfast before seeing their children off to school. Or when she came home after classes, she wanted to find freshly baked cookies waiting for her as she sat down to do her homework.

What she did remember was Jasmine sleeping late, chain-smoking and visiting her therapist, while handing over the responsibility of taking care of her daughter to a series of nannies. Once Crystal turned eight, there was no longer a need for a nanny or babysitter; she had unofficially moved in with her uncle Solomon and Aunt Holly.

Shaking her head to banish painful childhood memories, Crystal pushed off the chair and climbed the staircase to the upper level. Restlessness assailed her, akin to an itch she couldn’t scratch. She needed a full-body massage. She didn’t know why, but she always experienced unease whenever Jasmine called her because she never knew what to expect. Why, she mused, couldn’t they just have a normal mother–daughter discussion without Jasmine bringing up the topic of dating?

What the older woman did not know was that she did date, although it had been a while. Over the years she’d dated a few handsome and not-so-handsome men, those who were well-to-do and others whom she suspected lived from paycheck to paycheck. Their looks and the size of their bank accounts were never prerequisites for Crystal to agree to go out with them. It was always their confidence and manners—the latter taking precedence over the former. Even before she was old enough to date, her mother had lectured her constantly about home training.

Even behind closed lids Crystal could still see the image of Joseph’s deeply tanned face, his dark eyes and tall, toned slim body. He was the epitome of tall, dark and handsome. And the fact that he was wealthy didn’t begin to play into the equation.

She didn’t want to think about Jasmine or Joseph. Rolling her head, she attempted to ease the tight muscles in her shoulders and upper back. It was time for a massage. Having access to an on-site health club was one of the reasons, along with the unisex salon, spa and boutique, was why she’d decided to buy property in the Fort Lauderdale gated community.

Picking up the phone, she dialed the number to the hotel’s Serenity Silk Day Spa. Her call was answered after the second ring. “Good afternoon, Ms. Eaton. How may I help you?”

“I’d like an appointment for a facial and a mood-makeover massage. Is it possible for me to combine the massage with hot stones?”

“Of course, Ms. Eaton. What time would you like to come in?”

Crystal glanced at her watch. “I can be down in less than half an hour.”

“We’ll be waiting for you.”

Ending the call, she went upstairs to her bedroom to change out of her suit and into a pair of sweatpants, a shirt and a pair of flip-flops. The sound of something hitting the windows caught her attention. It was raining. Even if she’d wanted to do some sightseeing, Crystal realized she would’ve had to change her plans.

She slipped the two card keys, a credit card and cash onto a wristlet before leaving.

Crystal walked across the marble floor of the lobby to the spa discreetly located at the end of a narrow hallway. She felt the calming atmosphere the instant she opened the door to the candlelit space, finding herself enveloped in the sounds of a waterfall, soothing New Age music flowing from hidden speakers and the tantalizing scent of essential oils.

The white-coated receptionist escorted her to a dressing room, where she stripped down to her panties and put on a thick terry cloth bathrobe. She was given a cup of herbal tea and a questionnaire asking about her health status, including whether she was pregnant and/or had any implanted devices.

Twenty minutes later Crystal knew she’d made the right decision visit the spa. Her face anchored in the cushioned doughnut on the massage table, she closed her eyes and moaned softly when hot stones lined the length of her spine. She had her mother to thank for her turning her onto the practice of using heated stones dating back five thousand years to the Ayurveda, an ancient Indian healing tradition.

She found herself succumbing to the strong fingers of the masseuse easing the tightness in her shoulders and upper back, falling asleep and waking only when told to turn over.

The hot stone massage was followed by the application of oils made up of lavender and patchouli, and then a shower and a facial that left her moisturized face glowing. She lingered long enough for a mani/pedi.

After paying for the services, Crystal gave the masseuse and esthetician generous tips, feeling better than she had in weeks.

As she left the spa and walked through the lobby, Crystal had to decide whether she wanted to cook dinner for herself, order room service or eat in the hotel’s restaurant. Her step faltered as she headed in the direction of the elevators to find Joseph in a passionate embrace with a petite woman with a café-au-lait complexion and hair the color of ripened wheat.

Joseph lifted the woman off her feet at the same time his eyes met Crystal’s. She saw an expression of surprise freeze his features as he stared at her. She didn’t know why, but she felt like a voyeur even after she’d pulled her gaze away from the couple. Joseph had promised to cook for her the following day, and she wondered if the attractive blonde would join them.

Entering the elevator, she inserted the card key into the PH slot. Two’s company and three is a crowd. The familiar adage came to mind as the car rose quickly to the top floor.

Perhaps, she mused, Joseph should’ve waited to invite her to dinner before checking whether his girlfriend would show up. It was obvious her neighbor was faced with a dilemma, and because Crystal detested confrontation she was more than willing to accept his suggestion to cancel dinner. The ball, as the saying goes, was definitely in his court.

* * *

Joseph went completely still as he held his sister. When Bianca called from the concierge’s desk asking him to come down, he’d been surprised to hear from her. Then he saw Crystal stroll across the hotel lobby in sweats and flip-flops.

Once he and Crystal returned to the hotel, he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her, or comparing her to Kiara. He found himself transfixed by her soft drawling voice, her low, sensual laughter, the genuine affection she appeared to have for Xavier and Selena and the sparkle in her eyes whenever she interacted with Lily. He was completely mesmerized by the confidence and poise that seemed to come so naturally to her. And after comparing her to Kiara, he realized he’d wasted four years of his life with a woman with whom he had so little in common.

As a Cole, he would always put family first, but not with Kiara. Once she left Baltimore she refused to return or interact with her parents or anyone in her extended family. And whenever he mentioned meeting her family, she would fly into a rage, then not speak to him for days.

“Joseph, please put me down.” Bianca’s command broke into his musings.

“Sorry about that.” He gave her a long, penetrating stare. “How did you find me?” he asked.

A slight frown appeared between Bianca Cole-Wilson’s brilliant gold-green catlike eyes. “Diego told me you were going to be here for a few months. I need to talk to you.”

Joseph hadn’t seen his sister since Thanksgiving. Bianca, a premed senior at Duke University, hadn’t celebrated Christmas and New Year’s with the family because she’d spent the holiday in California with her sorority sisters with whom she shared off-campus housing.

Holding on to her hand, he steered to the bank of elevators. “We’ll talk upstairs.”

Bianca pulled back. “Can’t we talk down here?”

He gave her a questioning look. “What’s the matter?”

“Henri is waiting in the parking lot to drive me back to college.”

“Why are you going back so early? Don’t you have another week before classes begin again?”

“Yes, but I need to clean up my bedroom. I left clothes everywhere. It’s also my week to clean the kitchen and bathroom.”

“Why aren’t you flying up?”

“The jet is being serviced.”

Joseph nodded. Henri had been hired as Diego’s driver and bodyguard. The mandate that anyone with Cole blood was prohibited from flying on a commercial carrier was still in effect more than forty years after Regina Cole’s kidnapping. Instead of arriving at the airport hours before departure time, or going through long lines at the security gate, Bianca and her sorority sisters were seated in the Gulfstream G650 business jet within minutes of arriving at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport for their nonstop flight to LAX.

“Okay,” he said conceding. “We’ll talk in the lounge area. Would you like me to order something for you to eat or drink?” he asked when they were seated next to each other on a tan leather love seat.