LITMIR.BIZ

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softly when he gestured her into a spacious office easily three times the size of the one she’d had at the hospital. She walked across the plush carpeting to a huge mahogany desk on one side of the room that had an oversize chair tucked neatly behind it. Behind her, a half wall of windows overlooked a beautiful grassy area and walking trail. A small conference table took up space on the opposite side of the room.

      “There should be information on all the players from last year in that file cabinet, and I’m sure you’ll find some on the computer, as well.”

      Lauren glanced over to where he gestured.

      “But, this is your show now, so you can set up a system that works best for you. It may take a few weeks for the players to get on board.” He smiled. “Or maybe not, judging from the way they cornered you earlier.”

      She felt her cheeks warm.

      “I’ll leave you to settle in. If you need anything, let my assistant know.”

      “Thank you, I will.”

      Mr. Green gave her one last smile and departed.

      Alone, her thoughts went back to his previous comment. Lauren had never had that much male attention in her life, even from the last man she’d dated. That relationship had ended six months ago. Her ex had been all for them climbing the corporate ladder together—as long as he stayed a rung above hers. He hadn’t been happy when her salary topped his by a thousand dollars a year, and their easygoing, idyllic romance turned agitated and contentious. In the end, she tossed his ring and assurances of forever back and walked away, much like she’d done with the promise ring Malcolm had given her. She thought she had loved Jeffrey, but the moment she’d locked eyes with Malcolm, every memory and emotion she’d kept buried sprang to life. She realized she wasn’t over Malcolm. Not by a long shot.

      * * *

      As soon as Malcolm parked his motorcycle in the garage, his cell buzzed. Without looking, he knew he’d see Morgan’s name on the display. His stripped off his riding gloves, dug into his pocket for the phone and smiled. “What’s up, sis?” He pressed the button to lower the door and entered the house through the garage.

      “That’s what I want to know, so I’ll be over in an hour.” Morgan hung up.

      He released a deep sigh. He and Morgan always had that twin thing where they could sense when the other was bothered or upset. Based on his morning, he suspected she’d felt his emotional turmoil. He’d never expected to see Lauren again, especially since she moved to Arizona years ago for what she’d called a “better opportunity.” Now he would be forced to see her damn near every day. To make matters worse, she looked even better than he remembered. As he’d noted during the meeting, the beautiful girl he had been in love with had grown into an even more beautiful woman. The curves he used to enjoy caressing were fuller and...

      Malcolm cursed under his breath and ran a hand over his head. He stilled, remembering that he’d cut his hair a week ago, replacing the locs he had sported for over a decade with a scalp-hugging style that would take time to get used to. He climbed the stairs, took the short hallway to his bedroom, dropped his duffel on a bench at the foot of his bed and stepped out onto the balcony overlooking his large backyard. The June temperatures had warmed, and in anticipation of the annual barbecue he held for his teammates before the new season started, he had pulled out the deck and lawn furniture. He would need to cut the grass, but otherwise, the yard was ready for entertaining.

      His thoughts shifted back to Lauren. He had to figure out a way to get out of any consultation with her. Malcolm’s diet was just fine and his weight perfect, so he had no real need to see her. And that’s what he would tell her. He glanced down at his watch. Knowing that his sister would be arriving soon and that she’d most likely want to eat, he headed down to the kitchen to prepare a late lunch.

      Morgan rang his doorbell just as he removed the chicken breasts from the stove-top grill. He placed them on a plate and went to let her in.

      “Hey,” Morgan said. “Something smells good.”

      Malcolm chuckled and kissed her temple. “Come on in. I knew you’d want to eat.”

      She followed him to the kitchen and took a seat at the table. “Hey, you know I’ve never liked cooking. Nothing has changed. Lucky for me, my wonderful husband is an ace in the kitchen, and so is my favorite brother.” She gave him a bright smile.

      “So I’m your favorite, huh?” They’d been joined at the hip since birth and there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for her. She was his baby sister by five minutes, and he took his charge as big brother seriously. It had been hard relinquishing the reins to her husband, even if Omar was his friend and teammate. He pulled out a bowl of mixed greens, sliced the chicken into bite-size pieces and added them. “How’ve you been feeling?”

      Morgan ran a gentle hand over her rounded belly. “Pretty good. The only thing is whenever I sit for more than five minutes, this kid starts moving around so much, I swear there’s a full-fledged game of tackle football going on.”

      “Well, you only have two more months to go. Did you and Omar change your minds about finding out the baby’s sex?” Malcolm placed the bowl on the table, along with plates, utensils and a smaller bowl of salad dressing.

      “Nope. We’re going to wait. Of course, Vonnie and Faith are trying to get me to change my mind, talking about they need to know what to shop for.” Siobhan, whom they affectionately called Vonnie, was the oldest of the five siblings. She and her husband, Justin, had a daughter who’d just celebrated her first birthday.

      He smiled, got two glasses of iced mint tea and brought them to the table. “Faith isn’t expecting, is she?” Faith and their oldest brother, Brandon, were trying for a baby, and Malcolm hoped they had good news soon.

      She shook her head as she filled her plate.

      Their mother was beside herself with being a grandmother and with all of her children getting married. The only problem was that her attention had now shifted solely to Malcolm, the only single one. But he wasn’t biting. As he had told his family countless times, he planned to be a bachelor for life. He loved the freedom to come and go as he pleased, and the ability to decide when he wanted to date. No hassle, no fuss. He would gladly accept the role of uncle and spoil his nieces and nephews.

      After reciting a short blessing, he and Morgan started in on the meal.

      “What kind of dressing is this?” She sniffed. “Lemon what?”

      “It’s lemon basil. Something I ran across at a restaurant where I had dinner. This is my attempt to recreate it. I used light sour cream to cut some of the calories, fresh basil, lemon juice and a little salt and garlic pepper. What do you think?”

      Morgan ate a bite, angled her head thoughtfully and groaned. “It’s really good. And that’s why I come over here to eat when Omar isn’t home.”

      Malcolm shook his head. “Did he go over to the center?”

      “Yes. Rashad is finally going to talk to one of the psychologists, but he said he’d only go if Omar went with him. He’s gone to a few of the group sessions, but that’s it.” Omar and a group of organizers had opened a mental health center geared toward veterans two years ago. Omar’s older brother, Rashad, suffered from PTSD, and Omar wanted a place for Rashad and others like him to seek treatment that didn’t center wholly around medication.

      “I’m glad. I know how much he’s been hoping Rashad would go.” They ate in silence for a few minutes.

      “What’s going on?”

      He glanced up from his plate. “Nothing. Why?”

      Morgan stared at him a long moment. “So you’re okay with Lauren being the nutritionist? I assume it’s the same Lauren responsible for breaking your heart in college.”

      Malcolm set the fork down and pushed the plate aside. He blew out a long breath. “Yeah, it’s her.” Just the mention of her name conjured up an image

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