Nana Prah - A Perfect Caress

Dante held up a finger. “First of all, your dad’s brother is nowhere near as cool as me, and second he lives in California, so you can’t just pick up the phone and ask him to come get you. And don’t you even mention my brother Emmanuel. With the number of kids he and his wife have, they can barely get out the house.”

“Whatever. My point is, age doesn’t matter with friendship. Or did I hear it about love?”

“I concede.”

Vanessa pulled the car over in front of a café a few blocks from her school, put it in Park and pressed the button to unlock the doors. “Please, Uncle D?”

He crossed his arms over his chest and looked out the windshield. One glance at her would break his resolve. There wasn’t much he wouldn’t do for his nieces and nephews, and they knew how to play him. “You can forget about me getting out of this car.”

“How about if I talk you up to Lanelle when I call her?” The manipulative minx tapped a finger on the custom-designed steering wheel. “Maybe find out where she’ll be, so you can bump into her.”

Dante reached for the handle. “You can tell her how wonderful I am, but don’t ask where she’ll be at any point in time. The woman is not stupid.” He opened the door. “You have twenty minutes. We still have to meet your parents and little brother at the restaurant. Your friends can sit in the car, but don’t go joyriding.”

He pulled out his phone. “I have an app that lets me see exactly where the car is at all times.” She didn’t need to know he had yet to learn how to use it.

“I promise. Thanks, Uncle D.”

Curbside, he watched his precious niece and car roll down the street.

Vanessa’s offer had been tempting, but he’d never get away with it if she became his informant. The two seemed to get along, but who knew if anything would come of their spark of friendship?

He had to find a way to see Lanelle again. Why would she deny the attraction blazing between them? Maybe she’s married. A ring had adorned two fingers on her right hand, but the left hand was free. No matter the reason, he’d find her. He hadn’t become successful in life by giving up, and he wouldn’t do so with her.

On the other hand, if they were meant to be together, they’d meet again. He scoffed at the idea. As long as my name is Dante Leroy Sanderson, I’ll find her. Fate be damned.

* * *

Toshia Covington panted hard as the StairMaster kicked her ass early the next morning.

Lanelle’s own breath came out with less stress as she jogged at an easy pace on the treadmill next to her best friend. “Why don’t you lower the intensity? I don’t want to break out my CPR skills on you here in the gym.”

Even sweating buckets, her best friend looked good. Toshia’s thick hair swung in its ponytail as her hips swayed. Her large, dark brown, almond-shaped eyes remained bright even as sweat dripped into them. “What happened to no pain, no gain?”

“I think the person who coined the phrase died of a massive heart attack while not listening to his body.”

Toshia let go of her machine’s handle long enough to dab the sweat from her face with her towel. “Ha, ha, ha. How are things going with the NICU you’re building?”

Lanelle puffed out a breath. “The wing is coming along great in terms of construction, but we’re running out of money.” Saying the words out loud brought on a fresh wave of frustration.

“What?”

“Yeah, we have no idea what’s going on. The books balance, but it doesn’t make sense. The flooring and the fixtures are the only things remaining. And there’s very little cash in the till.”

Toshia stared at her. “How can that be?”

Thinking about it made her angrier with each minute. “You know how I was busy working on Dad’s supersensitive project.”

“You mean the one where I saw you once during the six-week period and you hardly slept?”

Lanelle shivered thinking about how much work had gone into the assignment. Every once in a while, when her father had a highly confidential financial project, he’d call her to head it. “Work on the NICU started at around the same time, but I couldn’t say no to Dad.”

“Plus, you’re naive as hell and thought people would be honest.”

“Who would try to extort money from a hospital trying to build a wing to help innocent babies?”

Toshia pursed her full, pinkish-brown lips to the side and tapped her chin in a pretense of thinking. “Let’s see. Greedy-ass bastards with no concept of right or wrong come to mind.”

“I’m not saying the money was stolen, but it wasn’t well managed. We’ve gone through the books twice. The next step is to call a forensic accountant.” She pushed an errant strand of hair behind her ear. “I feel like I’m on a crime show, only instead of dead bodies, it’s all about paperwork.”

Toshia shook her head. “None of this would’ve happened if you’d been fully on board. Your anal-retentive ass would’ve known how every penny was spent.”

Damn straight. “I’m not sure where the money went, but I know one thing.”

“You’re going to do whatever it takes to find the bastards and hang them by the balls?”

Lanelle smiled at her friend’s crassness. “What you said was better than I could’ve phrased it. I’m going to have to hold another fund-raiser. If I don’t, the money comes from my pocket.”

“You’ve already sunk how many millions into it?”

Lanelle had no issues with the money she’d invested to see the project completed. Technically, Eliana Lanelle Gill Astacio, the official name on her birth certificate, the only daughter and middle child of the Fortune 500 business tycoon who hailed from a lineage of Spanish royalty, had donated the money.

Having learned her older brother’s experiences, Lanelle’s parents had registered her in boarding school by her middle names. She’d become a Murphy when she got married and had kept the name when they divorced. Living a life outside the spotlight the Astacio name brought had suited her over the years.

When Lanelle had been asked to be on the board of the five-hundred-bed hospital two years ago, she’d noticed the NICU was inadequate. The tug on her heart to construct a larger, more modern unit pulled on her so hard she’d decided to spearhead the construction of one for the hospital.

The board had unanimously agreed to her proposal. After brainstorming, they’d designed a three-story structure. The top floor would consist of a hostel where parents could reside and still be near their babies.

The first floor would house the women who’d just delivered their premature or sick newborns. Lanelle had learned from experience that being on the same unit with happy mothers who got to take their adorable, gurgling children home with them in a couple of days added to mothers’ depression when they couldn’t do the same. Placing these women on their own floor while their child struggled to live would be a psychological boon. The second floor would consist of a state-of-the-art neonatal intensive care unit.

“Yeah. I’m sure Dad will shake his head in disappointment if I put in any more cash. And you know what Leonardo would say.”

“He’s an ass. Why does his opinion matter to you?”

“He’s my older brother. He’s gained a reputation as a cutthroat corporate lawyer, all without using my father’s influence. I have to respect that.”

“I’m not arguing with you about this again.”

“He can be a pain sometimes.”

Toshia arched an eyebrow. “Whenever I came to your house during school breaks, he’d torment me as much as he did you.”

“He’s misunderstood. I still say he’s a good guy, on the rare occasion.”

“How do you have the ability to see the good in everyone?” For once Toshia hadn’t asked the question as if it was a curse.