“Oh, please, Carter,” Grandma Lillian said. “Please tell me you haven’t broken that young girl’s heart.”
Carter had been dating socialite Lorraine Hawthorne-Hayes for about five weeks. They’d even made the paper a couple of times. Lorraine was not Carter’s typical woman. Yes, she was beautiful, but she dressed in classic fashions unlike the flashier women he usually dated. Lorraine was the daughter of Arnold and Abigail Hawthorne-Hayes of Hawthorne-Hayes Jewelers. The Hawthorne-Hayes family was Chicago royalty and easily outranked the Draysons. Everyone in the family was waiting for Carter to say he’d tired of Lorraine and moved on to the next woman.
Shari hoped not. She’d warned Carter about breaking Lorraine’s heart.
“Actually quite the opposite,” Carter responded, smiling from ear to ear. “Lorraine and I are engaged.”
“Get out!” Devon jumped up out of his chair and faced his son. “You! Engaged?”
“That’s right, Dad.” Carter laughed. “I’m not going to be a perennial bachelor like you.”
“Congratulations, Carter.” Shari leaned over and gave him a playful punch while Malik and Drake reached across the table and shook his hand affectionately.
“That’s wonderful news,” Grandma Lillian replied. “Two grandchildren engaged this year!” She glanced at Belinda and Carter, and then at Shari. “I hope everyone will follow your example.”
Shari lowered her head. She knew that comment was directed at her. Her family had been disappointed when she’d had Andre out of wedlock. She’d tarnished the Drayson family name, but Shari didn’t care. She would do it again a thousand times over. She loved Andre and wouldn’t trade him for anything in the world.
“Don’t worry, kid,” Carter whispered in Shari’s ear. “She’s only using you as a whipping boy because I’m finally out of the doghouse. Keep your head up.”
“Oh, I don’t regret having my son for a second,” Shari replied. It was the one decision she’d been clear on from the moment she’d discovered she was pregnant.
Carter motioned with his hands for everyone to quiet down. “I’m not finished yet. I have other news.”
“As if your engagement isn’t news enough,” his best friend, Malik, replied laughing.
Carter rolled his eyes. “You all know that I was approached by a New York restaurateur who offered me the job of executive baker for his operation, but have decided to stay.”
“No, I didn’t know. Who’s this restaurateur who tried to steal you away from us?” Shari asked. Despite his playboy ways, Shari knew that Andre was attached to his “uncle” Carter and she was glad he wasn’t leaving Chicago.
Carter turned to Shari. “Does the name Grant Robinson ring a bell?”
All color rushed out of Shari’s face at hearing Grant’s name again after all this time, and her eyes widened in alarm. “Uh, I think I remember him,” she finally managed to eke out. “Did he say anything about me?”
“He didn’t say much,” Carter replied. “He only mentioned that you two went to college together and that he couldn’t wait to catch up on old times.”
Like that was even possible, Shari thought. Clearly what she and Grant had shared together had meant nothing to him. How could he think of her so casually as if they’d never slept together?
Carter continued, interrupting her thoughts. “Grant indicated that even if I chose to turn the job down, there might be an opportunity with Lillian’s to supply the desserts to his restaurant chain. He’s on his way here now.”
Grant was coming to Lillian’s? Shari was frozen speechless. She hadn’t seen the man since she’d graduated from Ledgeman University, and he’d broken her heart by marrying her former best friend and college roommate, Dina English.
“Sounds promising,” her father said. “I’d like to meet him.”
Her father, Dwight, had taken over the business aspects of the Drayson Corporation while her uncle Devon focused on the real-estate end of the family business. The Drayson family had leveraged their income from the family business and invested wisely in Chicago real estate. Their real-estate interests had made them multimillionaires.
“Absolutely,” Carter said and then glanced at Shari.
Shari felt like she was going to be physically ill. “If you’ll excuse me...” She rushed out of the conference room, ran to the unisex restroom and locked the door firmly behind her. Shari tried to take deep, calming breaths to steady her nerves, but she was having a hard time catching her breath. Her breathing was shallow and uneasy at the thought of meeting her son’s father face-to-face after five years.
Everyone in the family thought Thomas Abernathy, the guy Shari had dated casually in college, was Andre’s father and despised him for leaving her high and dry. They couldn’t be more wrong. Thomas had been a good friend who’d accompanied her to social events, but they’d never been together sexually. Shari had always suspected he was gay, but it wasn’t until she’d come clean about sleeping with Grant that he’d dropped the bomb and admitted that he was indeed gay. But the poor thing refused to come out of the closet to his family. Shari wasn’t about to force his hand, so she’d allowed the Drayson family to believe he was Andre’s father when in fact, Grant Robinson was Andre’s dad.
How was she going to face Grant after all this time? And how would she be able to keep Andre out of his sight?
Chapter 2
“We’re here, sir,” the driver of Grant Robinson’s town car said when they arrived in front of Lillian’s. Grant glanced out of the window. He’d come to Chicago under the guise of speaking with Carter Drayson about the possibility of having Lillian’s desserts sold at Robinson Restaurants, but that wasn’t his only reason for coming. He was dying to see Shari Drayson again.
What had it been? Five years since he’d seen her last? A day hadn’t gone by when he hadn’t thought of her pretty face, large brown eyes and ample curves. He’d been attracted to Shari since they’d gone to Ledgeman University and had been in the same study group, but then they’d settled into an easy friendship.
It wasn’t until that fateful night at a frat party that their relationship had taken a sudden and interesting turn. After a grueling midterm exam, their study group had gone out partying and Shari had really tied one on. His intent had been to take her home, put her to bed and go home. Instead, emboldened by the liquor, Shari had planted a kiss on him that had stirred his hidden passions. He’d acted on his lust and made love to her.
The next morning, he’d regretted taking advantage of her while she was inebriated, but she’d been so cute and sexy wearing a cutoff T-shirt and fitted jeans that his hormones had taken over. He would have preferred to have courted Shari properly, taken her out to the movies or to dinner. And he would have done so, finally revealing his true feelings for her without alcohol clouding their judgment. Instead, Shari had told him what they’d shared had been a casual hookup between friends and that he didn’t owe her anything.
Worse yet, her roommate and his ex-wife, Dina English, had caught them in bed together, which only added to the awkward situation. After that, Dina had turned up the heat and made a play for him, and without Shari giving him any sign of interest, he’d given in to Dina’s incessant flirting.
Big mistake. Grant should never have gotten involved with Dina. Truth be told, Dina was a salve for his broken heart after Shari. He’d thought the fact that they’d made love would have changed their friendship into something more serious, but it hadn’t. So when Dina had shown genuine interest in him, he’d gotten caught up in the adoration. Then, of course, there was the pressure from his father to settle down and get focused. His father had indicated he wouldn’t pass the family restaurants over to him until he was married.
His