“What the hell is wrong with you?” Jarred asked, irritated. “You were supposed to be in the office.”
“Who says I wasn’t? What do you want?” Brice huffed. It seemed as if he didn’t want to be bothered.
“If you can snatch yourself away from whatever or whoever it is that has you over the top, Langston and I are going to some spot that you took him to in Jersey.”
“Heavens?”
“Heavens what?” Jarred asked.
“That’s the name of the lounge—Heavens. What time are you leaving?”
“We’re out of here in about fifteen minutes.”
Before Jarred could say another word, Brice tersely said goodbye and hung up.
I’m going to choke the daylights out of him one day, Jarred thought as he gathered up his belongings. He made sure to also collect the Tempest documents. He had endless hours of work ahead of him, but Langston was right. It was a Friday night, and Jarred was long overdue to let loose. Sure, he had the occasional romp, so to speak, but most of his dating for the past two years was to appease his bruised ego over his failed relationship. It had been a while since he’d just hung out and enjoyed a night out with the guys. He wasn’t in favor of the bar scene much anymore. He’d been there, done that in college. Now he needed a place to just sit back and relax and not worry about expectations from anyone.
Jarred locked the office, then took the elevator down to the ground floor, where Langston was waiting.
“Are we taking your car or mine?” his brother asked.
Jarred shrugged. “It doesn’t matter to me.”
“Well, look who has decided to join us.” Langston smiled.
Jarred glanced over his shoulder and saw Brice coming through the door of the stairwell, appearing out of sorts. The jacket of his dark Armani suit and his tie were hanging over his shoulder. He looked like he’d sounded on the phone: miserable. Brice had inherited their mother’s silver-gray eyes, and his complexion was a shade darker than Jarred and Langston’s honey-wheat skin tones. His rumpled appearance only confirmed to Jarred that all three of them were at their wits’ end.
“I’m taking my own ride. I may leave with company, so I’ll meet you two there,” Brice said as he walked past them.
“Where are you coming from?” Jarred arched a brow at his baby brother. Brice had led him to believe that he’d been in the office, but not that he was still present.
“IT department. I told you I was here,” Brice replied.
“What were you doing in IT?” Langston asked.
Brice stopped, turned around and glared at them. “Working. Now, are we going to Heavens or not?”
“Yes, but what has you in such a foul mood?” Langston inquired.
“I’m not in a foul mood. I’m in a bad mood, plain and simple. So, are we going or am I to find my entertainment elsewhere?”
“By all means, bro, let’s ride.” Langston gestured toward their parked vehicles.
“I’m just warning you two. The minute somebody hands me one of those ‘get in touch with your inner self’ pamphlets, I am kicking both of your asses,” Jarred interjected, pointing at his brothers.
“You might whip Langston, but you ain’t beating me,” Brice snorted.
Jarred playfully punched his shoulder. “You may be taller than me and Langston, but I can still drop you, baby bro. Don’t let me school you out here in these streets.”
“Man, listen to you trying to act hard. Dude, we grew up in the suburbs,” Brice retorted, and sent them all into a fit of laughter.
“How far away is this place?” Jarred rounded the car to the passenger door.
“About forty-five minutes to an hour, depending on traffic,” Langston said.
Jarred climbed into the passenger seat, put his briefcase on the floor in front of him and sighed deeply. He loved his brothers, but they drove him crazy.
The smooth sound of Kenny G was playing through the surround sound. Yes. Jarred rested his head back and relaxed to the flawless notes the saxophone belted out.
They pulled into the packed parking lot of a one-story building surrounded by dark, tempered-glass windows. A hand-painted sign that hung above the door read Heavens, with musical symbols on each side. A line snaked out the door and down the walkway on three sides of the building.
“It’s crowded tonight,” Langston said.
“Appears that way,” Jarred responded.
“I’m going to follow Brice. He knows this place inside and out. He’ll know where there’s parking.”
“I thought you’d been here before?”
“I have. It’s just been a while.”
They found parking a block away from the lounge. Jarred was surprised that by the time they walked back around to the club, the crowd had practically disappeared.
“Where did all those people go?” he asked.
“Most probably weren’t allowed inside, so they left. There is a dress code. No jeans or sneakers. Business casual is the preference,” Brice said, as they walked up to the door.
The bouncer, a tall man with a large build and a buzz cut, stood there. “Brice, my man! I haven’t seen you here in a little bit. Go on in. You know your table is always available.”
“Thanks, Norman. How’s it going?”
“I can’t complain. The lady herself is here tonight. You all are in for a treat.” Norman smiled.
“She’s back?”
“Yep, and on fire. Go on in. She’ll be on in a few.”
“Thanks, man. I’ll talk to you later. By the way, these are my brothers, Jarred and Langston. Langston’s been here before with me, but you weren’t on duty,” Brice said.
“Nice to meet you. Go on inside.” Norman waved Brice through. Jarred and Langston followed on his heels.
“Is there anyone he doesn’t know?” Jarred whispered to Langston.
“Our brother does get around. I’m wondering who this she is.”
“I can hear you two,” Brice snorted.
“So?” Jarred and Langston responded simultaneously.
Brice led them to a table in front of a dimly lit stage. A gold Reserved sign sat on the table.
Jarred glanced around the lounge. The place seemed like one giant booth, with leather seating and lit candles in rust-colored holders giving the room an orange glow. Very cozy, he had to admit, very relaxing. This was a place one would want to come after a hard day. The round table that he and his brothers occupied could easily fit eight people.
“So who is this she the bouncer was referring to, Brice?” Langston asked.
“You’ll see, Lang my boy.” Brice smirked.
“If you call me Lang again, you won’t be seeing anything or anybody,” Langston countered.
Jarred chuckled. Brotherly love. What can I say? Nothing, and that’s what I’ll do. Say nothing.
A big, circular spotlight lit the center of the stage, and people began to stand and clap.