Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
C helsey pulled into one of the parking spaces at Brook Run Park and glanced around the area for her friend. She and India were planning to go for a run on one of the trails and had decided to meet up near the basketball courts.
Chelsey couldn’t wait for them to catch up on all that had happened over the last couple of weeks. They’d both been out of town at the same time, but while Chelsey and Parker returned to Atlanta a week ago, India had just returned from Spain yesterday morning. She’d had a business trip to Madrid, and Chelsey was looking forward to hearing all the details.
They had a lot to discuss, including Chelsey’s big news—her engagement.
Her gaze immediately went to her left hand, and she smiled. Morning, noon, and night, she couldn’t stop looking at the ring. Parker asking her to marry him still felt like a dream. A dream that had become a reality.
To say their family and friends had been surprised by the news would be an understatement. Egypt had wanted to throw an engagement party on the spot. Stunned by her engagement, Chelsey’s sisters were asking if she had lost her mind. They didn’t know that she and Parker had dated for months and because of that, they thought the proposal was too soon.
Chelsey didn’t bother explaining that she had fallen in love with Parker within weeks of them going on their first date. Their bond and sexual chemistry had been almost immediate, but they’d both still had wanted to keep their union quiet at the time.
That seemed like so long ago, and now they were tossing around wedding dates and ideas. They hadn’t nailed down any solid plans, although Chelsey would be okay with going to the courthouse. All she wanted was to spend her life with Parker. In her mind and heart, a wedding was secondary. However, when she suggested the courthouse idea to him, he’d nixed it.
She smiled at the memory. Chelsey was pretty sure she had fallen more in love with him that day. Parker had said he couldn’t do that to her father; strip him of the opportunity to walk his baby girl down the aisle.
Sure, he’d love to walk her down the aisle, but her dad wasn’t like that. As long as she was happy, he’d go along with any decision she made. Unlike her siblings, her father had been thrilled by the news of their engagement and gave his blessings wholeheartedly. That probably had a lot to do with knowing Parker was a part of Atlanta’s Finest. Her dad thought the group could walk on water and were the finest people on this side of heaven.
When her cell phone rang, interrupting her musings, Chelsey assumed it was India calling. But when she pulled her phone out of the pocket of her running shorts, she saw that it wasn’t.
“Gwen,” Chelsey said by way of greeting when she answered the call. “How are you?”
She and her former parolee had been keeping in touch. Gwen was doing great and moving along in getting her life on track. With each call, she gushed about her daughters and filled Chelsey in on how well work and her support group was going.
“I’m wonderful,” Gwen said, a smile in her voice.
“What have you been up to?” Chelsey asked.
Small talk flowed between them, and warmth spread through Chelsey as she heard the excitement in Gwen’s voice. The woman had every reason to give up on life, but she hadn’t. She was excelling, and Chelsey couldn’t be more excited for her.
“Okay, let me stop going on and on about myself,” Gwen said on a laugh. “That’s not why I called you. When I was leaving the meeting with my parole officer this morning, I walked by the receptionist desk on my way out. I overheard a conversation with a guy who was asking about you.”
“Really? Who was he?”
“He told the receptionist he was a good friend of yours but had lost contact. She told him you no longer worked out of that office, but I don’t think she gave him your contact information.”
“Good. Can you describe the guy?”
Chelsey had no clue on who would’ve been looking for her. Anyone who was important to her would call her directly. Or they’d already know she worked at Supreme now.
“I only glanced at him. He was tall, good-looking with medium-brown skin.”
Gwen rattled off more details of what she remembered, and the person she described could’ve been Terrance. Not many people knew where she used to work, but he did. Only because she’d had him pick her up from there once.
“The only reason I’m calling to let you know is because he sounded like he was desperate to talk to you.”
“I think I know who it might’ve been. Thanks for letting me know.” Chelsey wasn’t sure what she was going to do with the information, though. Probably nothing since she was done with Terrance.
After she finished talking to Gwen, Chelsey spotted India and climbed out of her vehicle. She headed to where her friend stood on the edge of the basketball court.
“Welcome back,” Chelsey squealed. “How was Madrid?”
“Don’t even try that small-talk mess. I have barely been gone two weeks, and I return to find you engaged and maybe moving to Miami!” India screeched and flung her arms around Chelsey’s shoulders for a hug.
Chelsey laughed and ignored the attention they were getting from a few people strolling through the park.
“I know. I’m still pinching myself. I can’t believe it either.” Chelsey held her hand up and wiggled her fingers to bring attention to her ring.
India grabbed her hand. “Damn, girl, I’mma need my sunglasses, because you have some serious bling going on here. Chelsey, it’s beautiful! I’m so happy for you and Parker, and I hope you know that I’m taking full credit for you guys getting back together.”
Chelsey grinned. “Why am I not surprised?”
“Because it’s true, and my man has good taste. That ring is stunning,” she said as they started walking toward the trail that they’d run on.
“ Your man?” Chelsey said on a laugh. “Don’t you mean my man?”
“I said what I said. Remember, I was the one who was rooting for Parker even when he broke my best friend’s heart.”
Chelsey nodded. “True. You never gave up on him.”
“Nope, I didn’t. He’s the only man you’ve ever dated who I would’ve broken the girl code for.”
They both laughed and started their run in a slow jog before picking up speed.
For the next hour, they chatted nonstop about Madrid, India’s clients, Miami, and Parker’s new job offer. Chelsey hadn’t told her friend about Parker’s past and the revenge he was planning. She didn’t even go into details about Rock’s past, basically glazing over everything regarding the trip to Miami. Still, they had plenty to discuss during their run.
Once they made it back to their starting point, they were both winded.
“Whew, that was a good run,” India said, and they slowed to a walk. “I needed this.”
“I know, right? Me too. I have to work tonight, so I’m glad we were able to meet up in the middle of the day.”
They chatted about their work plans for the rest of the day, and Chelsey was even more thankful they’d been able to hook up. Seemed they both were busy these days, and anytime they could get together was precious.
“Are you walking home or do you want me to…” Chelsey’s words trailed off when she saw the person leaning against her car.
“What is it?” India said, following Chelsey’s line of sight. “Who is that?”
“Terrance.” They were at least fifty yards from him, and he hadn’t seen them yet. Chelsey pulled India behind a tree and near some bushes. Where they were standing, she could still see him, but he couldn’t see them.
“Terrance the Loser? That Terrance ?” India asked, glancing at him again. “What is he, like, stalking you or something? How’d he know you were here?”
“Good question, but it’s probably because I don’t change up my routine enough,” Chelsey mumbled.
She used to have Fridays off, and instead of running in the mornings, she’d run in the middle of the day depending on the weather. All he’d had to do was drive by, and he’d easily see her car since she always parked in the same lot.
“I was going to offer to drop you off at home,” Chelsey said, “but I think it would be better if you weren’t seen with me. I don’t trust this guy. I don’t want him to know who my friends are or anything else about me. So to be on the safe side, you go and head home. I’m going to talk to him.”
“Not by yourself,” India said. “If you’re concerned about my safety, then you should be concerned about yours, too. Either we go together, or you call the cops to get rid of him.”
Chelsey pinched the bridge of her nose. “India, I can handle him. He’s not a criminal. He’s just a low-down-dirty-liar, and the less he knows about who I hang out with, the better. Now go. If I don’t text you in ten minutes to let you know all is well, then call the cops.”
“Or maybe I should call Parker. I doubt if he’ll want you meeting with this guy alone.”
Chelsey sighed. “Please don’t and besides, he’s on an assignment. I promise you nothing is going to happen with Terrance. Just go. I’ll text you soon.”
After a slight hesitation, India relented. “Fine, I’ll go, but I’m not going far. I’ll be out of sight, but in shouting distance. So go before I change my mind and call Parker anyway. You’ve got ten minutes. Starting now.”
Chelsey growled under her breath. India was one of the most stubborn people she knew. It would be a waste of time arguing with her.
Chelsey jogged in place while glaring at her friend. “You get on my nerves.”
India flashed her a saucy smile. “Yeah, I love you too, Mrs. Wilcox. Now, go handle the loser, ’cause I got things to do. Chop. Chop .”
Chelsey sputtered a laugh, then took off at a jog.
Mrs. Wilcox . It had a nice ring to it.
As she neared the parking lot, Terrance spotted her and straightened.
She had only seen him for their dates, and during those times he was nicely dressed. Today, though, he looked like any other guy hanging out near the basketball courts wearing a T-shirt and basketball shorts.
She never would’ve pegged him for the tattooed type, though. He had a sleeve tattoo on both arms, which was something she hadn’t been privy to when they’d gone out. Each of those times, he’d been fairly buttoned up, looking like the professional she thought he was.
Barely winded, she stopped a couple of feet from him. “What are you doing here?”
“I came here to play a pickup game of basketball. When I saw your car, I figured you were running one of the trails. So I waited for you. I’ve missed our talks, and I was hoping we could hook up. Why haven’t you returned my phone calls?”
Seriously?
There was definitely something wrong with this man if he thought she’d ever want to be anywhere near him. Surely, he hadn’t expected to ever hear from her after the stunt he’d pulled.
Then again, considering how expectantly he was watching her, maybe he had.
She planted her hands on her hips. “Why should I have called you back, Terrance?”
He gritted his teeth. “Because it’s common courtesy to return people’s calls.”
Chelsey’s mouth dropped open, but she quickly closed it. Apparently, he was an idiot.
“It’s also common courtesy not to lie to someone about who you are, but that didn’t stop you, now did it?” Bastard , she wanted to say but kept the term of endearment to herself.
“Come on, Chelsey. I made a mistake. I should’ve been honest, but since me and my ex weren’t together any longer, I figured I didn’t need to mention her.”
There was no way she’d ever believe him over Parker. If Parker said Terrance was still with the woman, she believed him, but this was a non-issue. She was engaged to the man she loved, and Terrance was just one of many mistakes of her past.
“Get away from my car, Terrance, and lose my damn number.”
He charged toward her, but she wasn’t sure what he saw on her face, because he suddenly stopped less than a foot from her. She was ready for him. All she needed was an excuse to knock him the hell out.
Breathing hard as if he’d been the one to have just run four miles, he pointed a finger at her. “You ain’t all that!” he snapped.
“No? Then why are you here whining about me not calling you?” she retorted.
He growled under his breath and shoved his hands into the front pockets of his basketball shorts. “I haven’t forgotten that you sicced some dude on me.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she lied. “But I do know I didn’t sic anyone on you. Maybe that’s your guilty conscious messing with you since you tried to play me. Did you honestly think that I wouldn’t eventually find out what type of loser you were?”
“You better hope I don’t find out who that guy was who pulled a gun on me,” he said, ignoring her question. “Because when I do, it won’t end well for him.”
Chelsey chuckled, unable to help it. Parker was the last person this jerk wanted to fool with. “Actually, you’re the one who’d better hope you don’t run into him. I told you he was crazy, and I wasn’t kidding. Now, get away from my car before I call the cops and tell them you’ve been stalking me.”
Surprise registered in his eyes before they returned to the stoney glare he’d been giving her. “You wouldn’t.”
She pulled her phone from the side pocket of her running shorts. “Try me.”
Chelsey didn’t bother asking if he’d gone to her old job. At this point it didn’t matter. She just wanted to be done with him. Hopefully, the threat of calling the police would make him think twice before calling her again or showing up out of the blue.
Instead of him saying anything else, Terrance stormed away. Considering he’d claimed to be there to play basketball, he instead headed to his car.
Good. She hadn’t been kidding about calling the cops, though she hadn’t wanted to.
Climbing into her vehicle, Chelsey glanced over at the tree where she and India had been hiding and spotted her. Then she texted her.
Chelsey : Want a ride home?
India: Thanks, but I’ll walk. Need to work off the chocolate cake I ate last night. Talk later. I’mma want details.
“Of course you do,” Chelsey mumbled and laughed as she started the car.
When she backed out of the parking space, she noticed Terrance was still sitting in his car. When he saw her vehicle, he scowled and pointed a finger at her.
Chelsey shook her head.
Dude had issues.
Well, as long as he left her alone, they wouldn’t have a problem.
Let him come near her again, and he was going to regret the day he ever met her.