“I think you’re being a little too hasty in—”
“Hasty!” Nydia said, cutting her off. “Please, Jazz. I don’t want to talk about Lamar Pierce.” Once Nydia ended her relationship with her ex she had purposefully put up a shield to keep all men at a distance, and had given herself a year of not dating anyone to assess what she wanted for her future.
A beat passed before Jasmine said, “Okay.”
Nydia exhaled an audible sigh of relief as she glanced up at the building, set behind a massive wrought-iron door. “This place is huge.”
“It used to be a warehouse where bales of raw cotton were stored before they were loaded onto ships and transported to New England or European cotton mills.”
“Why did Cameron decide to buy a warehouse?”
“He said although he finds it convenient living in a hotel, he claims he wanted a place where he could entertain clients, friends, and family without reserving a room at the LaSalle.”
“I haven’t even seen the inside, but I’m willing to bet it’s as large the DuPont Inn.”
Jasmine nodded. “It’s about the same.”
“Coño,mija. I can’t believe it’s only going to be you, Cameron, and that little muffin cooking inside you living in this mansion. After you have your baby, you need to wait for your six-week checkup and start working on another one. A house this big needs the patter of a lot of little feet.”
“That’s not happening, Nydia. If Cameron and I decide to have more children, then we’ll adopt. And speaking of babies, I’d be honored if you’d be godmother to this one.”
Nydia stared wide-eyed, unblinking. “Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure. I wouldn’t be asking if I wasn’t sure.”
Unexpected tears filled Nydia’s eyes, and she was suddenly overcome with a swell of emotion. She had wanted to be godmother to one of her nieces, but when it didn’t happen she dismissed it as her sisters-in-law’s choice to make. “Thank you, Jasmine. I’m really honored you asked me.”
“No more talk about the baby,” Jasmine saidsotto voce. “Lamar’s coming back.”
Nydia reached into her cross-body purse for a tissue and touched it to the corners of her eyes. She rarely exhibited public displays of emotion, but Jasmine asking her to become godmother to her son or daughter was an honor she would cherish forever. If only a few people knew about Cameron marrying Jasmine, even fewer knew that he was going to be a father.
Lamar handed each a bright yellow hard hat. “Please put these on, and watch where you step once we’re inside.”
Nydia ignored Lamar’s furtive glance as she put on the hat. She had to concede he was extremely attractive, but she found his features rather delicate for a man. She estimated he was at least forty or close to it despite his close-cropped prematurely gray hair, which was a striking contrast to his unlined sable-brown complexion. High cheekbones and a hint of the cleft in his strong chin all made for an arresting face. He was casually dressed in a pair of khakis, a navy-blue golf shirt, and tan work boots.
Lamar put on his own hard hat and unlocked the wrought-iron door leading to a cobblestone walkway that opened out into an expansive courtyard. Several dumpsters and construction equipment took up two corners of the open space that was an emerald jungle with trees, flowering shrubs, and ferns growing in abandon. There was also an enormous fountain in the middle of the enclosure with a marble cherub holding a pitcher from which water would flow if operable.
“Can you imagine holding a cookout here?” Nydia whispered to Jasmine, unaware that Lamar had overheard her. “I thought St. John’s backyard was big, but this is incredible.”
Jasmine nodded. “If the house had been completely renovated, I would’ve convinced Cameron to have the ceremony and reception here.”
“I saw the video from Tonya’s wedding, and the courtyard where they exchanged vows made it look like a fairy-tale wedding.”
“I’m sorry you missed it.”
Nydia hadn’t experienced a lot of disappointment in her life, but not being able to attend Tonya’s wedding was one. She’d been confined to a hospital bed with pain and antibiotic fluids running through an IV and into her body while her friend was marrying a man with whom she had been given a second chance at love. Nydia knew even if she hadn’t delayed seeking medical attention with the onset of pain in her side, she still wouldn’t have been cleared to travel in time to attend Tonya and Gage’s nuptials. However, she was given the opportunity to attend another wedding two months later as Jasmine married Cameron.
She wasn’t able to conceal a gasp of astonishment when Lamar opened another oak door to an enormous street-level space with stone floors and brick walls. The sounds of hammering, sawing, and drilling could be heard over the distinctive voice of Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean.”
“Watch your step,” Lamar cautioned as he led the way to the rear of the property. Several men nodded to him before going back to concentrate on their tasks.
Nydia pulled her eyes away from a trio of staircases leading to the upper stories. She carefully wended her way through sawhorses, wheelbarrows, stacks of bricks, cinder blocks, coils of wire, and copper piping. When Jasmine had informed her that Cameron had bought a house, she thought it would be similar to the ones featured in the French Quarter with shuttered windows and decorative wrought-iron balconies, and not one where intercoms were essential in order to communicate with one another.
Nydia and Jasmine expelled audible gasps at the same time when they stepped out onto the loggia with the cross-beamed ceiling supported by brick columns and terra-cotta flooring. It was the perfect place to begin and end the day.
“I hope it meets your specifications,” Lamar said to Jasmine.
Her smile mirrored approval. “It’s perfect and beyond my expectations.” She pressed her palms together. “Thank you again for taking the time to show me what you’ve done with the loggia. I hope to see you again at my wedding.”
