“Del and Daddy, you both need to relax. At some point, Delaney’s got to get out there again, Daddy. She deserves to have happiness and find a man who’s good to her too. She can’t let Clayton’s past behaviors impact her future.”
I felt a twinge of guilt about that, but I kept my mouth shut. With the way that Delaney was glaring at me, I didn’t need to say anything. I thought about everything that I had discovered as well as what had been shared with me, but I chose to keep quiet for now. There would come a time when I needed to share that information with her, and I would know when it was the right time.
“All right. I’m about to end the call now. I just wanted to make sure that you guys knew where I was and what was going on.”
“Baby, you didn’t tell me who he was.”
Delaney looked uncomfortable as she cleared her throat. The smirk was gone.
“It’s Clayton’s divorce attorney.”
“What the fuck you just say to me?”
Her dad was really on one, but I couldn’t blame him. If I were in his shoes, I would react the same way.
“Sorry, Daddy. Gotta go.”
She ended the call abruptly and then glared at me. Inhaling and slowly exhaling, she tucked her phone away and then looked back up at me. With her eyebrows lifted, she asked, “Well, aren’t you going to give me a tour?”
I chuckled and replied, “You’re something else, you know that?”
“As long as you know.”
Her tone was sassy, but I loved that. It let me know that despite all Clayton had taken her through, he had not killed her spirit. She didn’t seem to believe in love or trust men anymore, but I was on a mission to change all of that for baby girl.
“Delaney, meet Captain Omar Pierce. He will be sailing the catamaran this afternoon.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Delaney. I hope that you enjoy the cruise.”
We turned to the woman standing beside the captain, and I introduced her. “And this is Skylar Pierce, his wife, and our private chef for the afternoon.”
“Hello, sis. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ll be serving shrimp, catfish, grits, parmesan roasted green beans, a squash casserole, slow cooked sweet potatoes, and drop biscuits. If there is anything else you would like in addition to or in place of that, just let me know.”
“That sounds delicious, and I think what you’re serving is perfect,” Delaney replied to Skylar, with a beautiful smile.
They both nodded, and when I took Delaney’s hand and led her away, her stomach growled loudly.
I smiled and winked at her. “Don’t worry. You’ll have a good time and a delicious meal,” I promised.
5
DELANEY
Although I had been embarrassed when my stomach growled in front of Naijhel, I wasn’t about to let that keep me from eating. I was starving, and if I got nothing else out of this date, I was going to enjoy a good meal. I had planned on making it a miserable date, but it was difficult when he was being so charming and nice. I still didn’t trust him, and I still hadn’t told Damaris about who he was. I was embarrassed because I feared that his true intentions weren’t good. What had Clayton said about me that had him buying me at an auction?
“So, tell me, Naijhel. Is this part of some elaborate plan you and Clayton have concocted to continue punishing me?” I asked after we sat down to eat.
While we had waited for the food to be cooked, he had given me a tour of the catamaran, and then we had settled down for drinks and enjoyed the view. He had pointed out a whale and even a pod of dolphins that played around the boat and playfully threw water our way. I laughed when one of them became extremely playful, constantly splashing water at me and communicating with his series of signature whistles and clicks.
Naijhel had teased me and told me that he thought the dolphin had a crush on me. I had blushed at the compliment, but I hadn’t responded.
“Why would I need to concoct anything with Clayton? I’m a grown ass man, and I don’t need his help getting to you. Besides, you haven’t done anything to me to make me want to punish you.”
“Well, I also cannot imagine why you wanted to bid on me.”
“You’re a beautiful, interesting woman, and I would like to get to know you better.”
I sipped my wine and eyed him carefully over the rim of my glass. “There are too many women out there for you to be interested in your client’s ex. Or tell me, Mr. King, is that some sort of kink for you?”
