Read Online Comfort of a Man (Arabesque) by Adrianne Byrd - Free Book Online Page A

you?”
    Toni shrugged off her concern. “It never hurts for a woman to have connections. You’ll do good to remember that. I even think I know someone to set your ex-husband straight.”
    “Let’s not forget Macy in this dream vendetta.”
    “Who’s dreaming?” Toni laughed.
    Brooklyn could only manage a butterfly smile. “I was pretty snotty to him.”
    “Then flash him your twin peaks and I bet he’ll be willing to forget all about it. Trust me.”
    Brooklyn considered it. Not only was the man great looking, he was quite simply the best she’d ever had in bed.
    Toni laughed. “Frankly, I don’t think you have it in you.”
    Brooklyn rolled her eyes. “Please tell me you’re not trying to dare me into having a fling. That’s juvenile.”
    “Why not? We dared you into a one-night stand, didn’t we?”
    More crow pie, Brooklyn realized. “You know, I thought once you were an adult, you didn’t have to put up with peer pressure.”
    Toni held up her hands. “What pressure? I’m just giving you some friendly advice. When you first returned from New York, you were a changed woman. You were singing and being optimistic about everything. Hell, even Evan and Jaleel weren’t getting on your nerves.”
    Incredulous, Brooklyn’s mouth rounded.
    “What? It’s true. Don’t shoot the messenger.”
    “I’ve just been under a lot of stress.”
    “And sex is the best stress reliever.”
    Once again, Brooklyn fell silent, but secretly she agreed with her friend. Isaiah had performed wonders on her stress level. She did remember not being bothered by the news of Evan and Macy’s outlandish behavior at one of their old friend’s New Year’s Eve parties. In fact her response had been “who cares?”
    “Sex is a great stress reliever,” she agreed.
    “My point exactly,” Toni said, smiling.
    “Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t say I was going to do it. I mean, it takes two to tango and after what happened this morning, I seriously doubt—”
    “More excuses.” Toni shook her head. “If your night with him was half as good as you let on, then you’ll have no trouble getting that man back into your bed. Trust me.”
    Brooklyn pondered the situation over again.
    “Now what are you thinking about?” Toni asked.
    “I wonder what was the emergency he had to get to this afternoon.”
     
    In a private room in Gwinnett Hospital, Isaiah sat beside his mother’s bed, holding her hand as he waited for her to wake up. He’d never seen her look so vulnerable—so fragile. As much as he wanted to grab her and hold on to her, such an act looked as though it could break her. His lack of sleep in the past twenty-four hours took its toll and he could feel his eyelids grow heavy with each beep of the heart monitor.
    When he’d first arrived, the seriousness of his mother’s condition hit him like a ton of bricks and he’d vowed to start taking better care of her.
    The doctor believed his mother would make a full recovery. It’d helped that she had always taken excellent care of her health, but the fact that she still had a stroke unnerved him.
    Isaiah massaged his mother’s knuckles with his thumb, trying to get used to the concept that for the first time in his life, he had to step into the role of being the nurturer. They were big shoes to fill and he was already feeling inept.
    As he continued to sit there, his guilt held up a large mirror and he discovered a long list of reasons as to how and why he’d played a big part in what happened.Surely he could call more than twice a month, he could visit more than just on Thanksgiving.
    In no time, Isaiah’s eyes drifted closed and a kaleidoscope of memories and pictures filled his head. Within all that clutter, he couldn’t find one snapshot of his mother crying or brooding. She was the kind of mother who had shouldered pressure and stress with a smile, and banished financial troubles with a dynamic show of ease. In fact, it wasn’t until Isaiah prepared