Crazy in Love 2

Genres: African American; African American Urban

Synopsis

It’s been four years since the tragic suicide-death of Yadira Cruz and thirty-eight year old Correction Officer Sean Daniels’ life was finally on the right track. He was married to the beautiful Milan; he had a successful law enforcement career, a supportive family and great friends. But when Sean’s ex-lover, Brandi Wallace suddenly re-enters his life, he sees everything that he worked so hard to build flashing before his eyes.

Brandi is a very attractive woman and part of a shameful past that Sean desperately tries to forget. But the temptation to rekindle their steamy romance becomes very hard for Sean to resist and the persistent Brandi will not be stopped. She insists on reminding him that they have unfinished business to tend to and she won’t quit until she get what she wants.

Release date: May 1, 2015

Publisher: Urban Books

Print pages: 288

Sample

October, 2012

It was a hectic Friday for Brandi Wallace. She was so looking forward to her weekend off from her demanding job.

A career-driven woman and a stickler when it came to her job, Brandi loved her position as a director for the Administration of Children’s Services. She had a great rapport with her subordinates and, more importantly, they all got the job done. But even though Brandi was quite successful in that area, there was something missing from her life: a meaningful relationship. She sighed loudly, as she thought about her lackluster love life.

Brandi hummed along with Beyoncé, as she drove her Audi Q5 truck across the Brooklyn Bridge. She was a little exhausted from putting in some hours at work but for some strange reason, she was not in the mood to go straight home. So instead of heading straight to her East New York residence and letting a Calgon bubble bath take her away; Brandi made an unexpected detour.

As soon as Brandi arrived in the borough of Brooklyn, her hometown, she headed straight for Halsey Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant. She wasn’t going to visit anyone in particular, or even had a real destination. She just wanted to recapture the memories of what could have been.

Brandi pulled up on Halsey Street and parked her car. She got out of the vehicle, standing a few feet away from a lovely brownstone. She took a few seconds to admire the oak double doors and natural stone steps. But the beautiful home wasn’t what brought her to the Halsey Street address. The home belonged to her former flame, Sean Daniels.

Brandi smiled to herself as she thought about the fun times she had with Sean. They met each other in September of 2009, in a place that she would have never expected to meet any man. He was a strapping thirty-three-year-old man, three years younger than the thirty-six-year-old Brandi. But the small age gap didn’t bother the sexy cougar one bit; she just loved Sean’s laidback demeanor. And what she really liked most about Sean was that he wasn’t intimidated by her at all. He had a silent confidence that even men her own age lacked.

It was obvious that Sean left quite an impression on Brandi. It was refreshing for her to have met a man who had his act together. Brandi wouldn’t have it any other way.

Brandi laughed to herself. She couldn’t believe that she was actually standing in front of Sean’s house! But she couldn’t help herself; it was hard to stop thinking about him. It was also part of her that made her curious to find out how his life turned out after they went their separate ways. Brandi sighed. The end of their budding relationship started with a woman by the name of Yadira Cruz. Yadira’s deadly obsession with Sean was what really ruined their chances of ever having a normal union.

Now it was almost four years since the death of Yadira. The emotionally disturbed woman had taken her life, right in Sean’s house. But even after so many years had passed, Brandi just couldn’t bring herself to sympathize or even empathize with Yadira. It was hard for her to feel sorry for a woman who committed suicide because she couldn’t have a man.

Brandi hated Yadira for killing herself. Her tragic death was always a reminder of why Brandi never got with Sean, a man who could have potentially been her husband.

Brandi took one last look at the brownstone and sighed. She was probably the only one out of the two of them who was still obsessing over the what-ifs. And Sean hadn’t tried to contact her in three years. It was painfully evident that he had moved on. It was definitely time for Brandi to let go of the past and move on too.

As Brandi walked back to her parked vehicle, the thoughts of Sean didn’t end there. She began reminiscing about the very first time that she met the charming bachelor. In the late summer of 2009, Brandi’s nineteen-year-old son, Shamari, who was facing robbery charges, had to be detained on Rikers Island. Before the incident, no one could have ever told her that her only child would be in jail at all, let alone for some robbery offense. Brandi was heartbroken, for she had given him everything that a child could ask for and more; in other words, Shamari wanted for nothing. But although the idea of her son being locked up had her upset, she stood by his side. After all, she was all that he had.

Brandi remembered how it used to take everything for her to walk through the doors of the jail to visit Shamari. She was so stressed out about the entire ordeal. Jail was no place for anyone, especially her baby, and she found it hard to believe that the intelligent Shamari put himself in that position. Brandi knew her son was much smarter than that.

Walking through the doors of that same facility was where Correction Officer Sean Daniels entered her life. He was very helpful to them and assured Brandi that he would keep an eye on Shamari for her. Being a mother, she was more than grateful for that. But while she was looking at the attractive thirty-three-year-old, she couldn’t deny the strong physical attraction that she had to him. Aside from everything that Sean said that he was going to do for Shamari, Brandi found herself wanting to get to know him better.

On the day that Brandi met Sean, she had left work early. She had to do that in order to make the miserable trek from her job in Manhattan to Rikers Island in Queens to see Shamari, her incarcerated son.

Usually, on the days that Brandi visited Shamari everything would go smoothly. But on this day, things weren’t getting off to a good start. For one, Brandi had forgotten her change of clothes at home. She hated wearing her professional clothing to that jail. When she did, she got the stares and dirty looks from the other visitors. Even a few correction officers looked at her funny. It was as if they were wondering who she was coming to Rikers Island to visit.

After arriving at Rikers and going though the grueling registration process, search, and waiting procedures that day, Brandi was finally seated at a table on the crowded visit area floor. As she anxiously waited for Shamari to walk through the sliding metal doors, she could feel the butterflies fluttering in her stomach. Brandi was looking forward to seeing her son, even though every time she saw him in that Godforsaken correction-issued jumpsuit, she just wanted to break down and cry. But she did her best not to do that in front of Shamari. He hated when she cried and she wanted to be strong for the both of them.

When the sliding door opened, Shamari walked out onto the visit floor. He appeared to have adjusted to his environment well; it even looked as if he had grown an inch or two in height. Brandi didn’t think that it was possible for Shamari to gain any weight but he had managed to put some pounds on his lean frame. And peach fuzz on his chin had gotten a little thicker since the last time she visited him.

When Shamari approached the table, Brandi stood up and greeted him with a smile and hug. Shamari hugged her back and kissed her on the cheek.

“Hey, Ma,” he said, while attempting to smile back at her. “Thanks for coming to see me.”

Brandi felt a lump building in her throat. “Now you know that I was gonna come and see my baby, Shaki,” she said, calling him by his childhood nickname. “Even though I despise this got damn place, I can’t let you sit in this jail without coming to visit you.”

Shamari managed to smile at his mother. He held her hands in his own and kissed them. “Love you, Ma,” he said, looking as if he was about to tear up. “You know that I appreciate you, right?”

“I know you do, baby. I know you do,” Brandi gushed.

A visit officer approached their table, interrupting their mother-and-son moment. Brandi wanted to protest but when she looked up at him, she was staring in the face of an exceptionally handsome man. Damn! Who the hell is this? Brandi tried to take in all of the officer’s manly attributes in one glance. She saw that his uniform was fitting him to a tee. When she felt her eyes wandering to his crotch area, she caught herself. Brandi almost forgot that Shamari was sitting there, watching her reaction to the officer’s presence. She could tell from Shamari’s facial expression that he caught an instant attitude.

“Hey, what’s up, young blood?” the officer said to Shamari. “How’s everything going over here?”

“Everything is fine, CO,” Shamari replied, giving the officer a suspicious look. “We’re good, man.”

The handsome officer looked at Brandi. “And how are you, miss?” he asked.

Brandi smiled at him. “I’m okay, Officer. I’m just here visiting my son,” she said, looking at his nametag. “Officer Daniels.”

When Brandi said that she was visiting her son, CO Daniels quickly extended his hand to her. Shamari sighed loudly and crossed his arms.

“Oh, wow!” Daniels exclaimed, ignoring Shamari’s nonverbal gestures. “This grown man right here is your son?” he asked, pointing at Shamari.

Brandi sighed too. “Yep, this is my baby,” she replied, with a faint smile on her face.

Daniels rubbed his chin and stared at Shamari. “Oh, okay, say no more! Your baby boy is in good hands.” He looked at Shamari. “By the way, what housing area are you in?” he asked.

Brandi rolled her eyes. She prayed that Shamari didn’t embarrass her on that visit floor. But her prayers weren’t answered. He gave Daniels a nasty look. “I’m in Five North, man. Why?” Shamari replied.

Once again, Daniels acted as if he didn’t notice Shamari’s callous attitude toward him. “Oh, yeah? That’s my old steady housing area right there. I’ll put the word out and tell the officers up there to look out for you, man.”

Shamari impatiently shifted his behind in the hard seat. “Look, man, you ain’t gotta do nothing for me! I don’t fu . . .” he began, looking at his mother before he cussed. “I mean, I don’t fool with too many of these cats in here anyway! And I damn sure don’t fu . . . I mean, fool with no po-lice!”

Now Brandi was getting pissed with her son’s ungratefulness. “Will you just shut the hell up, Shamari?” she said, scolding him and talking through clenched teeth. “Your attitude and your hard head is exactly why your ass is in the trouble that you’re in now!” Brandi looked at CO Daniels apologetically. “I want to apologize for my son’s ignorance. He’s always had this problem with authority,” she added, rolling her eyes at Shamari in the process. “My son really doesn’t belong here. I didn’t raise him like this,” she continued, feeling the need to explain herself to the officer. “Being in this . . . this shithole is nothing but a pit stop before death. And I don’t know what it’s going to take for him . . .” Brandi’s eyes began to get watery and she drifted off.

CO Daniels cleared his throat. “Oh, man. Okay, listen, I’m so sorry for interrupting you and your son, miss. It looks like you two need to have a serious talk. I’m gonna go back to do what I’m paid to do. Enjoy the rest of the visit,” he said, before quickly walking off.

As soon as Daniels left their table, Brandi went off on Shamari. “What the hell is wrong with you, Shamari?” she asked, while looking around the visit floor to see who was listening to her. “That officer was being nice to you and you acted like a complete jackass to him! You need somebody to look out for you while you’re in this place!”

Shamari looked his mother straight in the eye. “Like I said, Ma, I don’t need nothing from nobody, especially from no got damn po-lice!”

Brandi felt like slapping the taste out of Shamari’s mouth. In his display of defiance and stubbornness, he reminded her so much of his father, Maleek. Maleek had been dead since Shamari was five years old but it was amazing how their personalities were so similar.

“And what about you, Ma?” he whispered, holding out both hands. “You sitting here flirting with some po-lice nigga right in front of your own son! The only reason that that nigga came over here to do was to holler at you and here you go acting like you ain’t see what he was doing. Damn! You fell the fuck off!”

Brandi’s right eyebrow shot up. “Boy, what in the hell are you talking about and who are you talking to?” she whispered back. “First of all, I’m a grown-ass motherfucking woman and damn, the got damn man was just trying to be nice!”

Shamari huffed. “I done already told you and that lame-ass cop that I don’t need anybody looking out for me, especially some police nigga! I’m not going to tell you or him that shit again!”

Brandi let out a sarcastic chuckle. “Oh! Is that right?” she replied, looking at Shamari like he had flipped his wig. “So you got this, huh? Well, if you got this, Shamari Wallace, then give me back my five thousand dollar retainer that I had to put out for that got damn lawyer of yours! And how about the commissary money that you’re always begging me for? Huh? And please, let’s not forget about the packages that I send you in the mail every other week!”

A dumb look came over Shamari’s face but he didn’t say one word.

“That’s what the hell I thought!” Brandi said, tightening her jaw. She shook her head and took a few seconds to compose herself. “As a matter of fact, I cannot be aggravated with you right now. I’m going home!”

Brandi stood up to walk off the visit floor but as she was about to do that, Daniels rushed back over to the table to ask her to sit back down. He then explained to her that the inmate was always the first to leave the visit area.

Brandi plopped back down in the chair. “I’m sorry about that but we have a serious problem here,” she replied angrily. “My son obviously doesn’t appreciate his mother coming to this filthy place to visit his unappreciative ass!”

Shamari sucked his teeth and waved his mother off. “Ma, c’mon, cut it out! You are bugging out right now!” he said. “A few minutes ago, I just told you that I appreciated you coming to see me and now you’re saying that I’m ungrateful? Wow!”

Brandi pointed a French manicured finger in Shamari’s peach fuzz face. “I was sixteen going on seventeen years old when I got pregnant with you, Shamari. I made all kinds of sacrifices trying to provide you with everything that you needed so that you wouldn’t be out in these streets trying to steal, cheat, or rob! I gave you the best so that you wouldn’t have to go through shit like this!”

Shamari had a smug expression on his face while some nearby visitors and fellow inmates stared at him. He sat there with his arms folded, acting like the child he was. And he did not bother to respond or even apologize to his mother. Instead, Shamari got up and stomped out of the visiting area without even saying good-bye to her.

Brandi took a deep breath, trying to hold back tears of frustration. She immediately left the visit floor, wondering where she had gone wrong while raising her child.

Daniels followed the upset Brandi back to the registration area and watched as she retrieved her personal items from the visitors’ lockers. After gathering her things, Brandi sat in one of the empty seats to wait for the visit bus to take her and other visitors back to the parking lot. When she looked up, Daniels was right there with a look of concern on his face.

Brandi shook her head. “I have to apologize again for his bratty behavior,” she said, forcing a smile. “Thank you, Mr. Daniels, for wanting to help my son.”

Daniels sat beside her. “Oh, it was no problem,” he replied. “And don’t worry, I’m still gonna look out for him so don’t get yourself too upset. He was just trying to prove to his mother and to me that he’s a fucking tough guy.” Brandi laughed a little. “But seriously, I’ve been doing this for a while so that attitude of his is nothing new to me.” He paused. “Oh, by the way, I’m Sean.”

Brandi giggled. “Oh, shoot, please forgive me. I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Brandi. Brandi Wallace.”

“Well, Brandi, I hope I’m not being too forward but I think that you’re a very beautiful woman. I hope you don’t mind me saying so.”

Brandi blushed. “Thanks, Sean. I appreciate the compliment. You’re a handsome guy.”

Sean smiled at her. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

Brandi rumbled through her bag to retrieve one of her business cards. When she found one, she placed it in his hand. Before she could say another word, she lined up at the door with the other visitors to board the bus.

Brandi looked back at Sean and waved good-bye. Then she mouthed the words “call me.” He smiled back at her and gave her a head nod. When she looked back one more time, Sean was still standing there, watching her. He stood there until she was completely out of his sight.

Since she and Sean went their separate ways, Brandi dated men who didn’t quite measure up to what she really wanted. But in 2010, Brandi met someone she thought was special. She even endured an eleven-month relationship with the man and everything. She just couldn’t get into him. Out of fairness to the guy, she had to let him go.

Brandi turned up the radio in her truck. “Ascension” by Maxwell came blaring through her speakers. It was her and Sean’s favorite song.

An hour after Brandi pulled off from Halsey Street, newlyweds Sean and Milan Daniels exited the door of their brownstone. They were walking down the stairs together when suddenly the affectionate Milan turned around and placed a soft kiss on her husband’s lips.

“Damn, baby,” she said, wiping her Bobbi Brown lip gloss from his mouth. “I’m gonna miss you this weekend! It’s messed up that they’re sending me on this last-minute business trip on your days off! We could have spent this entire weekend in bed together.”

Sean smiled at his wife of one year. “Yeah, me too, sweetheart,” he replied, as he made his way down the stairs with her luggage in tow. “By the way, what the hell do you have in this suitcase? You’re only going to Atlanta for the weekend, babe!”

Milan pressed the alarm to her Mercedes-Benz coupe and the trunk popped open. “I know, I know! But I couldn’t make up my mind about what I wanted to wear,” she said, pouting her full lips.

Sean shook his head at her and smiled. He threw the heavy suitcase into the back of the trunk.

Milan held out her arms. “Hey, hey, hey! Be careful with the bag, brother man!” she joked. “I gots all my good shit in there, man!”

Sean laughed and closed the trunk. “That’s my bad, beautiful,” he replied, giving her another kiss on the lips. “I know you have your own money and everything but do you mind if a brother adds to your riches, my queen?” Sean asked, pulling out his wallet.

Milan held out her hand. “Why, of course, you can, my king!”

Sean counted out five hundred-dollar bills for Milan and put them in her hand. She dug in her bag to retrieve her wallet. She put the money away and wrapped her arms around Sean’s broad shoulders.

“I love you so much, Mr. Daniels,” she whispered. “Now you better be a good boy until mama gets home. Once I come back from my trip and walk through that front door, you can be bad all over again.”

They shared yet another intimate kiss. Sean grabbed Milan’s plump derriere and squeezed tightly. She giggled and playfully slapped his hands away.

“Stop playing, nasty!” said Milan. “You must want me to miss my flight.”

Sean stepped back. “Nah, babe, I don’t want you to do that. As much as I wouldn’t mind having some more of that good stuff, you have to go and take care of business.”

Milan sighed. “Yeah, I do.” She kissed Sean again, got into the driver’s seat of her car, and started it up. “I will call you as soon as I’m about to board the plane. I love you, babe.”

“I love you too, sweetheart. See you Monday.”

Sean stood by the curb and watched Milan pull off. When she made a left turn at the corner of their block, he walked back into his house.

Minutes after Milan’s departure, Sean put on some tunes and began tidying up the sprawling brownstone. As he dusted, swept, mopped, and polished furniture, he sang along with the song, while grinding his torso to the beat.

Sean laughed at his horrible attempt at singing. He could recall a time when something as simple as laughter was something that he wasn’t able to do. But thanks to Milan, his entire life had changed.

He recalled the first time that they met.

Sean first laid eyes on the stunning Milan Garrett at a cocktail mixer in the summer of 2010. A close friend of his was having the event in the spacious backyard of his Dix Hills home. Sean spotted Milan sashaying across the yard in a white flowing maxi dress that clung to every curve. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. He thought that Milan was a knockout, with her small waist and wide hips; not to mention she had one of the most inviting smiles that he had ever seen. Sean knew that he had to meet her. He quickly made his way through the crowd of people and over to Milan, who was chatting it up with a small group of women.

“Um, excuse me, ladies,” Sean said to the other women. “I hate to interrupt y’all but I couldn’t help but notice this beautiful woman right here,” he said, taking Milan’s hand into his. “I just had to come over here and introduce myself.”

The women applauded and laughed at Sean’s chivalrous gesture. They walked away to tend to some other activities at the mixer while Milan just stood there, looking at the charismatic Sean with an apprehensive look on her face.

“How you doing, sweetheart?” he greeted her. “I’m sorry to be so forward but you are irresistible. What’s your name?”

Milan still seemed a little skeptical but she smiled at him anyway. “The name’s Milan Garrett. And yours?”

Sean placed a kiss on her baby soft hand. “My name is Sean Daniels. It is a pleasure to meet you. You have to excuse a brother but I have to get straight to the point. Do you have a man here or is that problem at home? Are you married? Any children?”

Milan shook her head and laughed. “Boy, slow down!” she said. “First off, I don’t have a child! And I don’t have much time for a relationship because I’m focusing on my career right now.”

“Ah, damn,” Sean said, letting go of her hand.

Milan looked confused. “What does that ‘damn’ mean?”

“That damn means what do I say to you now? You just said that you don’t have time for a relationship and I was looking forward to you being my lady one day. You’re definitely the one.”

The flattered Milan wrapped her arm around. . .