In Donovan's Arms: A Romance Novel by Courtney Michelle

vii

3 months later...

Xela and the girls were at the mall doing some last-minute shopping before leaving for the trip today. They were currently in a shoe store looking for some heels. They planned to have a group dinner sometime over the weekend and they already had their outfits.

"Oooh, these are cute Ala! You think they would go with your dress?" Nadia approached her with a pair of sky-blue peep toe heels, "Girl, hell yes! Lemme see." The two continued their conversation as Xela picked up a pair of white thigh high boots. They'd pair perfectly with the black blouse and leather pants she planned to wear for dinner.

"Hey, you okay? You've been super quiet all morning." Alani asked Xela, she looked up from trying to find her size and gave her friend a half smile before nodding, "Yeah I'm just a little tired. Do you like these for that outfit I showed you last night?" She asked quickly changing the subject.

Although Alani knew what she was doing, she replied anyway, "Of course. It would go good with some silver jewelry too." She said pulling out a box that held Xela's size prompting Xela to smile and take them while thanking her.

They continued to shop until they decided it was time to depart and finish getting their things together so they could leave on time. They would be leaving at 3 am so they could arrive by sunrise in the Bahamas.

Once Xela got home, she went straight to her room and put her bags on the bed before grabbing her suitcases; one full of clothes and necessities, the other held her shoes and makeup. She added her boots to one and her new clothes to the other then took them both downstairs to the front door.

She had dropped Xander off at her neighbor's earlier; they'd grown a slight friendship since their meeting at a local dog park. Her name was Rose, a 24-year-old milk chocolate colored woman with big brown eyes and a pretty smile. She stood at 5'9" and was slightly thicker than girls her height, but she says she embraced all that God gifted to her.

Her dog's name was Gia and if Xela knew any better, she'd think Xander had a little crush on her. She lightly laughed at the thought before making her way back up the stairs to make she had everything she needed by the door. After she was done, she laid back on the couch to rest her eyes before the girls came to pick her up.

Before she knew it, Xela was woken up by the sound of her doorbell ringing as well as her phone. She opened the door to see Nadia dressed in a lime green matching short set and green sunglasses even though the sun was far from rising, "WHO'S READY FOR THE BAHAMAS BITCHES?!" She exclaimed making Xela laugh sleepily as she grabbed her suitcases.

Nadia helped take Xela's things to the car while she checked once more to make sure she had all of her essentials. She locked the door then followed Nadia to Nicki's blacked out SUV Lincoln. Her push gift from Dontae.

Once her suitcases were settled, she climbed into the front seat and greeted everyone. "Hey boo, sleep good?" Nicki asked as Xela closed the door. "Yeah, I did. Cute push gift." Xela said with a smile making Nicki blush. "He had it waiting for me when I got back from shopping earlier." She said cheekily causing Xela to coo at her.

The girls made their way to the jet center where Dontae stood outside their private plane waiting for their arrival. They pulled up next to the stairs and Dontae slowly descended them with 2 figures following behind him.

Xela knew that Niala had given Terrance the okay to join the trip. However, who the third person was she couldn't even begin to bring herself to know. That is until she got out of the car and they came all the way out.

The moment she saw him she gets pissed off. She hadn't seen him since that day at Amelia's and she's been thankful up until this point. Nicki brought her clutch to her the next day, so she knows about what happened between them.