King of Devon Read online

  KING

  OF

  Devon

  Book 4 of the Kings of the Castle Series

  Book 1 is the Introduction

  Books 2-9 are standalones

  Naleighna Kai

  Macro Publishing Group

  Chicago, Illinois

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  King of Devon by Naleighna Kai Copyright ©2019

  ISBN: [Ebook] 978-1-7331782-2-8

  ISBN: [Trade Paperback] 978-1-7331782-3-5

  Macro Publishing Group

  1507 E. 53rd Street, #858

  Chicago, IL 60615

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever or by any means including electronic, mechanical or photocopying, or stored in a retrieval system without written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For permission, contact Naleighna Kai at www.naleighnakai.com

  Cover Designed by: J.L Woodson: www.woodsoncreativestudio.com

  Interior Designed by: Lissa Woodson: www.naleighnakai.com

  Editor: Lissa Woodson: www.naleighnakai.com

  KING

  OF

  Devon

  Book 4 of the Kings of the Castle Series

  Book 1 is the Introduction

  Books 2-9 are standalones

  Naleighna Kai

  Table of Contents

  DEDICATION

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  EPILOGUE

  ABOUT THE KINGS OF THE CASTLE SERIES

  ABOUT THE KINGS OF THE CASTLE SERIES

  AUTHOR BIOS

  SERIES MENTORS:

  ♦ DEDICATION ♦

  Jean Woodson, Eric Harold Spears, LaKecia Janise Woodson, Mildred E. Williams, Anthony Johnson, Tanishia Pearson Jones, Priscilla Jackson.

  ♦ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ♦

  All praises to the Creator for all lessons and blessings.

  Sesvalah, Debra J. Mitchell, J. L. Woodson (for the awesome cover design for King of Devon and the entire series), Kelly Peterson, Bobby Kim, LaVerne Thomspon, Kassanna Dwight, Olivia Gaines, Vikkas Bhardwaj, Betty Clawson, Amanda McCoy, Christine Pauls, Ellen Kiley Goeckler, the Kings of the Castle Ambassadors, Members of Naleighna Kai’s Literary Cafe, the member of NK Tribe Called Success: J. D. Mason, Terri Ann Johnson, Anita L. Roseboro, Siera Kay, Michelle D. Rayford, Shanna Harper, Shakir Rashaan, Pat G’Orge-Walker, Siera London, Mo Sytsma, and my fellow KOC writing queens: J. L. Campbel, Janice Allen, Karen Bradley, Lisa Watson, London St. Charles, MarZe Scott, martha Kennerson, and S. L. Jennings.

  One Love,

  CHAPTER 1

  “What do you mean she’s in labor? Jai gripped the edge of the desk, with the phone pressed to his ear. “That’s … well, that’s impossible.”

  His heart slammed in his chest when Kelly Peterson didn’t retract her statement.

  Everything was happening much faster than he expected. A patient, who fell into a coma after a tragic car accident, had been in his health center for a year. Her circumstances took a downward and unfortunate turn because she had not been pregnant when she arrived. He, along with all of his male employees, were now under intense investigation. Didn’t help matters any that almost all of the employees were ex-felons who were aiming for a second chance in life. Even worse, his holistic practices at Chetan had drawn the ire of the medical industry because of the substantial success rate. The Health Bureau had been trying to find any reason to shut him down. Temple Devaughn’s newborn baby would provide a direct avenue for that to happen.

  The media was abuzz over the situation and their actions were being fueled by Donald Amos, a former high-level member of The Castle who was itching to regain his seat on the board. Not going to happen with Jai and his eight fellow Kings at the helm. Dr. Taylor had said Temple would carry to term. Seven, almost eight months in and evidently, nature had other plans. His life was about to hit the porcelain goddess and circle the bowl for a few rounds before the royal flush. “In labor, right now?”

  “Yes,” Kelly whispered. “Right now.”

  He rounded the glass desk and grabbed a leather briefcase, then jammed the meeting notes he’d been scanning inside. “Are the paramedics on their way?”

  “They’re about twenty minutes out,” she replied, and he steeled himself for even more bad news. “Dr. Taylor is in Africa on a health mission, and isn’t expected back until next week. So, no one from her team is at the hospital right now. That means whoever is going to be part of the delivery hasn’t been briefed on the delicacy of this particular situation. Overall, things are about to be pretty damn interesting.”

  And that would present a problem within itself. Jai had chosen Dr. Julie Taylor because she was not afraid of the challenges Temple’s pregnancy presented. Every other doctor had taken a hard pass. Their careers were on the line, and the potential failure could damage their reputations and their licenses. Julie had been a family practitioner who changed her discipline once she realized how few OB/GYNs were in Africa, and how desperately they were needed.

  “I’m on my way,” he said to Kelly as he made it to the front door of his home. “Thanks for all you do.”

  “It’s always a pleasure, Jai.”

  Twelve minutes later, he arrived at the glass-and-steel building that housed the Chetan Healing Center and parked in his reserved spot near the entrance. This frantic pace wasn’t a good way to start the morning, but the situation called for him to be on high alert.

  The moment the smoke-tinted doors slid open and he set foot across the threshold—all while balancing his phone, tablet, and briefcase— Kelly rushed toward him. Her ivory skin was flushed to crimson and her reddish-brown hair plastered to the side of her face as though she’d sprinted an entire marathon. Not a good sign.

  “We can’t reach Temple’s mother or fiancé,” she said, gasping for breath. “The center has power of attorney for health care. You’ll have to act on our patient’s behalf.”

  A chill passed through Jai, rendering him almost numb. He handed off his briefcase and accepted the documents she held as he tried to come to terms with what her words meant. “Power of attorney for an issue that happened at Chetan, yes. This is something entirely different.”

  “No, it isn’t,” she countered, hooking her arm under his and directing him to where the paramedics were wheeling a gurney across the threshold toward the waiting ambulance. “Go with her to the hospital.”

  “Hey, be gentle,” he warned the crew navigating the concrete. “She’s not a piece of meat.�
��

  The men didn’t stop or bat an eye. “She’s comatose,” the slimmer one of the pair said. “She can’t feel it anyway.”

  “That is not acceptable,” Jai roared, and Kelly held his arm in a vice-like grip to keep him in place. “What if she was your mother . . . or sister? Treat. Her. Gently.”

  Kelly relaxed her hold on him, and Jai threw her a glance, expressing his thanks without speaking. She nodded in response and gave him a slight smile.

  The men halted a few feet from the vehicle, shared a speaking glance that revealed their irritation, but they complied by significantly slowing their movements.

  Jai stepped into the back of the ambulance and perched on a silver bench, watching as they situated the IV, then strapped the patient in before the burly one ran to the front and sped away from the sidewalk.

  The fifteen-minute drive was tense and silent, except for the blare of the siren and the furtive glances the two-member crew sent his way— one from the rearview mirror. The ambulance pulled into the emergency bay of Meridian Hospital. A team of nurses and a salt-and-pepper haired doctor with a dour expression swept out of the doors and scurried toward the vehicle.

  He extended a hand to Jai. “I’m Dr. Christian.”

  When the two nurses gripped the silver railings, the shorter of the paramedics said, “Treat her like glass or this guy will have a conniption.”

  His partner nodded in Jai’s direction and scowled.

  “That was uncalled for,” Dr. Christian said, his tone sharp and forbidding, matching the frown that appeared on his face.

  “We don’t have the time to belabor the point that comatose doesn’t mean deceased,” Jai shot back, glaring at the two men who were ignoring the warning looks from the nurses.

  Dr. Christian flinched, then his head whipped around to Jai. “Wait a minute. Did you say comatose?”

  Jai kept his gaze on the men and didn’t bother to answer the question.

  The doctor recovered his composure and gave the two emergency personnel a stern look as he warned, “You’ll hear about this later.”

  “Whatever, man.” The stockier one waved him off.

  Jai made a mental note to address the entire situation when things calmed down. No telling what other process those two had let slide. While he understood that most of their fellow paramedics had been on strike for a while, their attitude was out of order.

  The preparation for the baby’s arrival soon became a synchronicity of nurses pulling together all needed materials, equipment, and getting Jai in place. The fact that the doctor had been thrown for a loop became evident in the furrowed brow, anxious expression, and solemn bearing.

  “You’re the father?” Dr. Christian asked, suiting up and gesturing for Nurse Jennifer to outfit Jai in the same manner.

  “No, I have power of attorney to see to Temple’s well-being.”

  Dr. Christian lowered his mask to ask, “So, she was pregnant when she arrived at your center?”

  “The notes are all here, doctor,” Jai said, passing him a set of documents Kelly had the presence of mind to compile and place in a manila folder.

  The doctor slipped off his gloves, scanned the pages, then blinked several times before focusing on Jai. “She’s that woman? From the news?”

  “Yes,” Jai answered through his teeth and offered nothing more since the rest of the nursing staff had turned curious gazes in their direction.

  Dr. Christian held up a hand to keep Jai from moving forward. “So, we’re going to do a C-section to get this over and done with.”

  “Dr. Taylor already had a plan in place to induce a semi-natural labor,” Jai said, flipping the page and putting an index finger on the summary paragraph of the health plan he’d worked out with Dr. Taylor. Her method would be best for Temple’s overall health.”

  “That might be true,” he countered, switching out his gloves. “But I’m not Dr. Taylor and what I say in this hospital goes.”

  “I get that,” Jai shot back, moving until only a few feet stood between them. “And I’m still saying, do not cut her unless it’s absolutely necessary. You haven’t even assessed her to see what the best course should be.”

  Jai had researched several cases that were similar to Temple’s in that the women were also pregnant and in a coma. The difference had been in the fact that in the information he came across, the women were already pregnant before going into the coma. Temple’s pregnancy occurred several months after she arrived at Chetan. The plan Dr. Taylor put in place meant a possible chance for Temple to fully recover after the birth and resume treatment at Chetan. She’d need special care, and he along with his staff, were well prepared for that contingency.

  The nurses were now tending to Temple, but moving at such a slow pace Jai was certain they were listening intently to the exchange.

  “Dr. Taylor is willing to take chances that I am not,” he admitted. “It’s my license and practice that would be at stake, not hers. The patient isn’t having a normal delivery process and that bears a great deal of consideration. It’s possible she would not survive. Be more merciful that way.”

  “And your attitude is the very thing I’d hoped to avoid. She’s been through enough,” Jai said, giving the people gathered around them a cursory glance. “Having to go through a C-Section would be unnecessarily traumatic.”

  “No more traumatic than what happened to put her in this condition,” Dr. Christian shot back, gesturing to Temple’s belly. “And it happened in your special little facility. I don’t even know why you’re here. Aren’t you under investigation as one of the men who might have impregnated her?”

  Jaidev Maharaj saw red.

  CHAPTER 2

  “What the hell is going on here?!” Snatched Hiram Fosten from a sound sleep. Actually, sleep was more a dream where he was inside Marilyn and the heat was driving him to a rip-roaring orgasm. His eyes flew open in time to witness a strange, half-naked woman— unfortunately, not his woman—running from the bedroom.

  Hiram yanked up a robe from the end of the bed. Never mind that it was Marilyn’s floral print silk. He tossed it on and struggled to keep his massive chest covered.

  “Who was that woman?” he whispered, as a pang of anxiousness whipped through him while his feet hit the carpet in a rhythm that matched his heart rate. This cannot be good. No, he hadn’t been in a drunken stupor and brought a random woman home. He didn’t drink, nor did he have the inclination to cheat on the woman he loved.

  His thoughts cleared as he rushed through his personal space that had been turned into an impromptu stage for this incredible drama unfolding before him. The cathedral windows let in brilliant sunlight, which confirmed that Hiram was up a creek without a paddle or a boat for that matter. The two antagonists faced off as if he wasn’t in the room.

  “So, what are you going to do, Mom,” the stranger said to Marilyn, whose expression was nothing short of thunderous. “You’re going to stay with him after I slept with him?”

  Hiram did a mental flip through his memories from last night until now. Work at Chetan, home for a meal, back to Chetan, then home for an early-morning slide into heaven when he curled his body around Marilyn, closed his eyes, and embraced the luscious and sensual woman who had become the best thing that ever happened to him.

  “I never touched her,” Hiram protested, leaning against the living room wall to brace himself. Wait. Did she say mom? This was one of Marilyn’s daughters?

  The May-December relationship between them was fairly new. They were giving it some time before they brought family members into the equation. Somehow, someone figured out enough about their interactions to create this fiasco. “I didn’t even know she was here. I was trying to get some shut-eye before I have to meet up with Jai.” He flickered his gaze to the face of the naked woman with honey skin, but quickly averted his eyes to the leather sofa. “I don’t know who she is or where she came from. Or what kind of game she’s playing. I. Don’t. Know. Her.”

  The front
door burst open and yet another woman entered his condo, gasping for breath as she gripped the knob for balance. At least this one still had on all of her clothes. The other female proudly displayed her birthday suit as though the place had suddenly become a Vegas brothel and a client was going to mosey on through the door at any moment.