You can read The Upward Ripple free below.
Blurb:
A clean, billionaire, whirlwind, marriage, African American romance story.
Cynthia Washington, a real estate agent who’s battled through tough times, has tirelessly worked to seize her opportunity for the good life she’s always envisioned.
Just as she’s on the brink of sealing a major deal with her new client, billionaire Nathaniel Duncan, she finds herself unexpectedly falling for him.
Their connection sparks into a passionate romance, but soon Cynthia uncovers that Nathaniel is haunted by dark secrets from his past…
As they navigate this new relationship, Cynthia is left wondering if she can accept Nathaniel with all his imperfections.
Is their burgeoning romance destined to collapse under the weight of his hidden wounds?
And as the stakes get higher, will their love be strong enough to withstand the ultimate test?
Discover now in this Black marriage romance novel by Samantha Foster.
Chapter 1
Nate Duncan was not sure what to expect as he rode back home. He had this overwhelming feeling that he could not understand. It might have been the fact that he was still dealing with the news of his father’s demise or the fact that he had not been home in almost fifteen years. Whatever it was had him hearing that voice in his head. The voice of one of the few people who had kept in touch all this time, Leon Blair telling him that he should not have chosen to ride to Colorado rather than fly there.
“I could loan you my jet, you know,” Leon had offered.
“I know but I will say to you what I said to my family lawyer when he offered the family jet. I do need to ride.”
“Nate, that is a sixteen-hour journey,” Leon had pointed out.
“I know that but perhaps that is exactly what I need.”
“Nate, brother… please. This is not the time for you to choose to be alone… I mean, your father just died. Let me come to you. I can be there by tomorrow morning.”
Nate forced a smile.
“Well, to be honest, I really appreciate this, but this is something I feel I have to do by myself.”
Nate heard his friend exhale loudly. Obviously, he was getting frustrated at the way he was trying to reach out and his gesture was not reciprocated let alone appreciated.
“At least promise me you are going to take some time to rest up,” Leon pressed, and Nate nodded even though Leon could not see him.
“I promise. I will only ride for a few hours at a time. Maybe have a couple of stops before I get to Pine Grove,” he promised.
“Good. Deloris and I will take a flight down to Colorado tomorrow. We will meet you there.”
“Yeah, how is that going?” Nate asked, pleased that they were finally talking about something else.
“Great. Perfect really… I have never met a woman like her.”
“Yeah, I have been reading up on what you guys have been up to. Congratulations on the engagement by the way.”
Leon laughed.
“Thank you. Thanks so much,” he said.
“Well, I need to get going now…. Thanks for reaching out to me. I really appreciate it,” Nate said. He meant it too and a little part of him was afraid that maybe one of his closest friends in the entire world did not know it.
“You are very welcome. Nate. See you in Colorado,” Leon said, and Nate nodded.
“See you in Colorado.”
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Nate hung up with his heart racing. He knew one thing for sure, he felt some kind of emotion. However, the one thing he did not know was what that emotion was. Could it be sadness? Overcoming grief? Guilt over not having seen his father for almost a decade and a half? At the back of his mind, he found himself wondering what that strong feeling was. It was that thought that kept him going for as he did. It was that thought and the memory of the last conversation he’d had with his father that kept him riding for almost eight hours straight.
*****
It was fifteen years earlier and Nate had just turned eighteen. He’d had a hard couple of years after the death of his mother and no one knew how he had managed to graduate high school at the top of his class and go on to join his dream college. No one understood how a fourteen-year-old managed to keep his grades up while his mother battled cancer. The only thing that was not a surprise was his going to college. After living in a house with an ailing family member for so long, one could only expect him to leave everything behind.
It was not just the need for him to get a change of scenery. It was also the fact that his father had a new woman in his life, and it was not a woman he trusted. She had been hovering around during Nate’s mother’s chemotherapy and he always thought that she was a little too cozy with his father. After his mother, Dianne Duncan passed away, Nate’s fears finally materialized. The woman, Elise Warner, was closer to his father than ever. She was at the house more often than was necessary which hardly made any sense since Dianne was still in the hospital. Elise said that she was only spending so much time with Nathaniel Duncan to give her support. As far as Nate was concerned, she was much better suited at the hospital where she worked. Now, as far as the support issue was concerned, that was all the support she needed to offer the Duncan family. But it was the day he came home to find Elise in his father’s arms, their lips in a passionate embrace that looked a little more than friendly. He did not have to be a rocket scientist to know what was happening there. It was pretty obvious. The woman had preyed on a grieving old man and for the moment, his father did not seem to be so distraught. He remembered leaving the house that day, confused about what he was supposed to do. He did not like the idea of his father with Elise because as far as he was concerned, Elise Warner was nothing more than an opportunist. But at the same time, he was torn about how to handle the situation because the last thing he wanted to do is stand in the way of his father’s happiness.
After that little encounter Nate witnessed, things seemed to be moving a little faster than he would have been comfortable with. Maybe a little too fast. He thought it was even faster when his father married Elise later that year. It had barely been ten months since his mother passed and his father seemed happier than ever. However, he just knew that he could not really trust Elise. He had never been one to hide what he was really feeling so, he chose to stay away. It was the only way to save the little left of the relationship he had with his father. In a way, he hated the fact that he did not get along with Elise seeing as his father seemed to be happy after the passing of his wife. So, he did the only thing he could do and stayed away. Burying himself in the school work was all he had now. He even took an extra course just to make him a little busier than he had to.