Exposed (29 page)

Her stomach lurched sickeningly.

But he can’t know!
her conscience argued.
He’s been so good to you lately. He made love to you, bought you an expensive dress and jewelry, introduced you to his family. Those aren’t the actions of a man who knows that his girlfriend has been unfaithful to him!

She swallowed convulsively. “Why are you telling me about this, Dominic? What do you want me to do about it?”

“Glad you asked. I have to go out of town this week. While I’m gone, I want you to tell that crazy nigga to back the fuck off.”

Tamia’s jaw dropped.“Are you insane? I can’t do that!”

“You can—and you will.”

Something in his tone sent a dagger of alarm through Tamia. Tightening her grip on the phone, she whispered harshly,“What are you saying, Dominic?”

“It’s simple. If you don’t call off your boyfriend, I’ll tell him everything. And I do mean
everything.
”

Bile rose in Tamia’s throat.“You can’t do that. That wasn’t part of our agreement!”

“Yeah? Well, it wasn’t part of our agreement for me to start hemorrhaging millions of dollars in revenue. So as far as I’m concerned, our agreement is null and void.”

“How dare you?”
Tamia exploded, trembling with desperation and fury.“I kept my end of the bargain! I’ve risked everything—
everything
—to be with your sorry ass, and this is how you repay me? It’s not
my
fault you were stupid enough to start a damn war with the lieutenant governor’s son, of all people! If you hadn’t been in such a fucking hurry to get some porno pussy, you’d have taken your black ass down to the courthouse and watched Brandon at work—and you woulda known right then and there that the nigga is hardcore!”

In the ensuing silence, Dominic’s breathing sounded harsh and uneven.

Tamia smiled with vicious satisfaction.

The feeling was short-lived.

“Tell Brandon to leave my company alone,” Dominic warned in a low voice,“or the gloves are coming off. And believe me, bitch, I will take
great
pleasure in looking that nigga in the eye and telling him how I fucked his woman better than he ever has, or ever will.” Soft, malevolent laughter floated over the line. “If he’s not trying to kill you now, he sure as hell
will
be by the time I get through with him.”

Tamia shivered hard, nausea and dread roiling in her stomach.

“I started this war,” Dominic said silkily,“so you’d best believe I intend to finish it.”

Before Tamia could utter another word, the line went dead.

“Mamacita! What’s up—”

Tamia grabbed Lou’s arm and quickly pulled him inside her house. After scanning up and down the street, she closed the door, threw the deadbolt, and reset the security alarm.

Slowly removing his sunglasses, Lou stared at her, thick brows furrowed, eyes filled with wary confusion. “What the hell’s going on?”

Tamia offered a strained smile. Now that he was here, she felt her courage faltering, didn’t know whether she’d have the nerve to go through with the decision she’d reached overnight.

“Thanks for coming on such short notice. I really appreciate it.”

“No problem.” Lou shrugged. “You called and said you wanted to see me, so here I am. That’s what friends are for, right?”

“Right.” She gestured nervously to the sofa.“Please have a seat. Want a beer?”

“Sure. That sounds good.” He ventured into the small living room, curiously eyeing her suitcase by the front door. “Going on a trip?”

I wish I were! Somewhere far away from here!

“I’ve been staying at my boyfriend’s place,”Tamia answered as she headed to the kitchen.“I just came home on my lunch break to pack some more clothes.”

“Oh yeah. The boyfriend. Brandon Chambers, right?”

“Right.” Returning from the kitchen, Tamia handed Lou a cold bottle of beer and joined him on the sofa. She smiled wryly at him. “Is there anything about me you
haven’t
heard through the grapevine?”

“Nope.” Lou grinned, taking a swig of beer. The serpent tattooed onto his neck seemed to undulate as he swallowed. Tamia stared, riveted, for several seconds.

“I heard his father’s running for governor.” Lou winked at her.“Moving up in the world, mamacita.”

She smiled weakly.“Trying to.”

“Just don’t forget about us little people when you’re living in the governor’s mansion someday and hosting fancy state dinners as first lady.”

Tamia laughed.“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves!” she said, though his words echoed one of her favorite fantasies.

“So what’s going on?” Lou gave her a wry sidelong glance. “I’m guessing you didn’t call me over here to tell me you’re coming out of retirement.”

Tamia shook her head with a rueful grimace. “I wish it were that simple, papi.”

Lou eyed her knowingly. “Does this have anything to do with that West Indian motherfucker who came to the studio asking questions about you?”

Tamia swallowed dryly, then nodded.

“I knew he’d be a problem,” Lou muttered grimly.

“More like a nightmare.”

Lou searched her face, those piercing eyes probing the depths of hers.“Are you fucking him?”

If any other man had asked such a blunt question, she
would have winced. But this was Lou, who’d seen her on her hands and knees, one dick thrusting down her throat while another rammed her from behind.

She exhaled a deep breath and nodded slowly.“He’s been blackmailing me, threatening to tell Brandon about everything.” She paused.“But it’s gotten worse. His wife found out about us, and now she’s having me followed. I think …” She trailed off, nervously licking her dry lips and raking trembling fingers through her hair.

Lou’s eyes had narrowed, focusing sharply on her face. “You think what?”

“I think she’s trying to have me killed,”Tamia whispered.

“Puñeta!”
Lou hissed under his breath.

“I-I don’t know what to do, Lou. I’m scared, jumping at shadows, having nightmares.” She spread her hands wide, palms upturned in a helpless gesture.“I talked to him, told him to call her off. But he won’t listen, and I can’t go to the police. I don’t have enough proof, and I don’t want Brandon to find out what’s going on.”

After the breathless rush of words came a tense, prolonged silence.

Lou stared at her, waiting, silently questioning.

She wavered, chewing her lower lip as her insides churned. “When you told me to come see you if I ever needed your help … did you mean it?”

“Of course.”

Their eyes locked.

Her heart was pounding violently. She’d remembered the rumors about his ties to the Mexican mafia. She knew that he could make her problem go away with one phone call.

I will kill you dead…. I started this war, so you’d best believe I intend to finish it.
The threats replayed in her mind like an eerie song stuck on repeat. She was only protecting herself, her conscience rationalized. Survival of the fittest. Law of the jungle. Kill or be killed….

“Tamia?” Lou was watching her intently. Even the serpent on his neck seemed to be pulsing, poised to strike.

She opened her mouth, her brain throbbing so hard that her words came out fractured. “A warning … just want to send a message … needs to know who he’s dealing with …”

Silence.

Lou’s expression didn’t change. So maybe she hadn’t uttered the words after all. There was still time to reconsider, to reverse course before it was too late. Once she took this drastic step, there’d be no turning back.

How on earth had she come to this point? How had things spiraled out of control so quickly?

What do you want me to do?
Lou’s eyes silently asked.

She felt as if she were having an out-of-body experience, watching her own lips form the words that would seal the fate of another. Maybe even her own.

“He lives in the Four Leaf Towers….”

Brandon’s cell phone rang as he returned home on Friday evening.

He seriously considered ignoring the call. It had been a long, stressful day—so stressful, in fact, that he’d called it quits three hours earlier than usual. He and Cynthia had been at each other’s throats since early that morning. She’d been acting strange all week. Distant one minute—hostile and bitchy the next. When Brandon couldn’t take the mood swings anymore, he’d made the typical male reference to PMS. His ears were
still
ringing from the way she’d cussed him out.

So he was tired and grumpy, and looking forward to a hot shower and kicking back with a cold beer to watch the playoffs.

He scowled as the phone rang again. He dug it out of his pocket and checked caller ID, then sighed heavily before answering.

“Nigga, you got the worst timing in the world. I just walked through the door.”

“What’re you doing home so early?” Dre asked in surprise. “I thought you’d still be at the office.”

“Nope.” Briefcase down, tie stripped off, Brandon headed straight to the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge.

“Where’s Tamia? Is she home yet?”

“Naw. Not yet.”Tamia had called earlier to let him know that her boss was taking the brand creative team out to dinner to reward them for a job well done on a major project. After that, she and Shanell were going to the movies to catch some chick flick that Brandon refused to see.

As much as he was enjoying the new living arrangement with Tamia, he actually looked forward to having the place to himself tonight. After dealing with a temperamental female at the office all week, he needed peace and quiet—and that wasn’t always a given when Tamia was around.

Heading into the living room, he grabbed the remote control and punched on the television as Dre was saying, “Leah’s really sorry she had to miss the dinner party on Saturday.”

“Tell her not to worry about it,” Brandon said, sinking into his favorite armchair.“She’s a busy surgeon—she had to work. My parents understand.” He smiled wryly.“Believe me, there’s nothing she could do to fall out of favor with my folks. They adore Leah.”

Dre chuckled. “True. And I told her that, but you know how women like to worry.”

“Yup.” Brandon sipped his Black and Tan, surfing channels until the game started.

“So what’d they think of Tamia?”

Brandon grimaced.“Honestly? Not much.”

“Damn, bruh. What’d they say?”

Brandon sighed, recalling the tense conversation he’d had with his parents after they attended Sunday service at Redeemed Life Ministries, where his father’s campaign announcement had been received with thunderous applause and much rejoicing.

“Well, you already know they had a problem with her because she doesn’t have the ‘right’ background,” Brandon said sardonically.“They both owned up to that. But Mom went a
step further and said Tamia ‘lacks refinement’ and seems very secretive. So she doesn’t trust her at all.”

Dre was uncharacteristically silent.

Brandon took a long pull on his beer, waiting.

After several moments Dre sighed.“I wasn’t gonna say anything, but Tamia and Cynthia had words at the party.”

Brandon paused, lowering the bottle from his mouth. “What do you mean?”

“Remember how I came back inside before the rest of y’all? Well, I saw Wifey Number One and Two talking in a back corner, and I can guarantee you they weren’t comparing notes on what to get you for your birthday next month. I thought Tamia was gonna pull off her earrings at one point, and Cynthia looked mighty upset when she walked away.”

“Shit,” Brandon muttered under his breath.“No wonder.”

“No wonder what?”

“Cynthia’s had a bug up her ass all week. I didn’t know what the hell her problem was.”

“Well, now you do. Sucks to be you.” Dre chuckled.

Brandon scowled. “Nice of you to warn me—almost a damn week later.”

“Sorry. I thought your mother would tell you. She’s the one who broke it up. Anyway, you know I’ve always hated to be the bearer of bad news. There’s a reason for the old saying, ‘Don’t shoot the messenger.’”

“When have I ever shot you?” Brandon demanded.

Silence.

“Exactly. If you know something’s up, nigga, tell me. You know I hate surprises.”

“Yeah,” Dre said quietly,“I know.”

Brandon turned to the pregame show, then got to his feet and stretched his cramped muscles.“All right, man. I’ma grab a shower and order a pizza before the game starts. So I’ll catch you tomorrow morning.” Dre had talked him into meeting
him for an hour of racquetball before Brandon headed to the office, telling him that he was under too much stress and needed to burn off some steam.

“Dr. Dre knows best,” he’d quipped, coaxing a chuckle out of Brandon.

As he was about to hang up the phone, Dre said,“Oh, hey, that reminds me. Leah’s gonna be out of town next week attending a medical conference. So help a lonely brotha out and bring those Mystique DVDs with you tomorrow.”

Brandon laughed.“Damn, nigga, haven’t you watched those videos enough?”

“Apparently not.”

Brandon grinned, shaking his head. “You’re like an addict or something. You need help.”

“Yeah,” Dre murmured.“Don’t we all?”

After he’d showered and ordered a pizza, Brandon headed into his study to take out the DVDs and put them in his gym bag. He didn’t want to forget them in the morning, and since Tamia would be there, he didn’t want to risk her seeing them.

As he removed the DVDs from the bottom desk drawer, he felt the same tug of curiosity he’d experienced that night, weeks ago, when he’d found himself contemplating whether to watch one of the videos. He’d been sex-starved at the time, in desperate need of something to take the edge off his pent-up lust.

That wasn’t the case anymore. But the curiosity remained, fueled, in large part, by Dre’s almost comical obsession.

Brandon chuckled.

Without giving himself a chance to reconsider, he opened one of the DVD cases and popped the disc into his computer drive. And then he plunked down in his chair, propped his feet up on the desk and prepared to be amused, entertained—maybe even turned on.

He selected “play” from the main menu.