Page 97 of Exposed

“You’ll have to learn to be patient when it comes to Mr. Carter.”

I throw that right back at him. “Dex needs to learn that if he doesn’t have enough business to keep me busy, I have clients waiting in the wings who will. Either get me the money, or go to the back of the line.”

Rand flicks his smoke to his feet, where it lands on Goldie’s doormat. He puts his loafer on it and grinds it in.

“Don’t be late,” Rand warns before looking back at Goldie. “And you … your brother expects you in this week to pick out flowers and music—shit like that.”

“I’ll take care of that myself,” Goldie says with a backbone. “I don’t need anything from The Pink but the location and space.”

Rand shakes his head. “How quickly you forget that your brother doesn’t give options. He gives orders.”

Goldie says nothing, but she does give my hand a squeeze.

“He’ll expect you tomorrow when your man is making the money pick up.”

Goldie leans into me, wraps her other arm around mine, and tips her temple to my bicep but focuses on Rand. “Canon in D. I want the artichoke gouda tarte for appetizer, fattoush salad, lobster for the main course with roasted asparagus, and the parmesan potatoes.” She looks up at me. “Is that okay?”

I pull my arm from where she’s gripping me and wrap it around her. “Doesn’t matter how many times you try to get me to eat asparagus, I don’t like it.”

“You’re impossible. Fine.” She sighs and turns her attention back to Rand. “Green beans. And for the flowers, I want white everywhere, from top to bottom. My bouquet will be loose and natural with hints of blue.” She looks up at me again. “To match your eyes.”

Rand doesn’t give a shit what Goldie thinks about my eyes, and growls, “Your brother wants you at The Pink to make the plans.”

Goldie places a hand over her belly and rubs the child that isn’t there. “Sorry, I’m busy. Doctor’s appointments, dress fittings, and I had plans to visit my mom before the wedding. Dex can demand all he wants, I have no time for him.”

I give her ass a squeeze because she can’t throw this shit out there to Carter or his men without talking to me about it. “We’ll talk about the trip.”

She smiles. “There’s nothing to talk about. I was supposed to go last week and put it off. I can’t do it again.”

Rand’s jaw tightens. “We’ll see what Mr. Carter has to say about that.”

I pull her tighter to me, and she gets the hint, because all she does is shrug Rand off.

“Is there anything else?” I demand. “We’d like to get on with our night.”

“Just be at the drop and talk some sense into your woman. If she’s your wife, she needs to be back in the Carter fold. And this time she’s not getting out.”

Goldie tenses at my side, but her expression remains steady.

Rand needs to leave, and I need to get us inside. “I’ll be at the money pick up. That’s all you need to worry about.”

I push Goldie to my other side and shift us around Rand to get to her door. Rand’s footsteps echo in the breezeway as he jogs down the stairs, and Goldie unlocks her door with trembling hands.

Two seconds later, we’re locked in her apartment, and Goldie goes straight for her room, muttering, “I hate him more than I hate Dex.”

I peek through the blinds and watch Rand pull out of the parking lot as I hit go on Brax’s number.

“What’s up?” Brax asks.

“We just had a visitor at Goldie’s apartment. Dex refuses to call or text me and sent Rand with a written note for instructions on the first money pick up.”

The phone shuffles, followed by a sliding door opening and closing. Brax never talks business in front of his family. He said his wife dealt with enough of that when he was undercover. “That explains why the wire is quiet besides calling for a car or talking legit Pink business. Not one mention of the money, you, or Goldie, and we know after the recent drama, that shit has to be eating at him.”

“There’s no way he only communicates by passing notes back and forth in class. He’s got other phones. Until we find them, we might as well be feeling our way in the dark.”

“We’ll triangulate the area again to search for new numbers at the money pick up. You guys okay tonight?”

I scan the parking lot for more activity, but there’s nothing unusual. At least nothing that screams Carter Cartel. “Yeah. We can always pull the footage from the pole cameras, but that’s after the fact. I think we’re safer here than most places. Dex has a reputation to keep up. He’s not going to send anyone to break into an apartment where there are so many tenants who will call the cops in a heartbeat. I met the guy downstairs. He gives neighborhood watch new meaning.”

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