Page 6 of Exposed

“What about?” Desmond questioned, guzzling down the water.

“They need me to bodyguard a client of theirs.”

Elias, our cousin and jokester of the group, just got slapped by a group of women, and I shook my head as he walked over, rubbing his face.

“That’s your problem, always trying to get laid,” I commented.

“Man, she wasn’t cute anyway. What’s up with you? You’re late,” Elias retorted.

“I just asked that, idiot,” Desmond responded, and popped him in the back of the head.

“Motherfucker!” Elias yelled, play slapping him back. Elias was only around five-seven to my brother and my heights of six-one and six-three. His lack of height was replaced with jokes, and he became the class clown in our group while growing up. Both of us were single, and Desmond was married with three kids of his own. Two boys and a girl. I heard it almost every day from my mom about having more grandchildren, and I politely ignored her because I refused to have any children without being married just to please her, and the women I’ve noticed lately only wanted a man for the money and status.

“Yeah, my bad. I was telling Desmond I just left a meeting with Mark about bodyguarding a new client.”

“Is she hot?” Elias asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

“That’s the only thing you worry about?” I answered.

“I mean, you have to be around her all day. Shit, at least let her be sexy. Wait, unless it’s a guy?” Elias queried, hands on his hips. Shaking my head no, I replied, “A woman and I’m debating taking the case. She’s some social media celebrity that does nothing all day but take photos.” I spat my words out, still aggravated over the meeting itself as well as her attitude, bouncing the ball between my legs. Elias snapped his fingers. “Wait, she’s famous for taking pictures all day, and she got hired by a makeup company. Ohhhh... Shit! It’s Lauren Armstrong, right?” Elias asked, excitedly.

Desmond and I gawked at his animated reaction.

“Uhm, yeah. I take it you follow her.”

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and scrolled, looking for something. A second later, he showed us a picture of Lauren wearing lingerie posing in the mirror. She had her ass and titties out for the world to see; her golden-brown skin glowed against the red one piece. I grabbed the phone out of his hand, pissed that he saw her so intimately. I would never let my woman do shit like this and think it was for everybody to see.

“Delete the photo,” I told him.

He chuckled, shaking his head. “Man, I’m not deleting this, besides it came from her social media account. Everybody can see it. What’s the big deal?”

“Bro, you got a crush on little Miss Lauren?” Desmond wondered.

“Are we playing ball or not?” I glared at them both.

Desmond and Elias cracked up, laughing at my expense.

“Fuck y’all!” I said, walking toward the court, and Desmond pulled me back, wrapping his arm around my shoulder.

“All right, all right, my bad. She looks good, young though. Stop tripping, if you like her, that’s cool. I know Jacinda did a number on you four years ago, but you need to move on,” Desmond stated, stealing the ball out of my hands as we walked to the court.

“Desmond’s right, D. Jacinda ain’t worth cutting all that your future wife can make up for. If you don’t like Lauren, at least put in a good word for me,” Elias joked. I tried to get out of my brother’s hold to kick Elias’s ass, and he ran off the court.

“Fuck you, Elias! I don’t like that girl. Unlike you, a big butt and a smile don’t impress me,” I said, picking up the ball and shooting it in the hoop. Desmond passed the ball back to me, and I dribbled down the court and dunked it inside.

“That’s all I need in life. A big butt, a nice small waist, and a good home-cooked meal, and I am satisfied,” Elias yelled twenty feet away.

“Auntie must have dropped you on your head when you were born.”

“Y’all just jealous all the ladies love my sexiness,” Elias insisted, removing his shirt, trying to show off his muscles that clearly never came in because all I saw was a beer belly.

“On that note, we need to finish this game so we can get dinner at our parents’ house,” Desmond informed us.

I checked my watch, and saw it was going on six o’clock.

“When did I agree to dinner?”

“When your mother became Sonya Combs,” Desmond teased, stealing the ball away from me.

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