Page 20 of Plea
Why did knowing that make me happy?
“Well, that’s how we met,” I said. “He bought her a gift card, and I invited them to the party. That’s where he gave me the necklace.”
“It looked beautiful on her that night,” Carson complimented. “The green with her green dress was an unexpected pairing.”
“Yeah, well, she won’t be wearing that shit no more. I destroyed it, and I’d appreciate it if you never bought my wife anything else again.”
Carson chuckled and ran his thumb and pointer finger down the corners of his mouth. That gesture had his friends heading in our direction, as if they knew something we didn’t.
“You married him?” Carson confirmed.
“N-no. We’re not getting married until the day before Valentine’s Day.”
“Why are you explaining yourself to him?” Trevor asked, gripping my arm, and I was about to lose my shit.
“Look, I don’t have time for this. Carson and I are just friends. Hell, I can’t even say we are that. We don’t hang out, and we don’t even have each other’s numbers. Trevor and I are not married, but we are engaged. Now if y’all wanna stand around here measuring your balls, you can do that, but I need to get back to work.”
I walked away, and when Trevor didn’t follow me, I turned around and grabbed his hand.
“I’ll buy you another choker, Venus,” Carson said as we retreated. “Money ain’t shit around here.”
I didn’t even bother responding because I didn’t want to say anything to make Trevor mad. Truth was, I loved the choker a lot. I loved all shades of green, and it was my favorite color. Tsavorite was a rare gem to have customized, and that’s why I was so upset when Trevor destroyed it. As much as I would have loved for Carson to get me another, I knew the same thing would happen, and I didn’t want him to waste his money. So I planned to stop by his office tomorrow to make sure he didn’t get me one. Right now, my priority was making sure Trevor understood there was nothing going on between us.
Chapter
Fourteen
Carson
The Next Day
I wasn’tsurprised when my executive assistant let me know Venus Atkins was here to see me. Quite frankly, I expected her to pop back up yesterday, but I figured she was trying to smooth things over with her man. After hearing about their interactions with Tristan and Zander, I was even more sure their relationship wouldn’t last. Even with me not knowing much about her, I knew he wasn’t the right man for her.
I was.
I wrapped up the email I was preparing to send out and closed the files on my desk in preparation for Venus’s arrival. Truthfully, I’d prayed and told God to confirm if she was the one for me. I didn’t want my desires to ruin her relationship if she wasn’t. I told Him to bring her to me before her wedding. If He didn’t, I’d assume we’d never be together. If He did, that would be my confirmation that something would happen between us. Literally the next day, she showed up at my firm. It may havebeen with her fiancé, but that was a minor technicality at this point.
She knocked before pushing the glass door open and my heart literally skipped a beat. Instead of her hair being in a bun like the last few times I saw her, it was flowing down her back, stopping at her waist. With a small smile, she took her pea coat off and put it on my coat rack. The baby tee she had on exposed her four pack. Cream slacks curved against her wide hips and fat ass. I couldn’t deny my attraction even if I wanted to.
Licking my lips, I swallowed hard and forced my eyes to lift and focus on her face. I was frozen behind my desk… just staring at her beautiful ass.
“Mr. Walker,” she said, snapping me out of my trance.
“I see you’ve looked into me.”
“A little. Law firm partner? That’s amazing, Carson. I hear you guys are doing some great things in the city.”
“We’re trying.”
“Nah.” Her head shook as her long legs and heeled feet brought her further into my office. “Y’all aren’t trying. Y’all are doing. Which one of you got Mayor Collins off for that murder?”
I chuckled, feeling myself relax. “Kaos didn’t really get him off, but he did get the first degree murder charge dropped down to voluntary manslaughter. They sentenced him to four years, and he’ll only have to serve two.”
“In a halfway house,” she said, as if I didn’t already know. “That’s some damn good defensive work. And Tristan and Taj recently finished a five hundred million dollar land development deal, right?” I nodded, impressed as she sat in the seat across from my desk. “Then there’s the troublemaker Zander who recently secured two of the most prolific founding families of the secret society on his retainer. And then there’s you.” Her head tilted as she smiled and eyed my frame. “You were last in the spotlight for signing every member of the Rose Valley HillsRiders basketball team for your entertainment sector of the firm. You are literally representing every member of that basketball team. That is amazing, Carson. Y’all make black excellence look so easy… and sexy.”
Chuckling, I sat on the edge of my desk. “I’m not above taking you from your fiancé, so don’t be in here flirting with me, Venus.”
She giggled and lifted her hands in surrender. “I don’t consider telling the truth as flirting, but we’re already on unsteady waters so I’ll behave.”
