Cole sat on the edge of a plush leather media chair and put Hugo in the down position. Shajuanna had been eyeing her speculatively while Eye-C performed but now Cole was getting a distinctly uncomfortable feeling there was more to this one-to-one than girl talk.
Shajuanna sat next to her, dark eyes shining. “How long have you and Sam been together?”
“A couple of months.”
“You know him before that?”
Get Noel’s story straight, Cole reminded herself. “No. We met at my cousin’s wedding in Baltimore back in the spring. Why?”
“I can read people. I know, you probably don’t believe in that kind of thing. But for me, people have auras.”
Feeling uneasy, Cole nodded. “That must be fun.”
“Not really. Auras can tell you more than you want to know. Ever since I was a little girl I’ve never known if or how much to tell people. Most of the time, I keep it to myself.” She paused to gaze steadily at Cole. “You’ve got this really intense thing going on with Sam. And you’re really jacked up about it. It’s all through your aura. So I thought you should know.”
“Know what?”
“Sam’s not who he seems. His aura tells me Boyfriend’s a cop.”
Cole couldn’t quite master her surprise, so she went with it. “Wow. I don’t know what to say.”
“It’s no secret Collier was recently released from prison so he’s still paranoid as hell about every new person he meets. I’m not paranoid. But I’m definitely catching a vibe about your Sam.”
Cole tried to look casual as she reached for her soda. “He told me he manages a motorcycle shop in New Jersey.”
“You seen it?”
Cole shook her head. Stick to the truth as much as possible. “He was in the military before that. He doesn’t talk about it.”
“That could be why he’s got that watchful-eye thing going on. He’s hard in a way that says street experience, deep and long.”
She pulled a card out of her pocket and handed it to Cole. “You need to do a background check on your man.” She tapped the card. “Kelli will get all deep in anybody’s shit. Maybe he’s PoPo. Maybe something else. Shajuanna’s never wrong about a man who’s packing.”
Cole let her surprise show again. “You know Sam carries a gun?”
“You see me hug him when he came in? I do that to all the new men crossing my threshold. Yardmen and plumbers think I’m fresh. What I am is thorough. Every ass I pat is about the patdown. I guard my home. You hear me?”
Cole was a little surprised. “Don’t you trust your security?”
“Security gets lazy. That’s why I’m always changing it up for them. They work for me but they don’t know when or how long, or even which days I’m doing what. If I’m constantly changing it up, they have to stay on their toes. And they can’t tell anyone ahead of time when or where I’ll be. I know I sound hard but I have to be, for the sake of my girls.”
“Why? Has someone tried to abduct them?”
“Tried and succeeded, once. Collier’s been married before. Crazy woman. So crazy Eye-C got custody of Leila. Five years ago, I left Leila with an au pair to take Miya in for a well-baby check. Ex-wife snatched Leila in the park, thinking she could up her alimony with extortion. Got her skinny butt put in jail, instead. Thank you, Jesus.” Shajuanna raised a hand palm flat to the sky. “Everybody wants a piece of our world.”
“I see.” Cole did some quick calculation about her options. “If you don’t want me and Sam around—”
“I didn’t say that. I like you. Sam makes you happy.” She smiled and patted Cole’s cheek. “As long as you’re happy, I’m happy. Trust, but verify, Noel. Anything changes, it all changes.”
“Thanks for the heads-up.”
Shajuanna stood up. “I need a drink. You like blood orange margaritas?”
“I’m game to find out.”
As she followed her hostess back into the party, Cole felt as if the world had shifted under her feet.
Scott had been identified but it didn’t seem like a major problem. Had she been believed? Or was Shajuanna suspicious? Either way, that couldn’t be good. She needed to reach Scott before he turned up here again.
She reached for her phone but decided against sending him a message. It might be the wrong time. She’d just have to make certain she caught him at the door.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The sign over the door read B’MORE BILLIARDS & ARCADE. ADULTS ONLY.
This was the address Dave had texted him without any assurance that X would be here.
When Scott called Dave for more intel, Dave said X’s parole officer had voluntarily called him with the address. “He said X had been in touch to ask him to meet him there tonight. Something about a birthday celebration but he said he doesn’t party with his parolees.”
Scott grunted. “Birthday? I thought X crawled out of the gutter fully formed.”
“That’s all I got.”