“Mmhmm,” her sidekick chimed in. I remembered her face, but not her name, some G-List rapper that had one season on a reality show and was reduced to doing tax infomercials to barely make ends meet.
“Chanel, You shouldreallychill the fuck out.” Mani stepped forward and I gently held my hand up and pushed her back.
“Nah, remember what wejusttalked about,” I scolded. Mani had been inenoughpublic bullshit, so I didn’t want to add any more to her on my account. Plus, if anyone got to swing on Chanel’s ass, it was gonna be me after she called me a bitch. Mani pouted, then crossed her arms in acceptance, knowing that she didn’t need the bad press of getting into it with a peer in public.
“What exactly am I doing?” I chuckled, turning back to her with my brows raised in amusement.
“How could you help him and try to get away with what he did to me?” I could tell by the way her voice elevated that she was looking to start a scene. As much as I wanted to knock the fillersout of her ass, I had just got on Jocelyn about behaving, so I did my best to keep it cute.
“I’m just doing my job,” I said with a tightly forced smile on my face, making a note to send Chase an extra invoice for the bullshit, maybe two.
“By tearing down another black woman? By defending a fucking abuser?! Bitch you ain’t shit!”
I didn’t answer because I was too busy counting down from ten in my head. It didn’t work. The moment I stepped out of my body and stretched my arms out to bless her, I felt a hand on my arm and Joce’s face pulled me back into character.
“Remember what you said… we’re networking.” Now all of a sudden her ass wanted to be sober and professional like I hadn’t just stopped her from twerking on a buffet table. I cursed under my breath, then pulled the veil back down.
“Again, Chanel, I’m just doing my job. This is my career. I’m not at liberty to discuss the matter any further with you. Enjoy your brunch.”
I grabbed Joce and Mani, turned and walked away before she could say anything else to piss me off because if I flashed out again, I knew I would end up in somebody’s cell.
“You good?” they asked in sync once we were away from any potential triggers.
“I’mfine.”
“Girl I gotta get the fuck outta here. There are way too many fake bitches and I don’t wanna end up with another court case forsmacking a hoe!” Mani threw over her shoulder loudly, making me chuckle. Though I didn’t necessarily need it, it felt good to know I had backup, and I knew Joce was on whatever I was.
I made sure to get Mani’s number since we planned to link up soon and she headed out. We enjoyed at least another hour of the party without incident even though I could feel Chanel’s hateful stare burning a hole through me the whole time. I really didn’t understand what her beef was whenshewas suinghim.Did she really expect him to not find representation?
We were about to head out, but I took a pit stop to empty my bladder before we got caught up in the never-ending traffic. I handled my business, and right as I got ready to walk out the sounds of the door bursting open and heels clacking made me pause.
“Girl fuck himand her!Fat bitch! Iknowhe’s fucking her!” My hand froze on the lock before I exited the stall because I knew that voice. I wanted to pop out on her ass, but my better judgement told me to chill, so I did.
“Ew. Why would you think he’s fuckingher,Chanel? You looksomuch better than her… and she’sbig.” I rolled my eyes in disgust and maneuvered my body so I could peek out the crack in the door.
“Because he’s not fuckingme, Jewell, and this ain’t like him! Usually, no matter how mad he gets at me, if I call him, he comes. That’s why Iknowthere has to be someone else.” I watched as she impatiently scoured through her bag, huffed, then hastily dumped everything out on the counter.
“So that’s why you’re doing this?” Jewell asked as she plucked a tiny glass vial from the contents littering the counter. “Because you think he’s with someone else?”
“Yes! If I can’t have my nigga! Nobody can have him! Imadethat motherfucka’! When he met me, he was nothing!Ielevated his life, and if he thinks he can quit me for that potato lookin’ bitch, he has another thing coming!” As she ranted, she sprinkled some of the contents of the vial onto the back of her hand, then skillfully snorted it all up, not wasting a bit. I couldn’t tell if I was more shocked at the fact that she was just out here incriminating herself without even checking to see if the fucking bathroom was empty, or the fact that America’s favorite singer like to ski the slopes.
“I thought you said he left you because he wanted you to stop partying and poppin’ pills and shit?” Jewell asked as she snorted a line for herself.
“No bitch! That’s what he said, but he always says that! I keeptrying to call him to tell him that I’ll drop the charges if he takes me back, but he won’t answer. If he doesn’t come to his senses quickly, he’s gonna lose everything and Iknowthat bitch isn’t worth all that! Let’s go J!” she snapped as she threw the last of her things in her bag and they stomped out.
I made sure the coast was clear before I tipped out, washed my hands, grabbed Joce, and got the fuck out of there to go discuss a few things with my client.
CHAPTER 8
CRACKS IN HER ARMOR
“Man, who the fuck?”I had just dozed off for a nap when the repeated sound of my doorbell ringing snatched me right up out of my sleep. After I calmed myself down, willing my body to accept the fact that we weren’t under attack, I drug myself from the bed and to the front door. I didn’t even check to see who it was before swinging it and immediately wishing I had.
“What are you doing here?” I asked with wide eyes which were glued to her shimmery body, clad in a soft yellow dress that fit her so well that it looked like it was suctioned on.
“What?” she asked with wide eyes. I chuckled, remembering that I was standing there in a pair of basketball shorts and didn’t grab a shirt… or draws. It didn’t help that my shit was half bricked up because I was probably laid up dreaming about her ass.
“Amaya, what are you doing here?” I waved my hand in front of her face to break the trance—only then did her eyes finally snap back up to mine.
