Bourbon Street Royalty: Jaded Series, Book Two (13 page)

“Good,” Ang responded matter of factly as she pushed herself up from the bench. “Now, Ma’Linn is in with Rozalie and has offered to stay the night. We already set up a cot. You go ahead and get yourself home. I’ll give you an update tomorrow.”

“Yeah, ok.” Baby shuffled across the lobby. Her stomach pitched. Her round, green eyes were empty as she stared ahead.

“Honey, you gonna be alright?” Ang peered up at Baby, who was half a foot taller than the petite woman.

“Um, yeah. Thanks for everything, Ang.”

“Sure, hon. Check in tomorrow, ok?”

Baby Jade nodded and ambled out of the building and onto the dark street. Her mind was racing. The threats Slade had spewed earlier left her queasy. She played his words over in her head.
Let it go
.

Lolli was dead. She could feel it deep in her gut.

Baby shuddered. She waded through the wall of tourists as she made her way back down Bourbon Street. She crossed at the corner and took a short cut through a connecting alley. The asphalt was littered with beer cans and liquor bottles. A makeshift bed was made from cardboard and trash bags. The ‘homeowner’ was an elderly woman with disheveled gray hair, tattered rags, and a mangy, part poodle/part only God knows what as a watchdog. She glared as if baby was trespassing on her personal property.

The yapping dog startled Baby, snapping her out of the trance she had been in since hearing about her mother. She realized she had broken her number one rule. Blindly walking the streets of New Orleans could get you robbed, raped, or even killed.

Her cautious, tired eyes adjusted to the dark and surveyed her surroundings as she rounded the corner. It was easy for her to strip away the typical tourist bullshit. Trinkets, beads, and blinking plastic cups filled with syrupy liquor all fell off her grid. It was the locals she was worried about. Real New Orleans natives.

She spotted a couple making out against the brick wall behind a pub entrance, groping one another with their snake-like arms slithering up and down. The woman’s minuscule skirt hiked up around her mid-drift with one leg jacked up against the wall.

A group of women cackled from across the street just as one of them busted her ass off the edge of the sidewalk. There she sat, splattered on the street giggling like a school girl.

Fucked up.

An old beater truck had pulled up to a curb where a scrawny man in a ribbed tank and pair of loose jeans leaned into the passenger’s side window. Took all of twenty seconds. Clearly a drug deal.

Baby Jade quickened her pace. Her heart fluttering in her chest and her skin was hypersensitive from the crushing anxiety. Craning her head around, she peered down the street. Fear crept up in her gut, spreading through her chest. She broke out in a jog. As she got closer to her apartment, Baby noticed the same black car she had seen on her way to Pecan Grove.

Drew.

Panic rippled through her stomach. Baby sprinted the remaining block to her apartment. She skirted past Rodney’s garage. Blood pumping. Her heart hammering against her ribcage. Her quick breaths left her winded and wide-eyed.

She barreled forward with her sights on her front door. She jammed her hand into her shoulder bag, fishing for her keys. Grasping the cold metal between her trembling fingers, Baby tugged them from the bag and fumbled with the lock.

The growl of the Mustang sent a shiver through her core, leaving her lightheaded. Drew. Slade on the prowl. It didn’t make sense. It was too much of a coincidence.

Alone, with the lights out behind locked doors, Baby Jade was thankful Ma’Linn wasn’t home tonight. Hopefully, she was safe at the institution. Ang had promised they would post security outside of her mother’s room. She was going to have to trust that for now. She was of no use to her mother, not anymore.

Headlights flickered between the drawn shades forming elongated shadows across the dark room. Her stomach felt as if she’d had a bowling ball pressing on her insides, blocking the air from flowing to her lungs.

From a distance, Baby heard the inherent sounds of the New Orleans street flare. Brass music blared through the alleys. Voices. Cars and horns.

Pop
!

Baby Jade shot backward. The explosive bang from a broken-down muffler sent her on her ass. Embarrassed, she winced and rubbed her aching backside. She rolled her eyes and drew in a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds before releasing the air.

I really need to keep money on that fucking cell phone
.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Lucky

Lucky dismissed Wendy for the day and spent the remainder of the afternoon at Gauthier attempting to crack the password on his father’s computer. He tried Tilly, and not because it was Colby’s wife’s name, but rather his boat. Birthdays and anniversaries. Pet names. Favorite sports teams. Nothing worked. He had already gone through all of the cabinets and drawers, with the exception of the two locked file cabinets in the corner. He found a few different sets of keys but never found a match.

Running his hand through his beard, Lucky paced the room. He unbuttoned the first couple of buttons on his shirt and shoved his hands into his pockets. His tall frame patrolled back and forth in front of the massive window, lining one wall of the office. The view of the city was impressive, especially from the twenty-second floor of the Gauthier-Flanagan building.

It was a clear night. The bright lights of the Big Easy danced across the Mississippi River. It was a magical city. If only he believed in magic.

Lucky grabbed his jacket and locked his father’s office door as he left. The bustle of the building had given way to dim lights and empty rooms. He made his way down the hall but halted as he heard the familiar condescending tone coming from Carrie’s office.

“I told you, no more excuses.

Silence

“Following the whore isn’t good enough. You were paid to do a job. Do it.”

Silence

Carrie chortled into the phone. “Isn’t that sweet. You have a soft spot for the stripper.”

Silence

Lucky pressed his body against the wall and leaned in toward the door, careful not to cast any shadows from the light streaming from the partially opened door.

Carrie’s tone changed from mocking to threatening in the blink of an eye. “Let me put it this way. You answer to me, and I answer to someone else. Someone you don’t want to have to remind you of your job description. Get your shit together and take care of business.

Slam

He heard a loud huff followed by the wheels from her chair screeching against the floor. Lucky’s nostrils flared. His pulse rushed through his body. He braced himself in case she was to come through the door. Instead, he heard the trickle of running water.

Realizing that Carrie was in her office bathroom, he hurried down the hall and darted into the elevator. The cryptic words of her conversation replayed in his head. She was up to something, and it was some bad shit. He pumped his fists, willing the elevator to go faster.

Bounding across the parking lot, Lucky jumped onto his bike and peeled out of the parking garage.

Images of Baby Jade flashed through his head like a broken movie reel. He couldn’t piece the information together. But there was one thing that he could be certain of, Baby wasn’t safe. That’s all he needed to know.

Lucky pounded on the wooden door. “Baby?” The veins in his neck bulged, throbbing, thumping against his thick skin.

He peered into the window, and his heart plummeted at the sight of the pitch-black room. He beat on the door with both fists. “Baby? Dammit, open the fucking door!”

Shuffling came from inside the apartment. He shot to attention.

“Lucky?” Her voice overflowing with fear.

The knob twisted as he heard the locks clicking on the other side of the door. Once open, his eyes scanned her body, drinking in every inch of her. She had piled her massive waves up on top of her head. Her signature, ebony tendrils coiled around her tan face. The way the v from her snug t-shirt dipped down between her full, round tits made him stir, feeling the strain of an instant erection pressing against his jeans.

The little vein thumping in her perfect neck made him break out in a sweat. He wanted to devour her glistening skin. Her tiny, silk shorts fit like a glove and caused a serious mind fuck. Long, lean legs. He would give almost anything to have them wrapped around his waist right now.

Shit
.

He had to get his head on straight.

“What are you doing here?” The puzzled look on her face reminded him of why he was there in the first place.

“Can I come in?”

She shook her head slightly, appearing confused. “Oh, yeah, sure.” She turned to step out of the way, and Lucky used the opportunity to adjust his jeans.

He wanted her more than he wanted air.

Baby clicked on the lamp. She stood to the side with her arms folded across her chest. He got a closer look and noticed the dark circles forming under her eyes. She was tired, exhausted. He took a step in her direction, causing her to flinch, and stumble backward.

“Shit,” Lucky bound forward to catch her just before her head hit the wall. “What the hell are you so jumpy about?”

“Nothing, I’m fine.” Her doe eyes betrayed her.

He backed away to give her some space. Once settled on the couch, he studied her. “You’re not fine. What the hell’s going on?”

She moved across the room and planted herself on the coffee table. “You first. What’re you doing here?”

Lucky tugged on his beard. He pondered the best way to share about Carrie and her threatening phone calls. Thirty minutes ago, he had been ready to bust up in her apartment and save the day. Now, seeing her so on edge, he had to play his cards right.

“Well,” he ran both palms up and down his jeans. He had to busy his hands to keep from reaching for her and pulling her onto his lap. He wanted to kiss away all of her troubles. “I wanted to make sure you were ok. And by the looks of it, it’s a good thing I did. Something’s got you all worked up.”

Baby tilted her head to one side, causing loose curls to bounce. She skimmed her bottom lip with her tongue. “Yeah, but you didn’t know that.”

Lucky swallowed hard and adjusted himself on the couch. He had no choice but to spill what he knew.

“I was worried about you. I heard something.”

Her brow furrowed, creating little lines along her forehead, urging him to continue.

“You know about my dad.”

Her face softened as she nodded.

“Well, there’s been some underhanded bullshit going on at Gauthier. Some of the board members are up to something.”

“What does that have to do with me?” She sat upright, straightening her back, which only pushed her chest out in his direction, elongating her neck.

She had no fucking idea what she was doing to him.

“You wanted to hear it, so let me finish. Damn.”

Baby threw her hands up in the air, signaling surrender.

“My mother was looking for some kind of clue when she collapsed. I’ve been spending all of my time trying to do the same thing. I’m fairly certain my father was hiding something, and I think it involves Carrie Scott.”

Baby’s eyes grew wide. She twisted her lips to one side before asking, “Carrie Scott, as in your ex-girlfriend?”

Lucky rolled his eyes and nodded. “You know she was working for Gauthier. Well, my mother thinks she’s stirring up a takeover, and after spending a little time at the office, I have to agree.”

“You’re spending time at the office? What exactly does that mean?” She folded her arms across her heaving chest.

“Not sure, yet. Right now, I’m just trying to make sure the business is on the up and up. My mother’s scared shitless, and by the looks of it, she should be.”

“Damn, I’m sorry. Sounds like you’ve been handed a real mess. You’ve got your work cut out for you. But again, um, me?” She arched her eyebrows.

Lucky sucked in a deep breath, tugging on his beard. He was still trying to wrap his head around the entire fucked up day. “I overheard Carrie today, twice actually. I don’t know who she was talking to, but your name came up.”

Baby’s head snapped back.

He decided to spit it all out at one time, without giving her a chance to respond. “She has a serious hard on for you. I can’t figure out why. She told whoever it was that they had a job to do. I heard her say she answers to someone else, and they wouldn’t like it if the job wasn’t finished.”

He eyeballed her to see if he could get a read on how she was taking the information. Her eyes were hard. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. The rise and fall of her chest had quickened.

“The other person has apparently been following you.”

Baby shot up from the coffee table and paced the room. Her gaze darted wildly and she bit into her lip, so hard Lucky noticed her wince.

“What the hell is going on, woman? Talk to me!” Lucky’s gut tightened.

She swiped her tongue across her swollen lip, making his heart race. “Where do I start?”