Remedy playfully rolled her eyes. “Fine.”
Eden squealed and clapped her hands. “You and I are going to make a great team.”
Remedy smiled without fighting it off or telling herself this would be over before it started. She found an oversized white sweatshirt, let hair and makeup do their thing and was sitting on the redesigned set, owning her space and her power. Her time was now and she was overly supported.
25
“What you found out?” Erys asked Tone, while Desi jotted down lyrics in the corner of the room alongside Jamani.
Tone clenched his jaw and smirked slowly, watching her over his shoulder. Erys huffed and stood.
“Bring your nasty ass out here, nigga,” Erys gritted, walking out of the studio and into the hallway. When Tone strolled out, he gave him a look that told him demands were getting ready to fire from his mouth. “She’s talent, not your toy.”
“I’m not playing with that girl,” Tone shot back with a smirk.
“Remember I know you, nigga. I know that fucking smirk. You get off making women stupid behind you. Not that one,” Erys said.
“Why not? ‘Cause she’s Remedy’s friend?” Tone posed. “Nigga, we can go on double dates and do all that lovey couple shit.”
“You don’t want to do lovey couple shit, you want to swing your dick around and fill her head up, so hear me, leave her alone.”
Tone waved him off. “Aight, nigga, I hear you. Actin’ like we weren’t scouting bitches out together.”
“When we were like thirteen, stupid. Grow up. Your dick is going to fuck up some good shit before we get started and I’m not having it.”
“Aight, I heard you,” Tone conceded. “You want to know about these muhfuckas or not?”
Erys shot him a look.
Tone rubbed his hands together and let his gold teeth gleam. “Two things. That Paul nigga has locked up a whole lot of niggas from the Trae on a bunch of padded charges to stay in office. This string of break-ins is a new ploy to cement his spot in office. And her daddy…hands just as dirty. Over-prescribing pills to those rich bitches in the Lakes and handing them off to the 3Ways to sell.”
“Big Rod know about this?” Erys asked.
“Not that I know of. If the shit is happening under his nose, he ain’t gon’ be too happy when he gets wind,” Tone shared. “Ah, nigga, I see your wheels turning. What the fuck you about to do?”
“Ask for forgiveness before I ask for permission,” Erys said, looking at his Rolex Submariner. “I got to head across town. Get something recorded tonight. MB is having an open mic listening party this weekend and I need to have them ready. I want raw talent that don’t have your bullshit all over it. Hear me?”
“Heard you, nigga, damn. You bossy as fuck, you know that? Remedy rubbing off on you?” Tone muttered with laughter in his tone.
“She’s not bossy with daddy. You could know that for yourself if you stopped playing with these women,” Erys said with a point, before holding his hand out for a dap. “I’ll hit you up, nigga. Make sure I have some shit to listen to.”
“You forget I put up the money for the studio?” Tone quipped.
Erys nodded. “Yeah, but big daddy owns the building. Don’t fuck around.”
“I’ll see you,” Tone replied to his back. “Tell Rem I said heyyyy.”
Erys stopped midstride to see Tone throw his hands up.
“I know you’ll kill me. I’m playing. I play,” Tone joked.
“Too damn much.”
Erys left the studio and headed across town to pick Remedy up as promised. Out of the Mercedes Sudan and into a pearl white GLE, he parked on the curb and waited outside for the ruler of his world to appear. Six-twenty six on the mark, she was walking out the Vibrance warehouse in between Eden and another woman. The smile on her face had been plastered there.He could see the smile lines had settled there and it looked good on her.
“Oh, now that’s a man,” the woman unfamiliar to him spoke, looking over Erys and back to Remedy. “No wonder you’re glowing like that. Shit I would too.”
“Careful,” Eden warned. “You’re from Cresent Valley, we don’t play that shit about our men.”
