CHAPTER FOUR
SMOKE
“No!” Coast shot up in bed, sweat sticking to her camisole top as she caught her breath.
Taking in the luxurious room, a tight grimace flitted over her face. Mozzi’s bedroom at the Blackmoor estate was grand, like the rest of the house. She hadn’t gotten a chance to explore yet because she was so tired yesterday when she arrived. His four-poster bed was black, with column style legs and marble tops on each post. The headboard had a mirror in it, go figure, and his blackout curtains left her unable to tell what hour of the day it was.
“What’s up?” Mozzi shot up beside her, pistol in his hand. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. It was just a dream.” She shook her head.
Pinching sleep from his eyes, he nodded. With a yawn, he lowered his gun into his lap and lay back down. Chest and tattoos exposed in a pair of Tom Ford boxers, she admired his physique.
“You gotta chill, Trouble. You’re safe here.” He reached out and stroked her back.
She’d been tossing and turning all night. He understood it. Probably was the first time she’d ever been in a situation like that.
“Then why you walking around holding that thing all day and night?” Coast nodded toward the weapon in his lap.
“Habit.” Mozzi shrugged.
She brushed some hair from her face and rested her fingertips against her forehead. She had a slight headache. When she reached for the bottled water on the bedside table, she spotted an old photo in a frame on the edge. Picking it up, she brought it to her lap and studied a young Mozzi. It brought a smile to her face seeing his boyish grin and babyface features. There was a beautiful brown skinned woman with him, standing behind him with her arms draped across his shoulders. Behind them was a banner, and Coast could see that it was from an old Ree Heights Community Day.
“Is this Jane?” she asked, glancing at him over her shoulder.
“Yeah.” Mozzi draped an arm across his forehead.
“She’s beautiful,” Coast breathed, studying her simple Chanel romper and sandals with a hobo bag slung over one shoulder.
There was a diamond the size of a mini egg on her ring finger, and she sported gold diamond earrings with a Cartier bracelet on one wrist accompanied by a matching watch. It was simple, but she was fly as hell. The wild, thick afro and ivory headband gave her a retro style.
“Look at you all innocent looking.”
Her cell beside the water bottle buzzed against the marble top, and Coast swung her head to look at the screen. The minute her mother’s name flashed across, she rolled her eyes. She set the frame down and grabbed her phone and the water.
“Yes, Mother?” Coast looked at Mozzi over her shoulder.
He was half sleeping but kind of perked up when he heard her mention her mother.
“Coast, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” Coast huffed. “It’s early. Where are you this week?”
“In Prague,” Marina answered.
“What the hell is in Prague?”
“Not a damn thing, which is why I’m out of here at the end of the week. When Bee called me, I’d been thinking about my next destination. I thought I might come visit you.”
“Why?”
“Oh, so you don’t want to see your own mama,” she accused snippily.
“You always said Ree Heights was too simple for you. Why come here now?” Coast fidgeted with a loose thread on the comforter of Mozzi’s bed.
“Because you’re my daughter. It’s been years since we’ve seen each other. I miss you,” Marina confessed. “I want to hear all about what you’re doing and your life?—”
“Ma, I’m pregnant.”
