“I’m serious,” she continued. “You used to be the flyest bitch around. I’m not letting you walk in there looking a hot-ass mess.”
“Girl—” I started, but she quickly cut me off.
“I’m about to text you the address,” she said. “See you in a minute.”
The line went quiet for a second.
“…I’ll think about it,” I said finally.
“That means yes,” she laughed before hanging up.
I rolled my eyes as I dropped my phone in my lap.
“I’m not going.”
“Why not?” Booda asked.
“Because somebody already tried to kill me. Why the fuck would I willingly put myself in a crowded club where anybody could walk up on me?”
Booda looked at me for a second but didn’t argue right away.
“I’m serious,” I continued. “I don’t know who set me up, who was involved, or who still wants me dead. For all I know, the wrong person sees me tonight and I end up right back in the hospital.”
“That’s exactly why you should go,” he replied calmly.
I frowned. “What?”
“You hiding in that apartment ain’t stopping nothing. Rich already knows where you live,” he said. “Being outside might help you find him first. You can either stay scared or start hunting.”
Looking away from him, I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted blood. I didn’t want to admit it, but Booda was right. Sitting inside Apartment 214 with the blinds closed and the doors locked hadn’t made me feel safer. If anything, it made me feel trapped.
All I’d been doing was locking myself inside that apartment and waiting for somebody else to make the next move. I was tired of feeling helpless.
“You really think somebody connected to this might be there?” I asked, glancing from him to the road.
“I think the more you step back into your old world, the more likely you are to get your memories back,” Booda replied. “People talk too much in clubs. Niggas get drunk, comfortable, careless.”
I swallowed hard, my thoughts racing. “What if I remember something at the wrong time?”
“Then you deal with it,” he said simply.
A quiet settled between us before I finally sighed.
“You right. I’ll go.”
“And I’ll be there in case shit pops off.”
My head turned toward him. “I thought you ain’t want people knowing you back home.”
“They won’t,” he replied calmly. “I know how to be around without being seen.”
A memory brushed against me at that moment.
“I know,” I replied, opening Giani’s message before I could change my mind.
Booda leaned back in the passenger seat, watching me closely while a slow grin spread across his face.
“That’s my girl,” he said softly, and the way his eyes moved over me made heat crawl up my neck.
