Read Deadly In Stilettos Online
Authors: Keke Chanel
Deadly In Stilettos (13 page)
Enry was hoping no one would see them togethe
r and tell Laurel, his girlfriend. Enry truly cared about Laurel Cordwright. In fact, he loved her in his own way. If all did not go well with his second chance with Demi, he would ask Laurel to be his wife. His law practice was soaring. The firm was thriving beyond his wildest dreams. All he needed to complete his life was a wife and a few kids to carry on his name. Once upon a time, that woman was going to be Demi. They had been so in love. He hoped she still had a small piece of that love left in her heart for him.
Demi was exhausted, so she did not make any small talk with Enry. She simply agreed to meet him for dinner and hung up before he said another word. Quickly, she dialed Tabi’s number and filled her in on what happened. Tabi laughed with her, sa
ying she was available to spy if need be. Demi said she’d hold her to that.
They chatted a few more minutes, and then Demi turned the light out so she could go to sleep. The next few days would be hectic. She needed all the rest she could get. From the loo
ks of it, no telling when she would be able to get any more of it. With only three more people on her list, Demi had to be careful, remain focused, and move quickly. Too much time could cost her dearly.
Chapter 9
DEMI’S LUNCH date with Laurel went extremely well. She was an intelligent and savvy woman. Demi saw herself in the other woman, and therefore wasn’t surprised that Enry was with her. Laurel provided more information than she expected without knowing she was doing so. Having Enry’s entire work and home schedule for the next few weeks was way more than Demi had hoped for.
Laurel was an art buyer, who received a degree in art from NYU. Working in one of the most successful art galleries in the city, she made a name for herself long before she met Enry. In fact, they met at the gallery one night at an art show for one of her clients. Laurel’s dream was to someday open her own gallery. She also told Demi about her family, which was one of the most powerful families in New York. Laurel grew up in the Hamptons with nothing but the finer things in life. Her parents had worked hard to make sure she had all that she wanted, needed, and desired. Laurel did not want Demi to think she wanted anything from Enry other that his love and respect, but Demi would soon find out what Laurel Cordwright had in store for Enry Williams, and a few others too.
Laurel admitted she hadn’t liked Enry at first because of his arrogance, the same as Demi, but later fell hard for him. Enry Williams was a special breed of men, and both Demi and Laurel knew that firsthand. Despite his arrogant demeanor, he was still a great catch with a bright future, and a dick that stretched longer than a twelve inch ruler. His intellect far exceeded most, and he was extremely handsome, with a body that made women want to rip his clothes off and fuck his brains out.
Laurel and Demi exchanged numbers, promising to keep in touch.
‘
Who know
s
?’ Demi thought.
‘
This could be the beginning of a long lasting friendship.
’
She told Laurel of her dinner date with Enry just for kicks, asking if she was okay with it. Demi wanted to see the other woman’s reaction to truly see what type of woman she was dealing with. There was nothing worse than a jealous ass woman. Demi knew how it felt being left in the cold by a dishonest man and Laurel seemed like a nice woman, so she deserved to know who she was with. Enry cared about nothing but himself. To her surprise, Laurel knew about the date and assured her it was fine.
Deep down, though, Laurel was furious. How could Enry not tell her, but blatantly lie to her instead? He told her that he was having dinner with a client and not to wait up for him. What did he have planned? She would definitely find out. Inside, she was ready to bash someone’s skull in. She needed to calm down. Her doctor wasn’t in town and she was in need of a prescription refill. Why hadn’t she gone to see him before he left like he advised? Laurel took a deep breath and regained her composure. Soon, Enry would get exactly what was coming to him.
Although they did not live together, Laurel and Enry spent several nights in each other’s company during the week, more often at his place than hers, because she lived with her parents on their Hampton estate. With her condo in Manhattan being renovated to sell, Laurel had been forced to move back home with them. She had her own quarters, with separate driveway, pool, kitchen, and many other amenities, so it wasn’t bad. She knew deep down that her parents did not approve of her dating outside her race, but that hadn’t stopped her. Her freedom was all she had to keep from going insane. Besides, she couldn’t help who she was attracted to. It didn’t matter that their skin was often times the color of rich caramel. And Enry was a good business contact to have if she wanted her gallery to have proper representation. His law firm was top notch, the best in the tri-state area. Some he would be known all over the county, and Laurel wanted to make sure she was on his arm when that happened. Her other needs, would just have to take the backburner.
Not that it should matter, but her parents came from a long line of Southern roots. The thought of mixing bloodlines sickened them. Laurel knew from many experiences that both of her parents did not like many people who were not the same color skin as they, but secrets do have a tendency to come out.
Laurel found their prejudices heartless and cruel, vowing never to be part of it. She was thankful they hadn’t brainwashed her into thinking people of color were beneath her. Many of her friends were of different races and she cherished them dearly.
Before Enry, Laurel dated other successful and powerful people of different ethnicities—Asian, Latin, and Indian. She loved men and women of all racial backgrounds. Until she was hurt so deeply by her last boyfriend, Laurel rarely dated inside her race. Never again would she be made a fool of like that. Too bad he couldn’t brag into it, she thought thinking of what happened to her ex. No one played her like a fiddle and just walked away before she did her dance.
If Enry Williams thought he could just walk all over her, he had another thing coming. Although lunch with Demi went great, Laurel did not trust her. For all she knew, Demi could have come to town just to take Enry away from her. As Laurel continued chatting with Demi, the voices in her head kept trying to take over. She bumped her leg up and down, willing them away. She couldn’t allow Demi to see her out of control. If only she had her meds. No one would ever backstab her again. If it meant someone got hurt in the process, then so be it. Her former best friend Trish also knew all too well how deception could transform a life, even end it.
Trish had been brutally murdered by a deranged lover she tried to get rid of. The police had done nothing to help. Laurel told Trish to leave New York for a while until things blew over, but she refused. When Laurel found Trish at her apartment slain like an animal, she changed from an innocent person into something else. It was as if she transformed without knowing what happened to her, until her rage got her into countless heated confrontations with myriad people.
No matter how hard she tried to control her temper, it always got the best of her. Laurel had done several things since Trish’s murder that she regretted, one being finding Trish’s lover and ending his life. That silenced the voices for a while, but they never went away for long, leaving her craving the thrill of another kill. When she didn’t take her meds, they sometimes took over, and she found herself in situations in which she couldn’t recall everything she had said or done. Laurel couldn’t afford to have that happen to her again, not now, while she was with Enry. He was too powerful and popular to have her screw that up for him. No one would understand.
As for Demi, Laurel would make sure she knew when Demi was with Enry. She would spy on their dinner date that night to see the interaction between them. If she saw signs of cheating, Enry would be sorry. On the other hand, if Demi attempted to steal her man, Laurel would make her life a living hell.
The two women made plans to see each other again and then said their good-byes. It was getting late, and Demi wanted time to relax before her dinner with Enry. She was gonna need it to deal with his smug attitude and corky behavior.
She was pleased with how well she’d gotten along with Laurel and how similar they were. They would definitely make a great team someday, she thought on her way back to the hotel. She knew Laurel would be in the shadows at the restaurant later that night, watching their every move. She didn’t blame her, but it was sad to know that such a beautiful woman could allow a man to make her lose focus on her self-worth. She would possibly do the same thing if she were the same woman she once was so long ago. Demi was glad she was self-confident. There was nothing worse than insecurity on a woman.
Men had a funny way of treating the person they claimed they cared for and loved that way. Enry Williams was certainly not the exception. His agenda had been betrayal, and Demi his prey. When he’d had the chance, he’d blown it. Now he would suffer greatly for all the pain and suffering he bestowed upon her.
As the time for dinner approached, Demi felt the first hints of a migraine. It had been months since her last migraine, so it caught her off guard. Maybe it was from something she ate while having lunch with Laurel. Thinking seriously of canceling, Demi called Tabi to see what she would suggest. Always a breath of fresh air, Tabitha hurried over to the hotel with her prescription migraine medication. Demi made a note of the medication’s name so she could get a prescription from her doctor when she returned home.
Tabi helped her find a nice outfit appropriate for dinner. Demi did not have any intentions of misleading Enry. She hoped he hadn’t read too much into her accepting his invitation. He was not worth the time of day, but she had to get close enough to fulfill her plan.
As Demi made her way to the hotel’s restaurant, she felt confident and sexy. The short black sequin leather halter dress was perfect. It would definitely set her plan in motion if Laurel was watching, as she suspected. Red and black snakeskin stilettos, gladiator style with a zipper up the back, completed her outfit. Many heads turned as she was escorted to a table. Enry was late as usual. Demi ordered a drink, surprised to realize that Tabi’s medication had helped silence her migraine so quickly. She would definitely be getting a prescription when she got back to Las Vegas. She made a mental not to send Tabi a bouquet of flowers or—even better—a nice pair of stilettos to show her thanks and appreciation.
As Enry walked into the restaurant, he was amazed at how beautiful and fit Demi still was, even though she was far from being old, she was not the same age she was when they were together, and she somehow looked better now to him. The shoes she wore stole his breath. They looked both sophisticated and sexy as hell, which he had always loved about her. He suddenly wanted to see her in them with nothing else. Enry had never met a woman who loved shoes more than Deminis Bradshaw, nor had he ever met a woman with legs to die for like hers. She enflamed his own passion for shoes, especially the first time he saw her naked in a pair of red stilettos. That image was forever embedded in his mind. The foot fetish he tried to contain suddenly sprang to life. He wanted to kiss her feel, licking her toes until she begged him to stop, and then lick her in other places he still craved.
After apologizing for being late, Enry ordered a drink before he drooled all over himself. “You look absolutely amazing, Demi. Damn, girl! Good enough to eat, lick, bite, and suck. Those shoes are sexy as hell. I want to put your feet in my mouth and make you cum.”
Demi smiled despite the disgusting feeling she felt creep unto her. She hoped the look of disgust didn’t show on her face. Enry had just made her feel like a piece of meat. Usually when someone admired her shoes, she took it as a compliment. For some reason she felt cheap when Enry stared at them. Maybe she would have to buy a pair of sneakers to keep him from looking at her with so much lust. Demi knew Enry did not mean her any good, more so now than in the past. “I see you still have that fetish,” she replied, trying not to let her distaste show.