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Haywood i it in her direction Without flinching, Ginger put both hands in the air, bag and all She couldn’t bring herself to look at her un, but Haywood signaled for the other man to step away froer with guilt

Haywood’s eyes tracked down her body and he raised an interested eyebrow With black hair and a goatee, he appeared er than his cultured voice indicated “Well, if I’d known you were the thief, I’d have looked for you sooner”

“No need for that now” Ginger tossed the bag onto the floor “I didn’t knoho it belonged to and I made a mistake Take it and leave us be”

His eyes never left hers “Count it, Winston”

Winston lu the blood on his knuckles Herand dropped it on the couch

“You think this er faced herin dull hanks over her eyes Valerie looked far worse than the last tilied skin and sunken eyes, ic

“I’d have to agree with you there We’re the furthest thing from even”

“I know sarcasm when I hear it” Blood dribbled down her chin “I knohat you two girls think of me Willa made it clear as crystal over the phone she don’t ever want to see ain”

Ginger straightened “Willa called you? When?”

“Shit, I can’t remember Last month? Yesterday?”

She shook her head Why hadn’t Willa said anything? She looked back at Valerie Tears tracked down her bloody cheeks, her body shaking with the force of her sobs

“You know, it ain’t easy raising two little babies on your own” She swiped a filthy hand across her cheek “I was going to get ether one day, and then twenty-some-odd years came and went before I could blink, you know? It wasn’t supposed to be like this”

Suppressing the need to reach out and place a hand on her beaten-down er sed her sympathy “Well, it is It damn well is like this, Valerie”

Ginger took one last look at herthem closely

“It’s short, boss,” Winston said from where he sat with the rolls of cash

Haywood’s face pulled into a wide smile “Short, you say?”

“By twenty-eight hundred”

Ginger’s mind raced Oh God, the security deposit on the apartet it for you Just takeaccount could likely cover that amount She’d barely spent a dime of the money she’d earned at Sensation

“Sure, that won’t be a proble you can cover the interest as well?”

Her heart sank “Interest?”

Haywood sauntered toward her, one claer steeled herself so she wouldn’t flinch “You’ve put me in a bad position with quite a few people I can’t let that slide”