Even in a crowd of people you always notice the one who is staring at you. It's a feeling...a prickle in your peripheral that alerts you to someone paying a bit too much attention to you. At least it does after you've been through what she's been through.

The culprit this time was a woman. She seemed average enough to the common eye. But to her...she could see the deliberate casualness of her. She knew that she thought long and hard about what she was going to wear today and coupled it with a bag only one in the know would recognize.

Checkmate.

The woman couldn't have been more than 5'3" and yet she commanded attention. The sheen in her hair was natural, the flow of her curls well pedicured. This woman moved with ease and got what she wanted. She walked over to her looking her in the eye. She never sped up or slowed down. Folks just sensed to get out of her way.

"Your pictures in the papers didn't do you justice. You're a very pretty young lady."

Shit...here we go again with them damn tabloid pictures.

"Thank you." She made to move away.

"I'd like to buy you lunch. I'm a friend of Tariq's and before you ask...no...he doesn't know I'm here."

She paused, glanced at the woman who was about to ruin her time out of the office. "Why? Are you one of his baby mama's or something?" She curled her lip.

She laughed. "Princess, please believe, that although I'm a mother all day, everyday. I'm NOBODY's baby mama. Shall we?"

And Madison followed her, not really knowing why but feeling secure that this woman couldn't hurt her in downtown DC and, she had to admit, she was curious as to where this chapter of her saga with Tariq was taking her.

"I called Tony at The Palm. Is that okay?"

"Sure. Um...shouldn't you tell me your name..you already know mine?"

"I'm so sorry, where are my manners. My name is Bianca, but everyone calls me Ms. B."

She sighed. "So, are you a rapper too?"

Ms. B. laughed. "Nope, but my husband is. He's one of Tariq's best friends."

"Oh. Shelton? Shelton is a rapper?"

"Did he let you call him Shelton?"

"Yes."

"Those boys are a mess." She laughed loudly and they walked in silence and before long rounded the corner and walked under the awning of The Palm. A gentleman walking out held the door for them and Tony greeted them personally and led them to one of the booths on the back right where the most powerful sat. Everyone looked up briefly trying to place them and then looked down again.

"I love the pickle's here."

"So do I. Why are you here?"

"Well, I just kinda wanted to meet you. My husband thinks very highly of you and Tariq is pretty broken up over how things have been."

"Yeah, I know. I got an email from a gossip site with pics of him in Vegas showing just how broken up he is."

"Those pics were taken over a year ago. Tariq has been in our Soho apartment alone since you found out and left him."

"And why should I believe that?"

"Why shouldn't you? You should never believe anything the gossips say dear. They don't get paid if they don't get traffic. And if they don't have anything juicy or nasty...they don't get traffic. You're a lawyer...do the math." Ms. B. picked up her water and took a dainty sip. The black diamond on her right hand blinked at her.

"Well, I know what I know for sure. Tariq lied to me from the very beginning. I can't have that."

"I know. And that's gotta be kinda tough for someone like you. From what I hear, you're one of those sweet people who believes in good and all that. You need to understand that Tariq lives in a world where he meets very few women like you. Therefore, he's got to protect himself at all costs if he's going to put himself out there like that. But I understand."

"Thanks."

"But, tell me this. When are you going to tell him that you're pregnant with his child?"

Madison stopped. Put her glass down and stood up...

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