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had heard enough and decided to leave. However, he managed to talk her into sticking around so that he could explain his disappearing act. She reluctantly agreed, which resulted in her getting her ass beat by not one but two of his bitches. What were the odds of her running into him on this very day?
    Entering the gated community, Briggen coasted to a stop in front of his condo and jumped out to take the mail out of his box, then pulled up into the driveway. Shan’s car was already parked.
    “Welcome to my humble abode.”
    She cracked a smile as she followed him inside. The first thing she noticed was the large chess coffee table with pieces the size of hot-sauce bottles. “Where did you get this from? This is amazing.” The pieces were obviously handcrafted. The queen looked like a real queen and the knights were covered with authentic horsehair. “Impressive,” she mumbled.
    Then she took in the rest of her surroundings. The color gold overwhelmed her senses. Next was a pair of carved wooden seahorses that caught her eye. Even the living room furniture was gold with splashes of olive.
    “Oh my God! Are those real?” She went over to an open glass frame that held about ten seahorses suspended on fine wires.
    “Yeah.”
    She snickered. “Why do I get the feeling that I’m at the beach?” She twirled around and her gaze fell on the huge chandelier hanging from the ceiling. “That chandelier looks like a giant octopus. You got real seahorses in a frame, carved wooden seahorses over there, huge wooden seahorses on the desk, the seashell lamp and the colors? What the fuck?”
    Briggen laughed. “Why are you insulting my taste? I love the beach. This is my own little private beach house. I know you gonna let me have that.”
    “I’m not insulting you. But—”
    “But what?”
    “Why don’t you move somewhere where there is an actual beach or an ocean?” She couldn’t stop giggling.
    “I will one day. But for now, this is it.”
    “Let me guess. You brought this house from a clucker for a couple of rocks?”
    “Oh, you really got jokes, Shan. You really got jokes.”
    “So you said private. Does that mean that none of your hoes will be running up in here?”
    “You have nothing to worry about. Trust me. No hoes will be running up in here. So you can get comfortable and chill here as long as you like.”
    “Can I see the kitchen?”
    “Not if you’re gonna be insulting me and laughing in my face.”
    “Where is the kitchen?”
    “Just turn to your left.”
    She headed for the kitchen. It looked like an old ship. It had ship-replicated windows, an anchor and fishnets. It was very spacious and even with the stainless steel appliances it was still beachy and ocean-like. Even down to the wallpaper. “Aye, aye, Captain,” she joked. It was definitely beyond Shan’s imagination. “This is . . . so not you, Briggen,” she mumbled.
    Leaving the kitchen, she went to inspect the bedrooms. The master bedroom was olive green and had an impressive Gregorius-Pineo Moragas four-poster bed. The linen drapes went around the entire room. He had a La-Z-Boy, ottoman and huge flat-screen TV. The carpet was linen and olive. It was obvious that he hardly stayed here. She didn’t want to believe that this was his house. It had to belong to a couple of white yuppies.
    She ventured off to what appeared to be the guest bedroom. The walls were cream-colored, and the geometric espresso drapes made her dizzy. The bedspread was Horizon in espresso. A few pictures on the wall. Simple. Very different. The bathroom was old-fashioned with freestanding bowl sinks, something she had never seen outside a magazine. She backtracked to the master bath, which was huge. The shower was all glass. He could lie in the bed and watch whatever ho he had over for the night take a shower.
    “I brung most of your things in,” he said, startling her.
    “Thanks. I would love to take a nice hot shower, eat something and go to bed. You think you