Book 2 of Los Carnales
After going M.I.A. for months without a single word, Lauren returns to Miami only to find that she isn't the only person who has changed; the city she once knew as hers is no more. Candy has taken over her share of Miami-Dade...
A/N: Mostly Camren this chapter. Wanted to make more room for them.🤷🏽♀️
If you forgot the alleys of the Red Light Quarter, here's an idea:
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Updated look for Orion:
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December 13th, 2008 3:43pm - Red Light Quarter - Miami-Dade
"Mama, pero, you can always tell. The bigger the bicho, the bigger the fucking liar, bro, I swear," Stefani, Candy's top prostitute, flips her bright red hair and judgmentally looks a man up and down as he passes by the quartet of ladies standing in a corner, sharing slices of freshly cut oranges. "And the less suspicious he looks, the more suspicious you gotta be. Men are dumb, but they're not stupid. There's a difference."
"I think that's true," says Candy, kicking out the leg that overlaps the other, as she leans forward her in chair against the pastel salmon wall and swipes another orange to peel. "The first part, I mean. Well, Lauren's not so much of a liar, but she behaves like one. She's a very honest player."
"And you like that?" asks Nicole, the tall black woman who everyone around this place lowkey calls Tyra Banks despite her hatred for the celebrity.
Candy glances up at Nicole with an orange in her mouth, but before she answers, Lola chimes in with a resounding, "She eats that shit up. It feels better when you have two players in a relationship, verdad, patróna?"
"Last time I checked, cherries get popped," Candy retorts with a warning yet playful glare. She points an orange peel at her before she chucks it. "Cuidado. And for the record, Lauren and I don't play with each other. It's actually getting more serious between us. All I'm saying is that she isn't the most honest of the bunch."
Stefani hums and looks the other way with a subtle blush forming in her cheeks. "That's what happens when you get with somebody who looks like that, acts like that, and packs like that. That's why I date ugly boys. I sleep better at night."
"Yeah, and you wake up with a jump scare," Lola chuckles, kicking off the wall to collect a note one of her little messengers routinely gives her. While the girls snigger and continue chatting about their dating lives and red flags, she intently reads the note and the joy flushes from her face completely. Lola quickly jams the note in her bra like it's a fifty dollar bill, and hides her uneasiness from Candy. She rejoins the conversation with a bright smile. "Oye, if it's all right with you ladies, I'm going back to the office to make some phone calls."
