“Mortified. Turned on. I don’t even know anymore.”
“Did you throw yourself at him afterward?!”
“No,” Kylee said, voice softer now. “I stayed in my room. I needed space to think.”
Kelly paused, then asked, “So what the hell did you two do yesterday?”
Kylee smiled to herself. “Went skydiving.”
“What?!Girl, you’re skipping levels!”
“I know. It was insane. Free-falling with him, holding my hand the whole time. I’ve never felt so… alive.”
Kelly got quiet for a second, then spoke with full force. “Listen to me. You’re a bad bitch, Kylee. Jake cheated on you. He humiliated you and then tried to buy your silence with that concert trip. You will never get this chance again. You deserve to feel everything right now: pleasure, danger, freedom. Don’t play it safe. You already did that for years. This is his karma!”
Kylee swallowed the lump in her throat, her voice a whisper. “You think so?”
“I know so. Now go find something that’ll make him forget every woman he’s ever met.”
Kylee stared out at the skyline, heart racing.
“I think I will.”
Rodeo Drive shimmered like a dream, glass storefronts glowing in the morning light, high-end mannequins frozen mid-strut, and fashion assistants darting around like stylists on a movie set. Kylee wandered through the boutiques in a daze, brushing soft silks and inspecting wild, expensive garments she’d never dare try on back home.
Then she saw it.
A black leather bodysuit, skin-tight and sculpted like it was built for a femme fatale. It was bold. Untamed. Magnetic.
Kylee stepped into the fitting room with a nervous flutter in her chest. The zipper slid up with a hiss. She looked in the mirror, and for a second, she didn’t even recognize herself.
Power. That’s what it looked like. She added a pair of sparkling, knee-high boots with red glitter and thick heels. The outfit hugged her body like a second skin. Daring, dangerous, defiant.
She was still admiring herself when her phone rang.
Private number.
She hesitated before answering. “Hello?”
A calm, polished female voice responded,
“Hi, Mrs. Riot. Mr. Riot gave us your number to contact you.”
Kylee blinked. “I’m sorry….Mrs. what?”
“Mrs. Riot. Mr. Riot made a same-day appointment for you here at Electric Karma Salon. Hair, makeup, nails. Everything. We’re expecting you in thirty minutes.”
Kylee stared at her reflection. She didn’t know whether to be more stunned by the words Mrs. Riot or the idea of an entire luxury spa day curated for her.
“I…wow. Okay, um… I’ll be there.”
“Wonderful. Just give your name at the front. Everything is taken care of.”
The line went dead, and Kylee stood there frozen, clutching her phone to her chest.
She ran a hand down the curve of the leather suit and whispered to her reflection,
“What are you doing?”
