“Behave,” I warned him playfully, eliciting a laugh.
“The place is beautiful,” I admitted. “Nothing like I imagined, in fact. You’re likeTheGodfather.”
“You watch too many movies, babe.” He placed a kiss on my lips.
“If you two are done making out, can I borrow him for an hour? You ladies can have drinks at the bar… our treat.” Gregory grinned and placed a chaste kiss on Marley’s cheek, and I watched as the two of them walked away.
“Shall we?” I sighed. I didn’t look forward to spending time with Marley. She was not my kind of company. She always looked at me like she knew better, and I wondered at times whether she did.
She wore a body-hugging red dress that dipped in the front displaying her impressive cleavage. Her heels matched her dress, and her blonde hair was swept up on one side, curls falling all around her shoulders.
I’d opted for a simple knee-length black cocktail dress with a sweetheart neckline. It was classy and elegant and definitely not over the top. I dressed it up with a pair of electric blue heels and a matching clutch bag. My dark hair hung loosely down my back, a look Mal preferred.
We made our way down to the main area and took a seat at the bar. She pulled out a cigarette and lit it. I did not peg her for a smoker, but I didn’t know a damn thing about this woman.
“Still putting up pretenses, are we?” she asked.
“Marley, I honestly have no idea what you mean.”
“The whole perfect marriage façade.”
I laughed. “On the contrary, my marriage is far from perfect.”
She sneered, brushed her hair over her shoulder, and I shook my head. This was one strange woman, and despite wanting to tell Mal about it, I couldn’t help but keep this to myself.
She rummaged through her bag and pulled out what appeared to be a tiny bag of cocaine. She couldn’t be thinking of doing what I thought she was.
“What the hell is that?” I asked before the bartender came over to take our orders.
“Two Bloody Marys,” she ordered for us, and I was too shocked to be annoyed. She prepared a line and snorted it right off the bar counter with a dollar bill.
“Marley,” I exclaimed. I looked over at the entrance where people were making their way in.
“What?” She looked at me with that annoying look Gracie had started giving me since she hit her teens. “You don’t think I’m with him for free, do you? Big guy has got to pay up.”
“Gregory?” I confirmed.
“Who else, smartass? I’m his front. He pretends to be the perfect gentleman, the doting husband, when, in fact, all he really is, is my dealer and my master.” She smirked, and the glassy look in her eyes told me she was getting high.
“Excuse me,” I said, getting up to leave, and she reached for my hand, gripping my wrist tightly.
“What’s the matter, princess? This kind of shit doesn’t happen in your world? Well, it does in mine.” She laughed and lined up her next hit.
I felt like such a fool as I made my way toward the exit.
How could Mal lie to me?
This was madness.
Marley was not even Gregory’s wife—he was her dealer.
What the fuck was next?
Strong arms wrapped around my arm, and I spun around to find myself face to face with Mal’s chest. Hot, angry tears burned my eyes.
“Where are you off to, babe?”
“Out of here,” I practically growled out the words. “Away from all this.” I motioned around us.
