Angel turned to look at Crystal, who was standing behind her. Crystal immediately stopped the motion, trying not to get caught in the act. Angel frowned, and turning back to Shannon, she pressed, “What deal, Shannon?”
“Cole told me that in exchange for Crash’s protection that I had to cook and clean for him. And do his laundry.” Shannon frowned. “I think that was everything.”
“Cole told you?” Angel asked with a raised brow. “What else did Cole tell you?”
Crystal dropped her head, shaking it. “Iksnay. Iksnay.”
Shannon bit her lip again. “He said I needed to lose the attitude.”
“He did, did he?” Angel stared at the counter, thinking about just what she was going to say to her husband about this when he got home tonight. She turned back to Shannon. “And you agreed to this arrangement I take it.”
Shannon shrugged. “There really wasn’t any choice. It was that or they were walking out the door.”
“Hmm. Maybe we should add a little something extra to this recipe,” Angel suggested, slamming the pasta on the counter.
“The boys already think I put rat-poison in the coffee. Please don’t make this worse,” Shannon begged.
“Okay, fine. Maybe I’ll reserve that for Cole’s dinner,” Angel said.
“Oh, please don’t. He’s been nice to me, really. I made the deal, and I really haven’t kept up my end of it.” She glanced around at the messy loft.
Angel put her hand on her hip, and then took in the loft. “Well, I guess we need to get this place cleaned up then.”
Crystal snorted. “Rub a lamp.”
The girls burst out laughing.
Later after Angel had helped Shannon with the recipe, and they had it all prepared and in the fridge, they straightened up the loft, talking as they worked.
“So, what should I wear to this party Friday night?” Shannon asked.
Crystal and Angel exchanged looks, with Crystal saying, “You dressed her last time. This time it’s my turn.”
Surprisingly Angel shrugged, not putting up a fight. “Fine. You’ve actually been to these parties, so you’d know more than me what to dress her in.”
A sneaky grin formed on Crystal’s face. “I know just the outfit. I saw it on this website that sells hot biker chick stuff. It was perfect.”
“What was it, exactly?” Shannon asked suspiciously.
Crystal glanced around. “Does Crash have a computer?”
Shannon pointed over to the end table. “There’s his laptop. He said I could use it, but no internet shopping. He didn’t want them to trace my credit card purchases.”
“Let me at least show it to you,” Crystal insisted. She picked up the laptop and within a minute had the website pulled up. She turned the screen toward Angel and Shannon showing them the outfit.
“Wow,” Angel whispered. “That’s hot.”
“I couldn’t wear that,” Shannon exclaimed, shaking her head.
“Sure you can. You’ve got the perfect body type. You’re tall and lean and curvy. Just imagine what Crash will think when he sees you in it.”
Angel ran over to her purse and came back holding her credit card up. “I think a little payback is in order. Cole can pay for this, considering your deal and all.”
“Angel, you couldn’t,” Shannon argued.
“Oh, can’t I? Watch me.”
“We’re gonna have to have it shipped express. It’s gonna cost a whack, Angel,” Crystal pointed out.