“True, but can you at least tell me exactly who these men are and how you know them?” She mentioned something before, but it wasn’t enough to give me an idea of the situation we are walking into.
“Fine,” she sighs dramatically, looks around, and lowers her voice, leaning in so that her arm is touching mine. I can feel the heat of her bare arm and have a direct view down her dress, giving me a better look at the curve of her breasts. My cock starts to stir again, and I mentally tell it to chill the fuck out before I give this woman a reason to embarrass me more.
“So, the night that the girls and I made it out of the club and started over was also the night that some of society's elites lost their lives. Most of the men who, you know, went up in flames like a couple of burnt marshmallows, well, they were all the owners of multi-million, some even multi-billion, dollar companies. Which is when I found myself with an opportunity to pick who would be in charge and take over said companies. I wanted to make sure that they played by my rules and did not become what the people before them were. At the time, they all seemed like reliable businessmen who just wanted what was best for the company they worked for; to do good in life and do good by their families. None of them had any criminal history and seemed like a perfect fit at the time. Guess I was wrong. I might not have any proof. But seeing Dick,” she points to an older gentleman with salt and pepper hair and beard, “With that cunt face in the security video makes all this fishy. Reeks of twenty-day old tuna left out in the sun if you ask me.”
I grimace at her words. Nasty.
“Anyways, so yeah. There seems to be a lot I don't know about these guys, but I can't find anything on paper to nail them. It makes me feel all stabby,” she grumbles, her eyes never leaving the men. They move to a table on the far side of the room where some really tall plants stand. They really don't go with the rest of the decor.
“I'm gonna go all Nancy Drew and see what I can find out on a solo mission. You schmooze with the rich farts here. Make friends, but play nice,” she winks, then takes off, leaving me standing there by myself. God, she’s an oddball. One of the things I loved about her when we were kids. She never tried to change herself to fit in with others. She was always a“take me as I am”kind of person.
“Dean Beckett, is that you?” a vaguely familiar man says, getting my attention.
“Yes?” I ask with caution.
“Leonard Pinkson,” he says, holding out his hand. “I met you a few times back when I did business with your father and uncles.”
“Oh.”
“I haven't seen you at one of these parties in a while.”
“Well, when the owners of the company you're set to inherit decided to bankrupt it and damage its reputation by stealing from everyone they’re doing business with, it doesn’t leave you with too many friends,” I shrug, looking around but I can't find Harlow anywhere.
He gives me an understanding chuckle. “What brings you here tonight?”
“Hoping to start afresh. My cousins and I have been working hard to get our company back to its former glory, minus the corruption.”
“I like the sound of that. Come talk to a few buddies of mine; let’s see what we can do for you.” Looking back at Leonard, I’m stunned. May as well take the opportunity if it presents itself to me.
ISPEND A GOOD HALFhour talking about business opportunities, and although we are nowhere near ready to start the company back up, I may take these men up on their offers.
Saying my goodbyes, I step away from the group; my eyes search for Harlow, finding her by the buffet table stuffing her pretty face.
That woman has curves in all the right places, but I don’t get how she's that size when she eats like a man who hasn't seen a meal in weeks.
I wanna look away, but I can't.
I start heading over to her when I see her struggling to get the cork out of a bottle of wine with a corkscrew. She looks so cute with her tongue sticking out in concentration as she pulls. With one more big tug, the cork pops off with force, flying through the air, just grazing the top of a man's head, taking his toupee with it.
I stop, just standing there watching with my mouth parted as everything unfolds. Harlow stands there, clamping her lips shut to keep herself from laughing, but when the man turns around to look at her, grasping at the bald spot on his head with absolute horror in his eyes, she lets the giggles bubble out.
She gives him a shameless shrug and takes a big swig of her wine, straight from the bottle.You really can't take this woman anywhere nice.
I'm almost to Harlow when a woman steps up to her. “I believe this belongs to you,” she snarks.
Harlow wipes her mouth with the back of her hand and looks at the woman, then down to the champagne glass she's holding out.
“Oh, thanks,” Harlow says, taking the glass from the woman, sticking her hand into the glass, fishing out the cork, and chucking it blindly behind her, hitting someone else in the head with it, then downs the entire glass of champagne. “Damn, this shit’s good.”
The woman scrunches up her face in disgust and huffs at Harlow, “You are a very uncivilized young lady. You really ought to get a little class.”
Harlow gives her one of her signature Cheshire cat smiles. “Well, maybe you can help me find some, or maybe I can just put a bullet between your pretty hazel eyes,” Harlow coos, lifting the slit in her dress to the side, exposing the gun strapped to her thigh.
The woman pales and swallows hard. “Who do you think you are? Coming in here, behaving like some common street criminal?” the woman asks, her voice shaky with fear.
Harlow's smile slips, and in its place is a look that would have grown men begging for their lives, as she steps close to the woman, getting in her personal space. “I thinkI’mthe mother fucking Queen. So, how aboutyoulearn a little bit of respect while you’re still breathing.”
A man rushes over to the woman's side, panic and fear radiating off him. He leans in to whisper into her ear and I watch her face slip into one that matches his. She swallows hard.