“She could be a he,” Molly replied, delighted that he’d acquiesced so easily.
Devil shrugged. “Fine. It makes no difference to me as long as the person is qualified.”
Molly wanted to dance around the office, but she managed to play it cool. She was getting her way! “Alright then,” she declared with a nod. “I’ll come in and find you a replacement tomorrow, and then I’ll take a leave of absence through the honeymoon. We’ll reevaluate the situation after the new year.”
“I find your terms very acceptable.” Devil winked as he snaked an arm around her waist and tugged her against his chest. “I think I’m getting the hang of this compromise thing.”
“I’m going easy on you.” Molly snorted. “I won’t always be this easy to negotiate with.”
“Don’t I know it,” Devil grumbled before covering her lips.
God, the man could kiss. Seconds turned into minutes and she got lost in him. When he finally lifted his head, she knew she was smiling like a fool and couldn’t bring herself to care. It finally felt like she was getting everything she wanted. It was thrilling and scary, and a little bit intimidating to know that this man that she’d known all her life could devastate her if she wasn’t careful.
“What?” Devil asked, watching her face.
Blinking, Molly shook her head and forced another smile. “Nothing,” she said softly, patting his chest as she tried to take a step back from him.
“Nuh uh,” Devil denied with a frown. “You were happy, but then your eyes clouded. What were you thinking?” he asked.
“I was thinking that I need to get moving if you’re going to make your meeting,” Molly lied. “You have a two o’clock, remember?”
Glancing at the clock above his desk, Devil groaned. “I do,” he admitted with a sigh.
“I need to go. Do you want to meet at the church for our counseling session or…”
“We’ll go together,” Devil stated firmly, briefly tightening his arms around her before letting her go. “I think with young Pastor Davis that it will be much better to present him with a happily united front.”
“You’re being ridiculous.” Molly rolled her eyes.
“I’m being cautious. The man might have a hotline to God, but he’s still got all the requisite male testosterone, and he wanted in your pants, Molly,” Devil groused, his jaw clenching.
“Devil!” Molly gasped.
“Don’t ‘Devil’ me. I know what I’m talking about. We’ll meet with him together, Molly. I’ll pick you up at your place at six. Our appointment is for seven, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” Molly agreed with a nod.
“Alright, then it’s a date. We’ll pick up dinner afterward and go to my place. Pack a bag for the night.”
“You are drawing a lot of conclusions about the way this evening will end, aren’t you?” Molly raised an eyebrow.
“I can guarantee you the way this evening will end, sweetheart,” Devil informed her with a lascivious grin. “You, naked and satisfied, in my arms. It’s the way I intend to conclude every night from here on out. I wouldn’t mind starting my days that way, too, but I’m a reasonable guy. We can have another more personal negotiation about that later. Now, before you go, I have something for you,” he said, reaching for his wallet.
“What is that?” Molly frowned as he extracted a black card and held it out to her.
“It’s a black American Express. It’s yours, and it doesn’t have a limit,” he explained, wriggling the card in front of her. “Take it, Molly.”
“I don’t want it,” Molly replied, her loose red hair sliding over her shoulders as she shook her head. “I don’t need it.”
“I want you to have it; I want you to use it,” Devil countered, capturing her hand and pressing the card into it.
“What in the world for?” Molly asked impatiently, cocking her head as she studied his unreadable face. “You’ve already filled my bank account with cash I don’t need and didn’t earn. Why do I need a limitless credit card, too?” she complained, waving the card in his face.
“The money in your bank account is yours to use on whatever you want, Molly. You might not need it, but it’s yours all the same. This card is for you to use for the things I’m supposed to provide you with, darlin’.”
“Like what?” Molly snapped.
“For starters, you need a new wardrobe,” Devil returned easily, wincing when Molly stiffened in front of him.
“Excuse me?” Molly spat through clenched teeth. What was it about her clothes that people found so easy to criticize? First, that vacuous bitch and now Devil? She was seriously beginning to develop a complex here.
Holding up his hands, Devil began to shake his head. “Now, Molly, it’s not what you think,” he hurried to assure her. “I love your body and your clothes. It’s just that as my wife, you’ll be expected to attend a lot of formal events. Benefits… fundraisers… nights at the symphony and opera. You’ve never had a reason to have a lot of clothes for that kind of thing. Babe, you’ve worn the same black evening gown twice this week.”
“It’s a nice dress with a designer label! What more do you want?” Molly shouted, fighting the urge to press the offending credit card where the sun didn’t shine. “If you didn’t like my attire, you should have found someone else to have on your arm.”
“Hey,” Devil growled, grabbing Molly by the shoulders when she would have whirled away and stormed out of his office. “I don’t want anyone else on any part of me. That’s the point. You’re my fiancée. You’re going to be my wife. Therefore, it stands to reason that you’ll be the only woman that accompanies me anywhere. That’s my damn point, Margaret. I just want you to have the outfits and accessories that go with the occasion.”
“Don’t you dare use my Christian name in that tone!” she admonished him pertly.
“What tone?” Devil questioned incredulously.
“My mother’s tone,” Molly clarified. “Take your card and shove it up your ass, Dev. I’m not using it.” She slammed the plastic card against his chest and glared at him.
“Either you take the card and buy some things that you choose for yourself, or I hire a personal shopper and have it done for you. Either way, you’re going to have a closet filled with nice things that I will personally stuff your luscious body inside. I’m offering you the choice here, Molly.”
Staring up into his hard face, Molly knew he wasn’t bluffing. The bully was back. Inhaling deeply through her nose, Molly smiled. “Alright, Devil. I’ll do the shopping. Just like you’ve asked,” she agreed sweetly, tightening her fingers around the Amex card.
Loosening his grip on her arms, Devil narrowed his eyes. “That was too easy. I’m getting emotional whiplash here, sweetheart.”
Molly’s shoulders rose and fell carelessly. “I’m a woman. Women can change their minds on a dime. You said this card is limitless?”
“It is. I want you to buy whatever you want, Molly. Money isn’t an object. Get whatever you want. Makeup. Jewelry. Whatever you need. The only thing I ask you not to change is your hair,” he requested with a smile as he toyed with a long strand of her auburn locks.
“Hmmm, we’ll see,” Molly murmured dismissively, instantly making the decision that her hair was the first thing she’d handle. She wondered how bald would look on her. “I think I’ll call the girls and see if they can meet me for a shopping spree. Sami knows all the right labels and Viv’s a whiz at the makeup counter.” Oh, yes. Sami was definitely going to be an invaluable resource to her today. She didn’t care if she had to kidnap the model; her bestie was going on a buying binge with her.
“So, you aren’t angry with me?” Devil asked cautiously, tracing a finger down her cheek.
“I suppose I can see your side of things. I’d hate to embarrass you by appearing in the same dress twice in one week again,” Molly returned stiffly.
“You could never embarrass me,” Devil countered evenly, cupping her jaw as he directed her eyes to his.
“Ever. I happen to find you enchanting in whatever you have on your body. I prefer you nude, but sacrifices have to be made on my part. The thing is, I can afford as many dresses as you like. There’s no reason for you to have to wear the same thing twice in a week. I’m merely addressing an issue that I can fix.”
He’s merely making you into his own personal Barbie doll, Marilyn’s voice jeered in her head. JFK and Joey D. did the same thing with me, toots. Handle this problem NOW before you end up naked and dead in a bed from a drug overdose, sister.
Well, thank you, Marilyn.
Great, now she was having imaginary conversations with dead matinee idols. Devil was driving her batty!
But she had a plan.
She was nobody’s Bimbo Barbie doll.
She’d show him!
Lifting on her toes, she brushed an innocent kiss against his lips and forced herself to give him a dazzling grin. “Well, the boutiques in Buckhead await me and your credit card, Dev! I’ll see you tonight,” she promised before turning on her heel and heading for the door before he could catch her again.
“Let the games commence,” she said with a tiny smile as she boarded the elevator and reached for her phone.
Chapter Forty-Eight
As Molly Ramsey sat wedged between her two best friends, sedately sipping bubbly from a champagne flute as waifs masquerading as models paraded in front of her in designer gowns that would be found on any runway from Paris to Milan, she realized something important about herself.
She was much more suited to Wal-Mart than Waldorf’s. And if something wasn’t done soon, she was probably going to need to be poured into a cab.
The bubbly was the really good stuff.
“That one, too,” Sami nodded to a delicate blonde with a pixie haircut and a heart shaped face. The model wore a sequined mini dress cut up to her hoochie coochie.
“Okay,” Vivian interrupted with a lifted hand, “Molly wants sexy, not slutty, Samantha.”
Leaning forward to roll her jade eyes at Vivian, Samantha smirked. “That’s for me, Vivian.”
“Oh,” Viv murmured weakly with another look at the sinfully short dress. “It’s perfect then.”
“Should I start another account for you then, ma’am?” the boutique manager asked from behind them.
“Absolutely not!” Molly denied over her shoulder. “Just add it to mine. It’s Devil’s dime,” she said with a sidelong look at Sami.
“That’s the spirit.” Sami grinned, clinking her glass against Molly’s.
Draining the rest of her champagne, Molly watched as a woman wearing a fur coat marched out from the parted canary yellow curtains and down a short makeshift runway. “I like that,” she remarked.
“It’s the best seller of our furs,” the manager commented from behind Molly’s shoulder. “Very chic and versatile.”
“It’s perfect.” Molly nodded, then ordered, “I want 103 of ‘em.” Vivian’s gasp was merely a blip on her radar at that moment. Why waste time when there was Devil’s dollars to spend?
“Umm...one hundred and three?” the manager echoed in a faint voice, her eyes round and wide as she stared down at her newest and now best customer.
“Yep!” Molly said brightly, nodding eagerly. “One for me and each of my friends. Then, I’d like a hundred shipped to the domestic violence shelter of your choice.”
“Molly,” Vivian whispered, covering Molly’s hand with hers and squeezing gently. “Honey, when Devil said money was no object, I don’t think he meant…”
“Can it, Viv!” Sami ordered with a wink at Molly. “Our girl is simply following her fiancé’s directions. You go, girl!” She patted Molly on the back.
“He has to learn a lesson here,” Molly added vehemently, turning her gaze toward a worried Vivian. “Every action has a reaction. This is mine.”
“But Molly, you already ordered 300 PlayStations for the Salvation Army to give away to Toys for Tots. And you singlehandedly funded the Secret Santa program at Children’s Hospital! I think you made your point,” Vivian insisted, her eyes wide.
“Fine,” Molly muttered, weaving on her feet as she stood. “Rain all over my parade, if you must.”
Grabbing Molly’s arm to steady her, Sami chuckled. “It’s okay, chick. Between the two of us, not only have you been extremely, expensively charitable, but we’ve got you decked out for the year in all the must-have labels. Shoes, clothes, purses…you’re covered for any event. Devil can’t say you didn’t cooperate. You’re going to look like a million bucks and he’s going to eat his heart out.”
Nodding, Molly grinned. That was exactly what she wanted. Devil Delancy brought to his frickin’ knees while he panted at her feet. “Hair next,” she chirped enthusiastically. “Where’s the nearest salon? Isn’t your guy, Stefan, around here somewhere, Sami?”
“Food first,” Vivian corrected, sharing a look with Sami over Molly’s shoulder. “Otherwise, you’ll report for pre-marital counseling half-sloshed.”
“I’m fine,” Molly declared, throwing a hand over her mouth as she belched. “Oops! ‘Scuse me!” she giggled, blushing.
“Oh, Lord,” Vivian groaned as Molly giggled. “Devil is going to murder us, Sami,” she hissed around their friend’s very relaxed body. “How much did you let her drink before I got here?”
“Oh, she just had a sip or two, Debbie Downer! She’ll be fine,” Sami returned easily as she took Molly’s arm and guided her toward the door. “You’ve got the address where everything should be delivered?” she asked the manager with a wide smile.
“Absolutely. I’ll call and place the order with our distributor for those furs right away,” the elegant woman agreed instantly. “Thank you so much for your business, Miss Ramsey!”
“Anytime, Stella!” Molly laughed happily, the effects of the alcohol working overtime on her empty stomach. “Add that little black Gucci number you were eyeing earlier to my tab and take it home with you! Consider it a Christmas bonus!”
“It’s Sandra,” the coiffed older woman corrected with a genuine laugh. “But you can call me whatever you like with a tab like this. You’re like my own personal Santa Claus! Thanks again and come back soon!” She waved as the two other women pushed her new favorite customer out the boutique’s glass door.
As soon as they stepped out into the fresh air, Molly inhaled deeply. People bustled in and out of the busy shops, and Christmas lights twinkled in the shop windows. She loved this time of year. “Okay, ladies, now we need to get me a brand, spankin’ new look.”
“Absolutely not,” Vivian refused, tightening her arm around Molly’s as she aimed them toward a bistro at the end of the complex. “First, we’re going to put some food in your stomach and then you are gonna tell Sami and me what precipitated this buying binge. You loathe shopping for yourself.”
“I told you; Devil insisted.”
“You did,” Sami agreed. “But we bought things in there that the Molly we love and respect would never wear. Not that I’m complaining,” the blonde bombshell added quickly. “I’ve been saying that you needed to update that traditional wardrobe you have for years. You’re too young and way too hot not to occasionally wear fun, frivolous clothes. However, I sense something Devil said or did has made you carry your makeover to the extreme.”
“Not to mention the fact that you’ve dropped thousands of dollars on furs and toys that I assume weren’t on his preferred shopping list,” Vivian interjected as they walked into the upscale eatery.
Molly waited until they were seated in a booth in the back with a fresh basket of bread before them before she spoke. Shooting their waiter a quick smile before he walked away, Molly reached for one of the rolls on the table. “Believe me, ladies, Devil deserves whatever dastardly deed I deign to drop on him,” she confided, ripping her bread viciously in half before popping a bite between her lips.
“What is going on?” Vivian asked, exasperated as she exchanged a look with Sami.
“You know we’ll
help you hide his body if necessary,” Sami reminded Molly with a wink. “But, I think we both want to know why we’ll be aiding and abetting, toots.”
Shoulders sagging, Molly began to explain her morning to her two best friends, starting with the sadistic seamstress that had tried to impale her on a plethora of straight pins while fitting her wedding dress and ending with Devil’s order for a new look.
It was what happened in between the two events, however, that interested her friends.
Ten minutes later, Sami and Vivian stared at Molly, completely speechless. While Vivian kept opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water, struggling to form a sentence, Sami wore an impressed smile on her face. “C’mon, guys,” Molly whined. “Is it really that shocking that I slept with my fiancé? I mean, you’ve seen him. He might be an overbearing brute with control issues, but he’s one sexy pain in the ass. Nobody here could blame me for succumbing to temptation, right?”
“Hey, I’ve been saying for a year that you were overdue to get laid,” Sami announced proudly. “So you finally screwed Satan.” She shrugged before leaning forward toward Molly. “Just tell me between us girls…was he packing a cloven hoof between his thighs?”
“SAMANTHA!” Vivian groaned, burying her face in her hand.
“What? Inquiring minds can’t wait to know,” Sami huffed, rolling her expressive eyes. “He looks like he’d be packing. Was he packing?” she asked, directing her question at Molly.
Remember the feeling of Devil sliding between her legs, Molly shivered. “I had no complaints about that,” she mumbled, blushing. “He was very talented with all his appendages.”
“Ahhh…so, he had some serious heat in the bedroom. Good for you!” Sami declared with a satisfied nod. “Molly finally got some. Praise be to the sex gods!”
“Did you miss the part where he replaced me with Debbie Dumbass, implied that I needed an entirely new wardrobe, and ordered me not to cut my hair?” Molly asked irritably. “Really Sami, I thought you’d be all over the “destroy Devil” dynamic I’ve got kicking right now. I knew this one would be resistant,” she admitted, jerking her head toward where Vivian sat beside her. “But I was counting on you to help me come up with a few inventive ways to torture him.”
Sizzle Page 28
