“Well, sweetheart, I’d say you look good enough to eat. You have the body to pull it off.” He strides over to me and presses a gentle kiss on mylips.
“I have to concur,” Hudson agrees. “You look fucking hot,baby.”
Max steps forward as Bryce moves away. He circles me. “Damn it, Icy. I’d say that bikini was made just for you, although to be fair, it wouldn’t stay on forlong.”
“Thanks, loves, that’s what I thought,” I say with a seductive smile, before glaring at Chloe. She looks suitably aghast and I feel a moment of triumph. Ha, that’ll teach her to be such a bitch. I turn on my heel and sashay back to the changing room. Nisha walks in behindme.
“Oh my God, Lou, you sure have a pair of balls. Did you see herface?”
“Serves her right. How dare she treat us the way she did,” I say, ripping off the bikini and throwing it on the chair in the corner of the cubicle. I pull on my clothes and return to the store where my delicious men are still waiting, anger bubbling in mychest.
“All done, sweetheart?” Bryceasks.
“Almost,” Isay.
Chloe approaches us. “Would you like me to ring up the bikini or are there others you’d like to try on, madam?” She’s all sweetness and light now. I want to slap the fake smile off herface.
“No, I won’t be purchasing it after all. I’d much rather spend my money in a shop where the assistants don’t have their heads stuck firmly up theirarse.”
With that, I turn and stride out of the store. Nisha and the boys follow, laughing gleefully. Nisha catches up with me, threading her arm throughmine.
“God, I love you,” she says, still giggling. “I wish I’d taken a photo of her face, it was a picture. Come on, lets met Cal and grab a bite toeat.”
Half an hourlater we are sitting in a cosy Italian café, a selection of half-eaten pizzas between us. Calum is sitting next to Nisha, his arm wrapped around her shoulders, and I am flanked by Bryce on one side, Hudson the other. Max is opposite, surreptitiously playing footsie with me under the table. I catch his eye as my now shoeless foot glides up the inside of his leg. The returning smile I receive isdazzling.
“Calum, do you want to tell the girls, or shall I?” Hudsonasks.
The tone of his voice is sombre, serious, and my foot falls from Max’s crotch as I situp.
“Tell us what?” I ask, noticing how Calum searches out Nisha’s hand and squeezes itgently.
“The police are closing in on Smithy,” Calumsays.
Nisha’s free hand flies up to hermouth.
“What do you mean?” Isay.
“He was spotted at a pub in Staffordshire after instigating a fight with one of the locals. They have him on surveillance,” Calumexplains.
“Thank God,” Nisha says, relief flooding across herfeatures.
“He has a list of charges as long as my arm. He’s been on the Met Police’s radar for quite some time. There are drug charges,trafficking…”
“Trafficking? As in human trafficking?” Iask.
“Yes. He is in quite deep with the international crime underbelly. He’s a small fish in a very large sea of sharks. I imagine once he’s arrested more will follow,” Bryceexplains.
“For Nisha’s sake, and for my own, I hope they make the arrest soon.” I look at Nisha and the tense way she’s holding herself. I know she is still affected by her ordeal, but I didn’t realise it still has such a hold overher.
“Well, I think his imminent arrest deserves a toast, don’t you?” she says. I see the brave face she’s putting on. No one mentions the possibility that he might not becaught.
“I couldn’t agree more.” Calum picks up his pint of Peroni beer. “Here’s to the Met Police, and to Louisa and Nisha for being two of the bravest women Iknow.”
“Amen to that,” Hudson says, raising his glass to meet the rest ofours.
“Cheers,” we all say inunison.
“Well, now that happy piece of information is out in the open, who fancies a movie? There’s that new Avenger one out,” Max says hopefully. I pull a face, it’s not my idea offun.