Fifteen minutes later, the whole sordid mess had been spilled between them and both her friends stared at Molly with a mixture of horror, amusement and curiosity – heavy on the horror. “Well, say something!” Molly yelled when neither of them uttered a word a full minute later. “You’re supposed to be my sounding board, ladies! Sound off already!”
“You’re engaged,” Sami managed to choke.
“To…to… the Devil,” Viv sputtered.
“It could be worse, right?” Molly questioned, looking from one woman to the other and back again. “I mean, he’s not so awful, is he?”
“He’s the Devil,” Vivian breathed, her brown eyes shining huge on her pixie face.
“That’s really not very helpful, Viv,” Molly huffed, holding her bottle tucked tightly between her breasts as she sat cross-legged on the middle of her couch. “His nickname is Devil. He’s not actually Satan incarnate.”
“I’m gonna need a hit off that vodka bottle before we go any further,” Sami warned, holding out her hand and wriggling her fingers.
“You’ll have to wrestle it from my cold, dead hands, sista” Molly replied tersely, tightening her grip on the mostly-gone liquor.
“You hold her down, and I’ll pry it out of her hand,” Vivian told Sami, only half joking as she warily eyed Molly.
Snorting, Sami ran a hand through her naturally wavy locks. “Well, let’s look on the bright side. At least he’s got that whole eye candy thing going on for him. You may have to look into the face of evil every morning across the breakfast table, but the view will be pretty since your betrothed is a certified hunk.”
“Not helpful,” Molly snapped at Samantha, shooting the woman a scathing glare. “Seriously, what am I going to do?” Molly groaned, leaning her head back against the thick cushion of her sofa as the throbbing in her head increased.
Shaking off her shock, Viv straightened in her chair. “Well, first off, you’re not going to panic. You’re a strong, self-assured young woman. You can handle this. Besides, Devil can’t actually make you marry him. As an attorney, I can tell you that that would be hightly illegal. Coercing someone into a binding agreement can be seriously litigious business.”
“Okay, okay, cool your jets, Ally McBeal. Nobody is suing anybody tonight. But Vivi is right, Mols. He can’t force you to marry him, but he can pressure the unholy hell out of her,” Sami argued, frowning at Vivian. “I mean, you heard her, Viv. The asshat is holding his dying grandmother over her head, for crying out loud. How much more compelling can the guy get?”
“Well, that could sort of be seen as kind of touching. Devil loves his Nana so much that he’d do anything to make her happy. I think that might actually add to his character. It’s sweet.”
“Are you deluded? Because I know you haven’t had time to get drunk,” Sami retorted, frowning at Viv’s glass of wine. “It’s not sweet; it’s creepy as all hell. Besides, Devil’s got an entire harem that follows him around, salivating at his heels. Why can’t he ride off into the sunset with one of them and make his Nana’s dreams come true? Why does it have to be our Molly that pays that price?”
“He’s known her forever, remember?” Viv reminded Sami with a roll of her eyes. “They’ve got shared history.”
“Yeah, one where, recently, he’s made her life a living hell with his bevy of botox-filled beauties. I agree with Mols. He should get one of the Stepford beauties and leave her alone. In fact, I think you should look for an entirely new job,” Sami returned bitterly. “Honest to God, what kind of asshole expects his personal assistant to break up with his girlfriends?”
“In fairness, I don’t actually break up with them so much as run interference when they come banging on his door again,” Molly interjected, lifting her head for a second. “And in the state of Georgia, there are exactly zero jobs in my field right now. Trust me, I looked. Plus, nothing else would pay nearly as well as working with Devil does. He might be a pain in the butt, but he does compensate me with a ridiculously high wage. I’m not going to make 30.00 an hour anywhere else.
“Still,” Sami grumbled, shaking her head, “It’s twisted. He’s twisted. Hence, calling him the Devil.”
Turning to face her friend, Vivian asked gently. “What do you want to do, Molly?”
“Honestly? I don’t know.” Molly shook her head unhappily, letting out a long sigh. “Part of me wants to flip him the bird and tell him where to put his idea of matrimonial bliss. But, another part...”
“Finds the whole thing incredibly romantic?” Vivian supplied knowingly.
“Are you kidding me?” Sami balked incredulously, visibly recoiling as her head jerked upright. “Romantic is a moonlight walk on the pier or a kiss at sunset, Vivian. It’s certainly not a surprise proposal at a dying woman’s bedside. What I wanna know is what did the jackass have to say for himself after you got him out of Nana’s room? What’s his grand plan for the two of you, long-term? A divorce after good old Nana finally departs for the Hereafter?” she surmised sharply.
“I don’t know,” Molly admitted softly, shrugging as she sank deeper into the sofa, doubts and worries darkening her thoughts, the alcohol pumping though her veins not helping any at all. Why the heck was her liquid courage failing her now, she wondered as she took another fortifying pull from her bottle, ignoring the searing burn of the alcohol sliding down her throat. Forcing herself to focus on Sami, she sighed. “Truthfully, I wasn’t exactly in a frame of mind to stand around discussing Devil’s plans to hijack my life. Basically, after I assaulted him for rolling his eyes at me, I sort of carjacked my brother’s SUV and took off. I never looked back after that. I never really gave Devil a chance to tell me what he was thinking. I was just so stinkin’ angry, y’all. I was seriously afraid that if I stuck around any longer, I’d be accompanying the Devil back to Hell… with his black heart clutched in my hands,” she shared, tightening her fingers around her vodka bottle and shaking it for emphasis.
“Well, you can’t make an informed decision until you know all the facts,” Vivian insisted, her voice shifting slightly into the same tone she was known to use with recalcitrant clients.
“The facts don’t matter, ladies. We all know that I can’t disappoint Nana. You know how important she is to me and my family,” Molly moaned, taking another swig from her bottle. “Hell, she is family.”
“You’d rather be trapped in a loveless marriage?” Sami questioned with a hard look at Molly, her jade eyes boring into the other woman..
“Wait a second, Sami. Who says it would be loveless? You’re making a big assumption there, I think,” Vivian disputed, leaning earnestly forward. “I know you’ve seen the way Devil looks at Molly when he thinks nobody is watching him. There’s definitely something there.”
“Yeah. I’ve seen what you’re talking about. And I’ve identified it for what it is. Lust,” Sami pronounced concisely. “Pure, unadulterated lust. Besides, I’ve never said that Dev doesn’t want to screw her brains out. He’s a man and Molly’s hot. Of course he wants to let his snake slither through her secret garden, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to fall in love with her.” Shaking her head, Sami groaned. “How is it that the model in attendance here tonight seems to be more rational than the flippin’ attorney in this friendship?”
“First off, ewwwww!” Molly shuddered. “I am not nearly drunk enough to start thinking about Devil’s ding-a-ling as a snake. I hate snakes, Sami! “And second, you know our Viv loves a good happily-ever-after story,” Molly pointed out with a grin at Vivian, the vodka starting to make her world look slightly hazier and rosier.
“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with rooting for an optimal outcome,” Viv justified herself, shifting her wine glass. “Devil has a lot going for him,” she pointed out. “He’s successful, handsome, philanthropic…”
“He’s also been known to be obnoxious, arrogant, and downright deceitful when he thinks the occasion warrants it,” Sami objected, leaning forward to glare at her so-called friend. “Not to mention the fact that the guy is a horndog with a serious case of wandering dick syndrome.”
“A good woman could change all that,” Vivian declared with a hopeful smile.
“So could a butcher knife to his balls and a positive attitude,” Sami cooed sweetly, batting her eyelashes at Viv. “Which do you think is more likely?”
Molly giggled as she watched her two best friends do battle with each other. “You two are priceless. Remember who the enemy is, though.”
“I’m not so sure that Devil is the enemy,” Vivian mused aloud, shrugging as she ignored the baleful snort from across the room. “Sami is right about one thing. He could have plucked one of his former lady loves’ names from the air and given it to Nana as his perspective bride, but he chose you. That has to mean something.”
“It means she was the one standing nearest him at the time,” Sami stated dispassionately. “This is not some love story that you’re watching unfold, Viv. It’s just a guy that latched onto our Molly because she was the nearest scapegoat. That’s what he does. He uses women. Then, when he’s done, he gives them the great kiss-off.”
“And a lovely parting gift,” Molly added with a laugh. Things always seemed so much sunnier when you had half a bottle of premium liquor coursing through your veins, didn’t they? She must remember this for the future.
“Bitterness does not become you, Samantha,” Vivian chastised their friend gently. “I know you miss Ben…”
“Do not bring him into this,” Sami growled, her beautiful face clenching as she shook her head. “My ex has nothing to do with how I feel right now. If I’m bitter, it’s because we’ve both watched that dick Mols calls a boss use her repeatedly. Hell, every time he casts off another one of his hoes, Molly has to clean up his mess. It’s bullshit, and she’s got to draw a line somewhere.”
“He’s going to give her a family heirloom for an engagement ring, Sami. That has to mean something,” Vivian argued, leaning forward in her chair.
“Yeah, because his Nana told him to,” Sami rebuffed easily. “I’m sure that’s the way every woman dreams of getting a diamond.” Swallowing the last of her wine, Sami shook her head. “The whole thing is repulsive. If you wanna kill him, Mols, I’m down for helping dig the grave.”
“You are a true friend, sista,” Molly praised, directing a loopy smile at the stunning model as she lifted her vodka bottle in salute.
“Or, one could choose to see this as an extremely thoughtful and caring gesture. It proves how much Devil cares about his family… of which Molly could shortly become a member,” Vivian remarked, holding her ground just as all three friends were blinded by headlights being reflected through Molly’s picture window.
Draining the last of the vodka in her bottle, Molly squinted at the bay window. “Who is that? Everyone I care about is here. Or at the hospital. Or in Bermuda,” she muttered, struggling to sit up.
“Just stay there, sweetie. You’ve had a hard day,” Viv soothed her friend, patting Molly’s leg as she stood up. “I’ll see who it is.”
“Get rid of ‘em, Viv, whoever it is,” Sami directed, eyeing Molly critically, her keen eyes not failing to notice the way that her friend was literally slipping deeper into the couch cushions. “I don’t think our girl is in any shape to deal with anything else tonight.”
Both women watched as Vivian peeked out the sheer curtain hanging in front of the window.
“Oh, my God!” Vivian hissed, turning to stare at Molly and Sami with wide, excited eyes.
“What?!” Sami questioned, instantly alert and on her feet.
“It’s El Diablo, himself!” Vivian squealed, falling back against the wall as the doorbell pealed.
“Well, hell. Evidently, Satan makes house calls. Or maybe we summoned him with all our chatter. Either way, it appears this devil is determined to have his due,” Molly cursed with a groan as the doorbell pealed again. Burying her face in a throw pillow, Molly wondered if it was possible to smother herself. A girl could hope, couldn’t she?