July's Lover

"Bold of you to think you could murder a mafia boss and get away with it," Ice read from the piece of white paper handed to her by the curvy lady, whose beacon-bright lingerie appeared to glow in the dim light. "Let me see," I grabbed the paper from her. My gaze wandered across the blue inscription on the paper as my palms sweated. "Who gave you this?" I asked the lady. "That handsome piece over there," she said, blowing a kiss in one direction. I tried to stand up from my seat, but Ice held me back. "Do not tell me you fell for this already." "Do not get started. I warned you not to bring me to this club, but you did not listen, and now I am in a mess," I yelled, my jaw clenched. "But I told you I had deleted the video." She defended with open arms. "What if somebody had seen it before you deleted it?" My widened eyes met her dark brown eyes. "Are you girls going with me or not?" The lady's voice cut through the background noise of loud pop music. "I do not have all day," she said, rolling her eyes at us. "Go, tell whoever sent you to do his worst," Ice said, rolling her eyes at the lady. I got up from my seat and grabbed my white purse from the table. "I would not agree with you on this. You certainly have nothing to lose." "July!" She called out as I pursued the lady. I knew there was no way I could go to a club and no one would recognize me, but Ice assumed I was just scared. She claimed that she had hacked into the hotel's camera that night and deleted the video. Her deception was actually too good, because I am now here, squeezed between a dancing crowd, the smell of smoke, perfumes, and alcohol filling my senses as I walked closely behind the curvy lady. "Could you at least be calm?" Ice's warm breath swept behind my earlobe. "How am I supposed to calm down?" I inquired, keeping my gaze fixed on the lady. "If you had let me contact a lawyer to divorce Bill, I might have been sound asleep in your house." "You sound like you could have slept with the thought of your sister being pregnant for your husband," she said as we followed the lady into the VIP area. The low jazz music, combined with the chilly air and fluorescent lighting, provided a warm welcome. "Still better than being blackmailed in a club," I said, my gaze drawn to a short-haired man in a nude suit. Myself and Ice sat on the couch across from him, while the lady stood behind him, massaging his shoulders. "Which of you is July?" He inquired, his gaze fixed on his phone as his thumb slid across its screen. As he said my name, my hair started to itch with discomfort. "How about you introduce yourself first?" Ice asked, her voice rising. "My name is Chris, and I am a nice guy... until I hear a secret," he said, his clear glasses reflecting a rectangle of light. "That means you will be nice to us, right?" Ice inquired, her fingers drumming on her teal purse. He tapped the lady's hand, gesturing for her to excuse us, and she did, batting her lashes at him. "It would have been so if I had not been in one of the restrooms while you two were having a friendly chat," he replied, finally lifting his face to us with a grin. His words hung in the air while Ice and I exchanged blank stares. "How do you know my name?" My heart raced. "I suggest you should be more concerned with how to appease me." Chris leaned back, his eyes gleaming with amusement as he placed his phone and clear glasses on the table. "Listen, man," Ice said, leaning closer to the table. "Chris," he interrupted, tucking a cigarette between his lips and lighting it. "Whatever," she muttered, rolling her eyes. "You can not just come out of nowhere and threaten us," she said, her voice tinged with irritation. "Ice, do not upset him," I whispered, gently pinching her thigh. "Do not shut me up. He definitely knows nothing," Ice snapped, and Chris' eyes cringed with a smile. "Try me," he warned, smoke slowly escaping from his mouth and nostrils. "If what you heard in the restroom is all you know, you know nothing!" Ice said, her voice rising as she got up from the couch. "If any of you leave this table without agreeing to my orders, my accomplices, who are stationed throughout this club, will act based on what we know," he said, his eyes gleaming with triumph as smoke swirled around his face. "What exactly are you referring to?" Ice questioned him with furrowed brows, and his smile faded. "I am talking about the video that reveals your darkest secret, the one you girls believe you deleted four years ago." I felt my heart sink into my stomach as he laughed out loud. "Give them some drinks," he ordered, waving his hands at the waitress at the private bar. "What is your price?" Ice inquired almost quietly, breaking the silence after we exchanged a brief glance. "Sit!" His laugh faded into a frown, and Ice sank into the couch. "Six-month marriage contract to July," he declared. "What?" I exclaimed as I leaned closer to the table, the pungent cigarette aroma filling my nostrils. "July is married," Ice said, pointing to me with her thumb. "That sounds more interesting," Chris said, picking up his phone. "My husband would kill you if he found out about your plan," I smirked, but my legs were already shaking. "Then he should be quick enough so that I do not kill you first." The waitress arrived with some drinks and set them on the table while he continued to look through his phone. "Give me some time to think about it," I said with blurred vision. "There is nothing to think about, July," Ice got up from her seat, her face scrunched up at Chris. "Go live your life, and stay out of ours." "You have got eight hours to meet me here, July. Otherwise, your world will crumble before your eyes," he warned. The smoke from his cigarette curled upwards as he smiled at me. "Even in eight years, you would never see her." Ice leaned in and firmly grabbed my hand, "Get your ass off this s**t, let us go home." Ice sucked her teeth as we walked out of the club, the neon lights illuminating the darkness. "I can not believe you bought into his empty threats, July." "I thought I was finally free of the shadows of my past," I said, letting tears stream down my cheeks. Ice unlocked the car with the remote, and it beeped open as we approached it. "But what type of blackmailer requires marriage?" Ice inquired as we opened the door and slid into the warm leather-scented interior. "At the expense of my own marriage?" I threw my bag into the empty backseat. "I did not even perform a lap dance." "This is no joke. I am back to my messy life again," I screamed. "I do not think he knows anything about us," she said as the car engine hummed to life. "I completely disagree. If you had not lied about deleting the video, we would have left the club long before anyone recognized us." I closed my eyes and leaned into the headrest, the soft cushion cradling my weary head. "He might have seen the video before I deleted it. Besides, he does not resemble any of Don Russo's friends." "You know Don Russo is a kingpin with a network of shadowy connections we have no idea about," I said,as my eyes snapped open. "I still do not believe this guy," she stated as we drove out of the clubhouse. I glanced at the car's digital clock. The red light read '1:55 AM,' and Bill still had not called to inquire about my whereabouts. "What if we run away, July?" Ice asked, her voice barely above a whisper as she fixed her gaze on the road ahead.