Everyone stares at me, surprise evident on everyone's faces as they wait for me to continue. Rolling the cigarette in between my fingers, I quietly tell them everything, knowing without a doubt I could trust this group to keep quiet.
I feel the tension rolling off everyone as I tell my story. I pop the cigarette back into my mouth as I finish up and silently wait for someone to say something.
Mikel the most outgoing in the group besides Dion, grabs his glass and downs the rest of the golden liquid, then drops it back onto the table.
"I gotta be real Ro, I'm f*****g glad. Andrea was a real cunt on a good day, and an absolute monster on a bad day. I never saw the appeal, I always assumed she had to have been a complete f*****g freak in bed, for you to put up with her for as long as you did." He shakes his head as he runs his hand through his shaggy black hair, looking at me with compassion. "I know the situation was s**t, but I gotta say, I'm glad her true colors came out, no p***y is worth dealing with someone like Andrea Milano"
Matteo nods in agreement, as he fiddles with his lighter, an unlit cigarette hanging from his lips, light gray eyes that match his twins, carefully examining my face.
"I saw her chew out Marina about buying her the wrong purse during your engagement party, left your sister in tears. That's why she left early. Marina saw me watching and made me swear not to say anything. She didn't want to ruin the day for you since you loved her so much, and she was afraid you would blame her." Matteo says, looking at me blankly, but I could see the displeasure in the depth of his eyes.
I look at him sharply but don't say anything. What could I say almost a year later? I'd make sure to reach out to my sister later, glad once again that things ended the way they did. But now I was left wondering how much my family hid, just to ensure my happiness. The guilt felt like a sucker punch as I thought about it.
Absently tapping my finger on the plush velvet arm of the couch, I look around at the men surrounding me, watching me waiting for the rest of the story.
"I had someone on the scene taking photos after the fire got out of hand, and caught them running out of the house. That's where those photos that the media leaked came from." I smirked, thinking of the photos that had made headlines the day after.
It was a photo of Dante in his boxers, holding my fiancé, wrapped only in a blanket as our marital home burned down. I'd paid off the fire department to let the house burn down and to ensure that nothing could be salvaged. The fire marshal called it a freak accident, claiming that the furnace hadn't been maintained and the curtain above the vent had caught fire.
"Once the photos came out, you essentially know the rest, I reached out to the wedding planner and had her contact everyone to let them know that the wedding wasn't happening. I canceled everything, money worth losing if we are being honest." I stated as I took the last drag off my cigarette before putting it out in the ash tray.
"Haven't said a word to her since the photos leaked, but she continued to call and text me, even when I blocked her number and social media accounts. I would have continued to ignore her, but she made that stupid ass post on her social media about how she was being wrongly accused, and because of these false claims, she lost the love of her life." I scoffed as I reached for the bottle of scotch and poured myself a hearty amount. After throwing back the burning liquid, I fiddle with my glass.
"So I leaked the video footage of them sneaking around for the last 8 months or so to that popular influencer. As I'm sure you all saw, I didn't use the footage from inside the house, I used the security footage from the neighbors and the property. I didn't want her to realize I knew what her and Dante were planning." I snorted disgustedly as I poured myself another drink.
"Then this b***h has the audacity to corner me at the London office 3 weeks after, with a pregnancy test and blood tests, telling me I'm the father of her baby and she can't do this on her own and that I need to take responsibility for her and the baby."
"No f*****g way!" Leon snorts, looking at me in horror, his Hazel eyes wide with disbelief, while Matteo was shaking his head in disgust, flicking ash off his cigarette. Mikel laughs incredulously.
"Please tell me you had that psycho dragged out and blacklisted?" Alexander asks quietly, lighting up his own cigarette as he stares at me intensely. I nod as I take a small sip from my drink.
"From all my offices, and I got a restraining order, but she still calls all day every day and texts me constantly. I've been dealing with this shift for 3 months. She's been showing up at my moms place, texting both Marina and Lucia, threatening them and even went as far as going to my grandfather house to claim I had been cheating on her and abandoned her and left her pregnant, refusing to take responsibility for her and the baby. I had to get away, so I came back to the office here in New York last week since she chased me out of Europe, pulled some strings with the embassy, to put her on the no-fly list for all the airlines in the country, so if she tries to come to the states, she'll be arrested upon arrival" I scoffed in derision. "b***h is a completely insane, I was f*****g some girl a few weeks back, and somehow she found out and got a key to my hotel room, made a big scene, chased the poor woman out, and had the media there to capture it all." I shake my head in disgust
I threw back the last of my drink, feeling the warmth pool in my stomach, the strong liquor starting to hit, causing the edges of my vision to get fuzzy.
"So, I'm here to celebrate escaping a psycho b***h and making money." The guys whoop and laugh as Dion waves to a waitress in a tight black mini skirt and stripper heels. She bends over the back of the couch, her cleavage on full display as her long blond hair brushes against my arm.
"What can I get you handsome gentlemen?" She asks in a raspy voice. Her eyes lazily drifting over me, as she licks her bottom lip.
I shift my eyes away in disinterest. Nice legs and a fat rack might have appealed to me before Andrea, but my d**k was silent. Once Bitten, Twice Shy. Beautiful blondes in little skirts were the devil's messengers and I would stay the f**k away.
"Bring us some shots of Macallan 1926, and another bottle of Glenfiddich's 50-year-old Single Malt Scotch." Dion states as he eyeballs the server with interest.
"Okay, I'll go grab all that and will be right back." She says as she walks away an extra sway to her hips, catching the attention of the other patrons in the lounge.
Dion watches her walk away before turning to us with a sly smile"I'm calling dibs! I'm f*****g that tonight." Dion says with a smirk as he playfully wiggles his eyebrows at the group. Mikel laughs, shaking his head as Matteo snorts, smiling judgmentally.
"Only you, would stoop so low as to f**k the help." Alexander snorts in disgust, as he flicks his cigarette into the ashtray as he pulls his phone out.
"Hey what can I say, some of the best s*x comes from those desperate to elevate their positions. They let you do things that girls with pedigrees would never agree too." Dion says with a lecherous smile, fist bumping Leon who grins back nodding his head, before flashing a charming smile as the waitress comes back with our shots and bottle on a wooden tray.
She puts everything down on the table, bending over in front of me, giving me a peek of the tiny black thong under her skirt. I turn to Dion rolling me eyes, as he smiles suggestively.
She stands and looks at us, her eyes lingering on me. "Can I get you anything else?" She asks her eyes, trying to convey something I wasn't willing to acknowledge.
"Nah, we're good, we'll let you know if we need anything else." Dion says smoothly, as he starts passing each of us a shot.
She nods in disappointment, her eyes lingering on my face one last time, before walking away.
"Still got it Ro! Bitches love you!" Mikel laughs as he holds his shot up. "To being single, successful and least of all rich, handsome sons of bitches! Bottoms up!" Everyone throws back their shots, slamming their glasses back onto the tray.
"Now lets get this night started!" Dion says, clapping.