Malum: Part 1 (The Elite King's Club 4)

I shrug, engaging my poker face. “Well, I’m sure she’s not the only one Nate has been with either so…” God, I fucking hate him.

Madison sighs, standing from the sofa and making her way to the kitchen. “True that.” Then her eyes come to me. “I’m sorry if any of this talk hurts you at all…”

I shake my head. “I don’t care.” Lies. “He’s a good dad to Micaela, for that I’m thankful. I knew he was going to hate me, Madison. It just is what it is with him and I. It’s fire and ice and when it collides, it explodes and those closest to us get hit with the shrapnel. The way he is with you isn’t the way he’s with me. Well,” I pause, my thoughts flicking back to the first time we met. “At least it hasn’t been for a while.” You will not think about those memories. I snap my attention back to Madison who is staring at me with a strange expression.

She clears her throat and puts her cup onto the counter. “That’s enough talk of them, huh?”

I smile. “That would be ah-mazing.”

Looking down at my watch, I point to the shower. “I’ll go in first. You mix those cocktails you were going on about.”

She grins, getting busy in the kitchen. After my shower, I wrap the towel around my body and grab my new makeup. I happen to love makeup—a lot. I don’t wear it that much, but when I do, I think I’m pretty good at putting it on. I start with a moisturizer, and then a good pore refining primer, and then the foundation before putting the setting powder on. Madison walks into the bathroom and pauses, spitting her drink out.

“What the hell is that on your face?”

I roll my eyes. “It’s banana powder to cook my makeup so it doesn’t melt off in an hour.” I start on my eyes, deciding on smoke as dark as my mood.

“Oh, you are so doing my makeup. I forgot how amazing you are at this. You totally need to do a makeup tutorial on YouTube.”

I snort. “No thanks, but yes, I will do yours. Give me forty minutes to finish up. Go take a shower.”

Two hours later, we’re both ready. My makeup is heavy on the eyes with a nude lip, and Madison is light on the eyes with dark burgundy lips. Her hair is in soft curls that trail down her back, and mine is dead straight, my ends hitting just above my tailbone. I don’t have the heart to cut it just yet.

“God, I fucking love that dress on you!” Madison says for the hundredth time, tipping her head back as she drinks her frozen slushy-type thing. It does look good. It’s a strapless silk mini dress that hangs just below my ass. There’s a small slit on the left side too and the material clings to my body everywhere. I managed to score a good deal on a pushup bra too, so the girls are pushed up to the high heavens. For shoes, I’m wearing plain black strap heels. Nothing too fancy since the dress is on its own level.

I grab my clutch, pulling out my phone. “Ridge is almost here.”

Madison claps her hands together. She’s got about two drinks on me since she has been sipping them like they’re water and she’s starving in the Sahara Desert. I really need to pine about what’s going on with her and B later.

I pick up my glass and sink the rest of mine, taking me up to drink three. Just as I’m pouring another from the jug, a jug that is filled with some sort of slushy that tastes of every single alcohol you could think of, there’s a knock on the door. I walk over to it, opening wide to Ridge.

“Holy fuck,” is the first thing he says, his eyes going up and down my body. “Jesus, Tip.” Ridge steps inside and I flush at his nickname for me.

“You look amazing, Pidge.”

He rolls his eyes at my nickname. He hates it. But he does look great. Wearing nice jeans and a dress shirt, he looks so much different than the guy I grew up with. He looks—older. Grown. No backward caps or basketball shorts. His tattoos are obviously still there, but his style has changed. His hair has grown a little since too, now flopping over his forehead. This is probably a good thing, now his style won’t remind me of a certain asshole.

“Damn, Gina, you look hot too. I’m going to need to call backup. There’s no way I can fight them all off you both.”

Madison laughs, flicking her leg over her other, her eyes raking up and down Ridge.

I don’t have to worry about her though, as much as her and Bishop fight, they are always okay. She would never.