Page 7 of The Devil In Disguise

With only one patron inside the café, Frida and I lean over the counter as she tells me about her late husband.

“I think you were one of the lucky ones,” I tell her on a sigh.

“What makes you say that?”

“What you and August had was all-consuming, passionate love. It was real and raw, you don’t get that anymore. Unless, of course, you are one of the lucky ones.”

“I think you are wrong. I think that magical love is out there for everybody, you just need to know when it’s worth it to stay or leave.” Her thin lips tip up in a soft, knowing smile.

Is it that noticeable that I’m unhappy?

Frida’s voice pulls me out of my snowballing deep thoughts. I forgot to respond to her, but she must have known exactly where my mind went.

“My dear, you remind me so much of myself at your age.” She tucks a strand of hair that fell out of my ponytail behind my ear and grabs my face with both of her hands tenderly. “You have the potential to do great things. You just need to spread your wings and everything will fall into place.”

I give her a pointed look, hoping to silently convey all the emotions I’m not quite sure how to put into words, then lean over the counter to pull her in for a hug. “I appreciate you so much more than you’ll ever know,” I whisper loud enough for her to hear me.

A customer comes in and Frida takes her order while I gather my emotional bearings from my spot at the counter.

Our manager is leaving for the day and she stops in front of me while putting on her coat. “Thank you so much for pulling a double shift today, Amaris.”

I stop her before she gets a chance to walk out. “Wait, Cindy. What do you mean?” She appears to be in a rush, but I need answers.

“Wendy called me not too long ago and said she can’t come in today, but that she already asked you to cover for her yesterday and you agreed. Is that true?”

Internally I’m fuming, but externally I plaster on a fake smile and say, “Yeah, that’s true. I must’ve forgotten.”

She thanks me again before rushing out the door. I deflate when she’s out of sight. I did not plan on working a double today.

That bitch.

When I reach the counter again Frida’s easy smile finds my slouching form. “Relax, I can handle a couple hours by myself. I doubt the day will speed up at this rate and I will clock you out when I leave. You can go.”

Perking up, I raise a brow at her. “Are you sure? Because I can—"

“Oh, pish posh. Worst case scenario, I’ll call you and tell you to bring your butt back over here. How about that?”

That sounds reasonable enough to me. “Deal. But I’m staying with you for the rest of my original shift, I only have an hour left, anyway.”

Walking one step through the door to the apartment, I’m frozen in place. There is no one in the living room, but there is a white shirt and pink bra thrown carelessly on the floor that definitely isn’t mine, nor was it there when I left this morning. Taking a deep breath to ground myself, I move again, shutting the door quietly.

Moving stealthily through the apartment proves to be easier than I thought. Faint moaning can be heard the closer I get to our bedroom. That dirty bastard. Right now, I am a can of soda that someone shook and I am trying to keep the contents in, so as not to explode.

Hesitating for a split second after my hand reaches the doorknob, I push through the inevitable. The prick doesn’t even hear me walk in, too lost in…wait a minute. I process who the tramp is when her eyes dart to mine and she moans dramatically at the same time that I gasp. Wendy grows a malignant grin and directs it at me.

The nearest throwable object to me is a bedside lamp, so I grab that and chuck it full force at the back of Duke’s head. I don’t have time for any type of discussion. I know exactly what’s going on here and I don’t take kindly to being disrespected. A full water bottle? I aimed that at his back.

“Amaris, what the fuck?”

Ignoring him and reaching for his Oxford shoes—they feel pretty heavy in my hand—I wipe that smug smile off Wendy’s face. One shoe hit her cheek and the other hits her eye. She whines like the bitch she is and scurries out of the room like her ass is on fire.

Oh please, if I wanted to do damage I would’ve done it while I had the chance.

Duke is standing in front of me after pulling on some boxers, holding his hands up in a sign of surrender. “Baby, please. You’re overreacting.” He takes slow steps towards me and grabs one of my arms.

“That bitch has been looking for any way to spite me since she met me, I don’t care about her. You are the one that gave her a reason. You are the one who owed me loyalty. I have overlooked so much these past months, but enough is enough.”

His grip on my arm becomes punishing and his dark, brown eyes grow colder. “If I had to cheat on you, you should look in the mirror and ask yourself why I did it. You never tried hard enough with your appearance.”

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