Page 18 of Lethal Infatuation

"I know your week has been stressful, though, think of it as unwinding."

"Your persuasive skills require some work, babe." I laughed. "I'd much rather unwind in my house, in the comfort of my bed."

"I'm not above begging," she said.

"Then by all means, go ahead and do that. I'm still not changing my mind."

"Please, Gabriella." I could practically see her pouting. "Please,I'll do anything. We haven't been out in so long. Kayden's working all weekend so I'm going to be by myself."

"For the love of God. If I say yes, will you stop nagging?" I asked playfully. I could hear her squealing on the other line. I just knew she was probably jumping up and down.

"Yes! I'll pick you up in thirty minutes."

"You're coming to pick me up? So I take it you plan on staying sober tonight?" I made my way towards my closet, searching for something to wear.

"No, silly, I have a driver for occasions just like this. If I ever went to a club and stayed sober, then you should take it as a warning sign." I laughed again, shaking my head.

"Why does that not surprise me?" With the phone tucked between my ear and shoulder, I skimmed through the rack of clothing. "Also, if you really want me to join, I'll need more than thirty minutes to get ready."

"Don't make me knock it down to twenty-five."

"You're pure evil." She chuckled as I grabbed a red dress off the hanger and held it up in front of me. "See you in thirty."

"Gabriella, this is Amala." I smiled at the woman and shook her hand. "Amala, this is my best friend, Gabriella."

"It's so nice to finally meet you," Amala said politely. The front sections of her hair were dyed grey, which was a drastic contrast to her long, pitch black hair.

"Likewise." We were seated at the bar of the club which turned out to be more pristine than I expected. It seemed like the kind of place elitist people would spend their days. "What are you drinking?"

"Gin and tonic," Amala replied.

"I'm assuming you're having a strawberry daiquiri?" I gazed at Kehlani who was subtly dancing to the music. She nodded frantically and smiled.

"Is the friendship even real if you don't know my drink of choice?" Amala and I chuckled at Kehlani's response as we fell into conversation, though the last three words reminded me of the moment Nicolas and I shared at the wedding reception.

God, I was down bad.

Turns out Amala was a federal agent. Kehlani and her met three years ago at a lifestyle event and have been friends ever since. She's been trying to introduce us to each other, but our schedules kept clashing.

Kayden works as an intelligence analyst for the Federal Bureau and Amala was the one who introduced him to Kehlani. Talk about a top tier matchmaker.

I ordered a pina colada because the last thing I wanted was to get drunk out of my damn mind. We sipped on our drinks until Kehlani decided it was time for shots.

"This isn't going to end well," I muttered to Amala who placed her face in her hands before looking up at me.

"Trust me, I'm well aware. We should probably get her out of here before we all end up drunk on the bathroom floor."

"The two of you are overthinking. Just let loose," Kehlani chimed in. I sighed at the laid back response. Kehlani was the complete opposite of me. She was carefree, easy going, a wildcard. But at the same time, she was the nurturer, extremely soft natured, and went out of her way for the people she loved.

We were at completely different ends of the spectrum. "That's just another way of saying that we shouldn't worry about anythingelse and we should get smashed." I grimaced. "I can foresee the hangover already."

"I have work tomorrow," Amala groaned. "In fact, said work could even call me right now, so this is risky business."

"Are you even living if you don't take any risks?" Kehlani questioned, pushing one shot toward each of us. I blinked rapidly and prepared myself for the onslaught.

We raised our tiny glasses, clinked them together, and tossed it back without hesitation. "Jesus." I released a heavy breath. "Is this tequila?"

"Of course, it's tequila." Kehlani grinned.

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