Page 96 of Mafia Kings & Wedding Rings
The money-green, off-shoulder, stretch, satin dress clung to her curves, accenting her full shape and showing off her wide hips and small waist. Her gold, strappy heels had rhinestones across her toes and along the straps wrapped around her ankles, and she pinned her hair back with loose tendrils in front. Her neck was bare, but on her wrist was a tennis bracelet I’d gifted her, and she sported the matching earrings. All eyes were damn sure about to be on us tonight.
“What’s wrong? You don’t like it?” she asked, peering down at herself.
My attraction to Six went beyond how she could fill out a dress. Whether she was dressed up or down, it didn’t matter to me. My favorite part of the day was waking up to her fresh face.
“Nah. Just a little bare.” I moved away from the mirror and went to my top dresser drawer.
I pulled out the large square box and walked it over to her. When I lifted the lid to show her the diamond wreath necklace, her mouth slipped open as she brought her hand against her chest.
“Brick, that’s too much.”
“Not for my girl. The fuck?”
“There’s so many diamonds,” she gushed, bringing her misting eyes up into mine.
“Every one of them yours. If I’m dipped in that shit, you gotta be too.” I took the necklace from the box. “Turn around,” I instructed.
She spun slowly, and I positioned the necklace across her collarbone and latched it. Walking over to the mirror, she studied herself, and this time the look was complete. It even matched the beaded clutch she was going to carry.
“It’s so cliché, but I feel like a princess in this.”
“Look like one too.” I walked up and kissed her on the shoulder while taking in our reflection.
We damn sure looked good together, like a real fucking couple. These days it was becoming more than keeping up appearances, at least for me. Six was good for making me laugh, challenging me, and making me think. I knew that we were raised differently after hearing some of her story. I also knew that there were things she might not be quite ready to tell me. I wasn’t one to press. I honestly just wanted to be that safe space for her.
“The car is here,” I told her after receiving an alert on my phone.
“Let’s get this over with.” She picked up the clutch off the bed and started toward me.
“Check y’all out.” Sol clapped from the bottom of the staircase where she stood with Armon and a photographer.
He’d told me he wanted to snap a few shots of us at the house before we left. Six and I posed as the camera man snapped away until satisfied. Armon glanced over his shoulder to review what he’d captured and nodded.
“Yeah. Those fire right there. We posting those everywhere! Aight, time to roll. I got a list of questions that will probably be circulating, but y’all don’t need no rehearsal.”
“Have fun!” Sol waved to us on our way out the door.
I had to smoke on my way, and Six indulged with me. Half an hour later, we were arriving outside the Manson Hall where traffic was crazy! The marquee showed that it was a Glo Works Cosmetics event brought to us by Bella and Raphael Thorne. Six applied a coat of lip gloss and tossed it in her bag before scooting closer to me. The paparazzi was everywhere, waiting to snap pictures of everyone rolling in.
“You ready?”
Six nodded, and I grabbed her hand as security on the red carpet opened the back door for us. Pulling her out of the car, we posed with the door open together for a few shots before strolling toward the staircase leading to the entrance doors. I kept a protective arm around Six the whole way. We stopped here and there to answer questions for certain podcasts and kept it moving. The people were eating her up.
She responded to everything with such relatability it left me watching her in awe. By the time we got inside, I was thirsty as fuck, but I had no time to think about it before Bella approached. In a gold, beaded mermaid gown with her auburn hair styled in bangs and pinned up in back, she paused with her hands clasped together. I’d been avoiding her for about a week or so now,which was probably why she was giving me the stank eye now. She was going through dick withdrawals.
“Brick. So nice of you to grace us with your presence.” She shifted her stare to Six and sized her up. “Please, come in, mingle. There are a lot of people you can rub elbows with here. The bar is open, and we will be serving dinner in about an hour. If you stop at the table before the bar, you can enter a drawing so you can win a basket full of new products and some of our old ones plus a cash prize of five thousand dollars. You know all about doing things for a good cause, don’t you?” she asked, addressing me but continuing to survey Six with envy.
“Thank you so much for the products you sent me, Bella. I didn’t personally use them myself, but the girls at the Guardian Lodge rave about them.” Six knew the cameras were rolling, so she played nice.
Bella sneered and swiped her hands down the front of her dress. Six stepped forward, holding her hand out to greet Bella with a handshake, and discreetly pulled her in for an embrace.
“Tread lightly, girl. Don’t make me show my ass at your event,” Six warned between gritted teeth before backing up.
“Well…” Bella seemed a little thrown by the move as she cleared her throat.
“Baby, most of the guests are here. It’s time for you to go to the podium.” Raphael, Bella’s husband and business partner, slid up beside her and rested an arm against her back before his attention averted to me.
“I was just greeting some of them. Brick, you remember my husband, Raphael. Baby, this is Brick’s girl. What is your name again?”
