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  “You shouldn’t talk like that.”

  “It’s true. I hope he gets locked up.” She cursed as she pulled down on the hem. The garment was stuck. “Every morning I wake up and turn on the TV, hoping Diego will headline the news with an arrest.”

  “Shut up, Taddy. We’re not supposed to talk about it.” She forced a smile and thought about what she needed to do to fix her dress. There’d been no hope for Diego. “Jemma’s boyfriends shipped a few more gowns from Milan. They should be here tomorrow.”

  “Love how you say ‘boyfriends’ and not ‘boyfriend’. I didn’t want to pry earlier when Jemma was trying to take your picture, but does she still have both Rocco and Luigi?” Taddy asked.

  “Yup, the love triangle is going strong. Jemma loves Rocco and Luigi. Rocco loves Luigi and Jemma. Luigi loves Jemma and Rocco. They’re staying at our place this week.”

  “All in the same bed?”

  She nodded. Thank God it was a California King.

  In shock, Taddy played with the beading on the gown for a minute. “We have the Poppy White TV show taping later in the week. She’s doing a whole pre-wedding exposé.”

  “Right. We’ll figure something out before Poppy. I have other dresses we can use.” Lex knew they’d come up with a solution.

  Her bestie wrapped her arms around her. “This week is going to be a dream. Jemma will take care of the dress. Vive and I will take care of Blake. All you have to do is take care of you. So, don’t worry your soon-to-be-covered-in-royal-diamonds head. Okay, darling?”

  “I’ll try.”

  “Ready?” Taddy held her hand while she de-glued from the shapewear. The tight fabric felt like gauze and caused a loud suction noise when it released. How mortifying.

  “This is just my effin’ luck.” Standing in ivory-jeweled stilettos, Lex ran her palms over the crease marks the shapewear had left on her skin. In a thong, she tried to buff the lines out. Her skin appeared to be the product of a bad wash and fold from Canal Street’s Laundromat.

  “Magnifico.” Jemma came over, held out her hand and walked Lex back over to where the lights were set up.

  The camera flashed and she tried to get into it. But how could she? She was practically naked.

  “Get up on the box, give me your backside, and turn your face over your shoulder.”

  Lex did as instructed, but she didn’t feel right. Something other than the heat from the lights of the set was making her sick.

  The music came up from a stereo in the back. She could see her bestie shaking her shoulders, being goofy, trying to lighten the mood.

  “Perfezione. Now, look happy.”

  From the corner, Taddy stepped forward. “Clear your mind. Count your blessings. Think of all the wonderful things you have in your life, right now. Okay?”

  “Got it. Thanks, bestie.” She wiped her forehead. God, it’s hot in here.

  “Shake your body, honey. You’re getting married.” She screamed then clapped her hands. “Jemma’s pictures will reflect whatever you’re feeling on the inside.”

  Oontz. Oontz. Oontz. The tempo sped up.

  Wondering why Vive wasn’t there yet, Lex licked her lips. Her mouth felt full of cotton as she forced a smile at Taddy who’d receded against the wall, next to Nackie. She thought about the gifts she’d been given over the year. Her mother was sober and doing well, health-wise. Massimo was spending more time with her and their son in Manhattan, and less time in his hometown of Milan. Massimo Junior, her eighteen-pound, twenty-five-week-old baby was almost sleeping through the night without waking her up—almost.

  Everything in her life seemed princess-perfect.

  Then why was she so blah? Almost anemic, exhausted.

  POP. Flash! The flashbulbs went off.

  “Meravigliosa,” Jemma complimented.

  The music’s tempo spun faster.

  Dizzy, she felt dizzy.

  Clickety-click. POP. Flash!

  “Think happy thoughts, as Jemma said,” Taddy encouraged.

  She closed her eyes and tried to focus.

  Untz. Untz. Untz. The music’s base became louder.

  Clickety-click. POP. Flash!

  Ill, she felt so very ill.

  Lex’s legs buckled. She smacked the floor, hard.

  “Merda,” Jemma cursed.

  The room went black.

  “Call 911!” Taddy screamed as she ran toward her.

  She felt her breath on her as her friend shouted.

  “Lex! Wake up…”

  Eyes closed, she couldn’t see her best friend anymore. But she could hear the panic in Taddy’s voice as she was shaken.

  The music turned off. Everything got quiet.

  My son… Who would feed Massimo Junior later? Who would wash and put him to bed? That was all she could think about. Let me see my baby boy.

  Taddy’s grip on her shoulders tightened. Lex tried to sit up but couldn’t, as if she wasn’t in her own body anymore.

  I can’t… No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t wake up.

  “LEX!” Taddy shouted, looking around for Vive. Why hadn’t she shown up yet? “Please. Somebody. Help.”

  Upper East Side

  Miguel’s chest tightened. Had he heard Vive and Thor correctly? They’d said his best friend wanted him, right? The man he’d been in love with for over a decade had feelings for him? Adrenalin pumping, he bit his lower lip so hard he tasted blood.

  “I said Blake wants you.” Thor repeated. “Do the Seven Desires with him already, geez!”

  No, he wouldn’t be Blake’s sex instructor, let alone rebound wingman. Although, the idea tempted him on so many occasions; usually at bedtime, in the shower, in the morning or at the gym. Okay, okay! The thoughts ran through his mind pretty much twenty-four-fucking-seven.

  “Don’t play dumb. You two are meant for one another.”

  Vive sat up in her chair, tucking her Swedish white bangs behind her ears then grabbing Miguel’s hand. She may be a chatterbox, but there was one thing Viveca Farnworth was not: a liar.

  Sure, he’d fantasized about fucking Blake over the years. In fact, he’d jacked off thinking about topping him two times a day for the last decade. Running the numbers in his head, seven thousand three hundred dreamy moments were spent fantasizing about Mr. Morgan.

  “Hello! Blake called Diego Miguel a few times in the bedroom. By accident, mind you.” Thor swiped Miguel’s drink away from him.

  “He did? He really called him by my name?” He didn’t have any idea, never knew. Why was he suddenly getting turned on? This was wrong. They were friends.

  Thor kept going. “Ah-huh. The ‘Miguel/MLD wrong name on the mattress fiasco’ occurred a few times before they were married.” If anyone remembered every nuance about a friend, it was Thor. He could tell Miguel what shoes he’d worn the day they’d met. Leave it to him to know this small detail about Blake and Diego’s relationship.

  “I heard the same from Taddy. She told me, in confidence, that back when Blake and Diego were having sex, he shouted your name out a few times,” Vive confessed. Okay, when Thor said it, he could perhaps dismiss it. He exaggerated, and sometimes flat-out fibbed. But to have Vive confirm it, had his cock about to hit the ceiling.

  Amazement flew through him. Suddenly, he felt more alive. Unable to fathom, he studied their faces for a bluff. Thor’s Fire Island sun-burned skin and boozy glow made it hard to decipher the truth. And Vive with her Botox overload and opaque makeup indeed made it impossible. “You’re both full of it.” He still didn’t buy it.

  Thor shook his head as he stuffed his mouth with appetizers. “Ya never noticed...how...” He chewed the rest then swallowed. “MLD despised you?” He reached for his cocktail and took a gulp as though it was tap water. His eyes appeared teary, possibly from the alcohol, for a second before he wiped them.

  “Sí, I did.” He was tempted to punch Diego out on a few occasions. God, he’d wanted to smash his face in when they got married, and again when they
got divorced. “MLD and I were friends in high school. He was as close as a brother to me growing up. Then he ruined everything the night I told him I had feelings for Blake. That same night, Diego decided to make Blake his boyfriend once and for all.”

  Asshole!

  Miguel looked around to see if Blake was returning from the bathroom. He wasn’t. “Diego was resentful?”

  “Yah,” Thor confirmed as Vive nodded.

  “There’s a lot to be envious of,” he joked and flexed his pectoral muscles through his sheer, red cotton T-shirt. Diego may have had the charm, but he always had the heart. “Besides, I’d only perform those items with someone I was in a relationship with—a committed one.” He pulled out his phone and recited, “Pissing, raw sex... Are you two nuts?”

  “Gorgeous, I’ve been cray-cray for years.” Vive giggled.

  “Me, too. At least, that’s what my two-hundred-and-fifty-dollar-an-hour West Village shrink tells me.” Thor scooted his high-back chair to the table’s edge. His citrus cologne, as always, was synthetically strong. “Listen, you two start with number one. I bet by the time you get to number seven, you’ll be together, as boyfriends, once and for all.” Thor raised his cocktail to toast the notion. “I’ll wage a thousand dollars on it.”

  “That’s Boardwalk play money for a good ’ol game of Monopoly. Puh-lease, we’re Manhattanites. I say we up it to ten thousand dollars if they are living together as boyfriends within the year. Yes, a grand for every year lost that they should’ve been together.”

  Ten thousand dollars and living with Blake Morgan III? This conversation was going at warp speed. “Guys, slow down.”

  “Slow-smow. It’s now or never, Miguel.” Vive confessed “You need to top him, go all Dom on him. We’ve been waitin’ for over ten years. Get on with it already. You have nothin’ holding ya back, but your own damn inhibitions.”

  “Well said. Thanks, Vive.” Thor nodded.

  Miguel wondered how many drinks she’d had before he’d shown up. But he could tell from the look on her face she was on a roll, especially with Thor at her side. They could have their own talk show like their friend Poppy White.

  “I’d fuck Blake if I had a penis.” She laughed. “But no matter how many times I pray to the Universe, I wake up in the morning with my beautiful blonde pussy. There are spider webs growing off my clit this year.” Amused with her own vulgarity, she snorted and continued, “Hell, I’d be happy with having sex with a gay. You’re one delicious posse.”

  Vive made a sad face. He forgot she’d been off the dating scene as she battled her prescription pill addictions. Those were her doctor’s orders. Miguel was surprised she hadn’t quit drinking yet.

  A real boyfriend wasn’t in the cards for him, though. Always the stud, he was the top most guys picked up first at the bar to fuck. Magnum condom and all. No one ever took for anything except his initial offer: a hard ride. No one invested the time to get to know him and his family, to learn what made his mind tick or his heart beat. He’d gained a reputation for being an asshole in town. In reality, he simply refused to chase a guy. His ego wouldn’t allow it.

  “Zip it. Here comes Blake,” Miguel whispered.

  “Promise us you’ll meet him at the Exhale Bliss Spa tomorrow,” Thor begged.

  “We’ll have Blake groomed for you. He’s going to get the full service.” Vive never forgot the small details.

  Miguel’s dream, his castle in the sky, was being served to him at the Exhale Bliss Spa. His yearning was Blake Morgan III. No matter how hard he tried, he never stopped thinking about him in that non-friendship way. He must go for this, one more time, if not for his own selfish reasons then to prevent Blake from hooking up with people who could do him harm. Yes, that’s it.

  “Sí, I’ll be there.” He owned it, taking charge with quiet assurance, and confirmed no one would touch Blake but him. Not Gunter or Nello. Only him.

  Thor clanged his tumbler into Vive and Miguel’s. “Bottoms up, buddy.”

  “Bottoms up,” Miguel echoed as he toasted an unfamiliar enthusiasm. He didn’t think he’d ever have the chance to try again. Surely a decade of thinking was worth a few days of trying, right?

  Vive chuckled, probably pleased she and Thor had gotten their way. They always did. Sitting down at the tail end of the conversation, Blake offered a questioning smile with a pause then asked, “Whose bottom are you three toasting?”

  He was so innocent. So sweet.

  “Why, yours, Blake, of course.” Miguel basked in the new knowledge. Who knew you wanted me as I’ve always wanted you.

  Simultaneously, they nodded as if they’d been in cahoots together. Vive focused on her cocktail while Thor sat on his hands rocking forward.

  Blake’s brows drew down in uncertainty. “Huh?”

  Vive’s cell phone chimed. “Taddy’s calling. I should’ve been there by now. She’s gonna kick my ass.” She held out her phone and answered, “Brill, gorgeous, I’m on my way.” Suddenly, her gray eyes widened into saucers and her face reddened. “What? Is Lex okay? Where’s Massimo?” Panic filled her voice.

  The room’s mood hit the floor when Vive put Hedda in her bag. Frantically, she knocked her drink over.

  Miguel stood when she did, waving everyone up.

  “We’re heading over right now! Bye,” she said into the phone before hanging up.

  “What?” His stomach twisted. “What’s wrong?”

  “Lex collapsed during the shoot.” She almost started to cry.

  He’d never seen her that shaken. She rarely showed emotion.

  “Where is she?” Thor waved the waiter for the bill and handed him his Amex.

  “She’s been taken to Empire General. We gotta go.”

  “We have to call Lex’s mother, Birdie.” Blake reached for his phone.

  “I’ll get my driver.” Sprinting into action, Miguel ran for the door.

  All he could think about when his heart jumped into his throat was Lex’s son. How Massimo Junior’s life would be if something bad ever happened to his mother. How all of their lives would be if Lex wasn’t a part of their group.

  Unbearable.

  Massimo Always Gets What He Wants

  Lenox Hill

  Blake sat with his friends. Neon lights glowed above them as they huddled together on two large sofas in the waiting room. He breathed through his mouth because the disinfectant smell of Empire General Hospital was too nauseating to inhale through his nose.

  The worry amongst them felt palpable. He didn’t know what to say or do to put everyone’s mind at ease, especially since no one knew what was wrong with Lex. He’d seen her earlier that day. She’d stopped by the Brill, Inc. offices, wanting his opinion on fabric samples Easton Essentials was trying out for the following season’s collection. Her son had been in her arms and she did seem stressed, but no more than usual.

  Next to him sat Miguel, who hadn’t spoken much. With Taddy, Vive, and Birdie, he could barely get a word in.

  “What do you think the doctor will say?” he asked Lex’s mom.

  “To get off those diet pills Taddy keeps passing out like Skittles.”

  “Don’t you dare blame me.” Offended, Taddy inched to the edge of her chair.

  “This is all your fault!” Dramatically, Birdie pointed a finger at her.

  “Let’s not get worked up.” Vive stroked her arm.

  Blake figured it was to calm her down. Lex’s mother had been on the verge of hysteria since she’d arrived. Who could blame her? Her only child was sick. Empire General probably brought back too many painful memories. It was where her husband was taken right before he died.

  “Her collapse is from stress. Not dieting,” she defended in a staid voice.

  “Taddy, stop it!” Blake shouted.

  Miguel put his hand around the lower part of Blake’s neck, signaling him to cool it, too. No one noticed him reach around him, but it sent an unexpected warmth all up and down his body.

  “Is that so?�
� Birdie’s eyes narrowed. “She went to Secrète de St. Barth and worked her ass off to get in shape. That boot camp nearly killed her.”

  “How dare you? I call bullshit.” Taddy jolted to her feet then paced. Hands on both hips, her face looked as if her mind was racing. “This is from work. Easton Essentials is all-consuming.”

  The brand was becoming too much for all of them. Blake had let some of his other accounts go so he could spend more hours dedicated to building Easton Essentials with them.

  “If that were true, then why did your PR firm launch her bridal line knowing it would be so demanding of her time?” Birdie wasn’t easing up. “You’re still to blame.”

  Blake looked at Miguel to do something. This was only getting worse.

  “Easton Weds Bridal Couture wasn’t my idea.” Taddy turned on her heel and stalked off.

  The flip of her wavy red hair over her shoulder signaled she was done with the conversation. After being friends with Taddy for close to fifteen years, he could read her pretty well.

  “The new line extension was Lex’s idea,” he spoke in Birdie’s direction, freeing his friend from the hot seat. “We thought Lex could handle it.” He remembered how excited she was when Massimo proposed. Massimo’s sister, Paloma, had designed the most exquisite engagement ring they’d ever seen. They’d only known one another for a few days. The chemistry between them was still intoxicating.

  Miguel drew his mouth to Blake’s ear. “Don’t argue with Birdie.”

  He bit his tongue against the warning and the sensation of his friend’s warm breath on his neck.

  “Does it matter? The line is a hit.”

  Being the brand guru and PR maven Taddy was, Blake didn’t anticipate her apologizing, even if her business strategy caused Lex’s exhaustion. Easton Essentials had made Lex, Blake, and her millions.

  “And you’re one to talk, Birdie. This big wedding was all your doing.”

  “Well...” Defeated, she slouched back in her chair.

  She’d admitted to him, on many occasions, that she’d dreamt of Lex wearing a white dress when she married, from the moment the engagement announcement was made. When Lex became pregnant, it was Birdie who suggested they push the wedding back by six months until after the baby was born, to make it a separate event.