Read Online Still In Love With Her by Z.L. Arkadie - Free Book Online Page A

get Maggie all caught up on you and Perry? How often do you fuck now that you’re married?”
    “I’m actually curious to know the answer,” I say.
    Cleo scowls at Hannah. “What makes you think we don’t hump every night?”
    “Do you?”
    “For us, there’s no difference between being married and just being boyfriend and girlfriend other than the tax benefit for him.”
    “I’m calling bullshit on that,” Hannah says. “Every married couple I know only fucks once a month.”
    “Perry and I fuck twice a day, every day.” Cleo takes a drink of her cocktail and gives Hannah a “take that” look.
    I’ve been studying Hannah since we sat. There’s something different about her. “Did you cut your hair?” I think that’s it.
    “Yeah, I added some layers.”
    “It looks good.”
    She examines my hair. “You could use a haircut.”
    “I think so too,” Cleo adds. “You’re beautiful, Maggie. You’ve been going around looking like a cavewoman for too long.”
    I take the cocktail out of Cleo’s hand before she takes another swig. She always gets very candid when liquor rushes to her head. “No more for you until after you’ve eaten something.”
    “I’m fine.” She takes the drink back.
    “You just called me a cavewoman. I haven’t looked like a cavewoman in a long time. Give me credit for that.”
    “Well, we haven’t seen you in a long time,” Hannah says.
    “I know.”
    “So how is Monroe?” Hannah asks.
    “Oh shit, how could I not lead with this? She and I are business partners.”
    Cleo’s eyes expand. “Are you kidding me?”  
    “Nope.”
    “Well, she’s never failed at anything she’s done,” Cleo says.
    “That’s true,” Hannah says. “Okay, now to the good part. Vincent Adams. How’s it going between you two?”
    I groan and bury my face in my hands.
    “Oh no,” Cleo says.  
    I recount what happened between Vince and me and how I made an ass out of myself on Friday. They both laugh as if it’s the funniest thing they’ve ever heard. We have more drinks, gossip about the people we know, and cab it home.  
    I moved into my apartment in Lincoln Square last year. Vince’s pricier Central Park penthouse isn’t that far away. He’s asked me to move in with him so many times that I can’t count them all, but I’ve always dreamed of being able to afford a nice apartment in this city. It was an aspiration that I needed to fulfill. I pay six thousand a month for a one-bedroom apartment with a den. I may not have the panoramic views of Central Park that Vince has, but I can see it from my living room window.  
    It’s two a.m., and I check my emails before going to bed. Monroe sent me a list of names, all female, with an ambiguous message that says, “Per our discussion in the kitchen.” Some of the women are actresses and models. She’s put an asterisk next to the ones she really wants me to examine.  
    “Got it. Love you,” I write back.
    She answers immediately. “Love you too. P.S. and your tits.”
    “LOL, shaking my head and rolling my eyes,” and not calling her crazy, which she clearly is.
    We agree to speak on Wednesday after I narrow down the list and do more research on Delta Foster’s career and life. Jack had mentioned that the woman he’d brought to Curtis’s wedding was an investigator, so I’ll call him tomorrow to ask if she provides services for someone with my kind of request. I want all the shit I can find on Delta Foster—the good, the bad, and the freaky.
    I forgo breakfast so that I can make it to work by seven thirty a.m. The other early birds study me as I walk to my office. Mavis is already at her desk, and she stands as soon as she sees me. Her almond eyes are reddened and her expression dreary.  
    I point my head toward my office. “Join me in there.”
    Mavis is rigid when she sits in the chair in front of my desk. She’s clenching my schedule and avoiding eye contact. I never took a moment to ponder how my leaving would