“Hey, aren’t you that business guy from the clinic last week?” Kenzie butted in, startling me while she was at it. I had totally spaced on the fact that she was with me.
“Yes, I am. You must be Dr. Malloy, Annika’s colleague?” Leon greeted her and shook her hand respectfully.
“Sure am! You can call me Kenzie or Kenz. Any friend of Anni’s is a friend of mine!” she reacted happily, causing me to gawk at her in confusion. Since when did I ever say that Leon and I were friends? She looked back and immediately sent a wink my way. I wasn’t sure if Leon had caught onto our little exchange, but I couldn’t help but turn beet red. Though, I couldn’t understand why I was suddenly getting embarrassed. It’s not like I had anything to hide from Kenzie, although I knew what she was fucking insinuating, since we had already discussed it a while back. She wants me and Leon to hook up. Could she be any more shameless?
“I see you weren’t kidding when you said you and your friend were going to go shopping,” Leon said, a smirk etched on his face as he eyed the plethora of bags in my hands. I reflexively looked down, and only then did I realize the full extent of our shopping spree. I quietly regarded him for a moment before I shrugged with a smile and turned my heel.
“Anni! Wait for me! You promised to buy me something from that boutique!” Kenzie cried out as she chased after me.
“You’re full of shit! I never promised anything of the sort!”
“Please!” Kenzie whined.
“Ugh.” We walked into the store, and it was empty aside from two other guests, which was not surprising. It wasn’t like this store needed the clientele because one purchase from a single customer could easily cover the store’s rent. Though the mall itself was lower end, it did have high-end stores, this particular boutique being one of them. All of the clothes and accessories were handmade and were all one of a kind. There was literally only one of each item, and sizes varied to be inclusive, meaning a dress could be either in a size 0 or a size 20, but never both. It was strange in a way, but given that the store was still standing, it meant they were doing something right.
By the time I saw a sales associate approaching us with a huge smile on her face, I had figured we could get some help finding items in our sizes, and we could purchase the ones we liked. But just as I was about to ask for her assistance, she made a beeline toward the store entrance straight past us with an enormous and rather fake smile plastered on her face.
“Mr. Von Doren!” she squealed with delight. Kenzie and I turned around and gaped at the scene unfolding before us. Leon stood at the main entrance of the boutique, and every sales associate in the entire store was waiting on him hand and foot, both male and female. It was as if the rest of us didn’t even exist.
“Whoa, someone is popular,” Kenzie sneered in annoyance. “Have you hit that yet?”
“Will you shut up!?” I snarled at her, causing Kenzie to back up while rolling her eyes at me instinctively. I shook my head and was about to interrupt the Leon Von Doren worshipping ceremony when the sound of a shrill voice that we all recognized drowned out the commotion in the store.
“IS THIS HOW THE FUCKING SERVICE IS IN THIS DAMN PLACE!?” Kenzie and I exchanged sideways glances at each other because we knew damn well who that voice belonged to. We simultaneously turned back towards the store’s interior, and sure enough, there she stood in the doorway of the fitting room—the homewrecking slut that ruined my marriage.
“Seriously?!” Kenzie grumbled in a whisper. “This bitch is here too!? She’s such a fucking eyesore. It’s bad enough we have to see her at the damn clinic once a month, but now at this store too?”
“I think we should just leave,” I quickly suggested.
“Why!?” Kenzie cried out in disbelief.
“We can come back another day. It’s not like the store is going any—” I was in the middle of saying my piece when the blonde banshee let out another ear-piercing shriek.
“IF I DON’T GET SOME FUCKING HELP THIS INSTANT, I’M GOING TO RUIN YOUR FUCKING STORE! DO YOU PEASANTS HAVE ANY IDEA WHO THE FUCK I AM!?” Kenzie and I looked at one another again and rolled our eyes in equal disbelief at her perpetual arrogance.
“I’m so sorry, Ms. Galloway,” one of the sales associates finally answered her call and bowed her head.
“I’m a fucking VIP! How dare you ignore me and treat me like this!?”
“Ms. Galloway, the individual that entered the store isn’t just—”
“I don’t give a flying fuck who entered the store! I want to see your manager! You’re so fucking incompetent!”
“Is she serious right now?” Kenzie blurted out, abandoning all sense of volume control.
“Who said that!?” Knowing where this would lead, Kenzie gritted her teeth as I was rendered speechless, completely baffled by how we found ourselves in this situation. My eyes narrowed as I stared at Kenzie. “Don’t make me repeat myself, who the … What the fuck? You two!?” she screeched when she finally noticed our presence.
“Great. Thanks, Kenzie,” I muttered as I wracked my brain to devise a fitting solution to our predicament.
“Ugh, why the hell are they here?!” she yelled and pointed at us while addressing the associate.