Rose Is Back With Thorns

chapter ten

Lunch had been wonderful and the ladies had had their fill of the Italian food they had ordered. Thereafter they had been chauffeured to the side of town where the best clothing stores and boutiques were located.

While the two were not outgoing, they enjoyed their time together wherever and whenever. It had always been that way since the formation of their friendship. The introverts were however a very vivacious, audacious, outspoken and gallant pair when put together.

But they disagreed. Especially when the privileged friend felt the need to spend extravagantly on the simple woman. "No, I won't let you."

"Yes you will, stop whining Gabby." Rose admonished dragging the other woman to a lingerie store.

Gabrielle groaned in frustration. "You are so impossible to reason with sometimes, no, most times and here is one of them."

"That's because you're being unreasonable now like you are most times." The other woman retorted heatedly.

Gabrielle glared at the other woman momentarily before she pursed her lips. "Fine, you can buy me the entire shop if you please but you have to deduct it from my salary."

Rose huffed. "That is ridiculous!"

"You have already bought me enough clothes to start my own store with, I hereby declare myself as the woman with the most ridiculously high heels imposed on me by my best friend, I now have more makeup than an actual manufacturer thanks to you, and now you want to buy me..." she gestured at the shop. "...these thingies that look so complicated I don't know how to wear them." She squeezed her friend's hand. "That is ridiculous."

Rose waited patiently until the friend finished ranting her lungs out and smiled. "Done?"

Gabrielle furrowed her brows. "Yes."

"Now let's go buy these thingies called lingerie." She tugged her hand and pulled her further into the store.

Rose had a plan, two actually. One was spicing up her friend's banal wardrobe. Ulteriorly, she wanted Gabby to impress her brother so that Leon would keep his eyes off the viper that was Debra Sylvester. She had noted his attraction towards her at the housewarming party. Leon hadn't looked at another woman that night and she hadn't missed how he'd been tempted to help her when she had thrown her to the ground.

However, Rose was convinced it was time to take action when she'd spotted them at night at the border of Mountain Green and Sylvester Meadows, from her balcony. From the high angle she had had a clear view of Debra's expression and there was attraction there. Leon was a womanizer but for some reason Rose saw the genuineness in that simple kiss on Debra's cheek.

If Leon fell for Gabby, the two would be happy and Debra, Debra would know what it felt like to be rejected by the man one loved.

Two birds, one stone. Rose thought smirking.

"I must say I don't like that look Mayor, it means trouble." Gabrielle observed verbally, breaking her trance.

Rose winked saucily. "Can't a girl be a little wicked?"

"Hmm," Gabrielle hummed twirling a pink G-string with her index finger, in faux thoughts. "You, don't know the meaning of little. You're always on the extreme end of things."

"Well, I'm Rose. Extremely beautiful..." she smirked. "...and extremely lethal."

Gabrielle grimaced. "Spooky!" They burst into laughter.

***

The leather tip of the cue aimed neatly at the red ball. The player's focused eyes stared at the same ball, his body relaxed, then he shot. The red smacked with the nearing green before dropping into the pocket.