My teeth grit. “It’s rude to leave a wedding before the bride and groom,” I reply, my tone bitchy.
“So?” he replies again, chuckling.
He either can’t read the signs I’m giving, or he is choosing to ignore them. Either way, my patience is wearing thin.
“How about I call you a taxi?” I suggest, slipping off the barstool.
“Sure, you can call us a taxi,” he replies with a waggle his eyebrows.
Inwardly gagging from the gleam in his eyes, I pace to the coatroom in the foyer to retrieve my cell phone from my handbag. Thankfully, since it is Sunday, the cab company advises a taxi should arrive within the next ten minutes. I store my phone in my clutch purse and place it under my arm before ambling out of the coatroom. Upon entering the foyer, I spot Marvin standing at the side. When he notices me approaching, he shoves his hands into his pockets and rocks on his heels. I can’t miss the look of suggestion on his face. He looks like a man about to go on a hunt. Little does he know, he has his sight set on the wrong target.
My hesitant steps to Marvin freeze when Hugo charges across the room. His fists are balled at his side, and the veins in his neck are throbbing. Noticing my panicked expression, Marvin’s eyes follow my gaze. When he spots Hugo’s furious composure, his throat works hard to swallow. The speed of Hugo’s steps are unbridled as he slams into Marvin, ramming him to the ground with a stomach-churning thud.
I stumble back, sickened by the harshness of their impact on the marble floor. My hand shoots up to cover my gaped mouth when Hugo’s fist connects hard with Marvin’s chin before they lower to pummel his ribs over and over again. Marvin attempts to fight back, but he is no match against a man of Hugo’s size, much less his fury.
“Hugo, stop!” I scream when the sound of pain tears from Marvin’s mouth and echoes in the silence of the foyer.
My panicked squeals gain the attention of the wedding attendees inside the ballroom. Tears form in my eyes when Hawke rushes out of the double wooden doors. My tears fall when Marvin’s wildly flying fist connects with Hugo’s right cheek. Even copping a hard blow, Hugo continues to wallop the living hell out of Marvin. He is relentless, pounding his fists into his body with so much force, I’m sure Marvin will sustain broken bones.
“What the fuck is going on?” Hawke asks, his eyes drifting between Hugo and Marvin wrestling on the floor and me.
More tears escape my eyes when I timidly shake my head, advising I'm unaware of what has caused Hugo’s anger. Although I know he has always had an edge of jealously when it comes to me, it has never been this wrathful. Relief engulfs me when Hawke drags a red-faced Hugo off Marvin. My stomach churns when Marvin lurches onto his feet and spits on Hugo’s chest. Marvin’s face is as red as Hugo’s. His coloring isn’t caused by anger. It’s from the pounding he copped from Hugo’s fist.
“You stay the fuck away from her,” Hugo yells, his angry voice reverberating off the walls. “If you go near her, I’ll…”
“Get some of your crim buddies to come and teach me a lessen?” Marvin interrupts, his lips forming a vicious snarl.
Hugo balks, seemingly surprised by Marvin’s taunt. I'm also taken aback.Crims?
“You didn’t think I knew?” Marvin sneers. “I know everything.”
The pompousness of his tone fuels Hugo’s annoyance. He pulls out of Hawke’s grasp and throws a hard right swung fist against Marvin’s face before Hawke has the chance to stop him.
“You know fucking nothing,” Hugo retaliates, his voice the deepest I’ve ever heard. “You’re that stupid, you can’t even tell she isn’t pure anymore,” he roars as Hawke drags him away from Marvin.
My heart plummets into my swirling stomach.
A menacing grin carves on Hugo’s face when he notices the shocked expression on Marvin’s face.
Loving that he’s wiped Marvin’s arrogant smirk right off his face, Hugo continues to taunt, “I beat you to the punch. I already fucked her. Hard and fast against the wall. She loved every goddamn minute of it.”
Oh god. I think I'm going to be sick.
My stomach swirls as my eyes shift around at the gathering of people watching the spectacle between Marvin and Hugo. I inwardly sigh, eternally grateful. Other than Mrs. Mable watching me with vigilance, no one is none the wiser that Hugo’s statement refers to me; all their eyes remain on Hugo and Marvin.
Not even five seconds later, the rug is pulled out from underneath my feet when Marvin swings his narrowed gaze to me.
“Is it true?” he questions, staring straight at me. “Did you fuck Hugo?”
Every set of eyes in the foyer snap to me. I feel physically ill when I notice within the numerous pairs of eyes are Hugo and my parents. I don’t need to answer Marvin’s question, the evidence is exposed by my flushed cheeks and tear-welling eyes.
“Fuck,” Hugo curses under his breath when his head cranks to the side and he notices me standing here, vainly trying to ignore all the people gawking at me.
When he takes a step towards me, I angrily shake my head. I’ve never been more mortified in my life. My chin quivers when I turn my eyes to Mrs. Marshall. Out of everyone here, she deserves my most sincerest apology. I not only ruined her daughter’s wedding, I disrespected her by sleeping with her son under her roof.
“I’m sorry,” I mumble softly, my voice shaking.
A tear rolls down her cheek as she nods her head, silently accepting my apology. After one last glance at the hundreds of people gawking at me, I dash towards the double revolving doors of the hotel. Gratitude floods me when I spot the taxi I ordered for Marvin idling on the curb.
