Goddess of Vengeance - Jackie Collins [123]
‘You’re looking good too,’ Bobby offered, although he didn’t think so.
‘Didja hear?’ Frankie said. ‘I opened my place in L.A. – River. ’Course it’s nothin’ like this set-up. Mood is spectacular with the pool an’ lights an’ the view. But you gotta gimme kudos ’cause I finally got my shit together, an’ now I’m runnin’ my own club, an’ it’s flyin’.’
Bobby had heard all about River. It was the go-to club for any drug you fancied. Coke, meth, quaaludes, E, weed, pills. Yeah, sure it was doing okay. L.A. was an easy town to acquire customers for your wares. Everyone had their secret little addictions – some of them not so secret.
Jokingly Bobby had once suggested to M.J. that they’d be better off opening up luxury rehab centres rather than clubs. It seemed celebrities were willing to pay thousands of dollars a week just to give the impression they were clean. More hooking up and illicit pill popping went on in rehab than anywhere else. Then a week out and everyone was back using.
‘It’s great seein’ you guys,’ Frankie said. ‘Missed your smilin’ faces.’
‘Glad to hear you’re doing well,’ Bobby said, keeping it neutral. Just because Frankie was in his club didn’t mean they had to become close buddies again. Those days were over. In a way he missed Frankie. In another way he didn’t. Frankie’s coke habit had gotten out of control, and from the looks of him, skinny and emaciated, nothing much had changed.
‘You here for the fights?’ M.J. asked.
‘If I can score me some ringside seats,’ Frankie said. ‘Any connections?’
‘As a matter of fact,’ M.J. said, always Mister Nice. ‘I might be able to help you out.’
‘That’s my main man,’ Frankie said, clapping M.J. on the back. ‘You always did have your finger on what’s goin’ down. An’ speakin’ of goin’ down – you still married?’
‘You bet I am,’ M.J. replied. ‘Marriage rocks, man.’
‘How ’bout you, Bobby?’ Frankie asked, taking a swig from the glass of vodka he was holding onto. ‘You still with that little lawyer piece of ass?’
‘If you mean Denver,’ Bobby said, annoyed that Frankie would be so disrespectful, ‘we’re very much together.’
‘Hey – that’s cool. Me – I can never stick with one of ’em for too long. Annabelle was my last big mistake.’ Another swig of vodka, and a quick glance back at his table to see if he was missing any action. ‘Right now my thing is movin’ on. Lately I’m hangin’ with Gerald M.’s daughter, Cookie, you might’ve seen our pix online. Cookie’s young, hot, an’ boy is she ready to partee – if you get my drift.’
‘Max’s friend?’ Bobby said, aghast. What the hell was Frankie doing with a teenager? Corrupting her, no doubt.
‘S’right. But believe me – she’s one hot horny little tamale. On the ride here she was—’
‘Gotta go,’ Bobby said, itching to move on for two reasons. One – he remembered why he and Frankie had ceased hanging out. And two – what was Denver doing out on the dance floor with some random dude? He’d just noticed, and he wasn’t pleased.
Screw it. Was she trying to prove something?
If so, it certainly didn’t fly.
* * *
Eddie Falcon wasted no time in making the move over to Bobby’s table and concentrating on Venus, which did not sit well with Cassie, who fell into a major sulk. This was supposed to be her night.
Venus was enjoying the attention. Lately she’d been thinking of seeking new representation, and Eddie’s timing couldn’t be better. She knew of Eddie’s reputation and it was stellar. He was a comer and hungry, the best kind of agent to have working for you.
‘I can get you anything you want,’ Eddie boasted to Venus. ‘Any one you want. Director, star – Clooney, DiCaprio, Depp – you name who you’d like to work with, and I can make it happen.’
‘Can you now?’ Venus said, not actually falling for it – she’d been in the business too long to believe everything an agent on the make had to say, but she was liking his enthusiasm. Her current representatives were doing nothing for her movie-wise, and she was tired of always having to embark on a world tour every time she put out a new CD. With her divorce soon behind her, she was ready to concentrate