Chapter 148: Marie
"That should be enough to cover the necklace, right?" Frank pulled a wad of cash from his wallet and handed it to the store owner.
"Yes, yes, more than enough!" The shop owner's eyes widened at the sight of all that cash, nodding eagerly.
It wasn't that the shop owner didn't have money—ten thousand wasn't a fortune—but who the hell carries that much cash around these days?
Most people only carry a few hundred at most. Anything more, they just swipe a card.
It's like hearing about billions spent during a shopping festival—those are just numbers on a screen. But if you saw hundreds of millions in cold, hard cash stacked in front of you, towering like a mountain, the sheer visual impact would blow your mind.
"We're good now, right? Should we wait for the cops to come and clear our names?" Frank asked calmly.
"You must be joking! Here's your gift bag, sir. Please come again!" the owner said, practically bowing him out of the shop.
"Um... thanks," the woman said awkwardly as she and Frank walked out of the jewelry store.
"Oh—this, I should give it back." She reached for the dolphin necklace around her neck, intending to return it.
"No need. Keep it. It suits you," Frank replied.
"I can't accept that," she protested. The necklace cost nearly two thousand—hardly a cheap gift.
"By the way," Frank said, "I just realized... I don't even know your name."
"Sorry! I'm Marie. Marie Schrader," she replied quickly.
"I'm Frank," he introduced himself.
"I'm just curious... a woman like you—why would you steal?" Frank asked, eyes narrowing with intrigue.
"What are you implying?" Marie's expression darkened.
"Take a guess," Frank said as he reached into her bag and pulled out an unopened lipstick—one she had lifted from the store earlier.
"And those shoes," Frank added, glancing down at her heels.
"You—you followed me?" Marie backed up instinctively, her face pale.
"Not exactly. I was just... curious," Frank replied. "But I have to say, your shoplifting skills are terrible. It was only a matter of time before you got caught. I was just following you to see when it would happen."
"What do you want from me? I—I'm warning you, my husband's a cop!" Marie said, her voice trembling.
"Your husband's a cop, and you still steal?" Frank said, unfazed. He stepped closer.
"You're just addicted to the thrill, aren't you? Stealing gives you a rush." He backed her into a corner, staring her down.
"Who... who are you?" Marie whispered.
"We're the same kind, you and I. Wanna do something more exciting than petty theft?" Frank stepped back and extended his hand.
Marie hesitated, staring at him for a long moment. Then, slowly, she placed her hand in his.
From that point on, Frank and Marie went on a spree—dining and dashing, stealing a car, and pushing boundaries.
"Oh my God!" Marie shouted, standing up in the convertible they had just stolen, arms stretched out into the wind.
"Hey! Are you crazy?!" Frank yanked her back down, worried she'd fly out of the car.
"This is insane... I've never felt so alive!" she screamed, breathless, her face flushed.
"Take me home," she said, wrapping her arms around Frank's neck.
"It would be my honor, princess," Frank grinned, hitting the gas.
When they got to her house, the moment they stepped inside, Marie threw herself at Frank, kissing him hungrily.
Frank wasn't new to this. He picked her up and set her on the counter without hesitation.
After a wild night, the room was a mess—clothes scattered everywhere.
"I had an amazing time tonight," Marie said, lying on Frank's chest, lazily drawing circles with her finger. "But you can't stay. My husband will be home in two hours."
"So I've still got two hours left," Frank smirked, flipping her over and pressing her down again.
After another intense round, Marie lay exhausted, draped over him like a rag doll.
Frank held her with one arm, the other tucked behind his head as he stared at the ceiling, deep in thought.
What is it about her that's pulling me in?
By Western standards, Marie was considered attractive, but she didn't fit Frank's personal taste—she was average at best.
Maybe it was her body?
She was slim, yes, but not curvy—definitely not the voluptuous type Frank was usually into.
So it wasn't her looks, or her figure. And it wasn't like they knew each other well enough for it to be about personality.
But he couldn't deny it—something about her drew him in. Back at the supermarket, it was like a magnet. One look, and he couldn't look away.
That's why he followed her. That's why he helped her. That's why they ended up in bed.
Even now, in the calm after the storm, Frank still couldn't figure out what exactly attracted him to her.
"What's on your mind?" Marie asked, raising her head to look at him.
"Nothing... just thinking time passes too fast," Frank said with a smile. He kissed her forehead, threw off the covers, and got out of bed to take a shower.
"You really like purple, huh?" he commented after a quick rinse. Wearing a bathrobe, he wandered around her home and noticed all the purple decorations and clothes.
"Don't you think purple is sexy and mysterious?" Marie replied as she towel-dried her hair.
"Huh... so your husband really is a cop," Frank said as he grabbed a beer from the fridge and looked at a photo on the counter—a fat man in uniform.
"Yep. Narcotics division. Pretty well-known around here," Marie said.
"Well, I'd better be careful then. If he catches me, and plants drugs in my car, I'd be screwed," Frank joked.
"Relax. Hank wouldn't do that. He'd just shoot you," Marie said with a laugh.
"Yikes. Don't scare me like that. If he saw us like this, would he shoot both of us?" Frank teased, slipping an arm around her waist.
"You're awful~" Marie giggled, giving him a playful smack.
After a bit more fooling around, they exchanged contact info, and Frank got dressed.
He ditched the stolen convertible, made a bit of cash off it, and then drove off in his beat-up secondhand car.