The Mistress
We were tucked away in a corner where the only other patrons were high-end art dealers who were too busy with their commissions to notice the woman with the bloodshot eyes and the shaking hands.
I looked down at the screen. It was a social media profile of a woman—vibrant, bold, and undeniably younger. Her feed was a curated mess of neon lights, expensive cocktails, and a face that was the definition of modern beauty. And there, in every second photo, were her lips. Painted in that exact, sickeningly sweet shade: Soft Nude Pink.