The reaction I get isn’t one I expected. Jenny sputters out a choked laugh, Jamie spits out her drink, and Layla and Gillian’s mouths drop open. Layla is the first one to recover.
“Girl, you couldn’t pay me enough to touch one of these girl’s cooters.” She shudders. “They’re like sisters to me.”
I look at each woman and see the same abhorrent expression. “But don’t you all share Judge?”
“We do, but that doesn’t mean we all take part in orgies. We’re his mistresses and each share a part of his life, but not in that way. When he’s with one of us, it’s only that one he’s with. We’re separate, even if we are all part of a whole. We each have a home, and we each share that home with him when it’s our turn.”
“And y’all are okay with that? Knowing he’s with other women? How can you not be jealous of each other?”
Jamie’s smile is small but laced with understanding. “We love him. It’s that simple. We want him to be happy. Judge isn’t the type of man who can be satisfied by just one woman. He needs the love of several.” Something passes over her expression, but the look quickly fades. “He treats us very well. When he’s with me, he treats me like gold, like I’m the only woman in the world for him. He does the same with each of us.”
My heart hurts at her words. It seems so fake and deceptive. I can’t imagine having a man who’s that attentive and caring, then watch him walk away, knowing he’s going to be with someone else.
“If he’s that great, how can you not fall in love with him? You ladies seem nice and genuine. There’s no way I could watch my man be with another woman. It would devastate me.”
Gillian reaches for my hand, giving it a squeeze. “Judge is special, and we owe him. Yes, we love him, but not in the traditional sense. We give him our all, physically and emotionally, but we knew from the beginning what we were getting into. Some people can’t understand that, and even less could do the same as we do.”
I still don’t understand, but I nod anyway. I would never be okay with the man I’m with leaving me to go be with someone else, but if these women can do it, then that’s their business. It’s perplexing, but more power to them.
“Now,” Jenny starts, finally looking up from staring at Elijah, “The question is, what’s going on between you and Doctor Trayce?”
Jitters form in my belly, and I’m momentarily rendered mute. Just thinking about the man’s name sends zings of pleasure racing through me. My forehead tingles where he kissed me earlier today, and I swear I still feel the heat of his lips against mine from the night I delivered.
I yank myself from my thoughts and glance back at Jenny. “Nothing’s going on.”
Snickering, she refutes, “Sorry, honey, but he doesn’t kiss the women of every delivery he performs. As far as I know, that was a first.”
“Wait! What?” Jamie says emphatically. “He kissed you?”
“It was just a small peck,” I mutter, then tack on, “And only because I was freaking out and he needed to get my attention.”
Jenny shakes her head. “Nah uh. It may have just been a peck, but there was a lot of feeling in that kiss. You were in too much pain, but I saw his expression when he pulled away.”
“What do you mean?”
She moves Elijah from one arm to the other before she answers. “He looked like he wanted to climb inside you.”
My breath catches, and I shift in my seat when heat floods between my legs. The women look at me knowingly, like they recognize just how much her assessment affected me. I straighten my spine and try to put as much muster in my words as I can manage when my body feels like it’s turning to mush.
“I’m sure you didn’t see what you thought you did. Trouble has no interest in me.”
“Oh, I saw it. Had you not been in labor, I’ve no doubt he would have crawled in that bed with you and gave it to you until you couldn’t remember your own name.”
“Really, Jen?” Layla admonishes.
She shrugs. “What? It’s true. The man could barely keep his eyes off her the entire time he was in the room.” She turns back to me. “And when he first got there, he went straight to you. He looked worried.”
I have no idea what to say. Yes, the kiss was surprising, and even for such a simple one, it was very nice, but that doesn’t mean Trouble wants more than what he’s already given me. If anything, he wants me gone. He’s made that clear several times. His body
may react to mine, and vice versa, but that’s just biology talking.
I look away from her scrutinizing gaze, making sure to not look at the others. Instead, I stare at the blank TV screen. “It’s all pointless anyway. Elijah and I will be leaving soon, so it would be stupid if I allowed anything to happen.”
“That’s too bad,” Jenny mutters, and I look back at her. Her expression is wistful as she gazes down at Elijah. Maybe I should be concerned about her profound interest in my son, but something tells me she doesn’t have a deceptive bone in her body.
I sit back on the couch and let the rest of the women talk while my mind whirls with thought after thought of Trouble and the feelings he’s invoked in me. Is it possible he’s felt even half of what I’ve felt? And if so, why hasn’t he tried acting on them? Not that I would want him to.
Liar, liar, pants on fire, a little voice in my head sings.