“I loved this dress. I’m so upset that it was ripped. I’ll pay for it somehow. Can you let me know how much it will cost to fix? Maybe Margarete could tell you?”
“Nonsense. It wasn’t your fault at all and, believe me, Margarete can fix anything.”
Mariana placed it onto the edge of the bed and then she stood there with her hands clasped in front of her.
“There’s something I would like to discuss with you. Jax and Jameson informed me that they do not want you being an escort any longer,” Freda told her.
Mariana gasped then placed her hands on her hips.
“They can’t make a decision like that for me.”
“They just did. They’re making it quite clear that you belong to them now.”
Mariana blushed as she lowered her head. Then she shook it side to side.
“Is this not true? Don’t you care for them?”
Mariana looked up.
“I care for them. Too much actually,” Mariana said then sat on the edge of the bed. Freda sat on the chair across from the bed, just a few feet in front of her.
“How can you care too much?”
“I don’t really even know them. I like them a lot and it’s way too soon to have such strong feelings. It frightens me to be honest with you, Freda.”
“Of course it does. The power of love between three people is rare.”
That statement seemed to make Mariana blush an even darker shade of red. Freda cleared her throat.
“I’m not that old, Mariana. I noticed the change in you immediately upon your arrival. You looked so happy and you were practically glowing with both Jax and Jameson flanking you on either side. They in return looked determined to show their possessiveness and care.”
“It’s too much. They can’t just start telling me what to do and that I can’t be an escort. I was counting on that money to help pay my college loans and other stuff.”
“You mean the bank loan?”
Mariana’s mouth gaped open. “You know about that?”
Freda nodded.
“They know about it, too, and about you having no heat in your apartment. They want to take care of you.”
“I have heat in my apartment now. They can’t take over my affairs, my burdens. Those are my responsibility and that’s why I need to work.”
“They care about you greatly. They may be rough around the edges and demanding, but they care and would do anything for you.”
“How do you know them so well?”
“Their actions, Mariana. They are good men. Even without you knowing they’ve already taken on the role of providing for you and bettering your life. You can trust them.”
“I think you’re mistaken about them providing for me. Yes, they saved me from Ellington’s assault and we shared a wonderful night together and I care for them, but I can take care of myself.”
“They got the heat turned on in your apartment,” Freda told her, and Mariana’s eyes widened.
“They did that for me? How?” she asked as her voice cracked.
“They know a lot of people. They were trying to find out about where you worked, so that they could get a delivery from your company and they could talk to you. Alvin told me all about it. He said when he dropped you off that night, the utility trucks were there and the building had heat like never before.”
Mariana wiped a tear from her eye.