“Good afternoon, Mrs. Kincade,” Gloria said as she opened the door for Jillian. “Bertram and Melba are having a late lunch so I’m on door duty. I hope you had a nice outing with Mr. Kincade.”
“It was lovely.”
“Shall I take your package to your room for you?”
Jillian glanced down at the Kincade bag she was holding and smiled. “I’ll take it. I need to go up anyway.” She crossed the massive entry way and climbed the winding stairs.
Once she reached the master suite, she closed the door behind her. She smiled to see the bed made and everything in the room in pristine order. She went to her huge closet and stepped inside. The few clothes she had were neatly arranged, but there were a lot of bare racks. Maybe Quinton’s right. I need to buy some things. He’ll certainly want me to dress the part of his wife and my old clothes from bargain racks don’t seem to fit his life style. The only passable outfits are the new ones I got at Fran’s shop.
She removed the new purse from the bag, took the stuffing from inside and placed the bag on one of the shelves.
At loose ends, she wondered if it would be okay to call Fran. She hadn’t talked with her friend since the wedding and it would be good to hear her voice. She picked up the phone on the table by the window and dialed the number, but got a busy signal. She hung up and walked to the window. She tried the French doors and found they opened onto a lovely balcony. She stepped outside and took a breath of the fresh mountain air. Along the mountainsides she could see some of the leaves beginning to turn and she knew it would be an awesome sight when fall arrived.
In the back of the lawn near the pool, she saw Willard instructing his helpers. They were taking out summer flowers and planting pansies. Jillian hoped they’d be the vibrant colors she loved. She made a mental note to check them out when the gardener finished.
She started to go back inside when voices drifted to her from the patio below. She couldn’t help listening when she heard her name.
“I tell you, Mrs. Kincade is a nice lady. I don’t know how he managed to snag her.”
“She was very polite to me at breakfast. After he left, she ate what I gave her without demanding anything else. Sure was different from the other Mrs. Kincades.”
There was a laugh. “I know that, Melba. Especially that last one. That woman wasn’t happy with anything, was she?”
“She sure wasn’t. I think he only married her because his daddy didn’t want him to.” Melba took a breath. “I believe he’s got one this time that old Mr. Kincade would approve of. What do you think, Bertram?”
“I think you’re right. She’d be the type he’d pick out. There’s not a snooty bone in her. When she came to the door with Mr. Kincade this morning, she kissed him goodbye like she meant it.”
“You didn’t stand there and watch, did you?”
“Of course not, honey. I backed into the alcove under the stairs.”
“Good. I’ve got to admit the other ones sure wouldn’t have walked him to the door and kissed him bye.”
“Of course not. They never got up in time, even if they’d wanted to, which I’m sure they didn’t.” Bertram laughed.
“I know. It surprised me when he called and said they were coming down for coffee. I hadn’t even thought about cooking breakfast because I figured I’d have to serve it to her in her room.”
“I’m still holding back my full opinion, but what I’ve seen of her so far, I like.”
“Me, too.” There was a rustling then Melba added, “I think I’ll fix her something special for dinner. When I asked her this morning if she wanted to dictate a menu, she said she was sure anything I fixed would be fine. I did ask her if she liked seafood and she said she did. Maybe I’ll do something with shellfish. She said she liked that.”
“You know Mr. Kincade doesn’t much like fish. Won’t he complain?”
“I don’t expect him to be home for dinner.”
“He has a new bride, Melba. Surely he won’t stay out late tonight?”
“You know the old saying about leopards and their spots. I ain’t expecting him to change either. That cheap girlfriend of his leads him around by the nose, I hear.” Melba chuckled.
“The one he brought back from Las Vegas and set up in the condo in town?”
“That’s the one. I think Mr. Kincade would’ve married her if his father hadn’t told him if he ever married a loose woman, he’d take the department stores away from him.”
Bertram laughed. “I guess there’s one thing Mr. Kincade likes more than flashy women. He loves his stores.”
“That’s for sure. Did I tell you his whore had the audacity to call here while they were on their honeymoon? She said Mr. Kincade wasn’t answering his phone. I called John Von Cannon and he said he’d handle it. He must have, because I didn’t hear from her again.”
“Well, I hope he doesn’t hurt Mrs. Kincade too much. You can tell she’s not used to the kind of sharks that live in this high society.”
“You’re right about that, Bertram.”
The downstairs door slid back and then closed. Only silence followed.
Jillian wanted to cry, but she couldn’t. She had no right. She knew something the staff didn’t know. Quinton Kincade didn’t marry her because he loved her or because of her traits. She just happened to be the one to have all the qualifications the older Mr. Kincade liked. The qualifications that would save Quinton’s department stores.
She went back into the room and fell across the luxurious bed and burst into tears.
* * * *
Maddie Jones tossed her thin robe back on her shoulders and revealed her perfect figure wearing a black lace bra, a thong, a garter belt with black mesh stockings and red stilettos. In a husky voice she asked, “Did you miss this, baby?”
The picture of Jillian in her yellow silk gown flashed through Quinton’s mind, and for an instant he wanted to tell Maddie she looked cheap and tawdry. Instead he asked, “What do you think?”
She came to him and put her hands around him under his coat and began pushing it off. It slid to the floor. “If you missed me so much, why didn’t you answer your phone when I called you? All I wanted was to hear your voice. I wouldn’t have taken much of your time.” He didn’t answer, and as she began unbuttoning his shirt she said, “Did the old bag keep you too busy to talk to me?”
On impulse Quinton grabbed her by the wrist and jerked her hands away. “Don’t you dare ever call my wife an old bag.” His eyes bored into hers. “You’ve no right to disrespect Mrs. Kincade.”
“Damn, you’re protective all of a sudden.” She backed away from him and gave him a seductive look. She put her finger in her mouth and turned her head sideways, giving him a little girl smile. “I didn’t mean to insult her, but does she give you what I do?”
“What goes on between my wife and me is none of your business.”
“My heavens, Quinton. You sound like you’re in love with her.”
“Whether I love her or not is no concern of yours, but you’re going to respect her position as my wife.”
“Okay. Okay.” She moved close to him again. “Let’s not talk about her. Let’s talk about my position with you. How would you like me tonight? I’ve been practicing my yoga. I can twist myself into any position you like.”
Quinton grabbed her arm and pushed her toward the bedroom. “Let’s get to it,” he demanded.
“Don’t be so rough, baby,” she whined as she plopped on the bed.
Unceremoniously he unbuttoned his shirt, dropped his pants and rolled on a condom. He knew he wouldn’t be in this mood if he’d been able to come here when he dropped Jillian off, but on the way a phone call stopped him. He had to go back to the office and handle a delicate situation in the Atlanta store by phone. It took all afternoon. It was almost seven before he could leave the office and he knew he’d told Jillian he’d be home around then. He also knew if he didn’t see Maddie today, she’d be in a snit. Finally he decided to come by her place for a quickie then he’d hurry home. Jillian would understand if he was only an hour or so late. At least he hoped she would. Anyway, Jillian knew their marriage was one of a business nature. He’d made that plain from the beginning. Now he wanted things to settle down so he could do what he wanted to do, whenever and with whomever he wanted to do it with. He especially wanted time to be with Maddie.
Once he was undressed he got on top of Maddie.
“Baby, I know it has been a while and I know you’re anxious, but can’t you slow down a bit?”
“Why?” he asked after touching her. “You’re always ready.”
“Quinton, you’ve never been like this.”
He pushed his member against her and the unthinkable happened. It stayed soft and pliable. “Hell,” he mumbled and began to play with her body thinking that would help.
After ten minutes or so he rolled off the bed and reached for his clothes.
“Wait, Quinton. Let me try this.” She reached for him.
He pushed her away. “Don’t bother.”
“Well, honey, don’t feel so bad about not being able to get it up. It happens to older men now and then. I guess you’ve just been doing it too much with the new wife.”
Quinton wanted to slap her. Instead, without speaking, he hurriedly dressed.
“Don’t be so hard on yourself. I guess the old girl has more going for her than I thought. Did she wear it out?” She reached for him.
Quinton pushed her hand away and started for the door. “I said don’t talk about my wife.”
“Okay, I won’t, but you don’t have to go. Maybe some champagne would help.”
“I have to go.”
“Quinton…” Her voice was lost on the closing door.
* * * *
Calvin was surprised when Quinton came down the steps. He’d planned to be there a couple of hours. Now he was glad he resisted the urge to go down the street to the bar. This was the shortest time Kincade had ever spent in the woman’s condo.
Without comment, he opened the door and Quinton got inside.
Calvin couldn’t help glancing at his boss every now and then on the ride home. The man had a peculiar look on his face. Calvin couldn’t help wondering what had happened in the twenty minutes his boss had been in the condo.