I walk towards the master, but a soft rustling makes me turn towards Adley’s room. I slide the doors open just enough to slip inside and take it all in.
I guess that crib came. And a whole bunch of other stuff. Adley’s room has been transformed into an elegant nursery. The deep purple and light yellow color scheme reminds me of Rochelle’s apartment above the Club. The velvet curtains and tulle canopy over her crib add rich textures against the pale walls. There are baskets filled with toys and stuffed animals. An open closet made out of that artistic piping Bric has lining the walls along the ceiling shows me dozens and dozens of baby outfits hanging on small, appropriately-sized wooden hangers. A wooden dresser along the exposed brick wall, which obviously matches the crib, has a small crescent moon-shaped lamp, which is where the glow of light emanates from. And a rocker, upholstered in light yellow fabric, sits in the corner, next to a changing table.
His new princess, I guess.
Princesses, I correct myself.
I sink into the rocker with a sigh, not one bit surprised that Elias Bricman is making the most of this situation. Making the most of my absence. Not that he’s trying to crowd me out. I don’t believe that at all. But Bric is not only a man of habit, he’s an opportunist, and I left the goal wide open for him to score.
“Hey,” Rochelle says in a soft voice.
I turn my head to look at her. One hip cocked against the wooden frame, head tilted. She’s wearing a light-colored silk robe. Maybe yellow, maybe cream, maybe white. It’s hard to tell in the low light. Her long, golden hair flows over her shoulders, one pale breast almost visible, the sleek fabric slipping.
“Hey,” I say back.
“You said you weren’t coming.”
“I changed my mind.”
“Are you mad?” she asks.
“No.” I shake my head. “No, I’m not mad.”
Rochelle walks over to me, her bare feet padding softly across the wide-planked wooden floors, and straddles my legs, settling in my lap. She wraps her arms around my neck and places her head on my shoulder. She’s completely naked under that robe. I can smell her sex when she opens her legs.
“How do you guys not get jealous?” she asks.
I shrug and place both of my hands on her hips, enjoying the weight of her body in my lap. “It’s Bric. He doesn’t want to take things from me, he wants to share them with me.”
“Do you love him?”
“Yes,” I say.
“Do you love me?”
We already talked about this the other day. And I lied to her. I mean, there’s still a part of me that feels like I was duped. That she tricked me into believing she was this person, and then she was someone else. Someone who would pick up and leave without a note. Someone who would walk out.
“Yes,” I answer.
“Are you going to leave now that you know he’s here?”
“I knew he was here before I came upstairs. I saw his car in the garage.”
“He’s moved in, Quin. He brought his clothes over this morning.”
“OK,” I say.
“You should bring your clothes over too.”
“Is that what you want?” I ask. “Both of us. Full-time?”
“He’s not full-time.” She laughs, but softly, so as not to wake Adley. “He’ll be at the Club every day. And most nights, too. Every weekend for sure.”
“He obviously wasn’t there this weekend,” I say.
“No, but the nursery furniture came in. So he rearranged his schedule to see to that.”
“It’s nice,” I say. “Lovely, really.” It’s not what I would choose for our daughter. But I don’t say that.
“It is,” Rochelle admits with a sigh. She sits up straight and places her hands on either side of my face. Leans in and kisses me.
I kiss her back.
“I want you,” she says. “And if you want him, I want him too.” She pauses to stare down at me. I can just barely make out the swirls of blue and green in her eyes. “Do you want him?”
I think about this for a second. When was the last time I had a couple relationship? Have I ever had a couple relationship? Sure, Rochelle and I pretended. We were together as a couple two days and nights a week. Sometimes we’d even cheat and I’d come over on Saturday night, after I knew Smith’s time was over, and we’d get in the Suburban and drive up to the mountains. Spend all day Sunday together when it was supposed to be her day alone. Two days turned into three every once in a while. That’s how we spent the summer boating before she left. That’s how we took that trip up to Jackson Hole.
But when was the last time I wasn’t sharing with Bric and Smith? Aside from a one-night stand, which I have never been into on any kind of regular basis.
Never, I decide. I’ve never been in a real relationship before.
“I need him, Rochelle.”
“I see,” she says.
We’re silent for a little while. I can hear Adley’s soft breaths from across the room. “Do you like the nursery?” I ask her.
She nods, but stays quiet.
“It’s nice. It was nice of Bric to do this.”
“Do you want to come to bed?” she asks.
I glance down at my watch. It’s a little past one in the morning. I’ll have to leave very early to be back at my condo before Smith shows up.
Rochelle doesn’t wait for my answer. She gets up off my lap, her pale breasts fully visible now, since the silky tie around her waist has slipped, and holds out her hand.
I take it and she pulls me to my feet. Leads me out of the nursery and into the master bedroom.
The city lights filter through the sheer curtains covering the window. Bric is sprawled out on his stomach across the king-sized bed, arms and legs all over the place.
He makes me smile.
Rochelle drops her robe to the floor, where it becomes a puddle of gold, or cream, or white. She takes my hands and places them on her breasts, helping me caress her softly. When she lets go, she begins to undress me. Slips my coat off. Drapes it over a chair. Lifts my t-shirt up, her fingertips grazing the hard planes of my stomach. I reach behind my neck and pull it all the way off, since she will never be able to reach that high. She unbuttons my jeans, unzips my fly. Slides my pants down my legs. I step out as she reaches for my boxer briefs, her hand against my cock as it thickens from her pressure.
She gets me naked and leads me to the bed, crawls in first. I follow, slipping under the covers with her and Bric.
He groans and turns on his side. Exhausted.
I pull Rochelle in close, my hands slipping between her legs. I find her wet and that’s the only signal I need. My fingers play with her as she begins to breathe harder. We kiss as I slide my body on top of hers. Pressing my chest against her breasts, moving my hips until my cock finds her entrance.
I slip inside her and move slowly, lifting my chest up slightly, so I can stare down at her face.