Page 91 of Malliko
“Not as much as I love you,” I replied and rubbed the back of his head.
He smiled down at me and after a moment of silence, he broke free from the hug. “I better go find the others. I just wanted you to know that I’m pretty impressed with you attracting someone like that Malliko guy.”
“What do you mean? Where do you think you get your good genes from? I might be old in your eyes, but I still have a cute smile.”
“Yeah, I guess. But it’s like… well, Shanice is with Dad for the money.”
“Jamison,” I reprimanded him. “That’s not a nice thing to say.”
“But it’s true. I heard them argue about it and Dad called her an effing gold digger.”
I knew I shouldn’t pry, but the wounded ex-wife in me peeked out and asked, “I’m sorry to hear that. Do they fight a lot?”
Shrugging, Jamison looked around. “Mostly when Dad gets drunk and falls asleep on the couch. I think she wants a baby and he’s trying to avoid it because I overheard her talk on the phone with one of her friends. She was complaining that he’s not showing her any interest sexually.”
My neck heated up. Shanice was drop-dead gorgeous and if she had the same trouble keeping Jeremy’s sexual interest then that put things in a different perspective. Apparently, I had been too hard on myself when I blamed myself for not being sexy enough.
A few hours later when all eight of us ate ice cream and sat around talking about the move to Hong Kong, I found myself sympathizing with Shanice. Soon, she would be living in a foreign country without her friends, with a workaholic partner who wasn’t doing his part to give her the children she dreamedof. I had been in her situation feeling emotionally and physically rejected by Jeremy and constantly hoping things would get better. When his job took him to LA, I had been forced to move away from my friends and family to be close to my boys. It was tempting to tell Shanice to open her eyes, but it wasn’t my place. I wasn’t her friend, and I wasn’t about to get involved in my ex-husband’s love life.
When we left the park together, we walked to the parking lot. Pressing her key, Shanice unlocked the large white SUV that Jeremy had gifted her.
“You’re probably going to miss that one, aren’t you?” I said with an envious glance at my dream car.
She lifted her right shoulder in a shrug. “It’s a nice car but it’s a bit bulky for my taste, and Jeremy knows I’m not a fan of white cars, so I don’t know why he got that color for me.”
My boys and their friends were trying to get Tania to connect with them on social media. I could hear them begging and her laughing and teasing them. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Mom, tell your friend that she can trust us and that we won’t spam her with messages,” Keith said.
“You certainly never spam me with messages,” I said and smiled.
“Stop bugging Tania and get in the car,” Shanice ordered in a tone much too soft to match her words. “We’ll do takeout on the way home. I’m not cooking tonight.”
I walked over to hug my boys tight, giving each of them a kiss on the cheek. “Call me, okay?”
“Are we going to see you again this week?” Keith asked. “Maybe we could do something with Malliko and Tania as well.”
“Yeah, I wanna do that,” Jamison agreed.
“Admit it. You just want to hang with my friends more than you want to see me.” I winked.
They looked sheepish when they went into the SUV but when Malliko went to stand with his arm around me, there was a smile between them that made me feel both relieved and proud.
CHAPTER 28
What If It Could Be More?
Clara
Malliko’s apartment was bathed in a warm light from the sun. I was naked and sated from a lazy Sunday morning with several rounds of amazing sex.
Lying flat on my stomach, I had my eyes closed and my head resting on my hands. A sunbeam made me squint. For a second I considered turning my head away from the sun, but I stopped myself. It felt symbolic in a way. For so many years my inner light had been dimmed and I had played small. Stretching, I smiled as I felt Malliko’s hand on my butt. He was obsessed with my round hips, plump butt, and large breasts. It was surreal that the parts of my body that I had disliked the most were what excited him so much. I was back on the pill because with the frequency of our lovemaking we had to be careful that I didn’t end up pregnant.
It might only be a month since Malliko insisted that I leave my apartment and stay with him. Yet it felt like years of personal growth and transformation had taken place in that time. I wasn’t the same Clara I had been before I met Malliko.
“You know,” I said and rolled over to face Malliko. He looked at me with his large brown eyes.
“I used to be such a bitter person before I met you.”
