Betrayed by Love (4 page)

“Jen—”

“Besides, if you stay for the full two weeks as you promised, you’ll not only get to spend two weekends at our place at the shore, but you’ll also get to meet Grant.”

“Who’s Grant?”

“He’s Jarrod’s cousin.”

I stared at her. If she was going to turn into a matchmaker...

Her lips twitched. “I know what you’re thinking.”

“Really?”

“Yes. You’re thinking you’re not interested in a blind date.”

Despite the effect Jarrod had on me, I had no desire to have Jen or anyone else assume that my preference had switched to white males. It hadn’t.
 
“So why would I want to meet this Grant?”

“He and Jarrod are first cousins.”

“And?”

“And he’s a single, very successful and well–paid executive.”

I arched a brow.

“You two should have a lot in common. You work for a drug company and he’s the vice–president in charge of expansion for a large insurance company.”

“Sounds so impressive that he shouldn’t need any help getting a date on his own.”

“Believe me he doesn’t need any help getting a date.”

“I don’t need any help getting a date either,” I reminded her.

“You know I know that, Lin.”

“Then I’m not sure why we’re having this discussion.”

She shrugged. “I’ve missed you. I guess I’m desperate to keep you here for as long as possible.”

I smiled at her. “You are an amazing woman and friend and despite the situation I’m delighted you finally found your Mr. Right.”

“You’ll find yours too, Lin.”

The only problem was my Mr. Right belonged to her. Not that I could admit that. So I nodded. “I know. I just hope I find him before I’m too old to really enjoy him.”

That triggered another round of laughter. When it was over, I allowed her to convince me to stay at least a week. “But I’m not interested in meeting this Grant,” I warned.

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not.”

“He travels a lot and that’s the biggest reason he’s not seeing anyone special.”

“Hmm.” I glanced at my watch. “I’d better go change.”

“Put on something slinky and clingy.”

“Are you and I having dinner alone?”

“No. Jarrod is having dinner with us.”

“Then why would I dress in a slinky and clingy outfit?”

She shrugged. “You know how it is.”

I frowned. “I know how what is?”

“How things are with men.”

I tensed. That almost sounded like the old, insecure Jen. “I thought you were happy with Jarrod.”

“I am very happy with him.”

“Then?”

“But let’s face it, Lin. He’s a man.”

He certainly was. “And?” I encouraged.

“And for all his devotion, he’s still a man. He likes being in the company of beautiful women he can ogle.”

I arched a brow. “And that doesn’t bother you?”

She shook her head. “No. Why should it?”

“Okay, what the heck am I missing, Jen?”

“Nothing. We just have an agreement we’re both happy with. He gets to stare in appreciation at beautiful women and I get to stare at handsome men. As you know we bought a place down at the shore a few years ago and we spend most weekends down there.”

“When we have the kids with us, we’re the normal Mommy and Daddy. When they’re visiting various relatives during the weekends, we let our hair down.”

I bit my lip. “Do I want to know just how much you two let your hair down, Jen?”

“It’s nothing too outrageous. He spends his time staring at pretty, nearly half–naked women, while I get to gaze at handsome hunks. The last time we were at the shore without the twins, there was this ebony delight strolling down the beach who had a long cock with a big pink head.”

I prefer my men with dark skin and big dicks. Her description caught my attention. “How do you know the size of his goods?”

She made fanning motions with her hand. “I could see it hanging below his shorts. And I do mean shorts. He knew he was partially exposed and didn’t care. When he turned to smile at me, I could see the outline of his balls. Talk about tall, dark, and well–hung.”

I blinked at her.

She laughed. “Oh, there’s no need to look at me like that. At night, when it really counts, Jarrod and I look to each other for sexual satisfaction and emotional fulfillment. When push comes to shove, he’s the man I want lying between my legs when I need to be loved and mine is the name he groans when he comes.”

I continued to stare at her. This was her idea of an intriguing sexual relationship? Ogling strangers in plain view of each other? That wasn’t my idea of a good relationship.

“It works for us, Lin.”

I nodded. “You both look happy so I’m sure it does.” But it was a little too unique for my taste. While I knew men would be men, I didn’t want any man of mine openly and blatantly checking out another woman’s goods while I looked on in approval.

“Trust me. It does.”

I flashed her a quick smile. “Great.”

“Yes. Now go put on something sexy and scandalous that will get him so hot and bothered he’ll rip off my clothes and ravish me the moment we’re alone in our bedroom. You tease the hell out of him and he’ll please the hell out of me.”

“Be serious, Jen.”

She gave me a wide–eyed stare. “I’m very serious. Wear something where your breasts are almost popping out of your bra and that barely covers your ass. He likes women with big asses.”

Well, I could certainly lay claim to having a big ass. “If you two have that type of understanding, why did you seem upset yesterday when you realized I was…attracted to him?”

“I wasn’t sure I wanted to admit we sometimes like to flirt with other people.” She sighed. “Some of our friends are a little too judgmental. They think we’re risking our marriage and relationship just because we like to flirt a little with other people.”

Now where would they get such an idea? “Flirt?”

She shrugged. “Okay… ogle them. That’s one of the things that keep our marriage fresh and exciting.”

I wondered just how much excitement they craved. “Have you two ever done more than just flirt with other people?”

She shook her head. “Absolutely not! Neither of us would cheat. We love each other too much for that.”

“And you’re not afraid things will get out of hand for either one of you and go beyond flirting?”

“No. We’re very happy together and we happen to still be in love.”

How long would their love last if they kept asking for trouble by openly flirting with other people? “Well…I guess if it works for you two.”

“It does.”

I shrugged. “Then who am I to judge?”

She smiled. “I knew you’d understand.”

I neither understood nor agreed, but decided my job was to be her friend, not try to impose my values on her. “I’d better go shower and change.”

She rose. “Me too.” Jen slipped her arm through mine and we went inside together.

While in the shower, I thought of our conversation and allowed my thoughts to turn to Jarrod. I closed my eyes and pretended I was with him as I removed the shower head from its casing and pretended the water jet was his hand on my clit. I fingered myself until I felt a nice buzz but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t come. I decided it served me right for allowing my imagination to get out of hand.

When I emerged from the bathroom, Jen stood near the open closet door of the guest bedroom holding up a low–cut mauve dress for my inspection.

I studied the dress. It fell just below my knees, but had a slit that extended from below the knee to mid–thigh. In her other hand she held a pair of three–inch heels. “Wear these and you’ll have him hyperventilating,” she told me.

The thought of Jarrod getting aroused when looking at me in that outfit sent a tingle of delight through me. I moistened my lips. “What are you going to wear?”

She glanced down at herself. “Just what I have on now.”

She wore loose–fitting, knee–length shorts and a faded white cotton blouse and flip–flops. “And you expect me to wear a dress that shows my cleavage and thighs?”

She nodded eagerly. “Yes. Tonight is going to be about you looking sexy enough to turn him on and get him real hot for me.”

I stared at her. Couldn’t he get hot for her without help? If he couldn’t, just how perfect was their marriage, and how long would it be before it fell apart and Jen was left broken hearted again?

“Oh, don’t look so worried, Lin. It’s just a game that we both enjoy playing. You don’t need to get worked up about this. It’s not as if we’re real swingers who go around sleeping with anyone else.”

I think that’s when I began to view Jen in a totally different light. She seemed determined to use my attraction to her man to her own advantage—without a moment’s concern for how I felt. That knowledge saddened and angered me a little. “And who’s to say you two won’t graduate to that point?”

“I do, because we both take our vows very seriously.”

I nodded. “Okay. Great.”

“Good.” She placed the dress on the bed and put the heels on the floor. “When you’re ready, we’ll be waiting for you in the dining room with the lights low.”

“With the lights low? Why?”

“So you can make your grand, sexy entrance.” She blew me a kiss. “Don’t keep us waiting too long, Lin.”

When Grant West returned home from a business trip, his sense of tired satisfaction gave way to wariness when he listened to the message from Jen. “Grant? It’s Jen. Call me when you can.”

Lately Jen had been making rather a nuisance of herself insisting she had a friend he should meet. Although his busy work schedule sometimes made forming meaningful relationships difficult, he hadn’t yet reached the point where he needed or wanted help getting a date.

But he supposed he should call her and get it over with. He took a quick shower and then sat with a cold beer in his hand as he called.