Excelsior

Chapter 27: Jealousy

Saturday morning, Lilly met her friends at Sarah's house. The streets were dyed in white and coats had become a trend among pedestrians. The hall of the building already exhibited its Christmas decorations that hugged the air.

The girls laughed as they drank some hot chocolate and caught up on their latest exploits. After all, executives were getting huge compensation by now, and the women who had helped reduce their stress also deserved their share of the pie. Christine displayed a purse worth thousands of dollars to which the girls exclaimed with eyes full of vain greed.

When it was Lilly's turn, she told them about the night before at the opening of a gallery dedicated to women, displaying mere works that, while she did not share a refined taste for art, even she admitted that the artists lacked talent. After all, they were just housewives with free time. That was not the case for Mrs. Esther Atkins, who, still in a wheelchair, made superb sculptures present throughout the country, and who was recognized at the event.

Lilly was naturally indifferent to these kinds of gatherings, except that her quick nose for men with deep pockets was awakened by listening to a conversation between men about an acquisition valued at ten million, and as expected, her well-groomed appearance helped her to socialize with some of them.

"Everything was going well," she said, "until Dearick asked me to greet you-don't-guess who."

The girls' curiosity increased as they waited in silence biting their lips.

"The same man I have an affair," he continued.

Her friends exclaimed sharply and begged her repeatedly to continue, even putting aside their cups.

"His wife was present there and I had to greet her. What scum! Not even two minutes had passed into the conversation when she mentioned that it seemed like I had drunk too much. Dearick's face paled, and I had to go to the dresser because my head was hurting me."

"How judgmental," Sarah said with a frown, and then smiled. "At least you are sleeping with her husband behind her back."

The group attacked each other in violent laughter.

"When I got out," Lilly continued, "I saw Dearick waiting for me. I thought he was going to reproach me for my drinking habits. He just said if I was tired, we could go." She dropped her shoulders and saw her cup in her hands. "He went to say goodbye to his acquaintances, and my lover approached me..."

"What did he say?" Christine asked, inclining her head.

"He mentioned that he saw me talking to other men and that I had exchanged numbers with a couple of them. Then she asked me what I planned to do."

The girls insisted more intensely.

"I told him that I would possibly have fun with them as I have with him," he laughed.

"Liar!" Said one of the women. The rest kept screaming with joy. Although the lives of all of them revolved around forbidden relationships, they showed a particular interest in Lilly's life, which did not bother her, yet she was reminded that he could not give details to protect William's reputation.

"I assure you. And I would have liked you to see his expression. It was something like this."

Lilly relaxed her face and narrowed her eyes. The fissures of her big lips curved downward.

"He turned his face away," she said, "and said nothing. He sent a couple of messages this morning and suddenly asked if I wasn't satisfied enough with him."

"You're lucky!" Christine exclaimed, throwing a pillow at her. "You have it in your claws."

"Don't make her have fantasies," Danielle was quick to reply, who was the most reserved and rational of all.

"I'm just saying it's good to make them jealous; he must know that she doesn't belong to him if he will not make some kind of commitments to her."

"Please! We've already discussed this." She turned to Lilly. "If you want to get yourself a wealthy husband, you must look in New York; and even there it is difficult. The men here are aristocratic and would not risk their reputation for a beautiful girl."

"I never said he would leave his wife," Christine protested. Lilly noted that this had become more than a friendly difference. "It's just good to make him jealous -surely that way he will give you more gifts to try to ensure loyalty."

"Like the loyalty he has to his wife," Danielle laughed.

"In any case, you should always make them jealous," she raised her cup, "even Dearick can't take you for granted."

"I couldn't agree more on that," Lilly said, raising hers as well.

After a while, the hot coffee seemed very mild for the occasion, and Sarah hurried to the kitchen to get some vodka and a few glasses, a gesture that her friends appreciated.

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Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed. English is not my native language, so any feedback, suggestion or advice to change the grammar would be really appreciated.