And ate some more.
“How’s the food?” Ruth asked as Willow took up a piece of heavenly cheesecake.
“Wonderful.” Both Willow’s smile and comment were sincere. “I’m stuffed but just can’t resist trying everything.”
Ruth grinned, eyes sparkling with pleasure at the praise. “Excellent. I’ll send some home with you.”
“Oh.” Though Willow eyed the remains with a bit of greed, enough still to feed an army, she demurred. “I’m sure the others...”
But Ruth waved that away. “Nonsense. There’s plenty. And it wouldn’t hurt you to gain a pound or two. Such a tiny thing you are.”
At five feet, four inches, Willow wasn’t exactly short, though she knew her small bones and thin frame, more boyish then curvy, tended to make her look frail. Watching her weight had always been a necessity, barely kept in check by the rigorous dance routines. Her sweet tooth knew no bounds and savoring the cheesecake after a slice of carrot cake, was an uncommon indulgence.
Conscientious of all the foods she’d missed out on over the years, Willow cut a hefty chunk of the cake with her fork. “Not if I keep eating like this.”
Ruth laughed, the musical notes so infectious that Willow continued to smile even after she started chewing.
At that moment Kaylie sidled up, leaning her forearms on the counter next to where Ruth and Willow stood. “God, Mom. I’m so full. Why didn’t you stop me?”
Ruth sent her youngest the kind of maternal, loving look Willow had always longed for and for the life of her, could never remember receiving. Dropping her eyes, she focused on taking another bite, hoping to hide the covetous feeling that tightened in her chest.
“Because you’re eating for two,” Ruth responded.
Kaylie let out a low groan. “Was eating for two. Now I gotta break that habit or I’ll never lose the baby weight.”
Jackie came into the kitchen, moving to the table for a slice of carrot cake. “You will,” she said, having overheard Kaylie’s comment. “Every new mother thinks she’ll carry the extra weight forever, but nature has its reasons.”
“Besides,” Tess said, angling behind her sister to rub a hand over her back in sibling affection. “It’s not like Dean is disgusted with your appearance, and really that’s all that matters.”
Kaylie’s lips curved in a secretive grin. “No. No, he’s quite interested in how my body has changed.”
“That because, despite what’s on TV and in magazines, men like curves.” Tess eyed Willow in a critical, yet not unkind fashion. “I know after leaving the business I gained enough weight to add a cup size. It’s silly, really, all that dieting only to have our bodies molded into a specific form that could be achieved by healthy eating habits.”
“And you,” Jackie, in doctor mode, pointed out, her fork aimed at Willow, “easily need to gain another five pounds.”
Willow felt her cheeks flush and stared down at her nearly empty plate. “Working on it,” she muttered.
“Lucky,” Kaylie said, her tone making the comment both envious and teasing.
One of the women came to the kitchen door and called Ruth away. Once the woman was out of sight, Tess flicked Kaylie on the ear.
“Hey.”
“I saw that stupid look on your face. I take it sex is back on the menu.” Tess wiggled her perfectly manicured brows. “So tell me. Is it different?”
When Willow began to choke, Jackie calmly handed her a bottle of water, her brown eyes gleaming with laughter. “Forgive Tess. She’s usually more subtle than this.”
Tess rolled her eyes. “I don’t have to be subtle with family.”
Knowing very well she was far from family, Willow glanced at the kitchen door, thinking she should give the women privacy. Yet curiosity struck again, and the fact all three women seemed to take the topic in stride while a near-stranger stood barely a foot away made her feet stick like glue to the spot.
“It’s the same, yet different.” Kaylie said after a moment. Her eyes darted from the empty doorway back to Tess with a wicked grin. “He said my scent has changed. It’s more enticing. Man can’t keep his hands off me.”
Willow frowned, wondering what Kaylie meant, not realizing she asked that aloud until Jackie said, “Pheromones. While the core remains the same, they can have different notes depending on diet and hormonal changes.”
Kaylie nodded. “Everything is attracted or repelled by scents, which is why the perfume industry is so large. Your natural pheromones are the most intense where you’re the warmest. For example, your breath. Dogs,” Kaylie used her vocation to illustrate her point, “are so sensitive that professional trainers will not allow the owners to speak until the trainers have finished putting a dog through it maneuvers.”