With These Four Rings(3)
“Well, listen to Miss Cloistered and Innocent,” Michelle murmured over the rim of her lemonade glass.
Kaya stared Tashi full in the eyes. “This chick may have been cloistered, but she hasn’t been innocent since the day she walked up on Adam naked in his garden. Played any games lately, Tashi?”
“Lost any panties lately, Kaya?” Tashi threw a piece of focaccia at her and squealed when Kaya caught it and popped it into her mouth with aplomb.
“Go, Tashi. You’re learning the art of backlash, girl.” Shaina high-fived her.
“Actually, I seldom wear panties anymore since Bryce is always taking them off and never giving them back,” Kaya said with a dreamy look in her eyes. “It just makes more sense to go commando. Easy access, entrance, and withdrawal, especially when he corners me at odd places in the house for a hot and raunchy quickie, if you know what I mean.”
“Oh, we know.” The women’s undiluted amusement echoed throughout the room.
“Well, I’m glad to find you all in good spirits.”
“Desire’s here,” Tashi whispered.
The ladies turned their heads toward the door and, immediately—as if on cue—they sobered up as a young woman with long black hair walked in.
“Please, don’t stop on my account.” Desire advanced farther into the room. “What’s so amusing?” she asked, setting an oversized tote on the floor.
“We’re just messing around.” Michelle tossed clandestine smiles at her soul sisters. It was one thing to share their secrets with each other, but nobody from outside their circle had knowledge of their relations and daily interactions with their husbands, especially not about their bedroom activities.
She knew it was the same for the men. She and her friends were always wondering how much their husbands shared with each other. There were tacit codes of ethics and protocol within and among the male and female clubs. One thing the women were certain of was that their husbands were always extremely amorous after spending time with each other—which indicated that they shared intimate marriage details. Not that the ladies were objecting. This was Sex and the Country, the rustic equivalent to New York’s Sex and the City.
“Yeah, just inside jokes. You wouldn’t get it.” Shaina smiled up at Desire. “Welcome aboard,” she added, to move the conversation away from their personal lives and on to the business they’d gathered for.
“Thanks. It’s really an honor to be working with you ladies. Planning the wedding of four of the most powerful couples in the country will definitely look good on my resume.” She gave Kaya a fleeting glance before peering out the window, clearly to avoid her gaze.
Deciding to confront the elephant that had appeared in the room, Kaya turned to Desire. “I’m fine with you taking over for Fae, Desire, and I—” She paused and made an all-inclusive motion with her hands. “We appreciate you taking us on at such short notice. We know you’re the best, and for obvious reasons we didn’t hire you initially, but now that we have, I’m sure you’re aware that it will probably cause some tension where my husband is concerned.”
“Probably? You haven’t told him yet?” Desire asked, a disparaging tilt to her voice.
“I was just told about this a few minutes ago. And once we’re done here, I will head over to Fontaine Enterprises to speak with Bryce.”
“My decision to take over from Fae was contingent upon you informing Mr. Fontaine, immediately. What if he says no? I don’t want to waste any more time on a project that I might not be able to follow through to the end. I have two more weddings I’m working on, and—”
“We understand,” Shaina assured her. “And we promise that you’ll have an answer by the end of the day.” She caught Kaya’s gaze, silently pleading with her to convince her husband to make it a positive one.
“I’ll call you after I talk with him,” Kaya promised Desire.
“Perfect.” Michelle indicated the vacant chair at the round table. “Should we get down to business?”
Desire’s face broke out into a grin as she scooted into the chair between Kaya and Tashi. “Fae told me you’re taking pole dancing lessons. Is that for your individual honeymoons?”
“Actually, we’re planning to crash our husbands’ bachelor party on Saturday.” Tashi’s eyes lit up with excitement.
“That should get a big rise out of them,” Desire said.
“Massive rises that we’ll all be eager to relieve.”
“No wonder you’re always pregnant,” Shaina said, eyeballing Michelle.