*
Much later, they sat in bed sharing a cigarette. She sighed and ran her fingers lightly around his chest. They listened together to the sound of the rain against the windows and watched the cigarette smoke drift lazily through the air. Outside, the light of the afternoon was beginning to fade to the darkness of night.
“It’s good to make to love to a real man,” she said. “I can’t tell you how tired I get of young blushing soldiers who got all of their sexual experiences watching the pigs do it on the farm.”
Jack laughed and kissed her on the ear. “It’s good to know that I can make someone happy.”
“As happy as a woman like me can be.”
“I still have a question for you.”
Mulholland rolled her eyes. “Can’t you just be quiet and enjoy this time we have together?” she asked.
She then pulled herself off of the bed, unashamedly naked in the dim evening light. Walking over to her dresser, she sat down and lit a lamp. She began brushing her hair again in front of the mirror, her face in a pout.
He studied her nude body for a while before speaking. “I want to know about Ethan Davis and Faith Hanson.”
She froze for a moment and then giggled. “Faith Hanson? You want to know about that tart? She has some secrets that you would love to hear.”
His stomach was wrapped up in knots. “Go on and tell me,” Jack said quietly.
“Well, I don’t like to reminisce over the old days of Davis much, but just for you I’ll tell you all about it. The reason that Davis stopped seeing me was because of Faith. Those two were inseparable. There was plenty of talk of those two getting married at that time. Faith seemed to be very much in love with Davis and he with her. It broke my heart at the time, but there wasn’t much that I could do about it. I was a married woman and Miss Hanson was available. Davis said he loved me, but I could hardly compete with the wealthy and virginal Faith Hanson,” she said vehemently.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said, sincerely. His heart felt heavy with his own sorrow as he heard the words come from her mouth.
“I suppose it was for the better. Davis never really loved me, but I was fool enough not to care if he did.”
“Tell me again about your first meeting with Lawrence. You said Davis arranged the meeting. How did Faith seem to feel about you and her brother together?”
“I was surprised that the Hansons invited me to that party of hers. She never liked me, especially when it started to be known of my prior involvement with Davis. But she seemed to actually encourage Lawrence’s love for me. I guess she was happy that I was spending time with her brother instead of pining endlessly after Davis.”
“After your affair with Lawrence was broken up by his father, what happened after that?”
She sighed. “Davis had no further use for me after that. I tried to write to Lawrence, but he never answered me back.”
Jack looked thoughtful as he lit another cigarette. He stayed quiet for a while and continued to watch her but this time he was lost in his own thoughts. She finished her hair, stood up, and reached down for her slip. She pulled it on and began searching through the piles of clothes scattered on the floor.
“Well, honey, I have to get ready,” she said.
“Ready for what?” Jack asked.
She gave a little flip to her hair. “I can’t pay the bills sitting here talking to you. I have to go out and work for a living.” She found the dress she was looking for and slid it over her head. “Can you button me up please?”
He stood up and went over to her. He roughly pulled the dress off of her and began to kiss her on the mouth. “Stay with me, Elizabeth, and I’ll pay for the night.”