"What was the result?" Malcolm said.
Drake looked up him, at me, then at Malcolm again, his eyebrows furrowed as if in confusion.
My brother-in-law sighed loudly. "The paternity test? I assume you had one?"
"It wasn't mine."
My legs gave out then. The cushion let out a soft whoosh as I landed heavily on the couch. I closed my eyes, silently thanking God for small miracles. But my relief was short-lived as my eyes snapped open at a new thought. "Jimmy. How does he play into any of this?"
Drake had his head in his hands again. "It wasn't planned."
Despite the gravity of the situation, I laughed. "Oh, with Jimmy, there is always a plan. Trust me."
"I was having drinks with an old friend from college I'd run into a few months after we moved. I don't remember how we got on the subject of dominance, but he said he knew someone who could use my help and gave me a business card. The guy turned out to be a producer who needed expertise on Dominance and submission for an adult film."
"Oh, God!" I pressed my fist to my mouth. This was not happening.
"One movie turned into two, then three. And well, you know..." Drake stood up suddenly and walked over to the fireplace, his path unhindered this time. He faced away from us, both hands on the mantle. I could see his shoulders shaking as he lowered his head.
Malcolm was still standing beside the chair Drake had vacated. He'd had his arms crossed across his chest, but he shifted to put a hand on Becca's head as she scooted over to sit at his feet. It had probably been intuitive on both of their parts, but the symbolism was not lost on me. A true, loving Dom protecting his sub who was seeking comfort. And then there was Drake and I. Drifting further apart each passing second. I was ashamed to say I didn't know the man before me.
"I met JD—Jimmy—on one of the sets," Drake said, his back still to the rest of the room although he'd straightened up.
Becca gasped, and I saw her staring slack-jawed at her brother. "Please tell me you—"
"No, I just consult. Off camera. Jimmy acts, though. From the first time I saw him, I could tell he had a lot more experience than the other guys put together. He never needed my help. When I mentioned this to him, he told me he'd been involved in the lifestyle for many years. Longer than he'd been in the film industry. It was strange, but we connected. It was nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of."
"You spent a lot of time together?" Malcolm asked.
My husband glanced at me over his shoulder. "The weekends I've been gone? I wasn't just with Jimmy, like I'd told you the other night. I was helping with the movies, too."
I pressed my hand to my forehead, trying to ease the tension there. "When did he tell you the truth?"
"Who he really was?" Drake scrubbed his hand over his face as he turned fully around. "Only last week. I swear. He'd been insisting on meeting you for some time now. I had no idea he'd been stringing me along all these months. Getting close once he found out you were my wife."
My sigh of relief came out ragged. He hadn't been intentionally deceitful for months like Darryl had suggested. Well, not about Jimmy, that is.
"When we met in February," Drake continued, "he said he'd been living the 24/7 lifestyle with his partner for almost a year and asked if I had a partner to try it with. I told him I was married and showed him your picture. He made a flippant comment about asking if you still liked to be spanked. When I asked him what he meant, he pointed out that I said we'd been married a few months. He just wondered if my wife still enjoyed the submission as much as she had when we were dating. At the time, it made sense. But after he told me you had been together? I finally understood why he was asking."
"Why didn't you say anything sooner?" I held my tears at bay, but just barely. "Why did you invite them to dinner? Especially knowing what you do about my past?"
Drake turned away again. He wasn't as successful as I was. I heard him sniffling as he spoke.
"Because I believed him when he said he'd only plead guilty to save you from more embarrassment. Yes, he'd gotten a little rough with you, but it had been an accident. He hadn't realized you were really in pain. He'd realized the error of his ways and had set his mind to improving himself. Becoming a better Master. And he wanted the chance to apologize to you. But he was afraid you wouldn't agree to dinner if you knew he was the one coming. He told me later that night that he'd talked to you. All was good."
"He's a fucking liar! He was smug. He humiliated me. I tried to explain it you, but you wouldn't listen." My voice cracked. I felt the first tear on my cheek. Then another. "Didn't anything he told you to do sound wrong? Irrational? Like making me quit my job?"
"In hindsight, yes." Drake made his way to the empty chair beside the couch. Beside me. "But at the time, it made sense. I was deluded."
I was glad that Darryl had moved to sit on my other side, though he was mostly an observer in this diatribe. The mere knowledge of his presence was encouraging. I didn't have to handle this alone. Especially since Malcolm seemed preoccupied with
