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He rang the bell. Through the walls, they could hear Johnny Carson amusing his audience. When the door opened, Jenny came face to face with Roxy Clemmons. The woman looked at her with polite curiosity, then spotted Cage in the shadows. "Hiya, Cage." The smile she flashed him caused Jenny to whither inside. "What's going on?"
"May we come in?"
"Sure." Without reservation Roxy stood aside and held the door open for them. After she closed it, she went to the television set and turned the sound all the way down.
"I'm sorry to bother you so late, Roxy," Cage began.
"Hell, you know you're welcome anytime."
Jenny's heart twisted and her gaze dropped to the floor.
"Roxy, this is Jenny Fletcher."
"Yeah, I know. Hi, Jenny. It's nice to meet you."
Her open friendliness surprised Jenny and she raised her head. "Nice to meet you too, Ms. Clemmons."
Roxy laughed. "Call me Roxy. Y'all want something to drink? I've got a cold beer, Cage."
"Sounds good."
"Jenny?"
"Uh, nothing, thank you."
"A Coke?"
She didn't want to appear impolite, so she answered with a weak smile. "Yes, all right, a Coke."
"Sit down and make yourselves at home."
Roxy turned toward the swinging barroom doom, which led to the kitchen. Her hips showed full and shapely in a pair of tight jeans. Voluptuous breasts swung free beneath her sweatshirt. She was barefoot. Her coppery hair was tousled, but attractively so. She looked either like she had just gotten out of bed or was on her way. She was the kind of woman a man could curl up and relax with, custom made to be a mistress. Friendly, hospitable, warm, and willing. The thought brought a scalding rush of nausea to Jenny's throat.
Cage had settled down on the sofa and was leafing through an issue of Cosmopolitan that Roxy had left there. "Sit down, Jenny," he said, noting that she was standing awkwardly in the middle of the room.
Uneasily, as though she might dirty her skirt if she wasn't careful, she lowered herself onto a straight chair. Cage looked amused. That irritated her.
Roxy came back with their drinks, and after Cage had taken a long swallow from the can of beer, he said, "Do you have any vacancies? We need an apartment."
Roxy cast a dumbfounded glance at Jenny, then her eyes swung back to Cage. "Gee, that's great, congratulations. But what's wrong with your house?"
He laughed. "Nothing that I know of. I think you misunderstood. Jenny will be living in the apartment alone."
Jenny could have killed Cage for making it sound like they would be living together. Her cheeks were flaming scarlet. Now that he had clarified the situation, she watched Roxy for signs of relief. Surely Roxy would be glad that he wasn't going to move in another mistress right under her nose. But all Jenny saw on Roxy's face was chagrin at her mistake.
"Oh!" She looked at Jenny and smiled. "You're in luck. I have a one-bedroom apartment vacant."
Jenny opened her mouth to speak, but Cage cut in before her. "How large is the bedroom? Jenny's going to have a baby. Is there enough room for a crib?"
Roxy's
reaction to that piece of news was shock. Her mouth hung slack for several moments as she stared at Cage. When she turned back to Jenny, her eyes moved unerringly down to Jenny's still-trim middle.
"You don't have any restrictions on tenants with babies, do you?" Cage asked.
"No. Hell, no." Visibly Roxy collected herself and put things in their proper perspective. She bent down to slip her bare feet into a pair of sandals. "Let's go see the apartment and you can decide if it's what you're looking for."
"It's in a good location," she said over her shoulder a few minutes later as they followed her down the sidewalk between the buildings. She had gotten the key to the vacant apartment from the spare bedroom in her unit, which served as an office. "Private and quiet, but not so isolated that you'll be afraid to live here alone, Jenny." She prattled on about the complex's amenities, pointing out the laundry facilities and the pool area.
