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Lila held the unblinking stare. “Okay.”
With anyone else, Ginny would view that answer one way. With Lila, Ginny had to ask. “Okay, what?”
Lila pushed the glass away from her. “Ryan and I have been sleeping together for months. We meet at out-of-the-way places, usually a few times a month.”
An admission. Within seconds, Lila shifted from her usual nondenial denials to spilling the truth. Ginny’s brain lagged behind the conversation then caught up in a whoosh. “You’re in a relationship.”
“We have sex.”
Of course she’d make that distinction. “I’m guessing you see those as two different things.”
Lila smiled. “They are.”
“It feels like we’re playing verbal gymnastics.” Again... still... for every second since they’d met. They continued the dance they’d done from day one.
Lila sighed and shifted in her chair as if settling in for a long talk. “When I first started out in criminal defense, I worked for a small firm. When you do that, you sometimes get stuck taking on cases outside of your area of expertise.”
Stalling. A new tactic, but still a tactic. “This has something to do with Ryan?”
“I ended up handling some divorce cases. Horrible work. People fighting over their kids like they’re curtains. It’s soul-sucking.”
Ginny played along. “I’ve heard.”
“One of the things I learned, mostly from another attorney in the office, but I found it to be true, is that people marry for different reasons. It sounds simple, but it’s subtle.”
“Explain it to me.”
“Some marry for money. A lot of times those of us looking from the outside see it and call the wife arm candy or some other derogatory term. But, reality is, many times it’s a mutual understanding between the parties.”
More disconnection from any emotion or empathy. “The couple.”
“They’re parties to a transaction. Whether people marry for stability or money, to escape or for children, it’s a deal made between the parties in that marriage. A deal only they know the terms to.”
The conversation circled and swooped. Ginny got sucked in, fascinated even though she fought it. “You’re using the word ‘transaction.’”
“Because marriage is exactly that.” Lila’s foot fell to the floor, and she leaned forward, balancing her elbows on the table between them. “Absent abuse or addiction, the transaction terms are violated when one of the parties wants a new or different deal. The trophy wife gets older and doesn’t want to sit and collect jewelry.”
“You mean when she doesn’t want to be a trophy anymore.” Made sense. It could also explain Lila’s ambivalence about her marriage from the start. She looked like a trophy wife, but nothing else about her fit the role.
“Exactly. She has a kid, gains a few pounds, and her priorities change. His don’t, and he wants out so he can find new arm candy.”
The back-and-forth cut off, and the reality of all she said caught up in Ginny’s head. “That’s not very romantic.”
“Romance as a necessary piece of the marriage contract is a relatively modern idea.”
They’d spun and talked and not gone anywhere. “You sound like a textbook. And I’m still not seeing what this has to do with Ryan.”
“Aaron and I married for security and comfort.”
Those were not the reasons Ginny would have picked. She wondered if Lila and Aaron had different reasons for marrying that maybe even Lila didn’t understand.
“We came from strained backgrounds and wanted companionship that was uncomplicated.”
Every word chipped away at what little motive existed in the case, which Ginny assumed was the point. “Are you saying you and Aaron don’t have a romantic relationship? Like, no physical contact?”
“We have sex.” Lila’s voice vibrated with a lack of emotion. So hollow and void of life. “But I wouldn’t leave Aaron for another man.”
Ginny wasn’t sure how to assess that comment. “That’s your view, but Ryan may have been a threat to Aaron. He could have seen Ryan that way, even unexpectedly.”
