Sexx, Secrets and Orgasms

He looked at me as if he was trying to remember. A small crease formed on his face. His mouth twitched as if he was debating on whether or not to say something.

Now let me tell you, that little hesitation of his told me more than any words could have.

I pulled out the picture of the young girl and slid it to him. He looked down at the picture and smiled.

"I found that picture in Lilly’s attic when Marci and I were looking for items for a get together. I looked at the picture and she does look like me. I feel like I’m staring at myself but in the past. Please tell me I’m not going crazy?"

He looked at the picture and up at me. "Lilly lives a very private life, Cadence. You should know that."

I sat there with my hands folded in my lap, waiting, watching his eyes go from the photo to my face and back again like he was doing the math in his head and didn’t quite like the answer he was getting.

"Dr. Jeffries, I feel a kinship to Lilly. When Ben called and told me she was in the hospital, my heart fell. I was so worried I dropped what I was doing and came to the hospital. She has been like a mother to me and I am just trying to figure things out."

"This is her. She was sixteen years old when this picture was taken. I remember because she looked gorgeous that night at the party. Every boy wanted to dance with her including me. She was so shy back then. Her father ruled her life and she obeyed every word he said." Dr. Jeffries smiled, and for a second his whole face softened, like he’d stepped right back into that memory.

"You do look a lot like her. Just a shade darker but you two could pass for twins." He shook his head. I pulled out the picture of me at the ball wearing the same dress.

He looked at both pictures. "I’ll be damned!" He said looking confused.

I want you to know I had been holding my breath since I set that second photo down, waiting for exactly that reaction.

"I took this picture almost a year ago. Lilly gave me the dress to wear to an event. I looked at both pictures last night and we could pass for either sister or mother and daughter. The resemblance is undeniable. What do you think Dr. Jeffries?" I was holding my breath.

"Amazing, but Lilly never had children. Maybe you could be a distant cousin by blood. What’s your mother or father’s name? I knew some Lilly’s cousins."

"My mother’s name was Diana Parker and my father’s name was Thaddeus Montgomery."

"You said was?"

"Yes sir, they both died."

"I’m sorry to hear that. The names don’t ring a bell. I’m sorry."

"My mother was adopted when she was a baby. She lived in quite a few foster homes and met my father when she was young. I don’t know any other relatives. My mother and father never talked about any."

Reader, I watched his face very closely on that one, looking for even a flicker, but there was nothing there for me to grab onto.

"So do you think you may be a Monroe?" He asked.

"I wouldn’t say that. It’s just... I can’t even explain it," I said. I really didn’t.

"Lilly was an only child as far as I know but who’s to say her father didn’t have a mistress. Back in those days it wasn’t uncommon to have one. I do remember that Lilly was sent off to boarding school a few months after her birthday party and the next time I saw her was at her parents funeral."

"They died at the same time?"

"Yeah unfortunately. They left everything to her. She hired Rosenwald Carrier, he use to be a big time attorney until he died a few years ago. With those two they invested in the community and reaped in nothing but profits. With Lilly’s charm and money and Rosenwald’s connections they were a powerhouse. When he died he left half of his estate to her since he said she built it. Lilly doesn’t have to work another day of her life. She has hired some of the best advisors in the world."

I heard she was rich and powerful but to hear him say it brought it to life. I wondered if he knew she was a Madame? Something told me that little detail hadn’t made it into whatever version of Lilly’s life Dr. Jeffries carried around in his head, and I certainly wasn’t about to be the one to update him.

I looked down at my watch. I had been talking to Dr. Jeffries for a while, longer than I meant to, and my head was still spinning trying to line up dates, names, and a face in an old photograph that kept staring back at me like it knew something I didn’t.

"Thank you for talking to me. I really appreciate it. I have a conference call to take in a few minutes," I said standing up.

"I’m sorry I couldn’t help you anymore, Cadence and welcome to the staff. If there is anything I can do for you just stop by."

"Thanks again," I said taking the pictures and putting them in my purse. I took a deep breath and headed to my meeting. There was a reason why I was meant to meet Lilly. I could feel it in my bones but the question was why?

Now let me tell you, I walked those hospital halls in a daze, barely hearing the greetings from staff I passed, my mind stuck somewhere between the girl in that faded photograph and the woman lying in that ICU bed calling herself just a boss, just a friend of the family, just Lilly. Something about the way Dr. Jeffries had looked at me, that flicker of recognition before he caught himself, told me this was far from over. I had questions now, real ones, the kind that don’t go back in the box once you’ve asked them out loud. And somewhere underneath all of it, a small, stubborn part of me was already bracing itself for an answer I wasn’t sure I was ready to hear.

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