Philip liked good food and didn't want to eat at a burger joint. Lately his favorite restaurant was The French Laundry but since it was an hour north of Oakland his meeting with Tim would have to be at Atelier Crenn on Fillmore or Benu on Hawthorne Street. Since Tim was staying at the hotel with Karla, presumably, he'd chosen Benu, which was only ten blocks from the Mandarin. The restaurant was pretentious but the chefs took food seriously.
He dropped Ai off at the gym and gave Mei a kiss since she was waiting for her at the curb, then headed toward the restaurant.
While driving the few blocks, he mused about the situation in which he found himself. By now Mei's plan was clear to him, even if her motivation was not. He had never heard of such a thing, a woman lining up other women for her boyfriend, if that's what he was. It seemed to go against everything he had come to expect from women and it still boggled him. Perhaps Ai's explanation was the right one, that she wanted his naturally polyamorous nature out in the open where she could keep an eye on it; it was that or her newly minted lesbian fascination compelled her to gather more lovers for herself.
'My girlfriends love pussy,' he thought, as he pressed on the break pedal. 'Fuck if life can get any better.'
That was another thing that had startled him about Mei Chun; the speed and enthusiasm with which she latched on to Ai. It was as though they had known each other for years and their performance in bed last night showed that there were real emotions between the two of them.
So much was different about Mei since the Jenny era. He expected her to change with the coercion of blackmail but he had not been prepared for the woman that emerged and her level of devotion and affection.
He smiled as he waited to turn left into the parking garage, recalling how after a firm spanking and vigorous ass fuck she turned into a purring kitten. He felt a quiver race up his back when he thought of her when she was like that: soft, smiling and so eager to please. She wouldn't speak a word as he unbuckled her from the punishment bench and carried her back to his bed. She would instead nuzzle his neck with her nose and forehead and drape her body over his and receive his smooth strokes to her skin. He felt pride in the contentment she experienced and felt the sinews of his heart unwind thinking about her.
It was her love for him that made the difference. She was right in her letter, he had found it buried in the rubble of her heart and resurrected it. Inspired it in the literal meaning of the word, 'to breathe life into'. It was the finest thing he had ever done and he felt he deserved the pride he now felt. And anyway, blackmail without love wouldn't have worked. He might have gotten an obedient drone out of it but Mei was now so much more.
As he parked he wondered about marriage for the first time in a long while. But it wouldn't work. He couldn't see marrying Mei and not Ai, and California, as liberal a place as existed in the United States, wasn't about the jump the polygamy shark, at least not for another fifty years.
As he walked from the old Range Rover in the underground garage he repeatedly spun his keys around his finger and caught it in his palm. He enjoyed the ritual: the impact of the fob, the slight heft of the car remote and the jangle of the keys. The repetitive action helped him think. He thought about Mei and realized he only knew one thing for sure: he wanted her more than any woman he had ever known.
He understood the contradiction if not its origin. Why should he want Mei more than Ai? Not love her more but
want
. 'I should ask Ai,' he thought and was confident that not only would she already be aware of the fact but that it wouldn't bother her. And as he heard her answer in his head he knew it to be true. 'You actually love me more but it's so effortless you don't see it. And you need her because you created who she is and the responsibility you feel is confused with need for her. You don't 'need' her, you need to fix her.'
And, although the answer came from his own head, he wondered again at the wisdom of the nineteen-year-old girl.
'Maybe she really isn't human?!'
##########
He met Tim at the restaurant door looking much more mature than he had last night. Dressed in a reasonable suit he looked presentable, even handsome. Yet Philip could not help but wonder if he had a tattoo; he seemed the type.
"Hello, Philip," Tim said with a smile and a proffered hand, which wasn't what he expected. "Please let me treat tonight. I'm not a pauper and I'd appreciate it."
"Sure, Tim. Thank you." The man had his pride and Philip admired that. "Tough day?"
"Yeah, a bit. Kinda hard to focus on work after the night I had but let's wait until we're seated to talk about it."
They waited for a table, their reservation having been mishandled, and at the bar Philip ordered a Makers Mark while Tim got a beer. By silent agreement they kept their conversation light.
Ten minutes later, at the table, Tim discovered that there were no menus as such since it was a prix fixe arrangement. He felt it was odd but he was there to talk, and having no menu to hide behind would force him to get down to business quickly.
"You've put me in an awkward position, Philip," he said when they were alone. "You've made it plain that I have a choice to accept your proposal or have my girlfriend stolen from me. I am sure you understand the rage I feel at the moment."
"I do. Let me say that I appreciate your ability to control it."
"Thank you. It's been a struggle." He changed the tone of his voice. "Karla, I am convinced, is at least bisexual, which was, at first, disconcerting if only for the instability it brings into our relationship. She told me last night that she'd had other girls before yours." He shook his head. "I never even considered it and now I feel I have to compete with, not only the likes of you, which is at least the same playing field, but with women, which is not. Most men have their insecurities, and I trust men like you do as well, but now suddenly I have to face the prospect that everyone on the street could tempt her away." He paused to think and took a swig from his bottle. "It's just a lot to confront."
The bread arrived which halted his monologue for a moment and let him gather himself for what he was about to say.
"She says she loves her," he said with an expression that showed he thought Philip might not know this.
"I know."
He continued, upset that he had been kept totally in the dark while Philip seemed to know all. "Our girlfriends love each other. Doesn't that strike you as odd?"
"It would have," Philip said with a sigh and taking a strangely shaped roll, thinking that perhaps it was Rosemary he saw peeking out of the crust, "but now I think it's natural. I mean," he sniffed it, "if you were a woman wouldn't you be gay?"
"Good point. But then there is the prospect of your proposal, which I must say is a temptation. I feel, and this is not personal, that I'm being asked to make a deal with the devil. To have an endless supply of women to... uh, please me, is of course every man's fantasy. And to still live with Karla and perhaps adjust to this new arrangement with our future together a possible outcome... it's quite tempting. What bothers me is you, to be quite honest. You intend to have sex with her."
Philip responded. "It's not an intention, Tim." His voice was calm and reassuring. "As much as she is an attractive woman, then yes, the prospect of sex with a woman like that is a pleasant thought, but I have as much attention of that kind as I need. It's more of a practical question." He sipped his bourbon. "If I am going to be making love to Mei and Mei is going to be making love to Karla then it's going to happen. Someone's eyes are going to meet and someone is going to start touching someone else.
"You pawed Mei last night. Imagine that situation happening week after week for months. Any man would break down."
Tim's eyebrows twitched.
"See?" Philip moved on. "What I am saying is this: for Mei's happiness I agreed to let her continue a relationship she fell into. I had no intention of involving you or Karla. This wasn't my idea, remember that. It was your girl that hit on my girl and what I'm proposing is the only thing I can think of that will provide some equality, some compensation." He paused momentarily, "Do you have a counter offer?"
"No. I really don't. I just wish it didn't happen. I mean, as generous as your offer is, you are giving a, and let's be frank..."
"By all means."
"...a token amount of money for one with your resources, and in exchange you'll be taking the woman I love."
"I cede your first point but I am not taking her. She is yours to win or lose. You've got to convince her you are the one she wants, Tim. Every day, every hour. Her heart's not for sale."
"But her body is?"
