Her Secret, His Child

Okay. Maybe. Jamie didn't want to think about her mother anymore. Not today. She just didn't have the strength.

"You want a diet cola?" Karen asked, standing.

"Sure." Jamie followed her friend out to the kitchen, where she grabbed a couple of cans of cola

HER SECRET, HIS CHILD

from the refrigerator while Karen filled glasses with ice.

They sat at the kitchen table, a plate of cheese and crackers in front of them along with the sodas.

"So what happened after the jerk's wife came to your place?''

Jamie had known Karen wasn't going to let her stop where she'd left off. She wasn't even sure she'd wanted her to. The load was just too heavy to bear alone.

"Tom came by that night."

"The bastard!"

Again, she grinned at Karen's vehemence. Having such a loyal friend was more of a treasure than she'd ever realized.

"Not to sleep with me," Jamie assured her. "To break things off. If he didn't, his wife was going to divorce him."

"Which left you with an apartment you couldn't afford, and no ready way to pay your bills, buy groceries, cover tuition…"

Too ashamed to look at her friend, Jamie stared at the cracker between her fingers. "He offered me a solution."

"I knew it!" Karen cried. "He was a bastard."

"I guess." Jamie just didn't know anymore. "He said he had business acquaintances who'd be only too happy to pay for the same companionship I'd given Tom. Men who came to town infrequent-ly…"

Reaching across to cover Jamie's free hand where

TARA TAYLOR QUINN

it lay on the table, Karen said, "Oh, hon, I'm so sorry."

Jamie shrugged. "It wasn't bad, Karen." She glanced up, meeting her friend's eyes as she finished her story. "By that point, it didn't seem like there was anything left to lose, and I have to admit they were all good to me."

"Thank God for that!"

"I don't think God looks out for whores, do you?"

"Absolutely. Besides, you weren't a whore, Jamie. You were a desperate young girl who made some desperate choices."

"I took their money."

"I take Dennis's money, too."

"That's different and you know it! You're married, the two of you—a team."

"Well, then, look at it this way. Students take-handouts all the time to get through school. Sounds like these men could afford to help you out."

For a second there, Jamie almost saw herself through Karen's eyes. "I had my rules," she said. ' 'Nothing kinky, no toys, and I never saw more than one man at a time."

"Basically, you dated Tom's friends while they were in town, and in turn they supported you."

"You make it sound a lot nicer than it was," Jamie said dryly. "In any case, I finished school— and got out."