Betrayal (4 page)

9

Adam White sat acro
ss his desk from a young man dressed in women’s clothing. The man was shy, so much so that he wouldn’t look Adam in the eyes. He had shaved, but the five o’clock shadow was back and the man’s jaw line and hands were thick.

“What can I do for you Mr
. Portman?”

“Ms
. Portman.”

“Sorry. What
can I do for you?”

“My Adam’s apple,” she said. “I want it removed.”

He nodded. “It’s called a chondrolaryngoplasty. But it’s not actually a removal. The best way to think about it is like a trim. We simply shave off layers until the throat appears smooth.” He leaned back in his chair. “Why do you want this surgery, if I may ask?”

“I’m… in transition.”

“Have you had the operation yet?”

“No. I’m
saving for it. I thought I would do this first.”

“Well, we have a psychologist here that meets with all our patients before surgeries like this. Just to make sure it’s what you really want. This type of surgery is irreversible.”

“I know. I was told that.”

“Good. Just set an appointment with my receptionist and we’ll take it from there.”

“Thank you,” he said. He rose and left the office without looking at him again.

Adam checked his watch. It was nearly seven in the evening. He usually didn’t take appointments this late but he knew that transsexuals, pre-op, were painfully shy.
They preferred coming later when no one else was there.

He rose from the desk and texted his wife that he would be home soon.
She texted back that dinner was in the oven.

Kali had seemed distant the past couple of weeks. Distracted almost, like she was constantly somewhere else. He had tried to bring it up to her once but all she said was, “It’s nothing. Just tired.”

As Adam exited his office, his partner, a doctor named Gil Sullivan, approached him and said, “We got some guy here selling his art.”

“Art?”

“Yeah, he’s pretty good actually. Says if we can hang up his art in our office he won’t charge us. He’s in the lobby.”

“I’ll
look at it on my way out. Have a good one, Gil.”

“You, too. Have a good weekend.”

The lobby was empty except for the receptionist and a man sitting in one of the seats. He had a binder with him and he glanced up to Adam and smiled.

“You must be the artist,” Adam said, holding out his hand.

“Sebastian. Nice to meet you,” he said, shaking his hand and rising.

“You
too. What can I do for you?”

He opened the binder and handed it to him.
“I was noticing you don’t have any paintings up in here. I’d be willing to give you some of my work if you could display it with a price and contact info tag. Lots of doctor’s offices do that now instead of buying the paintings.”

Adam flipped through the binder. Many of the paintings were exquisite. One in particular, a mermaid on a shore, stuck out to him.
Inappropriate for the office, but something enormously… sensual about it.

“This is just a few of my works. I’m having a showing tomorrow. Why don’t you come? Bring whoever else you want.”

“Where?”

“My studio in Santa Monica. You’ll love it. Come by.”

He flipped through the rest of the binder. “I’ll see if we can make it.”

“Alright, well
, I left my card with your receptionist. Hope to see you tomorrow.”

“Thanks.”

Adam saw the man out. He went back to his receptionist to retrieve the card.

“He’s cute,” she said.

“Why don’t you go to his showing?”

“Nah, too young for me. I like my men grizzled.”

Adam took the card and slipped it into his pocket. “Have a good weekend.”

The drive home was torturous. An accident was holding everyb
ody up. Adam glanced over as he drove past and saw three cars on the shoulder. Two of them looked totaled. A woman sat in the back of an ambulance weeping. Something similar had inspired him to become a doctor. He saw a woman struck by a car when he was ten years old. She lay mangled on the road, bleeding to death. A doctor had run up, driving a car somewhere behind her. He stabilized her and stopped the bleeding long enough for the EMT’s to get there and save her life.

The moment had stayed with Adam his entire life. That the doctor just knew what to do
, and did it without thinking and without reward. Adam had wanted to go into emergency medicine, but with $200,000 in student loans, plastic surgery appealed to him a lot more. He had his loans paid off in three years instead of ten, but something was wrong. His days weren’t as fulfilling as he had thought they should be. He helped people, sure, but helping people with Botox and boob jobs was not what he had in mind when he had become a physician. He wondered if this was what selling out felt like.

By the time he got home, the kids were doing homework in their rooms and Kali was sitting on the couch, watching television. He came up behind her and kissed her neck, inhaling her scent. Even after all these years, just her smell aroused him. He nibbled on her ear and she squirmed.

“Someone missed me,” she said.

“Always.” He hopped over the couch and sat next to her. “How was your day?”

“Boring. How was yours?”

“Same. How about we get a sitter tomorrow and go on a date?”

“Sounds good to me. Dinner and a movie?”

“Sure. Well, actually, there’s this art gallery show I was invited to. A guy that wants to put his art up in our clinic.” He pulled the card out from his pocket and gave it to her. “
Wanna go?”

She was silent a long time.

“Kali, you wanna go?”

“Huh. Oh, um, I’d rather just
go to dinner and a movie.”

“We always do that. Besides, Gil and I were just talking about buying some artwork. This is a free way to get it. Let’s just go for a little bit. Couple drinks.”

“Okay… couple drinks.”

10

Kali’s heart raced as Adam parked near the Santa Monica pier. She glanced into Sebastian’s building and saw lines of people waiting for the elevator. Maybe it would be busy enough that they wouldn’t run into each other? How dare he come meet her husband anyway? It was a violation, and one she was furious about. But she couldn’t show any emotion to Adam.

They exited, Adam holding the door open for her, and walked across the street. The building was decorated and a sign was up for “Laurent Art Studios Viewing.” They waited in line. The elevators only held four or five people at the most and there were at least thirty here.

“Interesting crowd,” Adam said.

“Why?”

“Just young college students mixing with rich socialites. Not typical friends I think.”

The line moved quickly and they went to the third floor. The noise was
intense. A DJ was there and heavily bassed music was thumping the walls. Kali came around the corner and saw that Sebastian’s studio had been turned into a party house. So many people were there it was difficult to see to the other side of the studio.

“Wow,” Adam shouted over the music. “Maybe we should just go?”

“Let’s have one drink.”

Kali realized that
, now that she was here, she had an overwhelming urge to see Sebastian, and slap him across the face. He had invaded her life and made her feel insecure. Made her keep secrets from her husband. She wanted one final face-to-face before never seeing him again.

The artwork was impressive and a velvet rope cordoned it off from the crowds. Adam was probably the only person here actually interested in the art. It appeared there was an open bar and everyone else was just getting drunk.

They slipped through the crowds holding hands. Adam would pull back every once in a while when a piece interested him and Kali would scan the room. But there were so many people, she could search all night and still miss a single person.

As they came to a sculpture of a man on a fence post,
shirtless and watching something in the distance, Kali saw him.

Sebastian was talking with a blonde, probably in her twenties. A model-type. Fake breasts, fake smile, fake tan. Kali couldn’t tell if he was flirting with her or not, but he had a smile and would say little things that made her laugh.

She also noticed that his shirt was tight in the sleeves, revealing his tattoos. The fabric was thin and she could see his chest bulging underneath. His arms were striated like an anatomy chart, not an ounce of fat anywhere. Suddenly, as if reading her thoughts, he looked over. Their eyes met and he grinned.

“I have to use the bathroom,” Kali s
aid.

“Okay,” Adam shouted
. “I’ll be here.”

Kali slithered through the crowd, ducking and shoving and sliding by until she came over to Sebastian. She took his hand and pulled him away. The blonde was saying something but Kali didn’t hear it. She pulled Sebastian far enough away that Adam couldn’t see them.

And then, she turned around and slapped him.

His face tilted, and he lost his grin for a moment. Then he looked at her again
, his emerald eyes piercing her. They said nothing for a while, just took in each other’s presence. Finally, Kali swallowed and blinked, and the trance, or whatever it was, was over.

“What was that for?” he said, leaning close to her ear.

“For meeting my husband.”

“I sell art to doctor’s and lawyer’s offices. That’s what pays the bills. What does it matter if I sell some to your husband?”

“That’s not why you went there and you know it.”

“Oh?” he said with a mischievous smile, “then why did I go?”

She wanted to scream. To throw something, to kick and punch and spit. Anger seethed in her and needed an outlet. She wanted to shout obscenities at him until her voice went hoarse. She wanted to pull out his hair.

Instead, she reached back and tried to slap him again.

Sebastian caught her by the wrist. He held it a moment, his fingers gripping her flesh. Their lips were close, close enough that a strand of his hair brushed her cheek. He moved his lips down, and kissed her wrist, and then her hand. He placed her finger in his warm mouth and then pulled it out and lightly bit her palm.

“Don’t,” she said, not loud enough for anyone to hear.

Her heart was pounding so hard she knew he could feel it. Her breathing was heavy and deep, her shoulders quivering as he kissed the flesh of her arm and moved up to her neck. His lips were warm, and his tongue hot. He moved up to her earlobe and it nearly made her knees buckle. She tried to pull away but he held on. He was too strong. She couldn’t get away if she wanted to.

Gently placing his hand on her cheek, he kissed her.

Electricity went through her body. Shaking her, making her mind race, forcing her heart to hammer in her chest. Her lips were on fire as he softly bit her and pulled. Her eyes were closed a long time. She couldn’t tell how long until their lips parted.

She opened her eyes and saw him gazing into her.

It wasn’t enough. She wouldn’t let him pull away. She grabbed him and forced his mouth back to hers. They were locked as one, together, their heartbeats in unison as she wrapped her arms around him. Felt the muscles in his back tense. Took in his scent. A soft groan escaped her lips and a thought slowly dawned on her. Adam.

Adam was here
.

She pulled away. Every cell in her body wanted him. Wanted his hands over her, his lips to hers, his eyes drinking her in. But she pulled away, and stood there like a teenager that was fumbling with her first boyfriend in the backseat of a car.

Kali brushed past him without a word and found Adam staring up at the painting Sebastian had been working on the first time she’d come here with Elaina.

“I love this,” Adam said. “I need to find the artist.”

Kali couldn’t speak. She couldn’t object. She simply took his hand and followed him around as though she were connected to him. Adam found Sebastian after a few minutes. The blonde was still hitting on him, though his eyes were on Kali.

Adam and he shook hands. Despite how horrible this situation was, a slight thrill tickled Kali. She thought of what
Bonnie had said. That it was like sneaking out of your parent’s house.

Adam and Sebastian talked about the painting. About where it would hang and how much he would charge for it. Sebastian told him he would bring that one and a few others like it to the clinic on Monday. Adam introduced Kali.

“This is my wife.”

Sebastian nodded in acknowledgement. “Pleasure to meet you.”

Adam said, “We better get going. See you Monday.”

Without taking his eyes off Kali, Sebastian said, “See you soon.”