Chapter 5

Could it be Julie liked male companionship now and then? Did she have a casual thing going with Hector? An absurd thought, surely. Still, Belle glanced at Julie. She loved Julie, heart and soul, from her blond blue-tipped pixie cut to her button nose. She often snorted when she laughed, refused to tan, and missed her calling as a professional baker. The idea of losing Julie to anyone, especially Hector, needled at her, especially since he was capable of providing Julie with certain aspects of a relationship Belle didn’t offer.

Ah, there you are, insecurity, my old friend.She clenched her hand into a fist. Why must you plague me? Why must you whisper these ugly things to me in moments of weakness? Why must you make me second guess her, this woman who makes me feel so alive? She told me about her past, about the girls before me. The girls. Always girls. So why do I continue to feel threatened by Hector?

“Belle? Are you okay, hon?”