Chapter 11

“Hey, handsome. Who are you and why haven’t I met you before?” a sultry black woman asked me at the tail end of dinner, as Cassie went to get us some drinks and Amy found herself dancing with Billie.

“I could ask you the same thing. And where your husband is. My wife is over at the bar. See the strawberry-blonde? That’s her. Cassie. I’m Daniel Rubinstein, but you can call ‘Dan.’ Most folks who know me do these days. Word of warning, I tend to pounce on any attractive lady that I find, including married ones. Yeah, I’m a skirt-chaser. I’ve even branched out into men lately,” I cautioned her, putting a smile on her face, even as I noted her wedding band and mine.

“Let me guess. You married a woman with a ... similar libido. One who swings both ways, too. Yeah, it’s all in her body language, combined with the way that she just winked at you. You two have an arrangement, don’t you? And I don’t just mean marriage, as a certain former First Lady would say. An open marriage or hall passes or swinging or something like that?” the stranger nailed it pretty fast, which I confirmed with a nod and a grin ... and a wink at Cassie in return.

“Got it on the first try. You’re pretty good at reading people. Are you a shrink?” I teased her now.

“Am I that obvious? Dr. Tamara Butcher. Head of Psychiatry at County General. That’s my hubby, Wayne, hitting on your wife. From what I can see, she’s ... at least mildly interested. I thought that maybe we could watch them interact together. As the family name implies, we come a long way. Wayne’s ancestors earned that surname once they started giving them to freedmen, you know, during and after the Civil War. His great-great-grandfather got it honestly, being a real butcher in fact, on his master’s plantation in East Texas,” Tamara explained the surname, more out of pride than out of necessity, “I don’t mind telling you that he’s a judge himself. Superior Court.”

“The Honorable Wayne Butcher ... has a nice ring to it, actually. You’re right, it’s a neat, very idealized American, upwardly mobile ascendancy, coming up from slavery, having actual slaves in the family tree ... to being a judge in a county superior court. It’s always good when the American Dream actually does come true.

“I’ve heard too many cases where it doesn’t these days, so it’s good to be reminded that sometimes, people can rise above it all and make something of themselves. Your ancestors, were they slaves, too, if you don’t mind my asking?” I inquired a little further, being intrigued by that genealogy as well as Tamara’s personal style.

“Yes, but were freed much sooner. Back in Haiti, where we toppled Napoleon’s colonial rule and instituted the first black republic in history. Toussaint L’Overture. My ancestor was one of his colonels. Yes, I speak Creole as my native tongue, but you would never know it, would you? My father came over on one of those Haitian refugee boats, if you want to call it a boat. That’s a bit of a stretch. A glorified life raft, but somehow, the Loas kept him safe. I’ll believe that to my dying day,” Tamara told me with obvious pride in that fact, too.

“Wow ... that is a pretty wild situation! I’m glad that he made it. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be sitting right here, would you? So, tell me, Dr. Butcher, do you have ... an ‘arrangement’ with your own husband, as Cassie and I do in our marriage? Are you swingers? Stag/vixen? I’m guessing that you’re not cuckold/hotwife, if your hubby is hitting on my wife.

“Doesn’t sound very monogamous, either, mind you. Is Judge Butcher a Bull? Tell ya what, I’ll explain mine ... if you’ll clarify yours, and if you promise to keep an open mind. I don’t want to run afoul of a judge’s wife, let alone one I wouldn’t mind seducing someday,” I played it a bit coy.

“Well, judging from body language, let’s see if I can guess on my own. That girl there, dancing with that other girl ... she’s your daughter. And that’s her partner or wife or whatever. Am I warmer? But you’re not just ... her father. You’re her lover, too. It’s cool. I noticed how you look at her. But the bigger clue is how she looks at you when she thinks that no one can tell.

“But here’s the kicker. You’re also intimate with your daughter-in-law. And then there’s that guy. I saw how he looked at your wife and she looked at him. Like old flames. He’s her lover, too, ain’t he? And that woman on his arm ... that’s his wife.

“Oh, my God ... they’re newlyweds, aren’t they? Just the way that they interact is very telling. She’s got that ‘I can’t get enough of him’ vibe to her, you know. I’ve seen it a thousand times. While he has that thing with your wife, he’s also very besotted with his own bride.

“Wait, is this their honeymoon? And you all went and tagged along? How extraordinary! And who is that guy? And his wife, clearly that’s what she is ... but I could swear ... oh, Bon Dieu! That’s a hotwife anklet she’s got there, isn’t it? Who is she to you guys?” Tamara reacted to each bit of news that she could conclude herself without waiting for my input.

“Well, for the record, yes, as to your inquiry about my Amy. She is ... that to me, among many other things. She’s the best thing in my life. It’s hard to explain, but it is what it is. But, yes, she’s my pride and joy, my daughter. Amerys Sandra Guttmacher, nee Rubinstein, but everyone calls her ‘Amy’ for short.

“And yes, that’s Cassandra Rubinstein, my darling wife. Amy’s mother. And yes, she knows about Amy and me, in case you wondered. It’s a funny story how the affair began, but she knows and approves. Enthusiastically,” I assured Tamara, who licked her lips instead of acting aghast or horrified or scandalized.

“Okay, now I’m all ears,” Tamara laughed nervously.

“That lady dancing with Amy is her wife, as you guessed. Billie Guttmacher. Yes, she’s bi, too. Just like Amy ... and me ... and Cassie. Yes, Billie and I are lovers, too, at least as of today. That gentlemen to whom you referred earlier, that’s Roger Stanfield, Cassie’s lover and brother, well, stepbrother, but you get the idea. That’s Elisabeth, his newlywed bride, and yes, this is their honeymoon cruise. Elisabeth just happens to be Billie’s sister, too,” I added more details bound to shock and awe most folks, though maybe not a shrink.