We had had no children, not from choice but it just hadn’t happened for us. Both of us were comfortable with our new status, especially since Rowena...had recently moved in with a partner in the same law firm. I no longer felt any responsibility for her, something that had always been there despite the divorce. It was, I suppose, the legacy of 15 years together. Newcastle, where I now lived, is a city that is always lively, and I seldom lacked for entertainment and companionship. So life was. Keephim entertained until I get there."An enthusiastic "Yes, Mistress!" followed, then the line went dead as Itapped the watch. A potential new client, came a little early, not surewhether to be insulted for thinking he could take more time than Ioffered, or complimented on the fact he was making sure he was notwasting mine.I stood up and left my private office, I closed the door and heard thelock, the main hall on this floor was carpeted, so my heels didn't maketoo much noise. I wasn't. I was the Prom Queen by-the-way. We all whored for something," Marla said. She didn't say it in a gloating voice though, her tone was of someone just stating a fact. "You're tired of his whining, so you have sex just to shut the asshole up. Maybe you think it will gain you popularity in high school. You're afraid of not having a date for the big dance, so you do what it takes to keep a guy who will invite you to Senior Prom. There's so many reasons other than because you wanted to have. Can we say ‘computer science degree or demonstrated experience’?” I asked.“That works,” Dave said.“So we look for two people - one to work for Cindi and one to fill Penny’s role. Obviously she comes back next summer, too.”“I ran the numbers again,” Elyse said. “And Cindi and I came up with a bid for you to review for the law firm’s Novell installation. They already asked us to do it, but they also asked for an estimate of cost.”Elyse handed each of us a sheet full of numbers.“Seriously?” I.