They ced their orders and coffee was served.


    Ben could see Margaux wished to ask something but was intimidated by the presence of the kids. He saw the order of dry toast Rachel ordered for Tina at her elbow.


    “Daniel, could I ask a favor? Could you bring some toast up to Tina. It’s by Rachel. Borrow her key and just leave the toast on the table next to her bed if Tina’s sleeping.”


    The boy nodded and walked over to Rachel to get the room key and te of toast. He walked out of the restaurant on his mission.


    Margaux nced over at Miriam but Ben nodded. She cleared her throat. “Gabrie. I understand that you are with Ben as is Catherine and Tina and another woman whose name eludes me. I don’t know how this is possible without jealousy. Knowing he is having sex with all of these other women? Does that not make you feel jealous? I can’t imagine it!”


    Gabrie nodded. “There are definitely men that I couldn’t do this with. Men who lust for me but don’t respect me, who don’t want to be part of my life unless they can control it. These are men I couldn’t trust. But there isn’t a dishonest or maniptive bone in Ben’s body. I’m safe in putting my heart in his hands because he’d never hurt me. He loves me. Completely. He loves Catherine and Tina and Trish. Completely. There is nopetition. We may share his time but his love isn’t divided amongst us. We all get all of his love.”


    Margaux looked at Gabrie. “What about marriage?”


    “I was married. I got two wonderful children from that marriage but my husband lost interest in me. It was a very lonely marriage. With Ben I have a partner who is interested in my life and supportive of me. I don’t need to be married to him. Don’t get me wrong, marriage can be wonderful and it has its benefits, but I just don’t need it at this stage of my life. I love my life. I love my kids. I love Ben. I have a very strong circle of friends. It’s more than enough.” Gabrie smiled at Catherine.


    Margaux turned to her next. “You feel the same way?”


    “When Gabrie was first with Ben I didn’t take it well as I was in love with him too. But she opened my eyes to the fact that Ben was capable of loving unconditionally andpletely and she loved me enough to share his time with me. I love Ben very deeply. I know he loves me. My marriage gave me my wonderful girls and a husband who didn’t respect me. He didn’t even love me at the end. I agree with Gabrie. That loneliness was horrible. With Ben I no longer have to feel that. Because of him I’m sure there are men out there that are worthy of loving. Maybe they might not understand a non-monogamous rtionship but would be wonderful in a one on one rtionship. But like Gabrie said, I love my life, my kids, my friends and Ben and it’s all I need.”


    Margaux contemted their words as Daniel returned. He looked at his sister whose eyes were sparkling with excitement. She had been included in the adult’s conversation!This is property ? N?velDrama.Org.


    “The trick is finding someone you can trust,” Margaux said, almost to herself.


    “From the outset there has to be an understanding thatplete honesty is mandatory. Sometimes it means you hear stuff that isn’t nice but there is no second guessing. Honesty is the ONLY policy and you have to keep the lines ofmunication open,” Ben exined. Daniel gave Ben the thumbs up for his words and he returned it.


    The food arrived and everyone tucked into their meal. Everyone except Margaux who picked at hers, clearly conflicted about something.


    As they finished their meals the members of the group went back up to their rooms to get ready for heading out. Ben charged the meal to the room then there was only him, Catherine, Gabrie and Margaux.


    “What’s wrong Margaux?” Gabrie asked.


    Dark brown eyes lifted to look at her through thickshes holding back tears. “You have managed to conquer something I have battled my entire life. Jealousy is a curse in my family. My mother was Spanish and my father was French. He was so good looking. Many women were drawn to him and my mother seethed with jealousy. He loved her dearly and was faithful to her for years until he could take her poison no longer and left us. Her poison infected me. Who could love someone so riddled with fear and loathing? I’m destined to be alone!” she said quietly and tears dripped fromsh to cheek. Ben made to get up but Catherine put a hand on his arm as Gabrie got up from her chair and moved to the woman’s side. She took Margaux’s hands and looked into her eyes.


    “You’re beautiful, sessful, intelligent, and strong! You know your enemy so you can work to eliminate the jealousy in your heart. It’s just fear and it can be beaten. We’re proof!” she said to the Spanish beauty.


    “Because you have found a man worthy of you! The men I meet are only interested in my looks and my money. The other two attributes frighten them off. My ex-husband told me my mind was my worst asset.”


    “Only a man of weak character would be frightened by a woman’s intelligence.” Ben growled.


    “Where are the men of strong character?” she snapped.


    “They exist!” Catherine said.


    “You can say that because you’ve found yours. I need to find mine. I know intimately the terrible loneliness you both spoke of. Thest years of my marriage were cold and when I caught him with his assistant I finally ended it. I found my own young ythings and for a time I convinced myself I was happy and content. Then you showed up and destroyed my illusions.” She looked at Ben with rage and sorrow on her face.


    He knew it was self-pity but Ben couldn’t hold himself back any longer seeing her pain. He surged to his feet tugging free of Catherine’s hand. He walked around to Margaux’s side and looked down at her. Gabrie looked at him with a concerned expression. She knew well hispulsion to rescue a damsel in distress but this one could damage him in her unstable state.


    Ben caught himself when he saw Gabrie’s expression. He knew himself too. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then he knelt down next to Margaux’s chair.


    “I- I’m sorry about the pain you are feeling now. I think you had to go through that to get clear of the lies you were living with. They weren’t healthy for you. Now that you are free of them you should feel good about yourself. Hold your head high. Gabrie was right. You are beautiful and sessful but you have to rely on your best attributes, your intelligence and strength to get you to a ce where you love yourself. Only then can you defeat your jealousy. Once you arefortable with yourself then you can open yourself to others. If you made bad choices in the past learn from them but remember what I said about honesty. The most important person you must be honest with is yourself. Take ownership of the things you did, no matter how small they may be, which contributed to the dissolution of your marriage. This will help you heal and move forward with a better chance of building a healthy rtionship in the future. You have so much to offer. You will find the right person for you.”


    Gabrie and Catherine were looking at him with love in their eyes.