Page 74 of Silver Angel

Chantelle didn’t care to answer that. She said instead, “All our lives we’ve taken it for granted that we would marry, and naturally we expected to be our husband’s one and only love.”

“Exactly.” Jamila beamed. “No one else will admit that. But then they’ve all been here so much longer and are accustomed to this arrangement. I suppose we will be, too, when the years start rolling by. But it’s a shame.” She giggled and rolled her eyes. “With what I’ve learned here, I don’t think any husband of mine would be bored and out looking for a mistress too soon.”

Chantelle grinned despite herself. “No, I don’t think he would.”

“But I’m not likely to ever find out.” Jamila finally laid her head down on her crossed arms with a sigh. “Sheelah was the lucky one. I thought surely the Dey really loved her. Oh, he gives to the rest of us of his body, but to her he gave from the heart. It was so romantic watching them together,” Another sigh. “You could see the difference last week, though, when he joined us all for Noura’s little party. It was the first time I’d ever seen him divide his attention so equally between us when Sheelah was present. She was crushed.”

Chantelle frowned. She had spoken with the firstkadineseveral times since that infamous feast that she had helped to prepare, but not once had she sensed any great unhappiness in her.

Jamila’s eyes were closed now, so she didn’t see how this bit of gossip had affected Chantelle. She blithely continued. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Noura had hoped something like that would happen. She’s always hated Sheelah for being the Dey’s first wife and would do or say anything if she thought it would hurt her. I ought to warn you if no one else has, to watch out for Noura. Everyone swears she tried to kill Sheelah’s son after her own was born, but it could never be proved.”

“Are you serious, Jamila?”

“Mmm.” Her eyes popped open. “Oh! I didn’t mean to frighten you. You surely don’t have anything to worry about, at least for a while. Noura’s worst spite is reserved for those who have born the Dey’s children. I just wanted to warn you so you wouldn’t take anything she says to heart.”

“I appreciate it, but I’ve already taken her measure. A more vindictive woman I’ve never met.”

“That’s Noura.” Jamila grinned. “You just have to learn to ignore her, as everyone else does.”

“I will,” Chantelle replied. “But what about Sheelah? Why was she so nice to me when she must hate me—”

“Oh, no! You mustn’t think that. She isn’t capable of hating anyone, not even Noura. Sheelah just isn’t that way.”

Why did that make Chantelle feel terrible instead of relieved? “If you say so.”

“Oh, dear, I’ve upset you, haven’t I? I didn’t mean to, really I didn’t.”

“It’s all right, Jamila.”

“Are you sure? You’re not just saying that?”

“Not at all.”

“Good, because I was so hoping we could be friends. But you mustn’t feel guilty about Sheelah. She wouldn’t want that. And it’s not exactly as if you were the ‘other woman.’” Jamila chuckled here. “How could you be when there areso manyother women?”

“But she’s his wife.”

“One of three wives, and we’re his favorites, and he doesn’t neglect the other concubines for long either. That’s life here. Whoever he favors for the moment is the lucky one. You must enjoy it while it lasts.”

Meaning it wouldn’t last? Chantelle didn’t voice that question. “I don’t like being the cause of someone else’s hurt.”

“Oh, but you’re not,” the girl assured her. “Why, Jamil summoned Sheelah the day before he first summoned you to him. And she’ll likely be the first one he wants as soon as he gives you a rest, so don’t worry about her. Even if he does come to favor you above her, she’ll still be next after you. After all, she bore him his first son and he absolutely adores the boy. She’s only been upset by the difference in the way he has behaved toward her since you’ve been visiting him. She just wasn’t expecting it.”

Chantelle hadn’t heard much after that second sentence. “Do you mean that he made love to Sheelahafterhe bought me?”

“Well, of course he did,” Jamila said in surprise. “You were in training, if you remember, so he couldn’t very well summon you, though that was certainly cut short, wasn’t it? But as I recall, he still called Sheelah to him the night he bought you. And actually, I had the next night, which was a relief to me, because I thought I’d be the first to go when you became a favorite. As it turned out, Mara was sent back instead. It was only after he first summoned you that he called no one else to him. You don’t know how lucky you are, Shahar, to have him to yourself for a whole week. I managed only two days in a row my first time before Sheelah was back in his bed.”

Chantelle closed her eyes and counted silently to ten. She mustn’t let this news disturb her. Just because it appeared Jamil had lied to her didn’t mean he actually had, or that it had been deliberate. He hadn’t precisely said that he hadn’t made love to anyone else. He had asked her how he could invite another to his bed. Well, he could, obviously. He had only implied that it wasn’t likely.

No, no, she mustn’t think he deliberately meant to deceive her. Perhaps he had meant to say that he hadn’t been able to think of anyone but her since he first summoned her, rather than when he first saw her, and Jamila had just confirmed that that at least was true. And besides, hadn’t she assumed he was still sleeping with his wives even while he was seeing her? She hadn’t let that stop her from surrendering to him. Oh, but it had been so romantic to hear him say that only she would do from the moment his eyes had first beheld her.

Those words were more than a little responsible for her contentment this morning and had gone a long way toward making her ignore the fact that she wasn’t Jamil’s only concubine. Everyone here was sharing him with her, but that she hadn’t as yet shared him with anyone made a great deal of difference. It made all the difference, actually.

She would just have to ask him about it when she joined him tonight. If he could assure her that there wouldn’t be anyone else…

“Oh!” Jamila squealed suddenly, only to end on a less ecstatic note. “Oh, dear. Are you sure?”

Chantelle glanced at her to find a servant squatted next to her and whispering in her ear. “What is it?”