I was lost in a life of emptiness and prostitution and near homelessness when she'd found me so many years ago. She offered me a place to stay, assuring me that I would no longer have to worry about clothing or where my next meal would come from. In return, I would be her housekeeper.
She introduced herself as Nadine Charizzo. She told me that she was a retired film star, but I later learned that she was only a widow who had inherited her deceased husband's fortune after he died in prison while serving a twenty year sentence for a mafia related gun crime.
I clutched the beautiful emerald broach that Nadine had given me so long ago. My eyes grew hazy with tears as my mind drifted back to that evening when we'd shared parts of each other that noone else would ever have.
"My stars!" Nadine called out as she made her way down the long and winding staircase. "You've done more in a few hours than that bitch Maureen did in two days! Aren't you glad I got rid of her ass?"
I laughed softly. By then, I had been working as Nadine's housekeeper for over three years, and though she definitely had her ways, she was the closest thing to a friend I had ever had.
"Come sit beside me," she said softly as she poured two glasses of wine. "I need someone to talk to."
I sat obediently on the white suede sofa beside Nadine. I stared over at her admiring her beauty and the way she carried herself. I loved the way the light made her blonde hair shimmer and the way her green eyes lit up when she smiled. I hoped that I would look half as attractive when I got to be her age. I'd thought she was in her early forties, maybe, but I was astounded to find out that she was fifty one!
"What's wrong, Queen?" I asked her. "You aren't having Tad trouble again are you?"
I reached over to massage her shoulders and neck, kneading away the tightness and tension. Tad Kellar was Nadine's off and on love interest of over eleven years. He was too old for her, I thought. He was only a year older, but I knew that Nadine needed someone much younger to hold her interest.
"Yeah," she answered dryly. "This time it's over for good."
She was crying again. She did that a lot lately, and I hated it. I felt out of place when she cried. I wasn't very good at consoling people, because I had never really been shown any affection in my own life until Nadine came along, and even the affection she showed felt strange.
"There will never be anyone like Lorenzo."
"I know." I tried to think of words to comfort her but couldn't think of anything.
"I want you to have this." She handed me a sparkling emerald broach with diamonds all around it.
I marveled at the finely crafted jewels, moving the broach back and forth in the light. That's when it happened. Nadine took my face in her hands and kissed me full on the lips. Tingles crept down my spine. It was the oddest, yet most sensual thing I'd ever experienced. She was unapologetic.
"Run my bath water, angel." Her husky voice made my heart thump a little harder on this particular day.