A shameful confession

Liza texted Jack around noon the next day. The message wasn't long, but he still smirked as he read it. His boss was clearly ****.

“Hey Jack. Sorry about last night. Things got carried away. The girls would feel a lot safer with you around. Can you be here at 4? We can talk about what happened, if you'd like? - Liza”

He replied, “See you at 4. Bringing Mil.”

"Ofc. Tell her I'm sorry before, ok? - L"

Jack grinned at the message before putting his phone away. He had known she'd try to smooth things over as soon as possible, at least if she'd learned anything since last time she'd fired him. It hadn't been pretty, with pretty much the entire working **** of dancers and bartenders demanding he be taken back if the self-proclaimed "goddess" wanted them to keep looking between their fingers regarding Liza's more dubious practices.

You reaped what you sowed, and Liza had sowed a whole bunch of fear and resentment, with Jack pretty much the only one not flinching whenever those stiletto heels announced her appearance. In the end, he was a necessary counterweight to her iron rule.

“Millia,” he said, “You're getting your job back.”

* * *

Millia was standing in front of a mirror, getting ready. Haley was sitting on her bed, wearing a bright summer dress, watching her. Her bare toes curled around the edge of the bed as she looked at Millia with a look the nymph had a hard time reading. She'd seen it several times already this morning, but wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

“So… how did you know Jack again?" Haley asked, trying to sound casual and failing miserably.

Millia smiled at herself in the mirror as she fiddled with the pendant Jack had allowed her to choose. “My father and him were fellow warriors, battling the enemies of our common country of origin. They were close, so Jack said I could stay with him while I learned the ways of this real- this city." She'd almost said "realm," but realized the odd word at the last moment.

“Was he a, like, one of those 'delta'-guys also?" Haley asked, her eyes glued to the nymph's reflection.

Millia turned around, her face thoughtful. “He was a Delta **** member, yes. He left that behind a long time ago, though.” She frowned at the chiton she was wearing. She’d never been the self-conscious kind, but this realm was so confusing. No one seemed able to make up their mind regarding their attires, switching style and color with every sunrise. “Do I look alright?”

Haley looked her up and down. “You look like a whore.” She bit her lip immediately after she said that.

Millia narrowed her eyes. “I look like a whore?”

Haley looked away, her cheeks red. “No, I just- I mean, I- I didn't-” she said quickly. “It's like slang, you know? It's a good thing, like, you're so hot, you look like a whore.”

“Calling someone a harlot is not a compliment,” Millia replied, her voice cold.

“It's not- I was just saying- look, it's hard to explain, but I like it, okay? And I think you look awesome.” Haley looked like she was going to cry.

Millia regarded the girl for a long moment. “You are acting very strange, human,” she finally said. “And you're lying to me. Why?”

"’Human’?" Haley mumbled to herself. Then, she looked up at Millia. “I'm sorry I called you a whore, okay? I'm sorry I acted weird. It won't happen again.” She got up to leave, but Millia held up her hand.

“I don't need your apology,” she said. “I want to know why you acted like this.”

Haley took a deep breath. Then, she sat back down on the bed with a sigh. “Look, you can't tell Jack about this, okay? Like, you absolutely can not tell him, ever.”

Millia frowned. “If it's something bad, I can't promise that.”

Haley shook her head. “It's not bad, it's just… private.” She looked around, making sure no one else was there. Then she took a deep breath and blurted out, “I watched you and Jack last night.”

Millia stared at her, letting the silence build before asking, “And why would you do that?”

“I don't know! I was just… I was getting some water and I heard you guys talking. You sounded… weird, so I looked into the room and…” She took a deep breath. “I saw you and Jack and this ridiculously gorgeous other woman, talking about a war between gods or something, and then she just vanished into thin air and you guys started… started getting it on.” She covered her face with her hands. “I'm so sorry, I know it's weird and creepy, but I just couldn't look away. You two were like… wow. I didn’t think Jack had that in him.”

Millia kept staring at her. Then she turned back to the mirror and smoothed her dress. “Why are you telling me this?”

“I don't know!” Haley wailed. “Because I feel awful about it and ashamed of lying and I want to be honest. But please don't tell Jack, I'll literally die if he knows.”

The nymph turned back around. “You became aroused watching us,” she stated.

Haley covered her face again. “Ugh, so gross,” she muttered.

“So that's why you're acting so strange around me. You feel ashamed.”

Haley nodded miserably.

Millia regarded her for another long moment, then shrugged. “That would explain it." She turned back to the mirror. "If it makes you feel better, it doesn't bother me that you watched. In fact, if you want, you can watch us again tonight. Jack will continue my training after work.”

Haley's jaw dropped. “What? No! I can't- that would be so weird and gross! I can't believe you're asking me that.”

Millia shrugged again. “You can hide again if it makes you feel better. I don't mind.”

Haley's mouth moved, but no sound came out. "You're fucking with me, right? You can't seriously mean that."

"I mean what I say." Millia's gaze was steady in the mirror. "One shouldn't deny yourself pleasure just because you feel ashamed about it." She turned around to face Haley again. “In fact, shame might even make it more pleasurable.”

Haley's face was bright red, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. Finally, she stuttered, “I-I… you… I have to go.” She jumped off the bed and rushed out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Millia watched her go. Then, she shrugged again and went back to preparing herself. They could be a bit late to the meeting. Liza would just have to wait.

She looked at herself again. “Yes, this will do. You look very fuckable, Mil.” She giggled to herself as she left the room. It was such a funny word, and so much more satisfying to say than “coitable.”