of several women he could call. He only had to pick one.
He reached for the phone.
That night Dean’s home phone rang close to eleven o’clock. He glanced at the caller ID and shook his head.
“Hello, Rachel,” he said when he picked up the phone.
“Oh! There you are. I’ve been looking for you all week. Your office said you were out of town, and when I asked to speak to Jodie, I was told she’d taken a week off, so there was no way I could think of to reach you.”
“Well, now you’ve found me. Did you find something else of mine that I left at your place?”
“Oh, honey, I am so sorry for the way I treated you. I don’t blame you for not returning my calls. I don’t usually behave so atrociously. It was just a really bad day for me.”
“I noticed.”
“Please forgive me. I miss you so much.” She lowered her voice. “I’ve missed making love to you.”
He thought about the relationship he’d had with Rachel and realized that he’d put her completely out of his mind. That told him what he needed to know where she was concerned. Whatever they’d had, it was over.
“Did you remember that this is the weekend we were going up to Wisconsin to visit Winnie and Fred?”
“Rachel, I figured that when you broke up with me, we wouldn’t be seeing each other again, much less Winnie and Fred.”
“I was awful and I know I was. But I didn’t mean any of it. I was just angry and I took it out on you.”
“As I recall, I was the reason you were angry.”
“Well…but that doesn’t matter in the larger scheme of things. Let’s face it, all couples quarrel. That’s the first one we’ve had in the three months we’ve been seeing each other.”
He didn’t say anything.
“Dean?”
“I’m sorry, Rachel, but I’ve already made plans for the weekend.”
“What sort of plans?” she asked suspiciously.
“Nothing you’d be interested in.”
“Try me,” she said flatly.
“I have a date Saturday evening with someone I’ve known for a long while. You don’t know her.”
“You’re seeing someone else!” Her voice lost its rounded tones.
“You made it quite clear you never wanted to see me again. I took you at your word.”
“I said I was sorry,” she wailed. “Please don’t do this to me!”
“Rachel, listen to me. There’s no reason to continue seeing each other. The points you made were valid. If it took your getting angry to tell me, then so be it. I’m not going to change, you know. You were right. I am married to my work. I forget social events. I’m bad about escorting you to everything you want to attend. Why bother to continue to see me? There are lots of men who would be eager to spend time with you.”
She didn’t reply right away. When she did, she sounded as if she might be crying. “I screwed up. I know that. I know your work is important to you. I was way out of line that night and I know it. I just want to see you once in a while.”
“I’ll call you when I can, but I picked up a new client last week and I’ll be putting in long hours coming up with the right combination of security devices to protect his company.” He thought about their situation for a moment. “I’ll give you a call in the next week or two. Have fun with Fred and Winnie.”
He hung up the phone and wandered over to the windows. His condo had a great view of Lake Michigan. As a rule he found the sight relaxing. Tonight he felt lonely, which was most unusual.
He went into his bedroom, undressed and stretched out on the bed.
He was doing what needed to be done. He’d see Susan Saturday night and catch up on her news. They’d lost touch after he’d moved his mother into the nursing home. Susan had been her live-in caregiver and a sweet woman. He’d been surprised that she hadn’t remarried by this time. She’d been a widow for six years or more.
As for Rachel…he’d have to think about whether he wanted to spend much time with her. He discovered that although he was lonely, Rachel wasn’t the answer. He refused to consider who might be.
Jodie’s phone was ringing when she walked into her office the next morning. She dropped her purse on the desk and reached for the phone.
“This is Jodie.”
“Hi, Jodie. It’s me…Rachel.”
“Oh. Good morning. I’m not sure if Dean’s here yet. Do you want me to have him call you?”
“Oh, no! No. I, uh, I called to talk to you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You know, Jodie, I admire you a great deal and I know that Dean couldn’t get along without you.”
When Rachel paused, Jodie didn’t know what to say. What was this phone call about?
Finally Rachel said, “I mean, I know you’re discreet and I’d rather you not tell Dean that I called.”
“All right.”
“The thing is that Dean and I had a spat a week or so ago and I think he’s still a little angry with me. He didn’t return my calls last week, and when I spoke to him last night, he said he was seeing someone else.”
Well, of course he was. Dean Logan didn’t waste time. He must have found someone who would have lunch with him or was available for whatever else he wanted. Good.
“I see.”
“He’s just trying to make me jealous and he wouldn’t tell me who he was seeing. Do you know?”
“I have no idea.”
“Oh.” Rachel sounded disappointed. “He said he’d known her for a long time. I thought you’d probably know her.”
Jodie chuckled. “He knows so many people that I wouldn’t be able to guess. After all, he’s lived in Chicago for years.”
“Oh, he’ll probably tell me,” Rachel finally said with a laugh. “Once he’s over his anger. We were supposed to visit some friends in northern Wisconsin this weekend, but I guess he’s planning to see her instead.”
“I’m sorry, Rachel. I know this must be painful for you.”
Rachel sighed. “It’s my fault. I must have been going through PMS or something and took it out on him.”
“I hope the two of you can work it out,” Jodie said. She was sincere. It would be easier for her to have him completely unavailable.
“Thanks for listening, Jodie. I appreciate it.”
Jodie hung up, dropped her purse in the drawer and peeked around the corner into Dean’s office. It was empty. Thank goodness. She doubted that he’d appreciate her discussing him with Rachel, although in the past she and Rachel had talked to each other regularly.
The next time the phone rang, it was Dean.
“Hi, sorry I didn’t let you know I wouldn’t be in this morning. Something came up that I needed to take care of.”
“No problem. Believe it or not, your phone has been quiet. Maybe everybody thinks you’re still on vacation.”
“Good. I should be in around two o’clock.”
“Okay.”
As soon as she hung up the phone, the intercom buzzed. It was Betty.
“Your secret