“Fine, thank you,” Tessa said gently.
Sammy launched into a spirited explanation of his new computer, and Hillary was as carried away by it as he was. Tessa listened and nodded, trying to make sense of what they were telling her. They both seemed very excited, and because of that she asked questions, letting them enjoy the moment. Intuitively, she realized that Hillary was so much in love with Sammy that the girl was almost sick with it, but was too shy to let him know. Of course, with Sammy, a woman would have to put up a billboard and point it out to him to get him to notice it, and even then it might be a week before he realized he was the man involved. He was so deeply involved with his computer that everything else passed him by.
She didn’t get her chess lesson that night; Sammy was so high from whatever great strides he’d made in the computer industry that there was no question of settling him down. He and Hillary played with the computer as if it were human, and they devoted over an hour to the naming of it before they finally settled on Nelda. Tessa groaned when she heard the name, and Sammy looked hurt, since it had been his idea. Hillary jumped in immediately in favor of Sammy’s choice, and Nelda it was. Shaking her head, Tessa looked around at all of the equipment that Sammy had in his apartment. He must sink most of his salary into his hobby, she thought. In fact, she wondered how he even had money left to eat on.
Sammy wasn’t a complete social wasteland; he eventually realized that he was hungry, and evidently recalled the manners his mother had tried for years to drill into him. Blushing, he jumped to his feet and offered to fix sandwiches and cold drinks, and refused Hillary’s quick offer to help. He rushed out of the room and left a pool of silence behind him.
Tessa looked at Hillary’s downcast eyes and saw the way the girl had suddenly withdrawn. “Where do you work?” she asked, since it was evident that Hillary wasn’t going to begin the conversation.
“At a bank.” Hillary gave her a shy look, then quickly looked down again. “Sammy talks about you a lot. You’re…you’re as beautiful as he says.”
Tessa wondered if she’d gone too far in her friendship with Sammy, trying to make him more comfortable in female company. “That’s sweet of him, but I’m not beautiful at all,” she said honestly, and that brought up the bent blond head. “It’s just that he’s shy with women, and I talk to him and make him laugh. He talks about you a lot, too.”
“Yeah, but that’s different. I’m a buddy, someone to talk computers with.” For a brief moment, hostility was plain in her brown eyes.
“Then talk about something else when you’re with him.” The last thing she wanted was to get involved in some sort of triangle, especially when the man in question couldn’t see the forest for the trees.
“That’s easy for you, but not everyone’s a…a flirt like you!” As soon as she flared up, hot color rushed into Hillary’s rather pale face and made it rosy. She looked down again, as if appalled at her rudeness, and Tessa sighed.
“Hillary, I’m not a threat to you. Please believe me. Sammy’s just a friend to me, nothing else.”
“But what about the way he feels about you?”
“He’s definitely not in love with me; I promise!” Before she could say anything else to reassure the girl, Sammy came back into the room with a tray of drinks. He carefully set it down away from his equipment.
“I’ll be right back with the sandwiches.”
“I’ll help!” Scrambling to her feet, Hillary hurried after him.
Feeling definitely de trop, Tessa called after them, “Just one sandwich for me; I have to be leaving soon.”
When they came back into the room, Sammy frowned at her. “But we haven’t played chess yet.”
“It’s later than I thought, and tomorrow is a working day,” she reminded him.
He looked guilty. “I guess I got carried away over Nelda.”
“I enjoyed hearing about Nelda,” she reassured him.
“I know you’ve probably been bored, but really, I think we’re going to be able to market Nelda. Hillary and I have put a lot of time and money into her; she’s really something.”
Was he talking about the computer or Hillary? Probably the computer. Deciding to give him a nudge in the right direction, Tessa said blandly, “It must be marvelous to have someone like Hillary, someone who understands your work and wants the same things you do.”
Hillary flushed, but Sammy wasn’t paying any attention. “Yeah, she’s really great.”
As quickly as she could without appearing rude, Tessa downed her sandwich and drank her cold drink, then gathered up her purse and light coat. “I really have to be going now.”
Sammy walked her to the door. “I owe you a chess lesson,” he said, smiling. “How about tomorrow night?”
For some reason, Tessa thought she’d probably had her last chess lesson. It was better not to cause trouble. “I already have plans for tomorrow night, and I know you better than that, anyway! You’re still going to be playing with Nelda to see if she can do everything you think she can.”
He rubbed the back of his neck, shrugging his shoulders to work out the kinks. “You’re probably right. We still have a lot of work to do on her. Maybe next week?”
“Maybe,” she said, giving him a smile. He’d be so involved with his work that he’d never notice; she had been the one who had pursued their friendship, easing him out of part of his shyness.
Later that evening, when she was ready for bed, she sat with pillows behind her back and a pad of writing paper on her knees. Her weekly letter to Aunt Silver was its usual mixture of news and comment, and at the end of it she mentioned Brett Rutland. As she sealed the envelope she smiled to herself. She’d deliberately been casual in her mention of him, knowing that Aunt Silver’s antennae would begin quivering as soon as she read the name.
* * *
BILLIE HAD BROUGHT coffee and doughnuts for their midmorning break, and they had just begun their second doughnut when Tessa’s phone rang. She answered it absently.
“I just want to confirm tonight. Six-thirty.”
She hadn’t heard his voice on the phone before, but there was no mistaking his identity. She closed her eyes briefly at the pleasure that rippled through her at just the sound of his voice. “Yes. Six-thirty.”
“Do you like to dance?”
“Did granny wear garters?”
His low, rough laugh filled her ear. “Wear your dancing shoes.”
When she hung up the phone, Tessa was aware that her heart wasn’t beating in its regular rhythm, and she felt a little breathless. Even over the phone, his impact almost knocked her down. She thought of his thick, tawny brown hair and navy eyes, and it became even more difficult to breathe.
“Don’t you ever stay at home?” Billie said automatically. It was practically standard procedure for Tessa to have at least one offer to go out every day.
“Of course I do. You know Monday night is laundry night.”
They laughed together, but Tessa’s mind was already on the coming night. They would have dinner, go out dancing…and then what? Would he try to make love to her again? She was afraid that he would, and even more afraid that he wouldn’t.
Billie regarded her friend thoughtfully. “You know, this is the first time I’ve seen you get cloudy-eyed over a man. Is this one special to you?”
“I’m afraid he will be.” Well aware of the admission in those few words, Tessa wound her suddenly shaking fingers together.
“You don’t want to fall in love? Sometimes I think I’d give anything I own to find the right guy, the real McCoy.”