”Okay, I think it’s time to reduce one part of this.” She picked up the phone and hesitated, then took a deep breath and dialed. She waited through three rings. ”Hi, Mr. Mahoney?”
A low, pleasant voice answered her.
”It’s Kerry Stuart... ...yeah… ...I know, the lease is up next month.
I won’t be renewing it.” The words felt so strange, and had taken her so long to decide to say. ”No, no, it’s great, I just...well, I’m living with someone, and I wanted to make sure it worked out...you know.”
The landlord was very understanding. ”You’ve been a great tenant, Ms. Stuart. Anytime you need a referral, you let me know, okay?”
”Thanks,” Kerry responded. ”I’ll be by to pick up the few things I’ve got there, but there's nothing valuable—you can show the apartment if you want to.”
”Right you are, and I know it’s in great condition. Thanks for letting me know, Ms Stuart. I really appreciate it.” He paused. ”And best of luck to you. I hope things go really smooth.”
”Me too,” Kerry responded. ”Talk to you later.” She hung up, and regarded the phone. ”Well, Chino, that’s that.” She glanced at the puppy. ”I mean it’s not like I haven’t been really living here before, but...” It was a line crossed, and she knew it. ”She’s stuck with me now.”
”Grrrr...yawp.” Chino rolled over, and put her head down, peering up at Kerry sleepily.
”Hmm...” Kerry turned her attention back to the screen. ”Okay, now let’s order some groceries.” She switched over to the internal Island site that allowed her to pick and choose what she wanted from an extensive list, and have it delivered. ”Let me check...oooo... Dar, you little piggy wonk. I’m gonna hurt you.” She shook a finger at the screen, as she clicked into the personal options, and changed the credit card the groceries were billed to back to her own. ”Damn it, I can afford this, Dar. How many times do I have to tell you that?”
Hurricane Watch
311
Irritated, she clicked over to her email, and whipped off a short, scolding note to her lover, and sent it. ”Bad girl.”
Chino lifted her head and whined.
”Not you,” Kerry reassured the puppy. ”Now, let's see...” She selected a variety of fresh produce and some staples, then drummed her fingers, and went over to the goodies section and clicked on a number of Dar’s favorites. ”By all rights, I should restrict you to Brussels sprouts for that trick, but...” A mental image of the little puppy dog eyes Dar was capable of when the mood struck her surfaced, and caused a grin to appear on Kerry’s face. ”I can’t resist that pout and you know it.”
She finished her shopping, which she’d discovered one night while roaming around the Island website, and which Dar had no idea existed.
”Not surprising,” Kerry snorted softly ”Coming from Ms. I can live on Frosted Flakes.” She reached over and took a sip of her ginger peach tea, breathing in the fragrant steam with a sense of quiet pleasure. The drugs had kicked in again, and she only felt a gentle ache, which was better than the spasms of the morning. Still, she was glad she was curled up here in her robe with a heating pad nearby if she needed it.
She set about balancing her checkbook, and putting things in order.
”Hmm...we’ve got a little extra here this month, Chino. Let’s see if we can find a treat or two.” She clicked over to an online computer store.
”Ooo...digital camera. What do you say, hmm? Does that sound good?
Is that a treat?”
The puppy heard the word ”treat” and immediately got up and trotted over, standing up on her hind legs and putting her small paws up on Kerry’s thigh. ”Rgrro?”
”Oh, you want a treat?” Kerry laughed, and fished a puppy biscuit from her pocket, giving it to the animal. ”Here you go.” She watched Chino chew for a minute, then she returned her attention to her browser. ”Yeah, that would be cool...gimme.” She glanced down as her mail icon flashed. ”Hmm?” She clicked it, and smiled as she saw the sender.
Roberts, Dar
Sent 11:22 A.M .
All right - consider me chastised. I switched it so I could
take
care
of
the
boat
charges,
and
forgot
to
switch
it
back.
We
could
just
get
a
joint
card
or
something.
Dar
PS.
how
are
you
feeling?
I
didn’t
want
to
call
in
case I woke you up.
Kerry studied the note, feeling a little prickle of recklessness. She hit reply, typed in a few words, and hit send. ”Let’s see what your answer is to that, Paladar.” She grinned, and then resumed her surfing.
312
Melissa Good
DAR PAUSED OUTSIDE the conference room, running her fingers through her hair before she put a hand on the latch and pushed it down.
She entered the long room and let the door close behind her, aware of the several pairs of eyes that fastened themselves on her. ”Good afternoon,” she remarked, as she moved around to the head of the table and sat down. The rest of the room contained representatives from two companies they’d just signed alliances with, along with representatives from sales and marketing and one of Duks’s people.
”All right. We’re here to discuss the potential acquiring of the statewide benefits contract in Idaho.” Dar pulled out a folder, and flipped it open. ”Suppose you people fill me in on what progress you’ve made with the state government so far?” She flicked a cool glance at the company representatives from that state. ”You want to start?”
They glanced at each other, then the older man cleared his throat.
”Well, all right.”
It was a long meeting, and Dar was slightly frustrated by the time it ended, sensing a communication problem but unable to pinpoint exactly what it was. She kept trying to get information from the newcomers, but she could tell the older man, at least, was being evasive, and they all seemed to want to keep their strategies under their hats, and keep her company around just to pump cash into things.
That wasn’t going to happen. Dar fiddled with a pen as they filed out, and scowled a little. ”Elle, hang on.” The marketing representative paused, then walked back across the now empty conference room and stood, visibly uneasy. ”Relax. Sit down a minute.”
The woman did, folding her hands on the table and waiting.
”What did you think about them?” Dar inquired.
”Me?” Elle’s brows lifted. ”Um...I don’t know. They were okay, I guess, a little on the quiet side.” She sniffed, and pushed her thin, wire framed glasses up on her nose. ”I took them on a tour before the meeting. They were kind of prickly, if you know what I mean.”
Dar nodded, pursing her lips. ”Yeah...I got that feeling myself.
Well, okay. Thanks.”
Elle blinked at her. ”Um...you’re welcome.” She stood, and ducked her head a little awkwardly, then she turned and left.
Dar sighed, then stood and gathered her things, walking back to her office in time to see Maria returning with a large, white bag. ”Hello, Maria.”
”Is your meeting over, Dar?” The secretary held the door for her, and followed her inside. ”I brought you back some arroz con pollo...from my trip outside.”
Dar smiled at her. ”Thanks. Yeah, it just ended. I’ve got another one after lunch, then a conference call after that.”