Page 66 of Sexual Healing
“Hey, buddy, take my purse,” she said, making him work. He put the strap over his shoulder, and the bag hung down to the floor, amusing everyone.
“What’d you guys eat?” she asked the nanny.
“We had spaghetti and green beans and salad tonight,” Brent answered. “I had to eat at least five green beans.”
“That’s a lot! You’ll be healthy. It’s almost seven thirty, kiddo. Let’s get your Legos put away, and when I get out of my work clothes, I’ll read you a story.”
By eight fifteen, Brent was out cold, the nanny had left, and Sandra had showered, dressed in a T-shirt and spandex and, with wet hair, was sitting with Andy Roman in a similar condition but sweatpants, not spandex, eating dinner.
“So what do you think? Too hectic?”
“No. It’s exactly what I need.”
“What would you do if you had stayed in the city tonight?”
“It’s embarrassing.”
“It can’t be any worse than what I used to do before Brent came along.”
“After I’d leave the office, I’d go home and fix a drink before I took my suit jacket off. Then I’d hope someone would invite me for dinner, or if no one did, I’d start looking for a dinner partner. I usually go out for dinner. I avoid being alone in my apartment until it’s absolutely unavoidable. By midnight, I’m in bed, alone, and crashed, usually slightly drunk.”
“We won’t drink tonight,” she said. “Is that a deal?”
“It’s a deal. My liver thanks you.”
“I like a glass of wine at night, but frankly I’m so tired right now it would just put me to sleep, and on Tuesday night I have TV I like to watch.”
“What is it?”
“It’s about abandoned buildings. It intrigues me. I haven’t seen it in a while, so there should be a few recorded. I watch in bed, so you won’t have to.”
“Oh, I want to,” he said, laughing.
“We’d better do it out here, then,” she replied, grinning.
They leaned in and kissed.
“I like what we’re doing here,” Andy said. “I like it slow like this. I’ll have to keep taking cold showers, but in the long run, it may be worth it.”
“I hope you’re right,” Sandra said. “Because I really like you.”
“You don’t know me, but knowing that you like me makes me want to do better. I really like you, too.”
“Yeah, one of these days I’ll have to do the full reveal. You might change your mind about me then.”
“You don’t have to reveal anything to me, Sandra,” he said, thinking of the call with Brady Cooper.
“Yeah, I do. I will probably come up if you hang around Babylon long enough, and I don’t want you to be at a disadvantage because you don’t know all my secrets.”
Grabbing her hand, he brought it to his lips and kissed her fingers. Words weren’t important.
***
Across the street, Dan Chua stood in the window of the dark living room, drinking a beer. He’d made a date with Rene Johnson for the following Friday evening. They’d spent hours on the phone the previous night. He was tempted to call her, but they’d already said everything there was to say; all that was left was phone sex, and he didn’t think she’d appreciate that.
Traffic on the street was light that night. Pam’s house was completely dark. He thought of her alone inside, after Jake’s unceremonious departure from her life. Picking up the phone, he dialed her number.
“Are you lonely?” she asked.