“No,” he swore. “I didn’t mean to upset you, but it’s never wise to rely on assumptions, and I just wanted to get things straight between us.”
“Did you? Do you ever stop to analyze your own motives as thoroughly as you study everyone else’s?”
“You’ve lost me.” He propped his hands on his hips, clearly annoyed with her.
“What a shame. I was trying to find the real man beneath the layers of professional expertise.” She grabbed one of the glasses she’d just washed and filled it with water from the tap. After taking a long drink, she replaced the glass on the counter and turned back toward him.
“You might have said you cared about me and hoped I wouldn’t want to see other men. You might have suggested we agree to date exclusively, you might have asked…”
He took a step toward her. “All right, I get it, but when it comes to dating etiquette, I’m dreadfully out of practice.”
He looked sincerely pained, and she regretted having been so curt with him. “It isn’t practice that’s needed, Luke, it’s simply heart.”
“Then we have a problem,” he replied, “because I don’t have one anymore. I’m just as hollow as the Tin Man.”
She watched him walk out and made no move to stop him. It wasn’t until she began to prepare for bed that she realized something must have prompted Luke to ask if she were seeing other men. His ill-timed question had actually revealed a great deal. His heart might be badly bruised, but clearly, he still had one.
Chapter Eleven
After being away all day, Luke returned to Lost Angel with only a few minutes to spare before his afternoon counseling session. When he dropped off his briefcase in his office, he found Sam Brooks’ business card on his desk. He carried it out to Pam.
“Was Catherine Brooks here all day?” he asked.
Pam glanced up at the clock. “Yes. She left about half an hour ago. She’s real excited about the mural.”
Luke nodded thoughtfully, then handed Pam the card. “Please make a note of her email address for our files.”
Pam read the name on the embossed card. “Is it current?”
“Apparently so, even if Sam Brooks isn’t.”
Pam studied Luke’s pensive frown and chose the safest conclusion. “The meeting didn’t go well?”
“They never do, and it’s my fault because I hate to beg for money. Unfortunately, I’ve no other choice when we need the donations and grant dollars so badly.”
“True, but it must have been a tough day. You look as though you could use a nice evening. Maybe you know someone who’d care to join you for dinner?”
Luke’s preoccupied frown deepened to a threatening scowl. “My personal life is off-limits. Back off.”
Undeterred, Pamela tidied up her desk as she offered another unsolicited opinion. “You didn’t think Catherine would be here today, did you?”
“Frankly, no, I didn’t.”
“Well, she was here, and she seemed real disappointed when you weren’t.”
“That’s wild speculation on your part. If you don’t have anything more important to do than obsess over my social life, go on home.”
Pam picked up Sam’s card. “I’ll just enter this email for you, and then I’ll be on my way, but it doesn’t take a degree in psychology to know a woman who’d pass out her late husband’s business card needs to be shown some tender concern.”
“Are you saying I’m too great an oaf to recognize such an obvious fact? Do you think I drag women off by their hair?”
“No, of course not,” Pam responded with an amused giggle. “Although it would be something to see. I’m just urging you to be careful. Catherine’s a treasure, and the timing might be wrong for both of you, but don’t let her slip away.”
“That’s it. You’re fired. Clean out your desk.”
“Yes, boss,” she replied agreeably, but they both knew she would be there tomorrow morning. She made a mental note to bring him some coffee and a danish in hopes it would keep him from being grumpy two days in a row.
Catherine found an invitation to have dinner at Joyce’s house on her answering machine, and she was delighted to accept. Joyce had furnished her stark modern home with an abundance of leather and chrome. Catherine admired the simplicity of the striking decor, but she much preferred her own far more colorful and comfortably appealing furnishings.