“Yes, of course,” Veronica said. She didn’t know
how to tell him how much the terms of their contract had changed in the time she had been there.
“Great!” Calvin said. “So that’s a yes?”
Veronica sighed, and ran her hand over her face.
“I can’t say,” Veronica said. “Davenport is my boss; I have to run it by him.”
“But I mean it shouldn’t be a problem, right?” Calvin said easily. “I mean he said he would allow you time off.”
“Yeah, of course, you’re right,” Veronica said a little snappishly, her emotional turmoil starting to rise to the surface.
“I mean, if it’s too much trouble for you, you can just forget about it,” Calvin said kindly, but Veronica could hear the disappointment in his voice.
“No, no,” veronica insisted. “Of course I want to go, baby. I just have to ask first, okay?”
“Okay,” Calvin answered, and his voice was filled with relief.
“I’ll talk to him about it tonight and I’ll tell you what he said tomorrow,” Veronica said. “And if it all goes well maybe we can set a date and time.”
“Great!” Calvin said, excitement evident in his voice. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow then. I love you.”
“I love you too,” Veronica said, her heart heavy. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye,” she heard Calvin say, and she immediately hung up the phone.
Veronica let out a long sigh and leaned back against the wall, shoving her phone roughly into her pocket. This whole thing was really starting to wear on her, and she didn’t know how much longer she could effectively keep it up.
“Calvin, I assume?” Veronica turned to see the familiar figure of Frank in the doorway.
Veronica nodded, and took in his appearance. He wore a pair of dark wash jeans and a gray cable knit sweater. He stood with his arms crossed and his brow raised, a somewhat cold look on his face.
“Please don’t look at me that way,” Veronica said to him.
“Fine,” Frank said, raising his hands, and then putting them into his pocket. “So are you going to ask me or what?”
Veronica’s brows met and she cocked her head at him, annoyed.
“So did you just eavesdrop on my whole conversation, or what?” Veronica asked.
“Well I couldn’t help but hear,” Calvin said, his voice very calm and measured.
“Well since you asked,” Veronica said, irritated. “Calvin wants to know if I can take an afternoon off to go on a date with him soon.”
Frank raised both eyebrows.
“Would that be agreeable with you?” Veronica asked. “My contract states that I am not absolutely required to be here if you are present with the girls, and it assures me some time off as well.”
“I am not opposed to abiding by your contract,” Frank said, his voice as a calm and cool as ever. Somehow, that made her even more furious than if he had raged at her.
“Fine then,” Veronica snapped at him. “I’ll be calling him back tomorrow so I can set a time and a date.”
Frank said nothing, merely looking back at her.
“Say something!” Veronica hissed at him.
“What do you want me to say?” Frank bit back. “That I don’t want you to go? You’re a grown woman Veronica. That’s your relationship. You have a right to do what you want with him. I can’t stop you. As you’ve already pointed out, you’re well within the limits of your contract to take an afternoon off and spend it with him. To be honest I’m a little surprised you haven’t already done so.”