A date with David would have been much better than this. He would have at least asked some questions.
At the end of the night, they went to pay for the meal. Chad didn’t reach for his wallet.
“Shall we split the bill?” Zita asked, determined to remain friendly.
“Isn’t your sister a billionaire?”
Zita took a step back. “Yes, she is. However, I amnot.”
“She doesn’t give you any money?”
It was none of his damn business. “No,” she lied. She was very aware that her car and her lifestyle were thanks to her sister, but she didn’t take advantage of it. In fact, she would have preferred if she’d had to go out to earn money, then she could do what she wanted.
With a scowl, he opened his wallet and took out his share.
Zita was relieved to get into the car. It was almost over.
“Want to go back to Rebecca’s place?” Chad asked.
Zita almost laughed. Had he been absent at their date? Was he so self-absorbed, he didn’t realize how badly he’d crashed and burned? “No, thank you. I’ve had a long day.”
“Rebecca said you liked a good time.”
She was not going to ask what he meant. “What I’d like is to go home.”
He grunted and drove her back to Casa Flanagan. The moment the car pulled up, she leapt out. “It was nice meeting you,” she said. She slammed the door and hurried up the steps.
Why was it so hard to find a decent guy? She was good-looking and friendly. How come she always attracted the men who had issues or needed mothering? It couldn’t be too much to ask for a well-adjusted, emotionally stable man who had a decent job and who could make her laugh, could it?
She opened the door and then locked it behind her. Chad had already driven off.
Perhaps she went on too many blind dates. Her friends always had someone to introduce her to, but they were one-night-stand worthy and not much else. Chad hadn’t even been that. She definitely wasn’t going to let Rebecca set her up any more.
Her thoughts drifted to David. He seemed stable enough and was definitely worth a second glance. Perhaps after they were done with Teresa’s case she would ask him out to dinner. He couldn’t possibly as bad as Chad.
No one could.
With a shake of her head, she headed for bed.
***
David walked into his apartment, relieved he was finished work for the day. He’d been thinking about Zita and Teresa since the session yesterday and had been unable to focus. He needed to ask Zita questions, express his views, talk through the commotion in his mind.
But she’d been out.
He’d been tempted to ask her if she’d been on a date, but it was none of his business. Their interaction was purely professional.
For now.
It would be great to take her out to dinner. She’d be an interesting conversationalist, he was sure. Her world view and experiences were far different from his. He knew a little about her childhood from Carly. She’d grown up poor, migrated to Houston when she was young and now worked with the illegal child migrants who were arriving in the United States by the thousands.
He checked his fridge for something to make for dinner. There was a leftover curry from the takeout he’d had the night before, so he put it in the microwave and reheated it. As he sat down at his dining table, he opened the folder he’d put together with the information about Teresa’s case. While he was sure Shelly and Zita were doing everything they could to help Teresa, David wanted to record the details and gather evidence on his own. He worked better if he wrote everything down.
He jumped as his phone rang. Then he saw the caller ID and smiled. “Zita.”
“Hi, David. Do you have time to chat?”
“Yes.” He pushed his meal away.
