"I can—" Mac began.
"Don't."
He handed the vial over. "Take it."
Mac did, saying nothing.
"I need you out. The sooner the better."
"But—"
"No buts, Mac. What if you got busted with that in here? You know I write a column forThePost. I thought we were past this…" Alec cupped his forehead in his hands, the stress returning.
"I'm sorry."
"Yeah."
"I mean it. I know I have a problem."
"I'm not judging you anymore, Mac. You have 48 hours. I want you out." He kept the jeans and began moving toward the laundry room.
Mac stood, turning toward him. "What will I do?"
"That… is for you to decide."
"What about you?"
"I'm going on vacation."
4
"Montana?! Why not Pennsylvania, or upstate New York?" Demarco's expression was
incredulous on the laptop screen.
Alec moved from the table to the counter, making his mid-morning cup of coffee. "What have
you got against the west? Scenic Montana? The beauty and the… buffalo."
"You could have at least stayed on this side of the world. What's wrong with the Adirondacks…
or Amish country?"
Alec sat back down. "Don't be so dramatic. It's just a three-hour flight away… six with the time difference."
"Still.Montana?"
"You wanna go?"
"No."
"It'll be fun."
"I gotta work. I can't make money with Eskimos and Grizzly bears."
"Come on. You've slept with a few grizzlies."
"More than I care to remember."
