But she wasn’t about to give Dianne the satisfaction of knowing she’d dropped a bomb. So she said in a chilly tone, “You can never tell about these things. Even a letter can be more fantasy than not.” She looked toward the top of the stairs. “Susan?”
“All set,” Susan called, appearing seconds later clipping on an earring. She was fully dressed and made up, and looked stunning.
“Sorry to run out on you this way,” Savannah told Dianne a bit airily, “but we’re running a little late. We have lunch reservations at two, with a million things to do before then.” She turned to Susan. “Want me to drive?”
“No. I’ll take the Jag. It needs a good outing.” Removing her fur from the closet, she draped it over her arm. “Dianne.” She hugged her lightly. “Thanks for dropping by. I’ll talk with you soon.
“Sure you won’t reconsider for tonight? It’ll be fun.”
But Susan shook her head. “Can’t. I have other plans.” The phone rang. “Why don’t you walk Dianne out?” she told Savannah as she headed for the den. “I’ll get that and meet you out front.” She picked up the phone. “Hello?”
“Are you all right?”
Susan shut her eyes. “Sam.”
“You were angry before.”
Her eyes popped open. “I was in a rush before, and I’m in a rush now. I told you. Savannah and I are going out for the day, and she’s always prompt. You should know that. She’s out front right now waiting for me.”
“Where are you going?”
“Boston.”
“Doing anything special?”
In a deliberately high and nasal voice, she said, “All those frivolous little things women like to do.”
“You don’t have to be snide.”
She returned her voice to normal. “Savannah’s waiting.”
“I’d like to see you tonight.”
“I’ve already answered that, too.” She rubbed her damp palm against her silk skirt. “I don’t know when we’ll be back, and if it’s not too late, I’ve got a party to go to.”
“You went to a party last night. Don’t you get tired of them?”
“Are you kidding?”
“No, I’m not kidding.”
She could hear that he wasn’t. His bluntness was one of the things that made him different. She wasn’t quite as bothered by it as she’d been at first. Still, she said, “Well, you should be. I happen to enjoy parties. I have a large group of friends. I enjoy spending time with them.”
“Is that before or after you’ve had a few drinks?”
Her hand tightened on the receiver. She wanted desperately to hang up, but something kept her from it. “Low blow, Sam.”
“Only because I care.”
She pressed a palm to her chest to ease the sudden tightness she felt there. “Look, I’m all right. It was hard for me being over at Megan’s this week, and seeing her the way we found her didn’t help. I was overtired when I got home. So I had a few drinks and was sick. I’m sorry you were there to see it.”
“I’m not,” he said. “You’d been through a lot. You shouldn’t have been alone. I was glad to be there. It felt good.”
“Not to me. It embarrassed me. It embarrasses me every time I think of it. And every time you call, I think of it. Sammy, Savannah’s waiting.”
“If you’d see me, I’d give you new things to think about.”
“Oh, God, here we go.”
