Staci quickly looked away, hoping the sadness she felt didn't show on her face. “My husband and I are separated,” Staci finally responded, then took a sip of her drink. This was the first time she'd said those words out loud, and they sounded foreign to her.
Malcolm appeared to study her face while taking a drink of water. “Sorry to hear that. How long were you married?”
“A year,” she answered just above a whisper.
“
Hola
. May I take your order?” the waitress asked, much to Staci's relief.
After the waitress took their orders for steak fajitas and chicken tacos, Malcolm leaned back and relaxed his arm on the back of the booth. “Staci, tell me about yourself.”
Staci caught herself just before she rolled her eyes at him. Hadn't he asked enough personal questions already? “What do you want to know?”
“What brought you to the Bay Area?”
“My job,” she answered, without giving any details.
Malcolm leaned forward after the waiter set a basket of warm tortilla chips and salsa on the table. “Let me guess; you're in sales,” he asked before dipping a chip.
Staci arched her eyebrows. “Could be. What brought you to the Bay Area?”
“I'm a stockbroker at Smith & Lowe.” Malcolm's pride in his job showed through his beaming smile.
Good thing I don't have any accounts there,
Staci thought
.
For some reason the thought of someone as nosey as Mr. Leblanc having access to her financial information didn't sit well with her.
“Do you live here in Emery Bay?” Emery Bay was saturated with luxury apartments and condos populated by urban professionals.
“I could. Where do you live?” Once again she avoided answering his question.
“I live in the new lofts in Jack London Square.”
“That's a nice area.”
“So you've been there?”
Not only had Staci been there, her Aunt Julia was the developer and Staci and Derrick were invested in two of the luxury lofts. “Once or twice,” she answered nonchalantly.
Malcolm watched her dip a chip and admired her ability to control the conversation. “How is it that I ask the questions, but you get all the answers?”
“I've answered every one of your questions.” Staci dipped another chip.
“Yet, I don't know anything about you,” he responded.
“You know my name, and that I'm a married woman.”
Malcolm touched her arm, and Staci stopped chewing. “Staci, you're a beautiful woman. Why are you so tense? And why do you keep reminding me you're married? It's obvious it wasn't a good marriage to have ended in a year.”
Staci's cheeks burned with anger. She was angry at herself for sounding like a fool and angry at Malcolm for accurately analyzing her marriage. Suddenly, she wasn't hungry anymore.
“Mr. Leblanc, I wish I could say it was a pleasure meeting you, but that would be a lie.” She reached inside her purse for her wallet.
Malcolm waved his hands. “Dinner is on me.”
Staci cut her eyes at him. “I don't need any favors from you.” She threw two bills on the table to cover food she'd never see, then grabbed her purse and left. She was halfway to her car when she heard someone calling her name. She turned to see Malcolm waving her coat in the air. Staci was so mad she hadn't realized she'd left it.
“You might need this,” he said, once he caught up with her.
“Thank you, Mr. Leblanc,” she managed through gritted teeth. At that moment, the wind decided to blow, chilling her to the bone.
He held the garment open, and she slid her arms inside. “I'm sorry if I said something wrong back there. I was only trying to help you relax.”
“It's not your fault. I should have stayed home,” Staci said and tied her belt.
Malcolm observed her eyes change from angry to sad. “Staci, how long have you been separated?”
Staci couldn't explain it, but she felt a sudden calmness draw her to this stranger. She wanted to open up to someone; why not Malcolm? It wasn't like she would ever see him again. “It's only been a month.”
“Do you regret leaving him?”
Malcolm's voice was so alluring; Staci couldn't help divulging her personal business. “I didn't leave him. He left me,” she whispered, then turned away from him. She was embarrassed to admit she wasn't able to hold her husband's interest. Malcolm turned her face back to him, and she jumped at his warm touch.
“Staci, you're a beautiful woman, and any man who would leave you is a fool.” His voice changed from soft to firm. “It's not your fault he left.”
She took a step backward. “Thank you, Malcolm, but I really should get going,” she stuttered.
Malcolm reached inside his jacket and handed her his card. “I'd like to keep in touch with you.” Staci hesitated before accepting it. “I know separation is a hard thing. Sometimes all you need is an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on. I know we've just met, but I'd like to be that person for you.”
Malcolm's presence confused Staci so much, she didn't know if that was a good idea or not. What she did know was that she would love to have someone other than a family member to talk to. What she did next went against what she'd been taught about relationships, but what could it hurt? Maybe God had sent her there to meet Malcolm. Maybe he could offer her a male perspective and help her understand Derrick.
Staci ignored the warning her conscience sent and handed him her business card.
“Wow,” Malcolm said, after reading her card, “Chief operating officer? Beauty and brains. Simone.” Malcolm repeated her last name a few times, like he was trying to remember something. “Are you related to the gospel artist, Marcus Simone?”
“Could be,” she smiled, then hurriedly walked away.
On the drive home, Staci was more confused than ever. The closer she got to her home, the more she regretted her decision to connect with Malcolm. At least she hadn't given him her home number, she reasoned. She made a mental note to have Chloe screen her calls. To make sure she didn't call him, she threw his card away.
It wasn't until after she was home and had changed into her pajamas did she notice the message light on her answering machine. She savored a spoonful of Chunky Monkey before pressing the Playback button.
“Hello, Staci, it's me. Just calling to see how you're doing. I miss you. Talk to you later.”
“If you really wanted to talk to me, you would have called my cell,” she mumbled and at the same time deleted Derrick's message. She'd totally forgotten she'd left her cell phone at home. She was not going to call him, at least not tonight. She'd waited an entire week for him. Now he could wait for her.
Chapter 16
The intercom interrupted Staci's train of thought. “Mr. Leblanc from Smith & Lowe is on line one.”
“Shoot!” Staci grumbled. She'd totally forgotten about having Chloe screen her calls. At church yesterday, she'd prayed and felt peace about her marriage being mended back together, but that peace soon faded when Derrick didn't answer her call last night. “Oh well, if Derrick won't talk to me, someone else will,” she decided and picked up the extension.
“Hello, Malcolm,” she answered cautiously.
“Hello, my new friend.”
The jubilance in his voice made her smile. “Still presumptuous, don't you think, considering we've just met?”
“Staci, Staci. I'm going to have to do something to make you relax.”
“What do you have in mind, Mr. Leblanc?”
Oops. Am I flirting?
“Dinner and a movie.”
Staci sounded surprised. “Are you asking me out on a date?”
“Of course not. I wouldn't dare ask a married woman out on a date, but I would ask a friend.”
“Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. How am I getting glory from you dating?”
Staci reasoned with the still small voice.
What can an innocent dinner and movie hurt? Nothing out of order is going to happen. Malcolm knows I'm a married woman.
“When?” she finally responded to Malcolm, after shifting the phone to her right ear.
“Now we're making progress. You pick a night.” Malcolm didn't make any attempt to hide his excitement. “I'm available anytime you need me to be.”
Staci had a thought. “What about your significant other?”
“I'm not married, and I don't have a girlfriend, if that's what you're asking.”
Staci wondered why she felt happy to hear that, but didn't linger on the thought. “How about Thursday?” She didn't want to miss her Wednesday night Bible Study.
“Perfect. Where shall I pick you up?”
Staci hadn't thought about that, but under no circumstances would she allow him to come to her home. “Why don't I just meet you somewhere?”
“Do you like surf & turf?”
“I love it.”
“Good, I'll meet you at Skates at six o'clock.”
“I'll see you there,” she said, wondering what on earth she was doing.
“Staci,” she heard him call before hanging up.
“Yes.”
“Feel free to use my number any time. I'm always available to you.”
“Thank you. I'll see you on Thursday.” She couldn't remember the last time Derrick was available to her for anything other than occasional sex.
Staci sat at her desk and wondered if she'd lost her mind. Why in the world had she agreed to have dinner with a man she barely knew? She really didn't want to go anywhere with Malcolm Leblanc. In actuality, she didn't care if she ever spoke to the man again. She wasn't attracted to him at all. He wasn't ugly; he just wasn't her type. But he was available.
She looked at her watch and thought of Derrick. By now, he was probably busy with his morning patients.
“I'll call him later,” she whispered, before packing her briefcase and preparing to meet the contractor at the new Corte Madera site. But she couldn't wait. She missed him too much. No sooner had she merged onto Interstate 80, she dialed his cell phone.
“Hello, Staci.”
Hearing his live voice made her so happy, she almost giggled. “Hi. Did I catch you at a bad time?”
“No, you can never catch me at a bad time.” Actually, his first patient was a root canal that took longer than expected. Derrick was running thirty minutes behind. “Sorry I called at a bad time last night.”
Then why didn't you call me this morning, she was about to ask, then remembered on Mondays she doesn't turn her phone on until ten o'clock. Staci listened to him breathe on the phone for a few seconds.
“How are you doing?” he asked too calmly for her.
“What on earth do you mean? How am I doing at work? How am I doing at church? How am I doing with my new exercise routine? Or do you want to know how I'm dealing with the fact that you left me?” Staci didn't mean to sound bitter, but how could he ask her that knowing he was the reason her world had been turned upside down?
“Staci, I am sorry about all of this. Please try to understand I need some time to figure things out. I wish there was something I could do to make it up to you.”
Staci conceded, “Derrick, I don't want you to do anything you don't want to do.”
“Thanks for understanding.”
Her smile was gone, now replaced with the silent tears she vowed never to shed. Derrick was supposed to say he missed her and wanted to come home, but he didn't.
“Anytime,” she whispered before pressing the red End call button.
Â
Â
“Derrick, I brought you some lunch.” It was Rhonda. “I knew you wouldn't have a chance to go out, so I picked up some Zachary's.”
Derrick was starved. He'd worked straight through lunch, forgetting he no longer had the arsenal of edible treats Staci normally stocked in his refrigerator.
“Thank you, Rhonda. Come on in. How did you know Zachary's is one of my favorites?”
“I've been watching you, and, Derrick, you're a simple man to figure out.”
“You think so?” Derrick questioned, just before he opened the box containing the spinach and chicken Chicago-style stuffed pizza. “My wife wouldn't agree with you.”
Rhonda pulled up a chair alongside his desk and sat only a few inches away from him. “You don't talk about your wife. Why is that?” she asked, placing a slice on her paper plate.
Derrick looked confused. “What do you mean I don't talk about my wife?”
“I know you're married from your wedding picture, but you never talk about her, and you don't wear a wedding band,” Rhonda pointed out before cutting into her slice.
“I can understand the ring part because you work with your hands, but what about the day she showed up and you introduced her as only Staci and not as your wife. Then you made a lunch date with me. You never showed, but I bet she doesn't know that.” Rhonda smiled. “We've had several conversations since, and you haven't mentioned her at all. What's that all about?”
He didn't like her summary of him, but it was the truth. “Since you think I'm so easy to figure out, why don't you tell me?” He took a bite of pizza and listened.
“It's obvious you're not happy at home, and you want out. I think you're attracted to someone else who has piqued your interest. Someone you work with and who is definitely interested in you.” She let the words digest. “I would even venture to say you don't love your wife. Perhaps it's one of those âcheaper to keep her' things, considering your profession.” Rhonda arched an eyebrow and simultaneously rested a hand on his thigh.
“Am I right, Derrick?”
Derrick dropped his pizza onto the plate. The bile in his stomach wouldn't allow him to eat another bite. Rhonda was right. He wasn't happy, but it wasn't Staci's fault. It was his. Derrick removed her hand and stood straight up.
“Rhonda, let me get something straight. I love my wife and will always love her. As long as she lives I will love no one else. No matter how many lunches or conversations you and I share, nothing will change that. And you can keep your hands to yourself. I am not now, nor have I ever been, attracted to you. I enjoy your company, and you stroke my ego, but I love Staci with every cell in my body. I wouldn't be half the person I am today if it weren't for her and the love she gives me.”
Rhonda's mouth opened and closed several times before she was able to form words. “Well, I didn't mean to upset you, but thanks for the feel. I'd love to see that muscle in a pair of shorts.” She stood and gathered her food. “I'd better get going.” Before she opened the door she turned and said, “I have one question for you. If you love your wife so much, why do you live in the studio above the office? One would think with all that love going on, you'd live under the same roof.”
Derrick didn't have an answer for her, at least one that he wanted to give. “Rhonda, my relationship with my wife is none of your business. If you want to continue working here, I suggest you remember that.”
After Rhonda left, Derrick leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed. He rubbed his forehead and reflected on his earlier conversation with his wife. He didn't mean to make her cry. Sure, she tried to hide the tears, but he had heard the sniffles.
“Why can't I stop hurting you?” he asked her photo image.
“Because you can't stop hurting yourself.”
The voice was back.
Staci deserved better than he was capable of giving her. He made a decision right then and there: he wouldn't talk to her again until he was able to do so without causing her more pain.