Page 11 of Miracles and Marriage
“No. That’s what is sort of sad. He’d talk about something, then end up talking about her. Once he’d realize he was doing that, he’d stop and try another topic, segueing back to his ex. I think he really wants to be over her, but he’s not.”
“Are you seeing him again?”
“No.”
The silence stretched out for several seconds.
“Maybe I know someone else,” Cal said slowly.
“Forget it. Chloe knows some men she says are right up my alley. I’ll see how I get along with them. It’s my own fault. I love my job, you know that. I still should have done more about a social life before now.”
“This was only the first day of your campaign.”
“You make it sound like a war strategy.”
It wasn’t at all like she hoped. She pictured herself as happy as her twin when she fell in love. Now the entire thing sounded analytical and deliberate. Where was the happiness in all this? Was the price of a baby going to be too high?
“It is a kind of strategy. You need to find the right match.”
“Mmm. It’s early, I know, but what if I don’t find someone I can even think of going to bed with?”
“Was that the real problem with Mark?”
She thought about it a moment.
“Yes. No matter what, I couldn’t see myself getting intimate with the man.”
“It was a first date,” Cal said.
“I don’t think that would change.”
“You’ll find someone. Let me know how your sister’s friends work out. I have another couple of friends who are still single.”
“Maybe they want to stay single like you,” she said.
“You think I won’t marry?”
“Cal, you’re thirty-six years old and haven’t come close to getting married yet. You date some of the world’s most beautifulwomen. I think you’re hard to please. And you have to admit, you spend a lot of time at work. Relationships take time to build and maintain.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t want a family—someday.”
Zoe heard the kettle whistling. She walked into the kitchen and turned off the gas.
“Do you believe there are several people in the world a person could be equally happy with? Or that each of us only has one?”
“I haven’t thought about it.”
“I mean that one man for one woman sounds awfully chancy. What if they pass each other by? Would neither ever find happiness?” Zoe asked wistfully.
“You’re getting too philosophical for tonight. Go to sleep and tomorrow see what your sister turns up.”
“Goodnight,” she said.
Zoe fixed her tea and went to the living room. Turning off the lights, she opened her drapes and gazed out over the lights of Washington. Sipping the warm beverage she thought about her evening. The highlight had been the conversation with Cal. What did that say about her chances of finding Mr. Right?
How odd her sister thought she should be on the lookout for someone like Cal. He was handsome in a very sexy way, if she let herself think about it. Mostly she considered him her boss. And she’d decided early in her tenure with Protection, Inc. not to become involved with a fellow employee. She’d heard of office romances gone bad. Her job had been too important to her to risk it.
For a moment she wondered what it’d be like to be romanced by Cal. Fleeting, at best. He had a different girlfriend every few months. She’d rather spend hours each week working with him, than be one in a long line of dates.
