Page 73 of Sexual Healing

Retreating to her desk, Laura wanted to know more about the Timpson family. Why did Charlotte choose sex work as a way to make a living? Her family lived in a nice area of moderately expensive homes. The mother was a schoolteacher. There was no mention of a father.

She continued to read the file until the receptionist interrupted her. It was time for their meeting.

“Come in,” Jake said when they were at his door.

Laura already knew about his diagnosis, but he needed to tell the receptionist, who became visibly upset. They spent the next minutes comforting and reassuring her.

“Today I started radiation. I’ll go twice a week. Tomorrow I’ll see the oncologist about starting chemotherapy. I have no idea what that’s going to be like. In the meantime, you two will run things around here. We’ll take the cases we want to take. We’ll be picky about it. And we’ll just take one day at a time. Do you have any questions?”

The chat continued for another five minutes with the receptionist asking questions. They got up to leave, but he stopped Laura.

“Shut the door for a second,” he said after the receptionist had left the room. “I feel like I owe you an explanation about my relationship with Pam since she’s your stepmother.”

“Okay,” Laura said, excitedly wondering if he had proposed marriage.

Then the bombshell.

“We’re not seeing each other anymore.”

“I haven’t seen Pam since the party,” Laura said, shocked. “You seemed fine together Saturday.”

“We were fine. But in the end, Pam doesn’t need to go through my health issues. She’s been through two spousal deaths, Jack and then your father. It’s too much for one person.”

“Did she actually say that? I find it difficult to believe that she’d abandon you.”

“No, no, it’s not that at all,” he said, shaking his head. “I ended it. Not Pam.”

Stunned, Laura didn’t move right away, trying to relax her face. Maybe that was why Pam had been with Dan that morning. Jake’s rebuke would be devastating for Pam. She’d been through so much and to have this no-nothing dump her…

“I’d better get back to work.”

“I can see I’ve upset you.”

“Jake, what did you think? You got together with Pam after I introduced you. Why would you do that to her?”

“Laura, with all due respect, it’s private. Pam knows why I did it. It doesn’t need to go any further than that.”

“You put me on the spot,” she said. “I don’t see Pam moving on as easily as you seem to think she will. I’m worried for her.”

“Ha! It’s not that bad,” he said, shuffling papers around. “I’m sorry it upset you, but it doesn’t have anything to do with you.”

“I wish you hadn’t told me.”

Shocked, he stared at her with his mouth hanging open.

Laura left his office, angry, but there was nothing she could do. She wanted to call Pam though. No, she wanted to see Pam. She locked the file folder in a drawer and left her office.

“I have to see a friend,” she told the receptionist, who was still red around the eyes.

The decision to arrive unannounced won out, and she pulled into Pam’s driveway. They’d just seen each other, so it would seem natural that she’d want to follow up with Pam on what had happened to the casing.

Pam answered the door herself, reminding Laura of days past, before Hocus.

“Well, isn’t this nice? Twice in a day.” She leaned in and gave Laura a real kiss on the cheek. It made some buried emotion surface, and it was all Laura could do to not start bawling.

“I took the casing and hairs and filter to the cops. Fingers crossed.”

“Do you want something to eat? I was just making a late lunch. Niçoise salad with crab.”

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