WhosYourDaddy: I’m not! I’m just taking it slow, like you asked me to. Don’t pick a fight. We were doing fine.

BrownEyedGirl: Having no physical contact is fine? Making empty promises through a computer is fine? You say I met you at a party, but I can’t even remember what you look like.

WhosYourDaddy: I sent you a picture.

BrownEyedGirl: It’s not enough.

When this brought no answer, Sebastian got up and opened a beer from the courtesy bar. He had so much adrenaline pumping through him he couldn’t stay seated. Was he being too aggressive? Maybe. But this Internet relationship could go on indefinitely. He had to trick Malcolm into blowing his cover.

At last Malcolm’s response appeared.

WhosYourDaddy: Someday, like I said. I promise. I think about you all the time.

Sebastian studied those words. Should he give up for tonight? Back off? He decided to at least change his approach. Sitting down again, he wrote back.

BrownEyedGirl: Forget I said anything.

WhosYourDaddy: No, it’s okay to want to see me. I like that. I want to see you, too.

BrownEyedGirl: Then why don’t you pick a place to meet? Harris Ranch is between L.A. and Sacramento. We could meet there.

WhosYourDaddy: I don’t understand why you’re suddenly in such a rush. You’re the one who wanted to take this slow, remember?

BrownEyedGirl: But it’s as if I know you already. I mean, more than just a brief acquaintance. There’s a kinship here I haven’t felt with anyone in a long time. Am I crazy?

WhosYourDaddy: Not at all.

BrownEyedGirl: I think it’s because you remind me of someone I used to care about.

WhosYourDaddy: Who?

Sebastian waited, hoping his delay would make Malcolm believe “Mary” was reluctant to respond.

WhosYourDaddy: Are you going to tell me?

BrownEyedGirl: No.

WhosYourDaddy: Why not?

BrownEyedGirl: Because it doesn’t matter. It’s not like I’ll ever see him again.

WhosYourDaddy: Tell me!

The real Mary had made it sound as if she was still bitter over Malcolm’s betrayal. Sebastian needed to spin that into something more appealing. If he played it smart, maybe he could make Malcolm so eager to reclaim Mary’s adulation, the adulation he remembered from his glory days, that he couldn’t help but step forward.

BrownEyedGirl: Just someone I once knew.

WhosYourDaddy: That’s all the info I get?

BrownEyedGirl: You know him, okay? You’ve mentioned him to me before.

WhosYourDaddy: Are we talking about your ex-husband?

BrownEyedGirl: No.

WhosYourDaddy: Someone you met before that?

BrownEyedGirl: Yes.

WhosYourDaddy: This is driving me nuts, Mary. Tell me who you’re thinking about.

BrownEyedGirl: Tomorrow would’ve been our anniversary.

WhosYourDaddy: Is it Malcolm Turner?

Bingo. He knew about the anniversary.

WhosYourDaddy: I’m right, aren’t I? It’s Malcolm.

BrownEyedGirl: Maybe.

WhosYourDaddy: I am.

BrownEyedGirl: Okay, I’ll admit it. But if you talk to him or anyone who knows him, please don’t say anything. He’s no good for me. Even if he’s single, I’m determined to leave him in the past.

Sebastian hoped he wasn’t being too obvious. Malcolm wasn’t stupid. But he was vain and arrogant enough to believe he could cheat on a girl, break her heart and have her pining for him fifteen years later.

WhosYourDaddy: You’re telling me you’re still in love with Malcolm?

BrownEyedGirl: I don’t know what I’m saying. It’s late, and I’m not making sense.

WhosYourDaddy: It makes sense to me.

BrownEyedGirl: It does?

WhosYourDaddy: There’s someone I can’t forget, either.

BrownEyedGirl: Who?

WhosYourDaddy: You.

BrownEyedGirl: So what about this weekend?

WhosYourDaddy: I’ll let you know.

BrownEyedGirl: When?

One minute turned into two, which turned into five. Sebastian was afraid he’d lost him, for tonight, anyway. He knew he should sign off and go to bed; he could hardly keep his eyes open. But he tried to stay awake, just in case…and ended up falling asleep at the desk.

Six

Should he write back? Or wait for the night to pass and hope Mary would be less demanding the next time they talked?

Malcolm spent another twenty minutes in front of the computer on the kitchen table he’d rented along with the other furniture, trying to decide. He didn’t want her to be as indifferent as she’d been before. Their recent conversations had been far more stimulating; he liked that she’d revealed her feelings for him. Despite her anger over what he’d done with Sherry Stewart, he’d known the chemistry between them was still there. But he wasn’t sure where to take the relationship now that Mary was responding as he’d hoped. He hated to walk away, but he couldn’t let her see him.

Being torn between what he wanted and what he knew he should do made him angry.

Damn it! He should never have started this. If he’d been able to go to the casinos, or patrol using his cop light and badge to generate a little excitement, or even go to a damn movie, it might not have gathered such momentum. But ever since he’d acquired Latisha and Marcie, he’d spent far too much time on the computer with Mary.

There was no use lamenting it, he told himself. Their relationship would’ve come to this eventually. Mary wasn’t merely a diversion. He’d visited her place at least twice a week for months. He’d seen her kids playing out front and he’d stood in her yard, watching her move through the house. He’d thought about her a lot over the years, especially after he’d severed his past. She’d been the perfect fit, the one he shouldn’t have let go. If he’d stuck with her, his life never would’ve become what it was now. They should’ve married and raised a family. Splitting up hadn’t worked for either of them.

What a mess. With the incentive of half a million dollars and a fresh start, he’d imagined being able to walk away from his family and friends without a backward glance. He’d actually been eager to do so, had felt a sort of triumph in exiting with such a finale. He’d shocked and hurt them all, and they’d deserved it-especially his immediate family. Nothing he did pleased his parents, but it was the opposite for his older brother. And their baby sister had been absolutely worshipped.