market rent,â she insisted.
Mack didnât feel he could argue, so he let it go. But he had to acknowledge, if only to himself, that he was relieved the truth had come out.
Five
C hristie walked out of her sisterâs house and slumped against the closed front door. She didnât know how Teri managed with three tiny infants. Identical triplet sons.
After a single afternoon of helping Teri with the babies, Christie was completely exhausted. Thankfully Teriâs husband, Bobby, had insisted on a live-in nanny; otherwise, Christie had no idea how the family wouldâve coped.
Nikki, the nanny, was off on Wednesdays, and Christie had arranged to have her afternoons free on the same day so she could come over and assist Teri. To her surprise, sheâd discovered that when she focused her attention on others, she was a happier person. Sheâd learned that lesson over Christmas, which had otherwise been a miserable time for her. James, Bobbyâs closest friend and chauffeur, had vanished. In an effort to divert herself from her unhappiness without him, Christie had helped distribute food and gifts to the needy. It turned out to be the best thing she couldâve done. Christmas Day was another matter, but she didnât want to think about that. And then weeks later, heâd returned, without apology or explanation.
The apartment door above the garage opened, andJames stepped onto the small porch. While he didnât invite her into his apartment, he made it clear that heâd welcome her company. The fact that he stood there quietly, waiting, told her as much.
Tired though she was, Christie couldnât walk away. She loved James. Heâd hurt her badly when heâd disappeared without a wordâand then seemed to think all should be forgiven once he came back. Eventually she had forgiven him, although she still didnât understand exactly why heâd left. For good measure sheâd tossed in a threat or two. If he ever walked out on her again, it would be over.
She had legitimate reasons for being upset with him. Sheâd believed he was different from her various exes. Christie had a bad track record with men, starting in high school. The only thing her ex-husband had ever given herâbesides troubleâwas his name. And every man sheâd loved, before and since, had left her high and dry. Sheâd had a pattern of finding losers she felt she could rescue with enough love and sympathy. Generally they moved in together and for a while all would go well. Then, invariably, thereâd be a fight or a betrayal or some kind of disastrous revelation, and the affair would be over, leaving Christie sick at heart, crying her eyes out and desperately alone.
Yes, sheâd believed James was unlike any other man sheâd ever known. Certainly in the obvious ways, such as the fact that he wasnât nearly as handsome as the guys she usually went for. Tall, skinny, with facial features that were sharp and slightly irregular, he resembled the caricature of a butler in some English comedies sheâd seen. But that was superficial and irrelevant. He was compassionate, caring and kind, and that made him more appealing than all the good-looking men sheâd been attracted to in the past.
Furthermore, James had inspired her to become adifferent woman, to look beyond herself. Sheâd laid out her past, ugly as it was, so thereâd be no secrets between them. Then poof! Like every other man sheâd ever loved, heâd disappeared from her life.
When heâd come back a few weeks later, Teri and Bobby had championed his case, but Christie was having none of it. Then Teri went into labor and theyâd met at the hospital. After that, Christie decided to give their relationship a second chance. However, things were still tentative. She was bruised, weary, uncertain; experience had been a brutal taskmaster and sheâd already given too many second
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