Lust and Lies 04 - Pretty Maids in a Row

leaving town on Monday. I don't know how long I'll be gone. Say yes."
    The trip to her parents was off and she could easily postpone the weekend with April. "All right," she said, as pleased about spending the weekend with him as with his announcement that he would be following up on the Frampton information.
    "And third, admit you're crazy about me."
    After item number two, she was ready to grant him a concession. "Well... I don't dislike you anymore." She pulled his head down for a real kiss, then said sternly, "But I want you out of here before I change my mind."
    Touching up her makeup didn't take away the sensation that his lips were still on hers, nor did gathering up the papers needed for her meeting banish him from her thoughts. His confession of jealousy and admission that he wasn't seeing other women elated her, while a separate realization of her own brought her down again.
    For a short time there she had been truly furious with him, hurt by him, had said hateful things to try to get back at him, then enjoyed making up more than anything else they had done together. In effect, she had been reacting as if they had a real relationship.
    A real relationship didn't fit in with her plans. All her efforts would be wasted if she lost sight of the true reason she was spending time with him.
    And all her hard-earned independence would be forfeited if she opened her heart to someone like David Wells.
    If only she could remember that longer than two seconds after he kissed her.
    For the next hour, Holly struggled to maintain her professional composure on the outside while juggling a myriad of emotions on the inside. In spite of all her years of practice, guarding herself against men and their attempts to attract her attention, David continually undermined her equilibrium as if she were a complete novice. Thoughts of the upcoming weekend kept breaking through her best attempts to concentrate on the business at hand.
    If that wasn't bad enough, Philip's scowl was so severe, he was making their guest nervous. Each time Holly glanced at him, she could see a mixture of accusation and pain in his eyes. She had promised David she would tell Philip about them, but that was while David had her in his arms—a clear case of duress. Looking at Philip, her longtime friend and mentor, a man who repeatedly told her he loved her and wanted to marry her, she realized she couldn't fulfill that promise, at least not in the way David intended.
    There was no question she would have to make some explanations. They would just have to be tempered to cause Philip as little concern as possible. After all, Philip was the one who had always been there for her, the one who would still be there long after David tired of her.
    By the time the meeting wound down, Holly came to a conclusion. She would have to tell Philip about the Little Sister Society and why she was spending time with David.
    The moment Evelyn left at the end of the day, Philip came into Holly's office, clearly prepared for a confrontation. "How could you do this to me?"
    "I know I should have explained sooner but I really didn't want to involve you."
    Philip's expression was one of pure disbelief. "Good Lord, Holly! How could I not be involved if you're seeing another man?"
    "It's not what you think. Let me—"
    "Not what I think? I don't need to think. I saw it. Written all over both your faces this morning." His own face flushed with anger.
    "Please—"
    "I love you," he interrupted as he paced off the few steps in front of her desk. "You've never said you loved me, but I accepted that, as long as I was the only man in your life. It might not be so bad if I was losing you to a better man. David Wells isn't good enough to... to... wipe your shoes on!"
    "I am trying to explain—"
    "I asked a few people about him this afternoon," he continued as if she hadn't spoken. "He's known as much for his sexual prowess as his journalistic fervor. I also heard he has a particular preference for buxom, blue-eyed blondes. You're nothing more than another matched trophy to him and you don't have enough experience to realize it. I can't imagine what kind of act he put on to win your attention. Knowing from personal experience that you haven't the slightest interest in sex, he must have some other talent no one else is aware of. What did he do, Holly?"
    Suddenly he sat down on the chair across from her, his shoulders slumping with dejection. In a voice barely above a whisper, he asked, "What