Diamonds and Dreams by Brenda Bone Page B

wasn’t meant to be yours, right?   If it does return, then I should love it
forever.”
    “That’s
the one.   If Brant is in love with you,
he’ll make a move to reunite with you.”
    “I
hope it’s soon.   Our relationship at work
has been strained and our personal relationship is also starting to
deteriorate.”
    Several
days later, Serita returned to visit.   “Would you want to know if Brant was out with
another woman?”
    “Of course!”
    “Well,
I hate to be the one to break it to you, but last night I saw him with an
attractive woman at a nightclub in Columbus.”
    Feeling
hurt and betrayed, Lindsay absorbed this news before she said, “He must not
have taken his relationship with me as seriously as I did.”
    “Maybe
there’s a good explanation.   You’ll never
know unless you ask him.”
    “You
think I should confront him?”
    “That
seems like the best way to find out where you stand with him.”
    “You’re
right.   If Brant and I don’t talk things
over, the love we developed toward each other will crumble just as anything
else will if there’s not a strong foundation.”
    “Why
don’t you try to make that foundation firmer if you really think you could be
building for your future?”
    “Good
idea.   I’ll go over to Brant’s place
later.”
    “Think
you should call first?   Just in case he’s
dating the woman I saw him with?”
    “You’re
right.   I should call first,” Lindsay
decided.
    “See
you later.   Good luck.”
    “Thanks
for telling me about seeing Brant.   Although I’m not pleased to hear the news, I need to know.”
    Several
minutes later she nervously tapped out Brant’s number.   He answered on the second ring.
    “It’s
Lindsay.   Can we get together?   Something’s been bothering me.”
    “If
it’s about the contest, I don’t think we should discuss it.”
    “What
I want to talk about has nothing to do with WBKB.”
    “Okay.   I was about to go for some pizza.   Care to join me?”
    “Sure.   Thanks.”
    “I’ll
pick you up in a few minutes.   Bye,
Lindsay.”
    Hurriedly
she changed into white jeans and a cool periwinkle top.   Brushing a few tangles out of her hair, she
dabbed rose perfume on her wrists.   She
finished buckling her leather sandals just as Brant rang the doorbell.
    “Hi.   I’m ready,” she told him, stepping
outside.   Why did she feel like they were
strangers meeting for the first time?
    It
took only minutes before the warm rapport they shared returned.   Enjoying a pizza in a corner booth that
offered privacy, they made small talk and then Brant came straight to the
point.   “What did you want to talk to me
about?” he asked, unable to control his curiosity a minute longer.
    “Us.”
    “Let
me go first, Lindsay.   If I offended you
the other day or appeared like I tried to get you to change your personality, I
didn’t mean to do this.”
    “I’ll
be direct—I thought you and I were supposed to date each other and no one
else.   Do you want to call off this
arrangement?”
    She
held her breath until he replied, “No.   Why should I?   Just because one of
us will eventually be forced to give up our job, we don’t have to quit caring
about each other, do we?”
    She
wished she could find reassurance in his words, but instead she found it
necessary to ask, “Why were you with another woman this week?   A friend of mine saw you and…”
    “So
that’s what this is all about.”
    “Yes.”
    “Sorry,
I don’t wish to talk about her.”   He
offered no explanation or apology.
    Feeling
rejected, Lindsay was too proud to ask more questions.   Undoubtedly Brant knew she wanted him to
provide her with a reason, but he didn’t offer to make excuses or give her more
details, so she didn’t pry.   Maybe being a one-woman man is too difficult
of a task for Brant, she thought sarcastically.
    “Anyway,
I’m glad you called,” he changed the subject.   “There’s something you need to know and I