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"Um "

"Si? A little choc-o-LAH-tay? Check the cabinet over the sink"

"I’ for"

Now, this was annoying The wo not to knohat chocolate was!

"I fail to see what the probleun to trouble ry If I knehat it was, I’d be glad to get it for you Maybe Jenny knows"

"That’s " Lila sighed heavily A pity, but there was really nothing left to be done Better to rip the band-aid off than drag things out

"I’o"

"Go?"

"Go, yes No er require your services, I’m afraid"

The woman’s eyes seemed practically to pop from her head "You can’t!"

"I’s had worked out But under the circumstances, you really leave me with no alternative"

The woman hurled herself at Lila’s knees "Please! I’ll do anything!"

"Yolanda, get ahold of yourself"

"I’ you," the woman blubbered into her skirt "You knohat they’ll do I’ll work harder, I swear!"

Lila had expected her to take it badly, but this undignified display holly unexpected It was positively e, but Lila resisted it, lest this draw things out, leaving her hands hovering aardly in the air Maybe she should have waited until David got ho

"We’ll provide you with a reference, of course And teeks’ pay You really shouldn’t take it so hard"

"It’s a death sentence!" She hugged Lila’s knees as if she were clinging to a life raft "They’ll send me to the basement!"

"I hardly think this qualifies as a death sentence You’re co"

But the woh the stor, soaking Lila’s skirt withon Lila’sherself fros like this, she hated theaze toward the figure standing in the door, at once breathing a sigh of relief "David Thank God We seem to have a bit of a situation here Yolanda, well, she’s a little bit upset I’ve decided to let her go"

"Christ, another one? What’s the matter with you?"

Noasn’t this typical Wasn’t this typical David "That’s fine for you to say, gone all day, leaving me stuck in the house I’d think you’d back me up"

"Please, don’t do this!" Yolanda wailed

Lila esture with her hands "A little help here?"

Which did not prove quite as easy as itYolanda (not Yolanda) from Lila’s knees, the woman redoubled her hold and co! For goodness sake, you’d think being fired fro job really was a death sentence fro With a hard yank at the waist, David pulled her free and hoisted her bodily into the air She kicked and screa like a crazy person It was only through his superior strength that heabout David: he’d kept himself in shape

"I’m sorry, Yolanda!" Lila called as he whisked her away "I’ll mail you a check!"

The door slammed behind the in her chest Well, wasn’t that so Wasn’t that just about the most uncomfortable business she’d ever had to endure She felt couilty besides Yolanda had been with the to end so badly It left a sour taste in Lila’s h admittedly, Yolanda had never been the best housekeeper, and recently she’d really let things go Probably some personal difficulties Lila had never even been to the wo of her life How curious was that? All these years, Yolanda co, and it was as if Lila didn’t know the woratulations"

Lila, who had resuh the hten his tie

"And how is this my fault, exactly? You saw her She was completely out of control"

"That’s the third one this year Good attendants don’t grow on trees"

She took another long, luxurious stroke with the brush "So call the service It’s really not such a big deal, you know"

David said nothing more, evidently content to let theup the knees of his suit pants to sit down

"We have to talk"

"Can’t you see I’m busy? Don’t they need you back at the hospital or so?"

"I don’t work at a hospital We’ve been over this a hts were autu things going round and round

"What happened in Texas, Lila?"

"Texas?"

He sighed gruht iest idea what you’re talking about I’ve never been to Texas inDavid’s eyes through the mirror "Brad always hated Texas Probably you don’t want to hear anything about that, though"

Her words, she saw, had hit their h she knew she shouldn’t, she took a perverse delight in the expression on David’s face whenever she spoke the name-the deflated blankness of a man who knew he could never inning to wonder is if you can control these things any to me? We can’t have any more disasters like this Not e’re this close"

"I don’t see what you’re so upset about And to be perfectly honest, I don’t care for the way you’re speaking tobrush down!"

But before she could do this, he snatched it fro across the roo her head back, and jammed his face so close to hers it wasn’t even a face but a thing, aher with its rotten bacterial breath