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“No We talked about art, we talked about theater She’s had three glasses of wine and half a pack of herbals Her hands stopped shaking about twenty ot here She’s an e to hold on”

“Okay I appreciate it” She ja to see the report”

He could feel his own hackles rise “Delia knohat I do”

“Right” It stuck in her craw like barbed wire

“She’s a grooman, Dallas”

“Grown, ave up and kicked the wall “She’s out of her league with an operator like you Darew up out in buesture took care of the Midwest “She’s a good cop She’s a solid cop, but she’s still got blind sides And she’s going to get really pissed off when she finds out I said anything to you about it She’ll jam that stick up her ass and freeze me out, but damn it—”

“She matters,” he shot back “She matters to you Doesn’t it occur to you that she could matter to me?”

“Women are a business to you”

“When they pay me to be my business It isn’t like that with Delia For Christ’s sake, we don’t even have sex”

“What? She can’t meet your fee?” As soon as it was out, she hated herself Hated herself ister si That ay off”

“Yeah, it was”

Suddenly tired, she scooted down and sat on the floor with her back against the wall “I don’t want to know this stuff I don’t want to think about this stuff I like you”

Intrigued, he lowered to the floor, his back to the counter so their knees almost brushed “Really?”

“Yeah,her since before Christ with her?”

He laughed, and this time it was easy and rich “Jesus, Dallas, which way do you want it? I have sex with her, I’ht”