Free Nutcase by Charlotte Hughes Page B

build and wore her hair short; obviously it was easier to care for that style in her job.
    “Kate is a psychologist,” Jay said, “and a darn good one at that. Mona is her assistant.”
    “Nice to meet you,” Mandy said. She smiled, but there was an edge to her. A tough-as-nails attitude that I suspected came from training and working in a male-dominated field.
    I noted the firefighter’s handbook spread open on Jay’s desk. “I can see you’re busy,” I said, trying to make my voice sound light and airy.
    “Don’t rush off on my account,” Mandy said, even though she made no move to get up. “I’ve probably imposed on Jay’s good nature as it is. I guess you could say he’s sort of taken me under his wing.”
    Jay gave her an odd look, and I sensed all was not as it appeared. I wished I hadn’t come. “We can’t stay,” I said quickly. “I have a patient due in shortly.” I looked at Mandy. “It was nice meeting you.”
    “Same here, Karen,” she said.
    “Kate,” I corrected.
    Jay rounded the desk. “Let me walk you to your car.”
    “No, no,” I said, wanting to get out of there as quickly as I could. “Some patients get antsy if I’m not waiting for them the minute they arrive.”
    “Kate is right,” Mona said. “I’ll probably have to take their blood pressure.”
    Mona obviously sensed my urgency to escape; she and I bumped into one another trying to squeeze through the door at the same time, which made me feel even more foolish. Finally, we cleared the doorway and left the building.
    “Holy hell!” Mona said once we’d climbed into my car. “I wonder if she has to carry a separate insurance policy on those things.”
    I pulled from the parking lot and headed north. “Do you think they’re real?” I asked.
    “Are you kidding? Silicone doesn’t come in that size.”
    “Which explains why Jay didn’t tell me about her,” I said.
    “You don’t know that.”
    “Oh yeah? Did you notice how uneasy he was?” I asked. “He treated me like I was a casual acquaintance. What does that tell you?”
    “I don’t think it was us. I got the impression he felt uneasy with Mandy. Still, I’ve got a funny feeling about her.”
    I braked at a red light. “What do you mean?”
    “You know how some women don’t make friends with other women?” she said. “I’ll bet she doesn’t have one girlfriend. I don’t trust her.”
    “I don’t trust either damn one of them,” I blurted, wondering if Jay had been thinking of Mandy as we’d made love the night before. I gritted my teeth and began doing multiplication tables in my head.
     
     
     
    I tried to disguise my bad mood behind a fake smile as I greeted my next appointment, a couple I was seeing for marriage counseling. I seemed to be doing a lot of couple’s therapy these days, which was ironic since Jay and I were in counseling as well.
    The couple had enjoyed twenty-five years of marriage until the wife found her husband’s stash of dirty pictures in the bathroom, tucked between the pages of his hunting and fishing magazine. She had taken it personally. She was angry and hurt and all of the above. She’d even moved out of the bedroom. Finally, she had admitted they’d gotten into a rut, both in their relationship and sex life.
    I had given them homework. They’d each made a list of what had attracted them to each other in the beginning. Their lists were long; just thinking about what it had felt like falling in love so many years ago had put a glow on both of their faces. They were now setting up a real date for the end of the week.
    I felt confident it wouldn’t be long before they were sharing the same bed again. I didn’t feel so confident about Jay and me.
     
     
     
    I was getting ready to leave for the day when Edith Wright called with more complaints about Marie.
    “She told the other patients we were trying to poison them with medication. I’m telling you, the woman is so manic she’s almost bouncing off the