Free Ringing in Love by Peggy Bird

moments. Finally Catherine said, “There was a reason you barged in, I assume.”
    Melody shook herself out of her stunned speechlessness. “Oh, right. Sorry. I wanted to make sure you checked your email. I came in this morning to finish up the research you wanted for the Butterfly Trust proposal. My laptop died and I needed a computer. Check what I sent you, please, and make sure it’s what you need. I’m nervous about my first research assignment from you.” She ducked her head in apology. “I’m sorry I interrupted you and Mister Sex on Legs. He was about to kiss you, wasn’t he?”
    Before she answered, Catherine returned to her desk and began to pull up the message Melody mentioned. “Got it. I’ll take a look before I leave.”
    “You didn’t answer my question. I barged in just when he was going to kiss you, didn’t I?”
    “No, as a matter of fact, you didn’t. He wasn’t.”
    “I’m sure he was. I could see it on his face.”
    “Trust me, he wasn’t about to kiss me.” Catherine was sure her smug smile would give her away.
    It did. “Oh. Now I see. He wasn’t
about
to kiss you. He already had. Although from the look on his face, he was thinking about doing it again.” She frowned and pursed her lips before adding, “I thought you said you still had reservations.”
    “Maybe I decided not to be wary of a perfectly nice man who’s shown some interest in me.”
    “You went from scared silly to sex in the office in one day? Wow. Yay, team Bennett! Pompoms waving. Way to go.”
    “Melody, don’t let this run away with you. There was no sex in the office. Only a little kiss.”
    “Right. So the sex will be on Friday when you have dinner with him.”
    “No, it won’t. Noah’s there, remember? And I thought you said it was a bad idea for me to get involved with a man like Dominic.”
    “Yeah, but I’ve changed my mind. You convinced me. If you want to have a fling, who better to have it with than an expert? One of us needs to see what all the gossip is about.” She had her hand on the doorknob when she added, “But you better not fall for him.”

Chapter 7
    Driving to Villanova took longer than Catherine expected. Or more accurately,
seemed
to take longer, it was so uncomfortable.
    The discomfort started when, ten minutes into the trip, Noah asked, “Is something wrong, Mom?”
    “Not really.” Catherine had been quiet, trying to decide if now was the best time to tell Noah about Dominic—who he’d meet on Friday. On one hand, she couldn’t look him in the eye while she was driving to see how he was taking the news. On the other, Noah was stuck in the car and couldn’t storm out the way he sometimes did when he didn’t like what she was saying. “Does it seem like there is?”
    “I don’t know. Maybe. You aren’t talking much. You haven’t even asked what I was up to while you were at work, and you always do.”
    “I’m sorry. I’ve been thinking about something. Actually, trying to think of a way to talk to you about something.”
    “Not another sex talk. Please. You and Dad covered that years ago.”
    She didn’t have to see his face to know he was rolling his eyes. “It’s not about you. And it’s not about sex. Well, not specifically. It’s about dating.”
    “I’m not dating. Nobody dates anymore. Except old people. I guess they still have dates.”
    “Still not about you.”
Here goes.
“I had a lunch date yesterday.”
    “With a man?”
    He sounded surprised, skeptical even. If she needed proof she’d been living a socially sheltered life, the tone of his voice gave it to her. “Yes, with a man. We had lunch yesterday, and we’re going to dinner next Friday.”
    Noah was quiet for what seemed like a long time. Catherine waited for him to continue the conversation. “What about Dad?”
    “What about him? We’re divorced.”
    “Yeah, but you could still get back together someday, and how’re you gonna do that if you’re hooking up with some