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It was as she was opening boxes in the garage that she noticed the new folding ladder on the garage ceiling Huh She didn’t re froive access to the garage attic But she couldn’t reach it

She was standing there, staring up at it, when her phone rang Again it was Heath

Tired of the ga, "What?"

Silence greeted her

Fine He wanted to pout? He could do it alone "I’ up now"

"No" Heath’s voice, raith appeal, called out to her "Don’t"

"You have to stop callingstole soer She had dated this man for months, she’d been as inti, so some level of compassion remained "Are you okay?"

"Coed--in relief Obviously he hadn’t left California as he’d claimed, or he wouldn’t want her to return there She knew the nicest thing she could do for his were over Gently, but with firm insistence, she said, "I can’t"

Defeat left his tone, replaced with a surprising explosion of rage "Or you won’t?"

She was so tired of his anger, of his"Both But, Heath, it doesn’t matter" As calmly as she could, she laid it out for hiether anyain Please believe h the phone "You can be such a fking bitch sometimes"

"Heath--"

"Does your new boyfriend know that? Does he knohat a lousy lay you are? Does he realize your heart is so fking frozen that all you do is lie there and--"

Breathing hard, her co all over, she badly wanted to throw the phone, but what good would that do?

"What is it?"

At the sound of Cannon’s voice, she screeched and jumped a foot When she whipped around, Cannon stood there in the open garage door, his gaze far too astute

"Dear God, you startled me"

He didn’tbreath, she nodded "Yes He wasunhappy" She almost snorted at herself Such an understatement

"How many people have your number?"

"Not et you a new phone and a new number"