Page 19 of First Date: Divorce
“Would like to be a father.Someday.”Then he started his catalogue on her.“Katherine Denver Hamilton.Middle name because mother loves John Denver’s music.”
“You don’t need to volunteer that to anyone.”
“Nothing wrong with his music.”
“I meant the complete name.”
His mouth didn’t move, yet his face lightened.“A husband would know.No food allergies.Seafood, red meat, and Tex-Mex, no sushi.Only child of a single mom.Things were tight financially.Earned impressive academic scholarships.Mother married for the first time right after you finished college.”
She withstood the temptation to repeat he didn’t need to volunteer that last part.
His assistant clicked her tongue.“Great.You know a few facts about each other.We’ve barely started.”
“We’re supposed to be on the verge of a divorce, Pauline, so it makes sense if we don’t really know each other.That’s the whole point.”
K.D.overcame a temptation to agree with him.Agreeing with him wasn’t what this was about, that was for sure.
Pauline propped her hands on her hips.“Okay, you two, you think you’re so ready for this — how did you meet?”
They looked at each other, then away.
“C’mon, c’mon.Every couple in the world — even the ones that end up hating each other — have a story about how they met.”
How had Eric and his ex met?
The question popped into K.D.’s mind, definitely uninvited and sneaky-fast.None.Of.Her.Business.Not to mention, not important to the assignment.
“We met on the job,” K.D.started.“Since I was an insurance investigator at the time according to the bio you wrote, that could work.”
“Not with you making a face when you say insurance investigator,” Pauline said to her.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Eric said.“It would explain why she married me.To get away from a job she didn’t like.”
“Great.I’m not onlynota cop, Iama gold digger.”
“All part of the role.”He leaned back with his arms crossed over his chest.
“Says the man who gets to keep his profession as a lawyer, his home here in Bardville, and his stellar assistant.”
“Hah!She’s only known me a day andsheappreciates me,” Pauline shot at Eric.She turned back to K.D.“Don’t worry.I’ll tell you plenty to make you want to divorce him.In the meantime, you met through me.That adds believable detail.I knew K.D.from where we lived.I’ll show you pictures of the place later, K.D.I thought K.D.was real nice and I knew my boss was in danger of becoming a grumpy old man before he hit thirty-five.”
K.D.cut a look toward Eric.
On the surface, he looked like a man pretending not to care about an irritation buzzing around him.But beneath that lurked … what?Amusement?Affection?
Whatever it was, Pauline seemed to know it existed and to rely on it.She sure wasn’t fooled by the not-caring pose or intimidated by the would-be irritation.
“Next, you need a relationship history.”Pauline looked up.“Don’t stare at me, you do.How you got from meeting to falling in love to marrying to the mess you’re in now.Yeah, you need a problem, like you said Cully said, and that’s what the counselors will sink their teeth into, but they’ve gotta know the rest of it, too.”
Eric muttered a curse.
“Tal emphasized to stick as close to reality as possible,” K.D.said.
“In that case, we met and got married fast, before we knew each other at all,” Eric said dryly.
She cut off a huh of amusement to say.“Actually, that’s a good idea.It trims the stretch of good times in the relationship we’d have to create a story for.Meet, get married fast, honeymoon period, thenbam, the problems start.So we don’t waste our efforts on good times and can concentrate on problems.”
“Sure is true to life,” Eric said.
