himself again. If you have to ask, the answer must be no. What the hell is love, anyway? Then why did you marry her? He knew the answer, or at least he thought he did. To take control of the corporation. To keep them from scrapping Moonbase.
But you must have loved her, he insisted to himself. You were wild about her. Yeah, before we got married. Before all this corporate crap got in the way. Before this mess with Greg came up.
I did love her. Maybe I still do. But Greg’s between us now.
And then Paul realized the truth. I don’t know if she cares more about him than me. If we get right down to the crunch, would she take me over her son?
No, he realized. Never. She picked me as a stand-in to hold things together until Greg’s ready to take over. She didn’t realize that he’d challenge me right off the bat. And now that he has challenged me, will she back me or him?
Paul thought he knew the answer.
And here’s Melissa sitting close enough to touch, smiling and sad at the same time, talking about old times and looking at me like she needs me again. And I need her. I really do. I need
somebody
. I’m all alone in this.
“You’re awful far away,” Melissa said softly.
Paul drank the last of his wine. “Got a lot on my mind, Mel.”
She closed her eyes briefly. Then, “You know what I wish?”
“What?”
“I wish we had a time machine.”
He wanted to laugh. “A time machine.”
“Yes. So we could back one year.”
One year ago he and Melissa were in the midst of their affair.
“You know,” she said softly. “Before all this other shit happened. When it was just you and me.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “That’d be nice.”
Neither of them said another word about it, but once they finished dinner Paul brought Melissa to his suite and slowly, deliciously took off her clothes while she nuzzled him and crooned softly and smiled as he lifted her naked body in his arms and brought her to his bed.
When Paul woke the next morning to the buzzing of the alarm clock she was gone. Not a trace of her left, except the slight musky smell of her on the pillow he had slipped beneath her hips.
That was pretty stupid, Paul told himself. If Joanna finds out— Suddenly he realized that he had done to Joanna exactly what Gregory had done. Betrayed her.
For somebody who doesn’t really love her, he thought, you feel pretty damned shitty this morning.
SAVANNAH
Joanna could hear the thumping and banging from Greg’s rooms, even from all the way down the hall. She had gone up to her own sitting room, part of the master bedroom suite, when Greg had shown up with two husky movers and a small van to clean out his rooms.
“I’m taking all my belongings,” Greg said tightly to his mother. “That includes my furniture.”
Joanna simply nodded and fled upstairs to her sitting room, not wanting to be in her son’s way, not daring to let him see how miserable it made her to see him moving out.
But there was no other option. Greg and Paul could not live under the same roof.
After what seemed like hours, the noise stopped. Joanna looked up from the hand-held screen of her cyberbook reader. It was only midday; Greg had taken less than an hour to remove his belongings—and the furniture that she had bought for him.
He can’t leave without saying goodbye, she thought. Should I go out and see him before they drive away?
Then she heard his tap on her door. It hadn’t changed since he’d been a little boy. A single gentle tap. She had always responded to it immediately.
“Come in, Greg,” she called, shutting down the screen and placing the cyberbook reader on the end table beside her.
He looked tense, quivering with suppressed anger. Yet his shirt and slacks were neatly pressed, no perspiration stains. If he had physically helped with the moving, it did not show. Joanna remained seated in the comfortable armchair as Greg crossed the room toward her.
“Did you get everything?” she asked.
“Yes. I think
But you must have loved her, he insisted to himself. You were wild about her. Yeah, before we got married. Before all this corporate crap got in the way. Before this mess with Greg came up.
I did love her. Maybe I still do. But Greg’s between us now.
And then Paul realized the truth. I don’t know if she cares more about him than me. If we get right down to the crunch, would she take me over her son?
No, he realized. Never. She picked me as a stand-in to hold things together until Greg’s ready to take over. She didn’t realize that he’d challenge me right off the bat. And now that he has challenged me, will she back me or him?
Paul thought he knew the answer.
And here’s Melissa sitting close enough to touch, smiling and sad at the same time, talking about old times and looking at me like she needs me again. And I need her. I really do. I need
somebody
. I’m all alone in this.
“You’re awful far away,” Melissa said softly.
Paul drank the last of his wine. “Got a lot on my mind, Mel.”
She closed her eyes briefly. Then, “You know what I wish?”
“What?”
“I wish we had a time machine.”
He wanted to laugh. “A time machine.”
“Yes. So we could back one year.”
One year ago he and Melissa were in the midst of their affair.
“You know,” she said softly. “Before all this other shit happened. When it was just you and me.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “That’d be nice.”
Neither of them said another word about it, but once they finished dinner Paul brought Melissa to his suite and slowly, deliciously took off her clothes while she nuzzled him and crooned softly and smiled as he lifted her naked body in his arms and brought her to his bed.
When Paul woke the next morning to the buzzing of the alarm clock she was gone. Not a trace of her left, except the slight musky smell of her on the pillow he had slipped beneath her hips.
That was pretty stupid, Paul told himself. If Joanna finds out— Suddenly he realized that he had done to Joanna exactly what Gregory had done. Betrayed her.
For somebody who doesn’t really love her, he thought, you feel pretty damned shitty this morning.
SAVANNAH
Joanna could hear the thumping and banging from Greg’s rooms, even from all the way down the hall. She had gone up to her own sitting room, part of the master bedroom suite, when Greg had shown up with two husky movers and a small van to clean out his rooms.
“I’m taking all my belongings,” Greg said tightly to his mother. “That includes my furniture.”
Joanna simply nodded and fled upstairs to her sitting room, not wanting to be in her son’s way, not daring to let him see how miserable it made her to see him moving out.
But there was no other option. Greg and Paul could not live under the same roof.
After what seemed like hours, the noise stopped. Joanna looked up from the hand-held screen of her cyberbook reader. It was only midday; Greg had taken less than an hour to remove his belongings—and the furniture that she had bought for him.
He can’t leave without saying goodbye, she thought. Should I go out and see him before they drive away?
Then she heard his tap on her door. It hadn’t changed since he’d been a little boy. A single gentle tap. She had always responded to it immediately.
“Come in, Greg,” she called, shutting down the screen and placing the cyberbook reader on the end table beside her.
He looked tense, quivering with suppressed anger. Yet his shirt and slacks were neatly pressed, no perspiration stains. If he had physically helped with the moving, it did not show. Joanna remained seated in the comfortable armchair as Greg crossed the room toward her.
“Did you get everything?” she asked.
“Yes. I think
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