“Betsy, what’s going on with you?”

Betsy, who had been totally absorbed in her work, jumped when she heard Jennifer’s voice.  “You startled me, Jen.  Come on in and have a seat.”

“I never can get you on the phone so I thought I’d catch you at work.  I haven’t seen anything of you for the last month.  What are you doing with yourself?”

Betsy shrugged helplessly.  “It’s just work.  Daddy’s kept me so busy I haven’t had time to breathe, and Mother insisted that I help her plan the Garden Club’s spring ball.  She’s on the committee this year, and she really knows how to delegate responsibility.”

Jennifer was pacified by Betsy’s answer.  “I know how it is.  Mama worked my butt off last year when she was on the committee, but you have to have a break some time.  How about you and Todd going out tonight with Casey and me?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Betsy began, but the appearance of Todd Warner silenced her refusal.  Jennifer repeated her request to Todd, and as she had expected he thought it was a fine idea.

“Jennifer’s right,” Todd agreed.  “For the last month you’ve had your nose to the grindstone.  You need a break, and frankly I’d really like to spend some time with my bride-to-be.”

Ward McLaughlin chose that moment to stroll into Betsy’s office with a stack of invoices.  “Ward,” Todd appealed, “Tell your daughter that work can wait for tomorrow.  We haven’t had a night out in a month.”

Ward smiled benevolently at Todd.  “Don’t you know by now that I’m a regular Simon Legree?  You’ve got to speak up if I monopolize her time.”

He dropped the invoices on Betsy’s desk.  “Orders from the boss.  Don’t bother with these until tomorrow.”  He dropped a kiss on the top of Betsy’s head.  “Have some fun, sweetheart.”

Todd and Jennifer were beaming their approval, and with no viable excuse, Betsy agreed to a night on the town.  “Where are we going?” she asked.

“The new coffee house on Blount Street,” Jennifer answered.  “They’re having a jazz festival, and the music is supposed to be good.”

“I’ll have to go home to change,” Betsy warned, “and on the way out I have to get a signature on this insurance form.”

“Whose is it?” Ward asked.

“Kyle Alexander.”

“He shaped up pretty well,” Ward observed.  “Prison must have knocked some sense into him.”

“I guess so.”

Todd arranged to pick Betsy up at seven, and Betsy took an insurance form and pen and went to find Kyle. 

He was just finishing his day’s work when Betsy hailed him.  “Bad news,” she muttered as she approached him.  “Daddy’s insisting that I go out with Todd tonight.”

Kyle’s cobalt eyes darkened.  “So?”

“So, I guess I can’t see you tonight.”

“Okay.”

“You might at least pretend to be sorry about it,” Betsy whispered indignantly.

“I am sorry,” Kyle softly returned, the expression on his face causing shivers to dance along Betsy’s backbone.

“Maybe we could get together tomorrow,” she suggested quickly.

“Sure if you’re not busy with Todd.”

Betsy was in too much of a hurry to pay any attention to the sarcasm and bitterness in his tone.  “I won’t be busy with Todd tomorrow.  Count on it.”

She hurried away and Bill Wilson walked over and handed Kyle his lunchbox.  “Ward doesn’t know does he?”

“Know what?”

“About you and Betsy.”

Kyle shrugged.  “There’s nothing to know.”

“Don’t give me that.  She just broke a date with you didn’t she?”

“You’ve got a great imagination.”

“Better give her up before you get into major trouble,” Bill warned.  “You’re playing with fire, Kyle.”

Bill was right, and he knew it, but giving Betsy up would be like giving up breathing.  In the month that they’d been seeing each other, he’d fallen hard.  The trouble was, he didn’t know if Betsy felt the same way.  Frankly, he doubted it.  If she cared for him she’d tell her father that she didn’t want to marry Todd and see him openly.  Kyle hated sneaking around, but for now he guessed that’s the way it would have to be.  Hopefully, Betsy would soon see that sneaking around and deceiving her father was the wrong thing to do 

***

The evening was going better than Betsy had expected.  She and Jennifer always had a good time, and both Todd and Casey were going out of their way to be amusing companions.  The music was good too, but if the truth be told, Betsy would have given it all up to be with Kyle.  She’d tried to put her finger on what it was that she so liked about him, but she never could nail it down.  He was handsome, but so was Todd.  He was amusing, but so was Todd.  He seemed to respect her, but so did Todd.  He enjoyed her company, but so did Todd.  
 
She gave up her attempt to figure it out when Todd nudged her with his elbow.  “Look who just came in.”

Betsy looked, and her mouth went dry when she saw Kyle. He saw her at the same time.  He nodded his head at Todd and Betsy and took the arm of a petite blonde who smiled adoringly into his face.

“Do you know his girl?” Todd asked.

Betsy shook her head.  “No, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her before.”

“Well, she’s very pretty.”

“Yes, she is.”

It was pure torture to watch him with that little witch.  He never once glanced Betsy’s way, and he was so attentive to the girl that Betsy was tempted to throw her glass at him.
The next best thing to throwing the glass was leaving so she didn’t have to watch him with the blonde witch, but the others were having a good time, and so she was stuck.  She’d just have to tough it out. 

After an eternity of smoldering jealousy and hurt feelings, they were finally ready to go, but Kyle and the blonde were still seated at their table when Betsy left the club.

***

“Did you have a good time, honey?” Ward called when he heard the front door slam.

“Yes, it was lots of fun,” Betsy replied, “but I’m tired so I think I’ll go straight up to bed.”

“Goodnight, sweetheart.  Sleep well.”

“Goodnight, Daddy.”

What should she do?  Alone at last in her room, Betsy paced the floor and tried to decide.  Only one course of action really appealed to her; she needed to see Kyle immediately.  She needed to know if he’d been two timing her all along. 

She waited until she heard her father go into his bedroom before easing her door open.  She quietly tiptoed down the stairs, deactivated the security system, and was on her way to Kyle’s apartment without anyone being aware that she was gone.

***

Betsy had never been to Kyle’s apartment.  For some reason he hadn’t wanted her there, but she knew exactly where it was.  To her shame she had ridden past it more than once hoping for a look at Kyle. 

Number fifteen still had a light turned on, and Betsy hoped that the blonde witch wasn’t still with him.  If she was Betsy thought she’d probably just die from rage and mortification.  However, she hadn’t come this far to back out now.  She took a deep breath and knocked.

Kyle opened the door almost immediately.  “Betsy!  What are you doing here?  Is anything wrong?”

“Surprised?” Betsy asked tautly, her emerald eyes snapping.  “Aren’t you going to ask me to come in?”

Kyle stood aside.  “Come in.”

In spite of her anger Betsy was curious about his apartment.  She had wondered if he didn’t want her there because it was dirty, but that didn’t seem to be the case.  Everything was clean and neat even if it was old and worn. 

“Have a seat,” Kyle invited.  “Would you like something to drink?”

“No.”

“Did you have a good time tonight?”

“No.”

“That’s too bad.”

“You certainly looked as if you were having a good time.”

“It was a nice evening.”

Betsy jumped up.  “Who is she, Kyle?  How long have you been seeing her?”

“Jealous?” Kyle wryly inquired.  “I guess you got a taste of what I go through every day of my life.  Do you think I like watching Todd Warner kiss you and touch you?  Do you think I like looking at that huge diamond that he gave you?”

“You knew about Todd,” Betsy flashed back.

“Yeah, I did, but I didn’t know it would hurt quite so bad to see him with you.”

“You certainly figured out how to deal with your pain, didn’t you?  How long have you been seeing her?”

“Tonight was the first time in a long time.”

“So are we through?” Betsy hotly demanded.  “Do you want to see me anymore or not?”

Kyle looked steadily at her.  “I’m not the problem, Betsy.  You are.  You’re afraid to tell daddy that you don’t want to marry Warner so you sneak around with me instead of standing up to him and insisting on your right to be with whoever you want.  I’ve started to wonder if seeing me is a form of rebellion against your father.”

“Breaking my engagement isn’t as easy as you make it out to be,” Betsy cried. 

“From my point of view it seems just that easy,” Kyle returned. 

“I love my father; I can’t just disregard his feelings.”

“Go home, Betsy.  You don’t belong here.  Call Todd and spend a little romantic time with him.  You’re going back to him anyway.”

“That’s awfully convenient for you to say, Kyle.  I guess you don’t care if you see me or not since you’ve found your little blonde slut.”

A muscle jumped in Kyle’s cheek and his eyes flashed.  “Hush.  You don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, really.  That girl was my sister, Megan.”

Betsy’s stomach gave a sickening lurch.  “I thought you didn’t see her.”

“Things change.  Megan and I are getting along just fine, and hopefully her husband will come around soon.”

“Kyle, I’m sorry.  I had no idea.  I was just so jealous…I’m sorry.  I didn’t think.”

“Go home, Betsy.  It’s late.”

“Kyle,…”

“Not now.  It’s late, and you need to go home.”

He stared unwaveringly at her, and Betsy left the apartment without a word.

***

“Why are you so jumpy this morning?” Ward demanded.  “You aren’t paying me a bit of attention.”

“I am, Daddy,” Betsy assured him.  “You were talking about the Chef’s Pantry order.”

“Hmm, well.  Matt McCallum is the manager over there and he ordered a new computer, but he isn’t happy with it.  It’s probably his fault, but I’m giving him a replacement anyway.  Get one of the men to help you, and you go over to Chef ‘s Pantry and set it up for him.  That way I know it’ll be done right.”

Betsy was eager to do her father’s bidding.  “I’ll go right now,” she promised, not needing a moment to decide who she’d take with her.

Kyle saw her coming and watched impassively as she stopped to talk to Bill.  She was wearing a short white sundress that clung to her breasts and hips, emphasizing all those delicious female curves.  He imagined his hands skimming along those curves, and he had to turn away for fear he’d forget where he was and do something really stupid like walk over and kiss her.

“Kyle?”

He was going to have to talk to her after all. “What do you want, Miss McLaughlin?” he asked as he reluctantly faced Betsy.

“Miss McLaughlin?” Betsy inquired with raised eyebrows.  “I need your strong back, Mr. Alexander.”

“What?”

Betsy explained, hoping that he’d be glad of the chance to talk.  They hadn’t exactly parted on good terms the night before, and she was desperate to smooth things over with him.

“Why not take somebody else?” Kyle asked.

“Lots of reasons,” Betsy stated, “and you know what they are as well as I do.”

Oh, he sure did.  “Did you tell Bill?”

“Yes, I did.  If you’ll load the new computer we’ll go.”

Betsy completed her work at Chef’s Pantry right before lunch.  “Let’s grab a burger on the way back,” she suggested.

“That isn’t a good idea.  People will see us together.”

“We have a perfectly legitimate right to be together.  Stop complaining.  Where do you want to go?”

“We do have a right to be together,” Kyle retorted.  “You’re an adult, Betsy.  When are you going to start acting like it?”

“I refuse to let you ruin my lunch,” Betsy said loftily.  “We’re going to Marie’s.”

Marie’s diner was a little short on ambiance, but it did serve some of the best food in Covington.  It was one of the most popular restaurants in the town, and Betsy cheerfully greeted several acquaintances.  Most people knew who she was, and they also knew whom she was with.  Kyle observed that if Betsy felt any awkwardness at being seen in public with a convicted felon she certainly didn’t let on.

They found a seat at a corner table and Betsy hissed, “I don’t like the way Carla Campbell was flirting with you.”

“Which one was she?” asked Kyle who really hadn’t noticed anyone flirting with him.  Of course, that wasn’t too surprising.  When he was with Betsy all he could think about was her.  Somehow, other women seemed to recede into the background when he was around Betsy.

“The red head.”

“Oh, her.  I don’t think she was flirting with me.”

“She was too.”

“What do you care?  You’re engaged to Todd so quit whining if other women flirt with me.”

Betsy refused to pick up the gauntlet that he’d thrown down.  “Can we see each other tonight?  There’s going to be a full moon, and a midnight swim sounds wonderful.  We could sneak into the state park, or we could ride up to the lake.”

He thought that he’d probably hate himself later, but he thought that it had to be done anyway and the sooner the better.  “Betsy, let’s get real, okay?  I’m not the kind of man that your parents will let you associate with, and we both know that you aren’t going to defy them.  You’re going to marry Todd and live happily ever after with a country club membership, two kids, and a nice house in the best neighborhood.  You and Todd will take the family to church on Sunday, and afterwards you’ll go to grandma’s house for dinner.  I think we should end this now before one of us, probably me, gets hurt real bad.  It’s been great, but it isn’t going to happen for us, and you know it.”

A pensive, wistful expression flitted across Betsy’s face.  “I could love you.”

“I think I already love you.”

“Then why are you breaking up with me?” Betsy demanded, green eyes glazing over with unshed tears.

Kyle laughed shortly.  “It hurts too much, Betsy.  The more I see you the deeper I get sucked in and the harder it’ll be for me when you do go back to Todd.  As far as I’m concerned this is it.”

“I can’t give you up,” Betsy protested.

“Then tell your father about us and break your engagement to Todd.  We’ll see each other openly and find out if we have a future or not.”

Betsy’s silence was an answer in itself.

Kyle said nothing more.  They ate their burgers in a strained silence, and it was a relief to finally be on the way back to work. 

“Kyle, give me a little more time,” Betsy pleaded as she parked her car in her reserved space at work.  “Please be patient.  Don’t wreck everything.”

He badly wanted to. “But it’s no use, he reflected.  She won’t stand up to her dad.  She probably doesn’t really want to.

“It won’t work, Betsy, and maybe you know it too.  For example, that little dress you’re wearing, I never saw anything like that at discount stores like Super Mart.  What did you pay for it?”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah.  How much?”

Betsy obviously didn’t want to answer, but Kyle was patiently waiting.  “It was two ninety nine on sale.”

“Three hundred bucks for a dress.  I don’t make much more than that in a whole week’s work.  I couldn’t give you anything like that.  I couldn’t buy you a Z4 like the one you’re driving now either.  I’m driving a ten year old Honda, and it’s all I can do to pay for it.  Your father’s right.  You need somebody like Todd Warner.  He can support you and give you things that I never could.”