The Relationship Coach

by Sylvia McDaniel

  “And women think men are like ATM machines. Cha-ching.”

  “What do pollination and money have in common?” she asked.

  He started to laugh, not answering her question.

  “Did your dad tell you women think men are like ATM machines? After your comment about your mother and the Visa bill, I wondered. Some women make more than their husbands. When my sister becomes a doctor, she’ll make more than her fiancé.”

  “True, but if women aren’t dependent on a man for money, then why do they need us?”

  To her, this was so easy she smiled. “Because we are created to procreate, and our bodies send secret signals to our brains, telling us to find a man and get pollinated. We are the gatherers, the people who keep the clan together, and help keep the testosterone at a level, so all hell doesn’t break loose in society. We’re the peacemakers, the keepers of the next generation. Without us, the tribe doesn’t continue.”

  He nodded. “And there are always a few hunters in the clan who don’t want to go with the normal rituals. They want to strike out on their own.”

  They had the most interesting conversations, and she was starting to learn more about Reed Hunter’s background. It sounded so close to the type of family she’d dreamed of growing up in, but then he would reveal secrets about his father and mother, and she’d realize they were just like everyone else.

  “True. They were either the bravest of the warriors, or they were killed and eaten by the animals.” She gazed at him. “Which are you, Reed? A brave warrior or a schmuck who will be lunch for some animal in the jungle?”

  He started packing up the basket and throwing away their dirty utensils. “Only time will tell, but regardless, I will go out in a blaze of glory.”

  She smiled at him. “Thanks for lunch. I appreciate it. I would have gone hungry, until I got home tonight.”

  “Any time.” Reed leaned over the desk and kissed her, his lips brushing against hers in a way that left her hungry for more. Abruptly, he broke off and smiled at her, knowing he’d teased her, left her wanting. “See you in the jungle.”

  And then he was gone. Leaving her office lonely, silent, and her sexually aroused. Reed baited her, stirring her desires and making her want him. And damn it, his tactics were working.

  She couldn’t help but smile. He’d brought her lunch and made sure she ate on one of her busiest days. The man knew how to seduce a woman. He knew how to worm his way into her heart and her pants and then leave her wanting more.

  ***

  Amanda followed Jason into the bar where his coworkers were gathered for a company hour she’d committed to weeks ago, before the doubts had begun to pervade her.

  Tonight, he’d kissed her hard on the lips when he’d picked her up and told her, ‘I’m going to have the best looking girl at the party and be the envy of every man there.”

  Sweet words, but were they enough to quell the doubts assailing her?

  Jason took her by the arm, and they stepped into the bar. For a moment, the darkness made it impossible to see, after coming in from the blinding sun. Finally, her eyes adjusted to the dimly lit sports bar.

  “Hey, buddy, glad you could make it,” an older guy came up and shook Jason’s hand. “And you must be Amanda.”

  “Hi, nice to meet you.”

  He took Jason by the arm. “We’ve got a table here in the back. You guys get something from the bar. A group of us are playing pool.”

  In her three-inch heels, Amanda hurried to keep up with them. She followed Jason to the back, the two men talking the entire way, completely forgetting her as she trailed behind them.

  They sat down at the table with a group of people. Introductions were made, and Jason got up and went to the bar. Amanda sat there making small talk, feeling completely out of her element.

  When Jason brought back their drinks, he said, “Honey, I’m going to go play pool. I’ll be back in a few.”

  Amanda frowned at him. “Sure, but don’t be gone too long.”

  She chit-chatted with some of the women at the table, but their main topic was work, so she didn’t have much to contribute. After an hour, she walked across the bar to the pool table.

  “Jason, how much longer are you going to play?” she asked, working hard to keep the irritation from her voice.

  “We’re almost done. At the end of this game, I’ll come back.”

  Amanda went to the bar and ordered herself another drink. She glanced around at the men who sat drinking beer and watching the televised baseball game. Strolling around, she checked out the different games they offered. At every table, people crowded around, playing their game of choice.

  Finally, assuming he’d be done playing pool, she wandered back over to the table. No Jason. She sat back down, sipped the wine, and glanced at her watch.

  Thirty minutes later, she walked back over to the pool table, where Jason now played a different guy. She waited until he’d finished the shot.

  She stared her displeasure at him, turned around, and walked toward the door. At first, she didn’t know where she was going. Her feet seemed to lead her in the direction her mind refused to acknowledge.

  When she stepped outside, the sun had disappeared over the horizon. A valet stand with two guys parking cars sat on the sidewalk. Her feet carried her to the stand.

  “Hail me a cab,” she said.

  As soon as the words were out of her mouth, her brain seemed to reengage. In less than a minute, a yellow cab pulled up to the stand. She entered the car, gave him her address, and sat back against the cushions.

  After pulling out her phone, she typed a text. “It’s over. Goodbye.”

  Hitting the send button, she leaned back against the cushion of the cab and released a deep sigh of relief. Damn, that felt good. Sometimes the mind was slower to accept what the subconscious knew. And her subconscious had been telling her for weeks this relationship was at the end.

  Finally, her brain had caught on, and with relief, she let Jason go.

  ***

  Lacey waited in the receptionist area of Chimney Rock Productions. This morning, Stan had called and asked her to come in; he had news for her.

  Unlike before, she barely noticed all the pictures on the wall of the television shows he’d helped create and produce. This morning’s call had her emotions springing from hope to despair. One moment, giddiness overwhelmed her and then the next despair, as she feared he’d tell her they were done. What if he’d called her to tell her they were no longer interested? What if he was dropping her and no longer pursuing a television show? What if he called her to tell her he’d found a network interested in her show?

  “Ms. Morgan, Mr. Whittaker is ready for you,” his secretary said.

  Lacey stood, her knees quaking, as she followed his secretary into his office.

  Stan rose from behind the desk and greeted her with a hug. “How are you?”

  “I’m great,” she lied, her stomach doing flip flops like it jumped on a trampoline.

  He sat behind his desk, as she sank into the leather chair across from him.

  “I hope it wasn’t too much of an inconvenience for you to come down here this morning, but I wanted to talk to you in person about what’s going on.”

  “No problem,” she said, wondering about the urgency.

  “Good.” He took a deep breath, his gaze serious. “There’s been a development I think you need to know about. One of the producers I’ve been talking to happened to be in Corpus Christi the same time you were doing a seminar there. She managed to get a ticket.”

  Lacey’s hands begin to sweat. Corpus Christi’s audience had been excellent and was one of their best seminars. “What did she think of the Twelve Steps of Dating?” she asked, her stomach tensing, her heart racing with anticipation.

  He smiled. “She called me that afternoon and said she thinks we’re onto something. She asked for copies of your proposal. I over-nighted them to her, along with some of the tapes you’d produced.”
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br />   “Oh, God! Has she looked at them yet?” Lacey said, still not certain this was good news he was about to give her.

  Stan leaned back in his chair and smiled. “She likes your idea. She wants to see the documentary as soon as it’s finished,” he said, pausing. “And if the documentary has a good showing, she’ll want you to come to Los Angeles and do a pilot.”

  Lacey couldn’t restrain the thrill that filled her, letting it spill from her lips. “Oh, my God! Oh, my God!”

  Excitement overwhelmed her, and she tried to subdue her enthusiasm. Her own television show! Everything she’d dreamed of and worked so hard to obtain could soon be within her grasp.

  Stan smiled at her. “There are still a lot of things that could go wrong, but I’m getting positive feedback from her. I think once she sees the documentary, we’ll be filming a pilot.”

  “That’s fantastic. Thank you, thank you so much.”

  “Don’t thank me yet. Let’s wait until after this documentary comes out. That’s still the key to everything. A good documentary means we’re one step closer to getting you that television talk show.”

  Lacey took a deep breath and released it, trying to calm herself and think rationally. “Okay, I’m trying not to get too excited, but this is great news.”

  “Now the hard part,” he said quietly. “She wants us to keep this under wraps for as long as possible. Which means, you can’t tell anyone.”

  “Ohhhhh! The most exciting news of my career and you want me to keep it secret?”

  “At least for now. That’s why I called you in.”

  She wanted to tell Reed; she wanted to shout out the news to everyone she knew. Lacey sighed and shook her head. “Why?”

  “Because we don’t want the other networks to create a show similar to yours. If one relationship coach program is already on television, why would they need another one?”

  “Okay, I understand. I’ll keep my mouth shut. But you let me know the minute I can start talking about this.”

  He laughed. “I will.”

  But she had to tell Amanda. That woman could keep a secret better than any spy being tortured. She’d keep the news their secret.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Lacey stepped out of her office on her way to the interview room for her last session of the day, David and Jennifer, the couple dealing with commitment issues. This was also the last session Reed would film with Lacey. The documentary was almost done.

  No longer would he be trailing her like a shadow everywhere she went. No longer would he pass her in the hallway of Mate Inc. The idea of not seeing Reed caused heartache so profound, she refused to think of the implications that pain meant.

  She’d grown to like having him around.

  She enjoyed his quick wit, his intelligence and his objective way of observing situations. He was spontaneous, fun, and damn good looking. Working beside him every day had slowly awakened every nerve ending in her body and wrung her emotions inside out.

  If she were to evaluate how she felt about Reed, she feared her heart would soon be involved. The end of the filming would be a good time to stop her involvement with him. All she had to do was tell him, and he’d promised her he’d stop pursuing her. Her mind acknowledged the danger of their involvement, but her body longed to join with his again.

  She halted outside the door, needing a moment to push aside her thoughts of Reed and focus on her clients. She loved her job, and this couple needed her help in facing their dilemma.

  Opening the door, Lacey walked into the interview room, where Reed and Ty were busy setting up.

  “Are we ready?”

  “Just need to do a couple of lighting checks, and we’re all set.” They held the lights up to her face, and Ty read some kind of meter. Reed positioned the lights further away from her and turned them to make the lighting softer. Again, they checked the meter.

  “All set,” Ty said.

  A knock on the door announced the arrival of her clients.

  “Come in,” Lacey called.

  David and Jennifer walked in together and took a seat across from Lacey.

  Lacey glanced at Reed, and a melancholy sadness rattled her. Their last interview together. She took a deep breath and pushed the thought out of her mind. “Are we ready?”

  “Filming,” Ty called.

  “How are you guys?” she asked.

  Jennifer shrugged, and David spoke up, “Okay.”

  Lacey leaned toward David, sensing a change in the couple. “You both look a little down today. What’s going on?”

  Jennifer sniffled. “He didn’t do his homework.”

  Lacey glanced at her notes and turned to David. “I remember giving you three assignments. A list of how different your life will be without Jennifer, a list of what you like about your life with Jennifer, and a list of reasons why you can’t marry.” If he hadn’t done his homework, then she doubted they would be together much longer.

  “I tried, I really did, but I don’t know why I don’t want to get married. As for the other two lists, I don’t want her to leave,” David said, glancing at Jennifer.

  “And your homework, Jennifer, was to write out a contract giving David a date as to when you’re moving out if he doesn’t agree to get married.”

  “I have it right here,” she said, digging into her purse. “I gave him a week.”

  “A week,” Lacey said, stunned by how quickly she was moving. Yet, that was her decision to make, and it looked like she’d already made up her mind.

  “This has been a battle between us for six months. You are our last hope. I’ve already found an apartment. They’re waiting for my deposit.”

  “Does that seem reasonable to you, David?”

  He ignored Lacey and turned to Jennifer. “I’ve told you over and over I don’t want you to leave. I love you.”

  “Just not enough to make it legal.” She held a Kleenex to her eyes.

  “David, what is holding you back from marrying Jennifer?” Lacey asked again, trying to find out this man’s resistance. If she knew his reasons why, then they could work to overcome them.

  “Marriage scares the hell out of me.”

  “Knowing you’ll lose Jennifer, your fear of commitment is more important?” Lacey asked.

  He stared at Jennifer and tried to take her hand. She pulled away. “I love you, but I don’t want to get married. I want things to stay the same.”

  “But if Jennifer moves out, life won’t be the same.”

  “I know that,” David said, his eyes flashing anger.

  Lacey observed the couple, wondering what she could do help them. She tapped the end of her pencil on her notebook. “What if Jennifer became seriously ill and couldn’t work any longer. David, what would you do?”

  He shrugged. “If it were for a short time, I’d probably take care of her.”

  “What if Jennifer became paralyzed?”

  He shook his head. “I couldn’t handle that. She’d have to go back to her parents. They have resources I don’t.”

  Lacey nodded, setting the trap. “Fair enough.”

  “What if Jennifer got pregnant? What would you do then?” Lacey asked and then whirled on Jennifer. “Not that I’m advocating that at all. I’m not.”

  “I don’t want kids,” David said quickly.

  He wouldn’t care for Jennifer if she was paralyzed, and he didn’t want children with her. For a moment, Lacey sat there and let his words resonate in the room, hoping Jennifer would come to the conclusion on her own.

  In horror, Jennifer recoiled, physically moving away from David, her eyes widening. “You know I want children, a family. I’ve said that since the first day I met you.”

  David squirmed. “Yeah. I was hoping you’d change your mind.”

  Her eyes were wide with indignation. “Change my mind!” Realization echoed in her voice. “You don’t love me. I’m convenient. I’m someone who cleans the apartment, cooks, and gives you sex. It’s all about you.”


  “Oh, Jenny. How many times do I have to repeat it? I love you.”

  She shook her head. “No! Both of your answers clearly show you don’t realize that when you love someone, you put her needs first. I’m just someone you come home to.”

  “Well, you’re not putting my needs first by demanding we get married.” David raised his voice in anger and looked at Lacey for confirmation.

  Jennifer all but exploded. “I’ve put your needs first for the last two years. Now it’s time for me to think about how much longer I should wait on you.”

  David didn’t know how to respond. He sat there unable to say anything, but Jennifer was just getting started.

  “I have your dinner cooked when you come home. I do your laundry. I clean the apartment. I pay the bills. All I asked of you is to love me and consider my dreams.”

  Lacey watched as David struggled for words. He sat there, his eyes downturned, his lips pursed. Silence stretched into minutes.

  Jennifer picked up her purse and stood. “I’m done. He’s not going to change, and I’m tired of trying. I’m leaving here to go put down a deposit on the apartment. The movers will get my stuff next weekend.”

  David glanced at her. “I’m sorry. I do love you.”

  “I’m sure in your own way you do, but it’s not enough for me.” She glanced at Lacey and let out a deep sigh. “Thanks, you’ve helped me make a decision.”

  Lacey rose from her chair. “You’re welcome.” She walked Jennifer to the door and then halted. “Are you all right?”

  “I’ll be okay.”

  “Good. Give me a call, if I can help you in any way.”

  “Thanks.” Jennifer went out the door.

  Lacey knew that was the end of Jennifer’s relationship with David. A sense of failure filled Lacey, leaving her sad. She hated to see her clients not make it together.

  David continued to sit in the chair and stare into space.

  “Are you all right?” Lacey asked, sitting back down across from him.

  “I wish I could have married her, but I couldn’t.”

  Lacey nodded. “Is there anything else you want to talk about?”