computer today. Look, something's really bugging me right
now. I guess I need to ask you what you are doing."
Now she felt thoroughly confused. "What do you
mean?"
He stood now, and began to pace in front of her desk.
"I'm getting kind of confused here, Maggie. I mean, I'm
trying to believe the best in you. And even when I saw you
having dinner with Cohn Byers, I kept telling myself to take
it easy, that it was nothing more than business. And then I
got that email from you and felt like everything was okay."
He stopped pacing and looked at her. "Did you get my
email?"
"Yes! And it was
"I don't really want to talk about that right now." He
sighed deeply and then went on. "Anyway, the next thing I
know, Leah is telling me how you've flown off with Cohn
Byers, in his private jet for a weekend down in Vegas-"
"Now, wait a minut~" She rose from her chair.
"Please, Maggie, let me finish. This isn't easy for me to
say. First all this stuff with Cohn Byers, and now I hear that
Gavin Barnes has come to live with you. Will you please tell
me what is going on?"
She blinked in surprise. "Hold on a minute, Jed. You had
better get your facts straight before you come in here and
start making accusations."
"That's why I came. I want to hear the facts."
She felt flustered, not even sure where to begin. "Did
Leah tell you all this?"
Looking for You All My Life181
"Not everything. I saw you with my own eyes at the
hotel, remember?"
"Yes. But you knew it was only business
"That's what I told myself, and it wasn't easy with Bar-
bara carrying on about how great you two looked
together-"
"But Jed, you know-"
He held up his hands as if to stop her words. "Look, I
really didn't come in here to tell you how to live. And maybe
I'm butting in right now, but I really thought.. .we had some-
thing..." She heard the break in his voice, but before she
could say a word, he continued, this time with a stony
expression and steel in his words. "But I have to say, as
Leah's father, that I think it's completely unacceptable for
you to invite a strange man to come live in your home while
she's there. I'm sure you know that all this has been very
upsetting to her~"
Maggie felt as if she'd been slapped, and all of her
defenses sprang into action. "But I talked to Leah about it
just last night, and she said it was fine. Besides, Gavin has
really changed, Jed, you should talk to him. And not only
that, but my mother's there most of the time, and Spencer