“Stop.” Teddy put her hand up. “There is no Adam and me. We’re not a couple. We’re only together for this short period. He and I set the rules and we’ll live by them.”
“Teddy, things always change. You know that.”
“Not this,” Diana said.
“Does he feel the same way about you?”
“I don’t know,” Teddy said, sorry this conversation had taken this turn.
“Does he know how you feel?”
Teddy shook her head. She hoped he didn’t know.
* * *
The jewelry store on the corner of Nassau and Williams Street had sat there for decades. Adam passed it almost daily, but he’d never stopped to look into the windows. Yet today he stood there, staring at a setting in the window. Would Teddy like that? he wondered. He pictured the ring decorating her elegant hand.
“Never buy the ring unless she’s there to pick it out,” someone said behind him. Adam turned to find Veronica Woods standing behind him. She was the last person he ever expected to find on a street in Princeton.
“Veronica, this is a surprise.”
“A good one, I hope,” she said. She leaned forward to kiss him. Adam pushed his cheek to hers and stepped back. Veronica was dressed impeccably in black and white, looking like someone he’d see on the cover of a glossy magazine. Her long coat was ringed with white fur around the neck and sleeves. On her head sat a matching hat. This framed her face, softened her features and made her desirable to any man—except him.
“What are you doing here? I thought you moved out to Chicago.”
“I did. I’m only back for a visit, but I’ll be here for a couple of weeks. When I left, I took a job working for a decorator. After a few years, I joined the partnership. A while after that, I was about to strike out on my own when we decided to open another office. I’m running that office.”
“Here in Princeton?” Veronica represented betrayal to him and he didn’t want to be reminded of it constantly. He knew she’d never really been in love with him, but the humiliation she heaped on him was not easily forgotten.
“Philadelphia,” she corrected with a shake of her head. “I came up today to see some old friends. I didn’t know one of them would be you. I take it you’re still running that investment company.”
He nodded, disappointed that she didn’t remember the name of his company. He could tell Veronica hadn’t changed much. She looked better than she had five years ago. Her clothes were designer originals, but her values were the same. She acted as if they’d parted as friends, as if nothing had occurred between them.
“Things must be going well if you’re looking in the window of a jewelry store.” She indicated the display windows behind him. “Who is she?”
Adam glanced at the window. The setting he’d been looking at sparkled. “You wouldn’t know her,” he replied. Adam hadn’t seen anyone on a steady basis since he and Veronica’s relationship had ended. He wasn’t about to let her think he was harboring any residual feelings for her.
“It must be serious. I never thought you’d give up your bachelorhood.”
“Change happens,” he said, refusing to mention anything about their past.
She smiled. Adam knew that look, knew that the sweeping down of her eyelashes meant she was covering something she didn’t want him to see.
“Why don’t you buy me a cup of coffee and tell me about her?”
He looked over her shoulder at the university that dominated the college town. “I’d love to, but I have to get back to that investment company. I only stepped out to pick up my lunch, which is probably ready by now. But it was great seeing you again.” He knew he was dismissing her. “Good luck with your design firm.”
She opened her purse and pulled out a business card. “Call me sometime.”
He took the card. “If I need a decorator.”
“Or if you just want to mull over good times.”
Adam doubted he would call for that reason, but he nodded. Veronica again leaned forward. This time she kissed his mouth. And of course it would happen then. As he raised his head he saw two women turn the corner and walk toward them. Immediately he recognized them both.