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look into her eyes, and try to see if she was lying.
    “No, I wouldn’t. I work hard at ignoring those in the limelight. I know a few of the really huge stars, Pitt, Gere, Cruise, but I can manage to stay away from this newer crowd and the kind-of-famous, but not-so-famous group.”
    “Ah, so you’re saying Taylor is a nobody.”
    “That’s not what I said. Then again I don’t really know.”
    Martin leaned back, satisfied she was telling the truth. It was strange and fun that she had no idea who he was. It felt good and real, and as he watched her he realized it was the most at ease he’d felt in a long time, maybe even years. When she glanced up from her work he smiled and she went on talking.
    “Maids 101 always warns us girls to be careful, but this time, they just couldn’t say enough about how I needed to avoid Mr. Taylor. How I needed to stay away from him . . . well . . . we’ve been over this already.” 
    Randi grew quiet, and Martin knew she was recalling their conversation, about the fact that he was, or was not, sleeping with Celia. For the first time in months Martin wished he wasn’t sleeping with anyone.
    He wished he could look this young woman in the eye and say, no, he wasn’t doing anything with the lady of the house. But he couldn’t, and since this couldn’t go anywhere, he didn’t question her further. He just sat watching and enjoying the attention as she bandaged and wrapped gauze around his hand.
    A few minutes later she was finished. She looked at his hand and met his gaze. He could see regret in those pretty eyes, and as she stood she let her fingers slide over the back of his hand.
    He wasn’t sure if it was reflex, or the feeling that something special was slipping through his fingers. No matter what it was, he reached up and held onto her hand.
    What could he say? Was he about to leave Celia for a woman he’d just met? Was he thinking about cheating? “Thanks, for the help.” As his good sense came back he let go of her hand.
    “You’re welcome.” She all but whispered as she walked past. Martin let out a deep breath, pressed his fingers against his forehead, and tried to work this out in his head. As he rose he noticed the pudding.
    He picked it up and turned, but she was gone. A bit of his heart sank as the events of the day played through his mind. This beauty had entered his life at a strange time. If he and Celia weren’t having troubles would he even be looking at Randi, or thinking about her? 
    Martin kept the pudding and took a spoon from the drawer. He turned out the lights and walked to the foot of the stairs. He looked to his left where Randi slept, and looked up the steps to where Celia lay. He felt he was at some kind of crossroads. He opened the pudding and took a spoonful.
    Celia and he had been drifting apart and their schedules at times were conflicting. As he took another bite of pudding he tried to recall the last time they’d been intimate and he couldn’t. Strange he hadn’t noticed until now.
    He glanced back toward Randi’s room. The phrase 'out with the old and in with the new' came to mind. Things were going downhill with Celia, but that wasn’t an excuse to cheat.
    He didn’t want Celia, and it would be easy at this moment to want Randi. This was one reason why he turned from the stairs and made his way across the living room and down a set of steps to the spare bedroom. It would be the first time he’d slept alone in months, but he had a feeling it would not be the last.
     
    Chapter 7
    Saturday
     
    The first day of work at a new job could be rough. Learning the pace, getting your bearings, finding your place on the service team, could make your stress level rise.
    The morning meeting helped put Randi at ease. The temporary help seemed friendly, and that was a good sign. Nancy kept saying this job was important, but didn’t say why. Not knowing made Randi nervous.
    Was there something bigger at stake? Could they be about to overtake