An Independent Wife (6 page)

"He knows," she told him matter-offactly, sticking her head through the door. "It's okay, he didn't fire me."

Greg shoved his fingers roughly through his hair, rumpling the prematurely gray strands into untidy peaks. "You've aged me ten years, doll." He sighed. "I'm glad he knows, that's a weight off me. Is it going to be common knowledge?"

"I wouldn't think so," she hedged. "He didn't mention that. Coral is in his office now, and I don't think he'd want anyone fouling up that relationship."

"What a wonderfully understanding wife you are," he mocked, and she stuck her tongue out at him.

With all of the tension behind her she attacked the article she was writing with renewed vigor and finished it that afternoon. Again Chris stopped by her desk, this time to tell her that he was leaving that night for Miami. "Want to see me off?" he invited, and she readily accepted.

Sometimes it was nice to see a familiar face in the crowd when you got on a flight in the middle of the night, so she saw nothing unusual about Chris wanting her company. It wasn't until they were on their way to the airport that Sallie realized that Chris had sought out her company several times lately. She liked Chris, he was a good, steady friend, but she knew that it would never develop into anything more serious on her part. Rather than let the situation stew, she asked him frankly, "Just for the record, why are you asking me to lunch, to see you off, etcetera? Is it for a reason I should know?"

"I'm using you," he admitted just as frankly. "You're good company and you don't expect anything more than friendship. You keep my ego built up, too, because you're a great-looking woman."

She had to chuckle; in her opinion great-looking women were not petite dynamos with more energy than fashion sense. But it was still nice to have a man voice that opinion. "Thanks," she told him cheerfully, "but that still doesn't tell me why."

He raised his sandy eyebrows. "Because of another woman, of course. What else could it be?"

"Anyone I know?" she asked.

"No, she's not in this business. She lives in my apartment building and she's the nesting type. She wants a nine-to-five husband, and I can't see myself settling down into that routine. It's a standoff. She won't back down and neither will L"

"So what will you do?"

"Wait. I'm a patient man. She'll either come around or we won't get together, it's that simple."

"Why should she do all the giving?" Sallie asked indignantly, amazed that even reasonable Chris should expect the woman to make all of the adjustments.

"Because I know I can't," he mocked, smiling a little. "I know my limitations, Sal. I only hope she's stronger than I am and can make some changes."

Then he deftly changed the subject and Sallie realized that he had revealed as much as he was going to.

They talked shop for the rest of the time, and she waited with him for his flight to be called, sensing that he felt vulnerable. Leaving for a long trip in the middle of the night with no one to see you off was a lonely experience, and she was willing to give him at least one familiar face to wave goodbye to.

It was after ten when she finally got back to her apartment and she quickly showered and got ready for bed. Just as she turned out the lamp the phone rang and she switched the light back on to answer it.

"Sallie? Where in hell have you been?" Rhy demanded impatiently, and as always his husky voice made her spine tingle.

"At the airport," she found herself answering automatically.

"Meeting someone?" he asked, and his voice became sharper.

"No, seeing someone off." She had recovered her poise, and she quickly asked, "Why are you calling?"

"You left this afternoon before we got anything settled," he snapped.

Mystified, she echoed, "Settled? What's there to settle?"

"Our marriage, for one thing," he retorted sarcastically.

Abruptly she understood and tried to reassure him that she wouldn't cause any trouble in the termination of their marriage. "We shouldn't have any trouble getting a divorce, considering how long we've been separated. And getting a divorce is a good idea. We should have done it sooner. Seven years is a long time. It's obvious that our marriage is over in every respect except legally. I see no reason why it shouldn't be ten-ninated on paper, too."

"You talk too much," he observed, the rasp coming into his voice that warned of his rising temper.

Confused, Sallie fell silent. What had she said to make him angry? Why had he brought up the subject if he didn't want to talk about it?

"I don't want a divorce," he said a moment later. "I've found it very convenient, having a little wife tucked away somewhere."

She laughed and sat up in bed, pushing a pillow behind her back for support. "Yes, I can see where it would come in handy," she dared to tease him. "It keeps the husband-hungry women effectively at bay, doesn't it? Still, we've reached the point where to remain married is foolish. Shall I file or would you rather?"

"Are you being deliberately stupid?" he barked. "I said I don't want a divorce!"

Sallie fell silent again, stunned by his insistence. "But, Rhy!" She fiDally protested incredulously.

"Whyever not?"

"I told you," he said with the manner of one explaining the obvious. "I find it convenient to have a wife."

"You could always lie!"

"Why should I bother? And there's always the chance of a lie being found out. No, thank you for the offer, but I think I'll keep you, regardless of who you have waiting in the wings to take my place."

Abruptly Sallie was angry. Why had he called her at all if he didn't want a divorce, and who was he to make snide remarks about anyone waiting in the wings? "You're just being obnoxious!" she charged furiously. "What's wrong, Rhy? Is Coral crowding you a bit? Do you need your convenient wife for protection? Well, you can hide behind someone else, because I don't need your cooperation for a divorce! You deserted me, and you've been gone for seven years, and any judge in the state will give me a divorce!"

"You think so?" he challenged, laughing aloud. "Try it. I've made a lot of friends and divorcing me could be harder than you think. You'd better have a lot of money and a lot of time before you start, and you'd better have a more reliable job. You're in a rather vulnerable position, aren't you? You can't afford to make your boss angry."

"My boss can go straight to-to hell!" she shouted furiously and slammed the receiver down, The phone began ringing again immediately and she glared at it for a moment, then when it continued its irritating noise she reached over and unplugged it, something she rarely did in case Greg needed to reach her.

Then she turned out the lamp and pounded her pillow into shape, but any chance for sleep was now remote. She lay in the darkness and fumed, wishing she could take her temper out on Rhy's head. Why had he called at all if he didn't want to talk about a divorce? If he wanted to use her to keep Coral at a distance he could just find someone else to do his dirty work for him! Personally, she thought Coral was just his type, someone poised and sophisticated who wouldn't care if her husband was more interested in his job than in his wife.

Then, as if someone had turned on a light in a dark room, she knew why Rhy was so stubborn about not getting a divorce, why he had asked all of those prying, suggestive questions about her friends. If she had learned anything at all about Rhy during the year they had been together it was that he was a possessive man. He didn't want to give up anything that belonged to him, and that included his wife. It obviously didn't bother him that thousands of miles might separate them, that they hadn't seen each other in years, his attitude was that once his wife, always his wife. He might not want her anymore, but he was too stubborn to give her up if he thought anyone else might want to marry her. What he didn't realize was that her attitude was much the same as his: once was enough.

She admitted honestly to herself that she would never love another man as she had loved Rhy, and even though she had now recovered from the emotional damage he'd inflicted she didn't think she'd ever be able to love so passionately, so demandingly again. Neither was she willing to settle for a lukewarm, comfortable relationship after having known such a love.

Of course, there'd be no convincing him that she didn't want a divorce in order to marry another man.

He'd never understand the need she felt to be free of him. While he'd been only a distant figure it hadn't bothered her, but now that he was going to be around pen-nanently she felt stifled. Rhy's character was too forceful, too possessive, and if he thought he had any legal authority over her he wouldn't hesitate to use it in any way he wanted.

For the first time Sallie seriously faced the possibility that she might have to hunt for another job. She loved her job, she liked working for World in Review, but there were other publications. And with Rhy threatening to fire her if she tried to divorce him the best thing she could do was spike that weapon before he had a chance to use it.

Sallie stared morosely at the keys of her typewriter, trying to force words into a reasonable sentence, but her mind stayed stubbornly blank and so did the white paper rolled into the machine. She had always been so enthusiastic about her work, the words pouring from her in swift, flowing sentences, that this block she was experiencing was tying her nerves into kingsize knots. She'd never had this trouble before and she was at a loss. How could she write about something that bored her to tears? And this article was boring!

Brom had been summoned to Greg's office and now he returned. "I'm off," he announced, clearing the top of his desk. "Munich."

Sallie swiveled in her chair to face him. "Anything interesting?"

"A Common Market meeting. There's some trouble that could break it up. I'll see you when I get back."

"Yeah, okay," Sallie said, and tried to smile. Brom paused by her desk and his hand touched her shoulder. "Is anything wrong, Sal? You've been acting under the weather for a couple of weeks now.

Have you seen a doctor?"

"It's nothing," she assured him, and he left. When she was alone again she turned back to the typewriter and scowled at it. She hadn't seen a doctor; there was nothing to cure boredom. Why was she being kept in the office? Greg knew that she did her best work in the field, but it had been three weeks since she'd returned from Washington and she hadn't been on a single assignment since then, not even a small one. Instead she'd been flooded with "suggestions" for articles that anyone could have written. She'd done her best, but she'd come up against a stone wall now and suddenly she was angry.

If Greg wasn't going to use her she wanted to know why!

In determination she switched off her typewriter and made her way to Greg's office. He wasn't there, so she sat down to wait, and as she waited her temper faded, but her resolve didn't. The natural tenacity that kept her on a lead when she wanted a story also kept her firm in her decision to get to the bottom of why suddenly Greg was ignoring her. They'd always had the best of working relationships, respect mixed with affection, and now it was as if Greg no longer trusted her to do her job.

She had to wait almost forty minutes before Greg returned, and when he opened the door and saw her sitting there, a wary, concerned expression crossed his face before he quickly smoothed it away. "Hi, doll, how's the article going?" he greeted her.

"It isn't. I can't do it."

He sighed at the blunt announcement and sat down behind his desk. After toying with a pencil for a minute he said easily, "We all have problems occasionally. What's wrong with the article? Anything you can put your finger on?"

"It's boring," she said baldly and Greg flinched. "I don't know why you've been throwing all the garbage at me, so I'm asking you, why? I'm good at my job, but you aren't letting me do it. Are you trying to force me to resign? Has Rhy decided that he doesn't want his wife working for him, but he doesn't want to make things look bad by firing me?"

Greg ran his fingers through his gray-brown hair and sighed, his hard, firm-jawed. face tense. "You're putting me on the spot," he muttered. "Can't you just let things rest for a while?"

"No!" she exploded, then calmed herself "I'm sorry, I think I know that it isn't your fault, you've always given me the assignments you thought I could handle. It's Rhy, isn,t it?,,

"He's taken You off foreign assignments," Greg affirmed.

Though Sallie had braced herself for something like that, to hear the words actually spoken and her suspicions confirmed was a worse blow than she had anticipated. She paled and visibly shrank in her seat. Taken off assignment! It was a deadly blow. All of the passion she'd offered to Rhy had been transferred to herjob when he walked out and through the years she'd learned that a satisfying job had enriched her life. She didn't doubt that a psychologist would tell her that her job was merely a substitute for what she really wanted, a man, and perhaps it had been at first. But she was no longer the same person she'd been seven years before; she was a mature, independent adult, and she felt as a musician rnight if his hands were crippled, as if her life had been blighted.

Through a throat thick with horror she murmured, 'Why?"

"I don't know why," Greg replied. "Look, honey, all I know is he took you off foreign assignment. You can still cover anything in the States and several things have come up but I kept you here because anyone could have covered the others and I wanted you available in case something more important developed. Maybe I was wrong. I was trying to do what was best for the magazine, but I know how you are about being in one place for too long. If anything comes up, regardless of what it is, do you want it? Just say the word and it's yours."

"It doesn't matter," she said wearily, and he frowned. Defeat wasn't something he expected from Sallie.

Then she looked up and her dark blue eyes were beginning to spark with anger. "On second thought, yes, I do want it. Anything! If you can keep me gone for six months straight, that will be fine, too. The only way I'm going to keep from killing Rhy is if I'm kept away from him. Was this supposed to be kept secret, that I'm off foreign assignment?"