He asked, "How about you? Don't you have to go to work?"

Kate felt her face getting red. "I'm not working right now."

He reached for the percolator, which Erika had set in the middle of the table. "Want a job? A guy I know is looking for someone who can type from dictaphone."

"I guess so." Kate frowned. "I have to do something."

"I'll give Ken a ring tomorrow and see if it's still open."

Kate was silent, not wanting to be obligated to the man. Erika said, "That would be nice." She sounded tired. Kate, looking at her sharply, saw that her face looked weary. A vein jumped in the back of her hand.

"Yes, I'd like that," she made herself say. "What does it pay?"

"About seventy, I think." Doug looked at his watch. "Hey, it's after three. Anything else you kids need done before I take off? Looks to me like you're pretty well settled."

"It was wonderful of you to help us."

"You can carry my piano up when I move," Doug said grinning. Kate looked at him, two lines between her brows. She thought, he does look like Paul. No, he doesn't. Erika's imagining things. She had never even seen Paul. Kate tried to be grateful to him and couldn't feel anything but resentment.

"There's a nice guy," Erika said when he was gone. "All that food. Let's have him for a real dinner when we get settled, shall we?"

"Do we have to?"

Erika stacked soggy paper plates rapidly. "I wonder if we have a garbage can, or shall we buy one? Yes, darling, we have to."

"Well then, we have to."

Now they were alone, in the silence of an apartment-house Sunday afternoon. Kate looked around. Without rugs or curtains, it still had a look of home. She wanted desperately to throw her arms around Erika and hold her close, until they were like one person. She glanced at Erika and was shocked to see how tired she looked. Better not start anything. She said suddenly, "I'm going to take a bath and then pick everything up for the laundromat. There's a nice one on the next block."

"I'll go along."

"No, you take a nap. I won't be gone long."

It was the first time she had really done anything for Erika, unless you counted making love—which was, after all, primarily a matter of Erika's doing something for her. She went whistling down the back stairs with a pillowcase full of soiled towels and clothes, feeling good and calm.

Doug called around eleven o'clock. They were just getting ready for bed. Erika said "Damn!" and answered, and Kate laughed. But when he asked for her, she sobered. The job was hers, he said cheerfully. Ken wanted to interview her, but that was just a formality. "Nine in the morning. And what are you doing tomorrow night? How about a movie?"

The obligation was plain and she looked questioningly at Erika. "I'm sorry, we're going out tomorrow evening."