Ben nodded. “As long as he’s signed all of the waivers,” he said.

“Hey, is Caddie coming back?” Angela asked him. “She hasn’t been here for a few days. She’s not sick of us, is she?”

“She’s been ... busy ...” Ben answered. “But I think she’ll be back.”

“Good,” said Angela. “I like her. And I see Hudson was here earlier.” She paused, and Ben realized she was waiting for him to say something that might indicate Hudson’s level of interest in her.

“Yes,” he said. “He was.”

Angela waited a few more seconds before saying, “Okay. Well, I’ll be going.”

Couldn’t you think of something to tell the poor girl? Carol again, as if she’d been watching the whole exchange and scoring his performance. Or maybe you’re jealous of her.

“I am not,” Ben objected. He smacked his palm on the desk. What was he doing? He was arguing with his ex-wife’s voice. No, he told himself, you’re arguing with yourself; you just gave yourself her voice.

That was it. He had to get out of there or he was going to go crazy. Quickly, before he could remember how much he still had to do, he got up and headed for the door, leaving behind the magazine and the Spanish shawls, which, oblivious to his torment, continued their silent orgy.

“Caddie? Are you home?”

He stood in the living room, awaiting a response. When none came, he went upstairs and called again. Finally, he went to Caddie’s room and peered inside, in case she was asleep. But her bed was empty.

Having ascertained that he was alone, he retired to his own bedroom, where he shut the door behind him. Sitting on his bed, he removed his shoes, setting them beside the nightstand, then his socks. His pants followed, folded and placed on a nearby chair, where they were joined moments later by his shirt. Only his T-shirt and boxers remained, and he kept them on while he considered what he was about to do.

Once, in the first session of a class Ben had taken concerning the philosophy of science, the instructor had opened with a statement by the thirteenth-century philosopher–scientist Roger Bacon. “The strongest arguments prove nothing so long as the conclusions are not verified by experience. Experimental science is the queen of sciences and the goal of all speculation.”

Ben had never forgotten those words, and in fact often shared them with students and interns of his own. It was, as far as he was concerned, the foundation of scientific study: If something could be claimed, then it should be possible to prove it; if not, the claim could be rejected.