“You should be going to brunch. You’re a country club brunch girl.”

“I’m not.”

“Do you have shoes that match your suits?”

“Yes….”

“Case closed.”

“Anne says I need to make new friends.” I cross one arm over my chest, hold the phone more tightly. “She says I need to make divorced friends.”

“Which one is Anne?”

“The one who was supposed to go to Hawaii with me but couldn’t because her husband got sick.”

“Oh, that’s right. The yokel couldn’t be left alone because he had a flu bug.”

“He’s not a yokel. He’s a doctor.”

“Even worse. A doctor who can’t be left alone with a flu bug. Give me a break.”

“He didn’t think he could manage the kids.”

“He can cut into people but not take care of his own kids?”

I’m laughing despite myself. “It’s not that simple.”

“Of course it is. He was being a big baby and you know it. And this is the friend who tells you that you need to make new friends?”

“She thinks I need divorced friends.”

“Why?”

“Because they’ll understand what I’m going through and have more free time.”

“That’s horrible.”

I reach for the magazine that’s poking my back and push it away. “I don’t think she meant it to hurt me. But it did.”

“So what did you do last night?”

“Watched an HBO movie.”

He’s silent for a moment, and I’m not sure what he’s thinking. I wait for him to speak, but when he doesn’t I break the silence. “Kai?”

“Hmmm.”

“You’re not upset with me, are you?”

“No, girl.”

“But…?”

He hesitates. “Maybe your friend’s right. Maybe it’s time you met people there. Dated more there. I don’t want you sad or feeling lonely.”

“That’s part of life, though, you know?”

“You’re too special to be sad or lonely, Jackie. Promise me you’ll start meeting people, going out on dates.”

I laugh incredulously. “You want me to date?”

“I want you to have a great life.”

“I don’t want to date.”

“And I don’t want you spending the next year watching HBO movies alone.”

I don’t answer, and the silence stretches. Slowly I sit up, leave my bed to go open the window blind in my room. Sun peeks through thin layers of cloud. “But I like you, Kai,” I finally say.

“And I like you. A lot. Which is why I want you to meet someone who can take care of you. Make your life better.”