She told him about the ring Mrs. Carl had bought and given to Pauly to use for their engagement. “I went to him expecting a marriage proposal. It wasn’t as though I didn’t know it was coming. It wasn’t ‘if’ but ‘when.’ But he said nothing about the ring, so I asked.” She paused. “Pauly said he’d returned it to the store.”

“You’re kidding!” Adam almost shouted.

Kelly started to get up, but he clasped her forearm and she sat back down. “Sorry. It’s just that you’re so much...so much more than he is! I’m not denigrating him but everyone thinks that.”

“Pauly has been safe, and I—”

“You what?” When she hesitated, he said, “You can talk to me.”

“Only if you swear on your life that you won’t tell Vera. I have to protect her.”

“Protect Vera? What does that mean?”

“She has to be free to leave. No obligations. No chains holding her here. She stayed here for me. She gave up going to Africa for me.”

“And for your mother,” he said.

“Yes. For us. I can’t allow things to fall apart now. Vera will only leave if I’m settled.”

“I understand,” he said. “Robbie told me about this. Actually, he shouted it at me. I gather that Mrs. Carl is a problem.”

“She’s an absolute witch to most people, but she often tells me she loves me.”

“But if you don’t marry Paul she’ll take you away from Dr. Carl. Then where will you work?”

“Exactly!”

He leaned back against the wall. “Have you ever been on a date with anyone other than Paul?”

Kelly shook her head. “How about you and Vera?”

“In Africa—” He waved his hand. “I’ve never asked a girl out to dinner or a movie. Except Vera and that was more—”

“I know,” Kelly said. “You don’t ask. You just say, ‘Which movie do you want to see on Saturday?’”

“Or ‘Wanna eat at the diner or the burger place?’”

They were quiet for a moment.

“If Pauly and I are broken up, how do I...?”

“Get into dating?” he asked.

“Yes. I admit that I’ve wondered what other boys are like. All through high school my girlfriends would fall in love one week, then break up the next. I was always glad that I didn’t have to go through that.”

“You couldn’t have done that and worked with Dr. Carl and studied so that now you’re the top of your class.”

Kelly smiled. “That’s true. Pauly never complained when I canceled something because I was helping his dad.”

“And besides, he had his tree obsession to occupy him.”