Lucy looked at her in surprise. “What are you talking about? I’m dating Ben and you’re with Jason.”

“But I’m not. Not really. You talked me into this date. There’s no spark there for either of us. But it looked to me like there might be a connection with the two of you. Unless you prefer Ben, of course.”

Lucy sighed. “Ben’s really nice, but he didn’t mention anything about going out again this time. I’ll wait and see. Are you sure you don’t like Jason? He seems like such a great guy.”

“He is. But he’s not for me. I think maybe he’s better for you. Maybe he’ll come to your art show and you can see what happens from there.”

“Maybe. I think Ben might still be dating Andrea, anyway. So, I will give this some thought.”

Andrea was pleasantly surprised when Ben called on Sunday to see if she wanted to play her first round of golf with him the next day.

“I thought I remembered you saying you sometimes have Monday off?”

“I do and I’d love to. Are you sure it’s okay for me to play on an actual course already, though?”

He laughed. “Yes, you’ll be with me and I’ll be helping you. It’s the best way to learn—to just get out there and do it. It will be fun.”

They agreed to meet at his country club the next day at two in the afternoon. Andrea wondered if he was still dating Paula. She felt a little guilty about that, but at the same time also had a sense of satisfaction that maybe she was taking something away that Paula had wanted. It seemed fitting, somehow. It still bothered her that she’d been forced to leave the role she thought she’d be in forever and by Paula, of all people.

She just didn’t see how Paula was a better option. She didn’t seem entirely comfortable in the role. Andrea couldn’t help but notice that she often seemed nervous and quiet in her interactions with groups of staff. She was better at one-on-ones. Andrea had loved talking to groups of people. But truth be told, there were aspects of the job that she didn’t enjoy. All the details and follow up needed and all the meetings and putting out fires. So many fires, all the time.