She had recently arrived from Edmonton after settling up her personal affairs. She was an attractive redhead, about mid-thirties and very confident in...what she did. She had a degree in accounting and was a stickler for detail. I hoped I would find her easy to work with, and so far that seemed to be the case.I was amazed at the amount of granite Al's suppliers carried. I didn't want to guess how much money was tied up in inventory. The raw material came from all over the world. Russia, Brazil,. We fell silent, and we looked at each other's eyes. I felt a real connection growing. She then put her hand tenderly on mine and said, "I really like you, Frank. I think you have some special qualities. I really want to get to know you well." I'd really like that too, Carolyn," I said, squeezing her hand gently.We didn't say much until the waiter came by and asked, "Anything else for you folks?" Just the bill, please," Carolyn and I said in unison. That made us laugh. I was really feeling close. " He wrapped Dove and Jane in his arms. He gave each of them a deep kiss then they all returned to work.On his next trip to Dallas Sam picked up a wedding set that nearly matched those Dove and Jane wore. When he returned to his home his women met him at the front yard boundary as they normally did. He hugged and kissed first Jane then Dove. Ginnie held back until the other two were finished with their greeting before she moved into Sam's embrace.After they kissed Ginnie started to move away. But this cocktail of fear and excitement was at the heart of the whole adventure we’d started with Jason.I knew that, just as Claire had been entirely open with me, I needed to respect her enough to do the same. We were now cuddled up on my favorite armchair, with Claire snuggling in my lap. I kissed her softly and stroked her long brown hair as I started my confession.“Claire honey. Thanks for sharing that with me, I know it wasn’t easy.”Claire gave me a loving look that melted my heart and.