By Robin
 

The phone rang and Amanda hastily grabbed it. She glanced across the room at her mother who was eyeing her suspiciously. Then Amanda turned her back and walked towards the kitchen, phone in hand. She whispered quietly into the receiver, careful that her mother's inquisitive ears wouldn't overhear what she was saying.

"OK," she said loudly as she ended the conversation. "I'll meet you at the office then…"

"Amanda!" Dotty called out as her daughter hung up the phone and dashed towards the stairs. "We were going to watch that Cary Grant movie tonight."

"Mother, there's an emergency at IFF," she answered back as she stood at the bottom of the stairwell.

"You get a call, then the next thing I know you drop everything and rush out of the house," Dotty West scolded her daughter as she spied the clock on the wall. "It's almost ten o'clock. I don't believe there's an emergency at any film company. What could be so important that couldn't wait until a reasonable hour - like tomorrow morning? Where are you really going?"

Amanda knew her mother was perplexed by her odd behavior. How could she explain the phone calls that came at the strangest hour, day or night, weekend or weekday? When the phone rang, Amanda pounced on it, fearful that Dotty would answer the phone and would be even more meddlesome if she heard Lee's deep masculine voice. Her mother stared at her defiantly, waiting for a genuine, plausible answer.

She came back into the family room and sat down next to Dotty on the sofa. Amanda knew 'the look' all too well. Her mother wanted more than an 'IFF needs me' excuse. Although Amanda was getting better at lying, she never felt comfortable doing it, especially with her mother. She tried to come up with credible explanations that her mother might believe. But with each lie she knew her mother would only become more suspicious of the next phone call and the next excuse.

"Mother, you're right!" she announced taking a deep breath, but her mind was blank; she was fresh out of lies. Her mother's eyes stared resolutely at her, as if she could read her thoughts. Nervously, Amanda finally blurted out. "I'm secretly in love with a handsome spy. On a scale of one to ten, he's an eleven, but he barely notices that I'm a woman…"

Dotty stood up and angrily shook her finger at her daughter. "If you didn't want to tell me, you didn't have to. There was no need to go and make up a ridiculous story like that, Amanda!"

Amanda looked at her mother and shrugged her shoulders, letting out a long slow sigh. She noticed the clock on the wall in the kitchen. "Mother, I'm sorry. I don't know what to tell you, but I really need to go. I'll probably be home late, so don't wait up for me…"

___________________

Several months later…

Dotty sat in the family room of the house, again smelling the beautiful fragrant flowers that Lee Stetson had brought her. Amanda had just left moments ago with Lee for what he advised was 'just dinner'. She glanced over at the front door, somewhat bewildered by her daughter's casual attitude towards such a handsome, thoughtful and available bachelor.

"Hmmph, on a scale of one to ten, he's an eleven, and my daughter doesn't want to date him. My daughter's crazy!" Then shaking her head sharply she stared at the door, her mouth hung wide open. She swallowed hard before uttering out loud, "No, it couldn't be true???"

The end
 
 
 

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