"Maybe he'd at least have appreciated it."So here she sat, staring at the phone. Since she only worked part time, she had the whole day free."I'm goin...g to do it." Jackie said out loud to then empty room.As soon as the words left her lips, she felt greatly relieved. Of course an hour from now she could loose her nerve again. Before she did, she started dialing the phone."Doctor O'Connor's office." said the voice that answered on the other end of telephone."Is this Colleen?" Jackie asked."No,. ........................Dexter was in his mother's bedroom where she had him try on one of herdresses."It looks just fine Dexter," his mother said admiring the pink, white,and black dress."No it doesn't mom. It's a dress. I'm a guy. I feel stupid wearingthis thing." Oh hush Dexter. Turn around and let me see the back."Dexter turned."I think wearing my dresses will do for now. This is one of myfavorite dresses." She looked him over again. "A padded bra, will fillit out the dress here," she said. If that wasn’t enough (and it was enough, by the way), I was sort of ready to quit traveling. I still enjoyed my job as a lean manufacturing consultant but I was starting get sick of the travel. At first it had been handy, in a sad way. When someone asked, directly or indirectly, why I didn’t have any friends, I could just make it seem like I traveled so much that it was impossible. That was more comfortable than admitting that I had given up on relationships, both romantic and platonic, and. "Who was it?" I asked."Edie ... Edie Parr," Sarah replied, and I could hear unfamiliar nervousness in her tone."Your ex ... oh dear ... what did she want?" She wondered why I haven't called her since the end of term." Did you tell her?" I felt nervous too."Um ... sort of ... I said I had a cousin staying and we've been busy. I put her off."I left it at that, and handed Sarah the joint we'd been smoking. I wasn't worried really, I was too happy.The next day, the phone rang just after lunch -.