Perfect Specimen Read Online Free Page A

commute as Clay drove back toward his apartment. He was almost there when on impulse he turned his convertible onto the country road leading to his parents’ neighborhood—the one where he had been raised—and the world turned sleepy again. Not another moving vehicle in sight. He wasn’t sure why he had chosen the detour. His usual habit in the face of stress or disappointment was to bury himself in work, but the thought of going to his office depressed him. And his apartment? It would remind him of Sara.
    His married ex-girlfriend.
    He hadn’t felt like such a chump—such a loser—since the days when his older brothers had cheerfully demolished him in various games both indoors and out at their family’s sprawling ranch house. Of course, he had eventually grown into a formidable competitor and could now pretty much take either of them in any physical contest. Still, at times like these, the only home that seemed to matter was the one where he’d gotten his ass kicked so often.
    Unfortunately, his parents were out of the country celebrating their fortieth wedding anniversary with a whirlwind tour of Europe. Otherwise, his mother would have been happy to cook him a big, comforting breakfast. This morning, however, the house would be empty except for Randy, the youngest of the four Ryerson brothers, and the most delinquent by far. Clay was sure he wouldn’t see lazy-assed Randy until at least noon, which suited him fine.
    He didn’t want to actually see his little brother. He just wanted to eat some of the neatly packaged home-cooked food his mother would have left in the freezer for her “baby”—the only child remaining in the nest.
    Pulling into the driveway next to Randy’s Mustang, Clay realized that the brother he really wanted to see was Mark, a.k.a. the shrink. He had never before sought or welcomed the opinion of either of his older brothers, but given the events of this particular morning, he truly needed Mark’s. So before he entered the house, he flipped open his cell phone and left the psychologist a message that said simply : I’ve got a problem. Wait, scratch that. I’ve got two problems. So meet me at Mom’s ASAP, okay?
    Two problems. One that had been dumped on him—unfairly and cruelly—by Sara.
    And one he had created himself by doing the stupidest thing he’d ever done in his life.
    Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the soft fabric folder he had lifted from her desk in a moment of weakness while she had been conferring with her doctor. The embroidered title— My Journal —had warned him not to touch, yet had also acted as a magnet. He had picked it up, wrestling with his conscience, and then he had heard the bedroom doorknob rotating, announcing her return, so he had shoved the miniature diary into his pocket, intending to return it to its original location before he left.
    Then she had dropped the M-bomb and he had stormed out of the place, making a huge display of leaving the towel behind, while completely forgetting to leave the diary.
    “Because this day wasn’t bad enough already,” he grumbled to himself as he exited his car and strode up onto the back porch. “You had to act like a freaking stalker. Excellent work, Ryerson. Maybe if you keep it up, you can get yourself disbarred. Then the humiliation will be complete.”
    As he let himself into his mother’s deserted kitchen, he was almost laughing at the irony of the situation. Every day—hundreds of times a day!—guys got dumped by pretty girls. Sure it hurt, but they drowned their sorrows in their favorite alcoholic beverages and moved on, sadder but wiser.
    But that wasn’t enough for Clay. He apparently needed a full-fledged intervention complete with his own personal shrink. He wanted to believe it was because Sara wasn’t just a pretty girl. She was special. Unique. And she was in love with Clay whether she wants to admit it or not.
    But didn’t all dumped guys tell themselves that?
    “Welcome to the