I exhaled deeply before picking up the phone to answer Mr. Exec’s call.

Me: Hey.  [Pause.]  What's up?

Mr. Exec: Hello.  How are you?

Me: Good. 

We continued to awkwardly exchange pleasantries for a few minutes before Mr. Exec told me why he was calling:

I saw your post on Facebook.

Me: Uh huh.  [I wasn’t exactly sure about which part of the update he was referring to, and I didn’t want to give him an inch.]

Mr. Exec: I’m worried about that guy harassing you in your neighborhood.  If you’d like me to arrange to have a police car there while you’re walking Nutter to make sure you’re safe, just let me know.

Me: Thanks.  I really appreciate that.  I hope I don’t need to do that, though.  I just spoke with a police officer about Creepy Apology Man.

We spoke more about that before Mr. Exec updated me on his work projects and asked about my appointments with the doctors.

Me: Well, the neurosurgeon will be speaking with my other doctors about whether I’m a good candidate for surgery.  And, I have to get two biopsies next week for the breast issues.

Mr. Exec: Is anyone going with you next week?

Me: Yes, Julie should be.

Mr. Exec: Please let me know how it goes and if you need anything.  I’ll be keeping you in my prayers and hoping that everything is okay.

Me: Thanks.

He seemed protective and caring, which I hadn't felt in a while.  When he mentioned us getting together that weekend, I said, "Sure."  As I hung up the phone, a thought crossed my mind:

There were quite a few times over the past few months when Mr. Exec hadn't be there for me or we hadn't seemed as though we were on the same page.  But, he wasn't without his endearing side.  He cared in his own way.  I just needed to figure out if that was enough for me.

Mr. Exec did come over that weekend, and there was a different vibe to our interaction.  We kissed and cuddled for an hour much like we had in the beginning, and our conversation seemed sincere since he hadn’t been drinking. 

Not surprisingly, the sex was amazing and intense. Thankfully, though, it was also uncharacteristically loving.

The way he looked me in the eyes and said that I would always be his;

The way he held me so close as he kissed me; and

The way he whispered that he wanted me to be okay because I had been through so much health stuff already and he didn't want me to be in any more pain.

Mr. Exec was a character and I knew that his selfish and narcissistic ways would rear their ugly heads again.  But, I found myself hoping that the kind Mr. Exec would stay around for a while before that happened.

While he was over, neither of us brought up our previous discussion about my blogging about our time together.  It seemed that we were past that without any further conversation.

It was the perfect night.  I liked that he referred to "us" as a couple and talked about things we would do together over the summer.  I was elated…up until the point when he brought up the "terms" of our relationship.

To be continued…

PS I’m writing this post while receiving my second round of chemotherapy.  I might not be able to promptly reply to your Tweets, comments and updates, but please know how much your support, thoughts and prayers mean to me! xoxo