"Oh, he definitely needs it," she assure him. "God forbid he be a man and not a monument for a few days."

But she says it with deep, deep fondness and trust; the kind that comes from spending years at one man's side, living and working together as agents, as friends, as lovers. "And if I can help you save your Sharon, that'll be a cherry on top of my already sundae-like day."

She studies him, rolling her bottle between her fingers. "I'm trying to think if anything else I know might be helpful, but I'm not sure how much of what I went through applies here."