DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend, "Hector," showed up at my office the day before Valentine's Day with a dozen red roses. I was thrilled, because we'd been having major "relationship issues," and he hadn't given me flowers in ages.
When Hector handed me the bouquet, he informed me that he had extracted two roses for the receptionists at the front desk. When I told him he shouldn't have, his answer was, "You should be happy I'm nice to your co-workers -- they're probably envious that you have such a good man." At that point I asked him who he was trying to impress -- them or me?
To make matters worse, Hector then announced that the next day (Valentine's Day) he would be hooking up with a female friend who was in town. He planned to take her, his brother and another female friend out to dinner. I was not included. To add insult to injury, Hector had the nerve to ask me to baby-sit his brother's kids. The out-of-town friend is someone we have both known for years, but every time she visits, my "boyfriend" excludes me. What do you make of all this? Sign me ... DITCHED IN DEL MAR, CALIF.
DEAR DITCHED: Wake up and smell the flowers. Hector likes to impress many ladies and is not ready to make an exclusive commitment to you or anyone. Be grateful you found out now, and move on. Your signature says it all. You have, indeed, been ditched.