Joan Hudson: I want to call my lawyer.
Lt. Columbo: Dr. Flemming murders his wife and you want to call your lawyer?
Lt. Columbo: There must be something wrong with me. I seem to bother people, to make them nervous.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Are you sure of everything? Shall I do it over again?
Joan Hudson: No, I don't want to talk about it anymore.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Ah, but it will be fine, I promise you. Just pretend you're working on a role, right down to the props.
Dr. Ray Flemming: They expect me to be on call at all hours.
Lt. Columbo: Same with me, Doctor.
Lt. Columbo: I think I'm too suspicious. I don't trust people, that's my trouble.
Dr. Ray Flemming: People don't always do the rational thing.
Lt. Columbo: Oh, they sure don't! You learn a lot about that in my line. Well, I guess you do in yours too.
Lt. Columbo: There's just one more thing, sir.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Lieutenant, if there's any further way I can be of assistance to you.
Lt. Columbo: Oh, no, no, no, you just make out that list, that'll be fine, Doc.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Thank you.
Lt. Columbo: Oh, oh, one more thing, before I forget.
Lt. Columbo: You know my sister, she has a living room that's very, very modern. But the minute you sit down in it, you can't open your mouth. You know, she's got this big kidney-shaped coffee table, it upsets me just to look at it. Her husband doesn't say anything and I figure the coffee table got to him years ago.
Lt. Columbo: I was wondering, Doctor, would you take me on as a patient?
Dr. Ray Flemming: Take you on as a what?
Lt. Columbo: No, I mean it. Maybe you can help me. I don't know, There must be something wrong with me. I seem to bother people. I seem to make them nervous. Maybe you can tell me why.
Dr. Ray Flemming: I didn't think you'd be up.
Carol Flemming: Don't bother to undress. You're sleeping in the guest room. I've turned down the bed.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Carol.
Carol Flemming: I think you should know I'm calling my lawyers in the morning.
Dr. Ray Flemming: It's been a long day. Do we have to start on that again?
Carol Flemming: You'll have to indulge me just this one last time, dearie. It's lucky for you I'm too well-bred to throw a tantrum.
Dr. Ray Flemming: All right. Fire away.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Lieutenant, for the past week, you've been asking me some rather pointless questions, and I am getting very tired of them.
Dr. Ray Flemming: With all that experience, you jumped to the wrong conclusion.
Lt. Columbo: What do you mean?
Dr. Ray Flemming: I didn't kill my wife.
Lt. Columbo: I never said that you did.
Dr. Ray Flemming: Oh, that's true. Imply. "Imply" is more the word. But if I killed my wife - and I did say "if" - you're never going to be able to prove it.
Suggested correction: This is a subtle hint that Fleming is preparing to frame his girlfriend for the murder. He would admit to having an affair with her (not a crime) but is going to deny any involvement in his wife's murder. (SPOLER ALERT!) Later he makes it clear that his girlfriend meant nothing to him and he didn't care that she had committed suicide (or so he thought).
Nowhere in the episode is this sub-plot explored or even mentioned.
Not only that, but the idea he was going to subtly frame his girlfriend doesn't make sense because he used her to establish his alibi. He tried to make it look like she was killed by an random intruder.
Bishop73