Authors: Elizabeth Powers
Fortunately,
her book was good enough for her to get immediately sucked in, and before she
knew it, the plane was landing and Chase was putting his work away. She tucked
her book back into her purse, and looked out the window at the mountains off to
the west.
She
was surprised when Chase reached for her hand.
“I’m
sorry, Lena,” he said quietly.
“For
what?” she asked, genuinely unsure why he was apologizing.
“For
so rudely ignoring you the entire flight. I had hoped to get through a few
things quickly, but one thing turned into another, and…”
She
nodded. “It’s all right, Chase. I had a book. I don’t need to be entertained.”
He
looked puzzled. “Then why were you asking if I’d talk to you?”
Lena
shook her head. “I wasn’t asking if you’d talk to me. I was asking if you were
working so you didn’t
have
to talk to me. There’s a difference.”
Chase
raised her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm gently. “Would you like to
have dinner with me tonight?”
Lena
considered it briefly, but remembered all the things she still needed to do
that day, and shook her head.
“I’d
like that, but I probably shouldn’t tonight. I have to put in a few hours at
the shelter, and then I want to go over to my friend Kat’s house to pick up Winston.
I’d like to spend some time with her. Besides, it sounds like you have a lot of
your own work to do. The last thing you need is to worry about me.”
“Then
I’ll call you this week. Can I give you a ride home?”
“My
car is in the parking lot. I’ll just catch the shuttle bus and drive myself
home. Thanks, though.”
And
just like that, he was gone. She headed into the terminal with her suitcase,
and within twenty minutes, she was unlocking her car and loading her luggage into
her trunk. She shut the hatch, and just stood there for a few minutes, enjoying
the cool crisp air, and wondering what had just happened. Chase was confusing
her, she thought. Maybe it was because she was confusing him, or maybe
something else had him preoccupied. But she was glad that she had plans that
evening. Spending time with Kat was infinitely better than being alone.
The
following morning, Chase stopped at a nearby coffee shop on his way into work. He
was later than usual – he had gotten a lot done yesterday at the office, and
that had motivated him to spend some extra time at the gym that morning, rather
than rushing through his routine. He had checked in with his secretary, been
assured that his meetings didn’t start until 9:00, so he was taking his time as
he walked from the parking garage to his office. And coffee sounded
particularly good to him this morning. He hadn’t slept well the night before. Lena
had been on his mind, and he wasn’t sure exactly why.
After
ordering a tall black coffee, he stopped at the small table where he added a
dash of cream, and then made his way toward the door.
“Chase,
my boy. Good to see you.”
Chase
turned and nearly groaned when he saw Lena’s father sitting at one of the
tables, a newspaper in front of him. Instead, he smiled politely and said, “Good
to see you, sir. How are you?”
“Couldn’t
be better, son. Couldn’t be better. Have a seat, my boy. I’ve been wanting to
find a chance to talk with you.”
Chase
glanced at his watch. “I’m a bit pressed for time, Mr. Magill. I have about
five minutes before I should be headed to my office.”
“That’s
plenty,” the older man said magnanimously, waving at the chair across from him.
Chase removed his overcoat and sat down, crossing his legs and taking a sip of
his coffee.
“What
can I do for you, Mr. Magill?” he asked.
“Please,
call me William. I understand that you and Charlene are still seeing each other,”
he said with a sly grin.
Chase
nodded curtly. “From time to time, we are. We’re both busy, of course.”
William
tilted his head sagely. “Of course you are, son. Of course you are. You’re a
successful businessman. But listen, son. This crazy hobby of Charlene’s – once you
two get more serious, I’m sure you can talk her into giving it up. Or cutting
back significantly.”
Chase
looked up, startled. “What hobby are you referring to, William?”
“This
shelter work she’s doing. You know and I know that she can’t keep doing that
forever right?”
Chase
narrowed his gaze at the older man. “I’m not sure what you mean, sir. That’s
not a hobby. It’s her job.”
William
scoffed. “She doesn’t need a job.”
“Well,
she seems to think differently. Look, this is not really any of my business.”
“Of
course it is. You and I are businessmen. We’re aware that we have a certain
reputation to uphold in the community. Having a daughter, or a wife, who works
with people like that, in a place like that? It’s just not seemly.”
Chase
kept hold of his temper, but just barely. “Seemly?” he repeated.
“Well
exactly,” William said, seeming to think that Chase agreed with him. “We both
know that Charlene just needs the right incentive to leave that work. For now,
it keeps her occupied and gives her something worthwhile to do, but she can
find that same feeling of doing good for others by volunteering for various
charities, am I right?” He didn’t wait for Chase to respond. “Look. Just tell
her that she has to quit, and she will. She’s been waiting for a man like you.”
“A
man like me?”
“You
know what I mean. Someone who can take care of her. Make sure she’s decked out
in the right fashions, goes to the right salons – someone who can deal with her
firmly. She needs that.”
Chase
just looked incredulously at the man. “Sir, I don’t think Charlene would
appreciate what you’re saying.”
“No,
of course not,” William laughed. “She’s headstrong, that girl is. But don’t let
her fool you, son. She was born to the life that you and I lead. And that’s
where she belongs. She’ll settle down and make a good wife. And that shelter
thing won’t last with her. She likes having money as much as the next person. And
that’s the kind of woman you need, son. Someone who understands the importance
of your work.”
Thank
heaven for small mercies, Chase thought as his cell phone rang loudly. With a
quick glance at William, Chase answered the phone, and was relieved that his
secretary was on the line asking for guidance. With a promise that he’d be
right there, he murmured his apologies to William Magill and headed for the
door.
Poor Lena
, he thought. Right before,
but what if he’s right
?
On
Thursday morning, Lena was at Amelia’s desk, going over the school records of
one of the kids who spent significant time in the shelter. His attendance rate
had shot up over the past two months, and Lena was cautiously attributing that
to the stability that his family had found at Helping Hands.
“Is
that your phone?” Amelia asked, cocking her head to one side as she listed to
the ringing, trying to figure out what office it was coming from.
“I
think so. Hang on. I’ll be right back.” She ran down the hallway and into her
office, casually swinging the door behind her so that it closed partially. If
it was a private call, she'd circle back around and shut it firmly.
“This
is Lena Magill with Helping Hands,” she said into the phone.
“Lena?”
There was a delay in the connection, but the sound was clear and Lena knew her
brother’s voice immediately.
“Ned!”
she exclaimed, a huge smile on her face. “Where are you?”
“I’m
on my way home. You miss me?”
Lena
sank into her chair and spun around to face the window. She gave a heartfelt
sigh and said, “You have
no
idea.”
Her
brother chuckled. “Good. I'm in Singapore wrapping up some business. I'll be
landing in Tokyo tomorrow – I’ll overnight there and then fly to LA tomorrow. So
I should be in Denver on Tuesday.”
“Oh,
thank God. I’ll meet you at the airport. Send me the flight info?”
“You
don’t need to do that, Sis,” Ned protested.
“I
know. But I want to. You’ve been gone a long time.”
There
was a brief pause on the other end before Ned said softly, “It was the right
thing to do. I’ll fill you in when I get there. How are Dad and Jeanette?”
“The
same. But wow, I’ve got a lot to fill you in on as well.”
Again,
a pause before Ned asked, “Listen, can I stay in your spare room this trip?”
“With
me? Yeah, it’s fine, but why?” she asked, knowing that Ned always stayed at
their parents’ house when he was in town.
“I
really don’t want to stay with Dad. I’m going to have a long talk with him when
I get back, and I can guarantee that he’s not going to be happy with me. And I’m
tired of hotels. Are you sure it’s OK?”
“Of
course it’s OK,” she assured him.
“Thanks,
Sis. Do you have a few minutes to talk, or did I catch you at a bad time?”
“I
have time, Ned. Everything OK?”
“It’s
fine. Just feeling a little down, and I’m not quite ready to hang up yet, so
talk to me. Cheer me up. Tell me what’s happening at the shelter.”
Lena
laughed. “It’s a little rough these days. Dad not only disinherited me for the
third time this month, but he also pulled his funding. I can cope with it,
since I’ve been slowly trying to wean our monthly budget off of his on-again,
off-again contributions, but it just makes for an interesting budgeting
exercise each month.”
“For
you or the shelter?” Ned asked with a laugh, knowing full-well that Lena never
touched any of their family’s money.
Lena
responded with an equal dose of sarcasm, sighing deeply and saying, “I’m not
living in Gucci these days. It’s destroyed my life. Oh, to marry a wealthy man
and have spending money again.”
Her
brother laughed. “So other than the three times this month, how many times has
Dad disinherited you this year?”
“Oh,
at least a dozen,” Lena replied.
“So
you’re eating ramen noodles and giving all your spare cash to the shelter?”
“Oh
no,” Lena responded. “I may be low on spending money, but I’ll never let myself
get quite that desperate again.”
“Good.
Because your investment with me is paying off after ten years. Big time. I’ll
fill you in when I get home, but you won’t have to rely on Dad for your
shopping trips at Jimmy Choo.”
“Well,
first of all, that’s amazing news, and congratulations. I’m really proud of
you. And second of all, it’s about damn time. I need a new pair of six-inch stilettos
to wear here to work. But Ned, how come you’re feeling down if all of this great
stuff is happening for you?”
“It’s
more personal stuff that’s getting to me. Can I just tell you about it when I
have a good scotch in hand?”
“Of
course.”
“Good,
then back to you. That’s a much more interesting topic of conversation for me
these days. I assume Dad is still trying to marry you off?”
“Every
damn day.”
“He
says you’ve been with the latest guy for a while? What’s his name?”
“Chase.
Chase Hamilton.”
“Oh
yeah,’ Ned replied. “But there was another guy before that, right? Some
pretentious name like Jefferson or Adams or something equally presidential. What
happened to him?”
Lena
snorted, her disdain clear in her response. “Other than his pretentious name? Let’s
see. Throw in an equally pretentious personality, an arrogance to match, and
just a generally boring demeanor.”
Ned
laughed. “But for Dad, none of that would matter, because…”
“He’s
got money,” they both chorused, and then laughed.
“Dad
sure sets you up with losers, doesn’t he?”
“Oh,
you have no idea. I honestly have started to cringe when he calls me and says
that he wants to see me.”
“Because
it means that he wants to grill you about Chase? Ask when you’re setting a
date?” Lena could hear the laughter in her brother’s voice.
“Well
exactly. Which is crazy. He honestly doesn’t know me at all. Or really, anything
about who I am, or what I want out of life. He sees what he wants to see. Or
maybe just what I choose to show him.”
“Well,
we both know that you’ll never get his love or his approval. So why do you keep
letting him do this to you?” Ned asked. “You could just tell him to shove it.”
“You
wouldn't believe how many times I’ve nearly done that,” Lena replied. “But I
honestly just feel sorry for him. What a way to live your life, you know?”
Ned
sighed over the line. “Are we sure Mom didn’t have some wild affair with a
free-spirited artist from California somewhere along the line? I still can’t
believe we’re related to him.”
“You’ve
got his nose,” Lena pointed out.
Ned
sighed. “I sure do. Hey, so what about Chase? Is this serious?”
Lena
hesitated. “I honestly don’t know. But I think so.”
She
could hear the warmth in her brother's voice as he said, “I’m really glad for
you, Sis.”
“Pops
likes him,” she responded.
“That’s
a fine endorsement.”
“But
so does Dad.”
“OK,
less so. But Dad likes everyone with money, so he’s not that discerning. I’ll
clearly have to meet him,” her brother stated definitively.
“I
hope so. So what’s your conversation with Dad going to entail? Do I need to
stock the liquor cabinet?”
“Please.
I’m not only going to come out to Dad, but also tell him that my own business is
taking off, and I have no interest in running his. So you might end up back in
the will again.”
Lena
started to laugh. “Wow. When you decide to irritate him, you go for the gusto.”
“Yeah.
It’s time, though, you know? I’m not interested in living a lie any longer.”
“And
you shouldn’t," Lena said adamantly. “I’m here for you, you know.”
“I
know. Thanks Sis.”
“OK,
see you in a couple of days. Winston can’t wait to meet you.”
“Ah,
that’s right. The neurotic dog.”
“He’s
getting better. He really is.”
“Give
him a few scritches from his Uncle Ned. OK, I’ve got to go. Suitcases to pack,
bellhops to tip, flights to catch. Love you Sis.”
“I
love you too. Send me your flight info! Bye!”
Chase
hadn’t meant to eavesdrop on the conversation. But Lena hadn’t closed her door,
the walls at the shelter were fairly thin, and he had been in the next office,
thumbing through a pile of papers Amelia had left for him. When the phone first
rang, he had been tuned out, but when he heard his name, his attention snapped
to the conversation, and he couldn’t really avoid it.
Chase.
After
a moment of silence, she went on.
Other than his pretentious name? Let’s
see. Throw in an equally pretentious personality, an arrogance to match, and
just a generally boring demeanor.
And then after another few seconds, he
heard,
He’s got money
, followed by her laughter.