The Right Time (21 page)

“You and Jay had an agreement. The boys would stay with him starting in the fall, and all three have been looking forward to it. They want to stay with their dad.”

“Marco is not his son.”

“But Jay is the only father he’s known. And to Jay, he
is
his son.”

“That doesn’t change anything. Dale has a right to spend time with his son.”

“You and I both know Jay would never keep Marco from him. That’s not the kind of man he is. He’s the kind of man who discovered one of his sons is not his, and he wants to be there for him emotionally and financially. He wants to raise him. Despite his anger and hurt, his love for Marco has not changed one iota.”

Jenna swallowed and stared at the floor.

“Dale will probably go along with whatever you decide, so why drag everyone through the trial? So you can punish Jay for falling in love with Brenda? So you can punish Brenda for being with a man you don’t even want anymore—you just don’t want her to have him?”

Jenna remained silent and kept her gaze glued to the tiled floor. Sophie saw that as a good sign. “How much more hurt has to be doled out to make you happy? Enough already.” Now that she was on a roll, she couldn’t stop. The words poured out of her. “For years you’ve been getting your revenge, but you’re not just hurting Brenda and Jay. You’re hurting yourself, your kids, and everyone around you. Stop the games. Do the right thing and end this.”

Sophie reached for her former friend, but Jenna pulled back. The enmity had disappeared from Jenna’s eyes, but her lips formed into a hard line.

“Do yourself, Jay, and Brenda a favor. Mind your own business, Sophie.” She stalked out.

Sophie sighed, gnawing on her lip, and hoping she hadn’t done more harm than good.

Ransom signed the last of the contracts and rubbed a hand down his face. Glancing at his watch, he decided to take the last few minutes to make preparations for Sophie’s visit this weekend. After messing up the last couple of times she came to see him, he couldn’t afford to again. Based on their conversation, her patience was wearing thin.

He made reservations for dinner at The Signature Room at the 95th, atop the John Hancock building on Michigan Avenue. They didn’t have many vegetarian options, but after a short call he learned they could accommodate Sophie’s diet with a vegetable lasagna they served at lunch, or the chef would be happy to prepare one of the other entrees as a vegetarian meal.

He then ordered snacks and prepared foods to keep on hand at the apartment for her, from a local vegetarian and vegan place he recently discovered. She was always checking labels, and he’d become more conscious of ingredients as a result. Just the other day, he chewed out the owner of a deli for making vegetable soup with chicken stock, something he would never have paid attention to before if not for Sophie.

Twiddling the pen between his fingers, Ransom flipped through a couple of pages on his desk calendar. Maybe they should take a trip together…

At a short rap on the door, he lifted his head. “Come in.”

Giles sauntered in, hands tucked in the pockets of his slacks. “How’s it going?”

“Great. How’s it going with you? Still happily married?”

“Of course.”

“I guess Stephanie’s the one I should ask that question to, right?”

“Ha-ha, you’re hilarious. What are you up to?” Giles walked over to the desk.

Ransom rubbed his jaw. “Looking to see when I could take a week or two off.”

“You’re going on a vacation?” Giles asked in an incredulous voice.

“Thinking about it. I’m overdue.” Ransom shrugged.

Rolling onto the balls of his feet, Giles remarked, “You know, everyone’s been talking about you and your behavior lately.”

“My behavior?” Ransom said, tilting back the chair. This should be interesting. “What are you talking about?”

“You don’t even realize how much you’ve changed, do you? You’re a different man. No more frowning face. You’re whistling in the halls. I saw you come in from lunch, and you smiled at a junior attorney.
Smiled
. He turned around to stare after you in confusion.”

“You’re exaggerating,” Ransom said with a chuckle.

Giles pointed at him. “See, that’s what I’m talking about. You’re laughing,
a lot
. Sophie’s been good for you.”

“I’m not going to argue. She has been good for me.” He loved her and every little thing about her.

He couldn’t get enough of the fall of her hair as they lay in bed together, sweeping over his arm and the pillow. He’d been attracted to her voice from the moment they met, and that hadn’t changed. Her constant chatter was a soothing backdrop to the chaos of his life, like the hum of a TV or music coming from a radio’s speakers. He didn’t always pay attention to what she was saying, and every now and again she’d stop and say, “Are you listening?” The truth was, he might not be, but he’d say yes, and she’d start right back up again, telling her story, and he’d fall back into that easy, comfortable peace that she brought about in him.

When they used Face Time, that was simply a bonus. Then he had the pleasure of seeing her radiant smile and colorful clothes, which always lifted his spirits no matter what type of day he’d had.

Giles folded his arms over his chest. “Don’t tell me The Shark has lost his teeth. I never—”

Brit appeared in the doorway, and Ransom and Giles straightened immediately. Brit Wong never deigned to enter the office of lowly associates.

“Brit,” Giles said.

The older man returned the greeting with a perfunctory nod before turning to Ransom. “I wondered if I could have a word with you.”

“Sure.” Ransom glanced at Giles.

“I was just on my way out,” his friend said. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Behind Brit’s back, Giles’s eyes went wide, and he shot a
holy shit
face at Ransom before closing the door.

Brit sat in a chair and folded one leg over the other. “I don’t think I’ve ever been in your office before.”

He inspected the room, while Ransom’s abdomen tightened into a wall of cement. Since fighting with Keith, he’d been expecting some kind of retaliation and dreading this day, wondering when it would come, though he never expected Brit to come to him. He expected a summons to his office.

Brit brushed nonexistent lint from his immaculate pant leg. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you for some time.” In true Brit fashion, he didn’t beat around the bush. Resting his elbows on the armrests of the chair, he steepled his fingers. “I’ve watched you since you came to the firm. I knew you would be a great asset for us, and you have been. Which is why when my son came to me with a delicate situation concerning you and his now ex-girlfriend, I chose instead to give him a stern talking to.”

Ransom remained silent, clenching his jaw as he awaited the rest of Brit’s speech.

“I’m well aware that my son has made some bad decisions over the years. He can be a bit self-centered, but at the core, he’s a good person. He’s my son, and I love him. But I’m a practical man. I run a highly profitable business, and I was not about to let go of one of my best assets because of his hurt feelings.”

Brit studied him over his fingers, and Ransom waited with a stomach so tangled up in nerves, he felt nauseated. There was more, and he suspected the rest would be much, much worse than Keith running to his father with hurt feelings.

“However, there are cameras all over my house. Not for spying, but as a precautionary measure. One can’t be too careful. I never even look at the footage unless there’s a need to. Without going into detail, recently there was a need to, and I discovered something that I’m sure my son is not aware of, nor do I plan to tell him. The night of the cocktail party, a camera in the hall recorded you and Keith’s date, Miss Bradshaw, entering a bedroom.”

Shit.

Ransom’s heart rate sped up and pounded a loud, vicious beat in his chest and skull. “Brit, I can—”

Brit lifted a hand. “The reason for this conversation is not to get an explanation. I don’t care about your explanation. The reason for this conversation is to tell you that you made a mistake that night. You used poor judgment. Top associates do not use poor judgment. However…” He smiled, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “As I mentioned before, I’m a practical man, and I believe everyone should be allowed to make one mistake. After all, no one is perfect, and I’m certain there will be no more poor decision-making from such an important member of our team.”

The pounding in his skull abated somewhat. “That’s correct.”

“Excellent. That’s what I thought.” Brit rose from the chair and left. He didn’t say goodbye. He didn’t look over his shoulder. He just walked out.

Shit, shit, shit.

Ransom slumped in the chair and rubbed his pounding head. He was too close to fuck up now. Moving forward, he’d have to be a lot more careful.

“Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the Noble Airlines crew, we welcome you to Midway International Airport in the city of Chicago. The temperature is seventy degrees Fahrenheit, twenty-one degrees Celsius. We would like to thank you for joining us on this trip and we’re looking forward to seeing you on board again in the near future. Enjoy your stay!”

Sophie replaced the microphone and she and the other flight attendants said goodbye to the passengers as they disembarked. After conducting post-landing tasks, they walked into the terminal.

“Where are you headed?” Jalinda asked, as she pulled along her carry-on. They hadn’t seen each other since the trip to the Bahamas, but had wound up on the same flight again.

Sophie walked briskly beside her, dragging her own wheeled luggage. “To see my boyfriend. You?”

“Parents. I have a few extra days, and I’m pretty sure they’re going to plan all manner of activities that involve setting me up with their friends’ sons because they want me to settle down.” She rolled her eyes.

“My parents don’t bother.”

“Because you’re smart and got yourself a man before they could interfere.”

They entered the employee area and performed the usual checklist of activities before parting ways. Sophie dialed Ransom’s number on the way out of the terminal.

When the voicemail picked up, she said, “Hey, I’m on the way and I’m starving. See you in a bit.”

They were going to the John Hancock building for dinner. She bit down on a grin. As many times as she’d been to Chicago, she’d never set foot inside of the iconic skyscraper. The views from the top were supposed to be extraordinary, and dinner at the restaurant among the best in the city.

Sophie arrived at Ransom’s swanky high-rise building, nodded to the guard, and took a seat on one of the soft gray chairs crowded around a low table in the lobby. While she waited, she checked email and sent a text to her parents.

Then she waited some more.

Brenda called and shared great news. “Jenna agreed to let both of the boys move to Atlanta!” she screamed, crying at the same time.

Sophie gasped. “She did?”

“Yes! We’re still in Florida because they were due back in court on Monday, but out of the blue, Jenna called this morning and said she wanted to work things out. We just got back from a meeting with her and Dale, and I had to call and give you the good news.” Brenda sniffed. “Visitation has been worked out to make sure Dale gets to see his son as often as he can. We’re going to put everything in writing, of course, but it’s over, Sophie. All the angst and stress is finally at an end.”

They both squealed into the phone.

“I’m so happy for you and Jay,” Sophie said, tears of joy filling her eyes.

“Thank you, honey. And thank you for being there for us. We’ll see you when we get back.”

Sophie hung up, spirits lifted and a huge smile on her face.

She checked the time on her phone. Ransom was late. Thirty minutes late at this point. She uncrossed and recrossed her legs, staring at the revolving door.

A dark-haired woman about her age walked in and went to the elevators.

Sophie shifted in the chair.

Another fifteen minutes passed.

The elevator dinged and a couple exited, marched across the shiny floor, and went into the street.

Sophie stared down at her phone. No missed calls. No voicemail message. No texts.

She sent a text.

Where are you?

She waited.

Almost an hour and forty-five minutes later, Ransom rushed in, briefcase in hand, dressed to impress in a dark suit and skinny charcoal tie. He walked past the guard desk with long strides and came to stand in front of her.

Sophie stood, arms crossed. “You’re late. You told me you’d be here by six. You didn’t even call.”

“I apologize, but it was unexpected.” He sounded irritated, as if she’d done something wrong.

“If I could be on time, so could you. Showing up almost two hours late is unacceptable.”

“Damn it, Sophie, can we not have this conversation here and now?” He grabbed the handle of her luggage and walked away, not even waiting to make sure she followed.

But she did follow. She stepped into the elevator and stood in the farthest corner, away from him.

“I’m one of the best lawyers in the firm,” Ransom said when the doors closed. “The drawback is that everyone wants a piece of me, and when there’s a problem, I’m the one they call.”

Sophie stared straight ahead.

“It couldn’t be helped,” he added.

She kept quiet and heard him sigh.

They went down the hall to his condo, a contemporary-designed space decorated in black and white and neutral tans.

Sophie stood in the middle of the floor and crossed her arms. “I’m only here until Sunday.” They were supposed to spend time together and had already lost two hours.

Ransom tossed off his jacket. “I know. We missed our reservation at the restaurant, but we can still do something. There are plenty of places within walking distance.”

“Are you listening to yourself? You completely screw up our evening out and you try to pacify me with a sorry substitute. I was looking forward to going to the Signature Room because I’ve never been to the John Hancock building. It would have been a nice night out for us.”