The Sins of the Mother (3 page)

What she didn’t know, as she chatted with him whenever he came by, was that he was absolutely dazzled by her, and in awe of her advanced ideas. He could easily see that with a little careful guidance, she could turn The Factory into a major industry. He was enormously impressed by the soundness and feasibility of her plans, and he showed her how to do what she had in mind. He soon became a valuable member of their team, and Olivia had a deep respect for what he said. He added elements she knew nothing about and taught her a great deal.

And Maribelle noticed long before her daughter how taken Joe Grayson was with her. Maribelle invited him to dinner one night, in order to help things along, and after that he became a frequent guest, staying late at the office, and coming home with them at night for a simple meal. And because of his natural shyness, it took him six months to ask Olivia for a date, and she was startled when he did. She had never thought of him in that way, but only as a co-worker whose sensible suggestions she valued, and she valued his expertise with money. She discussed nearly everything with him by then, and he was always excited and astounded by her plans.

When he took her out to dinner, all they ever talked about was work, which made it even more amazing when he told her one night that he was in love with her. She had never considered that possibility at all, and looked up at him in amazement, but she had no objections to what he said. In fact, she liked the idea. They made an excellent working team, and she knew he cared about The Factory by then almost as much as she did, and they shared many of the same ideals. He was a man of sound morals and good values. He wasn’t an exciting person, but she could tell that he was a kind man. He walked her home after dinner that night and kissed her for the first time.

Their courtship wasn’t wild or exciting, he didn’t sweep her off her feet, but she wouldn’t have wanted him to. Olivia was a sensible woman herself, and she preferred the friendship they were building and the easy way they shared whatever was on their minds. Just as she trusted him to handle the money, he was certain that her creative concepts for The Factory were sound, even when they were things that had never been done before. He could see that she was building a model that could serve as a template for many, many stores. Everything she talked about made sense to him, even if it didn’t to someone else. They understood each other perfectly, sometimes even without words.

And on Valentine’s Day, three months after they had begun dating, he gave her a small diamond ring and asked her to marry him. He had no parents or living family, and all he wanted was to start a life with her. When they told her mother, Maribelle thought it was an excellent idea and she was pleased. Joe Grayson was the perfect man for her daughter. He gave her a solid foundation, and a base she could rely on, while she built her brave new world. Maribelle was thrilled. What Olivia felt for him at first wasn’t girlish or romantic, but it was solid and sure, just like his growing love for her.

They were married in a small ceremony, six months after they started dating, a year after they had met. He quit his other jobs and came to work at The Factory full time, and he laughed when Olivia turned their honeymoon into a buying trip for the store. He took her to Europe on his meager savings, and they went to England, France, and Italy, and spent the last two days in Denmark, to look at Scandinavian furniture designs. Olivia had placed several orders, and had found some remarkable things. But the most important thing she had found in her lifetime was her relationship with Joe. It was exactly what they needed and grounded them both. It gave Joe a warmth and affection he had never had, and Olivia a solid man she could rely on. Other than Ansel Morris, there had never been a male figure in her life. And she knew Joe was the right one for her.

Olivia came home from their honeymoon ecstatic about what they’d seen in Europe, and energized by her plans for the store. She was even more excited when the goods they’d ordered began arriving, and opened many of the crates herself. She and Joe went over the new inventory together at night. He was tireless in his desire to help her in every way he could. Things had been going so well that Olivia was dismayed when she began feeling sick. She had no idea what it was, but in a short time she was feeling seriously ill, and Joe was deeply concerned.

He consulted her mother, and thought Olivia should get to a doctor as soon as possible. He took her to a doctor a friend had recommended in Boston, and Olivia was even more upset when she found out what it was. She had gotten pregnant on their honeymoon, which had not been in her plans. Joe had talked longingly about having children, but they had both agreed that they wanted to wait several years, Olivia thought at least five, until she implemented everything she had in mind for The Factory’s expansion, got the business firmly on its feet, and maybe opened one or two new stores. She had no time for a baby now and cried when she heard the news. She thought a baby would ruin everything. And in spite of his sympathy for her, Joe was utterly and totally thrilled. He couldn’t think of anything more wonderful than having a child with her. Olivia was the woman of his dreams, and he promised to do everything he could to make it as easy as possible for her, and then Maribelle stepped in with an irresistible idea. She said she was ready to retire and leave the business in their hands. They were both far more knowledgeable than she was anyway, and she had contributed very little to the business in recent years. And Joe had the business end of it in full control. They no longer needed her, except to care for their child.

Maribelle offered to move in with them and take care of the baby. Olivia was overjoyed at the idea. She knew the baby would be in good hands, and she and Joe could go on working full time. And Joe was insistent that he would do everything he could to help, so that Olivia would be free to work. It was the perfect solution and made having a baby sooner than they planned far less upsetting for her. And Maribelle was thrilled. Taking care of their baby seemed like much more fun to her than working at the store. She’d been doing that for years, and it had outgrown her by leaps and bounds, thanks to Olivia and Joe.

As far as Olivia was concerned, this was no time for her to stay home. The changes she wanted to implement were crucial to the business and couldn’t wait.

She worked right up until the last day of her pregnancy, and she and Joe were going over accounts and inventory in the office late at night when her water broke. And for a moment, Olivia was scared. It was happening. It was real. He reassured her immediately, calmed her down, called her mother and the doctor, and drove her to the hospital. He hated to leave her, but they wouldn’t let him attend the birth. Instead, he sat in the waiting room for twelve hours, while Maribelle came to see him from time to time, to let him know how things were going. She said that first babies were always slow, but Olivia was doing well. He was worried sick about her, and hoped it wouldn’t be too hard for her. He was deeply in love with her by then, and excited about their firstborn.

And for Olivia, it was rougher than she’d planned or known it would be. She would have been even more frightened than she’d already been, if she had known how painful it would be. Phillip weighed just over nine pounds, and she looked exhausted and in pain when Joe saw her at last, moments after the birth. He had never loved her more, and their baby was the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen. They had both cried when they saw him and Joe held the baby for the first time. It seemed like a miracle to him, but to her, it was the hardest thing she’d ever done. But by the next day, she had begun recovering and thought the baby was very sweet. She nursed him for the first few days, and then they switched him to a bottle, so Maribelle would be able to feed him at night. Joe didn’t want Olivia exhausted, and from what he could tell, she had been through enough of an ordeal, and he treated Olivia like hand-blown glass when he took her and the baby home after a week. She insisted that she was feeling fine by then. She was twenty-three years old, and both she and the baby were healthy and strong.

Maribelle got Phillip on a schedule immediately, never let him out of her arms, and fussed over him constantly. And the moment she set him down, his doting father picked him up. Olivia had barely had time to bond with him, when she went back to The Factory in another week. She worked half days until Phillip was a month old, and then she went back full time. Joe thought it was a little soon, and he wanted her to regain her strength, but he knew how anxious she was to be in the store, and he didn’t have the heart to object. He shortened his own days to go home to their son, allegedly to give Maribelle a break, but in truth because he wanted to be with Phillip himself.

Phillip was a happy, easy baby, with a father and grandmother who doted on him and catered to his every need and whim. And when Olivia came home at night, she took turns with them holding him. She still couldn’t believe that she and Joe had a baby. He felt like someone else’s to her, but by the time he was six months old, Phillip’s face lit up every time he saw his mother, and sometimes Maribelle brought him to the store in the pram to visit his proud parents. Joe showed Phillip off to everyone. He had been born to be a parent, which wasn’t true of Olivia, but she was a very loving mother, even if she wasn’t around all the time. Her main focus was still the store. She was implementing all her plans, and had new ones every day. Joe could hardly keep up with her, and he couldn’t tell who he loved more, his wife or their baby. He was a profoundly happy man. And their arrangement with Maribelle taking care of Phillip had worked out ideally for all three of them. Maribelle enjoyed caring for her grandson more than she had working at the store. She was only forty-eight years old, and thrilled to have retired, particularly for such a happy cause. And Joe was the perfect partner for Olivia, and the visions she had for the store.

He had suggested that she phase out basic hardware and tools by then, and that they concentrate on the items Olivia had selected that were selling well. He knew from their spreadsheets and constantly growing profits just how brilliant Olivia was. He knew genius when he saw it. And he was teaching her more and more about finance. She was quick to learn. And Olivia had an ever-growing respect for his judgment, practical mind, and advice. And he was wonderful to her and their son. She couldn’t have wished for more. Their marriage had been the best decision she’d made so far.

Shortly after Phillip’s birth, Olivia decided to open a second store. Joe was worried about it at first and didn’t want them to overextend themselves, and then as usual, he realized she was right. They launched it within six months, at a location on Long Island, and then a third store, in New Jersey, when Phillip was a year old. He had his first birthday at the inauguration of the new store. That night she told Joe she wanted to start a store in Chicago, and he knew there was no stopping her or slowing her down. She was on a roll, but he also knew she was right and this was their time. In each location she had found an old factory similar to the one they had near Boston, their flagship store.

And by the time the plans for the Chicago store were well under way and they had found the right location, Olivia was pregnant again. She wasn’t as upset about it as she’d been before, since Maribelle said she’d be happy to take care of both children. It had worked out so well having her take care of Phillip, and Joe spent a great deal of time with him too, which was fortunate since Olivia was always running between the three stores they had. She had an instinctive sense for everything that went into the home, and a knack for finding reliable suppliers at rock-bottom prices, who were willing to follow her suggestions about design. They were growing by leaps and bounds, and so was she.

She was nine months pregnant when they opened in Chicago, and Joe was terrified she’d give birth at the opening or on the train, but she insisted she had to be there. It was the biggest store they had so far, and an overnight success. Business was already booming when they left the next day to go back to Boston, while Joe insisted she lie down the entire way and not move. He didn’t want to have to deliver their baby on the train on their way home. He thought she was crazy to have come. But she was young and strong and excited about what they were doing. They had opened three new stores in two years, and they were making more money than Joe had ever dreamed they could. Olivia had made no mistakes so far, and he didn’t think she would.

She went into labor the night they got home, and he got her to the hospital just in time. Liz was smaller than her brother had been, and was born two hours after they got to the hospital, and it was easier for Olivia than Phillip’s birth. She was beaming, holding their baby girl, when Joe walked into the room. They named her Elizabeth for his late mother, whom Olivia had never met. And, two weeks later, Olivia was back at work full time. And Maribelle loved having a granddaughter to look after too, and a new baby in the house. It was a happy moment in all their lives. And it was almost as though motherhood had made Olivia more creative than ever. Joe could only marvel at what she’d done and was planning to do.

She began traveling more then, on buying trips for all four stores, or in search of new designs. Joe missed her when she was gone, but the result of what she was doing showed up steadily on their balance sheets. Olivia never got to spend as much time with him and their children as she would have liked, but she kept telling him and herself that things would slow down to a dull roar soon, and a more manageable pace, but they never did. She was busier than ever, although she enjoyed being at home with him and the children whenever she could. But she was making millions, and Joe was investing it as fast as he could. Thanks to Olivia, their future, and that of their children, was assured. It was important to him as well as to her. She was building a fortune that would benefit all of them for many years. The Factory had become a legend, and Olivia Grayson along with it. His name was famous now too.