“I was hungry and couldn’t decide what to get. The choices were endless.” He flashed her a boyish grin.
He watched her as he ate, and she couldn’t tell if he was hungry for food or for her. He looked like he was going to devour her, right along with his potstickers.
“Tell me about your practice. So this is your first year?”
“Yeah. I’m just finishing it. July will mark my first anniversary.”
“How do you like it?”
She beamed. “Other than my financial struggles, I love it. I love helping others. There are so many people out there who don’t know which way to turn and I enjoy helping them find their way. You know?”
“Gabriella, are you a fixer?”
“Of course I am. That’s what my profession does.” She chuckled.
“But do you look for people who need fixing?”
“I’m not following you.”
“Your friends for instance. Sky and Cara.”
“What about them?”
Kolson stopped eating for a second and said, “You know I have everyone investigated. It’s something my legal team recommends. And since they’re associated with you, they came up as red flags. I trust you; therefore I’m not worried about them. I know what they do for a living so that’s why I asked you that question. It seems all your friends have issues which begged that question to be asked.”
Gabby was surprised at first but then when she gave it some thought, she truly wasn’t. “I should be angry with you, but I’m not. I met Ryder through Case. He was going to NA. Ryder started seeing Sky who had issues with her mom, who was an addict. Her mom has since passed. And of course Cara and Sky work together. I have to be honest here. There’s a huge part of me that wants them to quit the life of prostitution. I think Sky will and soon. Cara, I’m not so sure about and that saddens me. I don’t think I want to fix them per se. I do want them to be safe. Neither of them uses drugs. They rarely drink unless we go out for a girl’s night out, which is once every three or four months. I think I bonded with Sky because she was raped into prostitution and I could relate to the rape part. We both had shitty family lives. I guess that was a terribly long answer to your question. And I spoke out of turn. Broke confidences. I trust you to keep that to yourself.”
He smiled. ‘You haven’t shared anything with me about them I didn’t already know. I’m more interested in your connection to them. Curious, is the more appropriate term, I suppose. It isn’t often that a medical professional is a friend of a prostitute’s. That’s why I guessed you were a fixer. But, kea, you know there are those who need to be fixed, but don’t want to be.”
“I don’t put myself above being anyone’s friend. But, Kolson, everyone needs to be fixed to a degree. No one is perfectly tuned. It’s a matter of how fucked up we truly are. Can we function in society without doing ourselves or anyone else any harm? And are we happy going about doing it? That’s the question one must ask oneself.”
“So, Dr. Martinelli, are you happy?”
Gabby didn’t quite know how to answer him. The answer to that was very complicated.
“I believe you’ve just given me your answer.”
“That’s quite an assumption. Weren’t you the one who told me not to make assumptions about things I knew nothing about?”
“Touché, Gabriella. Indeed I did say that. And you were paying attention.”
She grinned as she took a taste of the soup. “Mmm. This is excellent. And you’re terribly astute.”
He nodded. “I earn my living by being astute. So, aside from your driving need to help people, any other reasons for psychiatry?”
“Yes. Psychiatrists are the underdogs of the medical profession. People don’t look at us as physicians. They only see us as counselors or sitting in rooms with patients as they lay on couches and tell us their problems.”
“Well, isn’t that what they do?”
“In a manner of speaking, but there is so much more. Psychiatry involves more than just talking to the patient. Many conditions and diseases require medications and monitoring, much like diabetes and other illnesses. Were you aware that many homeless people suffer from schizoid personality disorder and refuse treatment because they hate the side effects of the drugs?”
“No, I haven’t studied schizoid personality disorder,” he said with a grin.
“I have.”
“Of that, I’m sure. I know the biggest reason for you going into your field is your past. And after seeing you in action, there is nothing else I can imagine you doing.”
“That’s true. Once I started studying psychiatry, my fascination with it grew. The human brain is amazing and the things that can go wrong are … well, you can imagine. The possibilities are endless and if we aren’t taught how to cope or if our neurotransmitters aren’t at the appropriate levels, things can go haywire. Genetics and environment have so much to do with it too. Some people are just born lucky.”
As she spoke, Kolson’s lips formed a thin white line.
“My advantage with my patients is I wasn’t born lucky, so I can relate to many of them. And I believe it helps me connect, particularly with the abuse victims.”
Kolson’s demeanor altered. A veil descended over him and his tone turned severe.
“Good for you. How about we finish our lunch? I need to be back at the office and I thought you had patients coming in.”
The wind left her sails and her body slumped into her chair. She thought he’d be excited for her as she talked about what she did, but not only was he disinterested, he was downright short with her. The fascination he’d shown when he’d accompanied her to the hospital and to the women’s shelter had vanished, and it wounded Gabby. However, if she had put her psychiatrist’s hat on, she would’ve realized her comments hit too close to home. And if Kolson had opened his eyes, he would’ve noticed how hurtful his words had been to her. But neither of them did. They focused on their food, Kolson finishing his and Gabby staring at hers.
A few minutes later, his chair scraped the floor as he stood, and he said, “I’ll be heading out now.”
It was terribly awkward. She looked up at him and saw a stranger before her. Gone was the warm, passionate man from this morning and in his place was some insensitive male she didn’t recognize.
“Thanks for the lunch.”
“It was nothing,” he said curtly. “I’ll see myself out.”
Gabby tried to analyze what had just passed between them but was so shaken, her mind couldn’t think straight. Her next appointment was due in a few minutes so she needed to get her head clear.
And then, like lightning, it hit her.
Born lucky. That’s it.
She didn’t have the time to dwell on it, because her two o’clock would arrive any second, but that had to be why he’d changed.
Later, after her patient left, she tried to call Kolson, but his phone went directly to voicemail. She left him a message and text asking him to call her. By five thirty, when it was time to leave, she still hadn’t received a response and Ovaltine was waiting to drive her back to Kolson’s apartment.
When she got in the car, she asked, “Will you be picking up Kolson?”
“No, miss. He asked me to let you know that he’ll be working late.”
“Oh. Will you be taking me to the NA meeting tonight? It’s my night to volunteer there.”
“No, miss. Eddie will be driving you and bringing you home.”
“Oh, he doesn’t have to wait. Case can get a taxi for me.”
“No, miss, Mr. Hart’s instructions were for Eddie to wait for you.”
“I see. What time did you speak with Mr. Hart?”
“Around four this afternoon, miss.”
Gabby gritted her teeth. That was after she’d left him her messages and then tried to call him again. He was avoiding her.
“And Dr. M.?”
“Yes?”
“Sam wanted me to tell you hello.”
Gabby smiled. “Tel
l him hello back. By the way, what in the world is your real name?”
Ovaltine chuckled. “It’s Leroy, miss. But I haven’t been called that since I was a toddler. Wouldn’t drink anything but Ovaltine. Still drink it too. My mother nicknamed me that and it sort of stuck.”
Gabby laughed. “How about for good measure, you drink some water every now and again?”
“Oh, don’t worry, miss. I drink that too. When I played football I drank my share of that and Gatorade.”
“Did Sam play too?”
“Oh, yes, miss.”
“I figured as much. With his build and all.”
“We all played. All five brothers. None of us were good enough to go pro so that’s when we went to work for Mr. Hart. Big Mr. Hart. Then, seven years ago when Mr. Kolson Hart left, he offered us jobs and we went with him, being that we knew him since he was a youngster. Funny thing, Mr. H. never knew I went by Ovaltine ’cause big Mr. H. always used the name Leroy.”
“What’s he like? Big Mr. H.?”
Ovaltine shrugged. “Okay, I guess. Sam could tell you more about him than I can. He was the front man and closest to him. The rest of us took orders from Sam.”
“I know it’s not my business, but Kolson doesn’t get along with him, does he?”
“Nah, but that’s not my business, either. And I’m not supposed to gossip, miss. Sam would have my head if he knew I’d even told you this much.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I promise, I won’t whisper a word.”
“Thank you. Sam can be pretty scary when he gets upset. But he’s taken a liking to you. He told me no one better hurt a hair on your head while I’m looking out for you or he’d beat my ass good. Oh, excuse the language, miss.”
Gabby laughed.
When Ovaltine pulled in front of Kolson’s building, he got out and escorted Gabby inside.
“Thank you, Ovaltine. Does Eddie know I need him at quarter to seven?”
“Yes, miss, he sure does.”
“Thanks so much. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.” She left him with a wave.
When she stepped off the elevator, Lydia greeted her and introduced herself. Gabby instantly liked her. She showed Gabby the dinner she’d prepared and then left for the evening. Since Gabby had less than an hour before she had to leave again, she decided to change clothes and then eat.
When she finished, she went on a bit of an exploration of the apartment. Even though she’d spent the weekend there, she really hadn’t checked the place out. It was quite spacious and other than the den, the state of the art kitchen, her plush guest room, and Kolson’s luxurious bedroom, the penthouse had everything one could ask for. Kolson’s office was large, sleek and ultra modern, and there was a small library that Gabby wanted to get lost in because it was chock full of all kinds of books. The penthouse also had another guest room much like the one she occupied, a media room with every kind of video game imaginable, a formal dining room, and a formal living room. Gabby’s head spun with the size and opulence of the place. Her parents’ home in Connecticut was quite grand, but this was in Manhattan where the price of real estate was ungodly. She couldn’t begin to imagine what this place cost to rent. But then she thought again. He didn’t rent this. People like Kolson Hart didn’t rent anything.
The buzzer sounded, invading her thoughts. She looked around, and then remembered where the intercom was.
“Yes?”
“Dr. Martinelli? Your ride is here for you.”
“Er, thank you. I’ll be right down.”
She grabbed her purse and entered the elevator code. Eddie waited for her and introduced himself. In no time, she was sitting at the NA meeting, listening to Case, or at least trying to. Her thoughts were still on Kolson and why he hadn’t returned her calls.
Chapter 21
Danny gnashed his teeth as he watched Gabby climb into the limo. The driver opened the door for her and off they went. The car was unmarked, so he couldn’t snag the company’s name. Damn her! When was she going to fuck up and give old Danny his break? He had plans, big plans, and Nadine just didn’t cut it for him anymore. In fact, she’d told him to hit the road yesterday. She said he was a sick bastard and she didn’t like his dirty games. Danny did rough her up a bit, but she’d asked for it. By the time he was finished with her, his belt had left her bloody and purple. She wouldn’t be sitting anytime soon, and Danny laughed at the thought of her black-and-blue ass.
Damn, that should’ve been Gabby. He punched the rough surface of the brick wall and instantly regretted it as his hand throbbed. Looking at the scraped flesh, he cursed Gabby again and decided he would double his efforts to catch up with her. That little cunt was making him miserable and this was one more example of how she was fucking him over.
* * *
Kolson read and reread Gabby’s text and listened to her voice message over and over, yet he didn’t respond. He wasn’t quite ready and didn’t know what to say. His past was nasty, every bit as ugly as hers, but in a much different way. And he knew if he were to begin, she’d want to help, want to analyze him and he could not, would not, go there. He wasn’t ready to do that. And the truth was, he wasn’t sure if he ever would be. It was paralyzing to think of.
The helicopter awaited him and he ran through the rotor wash and stepped aboard. His mind was in the wrong place and he needed to jerk himself together. Another huge contract was at stake and his right-hand man was talking to him. After a pat on the arm, he looked up and then pretended his headset hadn’t been turned on.
“Sorry, man. I forgot.”
“You ready, sir?”
“Jack, I’m always ready for a good verbal sparring.” And that was the truth.
“Here are your contracts and this is your briefing. I have all the materials you requested here. There will be four people present. But you already knew that. If we can lock this down, it looks like you’ll have all the pro teams from Philly and Boston. That only leaves the DC area.”
Kolson nodded.
“This is your last step on the Philly deal and all things indicate it’s a go. They need the motor coaches because they don’t want to deal with their own anymore. Our offer is the cleanest. I don’t want to say it’s a done deal because anything can pop up at the last minute, but with liabilities as they are today, I think you can nail this one down.”
“Do you have all the statistics and information on what happened after their last incident?”
“Yes, sir. Their driver is still dealing with the legal issues from the accident. And they’ll be dealing with the lawsuits stemming from that accident for years, I believe.”
The motor coach that one of the teams used had been in an accident. The driver was intoxicated and several passengers in the cars hit by the bus had been severely injured.
“They really liked our zero-tolerance policy and drug testing for our drivers.”
“Yes, Mr. Hart, they did.”
Kolson was silent as he reviewed the contract and information in the files. Everything appeared to be in order. He paused to think about Gabriella and knew he wasn’t being fair to her, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it now. He forced those thoughts to the back of his mind and centered on what was in his hands.
Jack’s voice came to him through his headset. “We’re getting ready to land, sir.”
Kolson straightened his tie, adjusted his cufflinks, and nodded. The helicopter made contact with the ground and the copilot opened the passenger door as soon as the rotors stopped turning. Kolson took off his headset and exited the craft, briefcase in hand. A car waited to drive them to the meeting.
Two and a half hours later, they were in the air, headed back to Manhattan. Jack looked at Kolson and said, “If you don’t mind my saying so, sir, for a man who just landed HTS’s second largest contract in less than two months, you don’t seem very excited.”
Kolson shot him a glance. “I’m extremely happy about it, Jack. This is going to separate HTS from all the other transportation
service companies in the industry. Make no mistake about that. I have other things on my mind at the moment.”
“Of course, sir. I apologize.”
“No apologies necessary.”
Jack realized that the conversation was over. Mr. Hart was a million miles away, and Jack would not be stupid enough to interfere.
Kolson’s phone had buzzed several times during the meeting, which he’d ignored, so he checked it now and saw they were all calls or messages from Gabriella. He tried to puzzle out how he would handle this. Usually, he would walk away from women when it reached this point. But that wasn’t an option with her. He was in too deep and he wanted it that way. Things were different with Gabriella; she was different. He craved her … her touch, her kisses, her body, her sex. She had reached a place within him, and turned him upside down. In a good way.
As far as this thing today went, she hadn’t done anything wrong, either. He knew he couldn’t let this go on, because if he didn’t do something, it would cause a rift between them.
It was close to dark when they landed on the rooftop of HTS’s headquarters. He went straight to his office and took care of some necessities. An hour later, he left for home. It was almost nine when he pulled into the garage. Though it had been a long day and he was tired, he knew he owed Gabriella an explanation. He hoped she was home from her NA volunteer activity.
When he stepped off the elevator, the apartment was silent. He walked through each room, checking to see if she was there. When he didn’t find her, he was shocked by the disappointment that coursed through him. He was walking out of his office and back to the kitchen when he heard the ding of the elevator. Then the doors slid open and out she walked.
“Gabriella,” he said as he practically ran to greet her, surprising both of them.
“Kolson! Where have you been? I’ve been calling and texting you!” Her voiced had a sharp edge to it he hadn’t heard before.
“I’m sorry. I had a meeting in Philly.”
“Philly? Today?”
“Yeah. This afternoon. It was at four.”
The Best of Forevers Page 108