by Fiona Murphy
“What about your car?”
“Don’t worry about my car, I’ll get it later. It seemed more important to get you away from him as soon as possible. Are you okay? You’re trembling, it’s okay, he’s not getting anywhere near you.” Pulling me close, I inhale the scent of Alex. All my fears disappear. I don’t doubt his words, Larry isn’t going to get near me and the look of surprise and fear on Larry’s face when he saw Alex made it clear he wouldn’t try. Larry is a bully only if he thought he could win, and he’d seen clearly there was no way he’d go up against Alex and win. So he isn’t even going to try.
“It was just shock at seeing him again. Kind of a lot to take in after the whole lawyer thing. You knew he’d be here today.”
Squeezing me tight, he nods. “The way you described him, and his mother giving you everything, I knew he’d show up.”
“Thank you for being here.”
“You aren’t mad I didn’t warn you?”
“No, I’m just glad you were here. Not just because of him but your advice. It’s smart, too, selling the house immediately, maybe he would have tried something there, but not now. I can’t believe a million five is under market price for the house. It was nice and big but still, it seems over-priced to me.”
“It’s not the house he’s paying for, it’s the lot. The lot is large, he’ll likely tear it down and build something larger on the lot.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because it’s what I would do with it. That’s why he doesn’t care about the updates the house needs. For the lot and the cost to rebuild the price is fair. I wouldn’t have let you sign if I didn’t think it was.”
“I wasn’t worried about that. I know you wouldn’t encourage me to do anything that isn’t in my best interest.”
“Grace, I love when you sound so confident.” His whisper in my ear makes me shiver.
“It’s easy when it’s about you.” I whisper back.
Laughing, he pulls me out of the taxi. It isn’t until the elevator inches up to our floor that I begin to get a little nervous. Would Tim and Edward really be happy for me and Alex? Tightening his arm around me, he whispers. “Confidence, sweetheart, it’s going to be fine.”
At the front desk, the secretary’s eyes go wide when she sees us. When we get to Mabel’s desk, she smiles telling us both Tim and Edward are in Edward’s office.
Edward and Tim see us and smile, and the next few minutes go better and only slightly less embarrassing than I thought it would be. There is no surprise for either of them, only happiness and a very smug expression from Edward. Tim is relieved and happy to move the day of his retirement forward, while Edward isn’t as happy. He understood Alex’s desire to move the purchase up but is relieved to wait until after Alex and I are married and the company felt settled with the changes.
I couldn’t hold back the blush that came with Alex answering the wedding would be very soon and it would be followed by a long honeymoon.
My cheeks are still red as I make my way back to my office with Alex on my heels. Gasps follow us, I’m pretty sure I hear someone mention my ring. The door closes behind me and Alex laughs.
His cell phone rings and he sighs, “Marley, I’m kind of in the middle of something important here. I’ll tell you soon, yes it’s important enough I’m not about to go off running to pat Dad’s hand to make him feel better about not being able to actually ask his children to come visit him.”
Hanging up, he slides his phone closed and he’s tense. I hate seeing him like this, “Alex, maybe you should go see your father. What if something really is wrong? I would have loved to be able to see Anita before she died. In the end, I don’t want you to have regrets.”
Sighing, the lines are back and he’s running a hand over his face. “Grace, please, my father pulling his tricks is just something he does. Maybe after we come back we’ll go together, and you can meet my family. It’s not the best way for it to happen, but at least it will be a way to get it over with in one go. We get the marriage certificate tomorrow, and we can be married by this weekend. Next week we’ll work, clear our calendars and take the next week off.”
His phone is ringing again and he checks the display, I know it’s Marley, he doesn’t have to say a word. Shaking his head, he sends it voicemail.
Seeing the conflict clearly on his face, I know I can’t stand to see it there. “I can’t, I can’t do it. Not with your phone ringing and you tense. We’ll go get the marriage license today, you go see your father over the weekend, and I’ll clear our calendars and we can go next week. That’s my requirement, I love you, but I can’t do it with this hanging over us.”
Alex is shaking his head as his phone rings again. With a sigh, he answers. “I’ll be there tomorrow afternoon, tell Dad he wins. Send the jet and I’ll be on it.”
His father has a jet? I look down at my ring and remember him talking about buying out Edward and Tim. The million dollar condo he bought sight unseen. How rich is he?
“Let’s get out of here, I’m not going to be worth anything today. I don’t care if it’s only Thursday. There are benefits to you marrying your soon-to-be boss.”
“Alex, I have a meeting.” His eyes darken. I give up. “Okay, let me call and cancel. I’m taking my laptop home though.”
He gives in on the laptop. I never open it though, day and night is spent in bed. I’m able to get him to talk about his father more than he has in the past. Previously, he’d only talked about his brothers and sisters. His mother, he had few memories of, since she had died when he was four. Maybe it’s only wishful thinking but it feels like he’s less tense the next morning. When he leaves, his kiss is soft and gentle as he tells me that he loves me.
After he’s gone, I wait awhile and give in. Running into the living room, I find my work laptop and do something I’ve never once thought of doing before, I do a search on him. Holy shit, he has his own page on the internet. Pictures of him with his ex-wife come up and for five seconds my stomach flips, until the light catches my ring. An evil gremlin in me points out her ring is much smaller, and by the way, she’s his ex-wife and she’s psycho and she doesn’t matter anymore.
As I read, all the puzzle pieces I had ignored fall into place, he’s been from the one percent since his great-great-grandfather. Oil and steel, then shipping, had been in the bloodline until his grandfather had made fatal errors. Then oil dropped, then the shipping, to save the company from the losses the oil had brought. His father had a shell of a company and that’s what he worked with, shells of companies, buying and selling. Junk bonds had helped keep him afloat until he stabilized.
Alex had disappointed his father by not following him into the company. In a fit of rage, his father sold everything until only cash was left. Alex’s father only paid for his children’s education, nothing else. It was often reported he would leave nothing to his children. For Alex, that wasn’t an issue as he had inherited a billion dollar fortune at twenty one from his mother. Then the old man hunkered down in Palm Beach, Florida, in a house that looked like a castle on the water.
Wow, just wow. As I read about his father, I’m able to fill in the gaps of what Alex had talked about last night. A man who wanted to be king had inherited a crumbling kingdom and turned it around. Then when his own son had refused the throne, out of petty hurt, he set his kingdom on fire. Not realizing he was burning the fragile bonds with his other children when he did it, seeing only his own hurt. No wonder he had to be on his deathbed before his children would come see him. Hell, was it right for me to send Alex back to him, did he deserve it? I don’t want Alex hurt by this man’s evidently vicious tongue.
Great, only now when Alex is gone and it’s too late am I second guessing myself.
The phone rings, it’s the insurance company, they got my number from the lawyer’s office. I answer their questions, scan and send the death certificate over. I’m told I’ll be receiving the check in the mail in seven to ten days. Hanging up, it still doesn�
�t seem real, a two hundred thousand dollar check on its way to me. While for a lot of people it was nothing, to me it’s a huge amount of money, and something I didn’t think I’d see in my bank account. Then there’s over a million from the sale of the house. I don’t think I’m really going to believe it all until it’s actually in the bank. I do have a healthy saving. When I got promoted I didn’t change my lifestyle. The only thing I did any differently was maybe eat out more often, there had been dreams of a house cleaner twice a week but I shrugged it off. Now I could afford a cleaner every day of the week. Alex had a cleaner come in twice a week. She also picked up and dropped off his dry cleaning and she’d started taking mine as well. I did my own laundry and Alex’s of the comfortable clothing we lounged in after work and on the weekends.
Not wanting to, but knowing I couldn’t put if off anymore, I call the insurance company through the company from which she had retired. The call went quickly but they want a paper copy of the death certificate. Once that was received, they would be happy to pay out electronically. Giving them my banking information for my savings account, I’m told to expect it within two weeks of the time they received the death certificate. I know I’m going to need Alex’s help to invest almost all of it, having it sitting in the bank wasn’t the best thing for it. All calls made, I sit back and wonder what the heck to do now. Alex hasn’t been gone a half-hour and I already feel lost without him.
Work is the answer, it’s always the answer.
Chapter Ten
Work flies by, I get a text from Alex letting me know he’s landed safely then nothing for the rest of the day. By the time I’ve finished for the day, I’ve cleared Alex’s work for the next week. He only had one report, and a meeting scheduled to go over the results. I highlight the important points then put them into a power point. My own calendar isn’t as easy to clear. I know I’ll need to take my laptop home.
I grab something on the way home and settle onto the couch. I’m worried. I want to call Alex. Except I’m worried it will seem clingy. After an hour, I don’t care how it will seem and call him.
“I’m sorry to bother you. I was just starting to get worried.”
“No, it’s okay. Damn, I’m glad you called. I miss you already. This place is a fucking three ring circus.”
He’s stressed, but his relief is clear. “What’s going on?”
“He is as bad as Marley told me he was, only he wouldn’t go to the hospital. All my brothers and sisters are here, along with two ex-stepmothers, and everybody is arguing and not a damned thing is getting done. I got him into the hospital. The doctors don’t like what they see, but for now can’t agree. A cardiac specialist is coming in tomorrow. We’ll know more then.”
“Oh, Alex, I’m sorry. At least you got him into the hospital and you’re there now.”
“Hey, don’t say you’re sorry. It’s only because of you that I’m here. Thank you for that by the way.”
“You’re welcome. I love you and miss you already.”
“Miss you to. I have to go. The doctor is waiting for me. I’ll call you soon.”
Hanging up, I curl onto the couch and all I can do is worry. He sounded so stressed when he first answered. I’m relieved for him that he’d gotten to his father while he was still here for him to see.
The next few days feel like a week and by Sunday night, it’s clear his father isn’t stable enough for him to come home. When my phone goes off Monday morning, I answer quickly. It’s Alex’s phone but it’s Marley.
“Grace, I’m sorry to bother you and I know it’s asking a lot but can you come down to be here for Alex? He won’t ask you but he’s not getting any sleep. Once again, everyone is depending on him to make everything better. If you came, it would help him so much, I just know it. I feel horrible, I know you’re the one who talked him into coming down. I really think you being here would help him.”
I don’t even hesitate, she’s still talking but I’m not listening. “Of course. I’ll be there as soon as I can catch a flight out.”
“Oh, I would never ask you to fly out on economy. Daddy’s jet should arrive within the next hour. It’ll be at a commuter airport just outside of Chicago. I’ll have a car pick you up at Alex’s in an hour and it’ll take you there. Thank you so much, Grace.”
I’m flying out on a jet? I’m being driven there by a car? The thoughts are barely out, I push them back. It doesn’t matter how I’m getting to Alex, if Marley thinks he needs me then all that matters is I’m getting to him.
I call in to work. I tell Edward that I’m going out to join Alex and send the work I’ve finished. Anxiety pushed me to finish not just my work for the next two weeks, but also Alex’s. I email in the presentation to Edward, and everything on my calendar. I leave it to Edward to decide which meetings to cancel and which ones to have someone else cover.
An hour later, I’ve packed enough for at least a week and then some and am pacing the living room. When the front desk calls to tell me the car is here, I run for the door.
A little over three hours later, a chauffeur delivers me to the house that looks like a castle on the water. Before the door has even closed behind me, Marley is pulling me into a hug.
“Thank goodness, you’re here. Thank you for coming. He’s upstairs trying to sleep, he was up all night with Dad. Then he comes home and Michael, Mary and Martin are all over him.”
Marley has me by the arm and is guiding me up the stairs, the house is large and echoing. I’m a little surprised that the house looks empty considering all the people that are supposed to be here. Marley drags my suitcase behind us. The halls are just as large as the foyer. We’re almost to the end before she knocks gently then practically pushes me into the room. My suitcase is pushed in after me and I hear a sigh of frustration a moment before Alex’s eyes meet mine.
His sigh is cut off when he smiles at the sight of me. “Please, tell me I’m not dreaming.”
He’s in the center of a large bed and he looks horrible. I want to cry at how bad he looks. I swallow back the tears as I practically run across the room and throw myself at him. “No dream, I’m here.”
That’s the only talking that happens for several hours.
In the dying light, I’m watching Alex sleep. My chest is tight, it’s not a deep reassuring sleep. It’s the sleep of the dead, deep and almost punishing. A soft knock comes from the door. I’m up fast and wrapping a shirt around me.
I open the door to find a woman who looks like Marley and a man who looks sort of like Alex. Anger flashes hot and bright. I’ve only been here for three hours. That’s it, that’s all these people were going to allow him for sleep? Hell no.
“What the fuck is the matter with you? Alex has gotten almost no sleep in the last few days. Get the fuck away from this door and leave him alone for fuck’s sake. Anyone knocks on this door and I’ll break your damned hand.” Without another word, I go back into the room. It isn’t until I close the door I wonder if I should have introduced myself. My eyes go to Alex and I’m relieved to see he’s still asleep, that’s all that matters.
Climbing back into bed, Alex sighs when I hug him close. I shouldn’t have left him alone so long. Thank goodness Marley called me. In the last few months, Marley and I have grown close. She was often a guest on the weekends and managed to talk me into joining her and Alex for lunch several times a week. Often she moaned about her roommate, and other times she called the young girl from a tiny town in Minnesota, her best friend. While the first few weeks I was sure Marley was keeping an eye on how I treated Alex, gradually, she became more welcoming and warm towards me.
It’s a long eight hours before Alex wakes up on his own. As my phone is about to run out of power I’m glad also extremely relieved to see him looking well rested, and happy.
“Every night I dreamed you were here. Then I’d wake up and you weren’t. Damn, I’m happy to hold you close. Love you.”
Turning into his hold I squeeze back. “Love you, too. You look so mu
ch better now that you’ve rested.”
“I’m just surprised I was able to sleep so long. For the past few days I’ve had one after another family member knocking on my door.” I blush, brightly. “Grace, my love. Did you have something to do with that?”
“I love you.” I start and rub his chest, hoping he’ll forgive me. “I might have threatened to break the hand of the next person who knocked on the door. Please don’t be mad. I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t believe they were knocking on the door after only a few hours.”
Alex’s laughter tells me that he won’t hold it against me. “I would have loved to see the looks on their faces. Who was it?”
“I’m not sure. I didn’t ask questions, just told them to beat it. I was angrier with them than I was caring about whether I introduced myself.”
“Hmm... they have been a little twitchy. With Dad being so bad and the terms of his will so unknown, everyone is freaking out.”
“That seems a little...vulturish.”
“Normally, I would agree. The thing is, it’s almost like Dad’s attempting to fuck with their heads. One minute he’s talking about how there’s no money, then the next minute he’s saying all of the money should go to charities. It’s making them paranoid and cranky. They aren’t always like this. The situation is bringing out the worst in them and it isn’t pretty.”
“I guess, I couldn’t imagine knowing there’s a huge amount of money I could get but wouldn’t. Probably it would flip a switch, look what it did to Larry. Still, it doesn’t mean they get to turn you into a zombie. There’s only so much you can do, and you’re worthless if you can’t string a sentence together because you’re so tired.”