by Suzy Shearer
“I gave her my card, told her to contact me and I’d pay her expenses.”
Julian gave a snort.
“What?”
“Very noble of you.”
“You don’t think she’ll ring?”
“No.”
Tobias was silent for a while, then pulled out his mobile.
“Uncle Peter? How’s the girl?”
“Very distressed and in a lot of pain. The ambulance people were sure the wrist was broken.”
“They were? Damn. When she rings me, I can sort out her medical expenses.”
He heard his uncle give a chuckle before saying, “She won’t be ringing, Toby. She threw your card in one of my potted plants without even looking at it.”
“What! Fuck…”
“Tobias!”
“Oops. Sorry, Uncle. Can you give me her name and number?”
“Certainly not,” he answered sternly. “That would be most unethical of me, and you cannot expect me to give you information on every beautiful woman I have in my office.”
“But Uncle, I just want to make sure she’s okay and arrange payment.”
“If she decides you should pay, I’m quite sure she will contact me.”
“Yeah, yeah, okay.”
There was a short silence, then his uncle said rather smugly, “However, if she does ring, I will pass on your concerns and I will let you know.”
“You will? Thank you. Bye.”
Tobias turned to Julian.
“The ambos said her wrist was broken.”
“So what else?”
“She threw the card I gave her into a pot plant without even looking at it.”
Julian burst out laughing.
“Oh, that’s perfect.”
Tobias sulked the rest of the journey. In just those few minutes she had gotten under his skin. He was positive she felt the same attraction, and now there was no chance they’d ever meet again. When they arrived back at the office building Tobias owned in Sydney, he slammed the car door closed so hard the noise echoed in the street. He and Julian had been using this building as their main office for many years, until the large complex at Marsden Park had been completed. They’d only been using the Sydney office while this latest takeover was in progress. Next week they’d go back to the new head office building.
If Julian thought Tobias was angry as he stormed through the building, he never mentioned it, but Tobias kept thinking back to the harsh words Miss Keell had thrown at him. He knew he deserved every one of them, but it didn’t sit easily with him. At the same time it had turned him on to see her so angry, so in control. The way she’d stared him down.
On top of that, he couldn’t get those amazing eyes out of his head, not to mention the fact he thought she was very beautiful: long, silver-gray hair swept up into a loose, messy sort of bun, and she had the type of figure Tobias always lusted after—lots of curves, heavy, full breasts. She was a gorgeous, plus-sized woman dressed in tailored black pants, a creamy coloured top that showed off those wonderful tits and a warm black jacket. He shut his eyes for a moment as they rode the lift to the top floor. He tried to recall everything about her.
Julian nudged him. “So what are you going to do?”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t play dumb, Toby. I know that look on your face. She got under your skin in more ways than one.”
“Well, it’s immaterial. Uncle Peter refused to give me her address, told me it was unethical among other reasons.”
“Well, that’s a bloody pain.”
The elevator doors opened and the two men stepped out. Julian followed him into his old office and threw himself on one of the leather visitor chairs. Loosening his tie, Tobias sat behind the desk, leaned back, and propped his feet on the top.
“So everything’s organised for the purchase?”
“Yep, all done. We now own Rebuilt Constructions and all their subsidiaries.”
Tobias sighed heavily.
“I am so bloody glad that’s over. Ten long months of negotiating.”
“Can’t say as I blame them for wanting the best price, it is a very good construction firm.”
“Yeah, I know.” Tobias sat up, dropping his feet back onto the floor. “So I suppose I owe you dinner now.”
“At the very least. You can give me a raise, as well. I just increased the assets by the tidy tune of another five million dollars.”
“Can’t give you a raise, you’re a bloody partner.”
“Damn, can’t blame a guy for trying.”
Tobias looked over the desk at his friend.
Julian Whitmore was his right-hand man, a solicitor by trade, but a canny businessman through years of dealing with Tobias’s ever growing company. He was one year older than Tobias’s fifty-seven years, but certainly didn’t look or act it. Julian was around six foot, extremely attractive with silver hair and a pleasing smile. He always seemed to be laughing, which added to his charm. He’d been divorced twice and sworn off marriage since the last divorce when he was twenty-nine.
They’d gone to the same high school and then university—Tobias had studied structural engineering while Julian got his law degree. When Tobias had started his first building company he’d asked Julian to do the legal side of things. Since then the two had worked together with Julian becoming Tobias’s partner fifteen years ago. Tobias’s uncle by marriage, Peter Bailey, now handled most of the legal stuff with Julian for the company when they were in takeover mode.
Now Tobias owned one of the largest commercial and residential building and construction companies in the southern hemisphere. He had only a rough idea of his wealth, but it was just over two hundred million—not bad for a boy who’d come from the wrong side of the tracks. He and Julian had grown up in Mount Druitt, a housing commission estate with a bad reputation in Sydney’s western suburbs.
“We’ve done good, haven’t we, Jules?” he said remembering what it was like in his teens.
“That we have, my friend, that we have.”
“We really are very lucky.”
“Very.” Julian stared up at the ceiling then looked back at Tobias. “Do you miss not being married?”
“Where’d that come from?”
Julian shrugged.
“I do. I know I’ve sworn never to marry again, but it’s lonely. Nothing beats having someone to come home to.”
“I guess so. My only foray into the marriage game was the biggest mistake of my life, except for my beautiful daughter Melanie.”
“Yeah, well, I’d have to agree with that. Why on Earth you married Cheryl Turner at the age of eighteen is beyond me.”
“Yes, well, it’s beyond me, too. It seemed like a good idea at the time, she was pregnant and we figured it would be a breeze.”
Julian laughed.
“Hell, it didn’t even last a year.”
“Yep, just ten months. She discovered she didn’t really like me and the feeling was mutual.”
Julian eyed his friend and said, “Bout time you found someone to settle down with.”
“Got anyone in mind?”
“Shame that nice lady thought you were an elephant, she’d be perfect for you. Mind you she got it right about the type of elephant—a charging bull one.”
“Oh, you’re on fire today.”
Julian pulled a silly face and grinned.
“I know.”
“I have someone to come home to at night anyway.”
“Oh right. I forgot,” Julian replied sarcastically. “But I’m not sure that Stinky and Cally count.”
“Why not?”
“We’re talking about human companionship, not two bloody hyper boxer dogs.”
“Well, I have dad, he’s human.”
Julian’s answer was just a snort as a soft tap sounded on the door and Tobias’s PA came in. Alice Lewis had been with the company almost thirty years, and what she didn’t know about it wasn’t worth knowing.
“Ah, here she is, the l
ight of my life. When are you going to leave that husband of yours and come live in sin with me?”
“I’m not that crazy, Julian.”
Julian clasped his hands over his heart and closed his eyes briefly.
“Ah, the pain of rejection.”
Tobias rolled his eyes and said, “Ignore him, Alice. He thinks he’s a comedian today. What’s happening?”
“Peter Bailey’s secretary rang as soon as you signed all the paperwork. I’ve notified the client everything’s been finalised, and he said to thank you for the smooth transition. As well, the multistorey project in North Richmond has been green-lighted by the council at last, so we’re finally ready to go.”
“Now that’s good news. They certainly took their time approving it. Get onto the architect and the building supervisor. We can arrange a meeting early next week then speak with the client about things. We’ll have the meet with our team at the new building, then the client’s meeting at Richmond the following week.”
“Will do. Anything else?”
“Not at the moment, Alice. Think we all deserve an early mark. It’s gone three, let the staff who’ve been involved know, and they can go home now.”
“Thanks, I’ll tell them.”
“By the way, did you end up finding a place, Alice?”
“Three, actually. Jim and I are going to look at them again tomorrow afternoon. One’s almost across the main road from the Marsden Park precinct, one’s in Windsor Downs, but the one I really like is in Colebee. It’s less than five minutes’ drive. Just been built and it’s got plenty of room for the kids.”
“Let us know which you prefer so we can do the site inspection. I’m really happy you’re coming with us Alice,” Tobias said honestly.
She laughed and said, “I don’t think I’d want to break in a new boss after all these years. Anyway, I’ve been at Jim for years to move out from the city. This was the perfect excuse.”
“Well, I’m very glad, too.”
She left the room as Tobias yawned and stretched. Julian stood.
“What about you, Toby, you still looking?”
“Yes, can’t seem to find the right place. I want something big enough for the dogs to have a great yard to run around in, plus with Dad living with me, I don’t want both of us on top of each other, we’d drive each other crazy.”
“Maybe you should have just built something like I did. It’d be finished now.”
“Yeah, I know but I don’t want to start building now, it’d be another year before I could move in. I just hope I can find something I like soon.”
“So do I, for your sake. It’s about fifty-eight k’s from Freshwater to Marsden Park, and you’ll hate driving in all that traffic twice a day. Peak hour traffic sucks big time, take you an hour and a half if not longer in all probability, not to mention the bloody tolls each way.”
“I’m trying to forget. How’s the sale going on your place?”
“The contracts have been exchanged on my unit here in the city. The final touches are being done on the new house. I’m really glad I found that land. The place looks great. I know I’m going to love living at Windsor Downs. Man, I will be so glad to get out of here.”
“Me, too. I really hate living in here. I like the Freshwater house, but I hate driving into Sydney every day. That’s why I rented the apartment here for the three months. I honestly hate living near the city, it was great when I was younger, but now I just want the peace and quiet of the countryside. My house is really lovely, in fact, but it’s just not where I really want to be now.”
“Ha ha, we must be getting old.”
Tobias looked over at his friend and laughed. He was right, they were both getting old.
“Come on, old man, I’ll take you out for an early dinner, we both skipped lunch. Then we can go home and sleep in front of the television.”
The two men wandered down to their favourite watering hole and after a drink had a leisurely meal. It was close to seven when they parted company. Tobias walked to the apartment he’d been living in these past few months. It wasn’t far from the office. He and Julian had been putting in long hours, so he’d only been travelling back to his home each weekend. His father, now seventy-nine, had been looking after the house. His father’s youngest sister, Fiona, had come over from England for a visit and had been staying there as well for the past three months. She was going home on the weekend so it would be just Tobias, his father, and the dogs again.
* * * *
He had to admit to himself he couldn’t get thoughts of the woman out of his mind. All he knew about her was her last name was Keell. Uncle Peter had said her first name, but Tobias was concentrating on her too much to remember what he’d said.
Why the hell did Uncle have to be so pedantic?
Why couldn’t he give Tobias her phone number or address?
He wondered why she had dropped the business card in the flower pot without even looking at it. Didn’t augur well for any chance to meet. Still, it was time to be realistic—he probably would never see her again. She would become the ideal he would compare every other woman to.
After checking in with his father and his aunt, making sure everything was okay, Tobias pulled out his laptop after telling them he’d be home tomorrow night. Once again, he scrolled through all the properties for sale between Windsor and the new office. Once again, none struck his fancy and he was beginning to think maybe he’d have to just buy acreage and build. The downside of that was it would take close to twelve months by the time he found the land, got building approval, and then built.
The funny thing was he had in his mind what the house should look like. Maybe he should have taken Julian’s advice three years ago and had his daughter Melanie draw up plans and build. Oh well, too late now, he decided. If he hadn’t found anything by January, he’d have to seriously consider building.
Closing down his computer, he made a cup of tea and sprawled on the lounge chair after turning on the television. It filled a mindless few hours before he dragged himself off to bed only to spend the night dreaming of aqua eyes, lots of pleasantly plump curves, and full breasts. A stern, but very sexy female voice, kept telling him what to do to her and how to do it—damn he had it bad.
Next morning after showering, shaving and dressing, Tobias headed into the office. It was Friday and that meant jeans day. Every Friday dress policy was relaxed and the office staff usually wore jeans. When he arrived Alice greeted him with a handful of files and a mug of coffee. Today they’d work through the last of the takeover, and assign someone to work with the staff of the old company. Tobias was extremely glad no one would be forced out of a job, Rebuilt Constructions had ample work on their books to ensure everyone’s job was safe. They employed almost two hundred people across Australia, but Tobias would assign a manager from his staff to work with their manager and make the transition as smooth as possible.
Later in the afternoon he got a call from his uncle.
“Toby? Peter here. I spoke with Miss Keell and she agrees with me to send you an account for one thousand dollars.”
Chapter Four
Dear Laura, she read.
This is not how I wanted everything to work out, but I guess things don’t always go the way you want them to. I’m sure you have a lot of questions and I’d hoped to be able to answer them in person. Instead, I’ll try and second guess what you’re going to ask.
Yes, I loved your mother—loved her dearly, but our parents thought we were too young to understand what love really was and the responsibilities that come with trying to raise a child. Lizzie’s parents sent her away to Europe as soon as they knew she was pregnant. I tried to keep in contact with her but she never replied. I am sure her letters and mine were intercepted by our parents and destroyed. Over the years, I tried to find out what happened to her but without success. I traced the family to Paris, but of Lizzie, I couldn’t find anything.
I started a little business when I left school doing odd jobs fo
r people while I studied accountancy. When I got my degree, I found a few clients. Then over the years it grew and grew until I had branches throughout New South Wales, with almost one hundred staff under me and two business partners. We were pretty successful and I wanted for nothing—except you. Never did I forget about the child I’d help bring into the world. I didn’t know if you were a girl or a boy, knew absolutely nothing about you.
I did some searching but your adoption records were sealed and foolishly I let it go. I was stupid, I should have tried harder. I should have searched to find you earlier, but I didn’t want to invade your life. Didn’t want you to hate me for giving you up without a fight. But lately I’d come to realise family is the most important thing in life.
I hired a private investigator to try and find you and see if he would have more chance in locating Lizzie. He had no luck finding your birth mother, but was able to track you down. It was just after your adopted mother died. Again, I was stupid, I backed off not wanting to confront you when you were grieving with the fact I was your long-lost father.
I have to admit I was tickled pink when I discovered you were a bookkeeper, genes at play maybe.
Anyway, I intended to reach out to you a few months later but I was negotiating my share of the business. I’d decided to sell my third, as I was getting older and spending less time in the office, I finally decided to retire. As well I didn’t want you to be saddled with a business. I contacted Peter Bailey to organise my will leaving everything I had to you. Peter is a long-time business acquaintance and a friend. He’d done a lot of work for the company so we knew each other quite well. I filled Peter in on my reasons for everything.
Of course, just when you think things are going to work out fine someone tosses a spanner in the works.
I guess we were just never destined to meet, but know this Laura—I love you. I have always loved you, and if there had been some way to meet you in the last few weeks I would have grabbed the chance. Instead I was hooked up to a bloody machine getting filled with poison trying to prolong my life just long enough to finally meet you. As you now know it didn’t work.