by Ellie Danes
Chapter Two
Chance
I watched as she made her way through the large glass doors of the building. I had hoped she would have looked back, but she didn’t. My chest felt tight. The scent of her perfume still lingered. I realized that any feelings Becca might have had for me were truly gone. But every now and then, when her eyes met mine, I swore I could still see a spark. I just wasn’t ready to accept that what we had in Vegas was completely gone. There had been so much passion between us and from what I could tell, there was a chance that a real relationship could have developed.
It was mid-afternoon already and nothing had gone as planned. I slouched in the seat and rested my head on the smooth leather as I massaged the bridge of my nose, attempting to quell my headache. I closed my eyes and thought about the growing list of things I needed to get done, but Becca’s face continued to flash in my mind.
My time was always split between Vegas and New York City. When in the city I typically bounced from location to location, checking on our properties, running projects and scoping out new opportunities. My father’s vision of me, sitting in bars drinking all-day and chasing women, was ridiculous. I was always busier than ever. Even when in the city, I had offices in different locations, although my favorite was at the top of The Palace.
The golden doors, decorated with mirrored glass, opened into an amazing lobby adorned with white marble and rich mahogany. Even the security desk was exquisite. This property was part condominiums and part hotel and it always felt like home to me. I nodded to Freddy, the day-time security guard, that was perched behind the huge desk. He had been with the hotel since he was a teenager. When my family took it over, we kept almost all of the staff. Freddy, was now pushing eighty, and while he was truly the type of security guard to provide protection, he provided something more important, a smiling and happy face to greet the residents and guests. “Rough day, Mr. Vaughn?” He tilted his head to the side, “You look right tired.”
“Not too rough.” I smiled. “But I might be a tad tired.”
“Make sure you get enough sleep now.” He chuckled. “That is, if you want to live to be as old as me.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Despite my head feeling as though it would split open at any given moment, I couldn’t help but laugh. “See you later, Freddy,”
“Later, Mr. Vaughn.” He waved at me as I entered the elevator. I waved back as the doors shut. I made small circles with my shoulders, trying to stretch out my back. I took a deep breath, and moved my neck from one side to the other. Each ping from the elevator echoed in my head and I shuddered. I needed something to kill the pain.
The offices for our property management division were a few floors short of the top floor. The view was spectacular and was always a great distraction on difficult days. I made my way through the small maze of cubicles and found my office in the back corner. It was a decent size, private and most importantly, quiet. Something I needed right now. I pulled open the drawer and grabbed the bottle of Advil, popping a few down and chasing them with a bottle of water from my private refrigerator. I tossed my briefcase on the chair and placed my phone on the desk, destined to take a few moments for myself. I fell onto the sofa overlooking the river and relaxed, willing myself to keep the day going strong.
I must have dozed off, something I never allowed to happen, regardless of how difficult things had turned. My ringing phone startled me as I opened my eyes and adjusted myself back to my surroundings. I stepped across the elaborate Tabriz carpet and grabbed the phone, staring at the screen. Dad. I wasn’t prepared for another fight with him, not today, but I did find it a bit odd that he was actually calling me. That was almost unheard of. I gripped the phone tight and tapped the green answer button.
“Chance Vaughn…” My voice was much drier than I had meant it to be.
“Chance…” He sounded calm. “I know you knew it was me, stop pretending to be busy and official.” I paused, ready to unload until I heard the soft chuckling of his voice, which caught me off guard. “How are you, son?”
“I’m good.” I replied gingerly. “Rather busy, though.”
“I can imagine!” He chuckled lightly again. “Good. I’m glad to see you’re getting things done, but make sure you give yourself time to rest.”
“Noted.” I paused as I took a seat in my chair. My headache hadn’t quite subsided and I had a feeling this call was going to make it reemerge. My father was never one for small talk. He always got straight to the point, in both business and in life. I don’t think I had ever heard him ask anyone how they were. And I don’t think he had ever told me to rest.
“Listen, Chance…” His voice was more stern now, but still retained a friendly quality. “There’s something I really need to discuss with you.”
“Yes?” I drummed the fingers of my free hand against my desk. I could feel my jaw grow tight. I wasn’t sure what was to come. But I couldn’t help but feel it probably was going to be bad.
“I wanted to apologize to you.” Every muscle in my body froze. I wasn’t sure what I had heard. Apologize? Had those words actually escaped my father’s mouth? My father never apologized to anyone, ever. He had always said that only the weak and poor were ever wrong. “I talked to Mary, she told me more about the situation with Sara. Chance…?” Dad fumbled for the right words as silence filled the phone. “Never mind. We can talk about that later…but I wanted you to know, I realize I’ve been hard on you, but it’s always been for a reason…”
His words hung in my head. There was more weight to his words than I think he even realized. In that moment, every time my father had criticized me, belittled me or pushed me past my limit had flashed through my mind. He might have only been apologizing for one isolated incident, but to me, it felt like he was apologizing for everything. My headache had cleared, I suddenly felt more awake than I had in a long time.
“Also, I heard really great things about the restaurant opening.” His voice was more sheepish than I had ever heard it before. “I’m truly sorry I missed it. But I plan to be in the city soon. I want to do a walkthrough of the new hotel and club you’ve been working on. I’m really impressed. Everything is still on track?”
“Thank you, and yes, that would be great! Everything is on track. We do a soft open in a few weeks.” My pulse pounded at the thought of him coming out to actually see the results of my hard work. While dad was always a controlling person, he gave me space to fail and was right there to pick up the pieces and blame me for everything that had gone wrong.
“No soft open. I want to make this a big deal. This needs to be a huge event. It’s time to make our mark bigger in New York City, pull out all the stops for this opening.”
“Yes, yes, I agree.” I wasn’t sure who the person I was speaking to on the phone was. It certainly wasn’t anything I would have ever thought I’d hear from my father.
“You need to get the marketing and PR team on this right away.” He paused. “But I’m sure you have that taken care of already. No need for me to tell you how to do your job, right?”
“I…I do. It’s actually in the works right now.” I shook my head to myself. I knew we needed to work on the marketing aspect of this project, but until now, we had planned a soft opening and sales approach. Dad’s new desire for an all out blitz was going to take quite a bit of work.
“Good. We’ll be using Rachel’s firm for this again. She’s familiar with everything. Have you contacted her yet?”
“Rachel?” I took in a deep breath and let it out as I closed my eyes. Rachel was Sara’s older sister and definitely was a different person from Sara. Rachel was driven, ambitious and hard working. Something Sara never had a desire to be. Rachel was also one of the executives at a marketing firm here in the city. We had used them for many things, but it was always as a favor to Sara. That connection was now gone, and it was something I didn’t want to deal with. “I supposed that’s an option, but I’m exploring some other things right now.”
“Chance, son, you know that she’s good at what she does.” His voice was stern, but still kind. “She has all the right connections, knows how to get anything and everything done, both efficiently and effectively. You remember what she did for the opening of Paladium? You’re not going to find anyone better.”
“You’re . . . probably right.” I knew in my gut that he was right, but I still wanted Becca, for the project and everything else. Becca had already turned down the offer and I knew, given the circumstances, Rachel, and the probable drama that came along with her, was my only option.
“I am right about this, Chance.” He spoke softly. I could feel that he understood how difficult it would be for me to work with her. But he also had to think about what was best for the company. “Don’t let me down, son. I know you can do this. Call Rachel and get things going. I’ll see you soon.”
I sat there with the phone against my ear and listened to the silence, finally tossing the phone on the desk. I thought about Sara’s note that she had left for me at the penthouse. I’d come back to her. I knew she had already told Rachel about everything that happened. Even though I knew Rachel understood the complexities between Sara and I, there was no doubt she’d side with her sister. I paced over to the window overlooking the city and stared outside.
Chance, what have you gotten yourself into?
Chapter Three
Becca
I carefully balanced my bag and handful of mail as I walked through the door of my apartment and headed directly to the rack of glasses next to our dining table. I selected a large, red wine glass, grabbed a bottle of wine sitting on the counter and then padded towards the couch, dropping the pile of mail on the coffee table. What a hell of a day! I kicked off my heels, dropped my bag, twisted the top off of the wine bottle and then poured myself a large glass. I took a long sip and then found a place on the couch.
I grabbed my laptop that had been sitting on the corner of the couch and opened it as I let out a deep sigh. I took another large sip and let the warmth of the wine travel through me before I grabbed the stack of mail and existing bills that had been sitting on the coffee table. Melissa had paid her half of our bills online, but I hadn’t done it yet. I logged into my bank account and cringed at the sight. Even when I had I job, I was practically living paycheck to paycheck. Living in the city was so expensive. I didn’t really know what I was going to do when Melissa moved out after her wedding. I didn’t have enough money to last the month and I knew I couldn’t ask my parents for money.
They would probably use this as a reason to drag me back home. They never wanted me to move to the city. They thought New York was all crime and trash. Even when they came to visit, all they ever did was complain about the traffic and the smell. My mother was the worst. She’d walked down the street with her arms wrapped tightly around her purse and her eyes darting back and forth, waiting to be mugged. They didn’t see what I always had seen, a metropolis full of culture and life, where anything and everything were possible, if you worked hard enough.
I shook my head, as I drank from my glass, attempting to drown the memories from the day. It wasn’t the time to feel sorry for myself. I closed my laptop and tossed it back onto the end of the sofa and sipped from my glass once more. I had started to feel the effects of the wine, a much needed relief. I tossed the bills and mail onto the coffee table and propped my feet up on top of them, accidentally knocking over my bag. I stared at the contents, strewn on the floor and sank back into the couch. The sweet smell of the vanilla scented candles hovered through the room. It was warm, soft, and comfortable.
Begrudgingly, I gave into my desire to immediately cleanup my mess and toss the make-up and other contents from the floor back into my bag. I picked up the envelope that Chance had given me and stared at it for a moment. The thin envelope was sealed with my name neatly typed across the front of it. I held it up to the light, wondering whether it would provide a clue to what was inside, but it didn’t. I dropped it on my lap, remembering how quickly I declined Chance’s offer. I couldn’t help but touch it again. I ran my fingers over the envelope. There was a hint of Chance’s cologne that lingered on it. I laid my head back and closed my eyes. My body felt heavy, my legs were sore from walking all day. I felt defeated.
Melissa came home a few minutes later. “Shit Becca! I hope there is some of that wine left. You won’t believe the day I had.” Melissa shouted over to me as she stood just inside the door and dropped her keys into the bowl on the table and then made her way to the living room.
“Tough day?” I asked as I sat upright.
“You have no idea!” Melissa said as she poured herself some wine as well as topping off my glass. “You know that new project I’m working on, that guy, Greg, he’s constantly acting like he know what’s best. Seriously, he’s always trying to undermine the rest of the team.”
“That’s horrible.” I feigned an interest. While I did feel bad for her, I was already drowned in my own life issues. Melissa climbed onto the couch and pulled her long dark hair out of its tight bun and stared at me. “Lis, what are you going to do?”
“Grin and bear it, I suppose.” She rested her chin on her palm and sighed. “He’s a friend of one of the department managers, so even if I complain, there’s no way they would remove him from the project. Besides, I need the job with the wedding coming up and everything else.”
“That really sucks.” I shook my head. Melissa raised her brow, tilted her head slightly to the left.
“You okay, girlie?” She asked. “You don’t look so good. How was the interview today?”
“I didn’t get the job.” I massaged my head with my hand and took another sip of wine. “According to them, I was too senior. They were looking for someone that was entry level and the pay was only one fourth of what I was making.”
“I’m sorry, Becca.” She touched my shoulder gently. “I’m sure you’ll find something soon.
“I hope so, I really don’t want to have to crawl back to my parents.” The idea of ever having to move back home was a nightmare.
“That won’t happen! Trust me you’ll find a job in no time!” Melissa stared at the envelope resting in my lap. “Let me guess, another bill?”
“No it’s…” I hesitated and debated whether I should tell her about my brief meeting with Chance.
Melissa stared harder at me. “It’s…what?”
“I ran into Chance on my way to the interview today.”
“…and what? He wrote you a love letter?” Melissa drew away from me and took a large gulp of her wine. Her bottom jaw protruded slightly as she looked off into the distance. I knew she really didn’t approve of Chance.
“He offered me a job.” I said slowly. I watched as she shook her head at me but not saying a word. “He wants me help with the marketing and PR for his restaurant and other projects.” I swallowed hard and thought about what I was describing. It was my dream job and the more I thought about it, the more I wanted it, if things had turned out differently. “I don’t think I can do that, at least for him.”
“I’m not going to tell you what to do Becca. That’s up to you.” Melissa emptied her glass, and then poured herself the rest of the wine. We had emptied the bottle of wine in less than twenty minutes, probably a record for us. After another sip she turned to me, her green eyes locked onto mine. “Are you seriously considering his offer? How did he even find you?”
“He apparently went looking for me at Johnson Boone. He even talked to Matthew.” I shifted in my seat, suddenly I felt like I was being interrogated. “He said he was trying to get in contact with me. He was impressed with what we talked about on our flight to Vegas…and wanted me to lead his project.”
“Yeah, I’m sure that is the only reason he wants to hire you.” She rolled her eyes dramatically. I began to second-guess telling Melissa about any of it. She was getting angry, which wasn’t what I had wanted. I had only wanted her advice.
“Becca, you’ve changed your number,
you’ve been avoiding him. Hell, you were confronted by his fiancé–”
“Ex-girlfriend” I corrected.
“Ex-girlfriend… it doesn’t matter. Things continually end badly with him. Have you told Chris?” Melissa barked.
“No, not yet. Actually I don’t know if I should tell him at all…and honestly Melissa, those things that happened, they weren’t his fault, I mean, his ex caused all of the problems, not him. He was broken up with her!” I thought about what I was saying. I hated what had happened with Chance, but I didn’t hate him. It was the exact opposite and now I was defending him. “I probably won’t take the job anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”
Melissa shook her head. “You know, Chris asked about you today.” Melissa quickly changed the subject. “You should at least fill him in on this.” Melissa eyed the envelope on my lap again and then quickly grabbed it. “This is his proposal?”
“That’s what he said.” I snatched it back from her and held on to it.
“Open it!” She demanded and reached for it again but just missing it as I pulled it away. “It can’t hurt to see what he was willing to offer.”
“I can’t.” I placed the envelope back on my lap, lowering my guard as Melissa snatched it from me and turned away.
I watched as she tore open the envelope and then turned to face me. She pulled out the paper and unfolded it. Her eyes skimmed the page as they grew bigger and her mouth fell open.
“Melissa…what does it say?”
Melissa was speechless and that was a first.
Chapter Four
Chance
I stepped out of the town car and took in a steadying breath. I had to keep my composure. The pressure had started to get to me. Two days had passed since I had given Becca the proposal, and I hadn’t heard a thing. I didn’t have anyway to get in touch with her, at least without stalking her and I didn’t know how much longer I could wait, at least until I had to reach out to Rachel, something I didn’t want to do.