by J. D. Mason
Abby walked slowly through the room, grazing her fingers over the backs of chairs and across dusty tables. She wore a delicate blue dress, cotton, the hem stopping at the middle of her thighs, the top fitting the contours of her breasts, with a thin, black belt cinched at her waist. Her curls fell loose around her face, touching the tops of her shoulders. Jordan hung on to the sound of her voice, fixated on the delicate trace of her fingers, and allowed himself to be caught up in her reimagining of this place.
“They’d drink and smoke and laugh,” she said, staring out at the expanse of the room, beyond him. “And then at some point, the music would start playing, and one couple would get on the floor and just start dancing, then another and another until it was packed and they could barely move.”
Jordan could almost hear the music and see the bodies moving from side to side as one collective.
“Catfish and french fries,” she said, closing her eyes and inhaling like she could actually smell it. “Doused with plenty of hot sauce, of course. And some of the best coleslaw in Texas.” She laughed and looked at him. “They ate like kings and queens and drank until the world moved in slow motion.” She laughed again. “And the best dances were the slow ones.” Abby looked enviable and lost in her thoughts. “The night always ended with a slow dance.”
It took every ounce of restraint in him not to reach out for this magical woman who’d transported him back to a time and place where life was simple, pure, and easy. An image flashed in his mind of Julian, sweaty and high on cheap liquor, catfish and coleslaw, wrapped around Ida like second skin, staring deep into her eyes, whispering promises, and grinning like he’d won a prize.
He met her gaze and held it. He could tell that she wanted to look away, but hoped she wouldn’t.
“I imagine that for a man like him, a night like that would be a reprieve from all those big responsibilities that he had back in Dallas. And I’d imagine that spending it here with the woman he loved made it even more special.” She shrugged. “Not that I condone the fact that he was cheating on his wife,” she added.
“No, there’s no excuse for that,” he said. Infidelity was one of those things he and Julian had always had in common. Jordan had been a shitty husband, too.
“This place wasn’t much, but tucked back here in the woods like this?” She smiled. “There’s something mysterious about it. Don’t you think? Forbidden and secret.”
Abby looked uncomfortable all of a sudden as she slowly winded her way out of fantasy.
“We should go,” she finally said to him, hurrying and leading the way out. “I’m sure you need to get back home to Dallas.”
And that was too bad.
Witchy Woman
TWO DAYS AGO OLIVIA GATEWOOD had stunned the hospital staff when she asked her caregiver to warm her tea. The woman nearly fainted before rushing to get nurses and doctors who crowded around Olivia like she’d just woken up from a thousand-year sleep.
“I need to see him,” she said to the woman bathing her. “I need to see my son.”
You’d have thought from the expression on the woman’s face that Olivia had asked to see Jesus.
“My son,” she repeated, more determined. “I want to see him.”
Olivia had rested long enough. That silly son of hers had been away for too long. Her doctor had assured her that he’d phoned Jordan alerting him to recent events surrounding her. Her daughter, June, had called several times and was making plans to come and see her mother as soon as possible. Jordan obviously wasn’t in a rush to see her.
* * *
“I’ve been waiting for two days.”
Olivia saw no need to begin this visit with cordial and wasteful pleasantries. Jordan casually walked into her living room, unbuttoned his suit jacket, and sat down in the chair across from her as if he hadn’t kept his mother waiting all this time.
“Tell me that you’ve only recently received my message,” she challenged.
Jordan’s unconcerned expression started to anger her.
“Glad to see you’ve finally snapped out of it,” he said with a casual sarcasm.
Olivia raised her chin defiantly. “Attitude, Jordan,” she said with warning. “Remember who you’re talking to.”
“How could I possibly forget?” he responded indifferently. “But it is good to see that you’re feeling better, recovering nicely, they tell me.”
Olivia released a soft and heavy sigh. “I’ve been resting, Jordan. My condition sometimes takes its toll. But that’s no excuse for you to stay away for so long or to act like an ass when you do decide to finally show up.”
He turned his handsome face slightly to one side and peered intensely at her. “No, I truly am happy to see you’re faring well and I’m not acting.”
Again with the cloaked sarcasm. A mother knows her child better than she knows herself, and Jordan was purposefully callous.
“So, you’re angry with me,” she eventually concluded.
The amused expression faded from his dark, hooded eyes. “Angry? How could I possibly ever be angry with you, Mother?”
If he had bothered to hide the malicious tone of his question, he hadn’t done a very good job. And yes. She was hurt by his behavior, by his lack of attention to his mother. Jordan had always been so devoted to Olivia, even more than June. He had been the one that Olivia could always count on. He had been her prince; even when he was a little boy, he had doted on her. She could only conclude from his attitude that he was somehow disappointed with her.
“My memory can be so deceptive at times, son,” she tenderly tried to explain. “There are gaps, moments missing that I can’t account for. So much has been lost in those moments—people, time, and events. If I’ve somehow caused you any grief, Jordan, believe me, it was never intentional.”
“Is that right?” he eventually asked.
Yes. Olivia had done or said something hurtful to him during one of her blackouts. Studying him, she could almost see the pain in his eyes.
“You have always been my one true love, Jordan.” She smiled warmly. “The love of my life.”
“I’m honored,” he said curtly.
Now he was starting to piss her off, but Olivia decided that pursuing an argument wasn’t worth the effort since she hadn’t seen him in ages and there was so much for them to catch up on.
“I’ve been told that you’re working on finalizing some kind of contract with the federal government to develop a new fuel alternative. Is that true?”
It was next to impossible not to be impressed by her son. In so many ways, he was even more brilliant than his father.
“Who told you that?” he asked casually.
It was easy enough for her to still put her finger on the pulse of Gatewood Industries, even in the two days since she’d recovered from her “episode.”
“Does it matter?” she replied coyly. “It’s my understanding that this could be the collaboration of a lifetime if it plays in our favor.”
“Yes. It could be,” he confirmed. “The alternative fuel project would be in conjunction with design and development of a new rocket engine.”
She smiled and clasped her hands together. “Since when does Gatewood Industries build rocket engines?
“Since the government expressed a need for one,” he said nonchalantly.
“How impressive!” Olivia exclaimed.
She had nothing but faith in this resourceful young man. Of course he could build engines for rockets. Olivia was as convinced as she always was that there was nothing he couldn’t do when he set his mind to it.
“How close are you to finalizing the agreement?” she asked excitedly.
“Two other businesses are in the running, Mother. All we can do is wait and see.”
“And if you win, Jordan, how much is it worth to Gatewood Industries?”
Jordan paused. “Billions.”
He was her golden child. Always had been and always would be. She’d known it from the moment she handed over the helm
of the corporation to him after her husband’s death, nearly three decades ago. Jordan had grown up with Gatewood Industries. He’d turned it into something Julian could never have fathomed.
“And what about your social life?” she asked, changing the subject.
Of course she was concerned about how he was managing all aspects of his life. He was too wonderful to just bury his head in business.
“Claire’s been gone for some time now, Jordan. Maybe we’ve spoken about this and I don’t remember, but have you been seeing anyone?”
He raised a heavy brow in response.
“Not that I’m prying, son, but it’s just that I want you to be happy. You know I do.”
Just then, his cell phone vibrated. Jordan pulled it from the inside pocket of his jacket, glanced at it, and looked at her. “Excuse me. I’ve got to take this.”
She nodded. “Of course.”
“Yes?” he answered and paused, listening to the caller. “Please do. I look forward to receiving it. Thank you.”
A mother knows her child, and Olivia couldn’t hold back the sheepish grin spreading her lips as she listened to his exchange with the other person. Of course it was a woman.
“I’ll read it as soon as I get back to the office. Good-bye.”
“So, there is someone?” his mother brazenly asked.
“Someone I’ve met recently,” he admitted. “Yes.”
“Good,” she said without probing for details. It was too soon for that. “I’m glad that you haven’t closed yourself off to the possibilities, son. You have so much to offer some lovely woman and you deserve every happiness.”
Jordan seemed to ponder her comment before abruptly excusing himself.
“I really do have to get back to the office, Mother. I’ve got several meetings this afternoon that I must attend.”
“Of course, Jordan,” she said enthusiastically. “But I would like for you to come back soon. We should have dinner together. I’ll have my chef prepare your favorite.”
He stood up, walked over to her, and leaned down to kiss the top of her head. “That would be interesting.”
It was an odd choice of words, but he left her little time to challenge them.
“I’ll call you,” he said over his shoulder as he left.
Olivia watched admiringly as her handsome son walked out of the room, disappearing into the foyer. He had always been her heart and soul. There had been times in his life when he sometimes seemed to forget that, and she had had no choice but to blame herself. Olivia oftentimes allowed distractions to get the best of her, to the detriment of their relationship. But Jordan was the most steadfast and dependable person in her life. He always had been, even in the worst of times. He forgave her for her sins and devoted himself to her more than she could ever truly comprehend.
Suddenly, an unexpected image flashed in her mind of herself screaming. A gun firing. She inadvertently jumped at the sound that wasn’t real now. Regret immediately washed over her as she took a deep breath to cleanse away the residue of unpleasant thoughts. Some memories were best left to the dark corners of the mind, forgotten and put away. She’d always been selective about such things. He was angry with her still. But Jordan loved her beyond what was reasonable, and in time, he’d forgive her. He always did. She rested in that knowledge.
Echoed Voices
JORDAN HAD WATCHED ABBY’S video several times, to the point of damn near having it memorized.
“Hey, boss,” his personal assistant, Phyl Mays, said, knocking lightly on his office door before entering. “Jennifer’s gone for the day?”
He glanced at the time on his computer screen. It was after six in the evening. “Yes.”
Phyl took a seat. “Just a few things before I head home,” she said, powering up her tablet. “Ms. Sinclair wanted me to remind you about Senator Wilson’s fund-raiser a week from Saturday. Got a tux all dusted off and hanging in the closet for you.” Phyl winked.
“Thank you.”
“Did Jenn put the interview and photo shoot on your calendar for the first for the Houston Maverick magazine?”
He glanced at his calendar. “She did.”
“Because she’s good like that,” Phyl joked. “Mark Allen will be conducting the interview, and I forwarded you a list of questions earlier today.”
“I’m surprised that he gave you a list of questions,” he said.
“I told him you wouldn’t agree to do the interview without them.”
“Thank you.”
“And I did some research on Abby Rhodes like you asked,” she finally said. “So, she’s a general contractor in Blink, Texas. Owns several properties—three single-family homes, which she rents out to tenants. She runs a small business called A&R Contracting, where she mostly does things like household renovations. You know, kitchen and bathroom remodels, decks, that sort of thing. Has a net worth of around three hundred thousand, which for Blink is actually pretty impressive. Single. Never been married. No kids. Not even a dog. Thirty-seven—this weekend.” Phyl smiled proudly. “And she’s cute. If I weren’t in sort of a committed, lusty relationship with a big-bosomed brunette, I might make a play for her.”
“Is that it?”
She sighed. “That’s it, boss. Can I go home now?”
“Have a good night, Phyl.”
Phyl was efficient, overly sarcastic, quick-witted, and she never asked more questions than she needed to. He didn’t always act like it, but he liked her and, more importantly, he trusted her.
* * *
Was he losing his damn mind or what? Jordan was too busy to be traipsing up and down the highway to Blink fucking Texas, but it was like he was on automatic pilot, and the very next afternoon, Jordan had checked into his hotel and, two hours later, was sitting down at a restaurant called Belle’s for a steak dinner, watching the video that Abby had e-mailed to him again.
Jordan played Abby’s video on his cell phone. She’d recorded it from her home. Abby’s hair was pulled back like before and her face free of any makeup. Actually, he couldn’t remember if he’d ever seen her wearing makeup.
“So, I was going to e-mail you but then thought that’d be like sending you a book. And I don’t think you want to read that much, just like I don’t want to have to type that much.”
Jordan didn’t realize he was smiling, but the sound of her voice did that to him.
“I’m just going to be forthright with you,” she said taking a deep breath. “My house is haunted. No, I’m not crazy. Just hear me out. I believe that it’s haunted by Ida Green and maybe even your daddy, which is why I have become somewhat obsessed with learning who these people are, just like you have.”
She licked her full lips, and Jordan fixed his gaze on them.
“It seems to me that maybe if you knew more about her, it would tell you more about him. Right? Does that make sense?”
It did.
“I spoke some more to my aunt Rue. But don’t worry, Jordan. I have not mentioned your name at all. If anyone in town knew that I knew somebody like you, they’d be camped out in my front yard just to get a good look at you and they’d be all over you like fire ants,” she concluded. “But I did speak to her about Ida. And the two of them went to school together. They graduated a year apart and were friends, as much as anybody could be friends with Rue.” She shook her head and sighed. “But Ida was shy. A lot of the kids made fun of her because she was so dark and her family was so poor. Anyway, after high school, she got a job working at a hotel in downtown Blink. Before that she’d worked as a seamstress in her mother’s shop. She met Julian at the hotel, though.”
Abby looked off to the side and flipped through a notepad sitting next to her computer.
“Um, I guess he must’ve been passing through town on business, decided to get a room one night while she was working. Rue couldn’t be sure, but she thinks she remembers that he came back to town a couple of times. This was in 1970, by the way.”
Julian formally adopted Jor
dan in 1970, maybe ’71. He’d married Olivia in ’68. Damn. Jordan had never stopped to do the math, but it made sense. Julian was barely married to Olivia when he started seeing Ida.
“Now here’s the delicate part,” Abby said apprehensively. “Ida sorta got pregnant right away, Jordan,” she said broaching the subject cautiously. “And she had a daughter, Desi, who is the one who went to prison for killing Julian. Lord, I hope you know that.”
Abby’s eyes widened.
“I so hope you do.”
He knew.
“So, I don’t know if any of this helps you. I know it’s helping me to understand that this wasn’t just a fling. I mean, he was with her until the day he died, eighteen years later. But I can imagine that he was pretty overwhelming to her. A shy young woman meets a big-city businessman.”
Once again, he sensed that Abby was very protective of Ida’s memory.
“I’m sure he was real slick, said all the right things, and impressed the hell out of her. It couldn’t have been hard. But he didn’t just, well, to put it mildly, hit it and quit it. He stayed with her, had a baby with her. I’d say that whatever he felt for her was genuine. I’d say he definitely loved her.” Abby shrugged. “And I find comfort in that for some reason. Anyway, I hope this helps.”
* * *
“Hey, Mr. Rhodes. Mrs. Rhodes.”
Jordan looked up from his phone and saw an older man and woman coming in to the restaurant and stopping at the bar to talk to the woman who owned the place. “Belle,” the old man said. “How you been?”
“Good. Good. Y’all need menus?”
“Naw. We waiting on Abby,” the woman said.
The man wasn’t quite six feet tall, slender, and was dark like Abby. The woman looked to be Latin.
“The two of you look real nice,” Belle said. “What’s the occasion?”
“Abby’s birthday,” the man said. “We’re taking her out.”
“She thinks we’re having dinner here,” the woman chimed in. “But we’re surprising her and taking her to Clark City to that new seafood restaurant they just opened up.”