by Sherie Keys
Chapter2
Hunter
I dreamed about her again last night, and what’s worse, I responded “yes” to every invitation to each elite party, fundraiser, or gala that I received that week. It was ridiculous, but Melanie had gotten under my skin in just the ten minutes our conversation lasted.
I just needed to find her and get a hold of her, somehow. But all I had was her first name. I sighed and then focused on work, I was a bit below my quota for the day but I could make it up in no time with just a few phone calls. I’d sell a couple of big stocks and be right where I needed to before the week ended for me.
“Mister Berkshire, we have a client on the phone who is saying one of our guys sold him bad stock; he’s threatening to sue.”
My assistant, Lily, poked her head into my office and I got up quickly. The last thing I needed on Wall Street was someone spouting that my firm sold him bad stock. Reputation was everything in the city. I quickly followed her to the broker in question and he was at his desk, on the phone, trying to calm down the client. I glanced outside of the guy’s cubicle and saw his name was Rick.
“Tell him your boss just walked in and hand over the phone, Rick.” I sighed and he looked at me with wide, panicked, brown eyes before he muttered something to the client and handed me the phone.
I mouthed at him to get me the information on the stock he sold and I forced myself to lighten up so I could talk down the client. Putting out that fire took longer than I expected and I had to work even harder to meet my goal. I needed four days off for the weekend so I could focus on tracking Melanie down and asking her out. I’d never dreamt about a woman before and it was almost disturbing that I thought about a stranger so much.
Thankfully, my partner would be picking up the slack for the days I took off work -- we usually swapped days off. Normally, I only worked about three or four days a week. After I sold the last stock, I quickly made a call to a buddy of mine who also happened to be a private investigator.
“Hey, Anthony, I have a project for you,” I said and he chuckled.
I didn’t so much as say hey or ask him how his day was going, but that’s how it was between Ant and I. We both joined the Air Force right out of high school; I joined for a tuition break in going to college, Anthony joined to serve and still did contract work even though we were both out.
“A project sounds interesting, you know I like a challenge, what’ve you got for me?” he asked as I stepped outside and got into the backseat of my waiting car. I held the phone away from my mouth and told my driver John to take me home.
“Well, I met this girl,” I started and Anthony started laughing at me already. I sighed and waited for him to finish before I continued.
“This already sounds interesting,” he said and I sighed again.
“I don’t know man…it’s weird, I met her at the party last weekend and all I got was her first name and now she’s, like…haunting me,” I said and Anthony chuckled on the other line.
“I get that, man, I bet she had to be smokin’ to have gotten under your skin like that, so what’s her name, maybe I can stop by later for a beer and we can crack this case,” he suggested and I grew hopeful that he’d be able to find her easily if he was willing to hang out during whatever process he went through to track people down.
“Sure thing, you know you’re always welcome. Her name is Melanie, I’m pretty sure it’s M-E-L-A-N-I-E,” I said and there was a pause on the other line before he spoke again.
“Sure thing, I’m about ready to wrap up a case here, so I’ll be by around six,” he said.
That was in an hour so I had time to take a jog before he showed up at my place. We ended the call and then I answered some work e-mail while on the way home. When I got to my building, I hurried through the lobby and rode the elevator up to the penthouse to change into jogging pants and a light parka. The days were getting cooler and cooler as fall was making way for winter in New York. My sister Ariana called me as I was running the last mile stretch back home.
“Hunter!” Ari’s usual bubbly voice was enthusiastic as ever as she greeted me, I was wearing headphones so I couldn’t exactly pull the phone away from my head.
“How are you, baby girl?”
“I’m good, I just thought I would check up on my big brother, what, are you jogging?” she asked and I caught my breath so I could answer her.
“Yep, what’s new?” I asked and she filled me in on her job at St. Jude’s. She was a resident there specializing in pediatric oncology, and it was her dream to work there and, quite frankly, she was great with kids.
“So what’s new with you? We should do dinner soon.”
Whenever Ari called it was the same old report from me; all I did was work, really, and hang out with the occasional friend or business partner and then, of course, go to as few elite events as possible, which would change for me in the next couple of weeks if Anthony didn’t find Melanie.
“You know me, Ari, nothing new. Your brother is boring as usual,” I said and she laughed.
“Sure and then tomorrow morning I’ll see you on TV driving a Formula One car in the south of France?” she asked and I laughed.
“Ari, that was one time, and I had to take a lot of certifications to do that,” I said and she grunted as if she didn’t believe I was as boring as I let on.
“So when are you going to settle down, Hunt?” she asked and I sighed.
Ever since we stopped talking to our parents, Ari had taken up the job of asking me that question every time we spoke, as a joke. My mother used to drive me crazy with that line of questioning.
“How about you, Ari? You find the one yet?” I asked and she laughed.
“Exactly,” I said.
“Oh shut up, you’re gorgeous and rich enough to get any girl you want,” she said and I shrugged as if she were right next to me.
“It’s not as easy as you think, Ari, there are a lot of money grubbing crazies out there,” I said and she groaned.
“One day you’ll meet a girl that catches you off guard and she’ll be the one,” Ari said and my steps faltered at how eerie it was that she said that.
Melanie had certainly caught me off guard, but I knew I’d find ‘the one’ when I was ready and open to the possibility.
I wanted to find Melanie just so I could find her, I’m sure the fascination would wear off after maybe a date or two. I caught up with my sister until I got back home and then I ended the call with her so I could shower and change.
My penthouse was on the Upper East Side and I had a great view of the park and city around it. The house had two levels and was a bit extravagant for one guy to live in, but I thought I’d splurge when looking for a comfortable place to live in the city.
Anthony was, of course, on time and I had just come down from changing into a clean pair of sweat pants and a sweat shirt when the front desk called up.
Soon Anthony was stepping into the foyer from the elevator and I greeted him with a hand shake as usual. Ant was just as tall and built as I was, it was a habit to keep fit from being in the military.
He had strikingly dark, almost black eyes, and long light blond hair. He had sharp features, but Anthony wasn’t nearly as intense as he looked, he was one of the most easy-going guys I knew, apart from my business partner.
“You got the beer, I got the laptop,” he said and I gestured him over to the living room.
The first level was all open floor plan, so the kitchen, living room, and dining room all melded together. Anthony set up his laptop on the coffee table while I pulled a couple of beers from the fridge and grabbed a bag of chips from the pantry to take over to the living room.
“Alright, so you saw her at the Double Tree and her name is Melanie,” Anthony said and I snorted.
“Way to make a children’s story out of it, Ant,” I teased and he rolled his eyes.
“Well, I have surveillance from Saturday night, she the hottie with the maroon dress?” Anthony showed me his lapt
op and a snapshot of Melanie stepping out of the ballroom and into the hallway.
“That’s her, yeah,” I said and Anthony turned his laptop back towards him as he pressed a few buttons and then pursed his lips while he watched the screen.
“She took a cab…” he murmured and then pulled out a pad and pen from his laptop bag to jot down a number.
“You’re a magician,” I said and Anthony laughed then shrugged.
“I simply kept certain accesses that I shouldn’t have, it allows me to tap into almost any security camera footage, as long as the feed is somehow connected to the internet and not close circuit.”
I nodded and pretended that I knew what he was talking about.
“Alright, the cab took her to…an apartment building in SoHo, let me see if the tenants are registered online anywhere for anything…” Anthony drank his beer and did some research on his laptop while I turned on the TV and tried to wait patiently for his results. I remembered the comment Melanie made about me being a bit like a stalker. When it came to her for some reason, I couldn’t help it.
“Got her, Melanie Rowland, born in Long Island New York, she’s twenty-seven years old and her number is…” Anthony jotted down the number and then gave it to me with a grin. “That wasn’t much of a challenge, I’ve wanted to tap into security cameras for a long time now,” Anthony said and I smiled as I took the piece of paper from him.
“Thanks man, that’s why I called you. You’re the best,” I said and he shrugged not so humbly. “But I can’t just call her, she’ll think I’m some weirdo for tracking her down on nothing but a name,” I said and Anthony nodded. He opened the bag of chips, took a few, and then chased it with a swig of beer.
“You’re right, I could look up a couple of her family members and maybe you can triangulate something through there, or I can try and find someplace that she frequents, but that’ll cost you, my friend,” Ant said with a grin and I rolled my eyes.
“You know money is never a question,” I said and then Anthony nodded.
“Alright, I’m not about to go through every surveillance camera in the city, so I’ll have to hire a guy who’s good at following people around and learning their routine.”
I nodded and then took a swig of my beer.
“Just name a price and it’s done,” I said.
Anthony made a call and then we put work aside to hang out for a bit. After Ant left, I went upstairs into the family room to pick out a book from my book case. I recycled books almost monthly and stocked up on new ones apart from the few I really liked. I couldn’t focus on reading, though, as I was anxious for Anthony’s guy to get back with a report soon. I had to find her again and at least ask her out. She was affecting my sleeping pattern and that was saying something.
* * *
A few days later and Anthony had delivered; Melanie frequented this deli on Wall Street for lunch around noon, so all I had to do was show up there and act like I ran into her. I just didn’t know if I should wait until Monday or try for that day, Saturday, around noon. Monday was better, it was during the work week and that was when she’d most likely stick with any sort of routine. I decided to surprise my sister with a visit instead and treat her with a helicopter ride around the city.
She couldn’t complain that I did extravagant things without her anymore after that.
I had my driver take me to my sister’s town house in Midtown and the car pulled up outside of the brownstone just as she was walking down the steps. I got out of the car and she looked up at me startled, but happily surprised at my presence.
“Hunter!” she squealed and then ran up to give me a tight hug. “What are you doing here?” she asked and I shrugged.
Ari looked the same, she had dark hair and green eyes just like I did. But she had our mom’s soft features that made her look younger than she was.
“I’m here to surprise you with a helicopter ride around the city,” I said and her eyes lit up with excitement.
“No way! And I was just about to go to the library and research developmental chemotherapy cocktails for fun, that sounds so much better!” she enthused and I laughed.
“I can guarantee that it’ll be a hundred times better,” I said and then ushered her to the car. We went to the nearest helicopter port and I rented out the next time slot for taking a tour of the city.
“You know I’ve always wanted to take an air tour of the city; this will be so cool!” I smiled indulgently at Ari as we waited for our pilot to get back from his current tour.
“So what were you going to do today before you thought about me? Fly to Vail and go skiing?” she teased and I rolled my eyes.
“No actually…I would have gone to a deli to wait day and night for a girl I met,” I admitted to her and she gasped dramatically.
“What? You were going to sulk around for a woman?” Ari asked incredulously and I rolled my eyes.
“You don’t have to be so dramatic about it Ari, it’s not a big deal,” I mumbled and started to regret telling her anything at all.
“I’m sorry, you’re right. You often contemplate hanging around packed New York delis for girls you’ve only met once,” Ari said and I sighed. “So what’s her name? Did you get to talk to her at least?” she asked and I nodded.
“Briefly. She seemed really interesting…her name is Melanie,” I said and Ari grinned at me as if she was loving every second of this.
“I’m sorry I’ve just never heard your voice get all soft for a girl before!” she said and I rolled my eyes. “Whoever she is, I like her already, and when you see her again, be sure to get her number and not just her name,” Ari said and I nodded.
“Will do.” I knew if I had told her the full truth about my having Ant look Melanie up, I’d never hear the end of it. I just couldn’t wait for Monday to come around so I could finally see Melanie again.
Caleb
“Caleb! Caleb!” My buddy Rob called for the ball and I tossed it over to him so he could shoot an easy layup. The guys on our team all celebrated when the ball tipped in and the other team all groaned and cursed as Rob made the winning shot. We high fived and shook hands with all the other guys before going to take a seat on the bleachers for a breather.
“That was a good game, I see your knee is doing better,” I commented and Rob inspected his knee which was in an athletic brace.
“Yeah, the PT helps a lot, so does getting back out here to play ball,” Rob said as he used his towel to wipe sweat from his face and neck.
Rob was my best friend and also a dedicated FBI agent in the city.
He had been injured on the job a few months ago and was only just fully recovering from it, pretty much. He hated sitting behind a desk to do paper work, but when you have to for the sake of your health, you had to.
“Yeah, that, and you’re also an undercover basketball star,” I said and Rob laughed.
“That’s borderline racist, are you saying that just because I’m black?” he asked and I cracked up.
“Hey, I’m good, too,” I said and Rob snorted.
He checked his phone and then shook his head with a smile as he texted whoever it was that messaged him back.
“I don’t know what to do, man, I’m stuck. I met this girl at a bar the other day, she was amazing, I mean as beautiful as they come. She seemed into me when I went up to her, we talked for a while, exchanged numbers, and we went on one date so far. But ever since then she’s been playing around and acting all coy,” Rob said and I studied him while I thought about how best to answer his dilemma.
Rob wasn’t an ugly guy by far. He had warm hazel eyes and was clean cut, his caramel colored skin was without blemish and he had the prerequisite features any girl would fall in love with. From the nice jaw and chin, to the lips, and eyes. For as many women as he met, he had a strange track record of not getting past a first or second date.
“I don’t know man…are you boring?” I asked him and he looked at me as if I was crazy.
“What do
you mean ‘am I boring?’” he asked and I shrugged.
“I don’t know, it’s either that or you could be getting nervous when you go out on dates and blowing them,” I suggested and Rob thought it over.
“I don’t know…am I boring?” he asked me and I tried not to laugh. Rob rolled his eyes at me and whipped me with his gross sweaty towel. “Come on man this is serious,” he said and I held up my hand.
“Hey, smack me with that thing one more time and I’ll ring out my dirty socks in your gym bag,” I said and Rob got completely serious.
“Was that a threat, Caleb? Did you just threaten a federal agent?” he asked and then stared at me in all seriousness until we both broke into laughter.