by Sloan, Molly
“You apologized to her? What for? She left you! You were a wreck when she left. You got a DUI, you were splattered across all of the gossip blogs and tabloids-”
“Yes, I was a wreck, but she was right to leave. I turned into one of those rich dirtbags and I lost sight of the things that were important to me. Janet was one of those things.”
“Sounds like a convenient excuse if you ask me. So, what did you talk about? Are you going to adopt an orphan or something?” Claudia still had a tone, but it was softening.
“She actually knows a lot about how things work over here.” He broke into an amused smile. “She actually showed up at the Department of Mines to confront the officials and revealed some unethical practices-”
“Wait. She’s involved in this mining deal?”
“Only peripherally. The site we’re most interested in is near a cemetery. Department of Mines wants to pay all of the families and exhume the bodies-”
“That’s awful.”
“Yeah, you have no idea. But I think that if we put our heads together, we can come up with a way for us to purchase the mining site, keep the cemetery intact, and make a positive impact on the surrounding provinces. But we’re going to need a lot more money, so see if you can’t patch things up with Cole along as quickly as possible.”
Claudia rolled her eyes again. “You say that as if you think I’m hindering this process in some way.”
“Well...I didn’t mean it that way at all. Defensive much? ”Andrew smiled because this was the way he and his sister talked. They were always honest with each other.
“He’s just...unconventional, but I will try to move things along.”
“Good. I’ll send you the details as soon as we get it all down on paper.”
“I’ll keep an eye out for it. One other thing...Andrew?”
“Yeah, sis?”
“Just...be careful. It sounds like you and Janet have come to some sort of understanding, but be careful. Once bitten, twice shy and all of that.”
“Okay, sis. I will.”
The next morning during a long hard run on the treadmill in the hotel gym, Andrew considered the fact that both his sister and his good friend Winston had warned him against getting tangled up with Janet again. Who knows? Maybe they are right. Maybe she’ll run off again and break my heart.
But Janet seemed different to that temperamental redhead he knew in college. She seemed centered and more mature. Andrew knew that he had matured a lot in the years they spent apart. He was ready to settle down and start a family.
Pulling on his jeans he couldn’t help but laugh at that thought. “Who would have ever imagined me, Andrew Atherton, thinking of settling down and getting married…”
Walking into the hotel restaurant, Winston and Fiona were already at the table. They were having breakfast to go over the specifics for the mine purchase.
Moving the salt and pepper shakers aside, Winston unrolled a map. “I got this from the girl at the front desk. It’s completely different than the one the official gave us yesterday.”
“Wait...you’ve already been to the Department of Mines this morning?”
“No…” Winston said with a sly smile. “She delivered it yesterday evening.”
“I see,” Andrew said with a knowing raise of his brows.
“Anyway, can we get our minds back on our business?” Fiona complained.
“Right, so this is the parcel of land they want to sell us and here’s the cemetery,” Winston pointed out. “But there’s also this adjacent parcel over here.”
“Yeah, Janet mentioned that. She said that we would have to buy both in order to leave the cemetery untouched.”
“And you think the Department of Mines would allow that?” Fiona asked. “They went out of their way to hide the fact that they planned to exhume those bodies and raze the cemetery.”
“True,” Winston agreed. ‘And what about the families? The ones who want to exhume for the money? Are we going to pay them off?”
“No...that wouldn’t make sense fiscally. Besides, isn’t it their job to make sure they hire from within the community?” Andrew asked.
“I’ve looked into it, but I haven’t been able to find any community initiatives,” Fiona said after taking a sip of her coffee. “They only seem to hire unskilled workers locally and don’t do much locally to get the people in the neighboring provinces more training.”
“But can’t we make that our focus? When we open the mine? Just because things have always been done this way doesn’t mean it is the only way to get things done,” Andrew said.
Winston nodded. “You’re right.”
Fiona gathered up her things. “I’ll get started on the necessary paperwork,” she said as she stood up. “Oh! I saw that you blocked out most of the morning with a visit to A Place for Grace. Do you need me for that or…?”
“No. I’m volunteering a few of hours to help Janet and her staff set up some bunks and stuff. I could use your help, Winston. If you don’t have anything planned.”
“You mean like manual labor?” Winston asked for clarification.
‘Yeah. Have you suddenly became too precious to get your hands dirty?”
Winston scoffed. “What time are we leaving?”
Chapter Eight: That Girl
Janet’s morning started even earlier than usual. The delivery trucks were coming at 7:00 am to drop off boxes containing fifty new bunk beds and bureaus. And, before they could be assembled, there were three newly renovated rooms that needed a fresh coat of paint. Janet and Elyse had moved all of the furniture out of the rooms the day before, but there was still a lot to do before the trucks arrived. And the ten volunteers - twelve with Andrew and Winston - were due to arrive at 6:45 am.
She didn’t run A Place for Grace like most of the orphanages she had volunteered at over the years; meaning she didn’t have a constant stream of volunteers. While it was nice to have the help, her main goal was to maintain consistency and stability for the kids at Grace and that was hard to do with a constant stream of volunteers coming and going. However, it was difficult to get things done without the free and steady support - even with The Girard Foundation footing most of the bill. Her mother was constantly tightening those purse strings as if Janet’s requests were frivolous.
That’s why Janet’s best friend from New York had flown into volunteer. Not only was Nicole Burns Janet’s oldest friend, she was also the head of Straw Barn Publishing. She was here to do a profile on A Place for Grace that would appear in several of Straw Barn’s publications. There would be magazine and newspaper coverage, as well as a YouTube documentary. The idea was that generating publicity would help raise awareness - and funds. Plus, Janet and Nicole hadn’t seen each other in a couple of years, and it was definitely time for a reunion. Even if it did mean assembling furniture as an excuse to get together.
The dining hall was packed with kids gobbling down their breakfasts before heading off to school. The clang of metal utensils and boisterous voices of the children were some of Janet’s favorite sounds on the planet. Happy, normal children sounds.
Except there was one sad-looking little boy sitting alone at the end of a long wooden table. It was Oba, and he was pushing some scrambled eggs around on his plate with a fork. Janet grabbed a bowl of cornflakes and a banana. She took them and her coffee over to sit down beside him.
“Good morning, little king,” she said cheerily as she peeled the banana and sliced half of it into her bowl before giving Oba the other half. He pushed his plate away and nibbled on it and at this point, seeing him eat half of a banana was almost as good as a smile.
“Do I have to go to school today?” he asked.
“Of course! All little kings need schooling so that they can become wise, big kings. What’s wrong?”
“I miss mama.” Oba’s eyes brimmed with tears.
“Oh, honey. I know you do. But if you go to school you might just forget how much you miss her…just for a little while.”
“Can’t I stay with you? Just for today, I promise. I won’t be in the way. Tomorrow I will go back to school and be happy. Just one day. Please?”
Janet couldn’t resist his little face.
“I know you’re sad, Oba, but going to school might be just the thing to not be sad for a little while.”
“I know, but...can’t I just stay here?” He put down the half-finished banana and leaned against her.
“Okay, Oba. You can stay today, but you’re going to have to help me. I have lots of hard work to do.”
“Don’t worry, Oba,” said a familiar deep voice. “We’ll help you with some of that hard work.”
Janet looked up to see Andrew standing over her. The smile that spread across her face was bright and involuntary.
“But you’re gonna have to use your muscles,” Winston said before flexing his biceps. “My mate Andrew and I don’t hang around with slackers. You’re gonna have to pull your weight. All right, Oba?”
Oba sat up straight and proud as if to show he were a man, too. He nodded. “Alright.”
“I can’t believe how good it is to see you again!” Janet hugged Nicole tightly.
Nicole’s bouncy blond curls swung as she shook her head from side to side. “I can’t believe you aren’t aging. What is in this African water? And where can I get some?” Nicole laughed.
“I’m glad you brought your camera and notepad. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you being here to help. It’s not really a big thing - just some furniture. But bringing attention to A Place for Grace will help shine a light on how many kids are in need over here.”
“Well, I’m here to help, too. Don’t be fooled by this dainty exterior. I’m like one of those mints in a can. I’m ‘curiously strong’” Nicole flexed her non-existent biceps at that statement as Janet laughed.
Elyse and Janet conducted a brief orientation and they split up the group: some to paint the newly-renovated rooms and the rest to assemble the bunks and bureaus. Winston and Andrew ended up in Janet’s group. Together they unloaded the truck full of flat-packed furniture. Oba helped them tear into the boxes and kept track of all of the screws, washers and lug nuts.
It was fun for Janet to work shoulder to shoulder with Andrew again. It reminded her of those summers when they volunteered for Habitat for Humanity.
By lunchtime, they had seventeen of the bunks assembled and just about the same amount of bureaus stood between them. Getting those put together was a little bit slower because it was a two-man job.
Janet invited Winston and Andrew back to the cottage for lunch. She’d invited Nicole, too, but she wanted to take some notes while the morning was still fresh in her mind. Winston begged off too - apparently, he had a lunch date. So it was Andrew, Oba, and Janet in the kitchen of her tiny, two bedroom cottage.
Andrew was sweaty. His dark curls clung to his forehead and the nape of his neck. Janet grabbed two bottles of water while she made the sandwiches, and gave them to Andrew and Oba.
“Thank you,” he murmured before twisting off the top and drinking the whole bottle in one swig.
Oba’s big brown eyes watched Andrew, and then he parroted, “Thank you,” and opened the top of the bottle before trying to drink the whole thing like Andrew had. Unfortunately, his five-year-old throat was too small, and Oba started coughing and sputtering water.
It went all over Andrew’s white t-shirt, and Oba was terrified that Andrew would be angry. His eyes filled with tears. “I’m sorry I got your shirt wet. I didn’t mean it.”
“Slow down there, little man,” Andrew said with a chuckle as he reached for a dry dish towel to clean off Oba’s face and shirt. “It’s not a big deal at all. Shirts can be replaced. People cannot.”
With that, Andrew grabbed the bottom of his wet t-shirt and pulled it over his head, revealing the rippled muscles that Janet remembered so well.
Janet’s cheeks flushed bright pink as he used the shirt to mop up a droplet of sweat making its way down the middle of his chest. The man hadn’t gained an ounce of fat in a decade. He was as fit as ever.
His eyes met hers and it was clear that he had noticed her noticing. With a roll of her eyes and a slight smile, she took his shirt out onto the porch and left it to dry.
“How about we have a contest to see who can eat the most of their sandwich? But, it’s not a race. We don’t want any more choking, do we, Oba?”
Oba smiled and picked up one half of his sandwich. With a bite full, Oba said, “I’m going to win!”
Watching Andrew and Oba laughing and talking and eating around her kitchen table warmed Janet’s heart. It felt like the most natural thing in the world. The boy she loved and the man she… What did she feel for Andrew? She couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like if this were her family.
After their sandwiches of leftover roast beef and thick homemade bread, Oba was declared the winner of the contest. Janet was secretly impressed that Andrew had gotten Oba to eat his whole sandwich. And her heart was warmed when she saw he’d left a little bite on the plate so that Oba could “win.”
Setting a plate of chocolate chip cookies down on the table, Janet asked, “So did you get a chance to talk to your sister?”
“I did. She’s on board with buying both parcels as long as I can get the community element without encountering a ton of red tape. Do you know who I contact about that? Any organizers who know exactly what the people need?”
“Of course! I’ll get you a list of names.”
“While on my run this morning, I thought of some ambassadors I can hook you up with back in London.”
“That would be super helpful. Thanks for doing that.”
“No need to thank me. You’re helping me out so of course, I want to do what I can to help you, too.”
Janet smiled at him and for a moment, she allowed herself to think of how it would be if they were truly partners, if they were still together and supporting each other in this way. She’s been doing it alone for so long that the thought of having someone help her navigate all of this nearly brought her to tears.
Andrew reached out and touched her arm. “You got real quiet all of a sudden. Are you alright?”
She nodded. “It just feels good to have someone help me without all of the begging. Whenever I need money or funding for A Place for Grace it always requires some level of groveling, even when I go to my mother. It’s just refreshing, that’s all.”
“I’m sorry that you feel so alone in all of this. I wish I could do more.”
“You’re doing more than enough. And I will thank you properly with a drink of the alcoholic variety when we’re done building all of these bureaus and bunks!”
It took much longer than anticipated to get all of the bunks and bureaus assembled. The kids were asleep and most of the volunteers agreed to head down to the local bar to drink away the aches and pains of the day. As expected, Nicole had some work to do at the hotel and couldn’t join them. Janet and Andrew went and bought the first round.
With a few drinks in her and so many hours working closely with him, she felt brave enough to ask the question she’d been dying to ask.
Janet leaned her elbows on the table and looked him in the eye. “Tell me the truth. Were you ever really in love with me?”
His eyes widened with surprise. “What a question!” he said. “Do you really doubt that I did? When I told Claudia that I’d run into you - literally - she proceeded to remind me of the DUI and all the tabloid and gossip drama that I brought on myself in the months after you left.”
“Oh, so...all of those drunken antics were because I left? Is that what you’re saying? You didn’t look all that lonely.”
Andrew looked into his glass. “I was. There may have been women in my bed, but I was very lonely.” He sighed and leaned his elbows on the table, bringing their faces within inches of each other. “Now, let me ask you the same question. You left without a goodbye or a forwarding address. Did you ever love me?”
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br /> “I loved you more than I loved myself. I saw that I was willing to change who I was. To make sacrifices that I would have never considered just to be near you.”
“You saw yourself becoming your mother,” he said.
“Right.” Janet’s mother Alexis had always been jealous of her. Janet never really understood why. Alexis was gorgeous, smart, funny and married to a successful businessman. Why she felt the need to intrude on Janet’s life at every turn, play power and guilt trips, and basically make Janet’s life difficult was something beyond comprehension.
Alexis had sacrificed everything when she got unexpectedly pregnant and married Janet’s father. She’d given up everything that mattered to her, and Janet felt the same thing happening during those years with Andrew. She never wanted to end up bitter and angry like her mother.
“Dad made her give up so many of her career goals. And she resents me for it,” Janet said, sighing deeply.
“I would have never done that to you. Your dreams and goals are too important to you — and to the world. To ask you to give up your passion…” Andrew shook his head as if to drive away the thought.
“But…” The tears started to flow down Janet’s freckled cheeks.
Andrew tenderly wiped them away, repeating, “I would have never done that to you, Red. And I would’ve never let you do that to yourself.”
Ugh. She was that girl. That drunk girl at the bar, and crying while her boyfriend tried to console her. Except she wasn’t a girl anymore. She was a grown woman almost in her thirties and he wasn’t her boyfriend. Just a good friend, she thought, as she closed the distance between them giving him a shy, tentative kiss.
He didn’t return the kiss at first. Maybe it was shock, or maybe he wasn’t interested, but whatever it was, his hesitance stole her bravado.
“I’m sorry,” she murmured as she pulled away. “I shouldn’t have-”
“Don’t you dare,” Andrew all but growled then took her face in both of his hands and kissed her thoroughly.