Heart and Sole

by Miranda Liasson

  “Viper Enterprises? What’s that?” Rosalyn asked.

  Nick answered. “One of my investment firms. Look, it was no secret I was originally looking to acquire the company, but all that’s changed now.” He took a step toward Maddie, but she backed away.

  “When were you going to tell me that Kingston Shoes is now Holter Shoes?” she asked.

  Nick scrubbed a hand over his face. Pairs of eyes stabbed glares at him. There was no rule in his arsenal to fall back on. All he knew was he had to make her understand, make her see.

  “I tried several times, but either you were so excited about your plans, or upset about your dad, and then this morning was crazy and I just…I couldn’t tell you.” He tried to approach her again.

  She shook her head. “Please. Don’t.”

  Excuses. He was making them to them and to himself. He hadn’t told her because he hadn’t wanted to tell her. The Kingston name was important and now it was technically owned by the enemy.

  “Look, I thought about dumping the extra shares, but then I figured it would be protective if I held onto them. In case your plans faltered, you’d have an ally controlling the cards, someone to help you out behind the scenes if you weren’t able to resuscitate the company by yourself.”

  Maddie’s eyes went wide. “So you were going to make it impossible for me to fail?”

  “No—all right, yes. You know I came here with every intention of taking over, but everything’s different now.”

  “Good Lord. He meant all along to dissolve us,” Grandmeel exclaimed, fueling the fire.

  “He’s keeping the company intact, Gran. Let the man talk.” Derrick shut her down immediately, and for once Nick was grateful for his bluntness.

  “It was clear to me early on that if I didn’t buy the stock someone else would. So I bought it. All of it. At first it was for me—I had your company in my hands to do with what I wanted. To bring justice to my grandfather. But that reason no longer exists.”

  “No.” Maddie whirled toward her brother. “Grandmeel is right. Kingston Shoes is no longer owned by Kingstons. I sort of consider that dissolved.”

  Maddie left the front of the room to stand before Nick. “I suppose I should thank you for saving everyone’s jobs. You even saved mine. What were you going to do, inject some cash secretly to make it look like I was succeeding?”

  “Actually, Holter Enterprises just infused half a million dollars into the company as of yesterday,” Al said.

  Maddie cast him a horrified look. How could his good intentions turn out so badly? “For God’s sakes, Maddie, I was trying to protect you.”

  “I don’t want your protection,” she said. “I thought you believed in me when no one else did. I thought you got me. But Nick Holter’s always got to be in charge, in control. Except you lied to me, Nick, and lying isn’t right. Not with someone you trust. You’re exactly what they say—a shark.”

  “It’s not like that. I don’t care about revenge anymore, and I don’t want your company. I—I’ve changed, Maddie, because of you. What else do you want from me?”

  “How about the truth? You have the power and money to manipulate everything and everyone to your own satisfaction. But now you’re lying to yourself. You got exactly what you wanted—our company in your hands. You won.” She looked shocked, pale, defeated. “I want you to go. Now. Please leave us alone.” She turned to the window and folded her arms.

  Her family just sat, saying nothing. Nick touched her arm, but she shrugged him away. “Please go,” she said.

  Derrick’s chair scraped, and he headed in their direction. Nick was about to be bounced out.

  “I’m sorry, Maddie,” Nick said to her back. Then he walked out the door.

  …

  “Maddie, are you saying Nick didn’t come here to help us?” her mother asked.

  “He came because I bought him in an auction. An auction for rich people. I took Cat’s wedding money for it and now Robert’s gone. I’ve lost the company. Worse, I knew what Nick was planning all along and didn’t say anything. I thought I could handle it myself and convince him otherwise. I’m sorry.”

  Silence hummed and crackled as everyone shifted uncomfortably in their seats.

  Finally, Samuel cleared his throat. “I want you all to know that I have no interest in running anything. I’m delighted for the opportunity to work with Maddie and I sincerely hope that we still can.”

  Derrick tapped his fingers on the shiny table. “But your grandson just bought our company out from beneath us. He’s in charge now.”

  Maddie nodded. “He can do whatever he wants, run the company the way he pleases. He’s the majority owner.” She thought of her father. How could she tell him?

  “I hate to say this, but this is what happens when you bed the enemy,” Grandmeel said. “They sneak up on you when you’re not looking and bam! Everything’s lost.”

  “Amelia, that’s quite enough,” Maddie’s mother said.

  Maddie whirled to face her grandmother. She bit back tears and bitter disappointment, promising to give into them later, in private. “Maybe I am a screw-up. Maybe Nick bought us up without my knowing. Maybe I lost the company for good. But you know what, Grandmeel? You are by far the worst excuse for a grandmother I have ever seen. You are mean and spiteful and—and just plain nasty and I am tired of pretending you’re not.”

  Amelia’s jaw dropped. Cat, Jenna, and Maddie’s mother cast Maddie sympathetic looks, Samuel shifted in his seat, Al shook his head sadly, and Derrick—well, God only knew what he was thinking. But for the first time, Maddie didn’t care.

  “Well, I never—” her grandmother exclaimed in typical drama queen fashion.

  Maddie didn’t wait to hear the rest. She picked up her portfolio and left the room, ran down the stairs and out of the building. Right into the arms of a camera crew from local WKAP.

  “Is there a change in ownership of Kingston Shoes?”

  “Is your father too infirm to ever return?”

  “Will people lose their jobs?”

  Maddie put her hands up to shelter her face from the flashing bulbs. How the hell did a small town get so many cameras? “I—I’m sorry. No comment.” Maddie dodged the shouted questions buffeting her from all sides. Bob Russland from the Gazette was one of her classmates from high school. He approached her, thrusting a microphone in her face. So much for schoolmate loyalty.

  She had a vague memory of the night of the auction, the last time she’d spoken in front of a crowd. She’d been flirtatious and witty, and clueless. Light years away. Biting her cheeks to hold back tears, she pushed her way to the sidewalk. She could barely breathe. Grief and shame filled her chest, and her legs felt numb and limp as jelly.

  She wanted to take off down the street, crawl into her bed and hide.

  A voice mocked inside her head. Flighty Maddie. A screw up despite her best intentions.

  She looked past the reporters. Folks had gathered because of the commotion, some on their way out of church and heading to Ida’s for pancake brunch. She recognized Patsy Yates from the Five and Dime and Reverend Fletcher himself, fresh from his sermon. Was he wondering why her entire family had skipped service today?

  Suddenly, Maddie stopped. She was not going to run away. Somehow she would summon the strength to stay. She owed that much to all the townspeople who were worried about their jobs at the company. She took a big breath and forced a smile. Then she turned and spoke into the microphone. “Kingston Shoes is undergoing a big, bold revolution that will ensure that everyone—one hundred percent everyone—will keep their jobs. My father is steadily recovering, and until he’s back, I will be taking the helm. I’m bringing in new designs for brand new shoe styles. But that doesn’t mean we’ll stop manufacturing our tried and true shoes. Overall, Kingston Shoes will be back, bigger and better than ever.”

  She made eye contact although it took every shred of will to hold up her head. She smiled, even though her heart was broken. She even shook Rus
s’s hand when he thanked her for the inspiring words she’d spoken.

  At last, video equipment was hoisted off shoulders, and the press slowly dispersed. Maddie walked down Main Street, past the familiar shops, the flower pots, the fire hydrants painted bright neon shades, the diagonal yellow strips on Main Street for parked cars. The big banner left from the Berry Festival looked forlorn, one end detached and hanging limply. The park was empty of booths, and the grass was downtrodden from all the foot traffic. A lone sign announced the fireworks display at dusk tonight. Another Berry Festival had come and gone. The weekend was nearly over.

  The turn came up to head home, but she continued walking straight ahead. She’d rallied the courage to tell the town what she had to tell them. Everything else, on the other hand, was a total mess. The company was out of her family’s control, and it had been all along. She’d strong-armed her sister out of her honeymoon money and she’d told her grandmother off for the first time.

  Worse, she had slept with the enemy, and she’d allowed him to break her heart. Again.

  Chapter Twenty

  Maddie found her father sitting in the rehab hospital garden reading the Buckleberry Gazette, his wheelchair beneath a live oak dripping with moss. She wished that wise, ancient tree could wrap its sprawling arms around her, and protect her and her dad from the pain she was about to inflict.

  “Hey, Sugar,” her dad said, taking off his reading glasses. That same twinkle that always shone in his eyes was back. It was a sign of her dad before the stroke, and it shot a brief wave of relief through her.

  She’d do anything to spare him bad news. The irony was she’d done the exact same thing to her dad as Nick had done to her—not telling him things, keeping him out of the loop. Her dad deserved better than that, and now she had to come clean.

  Maddie kissed him and sat on a bright green park bench. Lush impatiens bloomed in pinks and reds and whites, and a border of monkey grass lined a tall, splashing fountain. Despite the shade, sweat collected beneath her suit jacket, and she shrugged it off. “Aren’t you hot?” she asked hopefully. “We could go in.” That would delay her dreaded announcement at least another five minutes.

  “I’ve missed the sunshine.” Her dad neatly folded his paper into quarters and assessed his daughter with that quiet look he’d given her many times. Even when she was in hot water as a kid, he’d always waited her out, let her say her piece.

  Where to even start? Maddie did the only thing she knew, took a deep breath and plunged in.

  “Daddy.” She took up both her father’s hands and looked him straight in the eye. “So many things have been going on that I haven’t told you about. Nick’s owned more than half our company all along. It happened right under my nose, and I’m so sorry.”

  Maddie heaved a sob. She put her head in her hands. Her father placed his hand on her head and patted it. How many times had he done this during the storms of her childhood? But she wasn’t a child. She was an adult in charge of big decisions that could make or break a company.

  “You were always kindhearted even as a little girl, Madison,” he said. “You always took other people’s suffering personally. But sometimes there’s only so much you can do, despite the best intentions.”

  Madison eyeballed her father through a blur of tears. He seemed awfully calm for what she’d just told him. “What are you saying, Daddy?”

  “Nick’s already been here. He told me what’s been going on.”

  She could only imagine. “What did he say?”

  “He told me how he came to buy up the shares, and how he wanted the company to make up for the injustices done to his grandfather. But he no longer wants revenge. Said that changed because of you.”

  “I know he saved our company and all the jobs, but he never told me about owning most of our shares. He even infused a bunch of cash so it would look like I succeeded. I don’t need a billionaire to set me up in a foolproof situation.”

  She paused and braced herself, expecting a lecture about being grateful to an enormously powerful man who’d rushed in and saved the day. Hell, maybe she should be grateful, but she was too damn independent to expect someone to save her. She wanted the chance to save that company herself, with her own brains and hard work.

  “I agree,” her father said.

  “What?” Her mouth fell open.

  “I agree you don’t need Nicholas to ensure your success. From what he told me, you’re well on your way to doing that all by yourself. I’m so proud of you, Madison.”

  “You’re proud of me?”

  “I’ve always been proud of you. You’ve always been harder on yourself than anyone else ever has.”

  “That doesn’t excuse my screw-ups, Dad.”

  “Honey, life doesn’t come with an instruction manual. Sometimes that’s how we figure out what we want—by figuring out what we don’t want. You’ve always had the courage to go out and take chances.”

  Yes, and her chance-taking had mostly led to disaster. “I’ve had plenty of practice with that.”

  “Trouble is, I think you’d do anything to help us at the expense of your own happiness. I don’t want you to carry this burden by yourself anymore. Maybe it would be best for us to sell off the whole company to Nick. Then you could get your job in Philly back. I was wrong to try and tie you down to something you don’t want.”

  “I know where I belong now, and it’s here.” She grasped her father’s hand. “I have a plan, Daddy. A plan for Kingston Shoes that might just bring us back better than ever.” Maybe she didn’t have a business degree, but what she did have was artistic sense, gut instincts. And, most important of all, she loved shoes.

  “You’re a loyal daughter, Madison, and I love you. Dearly.”

  “Oh, Daddy.” Tears plopped ungraciously down her cheeks. “I love you, too. So much.”

  As they embraced in the shade of that old oak, Maddie knew she’d made one right decision. She would do everything in her power to bring their company back.

  Her dad sat back in his chair and gripped her arm. “You know, Nick said we could buy our shares back whenever it’s convenient. And he doesn’t want to change the Kingston name.”

  Oh, God. Nick had restored the company to her family without wanting anything in return? Kingston Shoes was still Kingston Shoes. Relief washed through her, but it was temporary. Maddie squeezed her eyes shut as she remembered her hurtful words in the conference room. “I accused Nick of wanting the company for himself. But all he really wants is for me to find a place for his grandfather.” She hadn’t agreed with his methods, but she couldn’t argue about everything he’d done for them.

  Her father’s mouth was tilted up in the slightest smile. “He’s a good man, Maddie. Even the best shoes need some adjusting now and again.”

  “I love him, Dad. I think I always have.”

  “Then you’d best catch him before he leaves.”

  She shot her father a look of confusion.

  “He told me he had to get back to Philadelphia and that his private pilot was meeting him at the airport. Said he was catching a cab downtown and he’d arrange for someone to pick up the rental car in a day or two.”

  Two blocks away. A minute if she ran. Maddie kissed her father. “Dad, I’ve got to go.”

  …

  “Nick, wait,” Maddie called just as a yellow cab pulled to a stop in front of the coffee shop. Nick, his hand on the door handle, looked up.

  He forced himself not to react to the panicked sound of her voice. She’d chosen not to believe him, thought he was out to take the company for himself even after all that had happened between them. This was the price he paid for exposing himself—his real self—to a woman. And it was a mistake he’d never make again.

  He told the cabbie to wait and walked over to her. The cab sat idling, the faint smell of gasoline thick in the heavy air.

  “My father told me what you did,” she said. “That you’ll let us buy back the shares, that you don’t want the compan
y.”

  “Maddie, I haven’t wanted the company since I found out your father was sick.” Not true. From the moment he’d laid eyes on her vamping it up at that stupid auction, his heart had been struck, and all his plans to avenge his grandfather had withered like a day-old balloon.

  “Don’t go.”

  He steeled himself against the pain that threatened to take him down. “The weekend’s up, and I’m way behind on my work.”

  “Your work. Of course.”

  “I trust you’ll watch out for my grandfather.”

  “That goes without saying,” she said.

  “I’ve got to go,” he said without looking in her eyes because if he did, God only knew what would happen. “My pilot’s picking me up in Charlotte.”

  “But you don’t have your stuff.”

  “I’ll send for it.”

  She tugged at his sleeve. “Can’t we talk about this?”

  Her hand burned, but he forced himself to shrug it off. “You’ve already pegged me as the bad guy. I don’t see me changing that.”

  “I understand how much you’ve done, and I’m so, so grateful. But I confided in you. You knew how badly I wanted to turn things around. Going behind my back and arranging everything makes me feel like you had no belief in me at all.”

  Anger crashed against him in cold, hard waves. He felt stripped naked, wholly exposed. “Maddie, I did believe in you. I invested money because that’s what I do. I put capital in companies that can make money, and all my instincts tell me you’re going to do great things here. Too bad you can’t see that.” He headed toward the car.

  “Just like that?” Her words stopped him. The muscles in his back and in his fists bunched. “You left in high school because you thought it had to be either me or your career. And you left last year because you felt guilty about your grandfather, but it wasn’t really that, was it? Those were just excuses.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  She stalked up to him and jabbed him in the chest. “You never let yourself get too close, do you? When it gets dangerous or hard, you convince yourself it’s not worth it and run like the wind.”