by Katie Dowe
“Someone certainly looked skittish,” Maggie commented, looking at the man’s departing back.
“Today is a year since his wife died,” Janice commented automatically.
“Oh dear Lord.” Maggie shook her head sadly. “No wonder he looks like that, the poor guy.”
“Ever heard about Hattori’s Vehicles Import and Export?” Janice asked her.
“Who hasn’t?”
“That’s David Hattori,” she said with a nod.
“You are kidding me!” Maggie’s large dark brown eyes went round in her round face. “He actually came in to buy the flowers himself? He must have really loved that wife of his!”
*****
David placed the flowers against the headstone that read: ‘Gone too soon’ – Eileen Hattori: Born: July 16, 1991. Died: April 10, 2015. He stood there looking at the cold grey stone, a frown etched on his brow. He had been punishing himself since she died and had not gone out with anyone since. He felt he owed her that much for not loving her when he should have. The flowers added a splash of color to the lifeless grave and his heart constricted for a life so young that had gone too soon. His mother had offered to come with him, but he wanted to do it by himself. Her parents had gone back to live in Japan soon after their daughter’s death and had not kept in touch with him or his family. He understood perfectly. He was alive and their only child was dead, how could they relate to him?
His eyes were drawn to the floral arrangement and his mind flashed suddenly to the friendly girl that had chosen them for him. Her smile came to mind and he felt a stir of awareness for the first time since his wife’s death. He took a deep breath and forcibly exorcised it from his mind. With a last look at the grave, he walked away.
*****
“Mom, you did not have to go through all this trouble. I would have been satisfied with just a sandwich,” Janice protested as she came inside the kitchen and saw her mother taking out the pot roast. The smell permeated the air and there was also a lemon meringue pie cooling on the counter. There was a big bowl of salad on the counter as well and there were also mashed potatoes. Janet Langley was an attractive woman who was a legal secretary in a large law firm. She had been studying to do law when she got pregnant with Janet and decided to give it up. She had come from work an hour ago and had started to cook in anticipation of her daughter’s visit.
“Nonsense, girl.” She came over and gave her a swift kiss on one smooth cheek, her eyes taking in the red–and-white cotton dress she was wearing and the knee-length boots. Her daughter had her own unique sense of style and refused to wear any color that did not stand out. “When do I get the chance to go all out with my culinary skills? Grab some plates and let’s go into the dining room.”
“So how goes the floral business?” Janet asked as she sliced through the pot roast beef with the sharp knife.
She told her about David Hattori and how he had come in looking for flowers for his wife’s grave.
“Poor man,” Janet said shaking her head. “Life is so short and uncertain that’s why we must take what we want from it and live it to the fullest.”
Janet gave her a strange look as she put a heaping of mashed potatoes onto her plate. “Have you seen Dad?”
Her mother looked at her sharply, the knife she was using clattering to the edge of the plate. “What makes you ask that?”
“It’s a simple question, Mom.” Janice looked at her mother curiously, noticing that she was avoiding her eyes. “I spoke to him the other day and he said he was coming to see you.”
“Ah yes, well he did.” She busied herself sprinkling some salt onto her mashed potatoes.
“And?”
“And what?” Janet asked her impatiently. “Why all these questions?”
“Mom, what’s going on?” Janice put away her fork and gave her mother her full attention. She was behaving unlike herself.
“Can we talk about something else?” She dug into her salad. “It’s not like I have something to hide!”
“Oh Lord mom!” Janice exclaimed, staring at her mother in shock. “You slept with Dad, didn’t you?”
“Don’t be ridiculous! And what if I did? We were married for twenty-something years so nothing is wrong with that.”
“Mom, I thought you did not want to have anything to do with him?” Janice had to stop herself from laughing. What a mess! “You do realize that he is planning on getting married don’t you?”
“So?” she said defiantly. “He is not married yet is he? And it just happened. Don’t worry, it is certainly not going to happen again!”
*****
He came over that very night after calling her and telling her he was on his way. She opened the door to let him in and he took her into his arms. Now that he was with another woman, the attraction for him had certainly increased, she thought as they hurriedly undressed and got into bed, reaching for each other eagerly, their desire burning.
“I told our daughter this would never happen again,” she told him breathlessly as he slid out of her, his breathing ragged.
“You told her?” Richard’s voice sounded strangled.
“She came by for dinner and it just sort of popped out of my mouth,” she told him sheepishly. She wondered what he told her when he was with her, it would be interesting to hear.
“Janet,” he said with a groan.
“What?” she said carelessly. “It’s not like we are complete strangers.” With a coy smile she reached for his semi-erect penis and started squeezing it gently. “How about another round?”
“I have to go,” he muttered, feeling himself hardening again.
“Not just yet,” she told him firmly and pulled him close to her.
*****
“You should have seen the look on her face, guys, when I asked her about it.” Janice stirred her hot chocolate as she told her friends that her parents had slept together. “I can’t believe at their age that they are still doing it.”
“Your parents are middle-aged, honey, not elderly decrepit people who need help in the sex department,” Leah said with a grin. “I say hats off to them.”
“Isn’t he engaged to be married?” Candace asked curiously, sipping her latte. They had met for a mid-afternoon brunch because Leah had done a double shift and was on her way home to get some much needed sleep before going back to work tonight.
“He is, the last time I checked.” Janice said with a shake of her head. “Those two are going to be the death of me.”
“Lance wants us to give our marriage another chance.” Leah said abruptly, causing the other girls to look at her. “I know, I know. We have done the trial thing and it did not work but I saw him with another nurse the other day and I wanted to tear her in two. What is that telling me?”
“That you are still thinking of him as your husband.” Janice told her.
“Well technically he is,” Leah said with a sigh. “We started arguing in one of the on call rooms and we ended up having the greatest sex we have ever had since we got married.’
“I am convinced it’s something going around,” Janice said looking at her friend with a shake of her head. “First my parents and now you and Lance. You guys need to make up your minds.”
“It’s not as simple as that,” Leah protested. “Wait until you get into a relationship with someone, you will see.”
“That’s why I intend to wait until I am absolutely in love with the person before I start anything,” Janice said firmly.
*****
“Darling, you are not eating,” Julie remonstrated gently as she watched her son push the chicken and broccoli around on his plate. She had wanted to go with him to Eileen’s grave but he had told her a firm no and she had respected his wish but instead of looking better, he looked worse. She wished he would get over his guilt and get on with his life. All he did was work and come home and mope, he did not have a life and that was breaking her heart.
“I am not really hungry, Mother.” He smiled at her briefly and p
ushed away his plate. “I am planning to increase the sales department in the company. We are expanding with sales and not enough sales people out there.” He often discussed business with her, letting her act as a kind of sounding board. “We are test driving the new Toyota and so far it is doing quite well. There was a scare for a little bit about the brakes not holding but that has been sorted out.”
“Thanks good,” Julie said with a nod, wishing he would not be so into the business. He had a lot on his plate being responsible for a billion-dollar company and the thousands of employees he had working for him. She wished his father was still alive to share some of the burdens. “I saw Arianna yesterday and she was asking about you,” she told him casually.
Arianna Blake was a beautiful Asian girl who had shown an interest in him six months ago when she had met him at the opening of the car mart downtown. She was a successful lawyer and had made her interest obvious but apart from being polite, David had not given her any encouragement.
“Mother, please don’t go there, I am not interested,” he told her firmly, making to leave the table. She knew what he was going to do. Go up to his very elegant suite and sit and stare broodingly out the balcony before going to bed.
“Okay darling,” she said hastily. “How about watching a movie with me? Your mother gets lonely sometimes.”
He looked at her quizzically and she had a feeling he was seeing right through her ruse, but with a brief nod he proceeded into the massive living room and used the remote to select a movie.
*****
He called and told her thanks for her very gracious help. She was pruning a dogwood tree around the greenhouse when her cell phone rang. It was Friday afternoon and the shop was not very busy so she had decided to do some work around the greenhouse. Deliveries had been sent out already for functions that were going to be happening over the weekend and Maggie was serving the one or two walk in customers who came in. “Hello?” she answered uncertainly, not recognizing the number.
“Ms. Langley, this is David Hattori,” he told her, his deep voice stirring her blood. “I am just calling to tell you thanks for being so helpful the other day.”
“You re most welcome,” she told him, waiting for him to say something else.
“I was thinking of having you send some floral arrangements for a function we will be having here next weekend.” He paused as if he was consulting with someone. “It’s a luncheon for some out of town business associates of mine and I think it would be a welcome change to see some fresh flowers in the room.”
“I would be delighted to provide the floral arrangements,” she said, her heart pounding as she considered what it would mean to get business from such a big corporation. “I need to look at the décor of the room and decide what would suit best.”
“We do not open on Saturdays. Do you think you could come by tomorrow at around eleven?” he suggested. “I will be here and the guard downstairs will instruct you. Do you know where it is?”
“I do and I will be there. Thanks, see you then.”
David put the phone on his desk. He had made the call on his cell phone because he had not wanted to go through the receptionists or his secretary. He had been thinking about her at odd times and had thought that maybe she would liven up the conference room. He had admired the way the floral displays had been set out in the store, it made the place look very inviting and the teal blue of the conference room could do with a little color. He forced himself not to think about her dazzling smile or the beautiful complexion because as far as he was concerned she was help and nothing more!
*****
She arrived promptly at eleven and was told to go straight up. The building was quite impressive, mostly towering glass with the name of the company in big black letters. She had left Maggie at the store to deal with whatever it was and had driven over. She was told to take the private elevator straight to his office and she got off in a hallway where he met her. “Thank you for coming,” he told her with a brief smile, unconsciously noticing how extremely good she looked in black denims and black silk blouse. Her hair was caught up in an untidy bun on top of her head and she was not wearing much make-up. “This way please.” He led her towards the long cylindrical conference room with its long table and chairs around it. There was an area where there was a small round table and she suspected that it was where refreshments were served. The view from the large and wide window was spectacular and showed a view of the landscape of the edge of the town with trees gently blowing in the breeze.
“What do you think?” She had been so deep in thought she had not heard him come up behind her as she stared outside.
She turned to look at the room and her mind quickly came up with a few ideas. “Some yellow and white roses for the center piece with a few begonias thrown in. We could put some calla lily and cornflower in the corners to bring some color to the place.”
“I like that.” He walked over to the window and stared outside, shoving his hands into the pockets of his faded blue denim pants. He was wearing a dark blue dress shirt and his hair was brushed back ruthlessly from his face. “I always love this view,” he said absently and she had a feeling he was miles away. He turned to look at her. “Would you like to have some lunch?”
She looked at him in surprise.
“I have some things to go over and I suddenly do not feel the urge to do so yet,” he told her with a faint smile. “I would be happy if you would join me for an early lunch.”
She nodded, having a feeling that he did not want to be alone just now. “How about giving me a tour first?” she suggested.
He stared at her and then nodded leading the way out. The place was huge with offices showing different name tags and departments on each door. The entire décor was teal blue and the carpets a soft grey and she wondered what they had against bold colors. He took her downstairs to show her the show room with several brand new and expensive vehicles on display. She ran a hand over a shiny new red Toyota that would suit her fine, when she won the lottery.
“I would give you a good deal if you wanted it,” he told her with a hint of amusement as he watched her.
“No thank you,” she said moving her hand away. “I would probably have to sell everything I own and even then I would still not be able to afford the payments.”
“If you change your mind…” he left the statement hanging and they went back up to his large and utilitarian office.
He saw the expression on her face and actually smiled. “I like simple surroundings. The chef leaves something here for me because he knows I come in on Saturdays and sometimes Sundays.” He told her, going into the fridge and taking out cold cuts to make sandwiches. “Please help yourself to whatever you want to drink.” He indicated a kind of juice bar and she poured herself some orange juice.
“What for you?”
“Some fruit punch, thanks.” He quickly whipped together two very large sandwiches and took them over to the table in the corner.
They were in the middle of eating when he spoke up. “I lost my wife a year ago and I am still in mourning,” he told her looking down at the sandwich he was eating.
“You must have loved her very much,” she told him sympathetically, wanting to reach out and touch him.
He looked at her considering for a moment then he put the sandwich down. “I would rather not discuss it if you don’t mind. I don’t know why I brought it up.”
“Okay no problem,” she told him easily. “Tell me about some of the things you do here.”
He told her about the company and the orders they had to fill on a daily basis.
“Don’t you ever feel overwhelmed?” she asked him in amazement.
“I love doing what I do,” he said with a faint smile. “What about you? Why plants?”
“I have a healthy fascination and I studied them in college. I love the smell and the different colors and am fascinated at the growth. I also love to play in the dirt.” She flashed that smile again and he found himself ca
ught off guard like the first time. She was a stunningly beautiful woman!
Chapter 3
Charlene knew he was cheating on her. She just did not know who he was doing it with. He had not reached home until in the early hours of the morning because she had kept calling his home number and he had not picked up. She had also called his cell number, but it had been turned off. She had asked him to let her move in with him but he had refused saying he needed his solitude before they got married. What did she expect? He had cheated on his wife with her so she supposed it was payback.
Charlene Higgins was a tall attractive twenty-seven-year-old who had dated losers all her life until she met Richard Langley and he treated her with respect and kindness. She had fallen for him immediately and when he told her he was married she had not even cared because he was the best thing that had ever happened to her. When he had left his wife, she had been so secretly glad that she had gone and celebrated by herself. She had worked her way into his life so that he had started noticing her as more than just someone to give him a good time in bed. She had bid her time and finally he had asked her to marry him. It had been the happiest moment of her life. She was a small town girl with a high school education and who worked at a beauty salon and very soon she was going to be Mrs. Richard Langley and nothing or no one was going to stop her!
*****
Janice made the delivery herself. The function was going to be on Saturday and he had asked her if she mind doing the delivery on Friday after the staff had left for home. It would give her more time to set up. She had agreed promptly. He had asked for floral arrangements for his showroom as well as the reception area and Janice was very happy for the business. “I am hoping that this is a long term contract,” Maggie said enthusiastically as she helped to make the arrangements.
“I hope so too,” Janice said with a smile.
It was almost May, but the cold was lingering and a stiff breeze had come up today adding to the chill. It was a little past seven when she got to the office building and the same guard she had seen when she got there last week ushered her inside and told her to go straight up, Mr. Hattori was expecting her.