by Alina Jacobs
"I'll think about it," he said and spun her around.
After the song ended, Wes kissed Liz, then Walter dragged him away to introduce him to some senator. Liz floated to the terrace where Anastasia looked out over the party.
"He's so magical. He's like the perfect man," she gushed to Anastasia as she watched Wes talking to the Burbanks from over the terrace railing.
Anastasia grunted. She was taking pictures of the party. "Don't get too caught up. I don't trust things that are too perfect," she said. "It's usually a veneer hiding something awful."
"You're so negative," Liz said.
"You know the best thing I ever ate?" Anastasia asked. "It was BBQ from this old guy on the side of the road. No presumption, no perfection, flaws and all. There was no way to get a pretty picture. I had sauce all over my shirt and completely ruined it. Still the best piece of meat I ever had. But I can't eat it again. I will never be able to find it because the health department shut the old man down."
"Wes isn't BBQ from the side of the road," Liz said.
"Yeah," Anastasia said. "And that's the problem. He's like that shrimp we ate at the restaurant last week. Expensive location, perfect service, but the food was awful."
"I thought it was fine," Liz said.
"You have low standards."
34
Wes
The next afternoon, as he and Liz drove back to Manhattan, Wes was still furious that Rhonda was pretending to be Mark's girlfriend. He couldn't figure out why. Was she keeping an eye on him? Digging for information? It made him suspicious that she hadn't given any hint about her plan.
He stretched his arms out straight on the wheel and rolled his shoulders, letting out a breath, then he glanced over at Liz in the passenger seat. She was dozing, and he could hear Kal snoring in the back seat.
When he stopped the car in front of her building, Wes leaned over and kissed Liz awake. She kissed him back, yawned, and stretched.
"Come up," she said.
"There's work tomorrow," he told her, kissing her again. Osman came and took her bags.
"I had a great weekend," Liz said, smiling up at him.
"I did too." Wes felt the hardness in his heart start to crack. He wanted her. He wanted to sleep next to her and to sleep with her. But he couldn't put Rhonda out of his mind. And Liz knew something was up.
He kissed her once more then watched her walk into the building.
As he was about to pull away, his phone beeped with a text from Dana.
I'm free for the evening
Meet you at your apartment.
Dana was perched on the arm of the sofa when Wes opened the door to his apartment. Kal ran to greet her.
"Hey, sis," Wes said, setting down his bag.
She hugged him. "Where were you this weekend?"
"Uh, you know, working." Wes didn't really want to explain what he was doing with Liz. He also didn't want his sister to meet Liz because Liz would probably bring Rhonda up. Dana knew Rhonda. Dana didn't like Rhonda. Dana was also scary intuitive, and she would immediately know Wes was up to something, and she would not approve of the revenge scheme.
His phone beeped. Dana snatched it out of his pocket. "I want to know what you're hiding," she said. "Oh, my word," she said, her jaw dropping as she looked at his phone.
"Give me that phone back! That's my phone!"
Kal barked, jumping around them, thinking they were playing a game.
"Who is that?" Dana shrieked at him, holding the phone out. It was a picture of two very nice very familiar-looking breasts in a barely there top.
The message read,
Bet you wish you had come up.
"Who is sending you pictures like that? This says it's from Liz. Who is this Liz?" Dana demanded.
"No one," Wes said, his voice tense. "Hand over my phone." Dana slapped it into his outstretched hand.
"Is that your girlfriend?"
"No," Wes said. "Just a random fangirl."
"Not buying it," Dana said. "I'm telling Mom you have a girlfriend."
"Don't tell her a thing about my life!" Wes yelled. "I don't want anything to do with her. What she did is unforgivable."
Dana sighed. "You should be a little more flexible. You can't carry a grudge your entire life."
"Yes, I can."
"So stubborn. You must have learned that from Dad."
"He's not my father."
Dana shook her head in annoyance. "You two."
Wes scowled.
"You know, he wants us to change our names to Holbrook," Dana said after a moment.
"Why?"
"He said we don't deserve to be Walshes. I came over here to see if you could write him a nice letter or something. You know, clear the air."
"What am I apologizing for? Being born?"
"Not an apology, just maybe thanking him for being there, that you know he's going through a difficult time. Be empathetic."
"Is that what you sent him?"
"Yes," she said.
"And was he kind and loving?" Dana didn't look at him. "So, he hasn't changed. He's still a jerk, and you want me to prostrate myself in front of him. Not gonna happen. He was a terrible father even before all this Holbrook stuff came to light. Screw him, and screw Mom."
Wes could tell Dana was still annoyed with him when she left.
To try to calm his mind, Wes took Kal outside to throw a ball for him. He could see the lights from Liz's tower from the park. He wanted to see her. She was the only good thing in his life, especially since Dana was being so obnoxious.
The next morning, as he walked into the Holbrook Enterprises tower, two men in suits hurried over to him.
"Wes Walsh." Wes looked at them suspiciously. "You are being served."
"Someone is suing me?"
"Hank Walsh is suing you for fraud. You have thirty days to answer the complaint that is with the summons."
"What the hell!"
The man ignored him and kept talking. "If you do not answer the complaint, then a default judgement will be made against you."
"My own father is suing me? What for?"
"We can't discuss it with you. Please read the paperwork. These are court documents, and the clock is ticking. Good day." The two men left. Wes stood there in the middle of the lobby, holding the thick envelope.
"Hi, Wes!" Liz gushed.
Wes barely registered her. "I think…"
"What's wrong?"
"I need to… are there lawyers in-house? Or, no, I shouldn't use the corporate lawyers. This is a personal matter."
Liz looked concerned. "Come upstairs," she said, taking the envelope out of his hand. She guided him to the elevator and took him up to Walter's office.
"Wes, what a nice surprise!" Walter exclaimed. His expression changed to concern when Liz pushed Wes into a seat. He slumped over, burying his head in his hands.
Liz handed Walter the envelope.
"Someone is suing you? Don't worry about that," Walter said as he unwrapped the string that held the folder closed.
"Grant's been sued twice this week already. I can't even tell you how many people have sued me. Just a few minutes ago someone served me with papers. I just put it on the stack. They're all crazy people. Just offer them an iPad or something, and they'll—oh," he said.
Liz continued to hover next to Wes in concern.
"Your own father is suing you? This says Hank Walsh wants you to repay his child support, and he wants compensation for the emotional distress caused by the fraud. This is insane," Walter muttered. He stood up then stuck his head out into the hall.
"Kate!" he yelled. "Kate!"
Kate and Grant hurried into the office, and Walter handed them the papers.
"We need to call the family lawyers," Kate said as she leafed through the paperwork, Grant peering over her shoulder. "He's not suing the company, just Wes."
"He should be suing Walter," Liz said. "Sorry." She petted Wes's hair. It was comforting, and it helped him regain som
e control.
"This isn't your problem," Wes said, standing up.
"Actually," Walter said as he pulled an identical-looking envelope off a stack of papers on his desk. "It looks like he's suing me too. So, you're in good company."
"He's just angry," Wes said. "Let me talk to Hank. This is my problem."
"You're family," Kate told Wes, typing on her phone. "If someone is attacking you, then he's attacking all of us."
"I'll pay him some money and let him cuss me out, then he'll probably back off," Wes said.
"No way," Liz said. "If you start paying off people who try to extort you publicly, then you'll never stop."
"The lawyers are on their way over," Kate said, looking up from her phone. "Sit tight for a couple hours."
"You can stay with me," Liz said. Wes tried to calm down as he sat on the couch in Liz's office and listened to her type on the computer. She had some type of lo-fi hip-hop music playing in the background. It was relaxing, and he felt the tension leave his body.
That was short-lived once the lawyers arrived.
"This is just a strategy meeting," Kate explained after they all sat down.
"We've looked over the demands," one of the lawyers said. "Hank Walsh is asking for $850,000 in reimbursed costs for raising Wes then an additional two million for pain and suffering. Plus lawyers' fees of course."
"I can just pay it," Wes said.
"No," Grant replied.
"I agree. This lawsuit is frivolous," the lawyer said with a slight smile. "Your father is working class, correct?" Wes nodded. "He doesn't have the funds to bankroll this indefinitely. He probably had some ambulance-chasing lawyer draw these papers up. We'll tell them to pound sand, the lawsuit will be dismissed, and we'll all go home."
Wes didn't feel as confident as the lawyer sounded. He knew Hank could be mean when he was angry. He had been on the receiving end of his father's temper on more than one occasion.
"The fact that he's suing both of you makes me think the judge will throw it out since it's clearly grasping at straws. I would even wager that he's suing your mother."
"Don't worry about it," Liz said to Wes after the meeting.
"I'm trying. Maybe you could come over tonight and distract me?"
"Temping," she said, stretching up on her toes to kiss him. It gave him a thrill whenever she did that. "I have girls' night tonight," Liz said. "But tomorrow I'll come over. I promise it will be very distracting."
35
Liz
Liz felt bad about leaving Wes alone that evening. She briefly considered canceling the girls' night, but her friends were already suspicious of her relationship with him. If she started canceling outings, that would really set off alarm bells.
To counter the guilt, she texted him another sexy photo. She knew that was a bad idea, that people had their pictures posted online, but she trusted Wes. And he had sent her a photo of himself, so it should be fine.
The bar was a twenty-minute walk away. She hadn't gone to the gym. She really needed to, if for no other reason than to see Wes all sweaty and bulging. But she would hopefully see him like that tomorrow. She skipped a little. She couldn't wait.
As she was walking, lost in thoughts of what Wes would do to her, someone bumped against her.
"Excuse me," she said automatically.
"Liz!" Brayden exclaimed. He held her by her shoulders then kissed her on the cheek. "So good to see you. You know, we should have drinks sometime."
"I'm pretty busy with my job," Liz said. She tried to walk around Brayden.
"I know you mix business and pleasure," he said. "I'm sure I can fuck you just as good as Wes can."
"Off!" she yelled. "Get off me!" There were people out on the streets. It was during the evening rush hour, and several people looked at Brayden. He released her.
"See you around, Liz."
She hurried away to the bar. As she waited in the front lobby, Liz tried to calm down. She slowly took off her coat and patted her hair back in place as she looked around for her friends. She saw them at a large table in the back of the bar. There were Kate, Ginny, Anastasia… and Rhonda.
"Why is Rhonda here?" she muttered.
"She's allowed to be here," Allie said as she entered the bar and unwrapped her scarf.
"Don't you think it's weird?" Liz pushed.
"No weirder than you and Wes," Allie replied. "She's Mark's girlfriend. It's better to just make friends with her. That's what Kate says."
When she and Allie approached the table, there were hugs all around. Liz pretended to be happy to see Rhonda. She felt like Rhonda might have been faking it too, but Liz couldn't be sure. Seeing Brayden had knocked her off kilter.
"How is Wes?" Kate asked Liz after she ordered a drink.
"I heard what happened," Rhonda said solemnly. "So terrible. He's not planning on paying. Is he?"
"Of course not," Kate said. "We'll fight it. Hank Walsh doesn't have the money we do. The lawyers think it will be thrown out."
"That's good to hear at least. He's lucky to have such a supportive family. And girlfriend!" Rhonda said, nudging Liz playfully.
"Right," Liz mumbled.
The waiter brought a tray of artfully arranged appetizers, and they all waited for Anastasia to take pictures.
"You're so creative," Liz said. "I wish you would help me with Brandy's gender-reveal party."
"This is supposed to be girls' night, not plan-Brandy's-baby-shower night," Ginny said.
"She's your sister," Liz complained. "I can't believe you're making me do all the work."
"No one is making you do anything," Allie said.
"Nonsense," Rhonda replied. "Brandy should have a nice party. I told you I'd help, Liz."
"Take her up on it," Kate said, taking a bite of the pear salad, "because none of us are doing it. I've done a lot for Brandy and received nothing in return. She's just an awful person."
"I feel so sorry for her future child," Anastasia said. "No offense."
"None taken," Ginny replied. "My sister will probably end up dumping the kid on me like she did with the dog-grooming business and the jam business. I already told Eric that he better start accepting the idea that we're going to have to spend a lot of free time with that poor innocent baby."
"No babies for you?" Rhonda asked Kate.
"No," Kate said. "Grant was adopted, and he wants to adopt, and that's as far as we got on that front."
"Maybe he's got a child running around. The Holbrook men sure seem to have a pattern," Rhonda mused. "It sounds like Wes's arrival was a bit of a shock."
"Yes, is was," Kate said. "I don't know if there are any more kids. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if another showed up."
The conversation switched to Ginny's plans for her business.
As the evening wore on, Allie said, "I have to go home. It's a weeknight after all. Plus Carter and Grant are alone in the condo, and who knows what they've been up to?"
"Since they're all going home to their men, why don't we go back to your place and talk about the gender-reveal party?" Rhonda asked as they all walked out the door into the cold dark evening. "I have some ideas, and this bar has become a bit too noisy."
Rhonda picked up a bottle of wine from a liquor store on the way back to Liz's apartment.
"You have such a cute apartment," Rhonda said, slowly walking around touching the little knickknacks Liz had displayed on the built-in bookcase.
"It's just adorable. I see you have good taste," she said with a wink as she looked at the scrapbooking pages. Liz wished she had a craft room or at least that she was a neater person so people didn't keep seeing those scrapbook pages worshiping Wes.
"When you and Wes are married, I know you'll have a wedding the envy of Connecticut," Rhonda said as she opened the bottle of wine.
"I don't know if he's that serious about me," Liz said, setting two glasses down on the counter.
"I've seen the way he looks at you," Rhonda said. "He's crazy about you. You'r
e cute, funny, and a good friend. Speaking of which. Let's start on that gender-reveal party."
Liz moved the scrapbooking pages out of the way and pulled out a half-finished vision board.
"This is what I've been thinking," she said.
Rhonda fingered the gauzy fabric swatches and the party favors Liz had selected.
"I have a few ideas of my own." Rhonda pulled up several photos on her tablet. Rhonda did have good taste, Liz admitted to herself. Maybe it was the wine, but Liz felt herself start to relax around Rhonda. Maybe she wasn't so bad after all.
"I'll leave you to your scrapbooking," Rhonda said after they had made a number of decisions on the space layout, the menu, and the sequence of events. "We'll be in touch."
Liz cleaned up after Rhonda left. She let herself imagine a wedding with Wes. First things first, though, she had to figure out what to wear for Wes the next evening.
36
Wes
Alone in his apartment with only Kal for company, Wes angrily cleaned while he thought about his father. How dare he sue Wes? His father had always made his life miserable, and now he wanted payback for the ramshackle house he bought during Wes's childhood that only had one bathroom. Wes had been forced to sleep in the garage so he didn't have to share a room with Dana.
The sponge squeaked in the bathtub, and Kal whined.
"I guess it's scrubbed enough," Wes said to the dog. The apartment gleamed. Wes didn't want to have a cleaner come through. It set him on edge to have a stranger in his house, touching his things. He picked up one of the little robots he'd been working on. What if one of them were destroyed? Plus Kal didn't like strangers.
Also, no one could clean like Wes could. After his father lost his job, Wes's mother took cleaning jobs to make ends meet. Wes would go with her to help with the heavy lifting and more labor-intensive portions.
That was the beginning of the end for his father, he thought. Having to rely on his wife and elementary-school-aged kids to bring in money. He knew personally how layoffs could ruin a family. That's why he had to do what he was doing. The Holbrooks had to pay. Liz had to pay.