“Would you look at these,” Louise said of the two antique sewing machines. “They’re fantastic. Would you believe that I actually had one like that years and years ago?”
“Looks like they’ve been around a long time,” Colonel Wheeler said.
“Yes, they’re very old.”
“Do you still use them?” Trey asked.
“They still work, believe it or not, but no, now they’re just for inspiration. This one belonged to my great-grandmother, then my grandmother gave it to me. And that one belonged to Shelly’s grandmother.”
“Is that what got you started in the design business?”
“Probably. I remember my grandmother using this machine when I was a kid. I’d watch her for hours, cutting patterns and sewing on this old thing.”
“Well, this is a wonderful shop and you and Shelly are very talented designers. I can see you having great success here,” Louise said.
“Yes, yes, I completely agree,” Colonel Wheeler added.
“I hope so,” Kenya said. “We’re trying hard.”
“You will,” Trey seemed to promise.
“So that’s about it, end of tour.”
Louise, with Colonel Wheeler carrying the sleeping twins, went back into the front area, leaving Trey and Kenya behind. “Mamma Lou’s right, you are extremely talented.”
Kenya looked at him suspiciously. “Wow, that’s a bit disconcerting. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were actually sincere.”
“I am.”
“A compliment,” she joked, but the look in his eyes showed nothing but genuineness. She paused. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” They stood smiling a moment until Trey reached up and stroked the length of her face. “There’s something about you.”
“What?” she asked, leaning away nervously, then taking a step back.
“You don’t have to back away from me, Kenya. I wasn’t going to kiss you again.”
“I’m not…I mean, I didn’t expect—” she began, then moved back more, edging dangerously close to the pointed angle on the sewing machine table.
“Careful,” Trey said as he grabbed her to him before she backed into the point. He held her close. “Looks like I just saved your life.”
“Oh, really,” she declared.
“Yes,” he whispered as he tipped her chin up with his finger. “Yes,” he repeated as his mouth descended. “In some cultures, that means you owe me your life.” His head tilted as their lips nearly touched.
“Good thing we don’t live in one of those cultures.”
“Don’t we? So what exactly are you up to, Kenya?”
“Telling you wouldn’t be much fun, would it?” she said knowingly.
He shook his head. “I can’t figure you.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“For me, yeah, it is,” he said.
“No control, off balance and flying blind, not your style, huh?”
He nodded. “Something like that. You walk into my life and in one day turn it upside down.”
“Maybe your life needed to be turned upside down.”
He considered her assessment a second then smiled.
“Trey,” Louise called out from the front.
“We’re coming,” he said, leaning back. “After you.”
“No, you go. I need to finish picking up a few things.” She turned to pick up a fabric bolt lying on the table. She shifted and slid it to the opposite side then hurried to grab it. Putting the width of the cutting table between them seemed to not be adequate enough. She looked up just as he walked toward the front room. Relief washed over her.
It seemed that they were both in the same boat. She was just as off balance as he was. She gathered a few scraps and picked up a spool of thread that had fallen and unfurled. Finally regaining her composure, she went out front. Colonel Wheeler, Trey and the twins were gone and Louise stood at the door.
“You’re leaving so soon?” she asked.
“Yes, Kenya, we’re going to leave now and let you get home before it gets too late. It was wonderful getting to know you. You are a gem. I must say, Trey has certainly done me proud.”
“How so?” she asked curiously.
“He didn’t tell you.” Kenya shook her head. “I’ll let you in on a little secret. The only thing I’ve ever known Trey Evans to be uneasy about is me.”
“You…What do you mean?”
“Trey is an intelligent, very competent and very successful businessman who’s smart as a whip about most things. But when it comes to love, he’s a babe in the woods.”
“I don’t know about that,” Kenya said.
“Oh, he pretends to be the playboy type, but really he’s just a good guy playing a part. He’s a kindhearted, generous man. But, of course, I don’t have to tell you that. He has a heart as big as the whole outdoors. He just doesn’t want anyone to know it.”
“He keeps it well-hidden.”
“Yes, he does indeed. There’s only one thing that seems to unnerve him and that’s my matchmaking.”
“Oh, I see,” Kenya said, finally understanding her role. “Trey’s afraid of commitment.”
“Oh, no, I wouldn’t quite say that he’s afraid of commitment. But you, my dear, have captured his attention and possibly—in my professional opinion—his heart.”
“Me and Trey, no,” Kenya said quickly.
“Oh, yes, I think so and I’m never wrong about these things. Between us girls, I’d say he’s—”
“We’re ready,” Colonel Wheeler said as he opened the front door. Louise and Kenya turned. “All set?”
“Yes,” Louise said, then hugged Kenya. “Thank you, dear, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.”
“Me, too. Please stop by anytime you’re in the neighborhood.” Kenya led Louise to the door. She waited and watched Colonel Wheeler walk her out. The sight of them together was heartwarming. It made her wonder if she’d ever be blessed to have a man in her life. One who adored her as much as Colonel Wheeler adored Mamma Lou.
She considered her parents’ marriage. It had been strained as long as she could remember. Her father’s gambling addiction made it almost impossible to believe in him. Hence, she had grown up distrustful of men and always expected the worst of them.
She wondered about Trey. Everything she read about him all pointed to the same thing. He was coldhearted and uncaring. But Mamma Lou saw someone completely different. Maybe Mamma Lou was the exception. She was sure that a grandmother would always see the best in their grandchildren, even when they didn’t deserve it. Her grandmother did. She always said that her father would come through. She was right, he did. Then he didn’t.
Trey walked over to her. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Just doing my job,” she said.
“Your job…Oh, right, I almost forgot.”
“I guess my acting skills were pretty good after all,” Kenya said, thinking about her sister’s recent comment.
“I’d better go. We’ll talk. Good night.”
She nodded. He turned and strolled to his car. She waved as both cars pulled away and drove off down the street. She sighed and locked the door.
“What a day,” she muttered, more from amazement then exhaustion. There was no way she would have thought when the day began that it would end like this. But at least it was over. Everyone was gone and she was back where she started. She went into the workroom and began cleaning up again.
As she picked up scraps and swept the floor, she thought about Trey. This morning he was cold and impassive. But this evening, he was so different. It wasn’t his grandmother’s presence, because he was just as stilted with her earlier. So what had changed?
Of course, she had no idea. She smiled, remembering how he followed her around the room earlier whispering seductive and suggestive comments in her ear. She blushed at one particular remark that included painting her with chocolate then licking it off. Her smile broadened as she continued working and thinkin
g about him. He was definitely an enigma. But she needed to stay focused.
A half hour later she was getting ready to leave when she heard knocking on the front door. She cautiously walked to the front.
“Who is it?” she asked.
“Trey.”
She hesitated a second, then unlocked the door. He stood there, half smiling. “What are you doing here, Trey? Where are the twins?”
“I realized I still have an hour and twenty minutes.”
“What?” she asked.
“My time’s not up.”
“Actually, it is.” She paused and swallowed hard. “You know what I want. I suggest you seriously consider my position.” She began closing the door.
“Surrendering so soon. I’m disappointed,” he said.
She opened the door again. “This isn’t surrender, this is nonnegotiable.” Trey smiled amorously. “And if you think your charm is gonna get you off the hook or into my panties, you’re very wrong.”
“Interesting offer. Is that a dare?” he asked.
“That wasn’t an offer. This is business, nothing more.”
“If I remember correctly, Whitakers don’t play fair when it comes to business.”
“You know you have a lot of nerve coming back here. You swindled my father out of his company and stole his money and you think you can charm your way out of it. I don’t think so.”
Trey’s jaw dropped. “Sweetheart, I’ve been called a lot of things in business, but never a swindler.”
“Maybe others don’t know your true nature as I do.”
“Or maybe you’ve been misinformed.”
“Are you calling my father a liar?”
“I’m saying that you need to get your facts straight before you hurl accusations. Now if you want to discuss your father’s actions over the last six months, I’ll be happy to. In the meantime, I suggest you speak with you father and get the story straight.”
She knew she was being baited, but she had no intention of responding. “Good night, Trey.” She closed the door.
She walked back into the workroom and gathered her things. What was she doing? What was she thinking? All this craziness had gotten to her. She’d lost her temper. Now how was she going to get into his house to help her father? Who was she fooling? She couldn’t sneak into a man’s house and steal information. As soon as she picked up her purse her cell phone rang. Now what? “Hello?”
“Hi, sweetheart,” Lynette said.
“Mom, hi, how are you? How’s the trip?”
“Fantastic, we’re having a great time. Cape Town is a dream. The colors are so vibrant. I’m so glad we have this opportunity to come here. It’s more beautiful than I imagined. The people, the culture, the country, it’s all so incredible. I wish you could see it.”
“Maybe one day, Mom. Isn’t it late there?”
“We’re six hours ahead of you so yes, I guess it is late. I think my internal clock is still off. I couldn’t sleep and I wanted to make sure everything was okay there.”
“We’re all fine. I spoke to Asia this afternoon and stopped by to see Sidney this morning. I’m glad you’re having a wonderful time and I’m glad you called. How’s Dad?”
“He’s fine. As a matter of fact he’s talking to Sidney. Hold on, we’ll switch. But while I have you on the phone I sent you a few things to the house. The hand-dyed fabric here is breathtaking. I send you a few bolts.”
“Thanks, Mom, I’ll make sure to stop by the house to pick it up.”
“Oh, and don’t forget, we’re headed out on safari day after tomorrow and cell-phone reception isn’t very good, so don’t worry if you don’t hear from us. We’ll be fine.”
“Okay, Mom. Did you talk to Dad more about the money?”
“Yes, we talked.”
“Did he explain more about what happened? I mean, none of this makes sense. Why didn’t he go to the SEC?”
“It’s not that simple, Kenya. There’s more to this than you know.”
“Then tell me. What else is there?”
“I know your father wants to put a villainous face on his troubles, but the truth is just not that simple.”
“Is he there?”
“Hold on, here’s your father now.”
A few seconds later her father got on the phone. “Hello.”
“Dad, hi,” Kenya said.
“Kenya, you’re missing a great trip.”
“Yeah, that’s what Mom said. I’m glad you’re having a good time. But there’s something important I really need to talk to you about.”
“Sure, what is it? Problems with the shop?”
“No, everything’s good there. It’s this money.”
“Kenya, I told you, don’t concern yourself with it. I’ll take care of it when we get back.”
“Dad, I already know that you were investing with Trey Evans. I need to know what happened exactly. You said that they stole money from you.”
“Yes,” he said plainly.
“How?”
James sighed. “After we invested with them, I realized that it wouldn’t be easy to liquidate my assets. I needed funds for ventures I’d been working on. The idea of going to them and begging for my own money each time was ridiculous. I wanted it back. But there was a clause in the contract that I hadn’t noticed. It’s called a transmittal designation. It allowed them to transfer money out of the account at their discretion.”
“What, so they just transferred the money out of your account? How can they just do that? It’s illegal. So you confronted him about getting the money back, right?”
“Yes, of course. But he denied everything.”
“So he just lied to you.”
“Yes,” James said. “He stood in his office and assured me that the money was all still in my account and that the investments the firm was making on my behalf were all sound and secure.”
“But they weren’t,” Kenya said as a cold chill inched down her back. How could she be so gullible as to actually believe him? Her heart thundered. The idea that a so-called reputable firm could just steal from its clients was infuriating. And to think she was just starting to buy in to Trey’s good-guy image. She felt her anger burn inside her. How could she be such a fool again? This was becoming the story of her life, misjudging and believing the wrong men.
“What happened then? What did you do?”
“I needed out of the contract so I talked to some other people.”
“Who—the SEC?” she asked.
“None of them,” he said.
“You didn’t call them? Why not?”
“I just wanted access to the rest of the money. So I got together with Cal. He had an idea for a mortgage company. I knew the idea was a good one, plus it solved my problem with Trey. Cal needed investors so I signed on. According to my contract with Trey, I could withdraw the rest of the money for a major business investment.”
“That’s when you started working with Cal.”
“Yes. When Trey found out he was adamantly against it. He told me not to do it, but I could see it was a good investment. So with Cal’s help, we got out of the contract with TE Acquisitions.”
“Good, you don’t have any investments with them at all,” Kenya said.
“Yes and no. The account is closed, but they held on to a portion of the funds. It’s called a DR allowance fund.”
“A DR allowance. What’s that?”
“It’s a discretionary retirement fund. Your mother opened one with them before any of this happened.”
“So Mom still has money invested with them? Why? After everything that happened with you? I don’t understand.”
“They can’t withdraw from that account. It can only be added to.”
“So if the DR allowance is a retirement fund, why would he care about holding on to your retirement account?” Kenya asked, more to herself than to her father.
“Your mother convinced me to let it go and let him hold it. After I invested in the company, I found out that
Trey had also invested in the company. He had invested almost as much as I had. I knew what it meant.”
“What?” she asked, having no idea.
“That’s how he operates. He grabs a few shares then a few more until you realize that he holds the majority shares in your company. Cal confirmed that he stole his father’s company without even a second thought. I wasn’t about to let that happen.”
“But why would he want your company? He makes millions.”
“I believe it’s a power thing with him. He can’t resist a challenge.”
“So you’re saying that you posed a threat,” she asked.
“I did a lot of research on Trey Evans and TE Acquisitions. I saw an opportunity.”
“What do you mean an opportunity?” she asked.
“I found a way to outmaneuver him and buy a stake in his firm. It was all just business. I was going to use it as leverage and keep him out.”
“Dad, don’t tell me that you went after Trey’s company.”
“It was just business. I wanted control,” he insisted. “I saw an opportunity, that’s all. It happens all the time.”
“So what happened then?”
“Trey found out and offered Cal money to buy him out.”
“Let me guess, Cal sold his portion to Trey.”
“Yes, with what he already had, plus Cal’s shares, Trey Evans is now the majority holder in my company.”
“He stole your company. That’s what you meant when you said it was gone. You don’t actually own all of it anymore. Trey does, at least the majority of it. So the money’s not all gone, it’s just tied up.”
“Exactly, but as the majority stock holder, Trey can decide to sell the company for as little as five dollars if he wants. All he has to do is give me a percentage and it would still be legal.”
“He wouldn’t do that to you, Dad.”
“He did it to his father’s company, so let me take care of this.”
“But, Dad—”
“Kenya, let me handle this. Just wait until I get back. I’ll take care of everything. Remember, your mother always says, nothing ever came from being angry and not thinking first.”
“Fine.” She lied to her father for the first time.
Chapter 8
But it wasn’t fine. She had no intention of sitting back and doing nothing. Trey owed her father and she intended to make him pay him back. Shelly thought Kenya was joking, but now she was serious. She wanted to hurt Trey, just like he hurt her father.
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