by Ruby Cruz
“Who’s CEO now?”
“Christopher Sandusky. He was someone from the outside, but who respected my grandfather and has been running the company in his stead for the past twenty years. With my grandfather gone, the board is attempting to push out my aunt and may have enough shares to be successful. But with my brother and I involved, we have enough to put up a good argument that keeping things within the family is in the best interests of the business.”
“Are you saying Darcy wants to start working at DeBourgh?”
“Nothing’s set in stone,” she assured me, but the answer was too vague to fully assuage my fear. “It’s very early to tell what’s going to happen, but with my aunt…emotionally incapacitated, Will has had to step in and make many assurances that this merger is still going to occur as planned. I’ve been helping him, of course, but he’s had to be the spokesperson since apparently anyone who doesn’t own a set of testicles isn’t fit to be involved, according to the other board members.”
“I’m surprised they still allowed Dr. DeBourgh on the board at all.”
“It was in deference to her father. He didn’t have any sons and he wanted to make sure the company remained in the family. That’s why things were so strained between him and Will.”
“Why?”
“Because Will made it clear he had no interest in taking over the company. Grandfather had been hoping to pass the company mantle to his grandson, but Will didn’t want it.”
“That must have been an incredibly difficult time for both of them.”
“Yes. Now Will feels guilty that he hadn’t listened before. Maybe the company wouldn’t be in this situation.”
“He couldn’t have predicted that business would take a turn for the worse.”
“No, but he still feels guilty.”
“I wish he would’ve told me about it.”
“He didn’t want to involve you in the family mess.”
“I know. I’m not family.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. As you can tell, he’s very protective about the people he cares about. His not telling you is just another example of that. Misplaced, yes, but he means well.”
“He’s always trying to save people.”
“It’s just in his nature.”
At that thought, my heart swelled with even more love for him.
CHAPTER SIX
Barracuda in Stilettos
I examined myself critically in the full-length mirror. Ana had done an admirable job of choosing a dress for me. Though the dress was much more expensive than any I would have chosen myself, the modest cut of the black crepe and full-length skirt mostly hid the fact that my right ankle and foot were wrapped. I would’ve liked to have skipped the crutches altogether, but I couldn’t quite walk on the bottom of my foot just yet.
As nice as I looked, I felt somewhat ridiculous and very self-conscious as Darcy led me out of the suite and assisted me down the stairs, but I was determined to not be any more of a burden to him than I already had been during the past couple of days.
Ana and Terry waited in the foyer and, at our questioning looks, Ana answered, “Aunt Catherine is already waiting in the limo. Lizzy, the dress looks great on you.”
“Thanks. You have fabulous taste.”
“I have to say, you’re right,” she answered with twinkling eyes.
We walked to the front drive where the limo idled, Nico waiting patiently by the passenger door. He hurried forward to assist us into the vehicle, and I was grateful when he took my crutches to place into the trunk.
As I shifted onto my seat, Darcy’s arm settled around me, almost in a protective manner. Dr. DeBourgh sat across from us and was pointedly avoiding eye contact, her gaze fixed to a point outside the car.
The ten-minute drive to the funeral home was rife was tension, and I could tell Darcy also sensed the charged atmosphere by the way his hand held my shoulder possessively, the heat emanating from him like a brand on my skin. As we drove into the lot, I saw other vehicles already parked even though the wake wouldn’t begin for another thirty minutes.
Without ceremony, Dr. DeBourgh exited the vehicle as soon as we were parked and made her way towards the entrance of the building. Ana and Terry followed her while Darcy stayed behind to help me out of the car. Nico produced my crutches and, unfamiliar with the feel of them, I struggled to follow the path the others took. Eventually, I found a suitable rhythm with the crutches, and by the time we reached the building, I didn’t feel like a total gimp.
My heart stopped as we moved into the salon the others had entered. Dr. DeBourgh had collapsed in front of the open coffin, her sobs echoing through the space. Ana crouched beside her while Terry hovered uncertainly behind them.
Darcy hesitated beside me, but I urged him on. “Go.”
He strode purposefully toward his aunt. He knelt beside her and murmured something I couldn’t hear from my vantage point in the doorway, but whatever he said got her to stand, albeit shakily. I remained where I was, loath to intrude on the private family moment.
As much as I didn’t get along with Dr. DeBourgh, I could sympathize with her. I’d never really lost anyone close to me - my father sent the occasional birthday and Christmas card, but he was still alive, and I never knew my grandparents. But unfortunately, I’d witnessed enough deaths at the hospital and the effects they had on their families that seeing Dr. DeBourgh, such a strong-willed woman, reduced to heart-shattering sobs, turned something within me.
As much as we didn’t get along, as much as she hated me, I had to remember she was still human and capable of love. In fact, her love for her nephew would always be something we had in common, an immutable fact that would never change.
~
My first inclination was to hide in the corner and hope the time passed quickly and without incident. After all, how could I act as a close “friend” of the family when Darcy’s aunt pretty much hated me and I’d never met the deceased? But as much as I wanted to settle behind the large ficus tree in the far corner of the room or behind the screen projecting pictures of Walter DeBourgh’s life, I couldn’t shirk the responsibility that being Darcy’s girlfriend brought.
By the beginning of the wake, a large crowd had gathered at the entrance of the funeral home. Walter DeBourgh had been a well-respected member of the Hamptons community, an avid golfer, and a member of the governing council. Dignitaries, former business colleagues, and acquaintances of the family filed through, paying their respects to the shell of the man lying in the discreetly expensive coffin.
He’d been handsome in his time, as the portrait next to his coffin attested. He had allowed his dark hair to gray at the temples and he’d kept it fastidiously groomed. His dark eyebrows and straight, white smile I recognized in his grandson. I wondered what he would’ve thought of me, if he would’ve approved of me. Thinking back to Ana’s comment that he’d practically disowned his own grandson for not taking over the family business, and given his aunt’s distaste for me, I suspected I wouldn’t have fared very well.
Despite that, I shook hands and met acquaintances whom even Darcy barely knew. Ana appeared to handle it all with grace, but Darcy settled into his uncomfortable professional persona - the one who stiffly accepted condolences with a handshake and barely an acknowledgement.
A half hour on my feet, my ankle throbbed. At an hour, it had swollen and my foot felt numb. Darcy noticed my discomfort and practically forced me to sit and prop my ankle on a chair, which made me feel even more self-conscious, but at least it relieved the pressure and swelling slightly, both in my ankle and in the situation.
Despite my resolve not to hide in the corner, sitting afforded me the relative luxury of people watching. I could see who hoped to catch a glimpse of the more infamous Hamptonites as opposed to those present to offer genuine condolences to the family. I did catch a couple of socialites eyeing up Darcy and, as they passed, one of them muttered, “Too bad the personality doesn
’t match the face.” I watched the procession from an inconspicuous chair at the side of the room and every once in a while, Darcy’s gaze caught mine, his expression grim and his thoughts inscrutable.
Chase Hammond entered the salon with his mother, and I observed as they approached the family near the front of the room. Mrs. Hammond drew her friend into a long hug that produced a fresh wave of sobs from both women. Chase shifted uncomfortably as he greeted Darcy and Ana, who was apparently struggling to remain polite and civil around him. He leaned down and said something in her ear that made her eyes flash, but before she could retort, he’d moved on to kneel in front of the coffin.
I spotted Nina at the end of the line. She was with what looked like a girlfriend of hers. Not half a dozen people behind her was none other than Caroline Bingley accompanied by her brother.
As much as I still felt jealous of Nina for her sexual history with Darcy, I absolutely loathed Caroline Bingley and her bitchy, pretentious ways. She wore her signature stilettos, matched with a slate gray power suit, modestly cut white blouse, tailored jacket, and pencil skirt that was just short of decent length. She apparently was not above using her sex appeal to get what she wanted, and by the way her eyes zeroed in on the family in front of the room, what she obviously wanted at that moment was Darcy.
I closed my eyes and willed Darcy’s reassurances into me that he had no interest in the barracuda. The words were easy enough to heed when we were alone and I was in his arms, but whenever I saw Caroline Bingley and her near physical perfection, the green-eyed monster never ceased to rear its ugly head.
I wondered if Jane had known her sister-in-law had been planning to make the flight out from San Francisco for the funeral. The two weren’t exactly close, but Charlie still attempted some type of relationship with his sister, despite her obvious disapproval over his choice of wife.
“Why are you hiding in the corner?”
I jumped when I heard the familiar voice and turned to face Chase. “You have a knack for sneaking up on me when I least suspect it.”
He smiled. “At least you weren’t talking on the phone this time.” He pulled a chair next to me and surveyed the room. “Ah, Dr. Petrova made good on her promise to make an appearance. And…whoa. Hello, gorgeous.” I knew exactly whom he was staring at because his eyes landed where I’d just been sending venomous eye darts.
“Don’t bother. I doubt she’s interested.”
“You know her?”
“Sort of. Her brother is married to my sister.”
“Ah, so the puppy dog next to her isn’t some sad boyfriend.”
“No, that’s my brother-in-law.”
“And how would you know she wouldn’t be interested in me? I can be quite…persuasive, you know.”
“I’m sure you can be, but I think she has her sights set on someone else.”
“Ahh,” he said knowingly. “I know a jealous tone when I hear one. I doubt you have anything to worry about. Will seems completely devoted to you.”
“Doesn’t make me hate her any less when she’s made it no secret she’s interested in him, despite him being taken by me.”
“Intriguing. I might make it a point to introduce myself later on.” He grinned so widely I couldn’t help but laugh.
There was a pause in conversation as we watched the slow procession past the coffin, the dozens of people offering their condolences. I asked Chase, “So, what was he like? Walter DeBourgh?”
He gave me a strange look. “Shouldn’t you ask Will about him?”
“I don’t know what happened between him and his grandfather, but he’s reluctant to share any of that history with me. You can’t blame me for being curious why.”
He considered the question, then began. “Will and Walter had a very contentious relationship. They were like oil and water. Walter was always trying to make Will into something he didn’t want to be. Will hated golf, wasn’t cutthroat enough for business, became a bleeding heart doctor instead of chief medical officer somewhere. He thought Will was too soft. Walter didn’t treat me much better, but I have a lot more tolerance for that type of thing, plus I didn’t have the weight of the family legacy on my shoulders.
“Still, that didn’t stop Walter from telling me what he thought every week when we golfed. Even last week he was railing on me to go back to law school and finish my degree. I didn’t want to be a corporate litigator or anything like that - I didn’t have the edge - and didn’t want to be an asshole the rest of my life. If I’d stuck with it, I probably would’ve turned out a public defender, or a human rights lawyer, definitely not anything that would’ve brought the type of money or prestige to impress Walter.”
“So why art? Why not become a public defender?”
“Because my heart wasn’t in it. I figure if I’m going to spend the rest of my life doing something, I may as well be passionate about it. And I love art. I love the colors and the shapes and the stories the different pieces tell. It’s so full of life and passion. To do anything else…it wouldn’t even begin to compare.”
I regarded his face, the way his eyes flashed, and I felt a type of camaraderie with him. During dinner the day before and all my other dealings with him, he’d seemed so fake, like he’d been putting on a show. This conversation was the first time I’d ever seen any type of genuine emotion from him, and the candor was refreshing.
“I guess we do have something in common after all,” I commented.
“What’s that?”
“It’s why I’m going back to school. I love nursing, I really do, but there are times I feel helpless, that I’m just a bystander watching the drama unfold. Sure, I help manage symptoms, maybe even catch problems before they get serious, but with my master’s degree, I’ll have prescriptive power and can help educate patients about preventive care. It’s a lofty goal, maybe even a pipe dream to affect change in that way, but if I can help one patient improve their health, then it’ll be worth it.” I paused when I noticed him staring at me. “And I’ve gotten up on my soapbox again.”
“It’s nice to meet someone else who’s not willing to coast through life just because it’s easier or what’s expected. I can see why Will’s so infatuated.”
Heat rose from my cheeks and I was glad when Ana approached us. “Lizzy, there are some people we’d like you to meet.” She threw a distrustful glance at Chase. “Excuse us.”
She led me towards a cluster of people near the far corner of the room, and once we were out of earshot, she asked, “I thought I warned you about Chase Hammond.”
“We were just talking. He’s actually not a bad guy.”
She stopped, and I was taken aback by the fierceness in her eyes. “Lizzy, he’s hitting on you in the middle of my grandfather’s wake. Don’t you find that even a little distasteful?”
“He wasn’t hitting on me. Like I said, we were just talking. About your grandfather, I may add. He was telling me what he was like, something that neither you nor Will has bothered to tell me.”
“That’s not what it looked like from over there. Lizzy, you have to be careful around these people. All it takes is for you to talk to the wrong person and…”
“And what? People think there’s something going on between us? Ana, you know I love Will. Just because you don’t like someone shouldn’t preclude me from having a civil conversation with that person, regardless of the setting.”
She pressed her lips together, and I could tell by her stubborn stance she wasn’t going to let this drop. “Chase Hammond is a known womanizer. If he’s the type of person you want to be associated with, fine, but don’t say I didn’t warn you when the gossipmongers start airing your dirty laundry in the gossip blogs.” She walked away from me and left the room, presumably to get some air or to go to the ladies’ room.
A soft hand touched my arm. “Is everything ok? That discussion seemed a bit intense.” Nina Petrova appeared in front of me, her bright eyes searching mine. She’d changed fr
om her earlier outfit into a tasteful, charcoal-colored sleeveless shirtdress.
“It’s fine. She’s just upset.”
“Apparently.” She glanced down at my foot. “How’s the ankle holding up?”
“It hurts a bit, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. I’m more embarrassed than anything else. And thank you again for making the house call today.”
“It’s my job, and Will’s a friend. I’d do anything for him.”
I searched her face and, despite knowing about her brief romance with Will, I could see she meant the words, but only because she did view Will as an old friend. “It must be difficult being here. Will told me that Walter had been one of your first patients in the Hamptons.”
“Walter wasn’t the easiest man to treat or get along with. You know, typical non-compliant patient in addition to having the famous DeBourgh stubborn streak, but he and I came to an understanding. I am going to miss him.” She sighed. “It’s just as well that I stopped being his physician before he got really sick. I probably wouldn’t have been able to cope nearly as well otherwise. I like remembering him as he was before - strong, stubborn, not unlike your boyfriend.”
“I’m not sure if I would’ve liked him or have been afraid of him.”
“Were you afraid of Will when you first met him?” Her eyes twinkled with amusement, and I could see where she was going with the question.
“Will? That would be a definite no.”
“Then I suspect you would’ve gotten along just fine with Walter. He would’ve given you a hard time, sure, but he liked women with spirit. And from what Will has told me in his emails, you’ve got that in spades.”
“Ah, so he has talked about me.”
“He adores you, Lizzy, and I’m glad he’s finally found someone who complements him so well.”
“I’m sorry to say he hasn’t mentioned you much.”
“Not surprising. Will was never forthcoming when it came to talking about himself or his relationships, past or present. Consider yourself lucky he’s talked about you at all. That’s when I knew you had to be the one.” When I didn’t reply, her smile broadened. “It’s okay. I don’t hold any secrets you don’t already know, but if my guess is right, he’ll make your relationship a permanent thing.”