Greshmere

by Scott Wittenburg

  All of a sudden she burst out laughing. The irony of the situation hit home as she remembered how she and Daniel would crack up whenever they saw some drama queen breaking down in one of those silly reality shows over some ridiculous thing. “Look at that girl!” she would laugh. “Bawling her eyes out over some jerk who dropped her on her ass! Shake it off, girl! It isn’t the end of the world!”

  Those sorts of situations had seemed so pathetic because Megan had never known what it was like to be dumped by a boy. Daniel had always been there for her since day one. Once she had fallen in love with him as a young teen, their fate had been sealed. He had never cheated on her, never even so much as hinted that he wanted anybody else. He had always worshipped and adored her.

  And now she had lost him. Not to another girl, but to something much worse—much more permanent.

  The phone suddenly rang. Wiping away the tears, she half-heartedly reached for her iPhone and checked the caller ID. It was Stephanie. As much as she didn’t want to talk to anybody, she decided to answer anyway.

  “Hey, Steph,” she said.

  “How’s my girl? I was looking out at all of this snow and immediately thought of you. Are you loving it?”

  Megan managed a chuckle. “Gotta admit, it’s the best thing to happen this entire week. Shoveling the stuff this morning has been the highlight, in fact.”

  “I think you’re the only person I know who actually loves winter. Hey, you sound like you’ve been crying. Is anything the matter?”

  “Nothing new, let’s put it that way.”

  “Aw, c’mon, girlfriend. Everything is going to be okay. Really!”

  “I wish I could believe that, Steph, I really do. But it’s not happening.”

  “You just have to stay focused and not give up, Megan. I know I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again. I cannot imagine the pain you must be in. But you have to remember that things always look worse right after they happen. Time will heal you—I know it will. You just have to try to be strong. And this girl is not going to let you off easy on this! I am going to bug you every day until you start getting better. So you might as well just get used to that right now!”

  “Stephanie, I love you. You know that. And I appreciate what you’re trying to do. But—I just don’t know how to put this into words. But I’m going to try. You have never been in love with somebody like I was with Daniel. You even admit that. Daniel was my entire life. And now he’s gone. There is nothing in the world that can change that. It’s like I’ve just lost my best friend, my best lover, my best everything!

  “So anything that anybody says to try to make me feel better is going to fall on deaf ears. I know that’s cowardly and selfish of me. And I’m not proud of it either, trust me. But that’s the facts. Nothing in this world can bring Daniel back, so nothing in this world is going to make me forget him. Or what we were. Or what we could have been and could have had. Can you understand any of this at all?”

  There was a short pause. “Yes, I do understand—probably a lot more than you give me credit for. Although I’ve never been fortunate to have what you and Daniel had, I can still imagine what it would be like to lose somebody I loved so much. And I also know that life goes on, and that you have a gift that Daniel gave you before he left this world. That child growing inside of you. And sometimes I wish that you could hear yourself whenever you talk about that child, Megan. Because whenever you do, you actually manage to convince me that you are going to make it through all of this after all. You love that little child and you know that it will be the next best thing that ever happened to you. Don’t ever forget that, Megan. Cherish it, live for it. Everything else will fall into place.”

  Megan smiled. Stephanie had hit a chord and she was not going to deny it. “Okay, so maybe you are making some sense here. That’s why I love you so much! You’re absolutely right, as always. I have been blessed having this baby and I am thrilled about that. It is indeed all I am living for right now and I’m just going to have to let that be enough. There, I said it. I just wish I could leave it at that, Stephanie. It’s just so hard sometimes!”

  “And that is totally understandable. Which is exactly why you need to go out Christmas shopping with me today! You need to let me steer you in the right direction and if necessary, force you to lighten up on yourself! What do ya say? They’re having a huge sale at Macy’s and I can pick you up at around noon.”

  Megan could hardly believe it herself when she said, “Okay. I’ll tag along with you. But I’m not shopping for anybody this year.”

  “Yay, I am so proud of you! And who cares if you don’t want to shop—at least we can finally be doing something together again!”

  “Alright then, I’d better get in the shower if you’re going to be here at noon.”

  “Sounds like a plan! See you in a few!”

  “See you, Steph…and thanks. You’re the best friend a girl could ever have.”

  “My pleasure. See ya!”

  When she disconnected, Megan couldn’t help but smile. That Stephanie! Even back in high school, she always had a way to get her point across in that annoyingly rational way of hers. She had a knack for putting reason before emotions, no doubt about it.

  So it’s off to Macy’s, she thought. Not her favorite place in the world but it would be nice to get out of the house and do something mindless for a change. As she turned off the TV and headed up to the bathroom, Megan realized that she was actually looking forward to going out with her friend.

  While showering, Megan thought of Stephanie and how important their friendship was. Before she and Daniel had started dating, Megan had had quite a few friends in high school and Stephanie had been the closest one. She had always sensed a sort of envy and sadness in Stephanie once she and Daniel had essentially become joined at the hip. All of a sudden, she had less and less time for her. And although she was happy for her, Stephanie couldn’t hide her disappointment that they weren’t hanging out as much as they used to. And then after she and Daniel had both moved to Columbus, she had basically cut off all ties with Stephanie for quite a while.

  But a couple of years later, Stephanie moved to Columbus having transferred to Ohio State from Kent State her junior year. As a result, the two girls began hanging out with each other again on a fairly regular basis. Stephanie and Daniel had always gotten along well with one another and they had all three gone out for dinner and the movies on occasion. Stephanie had never had a serious relationship with a guy in all the time she’d known her. She could never understand why that was because she was such a beautiful girl with a wonderful personality. But she was also very picky about who she went out with. Some day she was going to make somebody a very happy guy, Megan thought.

  After her shower, she got dressed and stood by the front door waiting for Stephanie to show up. At exactly noon, she saw her pull into the driveway in her Honda Accord.

  “Right on time, as usual,” Megan quipped as she got into the Honda.

  “Punctuality is next to godliness, I always say,” Stephanie replied.

  “How are the roads?”

  “Not too bad. There are a ton of cars out there headed for the malls, I can tell you that. Everybody doing last-minute Christmas shopping, no doubt.”

  As Stephanie backed out of the driveway, Megan said, “I have to admit, I feel like a real Scrooge all of a sudden. I mean, other than the gift certificates to Bob Evans that I sent Mom and Dad, I haven’t bought a single gift.”

  “Have you thought about reconsidering Smithtown at all? I know you’ll hate me for saying this again, but you really should go see your folks for the holidays.”

  “I know I should. And I’m feeling really guilty about that. I mean, there is absolutely no reason for me to stay in that house all by myself this Christmas and I know it. On the other hand, Daniel and I always went home together to visit our parents and it just wouldn’t be the same now. It’s so hard to adjust to all of this, Stephanie!”

  “I know. But pu
t yourself in your parents’ place. There they are in Smithtown knowing that their daughter is in great pain but they are unable to do anything about it. So the least they can hope for is that you will visit them and try to be a family again. You are their only child, Megan. They love you and miss you. You owe it to them to at least make yourself available at this awful time in your lives.”

  “You’re right, of course. I don’t know why I am being so selfish about everything. I guess because it just seems like the easiest way to cope right now. Maybe I’ll go down to Smithtown after all.”

  Stephanie glanced over and smiled at her. “That would be wonderful, Megan! We could even go down together, if you want. I told my folks I’d be there tomorrow afternoon. Why don’t you let your folks know you’re coming too?”

  “Hmm. Let me think it over. It would be nice to get them some nice gifts and actually have a Christmas tree to put them under.”

  “You mean you haven’t even put up a tree?”

  “No, I couldn’t see the sense in it. I mean, why bother?”

  “Wow, we gotta do something about that, girl! Nobody can celebrate Christmas without a Christmas tree, for chrissakes!”

  Megan laughed. “Whatever!”

  Chapter 16

  -Then-

  After leaving a message on Megan Kendall’s voicemail, Gary Jamison sat there, thinking and fuming. His first impulse was to drive to O’Hare, hop on a plane to Columbus, and go tell the bitch his true thoughts about her refusal to respond to him. Although he hadn’t actually expected her to pick up her phone and chat, he had expected some sort of acknowledgement by now for the lovely flowers he had so considerately sent her in her time of sorrow.

  She hasn’t even bothered to thank me for those flowers—what the hell?

  He stared down and realized that he had a death grip on his Droid. At the moment, he wanted to crush it into a thousand pieces. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and struggled to compose himself. The last thing he needed to do was get all unhinged at this point in the game.

  Keep your cool, Gary.

  He opened his eyes, took another deep breath and gently placed the phone back on the bar. He reached for the straight Scotch on the rocks, took a big belt, and felt the warm glow soften the edges.

  What is her problem?

  He had met a lot of women in his time, but never one as challenging as Megan Kendall. Yes, she was stunningly beautiful—but so were many of the other women he’d won in his numerous conquests. And she was married—or at least had been married until a couple of weeks ago. Made no difference. He couldn’t even begin to estimate how many married women he’d had his way with. In fact, they were often his favorite prey.

  So here is Megan Kendall, now a widow, still refusing to give him so much as the time of day.

  Talk about playing hard-to-get—this was way over the top.

  And exactly why he was loving this!

  His getting angry and impulsive and wanting to throw things was par for the course. He knew that, accepted it, and in fact thrived on it.

  It had been such a strange ride thus far, beginning with the Manco Corp seminar a few months ago. He had gone there out of necessity, expecting to be bored and wasn’t disappointed. Up until he had laid eyes on Megan Kendall for the first time, that is. When she entered the room, all he could think was, I gotta have this bitch! The woman was beyond gorgeous with a face and a body that even the Pope couldn’t resist.

  He knew at that moment he would never be able to take no for an answer. He wanted her that much.

  So he had eventually struck up a conversation with Mrs. Kendall and found her to be every bit as engaging as she looked. She was friendly and outgoing; yet at the same time made it perfectly clear from the get-go that she was unavailable for anything beyond idle conversation. “You can look, but don’t touch!” her manner so clearly spoke.

  And from that moment on, he knew there would be no turning back.

  Not wanting to make himself look too obvious, he had backed off from her to allow things to cool down before he made a total ass of himself in front of the entire firm. Obviously, Megan Kendall was not yet ready for him. This was going to take some time.

  She would have a totally different attitude after she returned to Columbus and learned from her co-workers what a great prize Gary Jamison was. That the tall, dark, insanely rich and handsome man that everybody so adored and respected was in fact Manco Corp’s Most Eligible Bachelor. Megan would in turn start wondering if maybe she had been too hasty in her decision to proclaim her happily married status, and that perhaps she should have been a bit less coy. He had seen it all happen before.

  A few days later, he had dropped the bomb. He called the Columbus office and asked to speak to Megan Kendall directly, knowing that this would totally blow her mind. He had begun the conversation being his suave, wonderful self before telling her the real reason he had called, which was to get her take on one of the Ohio accounts Manco had been considering liquidating. Offer her the proverbial bone, so to speak. She had been clearly impressed—to think that Mr. Jamison had asked her about something so important instead of one of the other more experienced caseworkers!

  After she had recovered from her initial shock, Megan had promptly pulled up the account in question on her computer and offered her analysis of its financial status. She had then given him the reply he sought; that in her opinion the firm was solvent and it would be a mistake to let them go. He thanked her for her input, letting her know how impressed he was that such a relatively new employee could be so insightful. (If he could have seen her at that moment, she would no doubt be blushing.)

  Finally, the kill. He suggested that perhaps they could go out and have a little business chat over dinner the next time he found himself in Central Ohio. He had to admit that her response was not quite what he expected. After thanking him, pretty as you please, she flatly told him that this would “not be a good idea.” Not at all what he wanted to hear. When he asked her why not, she came at him with the “I’m happily married” bullshit and “my husband would certainly not approve of anything like that.”

  He had kept his cool though, as difficult as that was. Deep down, he had actually hoped she would resist him. He loved a challenge and hadn’t perceived Megan Kendall as one to fall easily. So instead of going ballistic, he calmly asked her how a strictly business meeting over dinner could possibly upset her husband. Her response couldn’t have been more efficient. She told him that the work place was where business should be conducted, adding, “wouldn’t you agree?” She had him there. For if he were to argue that dinner was harmless fare for a business meeting, it would seem as though he had ulterior motives any way you cut it.

  Which of course was the truth. Duh.

  So once again he had been beaten by the gorgeous woman and found himself forced to roll with the punches. There was always round three.

  For the next week or so he called her frequently, always on some sort of business premise. A couple of times he joked that he’d like to take her out sometime just to chat, thinking that maybe his lightheartedness might start breaking her down a bit. It never did.

  Then one weekend, he had a sudden urge to visit Columbus and learn a little more about the object of his affection—or would compulsion be a better word? Perhaps if he could just see her, from afar so to speak, he might get a better fix on Megan Kendall and what he might be doing wrong. Yes, he enjoyed a challenge. But you have to draw the line somewhere.

  He had always fancied himself as a bit of a sleuth. Hell, he’d spent half of his childhood peeping into windows looking for naked girls! And he’d been damn good at it, too. So on this little trek to Ohio, he would take along his Canon DSLR, a telephoto zoom lens, a couple of special night vision lenses, and his brand new $7K Astroscope and camcorder. Who knew what kind of trouble he could get into?

  Instead of flying, he opted to make the six-hour drive and had arrived in Columbus on a Saturday night at around ten o’clock. Findin
g the Kendall house was a snap using his GPS. He had parked his BMW a few doors down the block before getting down to business. After casing out the fairly spacious grounds, he discovered an excellent spot that gave him an unobstructed view of the couple’s family room, kitchen and upstairs bedrooms.

  He set up his DSLR camera on a tripod, attached one of the long telephoto lenses, and focused on the family room. Through the partially open blinds, he could see Megan and her husband sitting together on a sofa, apparently watching TV. Her husband, whose name was Daniel, was about six foot, average build and wore what he and his friends at school used to call nerd glasses—the kind with thick black frames. Daniel also had dark, disheveled hair and quite frankly was nothing to write home about in the looks department.

  What in the fuck is she doing with this loser? he remembered asking himself.

  Megan, on the other hand looked every bit as gorgeous as she had at the seminar. She was wearing a well-worn pair of gray sweats and an Ohio State sweatshirt. Her lovely hair was pulled back in a ponytail-like thing and she was all snuggled up against her hubby. They were laughing at something on TV, which was facing the wrong way for him to see. Both of them had drinks: Megan a glass of ice water or Sprite and hubby a can of Bud.

  He zoomed in on Megan’s face and snapped a shot. God, was she lovely! He took some more shots, then simply sat there and waited it out until they left the room before continuing his surveillance.

  Nearly an hour later they left the family room, stopped by the kitchen to refresh their drinks then headed upstairs. When the light came on in one of the bedroom windows, he was delighted to see that he had a clear view, except for the fact that he was too low to see much more than the ceiling, a wall, and the top of the bed’s headboard.

  He looked around for higher ground but found none, so he decided to try one of the two mature trees located near their privacy fence. Shimmying up the tree was easy and he soon found a nice large branch he could safely sit on around fifteen feet up. From there he could see most of the interior of the master bedroom. The overhead light had been turned off and a bedside single lamp now illuminated the room. Megan left the room while Daniel removed his clothes and slipped into bed. Several moments later, Megan returned, wearing nothing but a white tee shirt that barely came to her crotch.