Unsuitable

by Lavinia Kent

  “I guess.” It was the most likely scenario. She might still have just enough of a position in society to rank a story, but surely not enough to rate someone following her. Clay? She rather thought he was about as interesting to the press as she was. Rich and handsome, yes, but unless he was dating a starlet, surely not worth stalking.

  She picked up the paper again and stared at the photos and at the smaller one of Amelia and Clay in their prom attire. “Shit. How on earth did they get that? I haven’t seen a photo of them together since they broke up. I don’t know what Amelia did with hers, but it disappeared quickly.”

  Veronica grabbed the paper from her and took her own turn staring. “I certainly have no idea how they got it, although it looks like it might have been cropped. Some type of group photo. Maybe somebody else who was there shared it.”

  “I guess it’s possible. I know they went with a small group of kids. Still, you’re right, it’s not that bad. It’s always creepy when your privacy is violated, but it could be worse.” Her mind filled with the probable images on the museum’s security video.

  Veronica exhaled slowly. “That’s what I thought, but I know how sensitive you can be and that you wanted to keep it quiet. I’m surprised you’re taking it so well.” A pause. “Oh shit, you didn’t actually read it, did you? You just looked at the pictures.”

  Jordan held out her hand, took the paper again. She’d been so relieved that the pictures weren’t nudes that she’d forgotten the reasons she hadn’t wanted her relationship with Clay public. Her eyes scanned down the article. A slow burn began within her.

  No, the pictures might not be bad, but the words were. “So I’m a gold-digging, home-wrecking cradle-snatcher who lives off her dead husband’s money while pursuing her stepdaughter’s boyfriend, ripping him from the loving hands of his almost-fiancée. Oh, and maybe I’ve been having an affair with him since he was a child, before my husband died. Holy hell.”

  Veronica reached over and laid a hand on hers. “Yes, it’s bad, but you know it will blow over quickly. These things always do. You know that it’s all nonsense. And anybody who knows you will know it’s nonsense. You could probably sue if you wanted to; I’d help you with it. But you also know that will only prolong things. If you just wait a day or two, something real will happen and it will be forgotten.”

  She knew that Veronica was right, but anger burned at her soul. She tapped the picture from Amelia’s prom. It definitely had been a group shot at some point. Clay stood awkwardly in his tux, staring straight out at the camera, while Amelia looked up at him wistfully. “It won’t be forgotten by everybody. Amelia’s about to get married. You know how she feels about privacy.”

  “Nonsense. She’s a smart girl and she’ll get over it quickly. Plus, why should she care about this when she’s marrying Alex? Alex is not a woman who’s going to be upset by an old prom picture, and if Alex is fine Amelia will be fine.”

  “Well, yes, but—”

  “There is no ‘but.’ She’s a grown woman and a smart one. Just be glad you told her about Clay. At least it won’t be a complete surprise to her. And that’s assuming she sees it.”

  Jordan gave a forced laugh. “Even if she doesn’t actually see it, I’m sure some good ‘friend’ will point it out to her. But, yes, I’m glad I told her; although, I wasn’t explicit as to how far our relationship had gone. Granted, I didn’t really know how it was going to progress when I last talked to her.”

  Veronica sat up straight. “And how has it progressed? I almost made some remark that at least it wasn’t like you were really dating, that it would be so easy to simply put him aside, but that’s not the case, is it?”

  Jordan didn’t answer for a moment. She wasn’t quite sure what to say. It would certainly be easier to just push the whole thing aside. Only…only…There was something there. It might be something just beginning, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t important. “I don’t think so. I don’t really know what to do. I may have to give it a day or so and just see.”

  “And in the meantime maybe we can figure out who has it in for you.”

  “In for me?”

  “Don’t be an idiot. This didn’t end up in the paper by chance. The picture from the museum maybe. Papers do love to speculate, but somebody fed them the words. The nasty tone is not normal.”

  Veronica was right. “True. But I don’t know how you think we’ll do that.”

  “It shouldn’t be that hard. I just need to make a couple of calls.”

  Jordan let out a sigh, her anger fading to discouragement. How had her relationship with Clay gone from easy fun to this? “Fine. Do what you need to.”

  Veronica pursed her lips. “And hon, only you can know if Clay’s worth this bother. I mean, he is hot, but maybe you should go with the original plan and let him be a fling. I certainly wasn’t trying to tell you to start a real relationship. You need some time to be yourself.”

  But what if she was her best self when she was with someone else? When she was with Clay? “I promise I won’t do anything rash.”

  Veronica lifted a brow. “Because you never do anything impulsive, do you?”

  And she had walked right into that one.

  Her phone buzzed on the table beside her, saving her from immediate reply.

  A text from Amelia. On my way there. Please be home.

  She paused for a moment, considering. What was that about? Surely not this stupid gossip page. She typed the words with care. Really? Wasn’t expecting you. Something wrong?

  I’m driving with Do Not Disturb on. Please text Urgent if an emergency.

  An auto message. Amelia wouldn’t even see her reply for a while.

  Well, curiosity was hardly an emergency. She would have to wait.

  * * *

  —

  Clay glanced down at his phone and smiled. Jordan had already called him. He’d had a meeting as soon as he’d arrived at the office, so he hadn’t had a chance to call back before this, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t pleased. After last night he knew they were moving into unfamiliar realms and he’d been hoping Jordan wouldn’t suddenly develop cold feet. He was aware things were progressing fast. He certainly hadn’t expected her to contact him this quickly. Maybe he’d see if he could head back her way tonight. No. That probably wouldn’t work. She’d mentioned the weekend. If he went up Friday night he might even be able to stay two nights, assuming he could persuade her. But if she was calling him this quickly, surely that wouldn’t be too difficult.

  He debated for a few minutes delaying his callback. He knew how to play all the games, but the truth was, he was already missing her. In fact, he’d almost called her from the car on the way here. And now that she was in his mind again…

  He glanced down. Some parts of him were going to have to wait for what they wanted, but there was no reason not to call her immediately. He had an hour before his next meeting and while he did have plenty of work he needed to look over, some things took priority.

  Maybe he should text her. No. He wanted to hear her voice.

  Still smiling, he dialed her number. It went straight to voicemail. She must be on the phone. He almost hung up without leaving a message; she’d see he’d called and call him back. At the last minute, he left a brief message, letting her know that he was thinking of her and would love to see her this weekend.

  Setting the phone back on his desk, he turned to his computer. Perhaps it was good she hadn’t answered. He really did need to look at these projections and cost analysis on the new assembly line.

  * * *

  —

  Jordan glared down at her phone. He’d called again. And left another message. A message she wasn’t ready to look at. She really should call him back. Or text him. That might be easier. If only she hadn’t called him as soon as Veronica left, wanting his take on the whole thing. Wanting to know if
there was anything he hadn’t told her about his relationship with Amelia.

  Why was Amelia coming? She’d never driven up on the spur of the moment before without a reason. So what was the reason? Was it about the stupid article? It couldn’t be, could it?

  Should she call Clay back? No, she should wait for Amelia first.

  She was acting like a dithering idiot.

  Did Clay even know about the article? Did men read such things? She doubted it, but that didn’t mean somebody wouldn’t have told him.

  She really should call him…but she wasn’t going to. No. She would talk to Amelia first. Even if there was traffic, she shouldn’t be much longer. It made sense to know what was going on there before she talked to Clay. If Amelia’s visit had nothing to do with the article then things would be clearer. Wouldn’t they?

  With a snort she put down her phone. It did make sense to wait a little longer and then once she had talked to Amelia she would call him. It was that simple. And in the meantime she would find something to distract herself. She certainly had plenty of work to do. If she wanted to get her charity idea moving, then she had to move herself.

  Pulling out her tablet, she stared down at it. She’d made a list of likely donors, some friends, some friends of friends, some people or groups she had no contact with but would be likely to support such a cause.

  She also had a list of people to talk to about the specifics of setting up such a program. She’d already talked with a couple of people at A Place for Family—assuring them that her plans would not affect their funding—and they’d given her not only their full encouragement but also a slew of other people she should talk to. She’d begun those calls and had enough information that she was prepared to start laying the base for fundraising.

  She looked at her list of friends, all people who were known for their charitable contributions.

  She’d start with an easy one. Charles Burke. He’d been so friendly at the A Place for Family fundraiser. Even if he turned her down flat, he’d do so with compassion. Plus if he was on board it would be easy to move on to others in their circle.

  She turned on the tablet, prepared to take notes. She’d learned early on to take notes, mostly about personal stuff. If someone gave you a big check it was important to remember their cat’s birthday and that they hated anything lemon-flavored. The wealthy expected you to remember any detail they’d shared and often some that they hadn’t.

  She dialed Charles’s number. Some people hated calling to ask for money, but she’d never minded, constantly aware of how important the causes she fought for were and always being able to separate her own personal relationships with those she had as a fundraiser.

  The phone rang. And rang again.

  She was ready to hang up—leaving a message would only make things more complicated—there were some calls that needed to be handled face-to-face—voice to voice?—when Charles answered, “Hello, Jordan.”

  Was she already in his phone log? She must be if he knew it was her. “Hi, Charles. I hope you don’t mind my calling.”

  “Not at all. I was hoping you would after our meeting at the museum. I was actually just thinking about you, and if you didn’t call soon, I was going to call you.”

  He’d been thinking about her? She flashed back to her thinking that he’d be the perfect man to date in so many ways. Of course, she’d been trying to avoid thinking about Clay at the time, but she’d not been wrong. Charles would have been perfect for her—in another world. “I’m happy to hear that, although I must admit that my reasons for calling may not be quite what you expected.”

  “So, you don’t want to see if you can steal one of my dogs?”

  She chuckled, as was expected. “No, but it does look like I may be getting a puppy of my own soon.” Shoot, she probably shouldn’t have said that. The last thing she wanted was to answer any question that might involve Clay.

  “I’m glad to hear it. They are the best companions. I’m not normally an overly emotional man, but my girls always seem to know when I need a little extra care or when I want to let off a little steam. There’s nothing like coming home after a long day and having one of them demand I play ball for a good thirty minutes. It pulls me out of my day and makes me forget how much stress I’m feeling.”

  “I do look forward to that, although I gather I have a few months of being constantly on call first.”

  “I promise you won’t mind it, or at least you’ll only mind it occasionally. I admit that I was no happier getting up at three A.M. with my puppies than I was with my human children.”

  There wasn’t much she could say to that. Amelia had been far, far past the three a.m. stage when Jordan had married Mark. Shit. Shit. Shit. She was not going to think about Amelia now. She wasn’t. She wasn’t. It was probably nothing. Amelia was just coming to visit. It would be ridiculous for her to be upset about the article.

  “You’ve gone quiet,” Charles said, breaking into her troubled thoughts. “I hope I didn’t say anything wrong.”

  “No, sorry. I’m just a little distracted.”

  “I can imagine. Do you need to go?”

  He could imagine? “No, I’m fine. It’s something to put on the to-do list that I don’t want to forget.”

  “Ah, I understand.”

  Now they were both quiet. “I guess I should get to the reason for my call…” In a few detailed words, she summed up her project and then waited for his response.

  Another moment of quiet.

  She waited, anxiously.

  Finally he spoke. “That’s definitely not what I was expecting. First, let me say you have my full support. Give me the details on the check you want me to write and it’s yours. Your idea sounds like it has great merit. I’ve never heard of a group focused on that particular demographic and you’re right that they are certainly vulnerable—and that a little help might go a long way to really change lives. But beyond that, I trust you and I know that whatever you champion will be worthwhile. And I say those things because they are true and not because I hope you’ll accept my dinner invitation at the end of this call.”

  She had not seen that one coming. “I’m sensing a but…”

  She heard him inhale loudly. “I did read the paper this morning and I couldn’t help but notice the pictures of you and young Windsor. Now, I’m sure it’s a flirtation at most, and I remember your marriage to Mark well. You would never have looked at anybody but him. You were a completely devoted wife—and besides, you were never the type to be involved with a teenager. However, not everybody knows you as well as I do. Surely you can see that these rumors that you once had a teenage lover do not work well with the charity you are trying to start.”

  Her mind released a long chain of expletives. She’d not even seriously considered that anybody would take the idea that she’d been involved with Clay in the past seriously. And while Charles was saying he didn’t, she knew that tone well. Not that she believed he really thought she would have done such a thing, but…

  Charles continued, “Normally, I’d be happy to talk you up. I often know who is looking for a good place to make a contribution, who is thinking about their tax burden and who is trying to do a little good to make themselves feel better about something else they’ve done. But I have to admit that under the circumstances I’d be a little nervous about making those calls or giving you names. If you can wait a while, it will all be different.”

  Why had she not seen this coming? Or had she, and that was why she’d wanted to keep their relationship quiet? She kept her voice carefully neutral. “I was hoping to get started right away.”

  “I do understand, Jordan, and I’m more than happy to make my own contribution, but if this is really what you want to do, I’d advise you to wait and see which way the wind blows. Hell, it might be over by tomorrow. I’m probably making a mountain out of a molehill.”


  “So you’re not saying that you wouldn’t make the calls…”

  “No, I’m not saying that, I’m telling you not to ask me to today. Once people say no, they don’t often change their minds.”

  And wasn’t that true. “What do I need to do to clear the air? I mean, even if I’m having a…what did you say…a ‘flirtation’ with Clay now, he’s hardly a teenager. Yes, I’m ten years older, but you know very well nobody would think twice if I were a man.” She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice.

  “I do know, Jordan. But if you were a man, they’d look even harder at the possibility that you’d been with a teenager when you were married. Now, don’t jump at me. As I say, I don’t believe it and by tomorrow it may not matter. And to repeat, for the record, I don’t believe any of it. I saw the two of you at the museum and you weren’t acting like lovers. Yes, the pictures look romantic, but I’m sure it’s all just friendly. Cameras can twist things, assuming that they weren’t photoshopped.”

  “No, they weren’t photoshopped.”

  “I’m glad you’re honest. It never works to lie.”

  She crossed her fingers, hoping he wouldn’t ask a more direct question, wouldn’t ask if she and Clay were just friends. She didn’t want to lie, but she wasn’t sure what she would say if asked point-blank. And why did she even care? Perhaps she should just be honest. “So I’m stuck. There is nothing I can do besides wait?”

  “Hmm. Well, maybe…that dinner invitation? We could go someplace people go to be seen, make a real statement. It’s not where I would normally choose to eat, but I’m eager to please.”

  That made her stop. That might make sense. It might make so much sense. If she did want to distract from Clay, then Charles would be perfect. It would turn public opinion around quickly. Only…“Can I let you know? And that is definitely not a no. This is just happening so quickly and I don’t want to lead you on and I really like you and I hate this so much and I’m really rambling. I’ve discovered recently I have tendency to do that when I don’t quite know what to say.”