by Annie Pelle
“Thank you very much Dalton. And welcome to the party of the year. Desiree and Cameron will escort you to the auction items.”
“Where is Sarah, we are anxious to see her? We have been friends for almost ten years.” Lindsay asked not able to wait any longer.
Greg had already turned to greet their next guests so CeCe fielded the question. “She is seeing to a last minute item. She will be around in the ballroom shortly.”
“Thank you and it is a great pleasure to meet you.”
“Enjoy your evening.”
The gala was progressing beautifully. The guests had made their bids on the auction items and were currently enjoying the delicious meal. As soon as dessert was served, Greg moved to the podium to do the welcome.
“Welcome everyone. Thank you for your attendance and generous support of the HQ Service Foundation. CeCe and I are so grateful. I would like to now introduce you to the president of HQ Service Foundation, Miss Sarah Dawson. She is the beauty and the brains behind this foundation.” As Sarah made her way to the podium, Dalton was captivated by her. He had known Sarah for 10 years but this was not the Sarah he had in his mind. She was stunning. And he was mesmerized. Had she always been this beautiful? Had he missed it before?
Sarah took a deep breath to calm her nerves before speaking. “Thank you Greg for your kind introduction. And thanks to all of you for attending what I hope will be the 1st Annual gala in support of the HQ Service Foundation. This foundation means a great deal to me. The mission of this foundation is Service. We want to serve those in our community, state and around the country that need our help. Our specific clients are those with a chronic illness. We try to meet their social, emotional, financial and medical needs through our various divisions. We will now show you a brief video that will highlight our foundation.”
Sarah returned to her seat as the video started. She took a deep breath and a big swallow of water. She had never been so nervous in her life. CeCe leaned over to Sarah “You are doing great. This evening is going perfectly.” Sarah smiled her thanks and watched the video. She was proud of the work that had been accomplished in the short time the foundation had been in existence.
After the video Sarah returned to the podium. “We hope you have enjoyed your evening. We will begin the dancing in a few moments. Also, the big screens around the room will begin to display the numbers for the winning bids on the auction items. When you see your number, please proceed to the auction room. Someone there will direct you to your item. Thank you again and enjoy your evening!”
Moments later the music began and the dance floor began to fill up. Cameron appeared to take Lindsay for the first dance. Desiree appeared at Dalton’s shoulder to ask him to dance. “May I have this dance Mr. Matthews?”
“I would be honored.”
As they joined the dancers on the floor, Dalton tried to keep track of Sarah’s movements but she was constantly surrounded by people who wanted her attention. He didn’t have a clear view of her and was waiting for the opportunity to talk to her. She had captivated her audience and she radiated beauty. He needed to talk to her. It was almost painful.
“Are you enjoying your evening?” asked Desiree.
“Yes, it has been marvelous. This is quite a crowd. Hollywood celebrities, politicians, the wealthy from all over. Her foundation is going to do well if this crowd is any indication.”
“We hope so. Sarah has put a lot of time into developing this foundation. All of us who work for her want it to be very successful. She deserves it as do the clients we serve.”
“What is it that you do at the foundation?” asked Dalton
“I am the chief financial officer. I handle the money.” replied Desiree
“I wouldn’t have guessed that would be your job. I think you are going to be busy the next few days.”
“That is the plan Mr. Matthews” she replied with a big grin. “That is the plan.”
As the first song ended, Desiree asked Dalton if he would like to continue to dance. Dalton declined. “I see some people I need to talk too; but thank you for the dance.” Dalton had seen several people that were Matthews International customers also. He needed to greet them; then he could be free to ask Sarah to dance with him. And he was really looking forward to that dance. Maybe she would finally stop calling him “Mr. Matthews”.
Sarah was mingling throughout the crowd thanking the guests for attending when she heard in her earpiece that she was needed in the auction room. As she was moving through the crowd she thought to herself; please don’t let there be trouble now, this evening has gone so well. At the edge of the tables Sarah was moving swiftly to the auction room when her arm was taken in a firm grasp. She swung around and came face to face with Dalton. “You look stunningly beautiful tonight Sarah!” Dalton whispered with emphasis in her ear. “Please come and share a dance with me.” Sarah was momentarily dumbfounded because of the vertigo spell that attacked her as she was spun around and by what he had said about her being beautiful. Dalton’s opinion of her did not include the word beautiful let alone “stunningly beautiful.”
“I’m sorry, I cannot dance with you. I was just paged to the auction room. If you will excuse me?” she spoke as she started to move away again.
“Sarah, wait a minute. Come back when you are done and dance with me. Please.”
“I can’t. I will have someone find Desiree if you would like.”
“Please, just one dance. I’ll wait for you.”
“The best I can do is a “maybe”, but I wouldn’t stand around waiting. I’ll find you if I am able to break away from my responsibilities.”
“I guess I will hope for that then.”
Sarah slowly turned and hustled off to the auction room already promising herself to be very busy the rest of the evening. She would ask Greg or CeCe to entertain Dalton. After dealing with the latest crisis in the auction room, Sarah went to find CeCe.
“CeCe, can you do me a huge favor?” Sarah whispered.
“I’ll try.”
“Do you remember Dalton Matthews?”
“Yes, and that reminds me….we have much to talk about regarding the Matthews”
“Why?”
CeCe glared at Sarah. “As they were coming through the receiving line they mentioned that they had known you for ten years. But Greg just “introduced” you two days ago. Which is it?”
“Can I give you the very short version of the story now if I promise to tell you the full story next time we meet to swim?”
‘OK, spill it”
“I have known the Matthews for ten years, about five years ago something happened and I haven’t seen them until I walked into Greg’s office two days ago. But right now I just need to avoid them. I know that is cowardly but there is an excellent reason. Please can you keep them occupied? Besides, Dalton grabbed my arm a few minutes ago and wanted to dance. You know I can’t dance; I have already had a vertigo spell. I about crashed into him as he swung me around.”
“Go. I will snag Greg and go chat with Dalton. If he asks where you are what do you want me to say?”
“It doesn’t matter. Just please promise me that if he says something about me disappearing five years ago, don’t think bad of me until you have heard my side of the story. I have to go, they are calling me again. I owe you for this!”
“Yes you do. But Sarah, we love you and we will not think badly of you ever.”
“Thank you.” Sarah hugged CeCe and rushed off again.
CeCe went to find her husband so that they could go entertain the Matthews. “Greg, we need to go entertain the Matthews for our dear friend Sarah.”
“I need to talk to Dalton anyway but why are we doing this for Sarah.”
“I only have the short version of the story, which I will tell you later, but we are deflecting Dalton from finding Sarah. Just follow my lead and don’t mention Sarah if at all possible.
”
“Oh, this had better be a really good story.”
“Actually I get the impression from Sarah that it is a really bad story instead.”
At midnight, Sarah profusely thanked Amy, Tyler and Dustin for their fabulous work on the party. It had been a great success, the auction had gone well. The food, dancing and all the other “little” things had too. She walked to the elevator that would take her to her room she was amazing happy and extremely tired. She was so glad she had planned to stay at the hotel for a couple of days so she could get some special treatment. Tomorrow she was booked for an early lunch with Gabby and Nathan and then a massage at the salon. Monday she would have her long talk with CeCe.
Sarah’s Saturday and Sunday were just about relaxing. Her lunch with Gabby and Nathan was filled with laughter. She had asked them if Dalton or Lindsay had seen them at the party. “Thankfully just Lindsay.” they explained. But Nathan had told Nick the secret so Dalton would hear about it soon.
Saturday afternoon when Gabby and Nathan arrived by at Stage West, their oldest son Nick was waiting for them at their house. “Don’t even plan to get comfortable here at home; the Matthews are waiting to talk to you. I told Dalton about our conversation Dad. Lindsay had told him about you two being at the party. I hope you are ready to tell your story about the last five years.”
Gabby, Nathan and Nick arrived in the living room at the main house a few minutes later. David, Dalton and Lindsay were anxious to hear the story. “Gabby, I think there is a story you need to tell us.” David stated as they each took a seat and got comfortable.
Gabby took a deep breath and looked at Nathan for support. He gave her a smile of encouragement. “The morning after Sarah disappeared from the ranch she sent me an email telling me that she couldn’t and wouldn’t tell me what happened. She said she was getting a new phone number and email address by the end of the day and that she would send those to me. She asked that I give a message to Lindsay which I did. But she also told me that she would keep in contact with me but not with any of you and she asked that I not tell you that she and I were in contact. I have kept in contact with her every few days for these five years. We go into Phoenix about once a month to visit her. We have asked repeatedly for her to tell us what happened, but she just gets an extremely sad look on her face and says “I can’t”. I have kept her secret so she would not disappear on us again. I’m sorry I had to keep it a secret from you but I thought it was best.”
David, always the most levelheaded of the Matthews siblings, was the first to respond. “I think we can understand your reasoning for keeping the secret. It is a surprise though.” Dalton and Lindsay nodded their agreement. “The question is now, how do we get her to come home?” David asked of everyone.
Gabby and Nathan exchanged a very sad glance but Nathan fielded the question. “She won’t. She told us just last night that Stage West was not her home. She stated that nothing had changed even though Dalton had “found” her.”
“She will come when Greg and CeCe Davis come out. She plans everything for them, we will see her then.” Dalton stated with authority. “I am going to have a meeting with her this week about the foundation. I will confirm that she is coming”
The “family” meeting broke up shortly after that. Lindsay had been very quiet throughout it. “Lindsay, are you okay?” asked Dalton.
“No, I have missed my best friend for so long. I want her back. I know last night she was very busy so I didn’t rush after her but I so much want to talk to her. What happened to her to make her disappear? Why wouldn’t she tell me? Did I do something to hurt her? I don’t understand any of this.” Dalton gathered Lindsay in his arms and tried to comfort his overwrought sister.
“Lin.. let’s give her a few days to rest up from the party, then we will try to get in touch with her. We won’t lose her again. I promise.” Lindsay tried to hope what Dalton said was true. “Thanks big brother.”
Lindsay decided to tease her big brother a bit. “So did you see how beautiful Sarah was last night? Did you see all the male attention she had?”
Dalton glanced at Lindsay in surprise, he thought he had hidden his attraction very well. “Yes, I did notice how Sarah looked, I didn’t notice all the male attention though. Was there a lot?”
Lindsay winked at her brother and left the room. Dalton went back to the pictures from last night in his mind. Sarah had been breathtaking but again she had treated him so formally. He was getting tired of being known as “Mr. Matthews” to her. He had to get her to look past that and remember him from five years ago when she was friendly to him. He had to try to bring up some memories from then so she was go back to treating him as a friend.
On Sunday, Sarah went back to the estate to prepare for the week and to answer emails from clients. Most wanted to know about the success of the party but a few needed some words of encouragement. There was an email from Lindsay also.
Hi Sarah,
That was a fabulous party. We had a great time. You were wonderful and you looked beautiful. Dalton was spellbound when you took the stage. And every time he saw you he followed you until you disappeared from view. I had to laugh at big brother, I think he is intrigued.
I have to go out of town for a couple of days this week but I will be in touch later so we can talk.
Bye for now.
Lindsay
Sarah decided to keep her response as short as possible.
Lin,
Have a safe trip and I will talk to you later in the week.
Stop laughing at Dalton; he must have been concentrating on business if he was that preoccupied.
Sarah
When her cell phone rang in the early evening it was her Mama Gabby.
“Hi, did you get home okay?” Sarah asked
“Yes, no problems on the way home. But the Matthews and Nick corralled us for a “family” meeting when we got home. So now they know we have been in contact with you for the last five years.”
“Were they mad? They didn’t blame you did they? Did you tell them that it was my request that it be kept a secret?”
“It worked out okay for now. We told them as little as we could but there may be more questions later.”
“I’m sorry to put you in that position. If it comes up again, please let me know. I will figure out something to tell them.”
“Ok. Thank you again for including us in your big night. We had a grand time.”
“Thank you for the support and confidence.”
“We love you and we will talk to you later. Bye.”
Later that night Sarah crawled in bed thinking about Lindsay’s email. Dalton spellbound by her, not likely. This pretense was really hard to take, if the foundation didn’t need any and all contributions, she would be tempted to refuse to meet with Dalton.
Her sleep was restless and so her morning was not starting well. She would go meet with CeCe but she wouldn’t be swimming, it was just not possible today.
“Good morning CeCe, did you enjoy the party?”
“Yes, Greg and I were very impressed by how well everything went. But then with you planning it, what could go wrong. You are so organized.”
“Thank you again for distracting the Dalton. I just couldn’t deal with him along with everything else.”
“Yes, as soon as I am done with my swim, be prepared to tell all.”
“I promise, enjoy your swim.” Sarah tried to prepare herself for telling the story while CeCe swam. She knew her friend would be supportive but it still was not a good story. CeCe joined her before she was ready. “OK, start talking”
Sarah took a deep breath and began “Lindsay Matthews and I met at Meadows University on our first day. We were freshman roommates and became instant best friends. On our school breaks, I would visit Lindsay and her brothers at Stage West. I was always made to feel welcome, especially by Gabby their housekeeper and her fam
ily. Gabby’s husband and sons work either for the ranch or Matthews International.”
“After graduation, I went to stay at the ranch for a couple of days before moving to Phoenix to look for a job. About three weeks after graduation I went to Stage West because Lindsay had invited me to Dalton’s birthday party. The morning of the party I wandered done to one of the horse barns to visit the new colt that I had had the privilege to name at its birth.”
“While I was down there, Dalton and his best friend Nick came into the barn. “Nick asked Dalton “Are you looking forward to the party tonight?” And Dalton replied “Yes, I think it is a great excuse to show off more about Matthews International to prospective clients. There are going to be some stock breeders here, it should be a great time. Except Lindsay invited Sarah to the party. Dalton couldn’t believe I had been invited to the party. He said he didn’t want me there. I didn’t belong there, I wasn’t pretty, I wouldn’t dress right and I would be an embarrassment. Then he said and I quote Birthday parties are for people that are your friends and you want to be around them. Sarah doesn’t qualify for that at all. If I never saw her again, it would be fine with me. Maybe she will get sick and can’t come.”
“I was devastated; I rushed back to my room, threw my belongings in the suitcase, ran for my car and disappeared without seeing anyone. Everyone was busy with chores or party planning. I later sent a text message to Lindsay so she would know I had gone home. She called me but I had my phone off. The next day I got a new phone numbers and email address. I hadn’t talked to them or seen them until I walked into Greg’s office last Wednesday.”
CeCe was quiet for a minute as Sarah wrapped up her story. Her eyes filled with tears for her friend. “Can I ask you why you didn’t contact them again?”
“I could not stand to be at the ranch if I wasn’t welcomed by Dalton and I did not want to come between Lindsay and her brother. I have kept in contact with Gabby for five years. She has been my Mama Gabby and I couldn’t give her up. I had to make the choice that I thought was best for Lindsay. I loved her like a sister but I couldn’t face going to the ranch.”