Chapter 54
CHAPTER
FIFTY-FOUR
REBEL
I promised Gunner I wouldn’t flirt my way out of a problem.
But some promises are made to be broken.
Or so I keep telling myself as I fluff my hair and rifle through my closet for the perfect outfit, one that screams ‘be kind and don’t let your dad take his money back pretty please with sprinkles on top’.
It’s not like dressing up for the occasion is wrong .
I plan to have a professional conversation on behalf of the Lady Luck Society. So what if I look extra nice in the process? I’m in charge of this project, and it’s my job to fix the problem by any means necessary.
‘I thought other men being interested in you would suddenly not bother me. But that’s not how it’s working out’ .
I stop, mid-brush and stare unseeingly at the mirror.
Gunner was vulnerable with me, and in return, I promised him I wouldn’t use my looks or flirt my way out of a situation.
I chew my bottom lip until my lipstick wipes clear off.
Gunner and I are taking a break. Technically, we’re not together right now. Dressing nicely for a meeting with Benji is a relationship grey area, but Gunner’s entire family stole the land that belongs to my mother so…
That makes us even.
I get all the way to the door before my conscience hits me with a whispered ‘if the shoe were on the other foot, Gunner would NEVER. He’d walk over hot coals barefoot than do anything that you clearly told him made you uncomfortable.’
I change out of my daring pink dress and into a button-down blouse and wide-legged pants.
But I keep my hair down and my makeup the same.
It is the twenty first flipping century.
And women have rights.
Just then, I hear a knock. I’m surprised to see Benji standing outside with a bouquet of red roses.
“B-Benji, what are you doing here? I said I’d meet you at the restaurant.”
Benji offers me the flowers. “I couldn’t wait.”
The scent of roses overwhelms me. I blink rapidly. “You shouldn’t have.”
“It’s a token of my apology. Dad was truly out of line. I’m sorry, Rebel.”
“You had nothing to do with it.”
“I was worried that I made things weird and you’d never reach out again.”
“Benji, you and I are friends. There’s no need for all this,” I say firmly, trying to give him the flowers back.
He grins and shoves his glasses up his nose. “Come on. There’s a limo downstairs.”
“A limo? ”
“It’s my apology. Don’t fight me on this or I’ll live with crippling guilt for the rest of my life.” He makes a sweeping gesture. “After you.”
I’m no stranger to men ignoring my words and being pushy. Since Rodney Howard truly thought he could ‘buy’ his son a relationship, I sense that Benji—as sweet and polite as he is—may be used to things going his way.
On any other day, I’d shut him down and draw my lines clearly. But I need to talk to Benji about getting the Lady Luck Society back in his dad’s good graces.
“Rebel?”
“Give me a sec. I’ll put these in water and be right out.”
I slam the door in Benji’s face and grab a vase. While the water is filling up, I pull out my phone and search through the contacts.
Benji’s pushing my boundaries a little too much. To get him back on task without offending him will require backup. Preferably someone no-nonsense but well-versed in stroking the egos of obnoxious, rich people.
Someone like…
Carol Kinsey.
I groan, shaking my head. “Anyone but her.”
There’s another knock on the door.
“Rebel? Do you need help?”
“I’m almost done!” I yell.
Water sloshes over the rim of the vase and I turn the faucet off. Flicking out my wet fingers, I worry my bottom lip.
What other choice do you have?
Hating every second of it, I dial Carol.
“What do you want?” Carol Kinsey says without so much as a ‘how do you do’.
“I need your help,” I grind out.
She remains silent.
“I’m sure you’ve heard about Rodney Howard by now.”
She sniffs haughtily. “I told the girls that they made a bad decision trusting you. And it turns out I was right.”
Annoyance hisses through my veins, but I keep my tone even. “We can play the blame game later. Benji’s at my apartment and I need your help convincing him to take the Lady Luck Society back.”
“Aren’t you the one accusing our family of theft and fraud? Why do you want to work with me?”
“Because this isn’t about you and me, or about the Kinseys and the Harts. It’s about the community we swore we’d help. The children and the senior citizens are more important than our feud.” I pause. “Unless you disagree?”
There’s a beat of silence and then Carol Kinsey grumbles, “The son alone won’t help our case. We need to meet with his father.”
“Rodney Howard isn’t answering my phone calls.”
“Where’s the son taking you?”
“I don’t know.” I talk fast in case Benji knocks on the door again. “A restaurant?”
“Find a way to get him to bring me along. I’ll handle it from there.”
“Great. Tha?—”
Carol Kinsey hangs up in the middle of me talking.
I mime a punch at the phone.
Ugh. That woman is a menace.
After taking a deep breath, I open the door again.
Benji was mid-knock. “Hey, is everything okay?”
“Yeah, but uh… change of plans. I forgot that I had a meeting with Carol Kinsey.”
“Can you reschedule?” Benji asks, looking disappointed.
“I’m afraid I can’t. But the good news is, she’s willing to come with us.”
“She… is?”
“Yup.” I hurry past him. “You said the limo was downstairs? Lead the way.”
I’m certain that Benji won’t entertain Carol Kinsey’s request for us to meet his father.
But I’m proven wrong.
After a whole lot of chatting, compliments, eyelash-batting and a few too many ‘of course, darlin!’s, Benji agrees to call his father over to the restaurant.
When Rodney Howard arrives, questions well in my throat and ache to spring out. But Carol squeezes my knee and takes over, leading the conversation away from the Lady Luck Society case.
Instead, she asks about Benji’s work, engages Rodney about his latest travels and keeps the conversation going. If I didn’t know what she was doing, I’d be fooled by her frequent smiles and fake ditziness. By the time she does bring up the donation, both father and son have been completely disarmed.
“By the way, we were so very stunned hearing there were issues with the donation,” Carol says, flapping her thick eyelashes.
Rodney Howard stops with food midway to his mouth.
Carol beams. “I’ve known Rodney to be very kind and very fair. So I just knew once we sat down together, we could sort all this out.”
Rodney Howard clears his throat.
“You don’t have to explain, Rodney. I know you are not the type of man who’d go back on his word. So this doesn’t need to be discussed at all.”
I hide my smirk by taking a drink of my soda.
Benji squirms.
If Rodney Howard had a tail, it would be between his legs.
“Dad, apologize.” Benji elbows his father.
“I’m… sorry,” Rodney Howard says, glancing at me and then looking away. “Not only for today, but for putting you in an uncomfortable position the last time we met, Miss Hart. Benji scolded me greatly for what I did. I assure you the next time you have a presentation, my colleagues and I won’t waste your efforts. We will sit and listen.”
“I appreciate that,” I say with a small smile.
Carol Kinsey looks surprised by Rodney’s comment. I wonder if she’d blindly believed all the rumors about me flirting with Benji to get the donation. I’m glad that Rodney Howard’s comment cleared that up.
“There was a mix-up with my secretary,” the businessman explains. While I don’t exactly believe that, it’s what he says next that matters. “I’ll speak to her and have the money wired first thing tomorrow.”
“I expected nothing less of a man of esteemed character like yourself, Rodney. Now, would anyone like dessert? I heard this restaurant makes a fine pecan pie.”
The rest of the dinner goes smoothly and Benji leaves to pay the bill.
Carol excuses herself to the restroom and it’s just me and Rodney Howard at the table.
As awkwardness sets in, I fidget with my napkin, stare at the restaurant’s low-hanging chandeliers and adjust the candles flickering on the table.
Benji chose an incredibly… non-business-meeting-like place for us to discuss business today.
Rodney Howard is in no rush to start a conversation so, rather than let the awkward silence drone on, I offer an olive branch.
“Mr. Howard, thank you again for your donation.”
He lifts a hand. “No need for that.”
Taking notes from what I saw of Carol today, I steer the conversation in the direction I want it to go. “I brought an updated proposal. Would you like to hear a quick rundown of the outreach programs we’re launching?”
“Sure. Why not?” He takes a sip of his wine.
With the help of the slides on my phone, I launch into a summary of the projects, the budget, and the potential impact on the community. Even though it’s a sped-up version of the presentation I was meant to give him, I still get excited talking about how many people we’re going to help.
Rodney Howard listens without interrupting. It’s only when Benji returns to the table that I realize I’ve been talking non-stop for a few minutes.
“I was rambling, wasn’t I?”
“No, that was very inspiring.” Rodney Howard wipes his mouth with a napkin and watches me thoughtfully. After a breath, he says, “Miss Hart, have you heard the term ‘looks can be deceiving’?”
“Of course.” I laugh nervously. “I hope you’re not insinuating that I’ve deceived you in some way, Mr. Howard?”
Just then, Carol Kinsey returns to the table.
“No,” Rodney says, shaking his head. “It’s quite the opposite. When it comes to you, Miss Hart,” he gestures to my body, “your inside is just as beautiful as your outside.”
“Thank you,” I gasp, truly touched.
Carol Kinsey slips back into the booth.
Rodney Howard turns to her. “You know, Carol, Rebel reminds me of you from back in the day. You had this light in your eyes when you spoke about helping people. Felt like you were on a one-woman mission to eradicate all the wrongs in the world.”
My eyebrows fly up.
Is he talking about Carol Kinsey? The woman who spent the last few years of the Lady Luck Society agenda ‘beautifying’ the already beautiful side of town?
“Unfortunately, the real world isn’t so kind to bleeding hearts. After doing this for so long, you start to get a little burnt out.” Carol glances at me reluctantly. “She’s got a lot to learn, but… I know what you mean, Rodney. I see it too.”
Stunned, I look at Carol Kinsey with new eyes. I see the makeup and powder seeping into the fine lines around her eyes and mouth. I see the hands that are perfectly manicured and the bold red lipstick that she probably reapplied in the bathroom.
For the first time ever, I push aside my innate hatred for the Kinseys to see the woman beneath the coiffed hair and the overblown status.
Carol Kinsey started the Lady Luck Society wanting to help people and—even if we disagree on the specific type of people who need the help—community service is something we have in common.
“I knew Rebel was special the moment I saw her,” Benji says, his eyes glistening as he looks at me.
I shift uncomfortably.
Carol Kinsey clears her throat and mumbles, “It’s probably why my son is so crazy about her.”
I look up in shock. Did Carol Kinsey just put Benji in his place?
Benji shirks back as if he’s been spanked and Rodney quickly steps in. To me, he says, “Do you like being a member of the Lady Luck Society, Rebel?”
I feel Carol staring at me.
“There’s a lot about the Society that I like and other things I don’t,” I admit honestly. “No organization is perfect but…”
I feel rather than see Carol hold her breath.
“… we’re on the same team. And yeah. Carol is amazing at what she does and there’s a lot I can learn from her.”
I mean that sincerely. The way she handled this discussion with the donor today is undeniable. She was classy, calm, and kept her control. I don’t have that level of finesse nor the experience that she does.
Rather than fight her, which will only waste energy that could be used to serve more people, if I study her instead, there’s no telling how many families can be impacted for good.
Slowly, Carol’s lips curl upward. “I’ll drink to that.”
I lift my own glass in her direction and empty every last drop.