Chapter 22
Evan
M y knee bounced under my desk because I brimmed with nervous energy. I kept checking the time obsessively, even though I knew that I had an alarm set to give me plenty of warning before I had to leave.
I had my laptop, my desktop, three tablets and my cellphone all spread out on my desk. Every one of them had a different report I was trying to correlate. It was hard to concentrate on work with what was coming later that evening. If I’d been able to, I’d have just given up on work and left the office for a while. But there’s no rest for the wicked, or so they say.
Jenna entered my office, her brows knit together with worry. I set down one of my tablets and cocked an eyebrow at her.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s Schultz from Accounts Receivable.”
“What about him?” I asked with a frown.
Her jaw worked silently for a moment. I could tell that whatever she was about to say I was not going to like the sound of it. Or she thought I wasn’t going to like it.
“Jenna, please, just tell me what’s going on with Schultz. He’s not dead, is he?”
“No, he’s not dead. His kid has some kind of thing going on with his appendix. Schultz is taking him to the emergency room right now.”
“That’s rough,” I said with a frown. “I had my appendix out when I was a kid. It hurt like hell until they cut it out of me.”
“Well, he wants to know if you can wait until tomorrow morning or later tonight for the shareholder’s report.”
My eyes widened, and I fixed her with a stalwart gaze.
“You get on the phone, and you tell Schultz that… right now he needs to concentrate on taking care of his family. I’ll make do without the report or get someone else to do it if I really have to.”
“Yes, sir.”
I checked the time and then stood up.
“It’s time.”
She nodded and started closing down all of my devices for me as I headed for the door. I slipped my phone into my pocket and rode the executive elevator down to the garage.
I climbed into the back of my limo. I called my head butler Chavez to remind him that everyone was to be in attendance for a special meeting. All of the house staff gathered in one place at one time.
When I arrived at the manor, I was surprised that Jenna had beaten me there. Then again, she drove herself and didn’t have a gigantic limo to maneuver around, so I shouldn’t have been as surprised as all that.
Jenna fell into step beside me as I entered the manor house. I made a beeline for the north conference room. When I walked in, I was pleased to see that Chavez had gathered all of the household staff together for me, just as I requested.
They projected an air of stoic readiness, but I could see beads of sweat and anxiety dancing in their gazes. I walked up and down the line of them in silence for a few moments, gathering my thoughts .
“I’m sure you’re all wondering why you’ve been gathered together here. There is a serious issue we have to discuss.”
Some of the staff glanced nervously at each other. More than a few paled to the same shade as a vampire.
“And that issue is this… Melissa is having a grand baby, and she needs two things. Congratulations, and gifts.”
The staff seemed shocked. At least, most of them did. I think a few of them had been informed by Melissa about the baby already.
The doors opened, and a crew of delivery men started bringing in presents. Melissa was flabbergasted by the generous pile that formed in front of her. Then her eyes went wide when I had a cake brought in, along with a huge tub of ice cream.
“Everyone make sure you get some of the ice cream. Oh, and Bill, I know you’re lactose intolerant, so I have some nice gluten-free pastries for you, since you can’t have the ice cream or the cake.”
I hung out at the impromptu party for a little while, but I kept checking the time. I had somewhere very special I had to be. Once I was sure that no one would be offended, I took my leave of the party and headed back outside. My driver hadn’t parked the limo in the garage. He’d listened to my special instructions to the letter.
“Hey, Jimmy,” I said. “Thanks for working late tonight. I know you’re trying to study for your big final.”
“No problem, Mr. Jones. I think it’s for a damn worthy cause.”
“Isn’t it, though?” I chuckled softly. “And you can call me Evan. Mr. Jones makes me feel like I’m at the office.”
“You’ve got it, Mr… that is, Evan.”
“How’s your mom doing? Did she ever get that bunion surgery?”
“Yeah, she did. She went to that doctor you recommended and everything turned out great. ”
“Actually, Jenna is the one who found that surgeon and got the information, so you should probably thank her. All I did was pass the information along. I’m glad your mom is doing good, though.”
“Yeah, she’s getting around a lot better now. I sure hope I don’t develop that problem later in life. It’s genetic, you know.”
“Yes, I know.”
“My uncle had hammertoes, and it kept him out of the war.”
I chuckled, because it was hardly the first time that he had told me that particular story. I wasn’t about to burst his bubble, though.
The driver took me back into the city. I stared at the bright glowing lights and thought how lovely they looked. Not half as lovely as the woman I was on my way to meet, however.
Jimmy pulled up in front of the Primrose Plaza. It was one of several such structures I owned just on that block, but there was something special about the Primrose. Mainly, it had a great restaurant on the top floor with the most spectacular views of the city.
I got a text on my phone. I picked it up and looked at the screen, seeing that Jenna had sent me a message.
Everything has been arranged. Good luck!
I smiled and tucked my phone away.
“I’ll see you later, Jimmy.”
“Sure thing, Mr. Jones… I mean, Evan.”
I exited the limo and walked up the shallow steps to the building entrance. The doorman hastened to open it up for me, tipping his red velvet hat as I passed by.
“Hello Mr. Jones. Beautiful night, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is, Dick. Yes, it is. How’s the gout doing?”
“A lot better since I gave up drinking beer. Now I only drink whisky.”
“Well, whisky doesn’t have yeast so it shouldn’t aggravate your condition. Just take care of yourself. You’re the best doorman in this city.”
“Aw, shucks, boss. You’re only saying that because it’s true.”
We shared a laugh, and I went inside the building.
As I rode the elevator to the restaurant I thought about all the new things Amanda brought into my life. Take this doorman for example—six months ago, I didn’t even know his name. We certainly never spoke other than at the most basic of levels as he opened the door for me or greeted me or whatever.
When I arrived, the host hastened to welcome me. I smiled at him and made sure to put him at ease.
“Is everything ready?” I asked.
“Yes, sir. Everything is ready.”
“Excellent. I have the utmost confidence in you and your team to make this the most memorable night of our lives. No pressure.”
He smiled cordially and then moved to the side. He had no need to show me to my table. I already knew the way.
Amanda sat at a table all by her lonesome. The breeze stirred her hair as she gazed wistfully out of the window at a beautiful panoramic view of the nighttime cityscape. I thought that she was surely the most desirable woman in the world.
I approached her, and she frowned up at me.
“Well, it’s about time someone else showed up. I was starting to wonder what the hell was going on.”
I smiled and stood beside her chair, resting my hand on the back.
“Oh? Is there no one else around yet?”
She gave me a look.
“Obviously not, duh. You’ve got eyes. Why don’t you use them?” She checked her phone and grimaced. “How come nobody is answering my texts? I thought this was supposed to be some kind of big, important meeting. So, where the hell is everyone? I would have thought Ramone would at least be here.”
She checked her phone again and grimaced again. I wondered how much longer I could make her twist and squirm before my guilt got the better of me.
“I mean, have you heard from anyone else? Did they all go to the wrong restaurant or what? I’m so confused.”
“I have, in fact, heard from everyone.”
She blinked in confusion.
“You have? Then why the hell didn’t you lead with that?” She heaved a long sigh. “I’ve been sitting here worried sick for over half an hour. I’ve been nibbling on melba toast so much that I think I’m going to turn into a piece of melba toast.”
She gave me a suspicious look as she ceased her rant.
“Hey, wait a second. You’re smiling. You never smile like that unless you’re up to something. What is this, some kind of prank? Am I being punked? Where’s the camera?”
“You’re not being punked, I assure you.”
“Well, that’s good to know. If you talked to everyone, then tell me why they aren’t here yet.”
“They aren’t here yet because there was never really a meeting. I just needed a false pretense to get you up here.”
Amanda’s eyes narrowed to slits.
“So, this is some kind of practical joke. What’s going to happen? Are snakes going to pop out at me or something?”
“Amanda, I just wanted to tell you something. You’ve helped me to see things in a different light. A lot of things.”
Her eyes widened, and her mouth closed on a retort. I had her now .
“I’ve learned that acting humane is the only way to treat people. I’m no longer going to think of people as just pieces on a chessboard. You’ve shown me the error of my ways. That’s one of the reasons why I know that you’re the one.”
“I’m the one what?”
Her mouth gaped open as I went down to one knee and produced a velvet box.
“Amanda Tate, will you marry me?”
On cue, the skyscrapers in the city went dark. The windows lit up in a pattern that flashed ‘please say yes’ over and over again.
She stared at the spectacle; eyes wide as dinner plates. Then she turned to me and threw her arms around my neck and started crying.
“Yes, yes, yes,” she gasped. “A thousand times, yes. I’ll be your wife. For real this time.”
I crushed her into my embrace, and I never wanted to let her go.