Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Noah met Devon and Max in the parking garage. They piled into the Lexus. “How’d it go?” Noah asked.
“Started out fine,” Max said. “I gave Foster-Grant our pitch. He was amazingly calm, considering his daughter was almost kidnapped yesterday.”
That didn’t surprise Noah. When he and Soren had been friends, Noah had almost never seen William. He’d been a hands-off kind of parent. But William’s exploits as a ruthless corporate raider were the stuff of legend.
Max tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. “Then I told him you work for me, since you’d said you knew the family, and he was going to find out eventually. A man like him doesn’t like being caught off guard.”
“And?”
“Things wrapped up very quickly after that. He was eager to get us out of his office.”
Noah closed his eyes. Damn.
According to his reputation, William Foster-Grant wasn’t the forgiving sort. But Noah had still hoped Bennett might get the contract. He cared less about their company’s bottom line than about Danica’s safety.
Devon leaned forward from the back seat. “How’d you piss off the guy so much?”
“It happened when I was in college. Soren, his son, thinks I betrayed him. And I guess I did.”
“What did you do?” Devon asked. “Sleep with Soren’s sister?”
Max glanced back, his scowl a clear warning. Max was still a tad sensitive about that subject, even though Devon and Max’s sister Aurora were madly in love and disgustingly happy together.
“No. Nothing like that.” Soren didn’t know that Noah had kissed Danica. If only that had been the extent of their rift—walking in on Noah and Danica making out. Or even naked together, if they’d had the chance. Soren would’ve been upset, to say the least. But he probably would’ve gotten over it.
“Did you steal his girlfriend?”
“God, no. You think I’d do that?”
Devon shrugged. “People make mistakes.”
Noah would never have stolen Soren’s girlfriend. It was unthinkable. Yet what he’d done? Probably worse, from Soren’s perspective at least.
“You know what?” Max said. “It doesn’t matter. We know you and your level of integrity. Whatever went down, we’re on your side. And if William Foster-Grant still has a bug up his ass about it, I’m good with not taking his money.”
Noah leaned his elbow on the passenger door. The Bennett Security building was up ahead on the rocky part of the coast. Waves crashed into the shoreline.
“I’d feel the same if I knew Danica was being taken care of,” Noah said.
“I hate to say it, but you guys aren’t the only decent bodyguards in Southern California. I think she’ll be fine.” Max loosened his tie.
Noah parked by the driveway to his dad’s underground garage and walked to the house’s back door.
There was no answer when he rang the bell, so he let himself in. “Hey, it’s me. Anyone home?”
He wanted to be sure to give his grandpa warning. Otherwise, it was entirely possible Noah would catch Gramps and Ginger in some sort of compromising position. Not something he wanted to witness.
Ginger swept into the hall wearing a flowing silk robe. “I thought I heard the door. It’s good to see you, darling boy. So handsome. Did you dress just up for me?” She kissed him on each cheek.
“Client meeting for work.”
“Did you see your grandfather on the way in?” She had just a hint of a French Canadian accent.
“Nope. I was going to ask where he was.”
“I suppose he’s still out hitting his golf balls. Well, have a seat. What can I get you? I was just thinking of opening a bottle of Blanc de Blancs.”
Noah smiled. Ginger was as over-the-top as an old-fashioned movie star, and she had the wavy blond hair to match. “I’m fine. But don’t let me stop you.”
“When have I ever?”
Noah’s grandfather had married Ginger two years ago after a whirlwind romance.
The two had met at the West Oaks country club.
Ginger was originally from Montreal, but she’d been a fixture in the social circles of Southern California since her youth.
She was widowed once, divorced twice, a semi-retired professional dancer.
At sixty-eight, she was junior to his grandpa’s eighty-five years.
The two seemed to be crazy about each other, and despite his cynicism, Noah was thrilled for his grandfather. He hoped their marriage would beat the odds and work out.
Ginger had quite the real estate portfolio, including condos up and down the coast. But she and Gramps preferred staying at the Vandermeer house these days, partly because it was closer to the golf course, and partly because there was nobody else here.
Noah’s parents were divorced, both living elsewhere with their new spouses. He had no siblings.
Ginger popped the cork. Vapor rose from the neck of the champagne bottle. “Would you like lunch? It’s just going to be a salad and those little spinach triangle things your grandfather likes from the freezer section. Not fine dining, I’m afraid.”
He wasn’t picky. “Sounds good to me. I know I’m earlier than usual. My boss was meeting with William Foster-Grant.”
Ginger put a hand to her chest. “My goodness, does it have anything to do with his daughter, Danica? I saw on the news what happened. Just wretched, what this town’s coming to these days. Murders and kidnappings and who knows what else.”
“It was about Danica. Yeah.” He wasn’t trying to be mysterious, but he didn’t want this to become fodder for gossip later. He liked Ginger, but her love of sparkling conversation rivaled her love of champagne.
“Are you going to be her bodyguard?”
“No. Not me.”
She stuck out her lower lip. “That’s too bad. It would’ve been romantic, don’t you think? She’s stunning.”
“She is.” A smile snuck onto his face, despite the disappointment he was feeling. “Heard anything about whether Danica’s staying with her father?”
“I did hear a rumor.” Ginger’s expression turned conspiratorial. “Karen in my bridge club was complaining about work trucks clogging up the road just this past week. Right in front of the Foster-Grant house. So, draw your conclusions.”
Noah nodded, like this was just mildly interesting.
Ginger didn’t know that Noah had once been friends with the Foster-Grants. But his grandpa would remember the drama of his falling out with Soren. How depressed Noah had been for months afterward. Losing Soren and Danica at the same time. It had been rough.
He watched the bubbles popping in her glass of champagne. “Do you have any regrets, Gigi?”
She tipped her head thoughtfully. “One. That I didn’t go on that weekend getaway with John Stamos back in 1993. What a beautiful man.”
“I’m being serious.”
“As am I.” She looked offended. “But all right, let’s hear yours. You’re feeling philosophical about something, and I’m ready to listen.”
He’d never really talked with anyone about this. His mom and dad and grandfather knew the general landscape, but not the details. They didn’t know how he’d agonized over what had happened.
“Just thinking about some things that went down in college. I lost my best friend.”
“That’s awful. Why?”
“I found out he was part of a cheating ring.” They’d been getting tests early, distributing them to athletes who’d needed a boost to their grades to stay eligible. If the NCAA had found out, their school’s teams would’ve been penalized. Not to mention the fact that it was just wrong.
“I confronted him. Told him to stop, and he wouldn’t. Finally, I went to our swim coach.”
Ginger sucked in a breath. “That must’ve been a difficult choice.”
“You have no idea.” Then, the investigation had blown up so much bigger than Noah could ever have expected.
Soren and his new friends hadn’t just been trading tests to athletes all over the school. Whenever the tests hadn’t been enough, they’d bribed professors to change grades. Bribed school administrators to look the other way.
When the truth had come out, people had gotten arrested.
The national media had swarmed, creating a frenzy around the scandal. The fact that the ringleader was a billionaire’s son only made the outcry worse. Noah was thankful his name had stayed out of it.
The Foster-Grants had hired the best attorneys, but even his father’s money couldn’t shield Soren entirely. Soren had ended up pleading guilty and receiving a slap on the wrist. Probation instead of a sentence to federal prison. But he’d gotten kicked out of school.
“Did you try to talk to him afterward?” Ginger asked.
“No. Our friendship was over.”
Noah had known his friend could be reckless. Soren had been an asshole about some things. But they’d had so many good times together before that. Laughing, supporting one another.
Afterward, Noah had assumed Danica would never forgive him, so he hadn’t tried to explain his side of things. And by the time he’d finally decided to reach out? She’d moved on.
Ginger squeezed his arm. “I’m sorry. Do you wish you’d chosen differently?”
“I don’t. I did the right thing. But I wish there’d been another way to handle it.” Some way that could’ve preserved Noah’s chance with Danica.
He should’ve tried harder to talk to her. Shouldn’t have let so much time go by.
Or maybe that wouldn’t have made any difference, either. Something else would’ve gotten in the way. It was impossible to know.
“And this is about the Foster-Grants?”
He nodded. “You saw the news reports? There were a lot of stories about the scandal when it happened.”
“I can’t stand the news, darling. But I’ve always been able to read men like the Sunday paper, and I knew there had to be a reason you were thinking of this now.
It’s never too late to fix things. Unless, of course, we’re talking about John Stamos and me.
That’ll never happen. I love your grandfather too much. ”
Noah laughed and gave her a hug. “Thanks, Gigi. You’re one of a kind.”
“I know, dear boy. I know.”