The Job Offer (23 page)

Ben pulled her arms from him and pushed
her away.

"Chelsea, I’m only going to say
this one more time.  If you do not pay attention, I will get the law involved. 
There is nothing between us.  There will never be anything between us ever
again."

"Come on, Ben, Honey.  You’re not
still mad about Dr. Conner are you?  I was doing you a favor, Darling."

"Watch how you talk about her,
Chelsea.  Anne is going to be my wife."

Chelsea laughed and swatted his arm
playfully.  "Not that again, Ben?  How gullible do you think that I am?"

"It’s no joke, Chelsea.  I’m
marrying Anne.  From now on, if there is any more of your stalking, any more of
your snide comments or slanderous statements, you will be hearing from my
attorney.  I don’t care about our parents’ friendship.  Stay away from me. 
Stay away from Anne.  Do not push me on this.  Goodbye."  He left her
standing there with a shocked expression on her face.  The door closed behind
him, and he heard her yell, damning him and Anne before he heard a crash as
something broke.  The clerk who showed them to the door looked up from her post
with a worried expression on hearing the crash.

"Send the bill for any damages to
me," Ben told her before he went back into the party to make his excuses
to the host for an early departure.

Now, after another sleepless night, Ben
thought about Anne.  Earlier today he wanted to see if she was home, so he
called her that morning and heard her voice instructing him to leave a message.
 He did not leave one but drove over to her house and knocked on the door. 
There was no answer and her car was gone.  Looking at his watch he decided that
he would leave and come back after his lunch with his parents, and he would sit
on her door steps for the rest of the day, if he had to, until she came home.  The
waiting to talk to her was nearly killing him.

It was a twenty minute drive to his
parents’ house, and he listened to the soulful sound of Brandi Carlile as he
drove over the bridge.  He steered his car through his parents' open front gate
when he arrived at their home, and headed up the long driveway not noticing the
flowering plants that bordered the drive nor the lake in the background.  Looking
at the French chateau style house that he had spent so much of his life in, he
hoped that one day he could give Anne a similar one.  It was a great place to
raise children.  He parked out front in their circular driveway and let himself
inside the front door only to be met in the French country tiled entryway by
Linda, his parents' housekeeper who was on her way down the front staircase.

"Morning, Linda."  He kicked
off his worn sneakers and put them in the front hall closet.

"Morning, Ben.  How was your trip?  You
went to China this time, wasn't it?"  They began moving down the hall to
the giant family room that looked out over the lake through a large picture
window.  The French doors that led out to a stone patio were open to let in the
morning breeze blowing off of the water.  Right now it was comfortable outside,
but by that afternoon, the doors would be closed again to block out the heat
and humidity.

"My trip went well.  You should see
China, someday.  Maybe I'll take you with me the next time I go."  He gave
her a rakish grin.

"You are such a flirt, Ben.  You always
have been."  Linda laughed and her ample bosom jiggled.  Linda and her
husband Fred had worked for Troy Carlson long before Ben's mother married him.  Linda
ran the house and Fred handled the outdoor concerns.  Their one daughter was
grown by the time Ben and his mother moved in.  Now, both in their early
seventies, they could have retired years ago but chose to stay with the Carlson
family spending their summers in Seattle with them and their winters in Anaheim
with their daughter.  Over the years Linda and Fred had become part of the
family and were like additional grandparents to Ben and Lily.  "I must
say, they sure did not feed you when you were over there.  Don't you worry.  I
made your favorites."

"Strawberry pie, too?"

"Strawberry pie, too.  Your mother
is down in the flower garden, and your dad is in his study watching a ball
game.  Don't tell your mother that, though.  She thinks that he is
working."

"I won't, Linda."  He gave her
a conspiring wink then excused himself to go into the study located at the far
end of the family room.

"Who's winning?"  He asked
Troy the question as soon as he walked in without knocking.

"The Yankees are up by one.  But
Martinez is up and the Mariners have the tying run on third."  Troy
Carlson was sitting in a padded leather wing chair with a can of soda and a
cigar in his hands.  He was dressed in old jeans, tennis shoes, and a salmon
colored polo shirt not looking anything like a bank executive.  The window
behind him was open to let the smoke from his cigar outside.  "The
Mariners will be playing at home next Thursday night.  What do you say to
going?"

"Sounds like fun.  Count me
in."  Troy reached inside the small drawer in the side table, pulled out a
box of cigars, and removed one.  He handed it to Ben who took it and sat down
on the couch before pinching off the end.  "You know, you're not fooling
mom with having the window open."  He lit up and took his first puff.

"I know.  But she doesn't say
anything to me because I never say anything to her about her caramel macchiato
addiction.  It's part of marriage, overlooking a few small bad habits.  You
look terrible by the way.  Have you talked to Anne lately?"

"I saw her Monday."  Ben
frowned and looked at the television screen.

"I don't mean professionally."

"What do you know about her being
here?  I never said anything to you or mom."

"Ben, it's obvious that you love
her and that she loves you.  You were both crazy about each other when you were
kids.  Some things just need time to ripen, that’s all, like yours and Anne’s
relationship.  It's also obvious that the two of you had a falling out at
Lily's reception."  Ben took another puff from the cigar then looked over
at his stepfather.

"Did you know that she was
interviewing with my company?"

"Sure I did.  You talked about
hiring her when you were looking through resumes.  So what's the problem?"
 Troy looked at Ben closely.  His examination began to make Ben squirm.

"You knew that Anne was Dr. Conner,
and you never told me?  Why?"  Ben leaned forward and rested the lit cigar
in the ashtray.  A deep frown marred his face as he looked over at his
stepfather.

"We thought you already knew." 
Troy Carlson set his can of soda down on the coffee table and his cigar in the
ashtray then leaned back and looked at Ben in pity.

"Well I didn't, and when I found
out I made a total ass of myself and accused her of only sleeping with me because
she wanted the job."

Troy whistled and shook his head.  "That
would be a tough one to let go."

"Is it tough for her or for me?"

"For her.  Ben, she wouldn't do
that, and before you make more of a fool of yourself, you should know that she
wasn't after you money either.  Anne doesn't have to work if she doesn't want
to."

"What do you mean?"  It
chapped a little because that thought had occurred to Ben the night of the
wedding, too.

"She's Jay Conner’s granddaughter
and Andrew Conner's daughter and only heir unless his new wife produces a
child."

"Anne is Conner's daughter?  No
wonder she doesn't like him."

"Few people do.  But if you need a
good lawyer, he's your man."  They sat for several minutes and watched the
game while Ben digested what his stepfather told him.  Eventually, Troy said,
"Ben, do you want to marry Anne?  Because your relationship would only be
allowed if you married her."

"Yes, I want to marry her."

"Then why are you still here when
you should be at Anne's?"

"She wasn't home when I called at her
house this morning."  Ben leaned forward on his knees and picked up the
cigar from the ashtray.  He took a puff then he ran his hands through his hair.
 Why was he here when he wanted to be with Anne?  Suddenly, he heard the sound
of his smart phone announcing that he received a text message.  Pulling it from
his back pocket, he read the message that said "Urgent, see email!"

"Is it anything important?"
Troy asked him when Ben put the cigar back in the ashtray and touched the email
app to start looking through the new messages.

"It's Rudolph telling me to see an
urgent email."

Finally, Ben found the one that his VP
of Research and Development was referring to.  It was an email from Dr. Conner
to Rudolph and copying Ben that she was giving her two week notice.  He swore
when he read the message.

"What is it?"

"Anne's quitting.  She gave her
notice last night.  I've got to go and see her."  He stubbed out his cigar
and stood up, pushing his phone back into the back pocket of his jeans.

"Go.  Get out of here.  I'll tell
your mother that you were called away."

"Thanks."

After putting his shoes back on, he ran
to his car and headed back out to Bellevue.  He was so distracted by his
thoughts that he missed his turn, doubled back, and eventually found the little
blue Cape Cod style house again on the corner with the enclosed backyard and the
detached garage.  She was home now if her SUV was any indication.  Parking in
the driveway behind her vehicle, he jumped out and took the front two steps at
once and rang the doorbell.  When Anne did not answer, he turned and sat on her
front step.  She could not be far.  She was not quitting until he had a chance
to talk to her and convince her to stay.  He felt a sense of panic when he
realized that if she left, he did not know where she would go, if she would
move away, or if he would ever see her again.  This may very well be his last
chance and he was not leaving until he saw her.

"Ok, I've had enough."  Anne
looked over at Carla who had stopped walking and sat on a bench in the little
park that was a few blocks from their houses.  Carla and Gary liked to walk
their dog to the park every day, but ever since Anne had moved in, Carla and
Anne began taking power walks when their schedules allowed usually taking the
dog with them.  But today Gary had the dog, and they had a late start on their
walk because Carla had catered a wedding the evening before and was too tired
to get out of bed.  They had only walked the two blocks to the entrance to the
park so far, and Carla was tired already.  This worried Anne.  She sat beside
Carla on the bench and looked at her, examining her face for signs of fatigue or
illness.  She did not find either.

"Are you feeling ok, Carla?  It's
not like you to be tired so soon."

"I don't mean that I'm tired.  I
mean I've had enough of waiting for you to tell me what's going on.  You
haven't been the same since you went to your parents’ last month.  It's been seven,
make that eight weeks, and you have not told me why you seem so heartsick I
guess is the word.  Talk to me, Anne."

It was late morning, later than they
usually walked and more people were out either walking, running, or in-line
skating along the paved paths that wove through the park and the attached
nature preserve.  Anne leaned back on the bench and watched them as she reached
up to pull the clip from her hair.  Then she pulled the mass of hair back in
her hand and attached the clip again.

"You're stalling, Anne."

"I know, Carla."  Anne looked
at her friend with a sad expression.  "I gave my notice yesterday."

"What?  Why, Anne?  I thought that
you liked Stanford Enterprises.  You've only been there a few weeks."

"I do like the company.  It's just
not going to work, my being there."  A young mother pushed a baby stroller
by, and Anne could see another young mother further down the path.  She thought
it was funny how she never noticed before all of the pregnant women and women
with babies in the area.  Her focus had certainly changed in the last week.  "Carla,
do you remember Ben Carlson?"

"Ben Carlson?  You mean the one from
the inn?  You're talking about that Ben Carlson?  Of course I do.  He was hot. 
You and Ben were kind of an item when he used to come up to the island."

"We weren't an 'item'.  Most of the
time he did not even know that I was alive other than that I was the Petrovic
kid who guided him and Lily around."

"That's not how I remember it,
Anne.  What about him?"

"He was at the inn that week for
Lily's wedding.  She got married on the island that weekend."

"Ok.  So you saw Ben Carlson.  Did
something happen between you two?"

"You could say that."  She
told Carla about pretending to be Ben's fiancée to discourage Chelsea and that
she and Ben began an actual relationship during that time.  Anne looked over at
Carla hoping that she would not see any censure.  There wasn't any.

"So, are you planning on seeing him
again?  He still lives in the area, doesn't he?"

"No, I won't be seeing him again,
at least not romantically.  It turns out that Ben is actually Benjamin Stanford
III, as in Stanford Enterprises."