By God's Grace (31 page)

****

Elizabeth spent the rest of the afternoon at her desk typing and listening to the elevator music that played throughout the office. The law offices of Hampton, Hampton, and Hampton consisted of three floors. Each floor contained one partner, several lawyers and many assistants. Her position was a special one. In essence, she was the head assistant, not in charge or control, but rather one who knew everything that occurred in the building. Every case taken by the lawyers in the firm first came through Charles Hampton's office and therefore fell across her desk.

Sometimes the mere fact that she held such an important position astounded her. Trust between Elizabeth and Mr. Hampton was vital. Simple things had been asked of her to maintain this trust.

Fingering the material of her clothes, Elizabeth released a pent-up breath and walked to the long row of windows and looked outside.

Charles Hampton, her boss, was the senior member of the firm. He had the best floor, located at the top of the building. From this position, one could see the outstretched arm of the Statue of Liberty. Those in the lower tiers called it “The Penthouse.”

The next floor down was for George Hampton, Charles' eldest son. Then one more floor below contained the last part of the firm. It belonged to Henry Hampton. Henry, the youngest of the family, had just joined the firm about three years before. Among all three of the members, the law firm of Hampton, Hampton, and Hampton could take on just about any case imaginable.

Charles' specialty was contract law. George defended white-collar crime and the youngest son, dubbed ”little Henry,” had taken on divorce and injury law. Although all of them took other cases on occasion. The firm was a smorgasbord. When you came to Hampton, Hampton, and Hampton, it was like going to a buffet. They had a little bit of everything to choose from.

Under each of the Hampton men, there was another tier of lawyers. And under each of those lawyers was a layer of paralegals, assistants, and other personnel. In all, the firm employed anywhere from fifty to one hundred employees, and right now Elizabeth was at the pinnacle of the operation.

Elizabeth had graduated law school in her early twenties and went into practice in her hometown in Tennessee. When her aunt Mary, who lived in New York, passed away, she left Elizabeth a townhouse with a half-paid mortgage in her will. Elizabeth left her job and her family and moved.

Upon arriving in New York, she realized she no longer wanted to be the lawyer working eighty hours a week with no home life, no family. While skimming ads in the newspaper, she found an advertisement for a position at the Hampton law firm. It was just an assistant's position, but proved to be steady work with set hours and decent pay.

Elizabeth had jumped at the chance. Now she was the assistant to the top man of the entire firm. She loved it. He was a great man to work for. His wife, Janice, was a dear. The three of them got along fabulously.

The only downside to working at the firm had been a change in attire. There was no chance Elizabeth would ever be included in a fashion magazine, that was certain. Before getting the job, she had worn clothing that at least
fit
her body. Elizabeth walked back to her desk and sat down. Sighing deeply, she shuffled through the papers on her desk and thought about Janice's request.

When Elizabeth was hired, Janice had taken her aside and explained the situation. “You'll be handling some very important documents while you work in this office.”

“Yes, of course,” Elizabeth had dutifully nodded.

With their arms interlocked at the elbows, Janice had them pacing the room. “I don't know if you understand the gravity of the situation. My husband works with high profile businessmen. People who wish to keep their secrets
secret
. Therefore, I have a request.”

Elizabeth simply nodded and waited.

“I would like for you to dress less obviously.”

“Excuse me?”

“My dear, I want you to downplay your appearance. You know, look like a frumpy housewife or something. Wear sweat pants, pull your hair back in a ponytail—I don't really care. Just anything to keep from placing attention on yourself.”

Elizabeth had readily agreed. She needed the job to pay for the townhouse. Besides, Janice's request seemed mild.

Today as the sun rose in the Manhattan skyline, causing rays to pour into the room, Elizabeth tapped away at the computer keyboard. Thoughts of looking like her old self ran through her head. Before she realized the time, she heard a distinct
ding
.

Promptly at eleven-thirty, Janice Hampton walked through the elevator door. She wore a cashmere skirt and suit jacket and was the epitome of the classy lady. Her graying hair was arranged in a coiffure; her earrings swayed as she walked. She sauntered over to Elizabeth's desk and stopped.

“Is he ready?”

“I'm not sure. Give me a moment, and I'll page him on the intercom. By the way, Mr. Hampton invited George as well. He should be here any moment. Would you like anything while you wait, Mrs. Hampton?”

“No, dear. Just Charles. This is an important day.”

Elizabeth was curious; however, she didn't ask. She was afraid she would get Mr. Hampton in trouble if she should have known about the day's events and then didn't. Perhaps he should've been gushing with some exciting bit of news, but he hadn't.

She pushed the intercom button, “Mr. Hampton? Mrs. Hampton is here for your lunch appointment.”

“I'll be right out,” came through the little box.

Elizabeth started to repeat what Mr. Hampton said, but Janice raised her hand with red lacquered fingernails. “I heard him, dear. No need to repeat it. I'll just sit here and wait on him.”

Janice sat in one of the office chairs and crossed her legs, picking up one of the magazines adorning the mahogany tables in the room. She flipped through the pages, appearing to study them. She put the magazine down and began to pace.

Elizabeth tried to ignore her and kept typing on the brief needed for that afternoon's meeting. Janice started to tap her bright red lips with her fingers and started muttering under her breath. Without warning she blurted out, “He didn't tell you, did he?”

Elizabeth looked up from her work. Now, what? Normally she knew everything that occurred in and around the office. Plastering a smile on her face she asked, “Tell me what?”

“George is getting married.”

“No. He didn't tell me. That's wonderful news.” Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief that this was the big news. That son of Charles always flirted with her and made her feel uncomfortable. She got the sense that he felt she was fair game because no one else would want her with the way she dressed. If only he knew why she was arrayed this way, then she was sure he would have taken a different tone. Directing her attention back to Janice, she heard her continue.

“Humph. That remains to be seen. We've yet to meet this woman. George showed up last week at our family dinner and announced he was getting married in August.”

“Oh.”

“That's why we're having this
lunch
with him today. We want to know who he's marrying and why we haven't met her yet. We're not sure if he is ashamed of us or ashamed of her.”

“That does seem out of character for George.” Lest Elizabeth sound more familiar with the family than she should, she added quickly, “I mean Mr. Hampton has told me in the past about how George was the son that liked to share his exploits.”

“That's true. The kid was like a bad refrigerator. He couldn't keep anything,” Janice said with a smile. “It was Henry I worried about the most. He was the silent type. He never would tell us what he was thinking. Unlike George who always said exactly what was on his mind. I think that's why this came as such a shock.”

At that moment the elevator doors opened, and George walked through them. He wasn't an overly tall man, measuring out at about five feet, ten inches. He was, however, lithe and graceful in his style. Although his mother told him he was too skinny, he never seemed to lack for female attention.

Janice went to him and planted a kiss on each of his cheeks. “Good afternoon, darling. I'm so glad you could join your father and me today.”

“Father didn't give me much choice.”

“He didn't?”

“No. He told me if I didn't come, he was knocking me down to Henry's floor.”

George said the words with such scorn that it was all Elizabeth could do to hold in her laughter. From under her lashes, Elizabeth watched Janice and George interact. Fortunate for her, he seemed preoccupied with his mother. Elizabeth sank lower into her chair, pecking the keyboard slower and slower to try and mask the sound. Maybe if he didn't hear her, then he wouldn't see her, and then she would be safe from his fake charms.

Hands on her narrow hips, Janice asked, “Would you please tell me what's wrong with Henry's floor? From what I can tell, all the floors are the same except for the décor.”

“That's just it. He was going to knock me down there and not allow me to redecorate!” George shuddered with mock horror. Noticing they weren't alone he looked in Elizabeth's direction. “Elizabeth. How are you today?”

“Very well. And you, Mr. Hampton?”

“Elizabeth, my dear,” he said, coming forward, he picked up her hand, and placed a peck of a kiss on her knuckles. Elizabeth smiled, wishing to pull her hand back and run to the restroom. “I have asked time and again that you refrain from calling me Mr. Hampton. It makes me feel old. As you can see, I'm hardly old.” He gave a huge grin, showing off a row of pearly white teeth.