Kiki's Millionaire (14 page)

But if he couldn’t get her to meet with him, he
couldn’t impart the information. He thought about sending her an email, but she
hadn’t answered his notes since she’d left. He suspected they went right in her
digital trash or maybe even her spam filter. She was a stubborn one.

The Lincoln pulled up in front of Rocket Flare’s San
Jose shipping facility, ending Jim’s consideration of how to get Kiki to listen
to him. He was there to give his employees a rah-rah speech as they prepared
for the onslaught of orders tech pundits were predicting.

* * *

“Don’t be like that, Cal,” Ginny said. Her voice had a
pleading quality. “You know I love you.”

He looked at her closely, but couldn’t get past the
impression that she was being false with him. There was something cold about
her eyes, a calculating gleam maybe. And her mouth was stiff, as though she was
forcing her lips to say words she didn’t mean.

“I’ve heard nothing but complaints from you lately,
Ginny. I don’t do this right or that the way you’d like it. Even my dog doesn’t
meet your suitability requirements. You say you love me, but it seems like all
you want to do is change me.”

Her bottom lip stuck out as she pouted. “You’re being unreasonable.”
She flounced into the corner of his white couch. “I’ll bet your brother Jim
doesn’t behave like such a brute.”

Cal saw red for a moment, and nearly bit Ginny’s head
off for lying about her acceptance of him. The comparison between him and his
brother stung big time. He loved Jim, but he had no place in Cal’s romantic
relationships. Jim knew that very well and treated Cal just as he would like to
be treated himself: as an adult.

He was weary of arguing. Things weren’t perfect, women
weren’t perfect…hell, he wasn’t perfect either. Things in his space were
calming, however, Ginny was a big problem. He’d just begun to think of her as
his girlfriend, not just a brief flirtation. But he’d seen this Jim-phenomenon
before. The women wanted fame and fortune, and, while Cal did alright for
himself as a corporate attorney, he couldn’t match Jim’s success. Very few
people could.

He didn’t know quite what to say to Ginny. She’d shown
interest in the things that meant something to him, and now she was demanding
that he change. Was he so unlovable as himself? Cal’s instincts screamed at him
that there was a lot more to it.

“You hardly know Jim, Ginny. How can you call me
brutish in comparison? You can’t know what he’s like.”

She brushed a bit of dog hair off her brown leather
pants. “Well, I know what I’ve read about him. I was just telling Kiki, the
night we met her, about his being in the news and still mourning his wife. A
man like that-”

Cal held up his hand. “Wait. You told Jim’s date that
he was still in mourning?”

“Well, isn’t he? He seems totally unapproachable from
a woman’s perspective.”

His shoulders stiffened. How dare she sabotage Jim’s
new relationship by implying that he was lost in his past. “No. He’s not. And,
I have to say I really resent your interest in my brother. Are you trying to
use me to get to him?”

Ginny frowned briefly, then masked it with a wide-eyed
innocent expression. “I’d never do that. I love you for yourself, Cal!”

Cal thought about that for a moment. He didn’t believe
her. “You should leave, Ginny. I think this is the end of the road for our
relationship.”

She rose and approached him where he stood near the
window. “Now, please, Cal. Don’t shut me out.” Ginny ran her hands up his tense
arms and onto his shoulders. She stood on tiptoe to try to kiss his lips, but
he gently pushed her away, disgusted. She protested weakly.

“Go, Ginny. Go and don’t come back.”

Ginny paused there, looking over his face, gazing into
his eyes. He met her look with the sternest expression he had. He was through
with her. She hadn’t been the first of Cal’s love interests who was trying to
get to Jim. It seemed unlikely that she’d be the last.

Throwing her finely tailored leather jacket on
roughly, Ginny gave him a vexed look, grabbed her purse and stalked from his
house.

He gestured his Irish setter out of his chair and sat
in the warm-seated recliner with a tired whump. The day outside was bright,
sunny and cheerful. A perfect day for a picnic. But Cal’s mood was dark and
stormy. He rubbed his face and thought about the morning as his dog lay down on
his master’s bare feet.

The phone was on the table at his elbow. He picked it
up and dialed.

* * *

Kiki was working on her lesson plan for the first week
of school when her phone rang. The caller ID said “Unknown” but the number was
a local one. She answered it, expecting to hear a political campaign
telemarketer or the firemen’s fund donation agency.

“Hello?”

“Kiki, this is Cal Chesterfield. You remember me,
right?”

They’d met twice: once at the Rosicrucian museum gala
and once as Cal was dropping off something at Jim’s house. She certainly
remembered him and became immediately suspicious. Was Jim now sending his
brother to coax her into coming back to him. It would be so easy to give in; to
express her love for Jim and try to make a happily ever after come about. But
she couldn’t trust him not to throw money at every problem. And she couldn’t
wrestle with Isabella’s memory.

“Sure I remember you, Cal. Listen, if this is about
Jim and I—“

“It is and it isn’t.”

“Did he ask you to call me?”

“No. I got your number from Ernie.”

Ernie knew her number because she’d used her cell
phone to ask him to come pick her up when she was living with Jim. “Ernie
shouldn’t have given it out. Goodbye, Cal.”

“Wait! I called for a reason.”

Kiki sighed. “I don’t want to be rude, but I’ve broken
up with Jim and I think that means Jim’s family, too.” She’d enjoyed meeting
Cal and Jim’s parents. It gave her a sick feeling in her stomach when she thought
about how kind and gracious the Chesterfield family was, how they’d welcomed
her during her weeks living with Jim. She would have given so much to have a
family like that. But they couldn’t have possibly suppressed comparisons
between Kiki and Isabella. The thought made Kiki feel terribly inadequate, even
embarrassed.

“Here’s the thing, Kiki. Ginny lied to you.”

“Ginny? What does Ginny have to do with anything?” The
woman was a bad memory, even though Kiki had been alerted to the ghost of Jim’s
wife from her. Maybe Ginny had done her a favor.

“She lied. She told you that Jim was still harboring
strong feelings for Isabella. That’s just not true.”

A little ember sparked somewhere in Kiki’s chest.
“What do you mean?”

He hesitated, thinking. “Ginny told me that she warned
you about Jim’s inability to bury his feelings for his wife. Ginny doesn’t know
Jim. He isn’t like that. He’s moved on.”

“Are you saying that he didn’t love his wife?”

“Hell, no. He loved her plenty. When she died, he took
a long time to deal with it. But he did deal with it. He came to grips and was
ready to begin his relationship with you.”

“He didn’t put you up to this?”

Cal sounded a little exasperated when he answered.
“No. And he’d punch me in the chops if he knew I was calling. I knew he’d
broken up with you, but I didn’t know why. I was calling because if Ginny
caused the break-up, I wanted to make things right.”

“Well, thank you, Cal. Isabella’s memory is not the
only reason we broke up, though. In fact, I’ve never discussed Isabella with
him at all.”

“Oh. Is there anything I can do?”

“You’re kind to ask.” Maybe her voice sounded wistful;
maybe she didn’t convey firm resolve. If so, it was probably because she was so
in love with Jim that she couldn’t quite let go.

“I know him pretty well, Kiki. If he’s done something
or said something, he’ll make it right if you give him a chance.”

“That’s the problem, Cal. He’s always making things
right. He wants to use his money to do everything for me. He won’t let me
fail.”

“Fail?”

She paused. “I don’t mean I want to fail, just that I
want to take chances and learn from my mistakes, not have someone come along
and clean up all my messes as though they never happened at all.”

“Okay. I get that. He does try to make things right.
He does that with everyone, though, Kiki. He genuinely wants to share his good
fortune and make everyone’s life better. He is generous with the people he
loves.”

Loves! She wasn’t even going to go there. There was no
point in battering her heart with what-ifs and wishes. “He bought me my job,
Cal. That’s just over the top.”

“What job are you doing?”

“I’m a teacher at Wildwood Academy. He gave the school
a new computer lab so they’d hire me.”

“Um, Kiki. Maybe you should turn on the news.”

A pang of panic shot through her. “Why? Is he hurt?
Has he been in an accident?”

“Just turn it on. Channel 15. I’ll talk to you later.”

Eager to see what Cal was referring to, Kiki said
good-bye and hurried downstairs to the TV in the main room of the shelter.

There was a soap opera on, but no one was there to
watch it. Kiki quickly turned to channel 15. A male reporter was yammering.

So that was James Chesterfield, opening the door for
Rocket Flare’s new hardware line.

It’s going to be available in stores starting at five
o’clock tonight. Channel 15 wants to shout out a big thank-you to them for
their generous donations to schools around California. Those new computer labs
are going to be hugely popular.

Kiki felt her mouth opening and closing. No words were
coming out, though. Her brain buzzed like a swarm of bees was between her ears.
She had to sit down quickly.

Her breath hitched and she realized that tears were
streaming down her face.

Too late! She wanted to scream. If only she’d had this
information two weeks ago, even one week. But now things had gone too far.
She’d killed their relationship dead.

But I still love him. Maybe it was stupid. Surely it
was unrequited. But she owed him a resolution. She owed him an apology, and he
deserved to hear that she’d had things wrong. Just a simple, “I’m sorry,” and
that would be it. He didn’t have to know she was in love with him, just that
she was, after all, a civil person.

Jim would be busy after his press conference.

Kiki rushed back up to her room and grabbed her cell
phone.

* * *

Jim shook hands with a few lingering bloggers. Most
reporters had left hours earlier, eager to meet their deadlines. There were
always hangers-on. A buxom brunette in very high heels and a tight-fitting
dress sauntered up to him as he was turning to leave.

“Mister Chesterfield, I’m Lorelei Wister, of Wister’s
Tech Twister. You’ve probably heard of us.”

No, actually he hadn’t. “How can I help you, Ms.
Wister?”

“I want to do a brief interview. Get a personal angle.
Who’s the man behind the products? Where does he come from and what does he
hope to achieve?”

He smiled slightly, exhausted and tired of dealing
with people who wanted to pry more and more information out of him. It was a
battle. “Can you call my press office, Ms. Wister? I’m sure an interview can be
arranged. But not tonight.”

“Oh but, really, Jim, I think tonight would be
perfect.”

“Well, I don’t. Please excuse me.”

He started to leave but she took him by the arm and
began to walk out with him. Fortunately, there were only a few photographers
left, and they seemed more interested in photographing the hardware than they
were in him.

His Rolls was waiting at the curb and Ernie hurried
out to open the door. Before Ernie could do his job, though, Ms. Wister tried
one more time. She ran her hands over Jim’s lapels and leaned into him.

“I can make it worth your while, Jim. I really need
the inside scoop and I’d do anything to get it.”

He’d bet she would, too. And with how many other guys?
His time with Kiki was too recent. No one else would satisfy him. He had a
briefly depressing moment thinking that he was ruined for other women. Despite
their time apart, he was still in love with Kiki Mackenzie. “No thanks, Ms.
Wister.”

She pouted, but didn’t try to cling when he nodded to
Ernie and the man opened the door.

A soft voice greeted him. “She looks very
disappointed.”

Jim did a double-take, but recovered quickly. “Kiki.”

“Hi, Jim.”

He slid into the seat next to her. “I’m surprised to
see you here.”

“I hope so. I intended it to be a surprise.”

She looked ravishing. Her hair hung in a perfect
chestnut sheet, glossy and thick, over her shoulders. She wore one of her
designer dresses—he’d seen it more than a few times, but she knew it was
a favorite of his, he’d told her so. Her strappy sandals were on her feet,
unstrapped at the ankles.

He hadn’t realized his perusal of her was so obvious
until she said, “I couldn’t get them fastened. I thought maybe you’d do them
for me?”

A laugh escaped him, spontaneous and full. He couldn’t
remember the last time he laughed so genuinely. It had been a while. Since Kiki
left him. “Give me your foot, sweetheart.”

She turned in the big seat and offered her foot. He
was surprised again—she was full of surprises tonight—she wore no
panties. He’d never known her to do that. He was immediately hard and his hands
fumbled with the buckle on her shoe.

“There’s something I want to say to you, Jim. Don’t
interrupt me, okay?”

“I’d like to tell you something, too, but ladies
first.” He was curious, but cautious. Maybe she was going to tell him to leave
her the hell alone or she’d send the cops after him for stalking. Her
appearance and demeanor suggested something a lot more pleasant. His pulse was
racing, throbbing in his throat.