Theron's Hope (Brides of Theron) (20 page)

Zane was so proud of his mate.  He reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze, “We had better go down to pack.  I will have to procure some more clothes for the planet’s surface.  I can do that while you pack your things.”  He looked at his commander,”Zeb, I will be checking in with you whenever possible.  I will carry my transmitter if you need to contact me in the case that the plans should have to be changed.”

They made their way out the door and to the transportation tubes.  Zeb motioned to the tube that was waiting, “You guys go ahead.  You have much to do.  I will catch the next one.”

“Thanks,” Zane said to his friend, “Give Avery our love.”

They entered the tube and Grace wrapped her arms around him tightly as they made their way back to the quarters to pack and ready themselves for the trip.  She was grateful for his support.  She could feel his calming presence in the room as she addressed the council. This was by far the toughest group she faced in her life.  The board of the firm was 90% owned by family members that she had known all her life and she was very knowledgeable of how they would react to her ideas.  The council was a mystery to her.  She took comfort in the way he wrapped his arms around her in return as they moved through the tube system.

Grace had mentioned that she would like to be beamed directly into her penthouse, preferably after Jo had left for the day.  That way she would be there before Jo returned in the morning.   She told Zane he only needed two outfits.  He had three in his quarters so it was not necessary for him to find more clothing so he packed what he had.  She would have to call Michael’s tailor on the surface to have some custom suits made.  There was no way that even the biggest and tallest shops would carry a suit to fit his large muscular frame.  She made up her mind to have several suits made for him as the first item on her agenda.  In her world, he would have to dress properly.

Coordinating their efforts with engineering, they were able to beam down just after Jo left the building.  Zane did not know what to expect.  He had only observed her on the beach, and spent time watching her sleep in her room in the Hampton’s house, and in the airport.  Her home was spacious and grand when compared to his quarters on the ship.  It was a beautiful.  She had many pieces of art hanging on the wall from various artists that her parents collected in their lifetime.  Small sculptures were placed around the room on various tables.  The floors in the entryway were some kind of stone with many colors embedded in its smooth and polished surface.  Grace excused herself quickly to make a few calls in the study leaving him alone to explore his new surroundings.

He surveyed the apartment, taking an extreme interest in her kitchen and finally her balcony.  He stepped out and heard the sounds of the city.  The wind was circling the buildings around him making a whooshing sound.  He could see the headlights from the cars on the street and every once and awhile he could hear the sound of a honking horn.  Across the street, he could see the park and the lights that illuminated the concrete pathways through the grass.  It was a beautiful at night.  The lights all around him were
making it hard to see the stars that he was used to seeing from the windows of the ship. 

The first thing she did was call Michael and Emily.  After the fourth ring Emily answered, “Hello, Jameson residence.”

“Oh Em, it is so good to hear your voice.  Is Michael there?”  She was hoping he was close by.

“Sure.”  He must have been near because she heard Emily hand the phone to Michael and say, “It’s Grace. Why is she in New York calling from her house?”

“Hello Grace, what are you doing home?  I thought that you would be up to your eyeballs in wine and shopping.  Is everything okay?”  He sounded puzzled.  Grace almost never changed her plans when she was traveling
so this was extremely unusual for her.

“Yes, I am just fine.  I need you to clear your calendar for the next six days.  You will work with me at my house this week.  I am hoping it is not a terrible inconvenience but I must insist on it,” she said quite seriously.

“I have many meetings next week and it is the weekend.  Are you sure that this can’t wait until later next week?”  He asked.  She could tell that he was starting to feel uneasy.  She never asked this much of him.

“I am telling you to cancel all your appointments and have your secretary reschedule them. If it is not possible, let another partner take care of it.  I need you here this week. There are many matters we must discuss.  Can you be here at 8 am tomorrow morning?” Grace asked him, resolute.

“Sure.  I will call Beth right now and tell her to go in tomorrow morning and start moving those appointments.  She will not be thrilled at the aspect.  It is the weekend Grace,” he paused then added, “Are you sure everything is alright?  This isn't like you at all Grace.”

She couldn’t let him drag out this conversation, she had many other tasks at hand to complete before she reached her deadline.  She quickly changed the subject, “Michael, can you give me your tailor’s number.  I need to get in touch with him immediately.”

She knew that Michael was losing it.  She could hear it in his voice.  He gave her the number to his favorite suit maker and started asking more questions but she avoided his cross-examination.  He was a great lawyer, but she knew exactly just how to avoid his inquisition.  She hung up with Michael and called the tailor promising him a large sum of money for him to come to her apartment for Zane’s measurements and make three suits.  She promised a lucrative bonus if he could have at least one of the suits ready for the same evening.  He assured her that he could easily be able to accommodate her request as it was a family business and he had his wife and children to help him out.  He would arrive at 8 am with fabric swatches and take all necessary measurements required. 

She called William and Josephine to let them know she was back and to be expecting a very busy week.  She let them know that she would adequately compensate both of them for sacrificing their weekend to her and that her stay would only be for six days and she promised them that they would both have the week off after.  With that done and both of them agreeing to work she could relax a bit.  She called down to the front desk, catching Tom just before he left for the day, “Miss Abernathy, I was not aware you had returned.  How can I help you?”

She thought fast, kicking herself.  She had not made herself seen in the lobby coming up.  She quickly replied, “I must have missed you, I came in this afternoon.”  Not allowing him to dwell on this last statement, she quickly changed the subject, “Could you please note that I will receive several visitors tomorrow morning.  I am expecting my cousin Michael Jameson as well as a tailor, Mr. Johnson to arrive at 8am.  Please allow them access to my floor.”

Tom paused then speaking as he wrote on the schedule at the front desk, “Michael Jameson and Mr. Johnson, tailor, to visit at 8am, Miss Abernathy.  Show them to her floor.  Got it Miss, is there anything else I can help you with?”

Good, he bought it, she thought to herself.  “No, Tom.  Have a good evening.” She hung up and went to look for Zane.  He wasn’t in the apartment so she looked outside the French doors leading out to the balcony.  She found him looking out at the city with his hands on the polished concrete railing.  He jumped in suprise as she began to speak, “It is an awesome view, huh?”  Pointing in the direction of the park, “That is Central Park over there.”  She stood next to him, her arm touching his, placing her hands on the railing as well.

“I have never seen anything like it.  It is fascinating for several of the senses.  Is it always this noisy?” He looked at her.  He could see the gentle lights on the balcony reflected off her pale white skin. 

“Believe it or not, this is not very noisy compared to several areas in the city.  Because we are so close to the park, it helps a bit.  There are not a lot of people that use the park at night.”  She looked at him trying to get a glimpse at what he was thinking.  “Are you hungry?  I know I could sure use a glass of wine.”

“Food sounds good right about now.”  He opened the door for her to enter the apartment and followed her to the kitchen. She went to the double door refrigerator and retrieved an opened bottle of white wine.  It was one of her vineyards most recent vintage.  She found two long stemmed goblets in the cabinet and poured them each a glass.  She raised her glass in the air and said, “Cheers!”  She laughed as he looked at her dumbfounded.  She could see that he wanted to know what she was expecting as he waited for her response.  “It is something we do on Earth.  We take our glasses and hit them together like this.”  She took the hand he was holding the wine glass in, it and brought it to meet her glass with a clinking sound, “Then, we say ‘Cheers’ or some equally jovial word before we take our first sip.  This wine is from my vineyard.  I was on my way to check up on it when you took me to your ship.”

He watched and followed her movements, imitating when he thought he should do the same.  As she swirled her glass, smelled the wine, and then taking a sip of wine.  It was quite an interesting drink.  Sweet and dry yet it had a burning quality.  “Does drinking this beverage have any effect on your abilities?”

“If you drink enough of it you can get drunk.  It is considered an alcoholic beverage.  There are others that I can make you later in the week if you want to see the difference.  It is my experience that you should not mix alcoholic beverages unless you want to be sick.  Tomorrow, I will have Jo make some sangria.  You will probably like that drink.   It is one of my favorites.”

“Well, I have introduced you to many new foods on the ship, what do you have in the way of food?  I am famished.”  She looked in the refrigerator.  She was not a very good cook but she could make a few things on her own.  That was why Jo was such a valuable member to her staff.  All Grace knew how to prepare was scrambled eggs, some pasta dishes, and grilled cheese.  She had all the makings for grilled cheese and found some soup in the pantry. 

She warmed the canned Italian wedding soup in two bowls in the microwave and started to prepare two grilled cheese sandwiches.  After they were a nice golden brown on both sides and the cheese was adequately melted, she cut the sandwiches in half diagonally and placed them on two plates.  She retrieved the two bowls of soup and brought them to the granite countered wide bar with five short stools surrounding it where they would eat.  She placed a linen napkin with utensils already wrapped in them on the counter, followed by the sandwiches.  She began to eat the soup with her spoon and her sandwich in between bites.  She could see that he was watching her. 

He dipped his spoon in his soup, stirring it about to see the tiny brown balls and small noodles floating in the clear liquid.  “What is this?”  He asked.

Grace laughed, “Now you get to see what it is like to have odd food placed in front of you.  This is an Italian wedding soup.  It has tiny meatballs with some pasta.  The meat is from our cow, or what I am assuming is your equivalent, the ona.  The pasta is made from our grain, or your powa.  Our powa is off white or tan in color before it is ground up into a fine white power and it's not red like yours.”

“You are pretty good at describing food,” he said as he made a move to take a bite of the food.  He found the meatballs very tasty as well as the broth that they floated in.  The Pasta had an unusual texture but it was good all the same.  “What is this?”  He said pointing to the sandwich.

“Ah, that would be the bhakta with larta in your language.  It is a grilled cheese sandwich in mine. I am sorry that I can’t prepare you something better but I am not a good cook.  That is why I hired Jo.  She is an excellent cook and we should eat well the rest of the week,” she added shyly. 

“Your quarters are quite nice and very large as well.  I was looking around and you have a very nice study and several bedrooms.  Do any other people live here?”