Goodbye Isn't Forever (8 page)

“Did
you need us?”

“Well,
first of all I want to say again what a tremendous job that the two of you did
on your project.  It was a brilliant idea and deserved to be the first
place winner.”

“Thank
you,” Alex and Zand answered together.

“Now,
I just need a few documents signed concerning your checks.  This just says
that you have both received your monetary rewards.  I have your parents’
signatures, and all I need is yours, so if you will just sign by your
respective names,” the director handed a folder to Zand and Alex.

While
she was waiting for the signatures, the pager on her hip buzzed.  She
quickly glanced down and read the message scrolling across.  She frowned
as she re-read the message.

The
director looked at the teens busily signing the documents.  She cleared
her throat and looked at them with sorrow in her eyes.

“Alex,
that message was for you.  Your parents are in my office waiting for you.”

“My
parents?  Why?  Is everything okay?”

“I’m
sure it is fine.  If everything is signed, then you can just follow me
back to the office.”

Alex
looked worried.  Zand stepped behind her, “Alex?”

Alex
reached back and grabbed Zand’s hand.  Whatever her parents were going to
tell her, she wanted Zand to be by her side.

Zand
didn’t think twice in his worry and let Alex lead him to the director’s
office.  If she told her father, then he would tell Jackson just how he
felt about Alex, as soon as he knew.

As
they approached the building, Zand dropped Alex’s hand and nervously walked in
behind her.  Did they know they had kissed?  Were they upset with
Alex?  His teenaged mind was racing with all of the possibilities.

But,
as Zand walked in, he could see the faces of Alex’s parents.  Something
was wrong.  Something was very wrong.

Zand
looked at his watch and let out a long yawn.  He blinked as he looked at
his watch a second time.  Four
a.m.
!

Zand
rose from his chair.  “Jennifer, I’m so sorry.  I didn’t realize how
late it is and I know you work tomorrow, or rather today.” Zand ran his hand
through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck.  He had spent the last
two hours reliving part of his past with Alex.  Time had flown.

Before
Zand could turn and leave, Jennifer rose from her chair.  “Just where do
you think you are going?  You can’t leave it there.  Sit yourself
back in that chair and tell me what happened with Alex and her parents.”

Zand
smiled tiredly.  “Are you sure, Jennifer?  You need your sleep.”

Jennifer
waved her hand and motioned for Zand to sit.  “Don’t you worry about
that.  Do you think that I could sleep while wondering what happened?”

Zand
sat down and inhaled deeply.  This is where it all started to unravel.

Little
by little.  Day by day.

#

Alex
had entered the office, took one look at her mom, and came to an abrupt halt.

“Mom? 
What is it?”

Mr.
and Mrs. Kensington exchanged looks.  An imperceptible understanding
passed between them as Alex’s dad stepped forward to confront his daughter.

“Alexandra,”
he began.

Alex
ran into his arms.  She knew that anytime her parents began a sentence
with her full name, then it was something bad.

“Daddy? 
What is it?”

“It’s
Gran, honey.  She’s not well and we need to go see her,” he said as he
hugged Alex tighter.  “We need to go as soon as we can.”

“What…what
is wrong?  Is she...,” Alex started to sob.

“She
had a stroke, honey.  She is in ICU right now in the hospital.”  Mr.
Kensington pulled back and looked at his daughter.  “I know that camp is
almost over, but, sweetheart, we need you to pack your things.  I am sorry
that you have to miss this last week, but Gran needs us.  I have already
got the jet on standby for North Carolina.

Alex
couldn’t help but glance over to Zand.  “We are leaving out tonight?”

“Yes,
your mom and I need to go home and pack.  If you want, maybe Zand can help
you get your stuff ready and we will send a car for you and meet you
there.  Will that work?”

Alex
managed a small smile, as she wiped her tears with the back of her hand. 
“Sounds like a plan, Dad.”  She hugged her dad again and then went to hug
her mother.

Alex’s
mom had been fighting back the tears, but as soon as she felt her daughter’s
arms around her, she couldn’t hold back any longer.  Both mother and
daughter held each other tightly as the tears ran unheeded down their cheeks.

“She
will be okay, won’t she, Mom?”

“Of
course, she will, sweetie,” Mrs. Kensington soothed her daughter.  “You
know how strong-willed Mother is.  She will be back as good as new in no
time.”

Alex
seemed happy with her mother’s words and withdrew from her embrace.  As
she wiped her tears again, she looked at Zand.

“Zand,
would you mind helping me pack?”

Zand
didn’t hesitate.  “Whatever you need me to do, Alex.”

Alex
nodded and hugged her parents again.  “Give me at least a couple of hours
if you can, Daddy, then send the car.  I should be ready by then.”

“We
will wait on you if you need more time.  I think that your mom wants to
make sure that we are there for the morning visitation, Alex.”

Alex
and Zand said their good-byes to the Kensington’s and left the director’s
office.  When they cleared the building, Zand reached for and held Alex’s
hand.  That’s how they stayed as they slowly made their way back to Alex’s
room, each lost in their own thoughts.

Neither
one noticed the couple that exited the building right behind them.  They
glanced toward the slowly walking pair and stopped in their tracks.

Mrs.
Kensington took her husband’s arm as they watched Alex and Zand stroll out of
sight.  She knew her daughter well enough to understand the meaning behind
the gesture.  She glanced at her husband to gauge his reaction.

“Do
you think that our little girl has something she might want to say about her
project partner?” Mr. Kensington asked his wife.

Mrs.
Kensington sighed audibly.  “Well, we have noticed her lack of interest,
lately, in the boys back home that are always fawning over her.”

Mr.
Kensington grinned.  “I just thought that it was an indication of her good
taste.  None of those boys would ever be worthy of her.”

“Do
you think that Jackson Gabriel’s son is?”  Mrs. Kensington questioned,
while arching her brow.

Mr.
Kensington thought of Jackson and hoped, in this case, the apple did fall far
from the tree.  Very far.  But trying to think of a suitable answer,
he could only say, “Alex knows that boy better than we do.  Zand is still
young and I’m sure he’ll mature into a fine adult.”

“Yes,”
Mrs. Kensington agreed.  “A fine young man that is being groomed to run
Gabriel Industries.”

Mr.
Kensington looked questioningly at his wife.

“Surely
you did not miss our daughter’s conversation with the endearingly polite Mr.
Gabriel, did you?  He has Zand’s life planned out and I don’t think it
includes our baby girl.  Alex may be young, but if Jackson ever tells Alex
that she can’t see Zand…”

Mr.
Kensington let out a low whistle.  “Look out Jackson.”

“Yes,
indeed!” Mrs. Kensington added dryly.

“Do
you think it will last long?  They are so young.”

Mrs.
Kensington stared out into the night sky.  She could still remember being
that age and terribly in love.  She smiled for the first time that night.

“I
was completely taken with a handsome young man at that age,” Mrs. Kensington shared
as she hugged her husband.

“Oh? 
What happened?” he asked.

She
leaned back and placed a soft kiss on his waiting lips.

“I
married him.”

Six
weeks had passed since the Kensingtons had left L.A. to see Alex’s
grandmother.  The stroke had left more damage than initially perceived,
and although she was allowed to go home, she wasn’t able to fully care for
herself.

Mrs.
Kensington, being an only child, was not willing to be on the other side of the
country while her mother needed her.  There were plenty of relatives that
lived locally and could help out, but it was not the same.  The decision
had been made to temporarily move back to North Carolina and live with Alex’s
grandmother until she could take care of herself.

With
the help of office equipment set up in a spare bedroom, the Kensingtons were
able to be hands-on with their business, albeit cross-country.  If it was
needed, the jet was always on stand-by to leave at a moment’s notice.  So
far, the arrangement had been working well.

For
almost everyone, that is.  Alex, who was always the most adaptable to any
situation, was finding this arrangement more difficult than she had
thought.  She had been spending most of her summers here since she was a
small child until this year.

The
decision for her to attend the camp instead had been one from a purely social
stand point.  Although Alex had met a lot of their business associates,
she wasn’t acquainted with their kids unless they attended her school. 
Since her summers were spent in North Carolina, she didn’t attend the round of
social events the others did, either.  The Kensingtons had hoped to
rectify that problem and give their daughter the advantage of befriending the
people that would invariably be part of her adult life.

Normally,
Alex loved her time spent here with her Gran.  She didn’t begrudge having
to be here now, she just missed a certain camper more than anything else.

They
had talked on the phone every day, usually more than once.  Alex had her
film developed from camp, and most of the pictures were of Zand.  She had
taken care to arrange them on her memory board hanging on her bedroom wall.

Her
favorite was one that her parents had taken of them after the awards ceremony
and it was in a place of honor beside her bed.  She loved Zand in that
power suit.  It was the last image she saw at night and the first one she
saw every morning.

It
was also the last time that she had physically seen him, and that was beginning
to takes its toll on Alex.  After the kisses they had shared and then
nothing.  She wanted to hold Zand at least one more time.

Who
was she kidding?  That would never be enough!  Would a lifetime even
be close?

Alex
doubted it.  Even at eighteen, she knew that she had felt something
special for the young Gabriel.  And it had been six weeks.  Six,
long, excruciating weeks!

Maybe
it was time to talk to her parents and see if she could borrow the jet. 
Even in her mind, Alex realized what an absurd request that was.  She
would have laughed if she hadn’t felt so damn serious.

Although
Zand had been able to talk to Alex every day since she had left, it just wasn’t
the same.  He hadn’t realized how addicted he had become to the presence
of Alex Kensington.  God, she was like a drug!  Every day without her
was taking its toll and putting Zand in a current state of withdrawal.

He
had completed the last week at camp in a zombie-like state.  He finished
his classes and ate all of his meals alone.  He wasn’t in the mood for his
friends when all he could think about was Alex.  And the kisses.  Oh,
those kisses.

Jackson
offered to bring Bree to attend the last night mixer, but Zand had begged off
with a fake stomach ache.  The last thing he wanted was Bree’s
companionship.  The thoughts of dancing with her didn’t appeal to him and
a good-night kiss?  Out of the question!

When
six weeks had officially passed, Zand’s patience had worn thin.  He
understood how fragile Alex’s grandmother was and didn’t want to pull Alex
away, so the natural course of action was for him to go to her.

Surely
Jackson would understand the need to comfort your best friend?  School had
officially started, but Zand had a long weekend coming up.  It would be
the perfect time to travel to see Alex.  He had flown on the company jet
hundreds of times with Jackson.  How hard would getting together a quick
trip to North Carolina be?

He
was anxiously awaiting the arrival of Jackson from work.  Zand had already
gone over his speech in his head too many times to count.  It was flawless
and he would not take no for an answer.

And
he didn’t.  He was on the company jet alright.  It just wasn’t bound
for North Carolina.  Zand should have known that Jackson agreed much too
quickly.

Zand had been so excited that he had everything packed
and waiting on the jet.  For some reason he held off telling Alex. 
He had wanted to surprise her.  So, in his attempt to be vague about his
weekend plans, he had only succeeded in making Alex a little suspicious. 
And Zand’s surprise trip to North Carolina had ended up being an even bigger
surprise: a last minute business trip with Jackson to London, England,
instead.  Any other time, Zand would have been thrilled to go there, but
not now.  And even less when Jackson shared that they would be gone at
least two weeks, if not more.  He hadn’t talked to Alex the day before
because he was afraid that, in his excitement, he would tell her he was coming
to see her.  Now, thanks to Jackson, Zand would be lucky if he was able to
catch Alex at all due to the time difference.  This was the first time
they hadn’t talked every day since the night Alex had left.

Jackson
had planned his meetings with care.  He encouraged Zand to attend with him
because it involved their company and Zand would be doing this in the near
future.  He had taken in the time difference and knew that correspondence
with Zand’s North Carolina friend would be nearly impossible.

And
it was.