Natural Selection (8 page)

“Don’t call me that
.” She worked to create another hole in the dirt and overlooked the concealed compliment.

“If you wish.” Emilia watched his sh
adow move from side to side. “But if you must dispute me, must you do it out here? It is so blistering hot—”

“Listen.
” She stood up without hesitating and shook the dirt from her knees. “I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I can promise you that if you go back on your word, hurt these people to get back at me, I will make you regret it.”

Emilia saw a smile beneath the
mask. “You people around here seem to have a great deal of communication problems. Perhaps you need a Mrs. Levkin in your employment—”

“Kasper—
”

“I have no intention of withd
rawing my donation and every intention of going through with this fundraiser.”

“Why?”

He looked both ways before shaking his head. Was it not obvious? “Why?”

“Yes,” s
he emphasized. “Why? You dislike people, you hate going out, and you really hate animals. I don’t understand.”

“I may hate all of those things, but I love you.
There is nothing else to understand.”

“What if I don’t love you?”
she asked softly.

Sighing, he chose to stare at the ground for the first time. “Then I will deal with that in due time.”

“Mr. Weber, right on time, so good to see you!”

Emilia cringed at the phrase, knowing full well it was one of Kaspe
r’s most disliked. Paula didn’t flinch and gestured for the both of them to come inside, shushing once again at the contractors and dogs.

Kasper grimaced from underneath his mask and waved Emilia forward. “Shall we?”

She stomped through the front door, not stopping to see why Kasper hesitated just inside the lobby and feigning indifference to how uncomfortable he was.

If Emilia could, she w
ouldn’t let on how much she cared for him. It may not have been much, but she was intent on making sure he had no idea how much of her time was devoted to thinking of him.

Instead, she washed her hands at one of the grooming sinks
, taking the time to scrub everything out from under her fingernails and the dirt caked in her palms.

When she looked back again, Elaine and Paula were trying to subject hi
m to handshakes and thank-yous—other things that she knew he despised. She didn’t like how bluntly they seemed to ignore his discomfort, but she knew he probably deserved it, too. The fact of the matter was that she loved Kasper, but he couldn’t be trusted and was ignorant as to why that was an important aspect of a relationship. After watching her mother and so many others wither away from unscrupulous connections, Emilia wasn’t going to make the same mistake—not without doing everything in her power to prevent it, anyway.

Emilia stepped over in the middle of their
conversation.

“So the local VFW is available
in two weeks—”

“Or there is that Chinese buffet with the great fried shrimp.”

She saw his jaw shift back and forth. Though it wasn’t possible, she could have sworn she heard his thoughts—all the names he was calling them in his head. She looked back from Paula to Elaine and knew that whatever he was calling them was probably pretty accurate.

“Ladies, I thought I made my terms clear.
I prefer to work with Miss. Ward.”

They looked at each other before looking back at Emilia.

“Right.” Elaine said nervously.

Paula’s reply was almost simultaneous.
“Certainly.”

They dispersed awkwardly. Elaine made her way back upstairs and Paula pretended to talk with the contractors. Neither Emilia nor Kasper
, however, failed to notice how both women gazed at the odd pair and whispered amongst themselves.

“It is terribly loud in here
.” Kasper stepped forward, making Emilia shiver though the air condition was barely on. “Why don’t we go somewhere more—” he whispered in her ear, “private?”

She stepped away, fearful to even shove him
away after the reaction he had on her body the night before. “I work
here
. If
you
want to leave, you’re more than welcome.”

“I don’t think your colleagues would agree…”
Emilia almost swore she felt him smile. “But very well.”

He followed her
silently to the staff room, which, he observed with irritation, was little more than a flimsy table and a homely refrigerator. As she gathered some papers from the side of a copy machine, he looked around, allowing himself to laugh at the outdated poster of a cat hanging from a clothes line and the hats and various other clothing items hanging from broken hooks. A note on the refrigerator threatened untimely death for anyone who ate something that did not belong to them, and the wallpaper with cartoon bones and fire hydrants was flaking off.

“What are you laughing at?”

“You should have come to me a long time ago for assistance with this establishment,” he said. “It is disgraceful.”

She blanched and made sure to keep her eyes on anything but him. She
had
come to him a long time ago—had tried to, anyway—and money had nothing to do with it. Had he really so easily forgotten the sort of person she was?

“That’s only your opinion.”

He made a noise between a laugh and a huff. “More than that if Home at Last is nearing bankruptcy. There is a reason why private shelters have ceased to function in this day in age.”

“
Since the financial crisis there are fewer government shelters and private shelters have stepped up. Fewer animals are euthanized as a result and—wait—” She stopped herself and relived the conversation in her head. “How did you know that we were nearing bankruptcy?” The question, of course, had been completely rhetorical. Without thinking about it, Emilia knew what the answer was. “Damn it.” She laughed and glared up at him, the remainder of anger taking over. “You were spying on me again, weren’t you?”

“Hardly
.” He looked around and closed the propped door behind him. If she was going to yell at him, the least he wanted was privacy with which to be scolded in. “I was making small inquiries into your life—”

“No! That’s enough, just shut up! I don’t want to know what you’ve been doing, what you know or don’t know
—just the fact that you don’t think I’m capable of taking care of myself is an insult…” Emilia pushed the hair from her face and sat at the table. “You want to organize this thing? Fine, let’s do that and get it over with so you can go home and I can file a restraining order.”

He smiled and watched her
under the fluorescent lights. It wasn’t so terrible, but it was not the same as firelight or the sun and something between lust and longing clenched at his heart.

“Come on
.” She gestured to the chair across from her, but Kasper stared at it as if it were something vulgar. “It isn’t fancy, but I promise it won’t bite, either.”

“Funny
.” He smirked. “I’ve known you to do just that…”

“Shut up.”
She looked away so he wouldn’t see her smile. How did he have the ability to make her angry and fill her head with lust at the same time? She flipped through the papers in her hands almost absentmindedly. She needed to stay focused if she wanted to stay true to her new resolution and flirting with Kasper was not going to be helpful at all.

“Okay
,” she said, brushing the hair from her face. “Since you rejected everyone else’s ideas about a location, do you have one?”

“Naturally. We’re going to have our gala at the Belhurst Castle.”

“The wedding place? That’s way too expensive, and even if it wasn’t, you have to book it like, two years in advance—”

“
The 18
th
of next month.” Kasper crossed his legs and interlaced his fingers over his knee. Instantly, Emilia rolled her eyes. Why did he get to act so superior all of the time?

“That’s only five weeks away.” Emilia picked up a pen and started creating swirls in the corners of the brochure of the Holiday Inn.

“Yes, well, I understand securing a last minute date is easier to achieve when engaged couples are no longer together.”

Skeptical and unwilling to
get her hopes up, Emilia stared at him and waited for him to admit that he was joking. Still, taking advantage of two other people with a broken heart was not out of Kasper’s realm.

“I have talked to Aasif and he confirms that $300 a ticket will take care of the venue as well as secure some much needed publicity for this place.”

“I’m sorry.” Suddenly her mouth felt drier than it had in her entire life. “$300 a ticket? American dollars?”

“Of course
, you foolish girl.”

Laughing, she shook her head.
“You can ask people to pay that, but people around here
won’t
pay that.”

“Don’t be silly,”
he said, leaning in closer. “This is a very liberal area. Surely you have lots of professors who believe in this ‘cause,’ classmates and acquaintances alike.

“Not for $300 a ticket and I’m going to assume black-tie?”

Kasper rested his elbows on the table. “You assume correctly.”

“
The people who work here can’t even afford that.”

“Obvious
ly, those hens out there will be given a compensated ticket. And you are being much too small-minded about this, Emilia Ward. New York is a wealthy, democratic state where I just happen to know many people. Once Mrs. Levkin sends out a few exclusive invitations, everyone on the east coast will want to attend.”

She smiled and looked at his hands.
She had to admit, it did sound good. “What do you even need me for, then? It sounds like you have everything figured out.”

“Nonsense
.” He smiled back. “I need you for everything.”

Chapter 5

Notes of the Heart

Aasif Shiraz had humored Kasper’s attempts to rid himself of the Ward girl, encouraged it even, suspecting that she would have found another patron to keep her occupied. While he admired the girl for her intelligence, and obvious devotion to hard work, he had been wary of strong-willed women who asked for nothing and offered everything in return. He, like many others he knew, had grown up with the notion that American women were promiscuous and lacked an ability to contain themselves. While he did not agree with the constraints his religion placed on women, he occasionally wondered if the world wouldn’t be a little better, slightly easier for people like Kasper, if such restrictions were applied in other countries.

Naturally,
he was surprised to hear from him so soon after leaving Massachusetts and recoiled at the sight of the hotel’s number coming up on his phone. Kasper hardly ever used the phone, and the last time he had, it was to call him at three in the morning and jammer on about some party idea he had to win over Ms. Ward. Had she rejected him already? Would he have to talk Kasper off the hotel’s rooftop?

“Kasper?”

“I am demoting you.”

“Pardon?”

“If you can’t be bothered to pick up on the first ring, then I have little use for you. I’ll be taking you down a pay scale immediately.”

Aasif had to admit he was somewhat relieved. Not only did Kasper not sound manic as he had before, but he had retur
ned to using the sarcasm he loved so much. Aasif hesitated to proceed as he normally would, but knew that expressing his concern or the curiosity into Kasper’s behavior change might be a catalyst to set his client off again.

“What do you want
, Kasper?”

“More
than a rude greeting.”

He smiled and leaned back into his chair. Indeed, Kasper was sounding far more like himself.
“What is that expression? Ah yes, the pot calling the kettle black.”

“I suppose I’m the pot in this scenario?”

“What do you want, Kasper? I am very busy, and believe it or not, I do have clients other than you.”

“Well
, whatever you’re doing for them on the 18
th
of July can be cancelled because
I
require you to be Geneva, New York.”

There was some muffled swearing on the other side of the line. “And why would I want to be there?”

“I told you about the fundraiser gala,
ouzgal
! Don’t you pay attention to anything?”

“Of course I do
.” Aasif laughed. “I just didn’t think you were being serious.”

“I was being intently serious. D
eadly, dreadfully, serious.”

“Insanely serious?”

“Stop being smart and make your arrangements, invite your friends as well—” Aasif could almost see his eyes rolling. “The animal loving ones.”

“I thought that e-mail from Mrs. Levkin was some kind of a joke.”

“Certainly not. I’ve even managed to secure a location by myself, though I’ve left most of the other details to Emilia and the venue’s manager. It hardly needs to be said I have neither the sense nor the patience for it.”

Aasif sighed, making his distaste instantly
known. He should have known that Kasper would take this endeavor too far. “I was all for you leaving the estate for a time, even donating to this cause—closure and all of those good things. Yet, this seems like much too much. Don’t you think you’re setting yourself up for more problems?”

“
If Emilia Ward is a
problem,
then every man should be so troubled.” Kasper sighed and refocused. “Regardless, if she does not love me by the time I am through with this, then nothing else will matter.”

Aasif already had his lecture prepared.
“You should not have to spend money for her to love you.”

“But I
should
have to suffer.” He sighed “And this is the best I can think of aside from living without her.”

“Fine
.” He sighed. “I’ll humor you. But how, may I ask, do you even expect to go through with this adventure of yours if you can’t run simple errands by yourself?”

“
Because
,” he mocked. “I won’t be the only one in a mask.”

***

Once word got out that the fundraiser was a masquerade, the tickets for the gala sold quickly, far more quickly than Emilia would admit to anyone but Kasper. To get the general public more involved, however, Emilia suggested a two ticket giveaway and naturally that elicited even more appeal. She was genuinely impressed with how quickly she and Elaine agreed on the color scheme for the gala—prompting the design and sending of invitations within two days. And after fliers went around the campus and announcements began on WVBR FM, alums and local businessmen alike were falling over themselves to offer items for the silent auction.

Therefore, there was more work to be done than ever and Emilia had no trouble staying late and coming in early to answer endless e-mails and phone calls.
In fact, she spent so much time during that first week managing the phones that when it began ring again one Tuesday morning, she picked it up without hesitation.

“Home at Last animal shelter, how may I help you?”

“Oh.” His voice was smooth and she shuddered at the prospect that lay just beyond it. “The possibilities of such a question.”

Emilia
stifled her giggle by biting her bottom lip. “This had better be work related.”

“Always so skeptical to my motives
, my little peach! Can I tear you away?”

“I’m busy
.”

“You have
been busy all week.”

“Thanks to you.”

“Would you rather
me
try to choose menu items?”

She smiled into the phone. It was easy to picture him choosing nothing but fruit and naan to eat
, with the assumption that his favorite foods were the only ones worth of being consumed. “Good point.”

“So
may
I steal you away or not?”

Even over the noise
, Emilia could hear her stomach growl. “That depends.”

“On?”

“If meal choices include samples.”

***

Not trusting herself at her own apartment again, and wanting to keep her word to Andrew about being a quieter neighbor, Emilia drove to The Statler Hotel instead of meeting Kasper at her place. She still wasn’t sure where exactly they were going. Kasper had refused to reveal the location over the phone, but assured her that he understood her time was of the utmost importance and with packages to sign for and exams to study for; she didn’t have time to argue. She only hoped that he respected her wishes and kept their interaction as professional as possible.

The concierge sent her up right away and she was glad for the lack of questions. Somehow
, she had automatically assumed that with Kasper’s appearance came a mystery that everyone responded to the same way she did. When she realized that she might have been the only one who was as interested in Kasper as she was however, it only made her more fascinated in his behavior—why he really was in New York.

She tried to clear her head. What if he really was there to win her over, to get her back? How was she supposed to feel about that? Overjoyed
? Thankful to be in his company again? Just the prospect that he expected her to be grateful made her anger rev up, and she was ready to jump down his throat if he gave her the opportunity. Keeping that in mind, she shifted her shoulders back and knocked on the door swiftly. 

He was standing in front of her before she had the chance to put her hand back down.
“What are you doing here?” He croaked.

“You had somethin
g to show me that couldn’t wait? We were going to discuss the menu…?” She smirked and looked him over. For someone who hadn’t expected her, he certainly looked prepared enough. Emilia didn’t want to confess how much she liked his three-piece suits and the way the waistcoat was always hemmed to make him look even taller and impossibly slimmer than he already was. She pretended to stare at her fingernails instead of the way the intricate pattern of his tie matched his eyes.

“I was referring to
this
location. I thought we agreed I was going to pick you up.”

Emilia smiled
. “You agreed to that,
I
didn’t.”

“I-
I suppose you should come in?”

She poke
d her head into the room. Of course she knew he wouldn’t have settled for anything less than a suite—yet it was difficult to take this particular suite seriously when everything was decorated in her school colors, when it vaguely reminded her of the student lounge. And while she only saw the inside of the sitting room, it was somehow easy to picture them in every inch of the suite. Suddenly, she could see them on the desk; picture them in the bed, the shower, the large sitting chair…

“Emilia?”

“No, no. I’d rather not.” She smiled awkwardly and tapped her feet against each other.

Kasper pulled at the collar of his shirt. “Come along
, then.” He shut the door behind him and she stared at the number posted on the door.

Room 2121
: she wanted to forget it, but didn’t think she could.

Emilia shook her head. “Hey! Wait up!”

Kasper smiled to himself. He was keeping her on her toes much better than expected—hopefully everything else would go just as well.

It was evident as they walked to the car that she
no longer expected him to open the doors for her but he did it anyway, happy to perform the small gesture. Emilia, meanwhile, was glad now that she had worn a simple peasant top and a denim skirt that was long enough to be appropriate, but still attractive enough to wear for an evening out. Kasper seemed to agree, as she could feel his eyes on her even as he put the car into drive and she situated her seatbelt over herself. What if she had worn something more provocative and he took it the wrong way? While she appreciated the fact that he obviously still found her attractive, she also wasn’t sure she could remember to keep herself in check.

“Where are we going
, anyway?”

“It is a surprise
,” he tried. “But I think you’ll like it.”

Emilia ran her hands against the leather seats. They had been cooled by the air conditioning, but still felt irrevocably hot to her.
“Since when do you do surprises?”

She watched his smile in the reflection of the windshield. “Around the time I
began giving my money to mangy dogs.”

“I’m just asking because I don’t want to be underdressed. We aren’t going somewhere—” she hesitated to use the word “
—fancy, are we?”

“Hardly.” He chuckled. “
Your choice of dress could never be wrong.” Kasper looked her over. “Unless you were wearing
too
much clothing. In that case—”

Emilia held out her hand and stared out the window. “You’d better stop right there.”

He continued to laugh, feeling more and more confident by the way her bare knees rubbed against each other while she squirmed in her seat.

“I was merely going to say that by wearing too many clothes, you would be doing not just
myself a service, but all of mankind as well.”

“I—
” She swallowed hard and looked away. “Don’t flirt with me,” she warned. “We work together now. It isn’t appropriate.”

He huffed and turned wide around the corner. “I cannot call you my peach, I cannot compliment you, is there anything I
can
do?”

“You can drive.”

Kasper smiled still, strangely encouraged by the anger in her voice. “Your wish is my command.”

They
finally stopped at a no-name bar that was only visible from its neon signs and smokers standing round and about outside. Emilia was leery about leaving such a nice car in a not so nice neighborhood but Kasper didn’t hesitate; seemingly only concerned about keeping his head down and getting inside as soon as possible.

“A bar?” She wanted to laugh, but only smiled instead. “You took me to a
bar
?”

“I realize it is a bit obscene, however I think that you’ll find that you
will like what is inside.”

“Alcohol?” 

“Use your ears more and your mouth less, my foolish girl.” He pulled back on his collar as they rushed past a group of people at the front door. It was still early in the evening, but overworked students and their teachers alike were beginning to arrive in small groups or as couples—an indicator that the weekend had begun.