Sparring Partners (39 page)

It pissed him off that anyone would hurt
her, even when she didn't see it. Jesse yanked on his collar,
trying to breathe. The starch from his shirt chafed his skin. He
looked like a fraud and he felt like an idiot. He wanted to plant
his fist in the face of the Brad Pitt look-a-like leering openly at
Reed even as he sat next to his own wife.

"Asshole."

"Which one, dear? There are so many here to
choose from."

His grandmother's angelically amused voice
hit him like a bucket of ice water on a smoldering fire. Jesse
didn't know when she'd worked her way into his heart, but she'd
done a good job of it before he knew it was happening. Lily calmed
him like no one else could, not even Reed, who if he was honest,
was as much of hot-head as he was. She didn't even try to hide
it.

"Let's start with the bleach blond with the
surfer tan who can't take his eyes off my mother's chest."

Lily laughed, the sound resonating through
him like the gong at the dojo, easing the tension in his shoulders
and his brow. She handed him a soda. When he took it she reached up
to straighten the tie he'd mangled in his anger.

"Reed can hold her own. Look again. See how
she's moving toward him, looming even? Like a hawk before it swoops
down, crushing a snake or rodent in its talons. Your mother knows
how to shift the energy around her." Lily glanced briefly over her
right shoulder toward Reed before focusing again on Jesse's
tie.

"He's moving away from her. If I'm not
mistaken, that gleam in her eye and that beautiful smile on her
face are purely predatory."

Jesse looked. Really looked, allowing
himself to see what was really happening without being blinded by
his anger on Reed's behalf. The
asshole
really was moving
away as Reed swooped in. Her size didn't make her any less
intimidating when she wanted to be. Jesse knew that firsthand.

Lily brushed imaginary lint from his padded
shoulders. "Your mother can take care of herself. She doesn't need
a knight in shining armor. She rides that horse just fine on her
own."

Jesse looked down into Lily's kind eyes,
seeing a combination of comfort and fierceness there that tugged at
his heart. He wanted to keep this grandmother. He didn't have any
others, and he liked this one a lot. The closest thing he had to a
grandmother before Lily was Irma, and Irma was dying. The pang in
his heart at the thought of losing Irma made him want to keep Lily
even more.

He pulled her to him in a quick,
uncomfortable hug. He really wasn't used to displays of physical
affection, although it was getting easier with Reed and Finn. As
quickly as he pulled Lily to him, he held her away, his overly
large hands on her narrow, but strong shoulders. She looked shocked
and pleased with him at the same time, making him blush at his
impulsiveness. Feeling the heat in his cheeks, Jesse dropped his
hands to his sides, but didn't look away.

Lily raised one hand to cup his cheek and he
allowed it. "You look incredibly handsome this evening, although
you could use a hair-cut." She cocked her head at him and smiled
slowly as she took her hand away.

"I hope you're not taking a leaf from my
son's book. He keeps his hair long just to prove he's not like
everyone else. What he doesn't understand, is that he's not like
most investors who are as driven as he is. At his core, Jordon's
thoughtful and kind. Generous without thought, although he'd never
admit it, especially to himself. In fact the only person Jordon
isn't generous with is himself."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I see the same look in your eyes
that I saw in Jordon's after his daughter Emily died. She wasn't
really his, but that didn't matter to Jordon, he was all heart as a
child." The nostalgic look on Lily's face made Jesse want to hug
her again. He settled for pulling out a chair for her instead. He
wanted to hear about the man who married his mother and was now
conspicuously absent. He liked Jordon and wanted to keep liking
him, in spite of his absence.

Jesse pushed Lily's chair in for her and
took a seat opposite. He didn't say anything, he just waited
patiently for Lily to continue.

"Jordon loved Emily's mother, and when she
told Jordon he was Emily's father, he immediately married her.
Emily's death, and what Jordon saw as her mother's betrayal, when
she knowingly lied to him about being Emily's father, left Jordon
with a void he's been afraid to fill ever since."

The sadness in Lily's eyes cut at Jesse. He
grabbed a glass of champagne from a passing tray and handed it to
her. She sipped gracefully and continued.

"He left Jackson right after Emily's
funeral. He moved near William and focused all of his energy on
having more, being more, and making more money than anyone else.
And, he succeeded. So much so, this meeting with Takahara is just a
formality. He's got William's spot if he wants it."

"What do you want him to do?"

"I want my son to be happy."

Jesse shrugged. "Working seems to make him
happy."

"Creating wealth is something Jordon's good
at because that's all he's focused on since he left home. He takes
pride in doing it well. It doesn't, however, make him happy. It's
made him lonely, arrogant, and profoundly unhappy."

"So what does make him happy?"

"You do. All of you. Reed, you, the
connections he's made with the people at Potters Woods. All of it,
all of you have changed Jordon for the better. You've opened him up
to the person he was before he decided to define his life by how
may zeros he put in B.H.'s portfolio."

Jesse didn't quite know what to make of
that. "If we're so important to him, why isn't he here?"

Lily shook her head, her voice heavy with
concern, as she reached for his hand across the table.

"I wish I knew, Jesse. I do know that
whatever is keeping him away must be vitally important."

Jesse's glanced from his mother's painted on
smile back to Lily's small, but real one. "I hope whatever it is,
it's worth it."

CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR

"Finn told me you were at the hospital, what
are you doing here?" Henry made a show of looking at his watch.
"Aren't you supposed to be at your wedding reception?" It wasn't
really a question. When Henry used that particular tone, Jordon
knew what he meant was,
Hey dumb-ass you're not where you're
supposed to be, get the lead out.

Jordon raked a hand through his hair. Seeing
a loose rubber band on the floor where he'd dumped the files he'd
been working on for the Takahara presentation he was supposed to
pitch tomorrow, Jordon grabbed it and pulled his hair into a
haphazard tail. The rubber band was too tight, pulling at the
tender hair at his temples painfully. He ignored the pain, focusing
instead on the colored rendering of a conceptual facility that he
had his architect prepare. It was very similar to what Reed
envisioned as her master plan for Potters Woods.

"Why are you here, tossing paperwork all
over Charlie's floor?"

"His desk is too small."

"You're not supposed to be here."

"You said that already."

"Yet here you are, in Charlie's study,
shuffling shit?"

Jordon set the rendering aside and looked up
at the only man he'd called friend for two decades. "Have you got
something you want to say, Henry? Spit it out. Otherwise, you've
got two options."

"Options?"

Jordon couldn't help smiling. He and Henry
never needed many words. He loved Henry, and he couldn't remember
when he'd ever said it. That conversation, however, was going to
have to wait. He had more than enough to chew through on his plate
for one night, and not enough time to waste, so he answered Henry's
unasked question.

"Help me Henry, or get the hell out of my
way."

Henry's eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched,
then he collapsed with the grace of a ballet dancer next to Jordon
on the floor.

"Someday you're going to have to show me how
you do that."

Henry ignored the veiled compliment. "What
do you need?"

The alarm on Jordon's watch sounded. "I need
to put all of this in a comprehensible order, and sell it to Giles
in the next hour."

"You're giving your pitch to Jay Giles?"
Henry asked incredulously, shaking his head in disbelief. "You
can't go to the cottage anymore. That place makes you nuts."

"Maybe. Maybe I'm about to do the craziest
thing I've ever done. Maybe I'm about to make the best move I've
made since marrying Reed. Either way, I've got to give the best
pitch of my life. Giles needs to make this happen. This is probably
the most important deal I've ever packaged."

"Do you think Giles is up to it?"

"He's up to it. No question. The question is
whether or not he'll sell it to Takahara."

There was a knock on the open study door
drawing Jordon's attention. "Did I hear my name?"

"Come in Jay." Jordon said, using Giles'
first name for the very first time. "We've got a lot to talk about
and not much time."

"If this is some kind of twisted trick to
get me to bow out of this deal, it's never going to happen."

"It's no trick, and I'm the one bowing
out."

Giles stepped into the room. "Okay. You've
got my attention."

He looked at Jordon and Henry, smiling, but
still overtly cautious. Jordon saw at that moment why Jay Giles was
as successful as he was. The man had a certain charm, when he
wasn't going for the jugular.

"But I'm not sitting on the floor." He
flashed a grin. "I like the view too much from up here."

...

"I've gotta hand it to you Bennett. This
plan of yours is innovative. The delivery of services is efficient,
and, well balanced. It's so simple, and yet it meets every need."
Giles shook his head, his eyes going from enthusiastic to
shrewd.

"My pitch is good. Damn good. But this is
better. It meets all of Takahara's criteria, and then some. How did
you ever come up with it?"

"I had help."

"What kind of help?"

"The elf kind."

Giles's smile said he appreciated Jordon
holding his cards close to his chest. "Fine, don't tell me. It
really doesn't matter. This is going to make all of us a
fortune."

"It's not just about the bottom line, Jay.
This plan works. I've seen it. I've lived it. This plan helps
people. With Takahara's capital, and B.H.'s know-how, we can help
tens of thousands of people live healthy and more dignified lives
as they age."

"You sound like a true believer. You should
give this pitch."

"I've got something more important to
do."

"What's more important than helping tens of
thousands of people?" Giles asked.

"Helping one."

Giles laughed, but Jordon could see that he
didn't have a clue what he was talking about, and Jordon didn't
have the time or the desire to explain it any further, he had to
get back to Irma.

"I don't get you, Bennett, in fact I think
you're nuts-"

"Me too." Henry jumped in.

"-But I'll take your idea. I'll sell it to
Takahara. It'll be a done deal before I'm through with my
presentation." There was no charm now in Giles, only serious
tension, when he continued.

"You do realize, that if I'm the one to make
this happen, I'll be the acting CEO when William retires." And just
in case Jordon really was nuts, and didn't get the implication,
Giles spelled it out for him. "I'll get your job."

"Good luck, Jay. Make it happen."

Jay Giles nodded, took all the paperwork,
and headed toward the door. When he reached it he turned. "I hope
the person you're saving is Reed. The piranhas at your reception
are circling, just waiting for the scent of blood. She was doing
well at brunch when I snuck out to meet you, even better than she
did last night, but you know how cruel our set can be."

An invisible spear fishing javelin pierced
Jordon's gut drawing blood. Blood Jordon refused to let spill. That
sharp pain was followed by a soothing sense of pride just as sharp,
but with a cauterizing effect.

"My wife can swim with the sharks in any
water. She doesn't need me to save her. She's the one who does the
saving in the family."

Here's hoping she's still willing to save my
sorry ass.

"I'll bet you twenty bucks by the time you
get back that she's knocked out every sharp tooth that tried to
bite her."

Giles smiled as warmly as he ever had toward
Jordon, and why not, Jordon thought, he'd just been handed the keys
to the B.H. kingdom.

"I'd never bet against your wife, Bennett. I
like her too much. William does too, in case he hasn't said
anything."

Jordon acknowledged Jay's peace offering
with a slight incline of his head. Giles nodded back and was gone.
Jordon stared after him, at the empty doorway, wondering why he
didn't feel anything except relief while he watched his life's
dream slip away.

"Do you still need me?" Henry asked, pulling
Jordon out of past plans and patterns to focus on a very real 'now'
that required his immediate attention.

"Yeah, I do. Finn too, if she's willing. Ask
her to bring her camera, it may be the only thing that keeps us
from getting arrested."

CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE

The stench of antiseptic burned Jordon's
nostrils as he stepped through the automatic doors of the
Burlington Hospital.

Hospitals suck.

The faded white and pea green walls began to
close in on him as a cart of industrialized mush food passed
by.

Hospitals suck.

The bright glare of fluorescent light
bouncing off the polished linoleum floor and shiny stainless steel
equipment hurt Jordon's eyes. He narrowed his eyes against it, but
the instant headache pierced his temples.