Sugar Rush (11 page)

“I remember your
father’s hot fudge very well,” Carolyn reminisced. She and her husband sat with
Lexi, Angie, and Jeff in a long booth at the Javelina Cantina Mexican Restaurant,
overlooking the London Bridge. At the swap meet, Carolyn suggested they go
somewhere for lunch, since Lexi was out of her hot fudge mix anyway, and it
would give them an opportunity to catch up on old times. Joe and Carolyn sat on
one side of the booth, while the three younger people sat on the opposite side,
with Lexi in the middle.

“Do you recall that weekend
we spent at my cousin’s cabin in Wrightwood? You were probably eight or nine
years old,” Carolyn asked. “It was really late and everyone was asleep. Your
mom and I got the urge for a hot fudge sundae, but we only had a little ice
cream left.”

“I remember.” Lexi
smiled at the memory. She took a tortilla chip from a basket sitting in the
middle of the table. “Not sure if the smell of the hot fudge woke me or your
giggling.” She dipped the chip in a bowl of salsa and took a bite.

“You made us split it with
you. Threatened you would wake Joe and your dad if we refused.” They all
laughed.

“Those were good
times,” Carolyn sighed.

Everyone was silent for
a few moments, lost in private thoughts, when the server arrived with their
food. Plates were passed around the table, and drink glasses refilled. Jeff
ordered another Corona and handed the server his empty bottle. When the server
finally completed his tasks at the table, the conversation resumed.

“I still don’t
understand,” Jeff asked. “Why did the courts give her grandfather custody?”

“Just because parents
assign a guardian in a will, that doesn’t necessarily mean their wishes will be
honored,” Joe explained. “Especially when the appointed guardian isn’t a family
member and a family member contests the will.”

 “It also helps,”
Carolyn added, “if the family member is very wealthy and has connections.”

“I still say it didn’t
help when I told the judge I wanted to live with my grandfather. I can’t help
but wonder how things might have been different had I given another answer.”

“I really don’t think
it would have changed the outcome. Your answer only made the judge feel better
about the decision he’d already made.” Carolyn reached across the table and
patted Lexi’s hand. “I’m so sorry, Lexi; I had no idea things had been so awful
for you.”

“Carolyn, it wasn’t
that bad,” Lexi said brightly, not wanting to make her parent’s best friends
feel guilty over something they couldn’t change. “I lived in a very nice house,
and I wasn’t abused in any way. I had plenty to eat, clothes to wear, and
received a nice education. It was just that he was always gone, and I was
pretty much raised by the servants.”

“It sounds lonely,”
Carolyn said sadly.

“Let’s not forget the
old S.O.B. tried to marry you off to his partner!” Angie added, sounding annoyed.

“He what?” Carolyn
gasped.  Both she and Joe turned to look at Angie.

“After Lexi graduated,
he expected her to marry his business partner. When she refused, he kicked her
out and kept everything he ever bought her and everything in her bedroom, which
was practically everything she owned, including her clothes.”

“Oh, Lexi! I’m so
sorry!” Carolyn shook her head in disgust.

“Are you talking about
Jerome Peters?” Joe asked.

“Yes,” Lexi confirmed.

“He’s just a couple of
years younger than your dad. What was your grandfather thinking?”

“I really don’t know,
Joe.” Lexi shrugged, grabbing another chip. “Knowing Grandfather, having me
marry Peters was the same as marrying off his business and keeping his life all
neat and organized. His first priority was always the company. All that doesn’t
matter to me anymore.”

“Lexi surprised her
grandfather,” Angie chimed in. “He expected her to buckle when he took
everything away from her. He didn’t realize Lexi freelanced during college and
had a nice little nest egg to fall back on.”

“And what about your
inheritance?” Joe asked.

“Inheritance?” Lexi
frowned.

“You were supposed to
get that when you turned twenty-one. You’re twenty-one now, aren’t you?”

“I don’t know what you
mean by inheritance, but there wasn’t any from my parents.”

“What are you talking
about?” Joe asked. “I know your parents had at least $100,000 equity in their
house. I remember when he bought it, before you were born, and how much they
paid. Housing prices went up like crazy during that decade.”

“Not to mention the
life insurance money,” Carolyn added.

“Life insurance? I
don’t know anything about that. According to my grandfather, all the money that
was left over went to him, to pay off some loan Dad owed him. Apparently, my
parents borrowed money from my grandfather.”

“What?” Joe and Carolyn
shouted at the same time.

“That is utter
bullshit!” Joe shouted, his face turning red.

“Shhh, Joe, not so loud.
People are staring.” Carolyn patted her husband’s arm. He took a deep breath
and lowered his voice.

“Lexi, your parents
never borrowed money from your grandfather. I would bet my life on that. I
don’t know what bullshit your grandfather is trying to feed you, but he is
lying, plain and simple.”

“Lexi, it seems we made
a big mistake by walking away and letting your grandfather win. I am so sorry,”
Carolyn apologized. “At the time… Well, it was all so emotional. Joe had just
received his transfer to the New York office, and we weren’t in the position to
turn it down. At the time, your grandfather presented a good argument to the
court. He was your only living relative. He was more than financially equipped
to give you whatever you needed. And if you went with us, you’d be leaving your
school and friends, and so soon after your parent’s death.”

“What was this about a
court order?” Jeff asked, breaking into the conversation. “Back at the swap
meet you said something about a restraining order.”

“Soon after Lexi went
to live with her grandfather, we moved. I regularly sent letters and gifts to Lexi,
yet never heard back. About a year after her parent’s death, we came to
California for a visit, and wanted to spend some time with Lexi. We weren’t
permitted to see her, and when we pressed the issue, her grandfather got a
restraining order. She was a minor, and he was her guardian, so the judge
agreed he had the right to deny us visits. I suppose we crossed over the line
by showing up at her school, but we didn’t know what else to do.”

“I never knew you wrote
or sent gifts. And I didn’t know about your visit to my school.”

“We never managed to
see you, but apparently, your Grandfather suspected we might do something like
that, so he hired someone to follow us while we were in California.”

He hired someone to
follow us while we were in California
—those words made Jeff
feel a little sick inside.
I need to tell her
, Jeff told himself. Yet,
he hadn’t been able to find the right time. He wondered how she would feel when
she found out her grandfather had also hired him to follow her.

“You need to find out
about your inheritance,” Carolyn told Lexi.

“I don’t even know
where to start.”

“I’ll help you.” Jeff
wrapped one arm around Lexi and gave her a reassuring hug, pulling her closer
to him in the booth.

“So, tell me, how long
have you and Jeff been together?” Carolyn asked.

“I think the more
interesting question,” Angie teased, “is how long they’ve known each other.”

Lexi elbowed her friend.

“Ouch!” Angie squealed.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t
mean to pry.”

The next moment the
server returned to the table. He refilled their beverage glasses and asked how
they were enjoying their food. He offered to bring more chips, to which they
declined. When he left again, Joe asked Lexi how she came up with her idea for marketing
the hot fudge sauce. The conversation took several turns during the meal. From
hot fudge they moved on to Joe’s retirement; how they all ended up in Havasu. They
were discussing upcoming local events when the server came to remove their
plates.

Joe asked the server to
bring him the check, and despite some friendly arguments from his dining
companions, who each offered to pay, the server took Joe’s credit card a few
minutes later. After the bill was paid, the five got up from the booth and made
their way from the dining room, down the short hallway between the bar and
kitchen, to the front entrance of the restaurant.

Joe had parked his
vehicle near the stairs by the front entrance, while Angie and Jeff had parked around
back, toward the Channel. The five lingered by Joe’s car while saying their
goodbyes. Lexi and Carolyn exchanged phone numbers, and Carolyn promised she
would call Lexi as soon as they returned to Havasu from the trip they were
taking.

After the group said
their lengthy goodbyes, Joe and Carolyn got into their vehicle, and the three
younger people began walking to the rear parking area.

“They seem like really
nice people,” Jeff commented a few moments later, after Joe drove out of the
parking lot with Carolyn.

“Yeah, they were always
nice to me when I was a kid.”

“I think you need to
check into this inheritance thing,” Angie suggested.

“I didn’t want to say
anything back at the restaurant,” Lexi said as the three stopped by Angie’s
Volkswagen. “I’m sure they’re wrong about the inheritance.”

“Why do you say that?
They seemed to know there was life insurance, and they were both adamant your
parents wouldn’t have borrowed money from your grandfather,” Angie argued.

“Even best of friends
don’t always know what goes on behind closed doors. About two years before my
parents were killed, I overheard them argue. I remember because my parents
never fought, and this one was pretty heated. They didn’t know I was in the
next room, because I was supposed to be at the neighbors, but I had come home
to get something.”

“What did you
overhear?” Jeff asked.

“They were arguing
about money. My dad had a small business, and I guess things were going bad,
and he needed to replace some equipment. My mother suggested he go to his
father for a loan, and that is when the fighting started.

“Plus, I don’t see how
my grandfather could hide something like an inheritance from me. If there was
life insurance money, then wouldn’t he have to put it in some sort of savings
under my name? And if they were having money problems, they probably didn’t pay
the premiums or cashed out the policy. There are lots of possibilities, and the
less likely, in my opinion, is that there is some unclaimed inheritance out
there waiting for me.”

“Shouldn’t you at least
check into it?”

“I don’t know, Angie. I’d
rather focus on positive stuff, and at the moment, one of the most positive
things in my life—from a financial perspective—is the hot fudge mix business.
And, guys, I sold out today!
Woohoo!”

Angie drove the red Volkswagen
out of the Javelina Cantina parking lot as Lexi and Jeff got into Jeff’s
vehicle. After closing the car doors, they sat quietly for a moment, looking
out the front windshield at the back of the restaurant. 

Lexi was playing over
the day’s events in her mind, and didn’t noticed when Jeff turned in her
direction and silently studied her profile. When she finally noticed he was
watching her, she turned around and gave him an inquisitive frown.

 “What?”

In response, Jeff
reached out and gently brushed the side of her face with the back of his hand.
The hand lingered for a moment, moving over her soft cheek in a feather-light
back-and-forth caress. 

“You’re so beautiful,”
he whispered before withdrawing his hand.

Lexi blushed at the
compliment and couldn’t decide on an appropriate response, so she said nothing.

“Lexi, does Angie have
a problem with you and me?”

“No, why do you ask
that?”

“The crack in the
restaurant; how we haven’t known each other long.”

“Oh, that.” Lexi
smiled. “That’s just Angie, she likes to tease. No, she likes you.”

“I know things have
happened fast.”

“It’s been kind of
crazy.”

“Lexi, I only have the
rental until the end of the month.”

“I remember you
mentioned that before. But I didn’t think it was a definite thing. The end of
the month… that’s Thursday.”

“Well, I thought I
could work something out.”

“Does this mean you’re
leaving?” The twisting in Lexi’s stomach made her want to cry, but she remained
outwardly calm.

“No, but I need to
start looking for someplace else to stay. I’m not in a hurry to go back home.”

“But, you have to go
back to work eventually. I imagine your employer expects you to return
sometime, and if you find something else before you do, you’ll have to move to
wherever the job is. I guess I always knew. I just didn’t want to think about
it.”

“You aren’t listening
to me, Lexi. I’m not planning to leave Havasu right away. I don’t want to leave
you.”

Leaning toward Jeff, Lexi
brushed her lips over his and then pulled away. Jeff captured the side of her
face in the palm of his hand and ever so gently moved his thumb over her skin
as he looked into her eyes.

“Can we talk about this
later? So much has happened today. I don’t think I can deal with the thought of
you leaving, yet I can’t help but feel guilty, knowing what it might mean if
you stay.”

“You have absolutely
nothing to feel guilty about, Lexi.”

“I don’t want to do
anything to jeopardize your job or hurt your potential job opportunities. I
know you’ve had a number of interviews, and if you’re offered one you want, you
need to go.”

“Are you trying to get
rid of me?”

“Now you aren’t
listening to me!” Lexi leaned toward Jeff again, resting her head against his
shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly and kissed the
top of her head.

“Don’t worry about me, Lexi.
I just wanted you to know I would be looking for another place to stay in
Havasu.”

* * *

“Do you think he wants
to stay here?” Angie asked Lexi that evening when she learned Jeff wouldn’t be
their neighbor for much longer. Angie sat at the breakfast bar eating a hot
fudge sundae while Lexi stood in the kitchen making a peanut butter sandwich.

“Here? No. Why do you
ask that?”

“Well, you two… you know.”
Angie shrugged.

“No. I wouldn’t even
suggest that. In fact, I wouldn’t want that. I like him. I mean, I really like
him. I might even be in love with him. But I’m not totally stupid. We’ve only
known each other for a few weeks.”

“Good. I like him, too,
but I confess, I was a little concerned you two were moving awful fast. And
while I suppose all that’s cool, moving in together would be pushing it.”

“He’s been wonderful
and supportive. We talk about all sorts of things, but when it comes to his job
and how he’s able to be here, and what kind of work he’s doing by
telecommuting, it isn’t all that clear to me.”

“You don’t think he’s
into something illegal, do you?”

“Illegal? No. That
never entered my mind.”

 “It’s just that most
guys love to talk about their jobs. At least the guys I’ve dated.”

“Well, I do know he
goes online several hours a day. Not sure if it’s work related or job hunting.”
Lexi took a bite of her peanut butter sandwich.

“Then I would stop
stressing about it, Lexi. The guy is obviously crazy about you. Considering the
number of people who work from home on the computer, I’m sure his current
employer is okay with him being here. And if he is offered a job he really
wants, I’m sure he’ll do what’s necessary for his career.”

Lexi’s cell phone let
out a little beep, indicating an incoming text message. She picked it up from
the kitchen counter. Continuing to eat her sandwich, she read the message.

“It’s Jeff. He wants me
to come over and sit in the spa with him.” Lexi smiled. She held the sandwich
in her mouth as she used her fingers to send a reply message.

“Should I expect you
home tonight?” Angie asked, already knowing the answer.

“Nope,” Lexi chirped
cheerfully.

Angie watched Lexi
leave. To the empty, room she said, “I think we are in denial, Lexi. Looks like
you two are already living together.”

* * *

The next morning, Lexi
turned on her computer and logged into her Facebook account. Wearing her robe,
she sat on the loveseat in Jeff’s living room with the laptop on her knees.
Jeff was just handing her a cup of coffee when she let out a little whooping
sound.

“Woohoo! I don’t
believe it!”

Jeff stood silently
beside her, a warm coffee mug in his hand, waiting for her to explain.

“Six of those people
who bought my hot fudge mix have already posted on my Facebook page. They are
all giving rave reviews!”

“That’s great! I told
you you had a hit.”

“Not just that, but
they are sharing with friends. Already people are responding. Jeff, I only sold
24 jars, but the page has 112 likes! How is that possible?”

“The power of social
media.” Jeff sat next to her on the small couch and looked over at her laptop
screen.

“I want to prepare forty-eight
jars this week—four cases.”

“You might as well.
Even if you don’t sell them, they’ll keep for the next Sunday.”

“Wow, someone asked
where they can order the mix online!”

“Ahh, my little hot
fudge mogul.” Jeff wrapped his arm around her shoulders and gave her a kiss on
the cheek.

“This is so exciting.”

“Yes, but one step at a
time. I think selling it online is inevitable, but this thing is moving pretty
quickly, considering you came up with the idea just a few weeks ago. How about
we sit down this afternoon and review your business plan again. If you don’t get
organized early on, you’ll regret it later, especially if this thing really
takes off.”

Sugar Rush
.
The term flashed through Lexi’s mind. Isn’t that what Jeff said when he first
approached her in the grocery store? Smiling to herself, she couldn’t help but think
that was a sweet metaphor for her relationship with Jeff and the hot fudge
venture.

* * *

That afternoon Angie
joined Lexi and Jeff in the spa, where the three discussed the hot fudge business
at length while drinking cold beer. For dinner, Jeff barbecued chicken at his
house for the three of them. Later that evening, Angie walked back to her house,
and Lexi stayed with Jeff.

The week moved quickly
toward the weekend, and Lexi kept busy. On Tuesday morning, Jeff took her
shopping so she could purchase more jars, mix ingredients and food products she
wanted to highlight in promotional photos for the hot fudge sauce. When she got
home from the store, she put the jars through the dishwasher, then added the
mix after the jars dried.

On Wednesday, Lexi
cooked up a batch of fudge on the stove. Angie helped with a photo shoot,
taking digital pictures of the hot fudge sauce used in various ways. They made
a traditional sundae, topped a brownie sundae, and poured the sauce over
bananas and strawberries. Jeff was there to eat up the sweet props when they
finished with each shoot.

The three continued to
have dinners together. On Tuesday, they had Italian food at Mario’s Italian
Restaurant, and on Wednesday, Angie insisted on Italian food again, this time
taking the threesome to Angelina’s Italian Kitchen. Over dessert, they debated
over which was the best Italian restaurant of the two, and finally decided it
was a draw. They enjoyed them both.

When it came time to go
to bed, Lexi always stayed with Jeff, and Angie wondered what her friend would
do when Jeff moved to another location. From what Angie understood, Jeff was
waiting to hear back from a Realtor regarding available rentals. With the
number of winter visitors in town, rentals were scarce. When Angie asked Jeff
if other renters were moving into his house on the first, Jeff said he didn’t
think so. Angie then asked why he didn’t simply keep that house. In a cryptic
fashion, he said it was complicated, but he was looking into it.

Lexi spent most of
Thursday on the computer, updating her social media sites. She scheduled
Twitter tweets, uploaded photos to the Facebook page, and created a board at
Pinterest, where she added dessert pictures.  

Jeff rescued her late
Thursday afternoon and insisted he take her to dinner.

“Where’s Angie?” Jeff
asked shortly after he arrived.

“Don’t you remember?
She had a job this afternoon.”

“Oh, that’s right. Some
real estate thing?”

“Yep. A Realtor hired
her to take pictures at an open house. I don’t expect her back for a couple of
hours.”

“So, let’s go get
something to eat.”

“Jeff, we went out the
last two nights.”

“I’m not suggesting
Italian.”

Lexi laughed. “Yeah, I
don’t think I could do another night of Italian, but I have to admit Havasu has
two damn good Italian restaurants.”

“I understand they have
a good steakhouse, too. I asked the guy at the gas station where I could get a
good steak. He said Rod’s Homestead. It’s sort of a rustic, cowboy-looking
place. Come on. You need to get away from that damn computer.”

“What’s going on with
the rental? The other day you said you needed to get out by the end of the
month. It’s the end of the month.”

“Well, I haven’t heard
back from the landlord, so I assume I can stay a few extra days. Like I said,
it’s complicated.”

Jeff had talked to
Ethan Beaumont one other time since Beaumont told Jeff he would be fired if Lexi
didn’t return home within a week. The last phone call was brief, and instead of
issuing any threats, Beaumont simply asked for an update and then hung up. Jeff
contacted the Realtor who’d rented the house to Beaumont, telling him he would
like to pay for February, but because the rental was currently in Beaumont’s
name, the Realtor told Jeff he would get back to him. Jeff still had not heard
back from the Realtor.

Tonight, after dinner,
I will sit Lexi down and tell her everything,
Jeff told
himself. It was something he said every night that week.