If I Were Your Woman (2 page)

“Hmm, that makes sense especially about the retirement part and wanting to ensure your future.” She looked into Barbara's all-wise eyes. “That's why it's so important for me to make my own business work. I want that same kind of security, ya know.” Her eyes zipped around the room.

“I totally understand, sis. And we're behind you. So don't even worry about it. How is everything working out?”

“Well, once Terri and I work out the terms of our partnership we can get busy.” She pulled in a breath and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “I have several clients pending and of course we still have the ‘Pause Man' campaign.”

Barbara tilted her head to the right side. “Are you sure something isn't bothering you, Steph? You seem edgy.”

“No, really, I'm fine.” It was bad enough that the reason why they had to hire security for the spa was that Conrad decided to show up there and they didn't want any trouble. The last thing she needed the girls to know was that she was still being harassed, maybe threatened by his wife now. She told them weeks ago that she was going to have her number changed. But she hadn't gotten around to it. She'd figured that once they were served with the restraining order, her harassing phone calls and Conrad's impromptu visits would stop. She'd stayed at Tony's place for a few weeks and had only recently started staying back at her own apartment.

“Well, for the record, I don't believe you. So if and when you want to talk, I'm ready to listen.” She gave her a smile and a pat on the shoulder before walking off toward the massage rooms on the lower level.

Stephanie took a moment to pull herself together, grabbed her briefcase from on top of the registration desk, and walked toward the office to prepare for her meeting with Terri.

When she opened the office door she was surprised to find Ann Marie sitting behind the desk on the phone. Her back was to the door, but she spun the swivel chair around to face Stephanie. She gave her a smile and a thumbs-up signal.

Stephanie angled her head in question, then eased the door closed and took a seat opposite Ann Marie.

Ann Marie flashed a self-satisfied grin on her cherub face when she finished with her call. “Well, you can t'ank me now or you can t'ank me lata.”

“What exactly am I thanking you for?”

“I used all me skills and contacts and found you an office for your business for cheap!” She grinned triumphantly.

“An office?” Her stomach muscles knotted. On any other day it would have been fabulous news.

“Yes, chile, an office. You can't run a real business in this tiny box. How're you going to entertain your big-time clients?”

Ann Marie had been instrumental in getting Stephanie's business license and supporting her dream of starting her own PR company after she'd quit her job at H. L. Reuben. Of all the girls, it was Ann Marie who surprised her most when she'd come to her aid and encouraged her to step out on faith. Over the years she and Ann Marie had been like oil and water.

At times she thought it was simply Ann Marie's feisty Jamaican roots that rubbed her the wrong way. But Ann Marie had changed, she'd mellowed, the bristle around her edges had softened. As a result Stephanie lowered the barrier she'd kept between herself and Ann Marie and they'd finally become real girlfriends.

Stephanie tossed her head. Her shoulder-length weave fell into perfect waves to frame her face. She held up her hand. “Wait, you got me an office?”

“You goin' deaf? That's what me said, mon.” She sucked her teeth in mock annoyance.

Stephanie pushed out a breath. “Ann, I don't know if I'm ready…for an office.” Her voice faded with each word.

Ann Marie frowned and leaned forward. “I thought you would be excited. Ya look like someone stole something from ya.”

Stephanie tried to play it off, but it was too much trouble. She glanced over her shoulder to be sure the door was closed. She drew her chair closer to the table, the wooden legs scraping across the floor.

“I got a call today.”

“From who?”

“Conrad's wife.”

“Oh, damn.” She threw her hands up in the air. “What she wan'now? Guess law and order don't mean not'ing to 'er.” She jumped up from her seat and began pacing, her high heels popping like bullets against the floor. She stopped in midstep and swung a look at Stephanie. “Well, what 'appened?”

“I mean she said the same crap she's been saying except…”

“Except what?”

“I don't know, Ann,” she said, sounding defeated. “It was different. Kinda scary. I haven't been able to shake it all morning.” She visibly shuddered, then looked up at Ann Marie. “To tell you the truth—and not that I don't appreciate your efforts, but I'd just feel safer—here for a while.”

Ann Marie pursed her lips and blew out a measured breath then slowly sat back down. “Did she threaten you?”

“Not anything like an ‘I'm gonna kill you' kind of threat, but…she said it wasn't over. The thing is it's not so much what she said, but how she said it. It was creepy.”

“Did you tell Tony?”

She shook her head. “He'd already left for work. He had a meeting with a new client.”

“Listen, she can't be crazy enough to really bother you. You have a restraining order against 'er. Call the police and let them know.”

“I want the whole thing to go away!” She slapped her palm down on the table. “Damn it.” She covered her face with her hands.

Ann Marie got up and came around to the other side of the table. She knelt down next to Stephanie. “It's going to be okay. The office space can wait.” She waved her hand in dismissal. “You can't let 'er get to you.”

“I know, I know.” She lifted her head toward the ceiling. “I'm just being silly. Probably PMS.”

Ann Marie pushed herself up to a standing position. “Yeah, that's probably it.” She squeezed her shoulder.

There was a light knock on the door.

“Oh, that's probably Terri,” Stephanie said, sniffing hard, then shaking her head. She drew in a breath and stood up. She went to the door and opened it. “Hi, Terri. Right on time.”

“Traffic as usual was murder. I was sure I was going to get here for the dinner rush.” She stepped in. “Ann Marie, good to see you again.”

“I'm always happy to see a woman who can come up with brilliant ideas to bring handsome men right to my doorstep.”

The women laughed. The Pause Man campaign had been such an overwhelming success they'd had to extend the deadline. The concept was that the Pause Man would actually represent the spa. He would have to be not only good to look at, but physically fit, nutrition oriented, and willing to be a spokesman, so he had to have personality as well. Terri had been able to get the backing of major sponsors as part of the prize package.

“I aim to please,” Terri said.

“I have an appointment to show a house in an hour. I better get moving,” Ann Marie said, slipping into her broker mode. “Take care, Terri.” She looked at Stephanie. “Don't forget what I said.”

“I won't.”

Ann Marie walked out.

Terri turned to Stephanie. “Everything okay? I feel like I walked in on something.”

“No, everything is fine. Just going over some spa stuff.”

Terri took off her coat and sat down. “So…let's get the campaign stuff out of the way and talk business.”

Stephanie brightened. “Yes, let's.”

 

“When are we going to see you again, Tony?” Leslie stood in the frame of her front door.

“I'll try to get back out here next month, sis.”

“Next month! Tony…you gotta do better than this. Your daughter needs you. I'm tired of lying to her about where you are, why you can't stay when you do decide to drop by. She's just a little girl, Tony. It's bad enough that she lost her mother. She may as well have lost you, too!”

“I'm doing the best I can,” he shot back.

Leslie looked at her brother with a mixture of love and fury.

“Your best isn't good enough,” she said, her voice heavy with disappointment. She shut the door before he could respond.

Slowly Tony turned from the door and walked down the three steps to the paved walkway that led to the street. It was a two-to-three-hour drive back to the city from Connecticut. He generally used that time to decompress after spending the few stolen hours with his daughter, Joy. But it was getting harder, harder now that he was involved with Stephanie.

Before he met her it had been easy to move through his days, never having to explain the times he disappeared. Now he'd found himself lying. He didn't like it. But what choice did he have? With Stephanie being the kind of woman she was and the sacrifices she'd made for her sister, Samantha, she would never understand. Never understand how a father could abandon his daughter because he couldn't look at her without seeing that her very existence was the result of her mother's death and it was all his fault.

“S
o bring me up to speed on the campaign,” Stephanie began.

Terri opened a folder on top of the desk. “To date we have 460 entries. They cover the strata, which is great. I'll spend the next two weeks doing the eliminations. I want to have the two finalists and a winner by Valentine's Day. I think that would be a perfect time to make the media announcement.”

Stephanie nodded in agreement. “Sounds great. I know you could use some help, but we don't want there to be any shouts of unfair if staff from the spa are involved in the judging.”

“Exactly. It's not a problem. I can handle it. And what red-blooded woman wouldn't want to look at pictures of good-looking men all day?”

“I hear that. So the campaign is under control. Next on the agenda is
our
business. As I mentioned in the beginning, when I did the campaign for the spa's opening, we got mega media coverage and it brought a whole host of potential business knocking at my door. It would be great to reap all the benefits myself, though I know that would not only be stupid on my part but it would be business suicide.” She paused. “We both have strong PR backgrounds, but you have more strength in marketing. I, on the other hand, can make you believe the earth is really spinning in the opposite direction.”

Terri cracked up laughing. “That's the move, girl.”

“So I figure that between the two of us, we can't help but win. I have my business license. The business is in my name and if you're willing to come on board, I'd be willing to make you a partner after a year of working together.” She'd thought about making a Terri a partner from the beginning, but she didn't want to risk the chance that things wouldn't work out and then get ugly between them.

Terri puckered her lips in thought. “I've already left my job since I'm seeing Michael on a regular basis now. I have plenty of money saved. So that's not an issue.” She focused on Stephanie. “How about this? How about we work on projects together as long”—she raised a finger to make a point—“as I can still freelance? I get a commission from you for the things we do together, based on the value of the job, and at the end of the year we take a look at the partner thing and see how we feel.” She leaned back in her chair and waited.

She couldn't think of a better offer if she'd come up with it herself. It was perfect, support without lifelong commitment. The best part was that with Terri still doing her own thing, there was no real need for an office—at least not now.

“Sounds more than fair to me. I can have a letter of agreement drafted for you to take a look at…say next week.”

“Not a problem.”

Stephanie leaned forward, bracing her forearms on the desk. “Not to get all up in your business, but how are things going with you and Michael?”

Michael Townsend was a partner at Sterns and Blac, a major player in the media game. According to the little that Terri had divulged, there were major no-nos with regard to relationships between staff members, particularly upper management and employees. Terri felt so strongly about pursuing her relationship with Michael that she'd recently resigned from her job to make it happen—
after
she'd won the annual competition—which was the whole Pause Man campaign.

Terri beamed. “Things are going great. Different but great. After we spent that weekend together during the holidays, it's been full steam ahead. I'm happy, really happy. I do miss going into the office. But now my reward at the end of the day is a helluva lot better than just punching out!”

“I'm glad to hear it. I know how difficult it can be with on the job love affairs.” She glanced away.

“You have experience, I take it?”

“Yes, and I have nothing good to report,” she said, trying to make light of it. “But I'm glad things are working out for you.”

“If you ever want to talk about it…”

Stephanie forced a smile. “I'll keep that in mind. By the way, are you busy this weekend?”

“Hmm, nothing special. Why?”

“The girls are getting together for a long-overdue girls' night over at Barbara's house and we'd love for you to join us.”

Terri's eyes widened in surprise. “Really? Wow. Thanks. Can I let you know before the end of the week?”

“Sure. Just give me a call.”

Terri nodded and began collecting her papers. “I will.” She stood, then reached for her coat. “I'll keep you posted on how the eliminations are coming along.” She draped her coat over her arm.

Stephanie came from behind the desk. “I'll walk you out.”

When they reached the main floor, Elizabeth was just stepping behind the front desk.

“Hey, Ellie, you remember Terri.”

“Of course. How are you? How's the campaign going?”

“Things are going great. I was just telling Stephanie that I hope to have the finalists weeded out by the end of the month so that we can make a Valentine's Day announcement.”

“That would be perfect. I'm excited to see who makes the cut. I told Ron he needs to enter, but he wouldn't hear of it.” She laughed.

“Ron was our contractor when we were getting the spa together. He decided to fix a little more than hardwood floors and plumbing.” Stephanie winked at Elizabeth.

“Girl, you need to stop.” She giggled, then looked at Terri and lowered her voice. “But she's right. And he makes sure all the parts are working on a regular basis.”

Stephanie shook her head in amusement. “Ellie, you are getting to be too much. Come on, Terri, before she tells us more than we need to know.”

Terri waved goodbye. “See you, Elizabeth, and don't hurt that man!”

“I really like your friends,” Terri said as they approached the door.

“Yeah, they're pretty special. So hopefully you can join us on Friday and get to know them.”

“I'll certainly try.”

Drew opened the door for them and helped Terri into her coat. “Have a nice day.”

“Thank you. You do the same.” She turned to Stephanie. “I'll call you.”

Stephanie watched for a moment as Terri got into her BMW and pulled off.

With that bit of business out of the way and nothing imminent to distract her, she was again faced with her own dilemma. She'd have to tell Tony and she knew immediately what his reaction was going to be.
Go to the police.
She heaved a sigh and walked back toward the office. Maybe it was just a onetime event. Marilyn had a moment of stupidity and that would be the end of it.

For now she'd leave it alone. But if that crazy woman contacted her again—it was on.

 

It was close to five by the time Tony got back into the city. He thought about going straight to the spa, sweeping Stephanie off her feet, and taking her to a romantic dinner. She'd left him two messages on his cell phone and he'd intentionally not returned her calls. His conscience was getting the best of him. He knew he was simply avoiding the inevitable—another lie. But the phone was certainly easier than looking her in the face with his latest fabricated story.

He tossed his camera bag onto the couch, rotated his stiff neck, and went to the kitchen for a bottle of water. He chugged it down as he went over in his head what he was going to tell Stephanie. They were supposed to be getting together tonight, but he knew he wasn't up for it.

He pulled his cell phone from the clip on his belt and hit speed-dial. Stephanie answered on the second ring.

“There you are,” she said, her voice full of cheer. “I left you a couple of messages earlier. You must have been really busy.”

“Yeah, I was. I'm sorry.”

“So how did your meeting go?” She bent down and peered into the recesses of her refrigerator.

“Uh, it went fine. I'll know for sure in a few days.”

“I'm sure you knocked 'em dead. Who was it anyway?”

“Oh, another corporate client. Needs a company brochure done. Wants shots of the interiors, staff, stuff like that.”

“Well, I don't see how they wouldn't hire you on the spot. You're the best photographer this side of the Mississippi!” She giggled.

“You're biased.”

“Could be.” She got an apple from the veggie tray and took a bite. “I'm starved. Are we going out or do you want me to fix us something?”

“That's the other reason for my call. I know this is late notice, but I was hoping maybe we could make it tomorrow night. I'm really beat.”

Stephanie frowned. “Oh. Okay. Sure.” She waited a beat. “I guess that means you're not coming by tonight either.”

“If you really want me to I can, but I wouldn't be much good.” He feigned a yawn.

“You sound tired. Listen, it's no big deal. Get some rest and we can get together tomorrow.”

“I'll make it up to you, I swear.”

“I'm going to hold you to that.”

“I know you will. I'll give you a call tomorrow. Are you going to be around?”

“I do have an appointment in the morning. After that I'll be at the spa.”

“I'll call you after lunch and we can decide what we want to do then.”

“Sounds good.”

He yawned again.

“I'm hanging up before you fall asleep on me.”

“I'm sorry. We'll talk tomorrow.”

“Rest well.”

“Thanks.” He disconnected the call.

Tony stood there with the phone in his hand. He was going to have to tell her sooner or later about Joy. But when he did, he knew it would mean becoming something that he couldn't—a father. He hadn't accepted his role in five years and he didn't think he would anytime soon.

 

Stephanie meandered into her bedroom, plopped down on her bed, and aimed the remote at the television. A stream of images flashed in front of her as she aimlessly surfed. She finally settled on a Lifetime episode,
Presumed Innocent
.

It was probably best that Tony hadn't come by, she thought. She didn't want to have to tell him about Marilyn's phone call because without a doubt Tony would be a man and feel that he must fix it. And fix it would be calling the police.

It was Tony who'd finally convinced her to take out the restraining order in the first place. He'd even driven her to the courthouse.

The more she thought about it, the more she realized what a good guyTony Dixon was. He was caring, sexy as all hell, talented, funny, could outcook her with his eyes closed, and most of all he was honest. That's what she appreciated the most.

She'd lived a life of deceit for two years with Conrad. She lied to herself, lied to her friends. No more. As a matter of fact, first thing tomorrow she was going to tell Tony what happened.

The scene on the television caught her attention.

It was Bonnie Bedilia facing her on-screen husband, Harrison Ford, as she calmly, dispassionately explained to him why she had no choice but to murder his mistress. She never thought that he would get blamed for it.

Stephanie felt a jolt and aimed the remote, finally landing on Home Shopping Network. She shook her head. She was being silly, totally overreacting. She glanced at the phone next to the bed, reached for it, and took it off the hook.

When her doorbell suddenly rang a half hour later, her already stiff spine nearly snapped in half. She scrambled from the bed and darted up front to the intercom. Her mind raced through a montage of scenarios—all of which ended with a showdown between her and Marilyn and her winding up on the eleven o'clock news.

Stephanie pressed Talk. “Who?”

“Why you not answering ya damned phone?”

She released a sigh of relief. She buzzed the lobby door. Moments later Ann Marie was standing at her front door with a bottle tucked under her arm.

“How do you know I'm not busy?” Stephanie challenged as Ann Marie, barely reaching Stephanie's shoulder, brushed by her.

“If you were, you wouldn't have answered your door either.” She winked at Stephanie, took off her coat, and muttered something about the growing cold outside, then proceeded to make herself comfortable on the couch. “So…did you tell him?”

Stephanie averted her gaze. “No. I would have…maybe…but he was too tired to come over tonight. I figured it could wait.”

“Hmm,” Ann Marie murmured. “No more calls?”

“No.”

“Good. I know you may not like this, but I spoke to Sterling about it.”

Sterling Chambers was the man who finally captured the tough heart of Ann Marie Dennis and forever wrenched her away from the memory of her ex-husband, Terrance Bishop.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Don't you keep anything secret from that man?”

Ann Marie grinned. “Only where I learned some of my bedroom tricks.” She winked.