The One (33 page)

“
Marcus, are we missing something here?
“
Charlie said, looking at me.

I
hesitated for a few seconds as both men were staring at me, until I finally
replied,
“
I
spoke to her
…
this
morning.
”

I
sipped my beer while they digested the piece of information.

”
Well, it seems you had a busy morning
…
would you care to enlighten us?
”
he asked as he was flexing both his fists
on the table while observing me.

I
knew he wouldn
’
t
like it!

“
I called her this morning after speaking
to James last night. I was concerned for you, and wanted to know if there was
any chance she would contact you to get you out of this funk you
’
ve been in all week. And I am sorry to
say, the woman wants nothing to do with you. She was adamant.
”
I blurted out.

They
both looked at me, and I thought Julian would punch me, but he surprised me. He
burst out laughing.

Charlie
was now looking at him with worried eyes, clearly as puzzled by his reaction as
I was.

Finally,
Julian took hold of himself and said,
“
Well, we shall see about that.
”
He added, smiling at me
“
You are the second person to tell me she
wants nothing to do with me, and while I do appreciate your concern, I think it
’
s time the lady and I talk, and she tells
me face to face why! She must really take me for a schmuck, if she thinks I
’
m just going to walk away because she
tells people she wants nothing to do with me
…”

It
was my turn to smile. My boy was back full swing.  

”
Well, she actually called me a chump for
interfering and pleading your case
…”
I admitted with a chuckle.

Did
she, now?
”
He asked with a far-away
look.

 
”
It seems, you have each other pegged out
…”
Charlie said, all relaxed.

 Julian
looked at him for a long while before concluding,
“
It seems we do indeed
…
we do indeed
”

 
“
Look, I want her.
”
he said facing me,
“
That
’
s all there is to it. So, whether she
likes it or not, we are going to meet again. Then, we
’
ll see if she doesn
’
t want me around. I
’
m sure I can convince her otherwise
…”
his voice trailed, as his lips curved,
“
After all, I am Julian McCarty!
”
he finished, a full fledge smile on his
face.

This
is the time Melissa chose to appear on the terrace from wherever she had been
hiding, and came to embrace me, whispering in my ear,
“
Thanks for calling.
”
I squeezed her, and said,
“
Anytime, baby girl.
”

She
sat down, looked at all of us and said with a mischievous look,
“
What did I miss?
“

We
all erupted in laughter.

CHAPTER 30
 

The mating game. Part I

Julian

Marcus had given me her number before leaving
the house, and I desperately wanted to talk to her to convince her to see me;
yet, he advised me to call James before I did anything that would make things
worse.

 I
found myself staring at my phone hesitantly. When I explained my dilemma to
Charlie, he had simply retorted I knew what I had to do.

I
was pissed at James Marshall. The man had seen me humiliated, and only a few
people have had that privilege throughout my life. Now, I had to call him
because according to Marcus, Vi trusted him, and he could advise me on how to
approach her.

I
dialled thinking this was one step to take me closer to her.
Fuck James
Marshall!

“
Mr Marshall? Could you come to my house
tomorrow evening?
Anytime
after 9:00 p.m. will do
…
.
”
I demanded as soon I as was connected.

“
Mr McCarty. What did you have in mind?
“
he replied, obviously recognizing my
voice.

“
I think you know we need to discuss a
certain person. After 9:00 p.m. Tomorrow.
”
I repeated before I hung up.

((~~!~~))

James

I knew this would come. I knew he would
call me. After I gave her number to Marcus, it was only a matter of time. I
wondered if he had already called her. Should I go to his house armed just in
case he wanted my head after the recording trick had been exposed?

I
hadn
’
t
heard back from Vi since her last call, but it had only been two days. I was
sure she was still mad at me.

These
two people were angry with me with good reasons. I wasn
’
t sure going to Julian
’
s would do me any good.

The
last thing I expected upon arriving at the McCarty estate was to see Julian in
the company of his family. He introduced me to his sister and brother in law,
and appeared to be in a merry mood, which worried me even more.

Taking
me to his office, I had a sense of déjà-vu and wondered how the evening would
end.

Once
we were both seated, a drink in hand, he surprised me by saying,
“
James, I need your input.
”

I
nearly choked on my scotch while his smile grew broader. As if he was sensing
my discomfort, he continued,
“
You
see, I
’
m
going to call Vi this evening, and I am told she trusts you. I don
’
t want to scare her off, but on the
contrary convince her that we do have a future together
…”
he saw me open my mouth, and lifted a
finger to silence me,
“
I
’
m not taking no for an answer. You can
either help me, or else James
…”
he finished, his last words lingering between us, their meaning crystal clear.

I
was thinking fast. I knew whatever I said, he would call her; and considering
how she felt about me these days, I decided to make amends to her by helping
him. I could see the man was infatuated with her. The way he pronounced her
name told me he cared. That, and of course, I had seen first-hand what the
recording did to him.

 
“
All right, how do you want me to help you?
”
I said after clearing my throat.

He
looked at me, pleased with my decision and grinning devilishly at me said,
“
I want to know everything you
’
ve learned about her.
”

That
was the one thing I could not and would not do for him. I had given her my
word, and while she was angry about the recording, this was another ball game
altogether. If I betrayed her, I knew she would not forgive nor forget.

I
got up and said,
“
I
’
m sorry, but I can
’
t.
”

He
stared at me, and I could see anger flashing behind his blue eyes. I did not
want to argue with him, so I added,
“
Julian
…
look, I
’
m willing to help you gain her trust and
get her back if you truly want her, but do not ask me to betray her because I
won
’
t.
”

He
seemed to ponder my words, and finally questioned,
“
She asked you not to say anything to me?
”

I
nodded and replied,
“
She
is a very private woman, who doesn
’
t
like her life discussed until she is comfortable. I do consider her a friend,
and I promised her I would not discuss with you or anyone for that matter,
certain details she made me privy of
…”

He
cracked his knuckles in frustration and said,
”
What can you tell me then?
”

I
sat down and said,
“
I
can tell you she was extremely upset upon finding out your reaction to the
recording
…”
He tilted his head while I continued,
“
I must confess, this was a dirty trick on
my part.
”
I sighed,
“
She
asked me to discourage you in your pursuit of her, and I took it a little bit
too far
…”

”
Neither of us knew you would react as you
did, and when she found out, she was angry with me. One thing is for certain,
she cares enough not to see you in pain.
”
I said, staring at him.

I
hoped he would take this to soothe his battered ego, but he shocked me saying,
”
James, I
’
m in love with this woman
…”

He
could see his admission had taken me totally off guard, and I suspect this
might have been his plan all along to destroy my
defenses
, but he had my full attention now.

“
I see, you are surprised, but I also see
you care about her, so we have a common goal here
…”
he continued,
“
I know she said she wants to be left
alone, but as I said, I
’
m
not accepting this, at least not until I speak to her first. Where is she?
“

“
She
’
s overseas as I told you.
”
I replied as I watched him he exhale
loudly.

“
I see
…
Still protecting her
…
You
’
re not going to tell me where or when she
’
s coming back?
”
he asked smiling. I was squirming in my
seat when he said,
“
All
right, let
’
s
just call her, right now, and then we
’
ll see what you can or can
’
t tell me.
”

He
dialled a number on the desk phone, and I could hear the ringing tone, as he
had put the call on speaker. I felt my palms sweat. He looked at me and asked
calmly,
”
Do
you want to speak first or should I?
”

Her
smoky voice interrupted him, saying
“
Hello?
”

He
stared at me, I got up and as I was leaning against the desk, she asked again,
“
Hello?
”
I replied quickly,
“
Vi, it
’
s me.
”
I looked at Julian,
“
James? Since when do you have a private
number? You are lucky I picked up
…”
she said warmly, forcing me to explain,
“
I don
’
t. I
’
m at Julian
’
s....
”
I stated in one breath, knowing she would
not be pleased.

There
was a silent pause and she asked with a slight panic in her voice,
”
Did something happen?
…
Are you ok? Is he ok?
”
I stared at Julian angrily, hoping he would
finally speak and he must have understood my pleading look as he said,
“
We
’
re both fine.
”
looking intensely at the phone, as if the
device could make her pop right in front of us.

I
could hear she caught her breath, and I confirmed,
“
Yes, we
’
re fine
…”
She then asked in an angry tone,
“
So, what is this then? An ambush?
”
She sighed loudly,
”
I can
’
t believe you James
…”

Julian
interrupted, saying in a defensive tone,
“
No Vi, it
’
s not an ambush. James is here because I
asked him to be. I wanted his help.
”

 
“
Help with what?
”
she quickly retorted, not letting up. He
looked at me, and I could see he was losing ground, so I replied bluntly,
“
He needs help, getting you back.
”
I knew both my tone and what I had said
would leave her speechless.