Page 63 of Purchase Power
“Suppose that’s my way of inquiring toward her well-being.”
“She’s fine. The same as usual.” He didn’t bring up concerns about her immunity or what certain plagues making their way over the Pacific might have in store for the Gabriel family.As long as they find my mother’s family, first.That was the droll sense of humor that somehow made Lucy laugh so much. And David. Apparently, Noah liked to surround himself with people who appreciated black humor. All the good it did him… “Is this a pleasure call, Mother?”
“I don’t know, Noah, is it? Perhaps I wanted to hear your voice and make sure you’d be home this weekend before I drop by to check in on things.”
“Drop… by…” Could there be anything worse than Noah’s mother returning to Gabriel Manor for a visitnow?When he had so much work to do? And a guest that she would not want anything to do with, so help her God? “Now really isn’t a good time, Mother.” Noah had to think fast. “I have a guest over at the moment. They’re staying in the suite. You know, my old room.”
Tonya was silent for a customary second. “What kind of guest, may I ask? It’s not that David Hayes, is it? You know I don’t care for him. I don’t know how you, of all people, fell in with a man like that.”
“It’s not David.”
“Well, who is it?”
“You don’t know them.”
Noah had said that a little too quickly. Unfortunately, even if his mother now knew that he meant a woman, she was on top of keeping it to herself. “I’m only going to be there for a couple of days. I have some legal matters to take care of in the city, and I’ll be damned if I’m not staying with my son in his bigfamilyhome while I speak with my lawyers about matters that will concern him greatly when I’ve passed away.”
“Don’t be dramatic about redoing your will, Mother.”
“Why shouldn’t I be? It’s the only bit of fun I get to have anymore.”
“All right,” Noah said with a sigh. “If that’s the way it works for you, I’ll make sure Candace is informed and creates accommodations for you accordingly. Oh, and Mother?”
“What is it?”
Noah flicked a crumb from his lunch off his desk. “Make sure you stay out of my business while you’re here. Last time was quite messy, and I shouldn’t like to repeat it.”
“Dulynoted, my own flesh and blood. Please let Stacey know that I am coming as well, and can’t wait to see her. Finally, I’ll get to have a proper conversation with her that’s not through a screen.”
Noah didn’t say it, but he couldn’t help but think that his mother had plenty of opportunities to talk to Stacey in real life. She didn’t live that far away from them. Coming to visit was as easy as driving down the highway for a couple of hours and getting off the correct exit.
No, the reason Tonya never returned to Gabriel Manor unless she had to, was because of the past. The pain. The embarrassment. Noah knew what he was doing when he dropped the use of his childhood room.The one I keep going back to… the one I’ve been fucking that woman in for two weeks now.The irony wasn’t lost on him. Was it poetic? No.
It was heretical.
My mother will be here on Sunday…He had to make practical arrangements, such as having a room prepared for her, and her favorite foods considered. He’d have to tell Stacey in person, for she would want to hug him the moment she heard. And he would have to find a way to hide Lucy or send her away, because likehellhe would explain her presence to a woman like Tonya. She’d probably call him a “sick bastard, like your stepfather” again. Because she knew how best to usurp her son’s self-confidence.
After Noah hung up and stared at his company’s graphs some more, he had an epiphany. Because, as usual, he was thinking about Lucy. Only now he also thought about a few of the things she said in between their bouts of fucking.
Didn’t she want to see her sister? Who lives in New York City?Noah tugged at his facial hair. Perhaps he had a plan, after all.
Honestly, he had multiple plans, including one he had been thinking about all week.
I know which one I’m more excited about.Didn’t take much anymore. The moment he thought of Lucy, with her raucous giggles and the way her clothes hugged her body, he was a goner. All Noah had to do was promise himself that he wouldn’t indulge thoughts of making her more than his bunny for a month and nothing more.
