His Corporate Claim

by J. D. Fox

  You’re not a fake adulteress, my inner voice said soothingly. You’re a real liar. There is a difference.

  “And what about you, dear?” said Lily. She seemed to be the more empathetic of the two. “What was your childhood like?”

  “You don’t want to hear about that.”

  Rose turned her head toward me and smiled. “Of course we do,” said Rose. “We want to know all about you.”

  “There’s not much to tell. Dad died in Iraq. Mom raised me alone. I went to college, and now, happily, I work at Palmer Media.”

  “It seems like you overcame many challenges,” said Lily. Her voice sounded sincere.

  “Not so many. I just like to work, and work hard.”

  “How did you capture Lucius’s eye?” said Rose. “He likes party girls.”

  “So people keep saying. Maybe it’s because all party girls can offer is a good time,” I said. “I offer substance.”

  Liar, liar pants on fire. All you’ve offered Lucius is life as a eunuch if he hit on you again.

  The women got suddenly quiet, and I wondered if I’d overplayed my part. I didn’t want to come off as arrogant.

  “I hope I didn’t sound full of myself. I mean it. I know Lucius has had a good time with the ladies, but after a while that gets old, you know? I’ve never been much of a party girl, and I think Lucius finds that refreshing.”

  Again, more silence, and now I’m worried I came off as arrogant and condescending. I should have kept my mouth shut.

  “Oh, that feels so good,” I said partly to deflect the conversation. But the masseuse worked steadily on my shoulders and relaxation flowed over me, and the more relaxed I felt, the easier it was to lie. The Palmer sisters clearly had yet to give up their probing of my character.

  “Talia, you make it sound as if Lucius has grown up,” said Rose.

  Fake it until you make it, baby. What else could I do other than open my mouth and dig my grave another six feet down?

  If this conversation keeps going like this, I’d be in China soon.

  “Would you be surprised? He’s thirty-two now. Isn’t it about time?”

  Boy, I was laying it on thick, acting like the good fiancée, wasn’t I? Good thing the masseuse had made me so relaxed. I might get out this mess yet.

  “Who did your nails?” asked Lily. “They look freshly done.”

  Oh, thank God. A change of topic.

  “Yes. Yesterday. Lucius insisted I spend the day at the Ritz-Carlton in Denver.” And now I know why, that rat bastard. I think of that beautiful wedding dress in my room and inwardly cringe. What would happen tomorrow when we didn’t get married? How outraged would his family be? He must have thought this through.

  For all their nosiness, they did seem to honestly care about Lucius and that was good. A man should have the love of his family, even when he screwed up.

  As if I would know anything about it.

  I turned my head to hide the blush on my cheeks, and the two Palmer women fell quiet for several minutes as the masseuses worked on us. They may have thought I’d checked out in a massage-induced haze because they spoke up again, but this time in hushed tones to each other.

  Rose spoke next. “I do hope that this wedding lightens Ezekiel’s mood.”

  “Yes, he’s been so stressed lately; what with Lucius’s mother stirring up trouble with the Board of Directors. I’ve been worried”

  Wait. What? What about Lucius’s mother?

  “It’s no wonder that Lucius didn’t invite her to this wedding,” said Lily.

  “And good riddance,” said Rose. “It’s too bad that as part of the divorce, Ezekiel gave her—”

  “She demanded,” interjected Lily.

  “Well, yes,” said Rose dismissively, “demanded a position on the Board of Directors. She knows damn well it was just meant to give her a salary above and beyond the settlement, but no, she has to churn up trouble. Especially after Ezekiel’s heart attack earlier this year.”

  “Imagine her saying that Zeke wasn’t well enough to run the company.”

  “Imagine some of the board thinking the same,” said Lily. “Good thing we’re there to block some of that nonsense.”

  “Good thing.”

  The masseuse hit a tension spot in my lower back and I grunted and Rose glanced at me as if she’d just realized I was there.

  “Oh, Lily, I think we overshared. Talia will think badly of us for speaking against Lucius’s mother.”

  “No, really,” I gasped. The masseuse hit that raw spot again, trying to loosen up the muscles that had suddenly tightened.

  “Your back is very tight,” said my torturer.

  “I banged up my foot. I must have twisted some back muscles. Ow! Take it easy.”

  “Yes, Edie,” said Rose. Damn. Did these people know everyone at the hotel? “We want her in shape to walk down the aisle tomorrow. She’s Lucius’s fiancée.”

  “So I’ve heard, ma’am. Our event planner has been hard at work to make things perfect. The staff is very excited for Mr. Lucius. And we wish you the best of luck, Miss Winton.”

  “Thank you,” I murmured. Oh my God, this was worse than I’d thought and something I hadn’t considered. The entire staff is invested in the life of Lucius Palmer? They’d worked hard to pull off this wedding. And now they care about me? This can only happen to the very rich. The fabric of their lives is so very different to the working class background from which I came.

  Whoa. What would these people think when they put a ton of work into the wedding and it didn’t come off?

  And then all this stuff about Lucius’ mother? What the hell? It seemed to me that Ezekiel Palmer had done everything he could to smooth over his divorce to a woman who seems intent on cutting him off on the knees. Did anyone in this family get along?

  While my mother hadn’t married my father, even if she had and they divorced, he wouldn’t have had a Board of Directors job to hand out like a piece of candy.

  And now it made sense to me why Ezekiel Palmer hadn’t spoken to his son for a long time. It wasn’t out of disappointment in his son. If Lucius’s mother was stirring up that much trouble, then the elder Palmer couldn’t put Lucius in the middle of it. Better to keep Lucius out of the loop and the line of fire. That was a shitty decision to make, and the worst part was, Ezekiel couldn’t tell his son he what he did without speaking ill of his ex-wife or tipping her hand.

  In trying to be a good father, circumstances had forced him to act like a terrible one.

  Damn you, Ezekiel Palmer. You made me feel sorry for your idiotic son. Not that I forgave Lucius for dragging me into this impossible situation, but I am a compassionate person. And if I am not careful, my sympathetic nature will be my undoing.

  Because, at this moment, instead of calling an end to this scam I was lying on a massage table under false pretenses. I’m pretending, still, to be Lucius’ fiancée, which makes me complicit in this charade.

  This cannot end well.

  “Guess who I found wandering around the hotel?”

  Lucius suddenly speaking in the room caused me to twitch on the table. The masseuse put her hand on my back to steady me. It wouldn’t do for the fiancée of the son of the owner to fall off and smash some delicate body part the day before the wedding.

  I do enough of that on my own.

  “Lucius!” I said, shocked.

  “Good gracious, Lucius,” said Aunt Rose. “What are you doing?” She did not sound pleased that her nephew had suddenly interjected himself into the cozy massage room.

  “I was looking for my beautiful fiancée, and Sam told me you ladies were here.” Lucius pulled a bathrobe from the towel cubby and handed it to me. “Put this on.”

  “Why?”

  “I want you to meet someone.”

  “Lucius,” said a woman. “What am I waiting out here for?” Her voice was unfamiliar, at least to me. Rose rolled her eyes, and Lily pulled up the sheet covering her over her head. I sat and pulled on t
he robe, and Lucius led an older woman into the room.

  “Mother, I’d like you to meet my fiancée, Talia Winton.”

  “That’s Lucius’s mom, Gloria,” Lily said to me, under her breath.

  I blinked. His mother? What was she doing here? Lucius brought his mother here? For a fake wedding? Oh, good and holy Lord. Not only was the woman incredibly here, supposedly for the wedding, but Lucius had also introduced me to her. I’m beginning to wonder if Lucius was delusional.

  Oh, maybe he wasn’t. Perhaps the rat fully intended on making this wedding happen.

  “Talia, look who I found wandering around at the airport? I don’t know who invited her, but here she is.”

  “I would have expected my own son to invite me to his wedding,” said Gloria. Disapproval dripped acidly from her voice.

  She and Lucius shared the same blonde looks, high cheekbones and blue eyes. She was stunning, even at her age. But she held her chin haughtily, unlike Lucius, and her eyes were cold. I shuddered to think of any man spending time with her.

  “Forgive me,” said Lucius lightly, as if she hadn’t scolded him. “I thought this was your season for Belize.”

  “Usually, but I have other matters in Boston to attend to this year.”

  “Yes,” said Rose coldly. “You certainly did.”

  “Rose, darling,” said Gloria. “How lovely to see you again.” The frostiness in Gloria’s voice could have frosted a beer glass.

  “Excuse us, dear,” said Rose. “You caught us in the middle of a massage.”

  “So sorry to intrude,” said Gloria with hauteur. “Lucius insisted. But then, he’s always been an impulsive boy.”

  Lucius cut his mother a sharp glance.

  “I just wanted you to meet Talia for a moment, mother.”

  Gloria looked me up and down as if I were a bug. “Yes. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  I had to resist a shudder and felt even more sorry for Lucius. This is who he was stuck with as the person that modeled feminine relationships for him?

  I got off the table and held out my hand to her. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Palmer.”

  “I can’t tell you how much it thrills me to meet my son’s fiancée.”

  Gloria barely took my hand and dropped it too soon. So much for thrills on Mrs. Palmer’s end, but she gave me chills so sharp I might end up with frostbite. I rubbed my right hand with my left reflexively.

  “Let’s get a cup of coffee. How about it, ladies?”

  “So sorry, Lucius,” said Rose. “I’ll catch up with you at the rehearsal dinner tonight.”

  Oh my freaking God. I hadn’t put two and two together when they all kept talking about dinner tonight, but yes, it would be the rehearsal dinner. My heart bashed into my rib cage. Things were moving too fast.

  “Yes,” said Lily. “I’m afraid I’m a frightful mess. I’ll see you tonight as well.”

  “Well, Talia, that leaves you, me and mum. How about you get dressed and we’ll spend a little time with her?”

  I looked at Lucius, who smiled at me brightly. His mom, who couldn’t care less, and the aunts, all watched me carefully for my reaction. This had to stop. Now.

  “Lucius, darling, can I have a word with you?”

  “Mother, how about you wait for us out on the terrace cafe?”

  “Of course,” she said dryly.

  I made Lucius follow me into the bathroom, and I locked the door.

  “What the hell were you thinking of, inviting her here?”

  Lucius frowned.

  “I didn’t invite her,” he said. Lucius’s cheery disposition dropped instantly, and concern washed over his face. “I have no idea why she’s here. And I’m telling you, Talia, this means big trouble.” He ran his hand through his blond locks and began pacing the small room.

  “This is a shit storm,” he said. “She knows the whole family hates her for what she did to Dad and she knows to stay away. But nope, someone clued her into this weekend, and I don’t know who. And when Dad finds out she’s here, he’ll go ballistic. It’s so like her to use an occasion like this to put the screws to my father.”

  “You care about what happens to him, don’t you?”

  “Of course I care. We haven’t gotten along well, but that’s my fault. I took every shitty thing in my life out on him and Dad didn’t deserve it.”

  I stared at him, not believing these words. He’s trying to play noir detective?

  “Lucius, I can’t go through with this wedding. It’s wrong and you know it.”

  “Talia, please, stick with me here. Someone is trying to shaft me and my family big time, and the only way I can find out who is to get everyone in one place.”

  “I can’t believe you’re doing this.”

  Lucius stopped pacing and looked at me. “Believe me, I can’t either. But please, hang with me just a little while longer. Once I have this figured out—”

  “Yeah, yeah, I know. We’ll drop the charade.”

  “Yes,” he said with a grateful sigh. “But until then, no one can know what we are doing.”

  “But Sam,” I said. Then stopped. How could I explain what had happened between Sam and me to Lucius?

  “We can’t tell him a thing. The only way to find out who is trying to screw me is to let their little scheme play out, and that means nothing can spook them. Sam will get all righteous and call in the private investigators, and that’s the surest way to scare off the conspirators. They’ll go to ground, and it will be impossible to figure out who is doing what. So don’t say a thing to him.”

  I don’t like this, but I think Lucius is right.

  “Okay,” I said. But my voice trembled.

  “Good. Now I need to watch my mom, because I never know what she’ll do.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Sam

  ​You could have knocked me over with a feather when I saw Gloria, Lucius’s mother in the lobby of the hotel. Henry had her bags piled on one of the luggage carts that looked the bones of a gilded cage, and his face was drawn in a worried expression. He knew full well that, while no one could stop Gloria Palmer from visiting the hotel, she usually stayed away when any of us were here. Besides, didn’t she haunt Belize in the summer months?

  “Sam!” she said, as if she’d found a beacon on the storm. “Can you convince this... this desk clerk to get me a room? I mean, it’s the middle of summer. There must be something open here.”

  I stuffed my hands in my pockets, but I nodded. The clerk’s face turned extra grim as she worked on the computer to assign Gloria Palmer a room before handing her the room key.

  “Henry,” she said, “take my bags up to my room.” She handed him the key, and he took note of the room number and gave it back to her. Or tried to.

  “Yes, Mrs. Palmer.”

  Gloria was a status-conscious woman and she didn’t see where it benefited her status to lose the Palmer name, so she’d remained Gloria Palmer all these years.

  “No. Take the bags upstairs and return the key to the desk. I’ll put it up later. I need to find my son and speak to him.”

  She came up to me and took my arm as if she were an old friend, which she was not.

  “I didn’t expect to see you here, Gloria,” I said coldly. She did not take the hint or let go of my arm.

  “And miss my son’s wedding? I don’t think so.”

  “So Lucius invited you?”

  She sniffed. “Indeed he did not, that scoundrel. He’s made it necessary for me to find other means to keep track of him. So when I learned the happy news, I got on a plane.” She sounded totally unconcerned about the fact that she had not been invited to attend or that she wouldn’t be welcome in the first place.

  Whatever did my father see in her?

  I gritted my teeth; this spectacle couldn’t happen. Gloria would only make things ten times worse, and my father didn’t need this stress. When I got home from graduate school, my aunts had filled me in on Gloria’s antics after my fath
er’s heart attack. I couldn’t believe she’d tried to get him removed as CEO of the company, and I didn’t understand why she would.

  I’d left Dad in his room with his feet up and my bottle of aspirin on his nightstand, with stern words about getting some rest. I would check up on him later, and if he wasn’t doing any better I would call the doctor myself. But with Gloria here?

  All bets on my father’s health were off.

  People call me a “buttoned-up” guy, but I have nothing on my old-school father. In his eyes, a man always kept his cool, didn’t show his hand, and took a good stiff drink when things got a little rough, which for other people meant the world was ending in a catastrophic conflagration.

  Gloria’s arrival just might qualify.

  She wrinkled her nose. “Just where is Lucius, anyway?”

  “I’m not sure. He’s been a little difficult to track lately.”

  Gloria whirled toward the front desk clerk, who cringed as the Stormfront that was Gloria approached.

  “Page my son,” she ordered. “Call everywhere until you get an answer.”

  “Yes, Mrs. Palmer,” said the terrified woman. My sinus headache chose that moment to return with a vengeance.

  “Excuse me, Gloria. I have some business to take care of.” She waved me away as if I was no longer of interest now that she could terrorize the front desk clerk. I shouldn’t leave Gloria alone just for the damage she might do to staff, but I needed to find Lucius and get him down here to handle her. I turned my back on her and walked toward the gift shop, where I intended to buy some decongestant and pulled out my phone.

  Me: Lucius, where are you? Your mother is here.

  Little pillow dots cycled on one side of the phone. He was there and he was making me wait, the bastard.

  Lucius: Where is she?

  Me: Front desk.

  Lucius: I’ll be right there.

  Great. I kept walking to the gift shop, wondering what Gloria’s arrival meant. Reaching it, I entered, went to the sundries area and picked up an entire bottle of decongestants this time, and some ibuprofen too to knock out the headache for good.

  “Are you looking forward to the wedding?” said the clerk. She was a bright-faced local girl. She couldn’t be more than eighteen, while most of our clerks are older. I see her name badge, which announced her to be Karen.