Man of Fortune

by Rochelle Alers

  Tamara moved closer to Duncan’s side, murmuring, “The weather is perfect for an evening cruise.” A bright reddish-orange sun appeared to be suspended against a cloudless, cobalt-blue sky.

  Duncan smiled. “You’re right. And there’s going to be a full moon tonight.”

  “That means the E.R. is going to jump tonight.”

  “Is it true that there are more E.R. visits during a full moon?”

  “I’ve found it to be true, especially during warmer months. We definitely treat more stabbings and gunshot wounds. Child-abuse cases are more frequent during the colder months. Perhaps it has something to do with children being in the house for longer periods of time.”

  “I don’t think I’d ever physically abuse my children.”

  Tamara heard a longing in Duncan’s voice, wondering if there had been a time when he’d wanted to father children. “Remember, there isn’t just physical abuse, Duncan. Some of the children seen in our psych unit come in with emotional scars that are far more devastating than physical ones. I see them as wounded little birds that will never soar with the other birds because they’ve retreated to a place where they feel safe.”

  “You probably should’ve specialized in psychiatry instead of emergency medicine.”

  “No, Duncan. I picked the right specialty for my temperament.”

  Attractive lines fanned out around Duncan’s eyes when he smiled. “What about E.R. doctors?”

  “We are adrenaline junkies always looking for that next rush. Even when I’m so exhausted and nearly falling asleep on my feet I get a rush of adrenaline whenever the emergency techs bring in another patient. Just the wail of a siren makes me shiver with excitement. However, the true test is to treat, heal and save every patient.”

  Duncan pressed his mouth to her ear. “You love being a doctor, don’t you?”

  Tamara felt his warm breath against her ear and cheek. Duncan was close, too close, but she wasn’t going to ask him to move away. Whenever he took hold of her hand or rested his in the small of her back the gesture was executed with a naturalness that made her feel desired, protected.

  She’d married Edward because she’d wanted him to love and protect her. She believed he did love her, but he’d loved gambling more. And he did protect her, but only from other men who expressed an interest in her. Once they saw the band of gold on her left hand most backed off.

  “I love it more than anything else in the world.”

  Duncan wanted to ask Dr. Tamara Wolcott if she was willing to let something or someone else into her world. Would she permit herself to enjoy something other than practicing medicine? Was she willing to give him the opportunity to prove to her that all men weren’t liars, duplicitous and untrustworthy?

  Duncan liked Tamara. He wasn’t certain whether it was because of her understated beauty, her intelligence or her sense of style, but what had shocked him was his offer for her to hang out at his condo. The last and only woman who’d been inside the duplex was Kalinda Douglas. As the only daughter of devoutly religious parents, Kali would come over to confer with the interior designer as to how she wanted to decorate the newly renovated space, to eat with him, to share a few moments of passion, then she would return to her Queens home where she lived with her parents.

  He’d invited Tamara, but his intention was not to sleep with her. Unlike Kyle and Ivan, Duncan had never been a serial dater. His friends teased him about dating the same girl for long periods of time; however, the teasing had stopped when he revealed that he’d asked Kalinda to marry him. He would’ve been the first of the trio to marry if not for an unforeseen disaster. Now he would stand as best man for Kyle when he married Ava Warrick.

  The line began moving as chicly attired men and women boarded the sleek all-glass dining vessel. The Celestial was an elegant ship designed for comfort and stunning views. The passengers were greeted by a trio of musicians playing a baby grand piano, an acoustic bass and a classical guitar who set the mood with a sophisticated jazz composition. Duncan and Tamara shared a smile before they were shown to their table for two. A stark white tablecloth, a bud vase with a fresh rose and an unobscured view through glass walls and ceiling set the stage for a night of luxurious, intimate, romantic dining.

  Tamara stared at Duncan across the small expanse separating them. Everything about him conveyed elegance and breeding, and he appeared so sure of himself and his place in the world.

  A hint of a smile tilted the corners of his mouth. “What are you thinking about?”

  “How much I’m enjoying hanging out with you.”

  Reaching over the table, Duncan grasped her hands, examining the manicured nails painted a pale beige. Her hands, though delicately formed, were those of doctor, a healer. “If you’re open to it, then we can have a lot of fun together.”

  She blinked once. “Are you talking about a relationship, Duncan?”

  “No. I’m talking about friendship, Tamara. A relationship means a physical involvement, and I’m not going to presume you’d want to sleep with me.”

  Tamara leaned closer. “Do you sleep with women?”

  Duncan, taken aback by her query, recoiled. “Of course I sleep with women. Did you think I was gay?” he whispered, visibly perturbed.

  “I’d thought about it,” she said truthfully.

  “Why, Tamara? Because I wasn’t all over you?”

  Heat suffused her face as she averted her gaze. Duncan had tightened his grip on her fingers when she stared at him again. “I thought it strange that you’d ask me to go out with you when you could get any woman you want because of the way you look. And then, when you told me you weren’t married, didn’t have a girlfriend or children, I presumed perhaps you weren’t into women.”

  “You presumed wrong.”

  “I know that now.”

  “I like women, Tamara. In fact, I like them a lot.” His eyes narrowed. “Why do you look so disappointed?” A beat passed. “Were you hoping I wasn’t heterosexual?”

  “Yes and no. Yes, because whenever I sleep with a man it eventually spoils everything. And no, because if or when you decide to marry, you will make some woman a wonderful husband.”

  “You sound very sure about that.”

  Tamara smiled, causing his gaze to linger on her lush mouth. “I work in a male-dominated profession, Duncan, and that means I get to interact with a lot of them on a daily basis. I’ve become quite astute in differentiating the good ones from the dogs, and I’ve met more than my share of woof-woofs. Titles like doctor don’t make them exempt. Edward was a prime example of that.”

  “Thankfully, he’s out of your life.”

  “I’ll definitely drink to that.”

  Duncan let go of Tamara’s hands. “Speaking of drinks, will you share a bottle of wine with me?”

  “Yes, I’d love to.”

  * * *

  It was close to nine o’clock when the ship pulled away from the pier. It was filled nearly to capacity with couples and small groups enjoying the music of the trio serenading them with jazz, blues and classical favorites. The entertainment was a perfect complement to sipping fine wine while enjoying exquisitely prepared gourmet cuisine.

  Tamara didn’t know which she enjoyed more: the sight of the greatest skyline in the world, the food or her dining partner. Duncan had ordered a bottle of pinot grigio to go with their appetizers of seafood bisque and herb chevre parfait and entrées of misoglazed wild Alaskan salmon and free-range Tuscan chicken breast.

  The sun had set and a full moon illuminated the shore as the Empire State Building and World Trade Center site were shrouded in darkness. After dinner there was a short break in the entertainment, and when the trio returned they were accompanied by a singer who stopped by each table, cabaret-style, singing Broadway and popular hits.

  Couples were up crowding the ample dance floor, moving to upbeat dance music that spanned big-band, Motown and pop favorites. Duncan stood up, came around the table and eased Tamara to her feet. He led her ou
t to the outdoor deck near the bow, took her into his arms and pressed his cheek to hers as the vocalist launched into the Luther Vandross hit, “Here and Now.”

  The cool night air swept over Tamara’s exposed skin, bringing with it a shiver that had nothing to do with the weather. Being in Duncan’s embrace, her body molded to his, felt so right. The area between her thighs throbbed with a need she’d forgotten.

  Tamara’s sexual war with her ex-husband had not punished him but herself. Tamara had convinced herself that she didn’t want a man, didn’t need one, but dancing with Duncan Gilmore proved her wrong. He felt good and smelled incredibly masculine as he spun her around and around on the open deck.

  All too soon the song ended and she loathed having to go inside. “Can we stay out here for a little while?”

  Duncan smiled as he kissed her earlobe. Tamara hadn’t worn any jewelry except for pearl studs. “Of course we can.”

  She turned to stare out over the bow, smiling when Duncan wrapped his arms around her waist. She managed to stifle a gasp when she felt the throbbing hardness against her buttocks. It was obvious their dancing together had aroused him as much as it had her.

  The light from a full moon lit up the sky as the ship neared the Brooklyn Bridge. Tamara stared at what she regarded as one of the greatest engineering feats of all time. A light breeze lifted the curls framing her face.

  “You promised that you’d tell me about yourself.”

  Duncan registered a breathless quality in Tamara’s voice. He didn’t want to talk but just to enjoy the feel of her ripe body pressed to his. He knew she was aware of his arousal, but he wasn’t about to apologize for something he couldn’t control.

  “What do you want to know?”

  She smiled. “Anything you’re willing to divulge.”

  “You make it sound as if I’ve been living a double life.”

  “We all have secrets, Duncan.”

  “That’s true, but I have nothing to hide. I’m an only child. My mother dropped out of college in her sophomore year when she found out she was pregnant. She’d met this guy who wasn’t a student, slept with him once and her life changed forever. When she went looking for him to tell him she was carrying his child, she couldn’t find him.”

  “Where did she go to school?” Tamara asked.

  “It was a small college in western New York. She returned home and told my grandmother that she was going to have a baby, and all hell broke loose. There was so much hostility between my mother and her widowed mother that Mom moved out to stay in a facility for unwed mothers. A social worker got her on social services and found her an apartment in public housing. Mom waited until I was a year old, then applied for a job in a bank.”

  “Who took care of you while she worked?”

  “She paid the next-door neighbor to look after me. Meanwhile she saved what she could from her meager paycheck and went back to school. It took her several years, but she eventually graduated from the American Institute of Banking with a degree in financial management. She was promoted to a junior officer. Her plan was to save enough money to put down on a house in the suburbs, but her dream never materialized.”

  “What happened, Duncan?” Tamara asked after a long silence.

  “She died of a blot clot. I should’ve known something wasn’t right because Mom had begun complaining about chest pains. She said she had troubling breathing, but said it was probably indigestion because she always had a sensitive digestive system. One morning it got so bad that she called in sick. I went to school, and when I came home I found her on the kitchen floor. A neighbor called the police and when the emergency technicians got there they said she’d been dead for hours. I blamed myself because I should’ve insisted she see a doctor.”

  Tamara turned around, her hands cradling his face. “Don’t beat up on yourself. You were just a kid.”

  Duncan closed his eyes. “A kid who knew there was something wrong with his mother.”

  “What could you have done, Duncan? If you’d told her to see a doctor, would she have done it? I’m a doctor and I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve told my patients that they must take their medication, or that they should follow up on my recommendation to see a specialist, but invariably they end up in the E.R. again and again. It took me a while to realize that people control their own destinies.”

  “My grandmother had passed away, so social workers were going to send me to a group home until my aunt stepped in and requested legal guardianship. She was seven years older than my mother and had become a schoolteacher. Aunt Viola taught in Brooklyn where she’d rented a two-bedroom apartment in a Brooklyn Heights brownstone. Years later she bought the building from the owners, who relocated to Florida.

  “Aunt Viola stressed education until it was coming out of my ears. I got into Brooklyn Tech and earned the reputation of being a nerd. I had the glasses and read lots of books and when I ventured into some of the rougher neighborhoods I realized I had to assume a different persona or get my butt kicked.”

  Lowering her hands, Tamara put her arms around his neck. “Somehow I can’t see you as a nerd.”

  “You wouldn’t say that if I take out the contacts and wear my glasses.”

  Duncan’s disclosure surprised Tamara because she didn’t know that he wore contact lenses. “Don’t nerds wear high-water pants and pocket protectors?”

  Smiling, Duncan shook his head. “Those are stereotypical nerds. I can assure you that I’m more nerd than playa. My mother wouldn’t let me hang out with the kids in the projects because some of them were cutting classes, getting into drugs and becoming fathers. I was allowed to play with two boys in my building. Kyle Chatham, Ivan Campbell and I were inseparable. The year we turned thirteen we became blood brothers. We made a pact not to get into drugs, not to become what today would be called baby daddies, to graduate from college and to buy a brownstone.”

  “Did it happen, Duncan?”

  “Yes. We hung out in one another’s apartments studying instead of on the corner. Kyle went on to become a lawyer and Ivan became a psychotherapist. Even though I moved to Brooklyn I managed to keep up with my friends. We’d meet in the Village or Times Square. A few times they came to Brooklyn and we’d hang out at Coney Island.”

  “Did you all go to the same college?”

  “No. Kyle graduated from John Jay College of Criminal Justice with a degree in pre-law. I went to Baruch College and Ivan went to NYU and was a psychology major. I interned at a public accounting firm to prepare for the CPA exam. I passed and then went to work for an investment company while attending Pace University for my MBA. I just applied to a joint JD/MBA degree program.”

  “Why get another MBA?”

  “I have an MBA in finance, but if I get into the JD/MBA program, then I can specialize in portfolio management and focus on developing venture capital funds that invest in local communities.”

  “Do you plan to practice law?”

  “Not in the traditional sense. The goal of the program is to closely integrate a course of study in both fields. When I successfully complete the program I’ll also have a law degree.”

  “Have you taken the LSAT?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “Did you pass?” Tamara teased.

  Duncan nodded again. “Yes. I’ve applied for a waiver to audit the business contracts courses I’ve already taken.”

  “Do you think you’ll get approval?”

  “I’m hoping I will because I’ve already earned an MBA from Pace.”

  “How many credits do you need to complete both programs?”

  Duncan’s eyes narrowed when he added the numbers in his head. “It will be a total of one hundred twenty-three—eighty from the law school and forty-three from the business school.”

  “That’s going to take you at least four years—that’s if you go full-time.”

  “I plan to go part-time, because I still have a business to run. It’ll take six years, but I have nothing but
time. I’ll attend law school for two years and the business school for one, then take courses in both schools for three years. I can always accelerate by attending summer sessions.”

  Duncan told her that he’d worked for a major investment company, making millions for their clients while building his own portfolio. He’d made a small fortune when tech stocks boomed, and then sold them before the stock price tumbled. He’d bought the loft, had it renovated and moved from Brooklyn to Manhattan. Ivan had returned to New York after living and working in D.C., and had talked him into purchasing a foreclosed brownstone together.

  “Ivan decided to set up a practice in Harlem and asked me if I was tired of making rich people richer. I took that to mean that I should concentrate on people in our own community. It took me less than a month to take him up on his offer. I told him to contact the real estate broker. We hadn’t gone to contract when I approached Kyle to ask him whether he wanted to go in with us. I’d put together an investment portfolio for Kyle, so I knew he had enough liquidity even though he’d purchased his own brownstone on Strivers’ Row. He didn’t hesitate, because he’d been complaining about working eighty-hour weeks for a Park Avenue law firm. Once the renovations were completed I left Wall Street. Kyle eventually resigned from the law firm, and the childhood dream of owning a Harlem brownstone became a reality.”

  Tamara admired Duncan. He knew exactly what he wanted for his future, while she wasn’t certain whether she would accept Dr. Killeen’s offer. She’d gone into medicine to provide the best care for her patients, not to become an administrator. Administrators ran hospitals. Doctors provided patient care.

  She leaned closer. “Did anyone ever tell you that you are awesome?”