She laughs while gazing at the jewelry, “I knew you had something to do with this ring. Brandon is way too simple to pick out something this lavish.”
“Well not just me, Shawn and your mother helped too,” Logan mentions.
“What about Uncle Garrett?”
“No offense, but your Uncle Garrett has been asking for handouts to start up businesses since that night you guys announced your pregnancy. He ain’t help. Hell if we would’ve told him he probably would have wanted Brandon to buy him something from the jeweler.”
“O my goodness, I’m so sorry. I forgot how crass he can be,” Elise admits.
“It’s fine. At first, Brandon entertained a few ideas hoping it would help him out but once the first three attempts ended with your uncle purchasing a new car and other luxury items, Brandon put an end to that. He also told him not to ask you for any money either,” Logan reveals to her.
Elise’s eyes widen in shock and embarrassment, “He told me he won the lottery.”
“He won the lottery alright, his niece is having a billionaire’s baby,” Logan snaps, “And now you guys are getting married, I’m sure he’s under the impression that what’s yours is his.”
“You can’t choose your family and I ain’t got the energy to deal with him. Put him on the no entry list by the front gate and he’s not invited to any functions like the baby shower, bachelor party, or wedding, none of it!” Elise feels her blood start to bubble with anger, “I knew he was a free loader but I ain’t known this much. He has no boundaries; so I’m going to make some for him!”
Logan writes down her instructions and makes sure to have them carried out to the fullest extent. In the meantime, he begins to organize Brandon’s day and fulfill his duties as his assistant. Elise retreats to the living just as Brandon comes in from his morning chores. He grabs the hot cup of coffee Elise made for him and joins her by the fire. She teases him about washing up first, so he kicks his smelly boots off letting the caked on dirt crumble onto the floor. Lucy comes in yelling at the both of them to which they laugh and giggle as she wags her finger at them for making her job difficult.
Logan shakes his head at their childish behavior, excited to see what they’re going to be like as parents. He sits across from them snuggling on the couch to go through Brandon’s appointments.
“Are there any days you don’t have meetings?” Elise asks.
“Yes, the day our child is born, the day we get married, and the entire length of our honeymoon,” he rambles off nonchalantly.
“You say that as if you already have those days blocked out,” Elise grins.
“He does,” Logan interjects, “Well date ranges, I should say. As long as your baby comes when doctors say it will, Brandon will be by your side.”
“You picked out our wedding date?” Elise questions shifting the weight in her belly onto her side.
“Yes I did,” he answers.
“How could you make a decision like that without me?” Elise starts getting worked up as tears fill her eyes.
“Let me just say that I’ve been planning this engagement process for a while now. And I believe I know you well enough to know what dates work for you and me. Do you want to walk down the aisle pregnant?”
“Are you calling me fat?” Elise screams.
“No one is calling you fat honey,” Logan consoles her. He shoots Brandon a look to choose better words.
“I’m sorry baby. That came out wrong. What I meant to ask you is why make it difficult to go dress shopping in your constantly changing state? The baby is growing by the day and spending a whole bunch of money on a dress junior here is gonna outgrow is ridiculous,” Brandon attempts to reason with her.
Elise’s hormones rage as she wails, “I know what you mean but I don’t like how you said it!”
Logan slaps his forehead and then excuses himself from the conversation. He’ll let Brandon dig himself out of the hole he’s burying himself in. Brandon’s peripheral follows Logan leaving the room wishing he could go with him. He takes a deep breath and hugs his fiancée. He rubs the small of her back knowing that it’s her sweet spot. He changes the tone in his voice to a much softer, caring one, “I love you so much, Elise. And I want our wedding day to be one of the happiest days of our lives. I don’t want you worried about the baby coming unexpectedly. I don’t want you worried about a dress that may or may not fit the morning of. Imagine if the baby comes early and now you have a pregnant size dress that won’t fit your non-pregnant body. All I’m saying is that on our wedding day, all I want you thinking about is getting married and uniting our families. I don’t ever want you worrying about nothing else so long as you’re with me.
“While I know that’s a stretch, especially as we become parents, a guy can hope. As far as the date goes, I picked September 21st of next year. The baby will be over a year old. That’s the first day of fall and the harvest season is in full swing. I know you like all them pretty greens and oranges, so I figure a nice outdoor wedding on our land here will be just fine. And that’s the day you decided to let me back into your life. That’s the day I promised you that I’d never be a coward about our love again. That’s the day your brother and I met and even though Shawn wanted to kill me; he didn’t. That day stands out the most in my mind and I wouldn’t change it for anything in the world.”
Elise cries even harder into Brandon’s shirt.
“Aww honey what’d I say wrong now?”
“Nothing,” Elise talks through her whimpering, “That’s the sweetest thing I ever heard. I love you so much.” She hollers and balls again. Lucy comes in wondering what all the fuss is about.
“Leave her,” she commands Brandon shooing him from the couch, “I take it from here. You go to work, Mr. Fairchild.” Brandon hugs his fiancée tighter, kisses her on the forehead, and passes the sobbing woman over to his housekeeper who picks up where he left off rubbing the small of her back.
“I ain’t seen a woman cry that much since my mother found out her favorite bakery was closing down,” Brandon runs his fingers through his hair watching Logan lay his suit out for the day. “You know how much I hate those damn suits!”
“Well you’re meeting with Thomas Biltmore today about that community center circuit you guys are trying to organize in Detroit. Remember? Charity work for the year for the underprivileged youth of our country. It’s mid-March now, by the time you two get through they should all be ready by the time schools go back in the fall. You have to look good for whatever press you guys may get.”
“Press? In Midway? We’re just having a business lunch for goodness sakes,” Brandon complains snatching the trousers off the bed and throwing them back in the closet. He pulls out a pair of jeans and lays it next the shirt and jacket Logan picks out. Logan snatches the jeans, throwing them in the closet and fetching a new pair of trousers that won’t be wrinkled.
“Don’t push my buttons this morning, Brandon. You will wear a full suit and I will have a change of clothes for you in the car. How’s that for a compromise?”
“I can work with that. I still don’t see how anybody cares about two guys in two suits having lunch,” Brandon grumbles.
“You’re underplaying the circumstances severely, sir. It’s two billionaires, in two suits, having lunch, talking about charity work for inner city youths. You guys are tugging on my heart strings and I know that’s going to be front page news in this little town. So you’re going to look good, smile for the newspaper, give them a nice quote, and let the press celebrate your philanthropy.”
Brandon continues to huff and puff as he strips down to take a shower. His day goes as planned and just as Logan said they were photographed at their lunch meeting and asked about the future of their charity work. Once the hoopla is all over with, Brandon bids his friend farewell and drives off back to the office. He has a strong feeling that Logan is behind the impromptu press conference but understands it’s for a good cause.
When he walks into his office he s
ees a familiar face he hasn’t seen in months.
“Hello, Ms. Woodson,” Brandon greets Stephanie as she sits patiently in his office.
“Hello Mr. Fairchild,” she returns his greeting with a smile.
“How can I help you today? It’s been a long time and as I recall you are no longer in business with Fairchild Homes and Construction.”
“Yes, that’s right and that hasn’t changed. What I’m here for is to set up a meeting between you and Donald. He wants to offer you and Elise a full-fledged apology,” she confesses.
“Oh like the last time. I’ll pass, but I’m glad you actually asked me this time,” he concedes.
“Well things are happening rather fast and considering you left us hi and dry, he wanted to patch things up so we can at least be cordial at mutual business functions and things of that nature. Doesn’t want you spitting on him anymore,” she explains.
Brandon pulls his chair close to the desk, and adjusts his posture so she can read his body language clearly when he speaks, “Now being that you don’t know the ins and outs of what happened, I’m partial to the notion that you accept I left you guys hi and dry. However, let me correct you on a few things. You orchestrated a meeting with someone who I am no longer very fond of. While he had his job at the time, it wasn’t just my call but the opinion of everyone in this office to have him moved to a satellite location, so he could keep his job.
“Now in the midst of him continuing to be a rude son of a bitch, he pissed me off that day you set us up to meet and then I came to find out he pilfered private and personal financial information to do an illegal background check on someone who was not an employee nor a client at the time. And even if that person was… that is not his job. He does not have the clearance, nor experience to handle that kind of information. So when I fired him, I told him he can take all of the clients he brought in, which means you and a few others and bring you guys over to another company, which he did. I backed him up, gave him a glorious reference and simply stated that our personal beliefs were beginning to clash to a point where it was affecting business. I did not leave you hi and dry. I left you with the man who wanted to do the job in the first place, and I kept him out of jail.”
“I had no idea, Bran,” Stephanie’s eyes fall to the floor.
“And now you do, so kindly tell Mr. Grainger that while I appreciate all of his efforts to amend our relationship, it’s too little too late. Should we happen to be at the same function, I’ll be cordial. I may not speak, but I will not fight or argue with him. He is fine to be whoever he wants to be. Thank you for stopping by, Ms. Woodson. It was lovely seeing you. But I would much appreciate it more seeing you leave,” Brandon extends his hand to the door.
Stephanie feels belittled and embarrassed. She wants to curse at Brandon, but knows he has every right to feel the way he does. She just didn’t think her sticking her nose where it didn’t belong would cost her one of the best companies in the business to drop her as a client. Walking out of his office that day is the hardest thing she will ever do because deep down in the pit of her soul, she knows she’ll never see him again.
Brandon isn’t sure what’s in the air today, but he just feels mentally exhausted. He cancels his meetings for the rest of the day and heads home. He takes Ginger out of her stall, and heads off into the sunset. Alone on his ranch, out in the fields; he feels free. He looks back to the house far off in the distance excited and scared for the changes coming into his life.
“Are we ready girl?” he whispers to his mare. She neighs with a hearty nod. He smiles knowing that the horse has no idea what he’s talking about, but the notion is sweet enough. With a swift flick of her reins, they keep riding around the property until the sun sets and the moon greets the sky.
When he walks in, Elise is sleeping on the couch and Lucy is heating up his dinner before she goes home for the night. He stares at Lucy for a while watching her move through the kitchen. She pinches his cheek and smiles, “You know, I’ve known your family a long time since your father take me on as nanny at his house. I’m proud to be nanny for you and Brody’s little ones now too. I’m happy for you boys. Such great men you’ve grown to be.”
Brandon smiles as Lucy kisses him on the cheek, grabs her things, and heads home. He hears Elise stirring on the couch. There’s no way she’s comfortable he thinks. He bends down and lifts her into his arms. She locks her hands around his neck as he carries his very pregnant fiancée upstairs into bed.
“You’re so good to me,” she murmurs sleepily.
“I promised you didn’t I,” he nuzzles her cheek letting her soft black curls brush against his cheeks, “Tomorrow you guys start wedding planning and getting this house ready for the baby.”
“Okay,” Elise blindly agrees turning over onto her side falling back to sleep instantly.
Days turn into weeks as time brings changes around the house and to Elise’s growing body. The baby shower has come and gone. Many of the rooms have been painted to brighten up the house. One of Brandon’s game rooms has been converted into a nursery and things are moving along. Elise is about three weeks from her due date when Brandon tells her he has to go out of town. He has her mother and Shawn brought to the house just in case, but he promises to be there for the birth of their baby.
Business meetings and a bunch of red tape, in regards to the charity work, keep Brandon occupied for all of two weeks toward the end of Elise’s pregnancy. The day she goes into labor, he’s halfway into a presentation with the city development office. His phone begins buzzing constantly, which he ignores. Finally Logan comes bursting into the meeting, “I’m sorry guys but we’re going to have to adjourn this meeting to another day. Mr. Fairchild is about to have a baby!”
The people in the room stare at each other in bewilderment until Brandon clarifies, “He means my fiancée is going into labor and is about to have a baby.”
He laughs and then the realization sinks in, “Oh shit! I’m about to have a baby! Holy crap! I gotta go! I’m sorry gentleman and ladies. Logan, get me out of here!”
The two men rush out of the room. He checks his phone to see 25 missed calls and 11 voicemail messages. On the way to the airport he listens to them one by one. They start off fairly calm but end with Elise spewing profanities about contractions and him getting his ass to the hospital immediately.
“She sounds pissed,” he admits to Logan as they pull into the private airport.
“Aren’t they all pissed when they push humans out of them,” Logan jokes.
Brandon doesn’t find it funny as they run across the tarmac to his private jet. They hop aboard and take off once the tower clears them. In just under three hours, Brandon is stepping off of his plane and into a waiting car to whisk them off to the hospital. He’s a ball of nerves and sweat as he races through the hospital with Logan on his heels in search of the labor and delivery wing. Celeste is inside the room with Elise as Shawn waits outside with Bryce and Marilyn.
“Where’s Brody?” Brandon asks rushing past his parents.
“He’s on the way. Had to pick up Jr. after is meeting,” Bryce says with a glimmer of joy. Brandon notices but refuses to be distracted. He bursts into the room where the two women are breathing calmly.
“I told you I’d make it,” he gasps taking Elise’s other hand, “I promised you, didn’t I?”
“Yes you did. But baby I’m going to need you to bring your energy down a notch. The nurse says for me to remain calm and not exert too much energy. I need to reserve it for pushing. And why are you sweating so much? Did you run here from Detroit?” she laughs between breaths.
He kisses her on the forehead laughing along with her, “No, but it sure does feel like it! How you doin, Momma Celeste?”
“I’m doing just fine, and now that you’re here I’m going to go wait outside with the other grandparents,” she rubs Elise’s hands before letting go.
“Hey I didn’t see Uncle Garrett out there,” Brandon mentions haphazardly, “Co
me to think about it, I haven’t seen or heard from him in weeks.”
“I know, and it’s gonna stay that way,” Elise snaps, “Logan told me what you did for him. One, you shouldn’t have gave him shit, and two; he won’t be freeloading off of none of us. He’s on the no entry list everywhere we are! But I don’t want to talk about that right now, just get me some ice chips baby.”
Brandon does everything Elise and the doctors tell him to; from wiping the sweat off her brow, to cutting the umbilical cord. Less than eight hours after Brandon arrives, Elaina Marilyn Celeste Fairchild is born at a mere five pounds six ounces. Her chestnut colored skin is a shade or two lighter than Elise’s but her eyes are as big and grey as her father’s. He falls in love with the little lady as soon as he holds her. A few tears drip down his cheeks as the tiny human squirms in her blanket opening her eyes just for him.
“Hello, my princess,” he whispers. He kisses her on the forehead before passing her to Elise. He hugs and kisses them both before running out to tell the family. The grandparents adorn the baby with kisses and gibberish baby talk, while Shawn brings in balloons and the baby’s first teddy bear. He congratulates his sister and future brother in law on the beautiful bundle of joy. But, as happy as he is for them, he needs to get back to work and has a flight leaving out of town later that night. He bids his family farewell looking to Brandon knowing that he’s going to keep his promise to take care and protect them.
When Brody finally arrives, Brandon is ecstatic that his brother made it, “You have to come see her, Brode! She’s the tiniest thing you’ll ever see.”
Brody holds his niece for the first time and even stoops down for Brody Jr. to get an eyeful of his brand new cousin.
“I heard you had a meeting today,” Brandon alludes to the comment their father made earlier, “I’m proud of you, man. I’m glad you’re getting back out there.”
“Yeah it was time and besides Lucy keeps making me wash the tall windows,” they laugh together, “Hey where’s Shawn at? We had a bet about the birthday, he owes me twenty bucks!”
The Art of Love Page 10
