“Ken, darling! I heard the phone ring and had to do a bit of a search to find the thing.”
His mother was one of the few people in the world who called him Ken. His second name was Kenneth and to distinguish him from his father William, she had called him Ken or Kenny for as long he could remember. When he entered school he was called either Lamport or Wills, the name that his friends and younger relatives called him.
“I’m not like you young people who take your mobile with you everywhere, even to the loo. Why didn’t you call me on the landline telephone? One of the servants would have answered. Anyway, how are you? So good to know that you finally remembered you had a mother somewhere,” Kendra continued.
William smiled. This was the usual song and dance.
“Sorry, Mum, but I’ve been extremely busy with the setting up of the China subsidiary, as you know. I did text you and, as usual, you didn’t respond.”
Kendra sighed audibly.
“How many times must I tell you that I’m not wasting my precious time typing out tiny letters on a phone to my own son? The time it would take me to do all of that we could have spoken for five minutes. Do you know how many words you can say in five minutes? Loads more than you can type.”
“Send me an audio message then.”
“A what?”
William shook his head. It was useless trying to argue with his mother.
“How are you, Mum?”
“I’m wonderful, love. How are you? It’s been much too long since you came over. You missed my last dinner party. It was divine and everyone asked for you. You’re very popular it seems,” she said in her disarming droll manner.
William chuckled softly.
“I’m sorry I had to miss it too, Mum, but you know what it’s like.”
“Yes, I do. Still, Ken, ensure you make time for what’s really important. You need to find a nice girl and settle down. Produce some grandchildren for me to play with before I kick the bucket. All of my siblings are grandparents. I want to show off too you know.”
William did a quick mental check and retorted, “That’s not true. Aunt Kate doesn’t have any grandchildren.”
“Well at least Prudence is finally married so I expect that soon we’ll have some news about a baby.”
William’s laugh sounded slightly hollow, even to his ears.
“You should have had more than one child. It would have increased your chances of having grandchildren. It’s not fair that you should put all that pressure on me.”
“Now, now, don’t you be cheeky. I’m perfectly serious, Kenneth. You’re 33 years old. Your father married me when he was 26 and I was 22. Young people delay marriage until far too late these days.”
William was growing tired of the conversation. He didn’t enjoy being reminded that while he was a success in business he had failed miserably in the romance arena. He promised his mother he would visit her as soon as he could, just before he hung up.
The car had reached its destination. William’s chauffeur, Stevenson, opened the door for him and followed him into the elevator with his overnight bag.
When William let himself into his penthouse condo he was still thinking about what his mother had said. Settle down with a nice girl and get married. He could only imagine what she was thinking.
He had been engaged twice in his life and both times he had failed to make it to the altar. He suspected that she thought that he had commitment issues. Nothing could be further from the truth. It was just that the one woman he wanted to commit to seemed always to be just out of his reach.
His butler, Alfred, appeared almost as soon as he walked through the door. After the usual pleasantries he took the overnight bag from Stevenson and disappeared down the corridor to unpack William’s things.
William shrugged out of his sports jacket and tossed it on a nearby chair as he proceeded to the living room.
The condo was open plan, so he could survey the expansive space and see the living room, dining room, and kitchen from the foyer. The reaction of new visitors to the condo was always amazement at the breathtaking views of the London skyline which the floor to ceiling windows afforded.
He approached the living room with the expectation that Alfred would have set out a tray on the ottoman with tea and biscuits for his supper. He wasn’t disappointed.
Alfred had been with William since he had made the decision at the age of 24 to move out of his parents’ London home, Balmoral House, and reside in a penthouse condominium of the Lamport Holdings acquisition, Waldorf International Hotel and Towers.
William knew that there were those in his family who wondered why he didn’t buy a house, but he had no intention of buying a house until he had a wife and children to share it with. Until then, he would live like a conventional bachelor in his penthouse condo.
William placed his laptop bag on the sofa and took a seat. He kicked off his shoes and reached for the remote as his thoughts drifted to Barbara.
For nine long months he had buried himself in his work and it had the desired effect because by the end of most days he had been too tired to think of anything, Barbara included.
Then one day in February, Providence had smiled on him. Prudence, called to invite him to her exclusive birthday bash. He had promised he would attend but as the date drew near he found that the party was clashing with an important meeting in Beijing.
He was about to call Prudence and offer his regrets, when something suddenly struck him.
He’d gotten Prudence on the line.
“Prunes is Barbara coming to your party?”
“I invited her. She hasn’t responded yet.”
“You need to convince her to come and also stay for the weekend. I need to see her.”
Prudence had hesitated.
“Wills, love, I think that ship has sailed. Since you broke it off with her I can’t even mention your name without her glaring at me and changing the subject.”
“Look, Prunes, I know I never mentioned it to you, but Barbara and I talked at your wedding and we kissed. I know that she still has feelings for me. She’s just been going through a mourning period. I can accept that but I need to have time to talk to her, to convince her that there’s a chance for us. You’ve got to do this for me, please.”
Prudence sighed. “Okay fine. But be prepared for a fight. I think she’s a little afraid of you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Wills, I don’t know if you understand how hard she fell for you. I think she was really devastated when you broke up with her. I believe that either consciously or subconsciously she decided to never allow herself to love so deeply again. I don’t think she’s going to easily let you, of all people, get that close to her.”
“You certainly know how to cheer a person on, don’t you?”
“I’m just trying to inject some realism here. I don’t want you to go into this thinking that she’ll be an easy conquest. You’re going to have to overcome all her defenses, Wills, and these defenses are fully entrenched because they are nine years old.”
“Thanks for the heads up. Just do your part, Prunes. Just get her there. I’ll do the rest. And for the record I don’t view Barbara as a conquest. I love her and I want her in my life again, it’s as simple as that.”
When he’d hung up he’d actually felt jubilant, like he’d already won the battle. Okay, maybe he did view Barbara as a conquest – although probably not in the way Prudence meant. The fact was that he wanted to conquer her heart again. He wanted to break down all her barriers so that she would allow herself to love him back.
That feeling of jubilation inspired him to set new deadlines for himself and his management team and seriously juggle his schedule so that he could be in Beijing the weekend before Prudence’s birthday. This left him free not only to travel to Prudence’s party but also to stay on until the next evening.
When he had seen Barbara descending the stairs on the night of the party in that fetching red dress he had felt as
though his heart would leap out of his chest. She had been absolutely stunning.
It was all he could do to keep his hands at his side and not wrap his arms around her and kiss her senseless. When they were eventually alone and he had asked her if it was still too soon he’d been prepared to hear that she needed more time. Despite Prudence’s warning he had not been prepared to hear those words that she wouldn’t date him because he wasn’t a Christian.
That one had almost floored him. While he was by no means a regular churchgoer, he considered himself to be religious enough. He knew that there was a God. He was a moral person, he didn’t swear, drink to excess or abuse drugs or women. He didn’t lie or cheat and he paid all his taxes and gave money to the poor. What exactly did this woman want from him?
But then she had asked him if he had a personal relationship with Jesus, if he’d handed the reins of his life over to God. He’d thought about it and knew that he didn’t. Sure, he’d been confirmed into the Anglican faith at age 14 but now he only attended worship services a handful of times each year. Most of those were connected to official engagements as the CEO of Lamport Holdings or special occasions in the Christian calendar, like Christmas and Easter.
His stance, while not much different from his circle of friends and most of the family members of his generation, was unlike the older members of his family. His grandparents, the Duke and Duchess of Westminster, were devout Christians who attended church on a weekly basis. His parents had always been regular churchgoers and about two years prior to his father’s death, they had renewed their commitment to the Lord.
He had felt a sense of panic and despair creep up his spine. Was he about to lose the only woman that he had ever loved because he was not good enough, not godly enough?
When she’d said she wanted to be just friends he’d felt as though he’d been kicked in the gut. Just friends? He didn’t want to be just friends – not with her!
He was about to say that it had to be all or nothing. He had stopped in his tracks and tried to think rationally – not let emotion cloud his brain. In the business world when he wanted something he went after it and he did all that he could to get it. He wanted Barbara. Therefore it followed that he had to do all in his power to make her his, even if it meant being just her friend and working up from there.
So he had agreed to be her friend. Then at dinner she had invited him to church and he had agreed to do that too.
He remembered waking on that Sunday morning and groaning when he immediately called to mind that he had committed to going to church. Fear and resistance filled his heart and a voice asked if he knew what he was getting himself into. The voice suggested that maybe it wasn’t worth all this. Barbara wasn’t the only woman in the world. There were loads of women out there who would give anything to be Lady William Lamport and that he knew full well. Even if he did go to church and jumped through all the hoops, was there any guarantee that she would fall into his arms?
He thought about what life had been like after they’d broken up; how he’d spent the last nine years unfairly measuring every woman who had entered his life against Barbara and found them all wanting. No, if he could have another chance with her he had to pursue it. He hadn’t known true happiness since that fateful day when she had walked out of his life and he would give anything to experience it again.
So, he had gone to church. At the start, service at the church in Paris had been pleasant enough, but the thing he’d enjoyed most was sitting beside her and admiring her beautiful self. It had been well worth it.
She’d looked so pretty in her pink dress and matching hat with her hair twisted at the nape of her neck. He’d started fantasizing about taking off that hat and unpinning that hair and running his fingers through it when the sermon began. Then something the minister said caught his attention. That was when he began to get uncomfortable – very uncomfortable.
At first, as he listened, he’d wondered if the man was pointing fingers at him. The parallels that he saw between himself and the rich fool in Luke 12 were too striking.
The minister in his thick French-accented voice said, “Wouldn’t it be nice not to have to worry about money; nice to live off the interest of a huge inheritance? Believe me having all the money in the world is not what it’s cracked up to be. We don’t have to look any further than the billionaires among us who seem to have it all but who are miserable. All the fast cars, fancy clothes, multiple houses do not make them happy.”
For an irrational moment William had thought that the minister was going to point to him and say, “Just look at William Lamport. He seems to have it all but is he really happy?”
The minister glanced around the room then looked back down at his notes. William sagged with relief.
“In Luke 12 Jesus tells the story of a rich man whose money has not brought him contentment. He has had a bumper crop and does he thank God for the increase? No. His biggest concern is how to store it and hoard it.”
He paused again for effect.
“Oh, he is certainly a self-made man – a go-getter. He’s driven and ambitious, the traits that this world celebrates. He is seeking to build bigger barns, expand his empire, but do you notice something? For all of this he is alone. He is saying these things to himself, we do not hear him say them to a wife. We can maybe deduce that he has no one. He is a lonely, selfish man who only cares about the acquisition of things. When he’s faced with major decisions he does not consider God. He does not seek his counsel. He doesn’t pray. He leans on his own understanding.”
Beads of sweat had broken out on William’s forehead as he cast furtive glances around him at the other congregants. He felt sure that everyone knew that the minister was talking about him and that the entire church was watching him with disapproval.
“Jesus calls this rich man a fool. He tells him how that very night his life was being demanded of him and the things he’d prepared for himself whose would they be? This parable reminds us that no matter what we strive for in life, no matter how hard we work, no matter how earnestly we pursue our goals it is all meaningless in the end if God is not at the center. We cannot trust in things. We can only trust in the one who has the power to save us. In Luke 9:25 Jesus says, ‘What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul.’
“A Christian’s hope and confidence is the Lord – not the things of this world. This parable invites us to contemplate life, to open our eyes and to find that our lives are more than what we possess, more than what we can count. Think about this. If your life was required of you right now what would your legacy be? What would you be known for? Would you have lived foolishly or wisely?”
After the sermon was over, William had sat there deep in thought. Was he really like that man? Was he a rich fool? When the minister gave the altar call he felt a strange stirring in his heart to go to the altar but he resisted. He shifted in his seat and convinced himself that he was doing okay. He wasn’t a bad person. He tried to live a good life. He certainly wasn’t anywhere near as bad as some of his contemporaries.
He did pray though, for the first time since he was a boy. He asked God to show him that he really cared about his life by helping him to win Barbara back.
When Barbara had spoken of her charity gala that afternoon, he had seen it as a sign from God. This charity was extremely important to her. He could hear the passion in her voice as she spoke about the young people and what the Foundation was doing to improve their lives. He had to admit that it did sound like a worthwhile project.
Two hours after he had reached home, William showered and dressed in a pajama pants and a light t-shirt. He sat in his study and tried to read a financial report from one of his companies.
He couldn’t concentrate. His thoughts kept drifting to Barbara. He wondered whether he should call her. Was it too soon? Would she think that he was coming on too strong and freeze him out like she had done last time? Should he wait a couple of days? A week? A month? An emotion that he was unfamiliar wi
th – doubt – threatened to envelop him. It appeared that when it came to Barbara his famous confidence levels took a nose dive. He sighed and returned to the herculean task of trying to read with half of a brain.
Chapter 6
Barbara returned to New York from Paris later that night. As the long white limousine driven by her chauffeur, Frank Carr, left Teterboro Airport, she sat back and checked the calendar on her phone to review the number of meetings, events and appointments she had scheduled for that week.
The trip to Paris had been such an emotional roller coaster ride that she was glad to be returning to the comfort and familiarity of her home.
Home was an apartment on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Six months after Gerald had died she had sold the mansion they had owned in Connecticut and returned to New York where she had purchased the three bedroom apartment on 47 East 88th Street for $2 million. That price was a steal considering that prior to the recession it was going for $4.5 million.
The house in Connecticut had seemed too big and empty for a single woman. More important, she had felt the need to close that chapter of her life and move on. It was more of a symbolic step. The apartment signified a new beginning of sorts.
The building was a sixteen-story, pre-war co-op which was distinguished by its large-scale, classically designed apartments and handsome brick and limestone facade.
On arrival, the doorman greeted her with his familiar smile.
“Welcome home, Miss Dickson. I hope you had a lovely trip.”
“It was lovely Tony, thank you,” she responded as she flashed him a smile.
Frank took her overnight bag into the lobby.
“Let me help you with your bag, Miss Dickson,” he said, as Barbara took hold of the bag handle.
“It’s not a large bag, Frank. I can manage, thank you,” she replied, wheeling the small suitcase to the elevator.
Frank Carr gave his boss a quick nod and smiled discreetly as he watched her disappear into the elevator. He had been Barbara Dickson’s driver for the past five years and it still amazed him how unlike a celebrity she was. She was the nicest movie star he had ever met and in his twenty-year career he had met his share of movie stars. If only she could get over the annoying habit of wanting to do everything for herself. Often she would tell him to take the day off and drive around town in her Mercedes like she thought she was in Los Angeles. No one wanted to drive in a city primarily known for subways, buses and taxi cabs, except Miss Dickson.
The Royal Couple: A Christian Romance (Royals Book 1) Page 5
