Stallion Magic

by Deborah Fletcher Mello

  “You should get some rest,” he said. “I’m sure you have a long day tomorrow.”

  “I do but I don’t want to stop talking to you. I wish...” She hesitated, suddenly at a loss for words.

  There was a wave of silence that swept between them. Noah finally had to prod her on.

  “You wish what, baby?”

  “I wish I was there with you or you were here with me. I wish I could fall asleep next to you, in your arms.”

  There was a hint of a whisper in her voice, her tone breathy as if she were fighting not to cry. Noah found himself wishing he could reach through the phone to pull her into his arms. He blew his own deep sigh.

  “Are you in bed?” he asked.

  “Yes, are you?”

  “I’m stretched out on the sofa. This is where I fall asleep most nights.”

  “That’s not good. You should get into your bed. You’ll sleep better.”

  He smiled. “I will, but right now we need to put you to sleep.”

  “So, how do you propose to do that?”

  Noah hesitated only briefly. “Put your phone on speaker and lay it on the pillow beside you,” he said.

  “Speaker?”

  Noah chuckled. “Just do it.”

  “Okay,” Catherine said a moment later.

  Noah coughed, then cleared his throat. There was another moment of hesitation and then he began to sing the lyrics to “Hey Jude.”

  Noah had been told he had an incredible voice. He sang the entire John Lennon and Paul McCartney song, then his own version of Sam Smith’s “Nirvana.” Both were sweet and melodic, and Noah hoped his voice was doing the trick in lulling her to sleep.

  He sang until her breathing had slowed and he could hear her begin to lightly snore. Once he was certain she was asleep, he drifted off with her, leaving the cell phone line between them still open.

  Chapter 7

  “He sang you to sleep?” Camille asked, incredulous. “Noah sang you to sleep?”

  “Why do you say it like that?” Catherine asked. “Hasn’t a man ever sung you to sleep?”

  Her friend laughed. “My husband’s lucky if he can even find a tune, let alone hold one.”

  “But Doug’s a very romantic guy.”

  “Doug does good which is why I look like a beached whale right now. He has moments when I can’t help myself.”

  Catherine laughed. “You and your husband are having a lot of moments,” she said as she called off the names of their children. “Mingus, London, Paris, Basie, Sydney and what are you naming the new babies?”

  Camille laughed with her. “I think we’re going to name them Brooklyn and Miles. I wanted Bronx for the boy but Doug says I can’t name our boy after a place, only a jazz musician. Go figure!”

  Catherine continued to howl with laughter as her friend continued. “But we are not talking about me so rewind. We were talking about your stallion singing you to sleep. Sounds to me like your stud has it bad. What’s going to happen when you break his heart?”

  “I’m not going to break his heart.”

  “You always break their hearts.”

  Catherine paused as she reflected on her friend’s assessment.

  “I like Noah. I like him a lot. I want...” She hesitated for a brief second. “I really want to make this relationship work, Camille.”

  “What have you done with my best friend?” Camille quipped. “The Catherine Moore I know has never before cared about any relationship.”

  Catherine laughed. “Seriously, Camille, I really like him. The man is male perfection if such a thing exists.”

  “It doesn’t. Ask me how I know.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Because I’ve been pregnant four times and I have seven kids. There’s only been one time that man has knocked me up and only gotten me pregnant with one child. Men are always trying to overcompensate for something so they manage to screw things up. There is no perfect man.”

  “I told you to cut Doug off after the first set of twins.”

  “I know but then he does that thing with his tongue and I’m no good.”

  Both Camille and she laughed heartily.

  “When are you coming back to Salt Lake City?”

  “I’m not sure yet. Why?”

  “When you do, I’ll have you and Noah over for dinner. We’ll see how he handles my brood. If he’s still in one piece after dessert then we’ll know he’s a keeper.”

  Catherine giggled. “I already know he’s a keeper so I’m not going to subject him to your Chuck E. Cheese’s experiment gone wrong.”

  Catherine spoke to Camille for another few minutes before ending the call, noticing Frederick standing in the middle of her office. As she disconnected the line, she lifted her gaze to his, annoyance furrowing her brow.

  “Good morning,” he chimed gleefully.

  “Frederick.”

  “Why didn’t you call me?” His tone held a hint of attitude.

  “Excuse me?”

  He took a deep breath. “Sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I had some concerns and when I left you multiple messages and didn’t hear back from you I started to worry.”

  “Why would you be worried, Frederick?”

  “Well, with everything that’s going on with the company you’re getting some undesirable attention. I was just concerned about your safety.”

  “What kind of undesirable attention?”

  Frederick shook his head. “Nothing that can’t be handled and surely nothing for you to be concerned about. That’s why you have me.”

  Catherine stared at him for a brief moment. There was an air of uncertainty that teased her spirit but she wasn’t quite sure why. She’d always trusted Frederick, and his business acumen went above and beyond. Deferring to his judgment had never been difficult to do. Until now. She was suddenly guarded, second-guessing herself, as if trusting Frederick so completely hadn’t been a good thing after all.

  She reached for the intercom on her desk.

  “Yes, Catherine?” Marvin’s soprano tone chimed through the speakers.

  “Marvin, Frederick and I will be taking lunch in the office today. If you’ll order me a cobb salad with ranch dressing on the side and a Sprite, please.”

  She looked up at Frederick. “What would you like?”

  “I’ll take a turkey sub with lettuce, tomato, and extra mayonnaise. A bag of barbecued potato chips and a Coke.”

  “Did you get that, Marvin?” Catherine questioned, talking back to the speaker.

  “I did,” Marvin answered.

  “Thank you.”

  She picked up the file folders on her desk, leading the way to the conference room. Frederick followed on her heels.

  “We have two planes in Houston that scored low on their inspections,” she started. “I want to know why.”

  * * *

  “So when are you going to see her again?” Natalie Stallion Braddy questioned.

  Noah’s little sister had finally caught up with him, their game of phone tag coming to an end.

  “Did Naomi call all of you?”

  “She called me. But I hear she actually stopped in Los Angeles on her way back to Arizona to tell the twins.”

  Noah shook his head. “Unbelievable!” he exclaimed. “Is nothing sacred?”

  Natalie laughed. “Naomi says you two went to school together but I don’t remember who she is.”

  “You wouldn’t,” he said. “You were a few years behind us, remember?”

  “But I remember the girls the twins use to hang out with.”

  “Catherine and I never hung out.”

  “So is she, like...”

  Noah interrupted her. “How’s Tinjin?”

  “My husband has been a busy, busy man. You guys are all coming for the runway show, right?”

  “I’m going to try but I can’t promise you anything. I start my new job next week.”

  “You’re going to hate it.”

  “Why would you say
that?”

  “You’re not built for a desk job. It’s going to drive you crazy.”

  “I’ll be fine, Natalie.”

  “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  Noah’s head shook as his sister caught him up on her latest antics. She was happy and he could hear the joy in her voice. It made him smile.

  “So are you going to tell me anything about this woman? Because Naomi says she has your nose wide open. So you should tell me a little something.”

  Her brother laughed. “You and Naomi are real nuisances.”

  “That’s what sisters are for. So spill the tea.”

  He took a deep breath. “Catherine is a very successful entrepreneur running a multi-million-dollar company. She’s beautiful, intelligent, kindhearted, and funny. She’s the whole package.”

  “Did you really spend the weekend with her?”

  “We spent some time together catching up while she was in town.”

  “Is that what you men are calling it these days?”

  “Calling what?”

  “You know what...”

  “I’m not having this conversation with you, Natalie.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because it’s not the kind of conversation a man has with his baby sister.”

  “You use to change my diapers. We should be able to talk about everything.”

  “You should be able to talk to me about everything. My everything isn’t any of your concern.”

  “Oh, I see how you are!” Natalie laughed. “Well, let me ask the Noah Stallion handbook of questions. Is she good to you?”

  Noah chuckled, nodding as if his sister could see him. “She is.”

  “Is she good for you?”

  “Most definitely.”

  “Will she make you chicken noodle soup when you have a cold?”

  “I think she will.”

  “And if there’s a booger in her nose or spinach in her teeth will you wipe it off for her without making a face?”

  “I don’t know about all that now.”

  “You are such a man.”

  “Boogers? Really?”

  “It doesn’t matter. If she’s the one, you should be willing to do whatever it takes.”

  Noah could only imagine the expression on his face. He could only have this conversation with his favorite baby sister.

  “I think she’s very special and I like what’s developing between us.”

  “So it’s not just a sex thing?”

  “No, it’s not.”

  “Because a sex thing wouldn’t be bad. Tinjin was a sex thing until he started acting right.”

  “Too much information, Natalie. I did not need to know that about you and your husband.”

  Noah could tell by his sister’s laugh that she was finding much amusement in making him squirm.

  “Seriously,” Natalie said, her tone shifting, “I just want to make sure she makes you happy.”

  “She really does.”

  “Then I can’t wait to meet her. Maybe you can bring her to Paris? You would definitely get the goodies in Paris!”

  “Good night, Natalie. I love you!”

  “I love you, too, Noah. I’ll call you next week to see how the new job is going.”

  Chapter 8

  Frederick met Noah in the lobby of Fly High’s Salt Lake City office. The man was flustered as he extended his hand in greeting.

  “Noah, welcome to Fly High. I look forward to working with you.”

  “I appreciate that. I’m excited to get started.”

  “Let me show you to your new office,” Frederick said, gesturing for Noah to follow behind him.

  He tossed Noah a look over his shoulder. His eyes were bloodshot and swollen as if he’d been crying. Dark circles outlined the lower lids. Noah guessed the man was simply exhausted.

  “Your timing couldn’t be better,” Frederick said, his tone short. “We have a situation.”

  “What kind of situation?” Noah asked.

  Frederick hesitated, the gesture almost exaggerated. “It might be nothing,” he said finally. “But I would prefer to be safe than sorry.”

  He pointed Noah into a spacious office with a bay of windows that looked out over the city.

  “This is your office. In house here you have a team of seven security members who report directly to you and you’ll meet them all right after you’re done with personnel. There are also safety team coordinators based at each of our private hangers to ensure plane security and then of course there’s a whole other staff who are responsible for our digital security. They will report to you, as well.”

  Noah nodded. “You still haven’t told me what the problem is.”

  Frederick took a deep breath. “I’m worried that someone might be trying to hurt Catherine.”

  * * *

  Noah’s entire afternoon was spent studying the ins and outs of Fly High’s security programs. It took less than an hour to learn who was who on his team and what they did. The rest of his time was spent deciphering Frederick’s cryptic concerns.

  Noah spun around in his leather executive’s chair to stare out the window. One solitary electronic message had been the cause of Frederick’s alarm, one line of email message that had been intercepted off their messaging server. What had alarmed Noah most wasn’t the message itself but Frederick’s handling of things.

  “Do you always take it upon yourself to intercept and read other employee’s private messages?” he’d asked.

  Frederick had bristled. “It’s my responsibility to ensure nothing interferes with the operation of this company. Catherine has worked too hard for anything or anyone to disparage the organization or cast any doubts on our integrity. It’s paramount that management keeps a finger on what’s going on and if that means reading private messages then so be it. We’re about to go public so it’s even more important now.”

  Noah’s gaze had narrowed but he hadn’t responded. There was no way anyone could convince him that the man’s irrational paranoia was a tangible reason to intrude on any employee’s privacy, most especially the CEO of the company. One of his first acts in his new position would be to shut unnecessary personnel out of the computer servers, and he suspected Frederick wasn’t going to take the change lightly.

  Noah turned back to his desk and the documents that rested on top. Apparently, the message in question had been one of many, the first coming months earlier, and Catherine had yet to be told. He read the text one more time, the words I’m coming for you embedded in his mind. The email message had been sent from an unknown IP address to Catherine’s private email account.

  He wasn’t sure what to make of any of it but he knew that Frederick’s idea of handling the situation and his were worlds apart. If Catherine were legitimately in danger, keeping her in the dark wouldn’t serve her well. If he needed to keep her safe, she needed to know exactly what he knew. Frederick wasn’t going to take kindly to that either, but Noah didn’t care. Frederick wasn’t his concern. Catherine was.

  * * *

  One week later Noah’s trip to New York City had been his first flight on a private aircraft. Not having to use the commercial travel terminal at the airport and having the whole plane to himself had been a new experience. He now understood firsthand what was so unique about the Fly High brand.

  The professionalism of the entire crew had been beyond expectation. From the ground crew to the flight staff, everyone had gone above and beyond. When he had landed, a limo had been there to take him to Fly High’s Manhattan office.

  Hours later, despite his best efforts, Noah had trouble remembering the names of half the staff members he’d met. As the executive team sat in the oversized conference room awaiting Catherine’s arrival he was duly impressed with the group she had handpicked to help run her company. It took little time to recognize most were loyal to a fault and they all wanted to see Catherine and the company succeed.

  She was laughing when she came into the room. The lilt of it caus
ed Noah to inhale swiftly. Holding his breath, he struggled to stall the quiver of emotion that had suddenly curdled his insides, fighting to not let his feelings show on his face.

  Catherine came to an abrupt stop when she saw him. Her bright smile froze on her face, a brief moment of confusion washing over her expression. Her gaze shifted quickly between Noah and Frederick then back to Noah. Her hesitation was swift enough to not be noticed, but Noah didn’t miss how her brow had furrowed as she had met his gaze.

  He let out the breath he’d been holding, suddenly wondering what he’d gotten himself into. Leaning back in his seat he folded his hands in his lap and eyed her back.

  “Well, good morning,” Catherine said in greeting, her smile less tense as she took a seat at the head of the table.

  Everyone seated around her chimed back in unison. “Good morning.”

  “Let’s get right to business,” she started, gesturing in his direction. “First, I want to welcome Noah Stallion to the company. Noah is our new vice president of security operations and he’ll be overseeing all aspects of our company security. He’ll divide his time between our three corporate locations as well as our satellite hangars. Please give him your full support as he transitions in.” She met his gaze, her smile widening. She nodded in his direction, just the slightest tilt of her head.

  A round of congratulations circled the table as everyone welcomed him aboard.

  Catherine continued. “I want to thank each of you for all the extra effort you’ve put forth these past few months. I’m very proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish together. Effective on Monday our company stock will be offered to the public and all of you around this table will be very wealthy.”

  Another round of applause rang through the room. Noah felt an air of pride wash over him as he watched her. She was authoritative and masterful. She commanded the room and it wasn’t hard to see that her staff held her in high esteem. They had a lot of respect for her. The meeting lasted for about an hour before Catherine excused them all.

  She gestured toward Noah. “Mr. Stallion, if you’ll meet me in my office in thirty minutes, please. I’d like to brief you on a few concerns I have.”

  Noah nodded. “Not a problem, Ms. Moore.”