The Best of All

by Vanessa Miller

“Look, Surry, I know we’re discussing your mom, so I’m really trying not to say everything I want to say. But what you must know is that even though I don’t like the way she talked to me, what bothered me the most was the way you told your mom that I had my choice between other clients and the one I had, as if any of those other clients were better than the one I have now.”

  “I was just trying to stand up for you...like a girlfriend should. You did tell my dad that we were dating, remember?”

  If he wasn’t driving, he would have turned to her and looked her in the eye as he said what he had to say. But he couldn’t take his eyes off the road if he wanted them to get home safely. “Surry,” he began with a sigh, “I don’t just want to date you. I want us to be together for a long time to come. But I don’t want my woman feeling as if she has to make excuses for the career choices that I make.”

  “I wasn’t making excuses. I was simply letting my mother know how in demand you are.”

  Ian didn’t know how to make Surry see that she was acting like her mother by not acknowledging that what he was doing was good enough. And if he couldn’t get her to see that, Ian just wasn’t sure if they could move forward.

  * * *

  Later that night when Surry was at home and preparing to get in bed, she replayed the conversation with Ian in her head again. She knew he was upset, but she wasn’t quite getting what the big deal was. But she did know that her mother played a huge part in what had gone wrong tonight. Surry had let her mother come between the relationship she should’ve had with her father all these years. Sylvia had also run off every other man Surry dated. But this time was different, because this time Surry was in love.

  She had no problem admitting that fact to herself. And she had no problem admitting that it would hurt worse than anything she’d experienced thus far in life if she lost Ian, so she simply refused to lose. Her mother was not going to ruin this one for her. She just needed to get Ian focused on progressing in his career, and then Sylvia McDaniel wouldn’t have anything to complain about.

  Surry knew just what Ian needed, and she would move heaven and earth if that’s what it took to get him where he needed to be.

  Chapter 16

  Tuesday afternoon, Surry drove to the Houston airport and picked up Walter Duncan. She had contacted him the day before and told him that Ian needed him. Surry was surprised at how fast Ian’s father booked a flight from California to Houston to come and see about his son. That in itself showed Surry how much Walter cared about Ian. Now all she had to do was convince Ian of his father’s love and then all would be as it should be...she hoped.

  “Thank you for coming so quickly, Walter. I can see that you really care about your son,” Surry told him as she opened her trunk so he could put his bag in.

  “Of course I care about Ian,” Walter proclaimed. “I just don’t know how to convince that stubborn son of mine that I care. Trouble is, he’s just too much like his old man.”

  “That’s why I’m here. I believe I’ll be able to help,” Surry told him as they drove off from the airport.

  “Surry is an unusual name. What does it mean?”

  “Surry is short for Sojourner. My mom named me after Sojourner Truth.” Surry said those words with pride. As a young child, Surry understood the weight of carrying such a powerful name.

  “So my son has got himself a self-made woman, capable of doing anything a man can, and do it better.” Walter looked at her with respect in his eyes.

  “What do you mean?” Who had been talking to this man about her?

  “You know...the famous speech given by Sojourner Truth. I think it was titled ‘Ain’t I a Woman.’”

  Her eyes bugged. “You know that speech?”

  “I’m a student of history,” Walter said.

  Surry was impressed. Sojourner had indeed declared that she could do anything just as well as any man. Surry had lived her life that way—that is, until she met Ian. He had a way about him that allowed her to be okay with working with him, rather than trying to prove that she could do the work without him. She told Walter honestly, “The words of that speech used to be my mantra. But Ian showed me that it’s okay to have a partner you can lean on from time to time.”

  “I’m glad you and my son are doing so well. He deserves some happiness.”

  Surry heard the wishful tone in Walter’s voice, as if he himself was still waiting to have his own happiness. And Surry got the distinct impression that this man would not be happy until he and his son mended the rift between them. Ian was hurting also. She knew that he hadn’t wanted to let go of a client like Governor Monroe. She just hoped that after Ian and his father cleared things up that the job was still available for him.

  “Does Ian know that I am here?” Walter asked, a bit nervous.

  “No, he’s still too stubborn to know what’s good for him,” she said as she continued driving to Ian’s office. “I told him I was bringing a picnic lunch. But he thinks the lunch is for me and him.”

  “Do you think this is wise? I wouldn’t want you to do anything that would pull you and Ian apart.”

  Surry didn’t know how wise this decision was, but she wanted her man to succeed in everything his hands touched. To do that, he needed this relationship with his father, whether he knew it or not. “Maybe he will thank me, you never know,” Surry said as she pulled into the parking lot. Walter had a doubtful expression on his face, but she ignored it.

  “We’re here.” She parked the car and got out.

  Walter also exited the car.

  Surry opened her trunk and took the picnic basket out. She then handed Walter his bag and they entered the office building.

  Walter stood back, looking around. He nodded his approval and then caught up with Surry. “How much space does Ian have in this building?”

  “He has the first and second floor. The other sixteen floors are occupied by other businesses.” She pointed to the reception area where she had patiently waited for Ian on a few occasions. “Have a seat right there and I’ll come and get you.”

  “Okay,” Walter said as he sat down.

  Janice, Ian’s secretary, saw Surry coming and said, “He’s waiting for you. Go on in.”

  “Thanks, Janice.” Over the past few weeks Surry had gotten to know Janice and liked the woman. She knocked once on Ian’s door and then opened it. “Hey, handsome,” she said as she walked in and put the picnic basket on his desk.

  “Hey, your beautiful self,” he said as he stood up and kissed her.

  She loved kissing this man. He was everything she ever wanted, and his lips felt so good connected with hers. When the kiss was over, she said, “That was a nice welcome.”

  “I’ve got more where that came from.”

  She held up a hand, pushing him backward. “Calm yourself down. We have a few things to get out of the way before you have to get back to work.”

  “And why are you playing hooky today? I know you have tons of work to do yourself.”

  She opened her basket and took out a deli-made sandwich and soup and set them in front of Ian. “I don’t mind taking a little time off to come see about my man.”

  “Watch it, now. Don’t get me used to something that you won’t be able to keep on doing.” Ian sat back down and pulled his food closer to him.

  She pulled the other sandwich and soup out of the basket as she told him, “I’m not about to spoil you and get you all babyish to the point you start getting on my nerves. This is a special occasion. So, don’t get used to this.”

  He opened his soup, saw that it was creamy potato, licked his lips and then asked, “What’s the special occasion? Are you one of those women who want to commemorate every month’s anniversary?”

  She gave him a strange look and then realized that they had indeed been dating for a month. She t
hought it was so sweet that he had remembered. But she wasn’t about to celebrate each month. For one thing, the realization that they had been dating only a month didn’t track well with the way her heart felt. How was she to know that when she finally fell that it would be so hard and so fast? “No, Ian, we have something else to celebrate.”

  He didn’t say anything. He just looked at her, waiting for the answer.

  She grabbed his hands and held them. “I know that you might be a little upset with me about this, but I want you to know that I did it for your own good.”

  “You’re sounding like my mother telling me to eat my peas.”

  She couldn’t hold it off any longer. “I picked your father up from the airport today.” The look on her face held excitement.

  The look on Ian’s face was pure horror.

  “Ian, come on. It’s not that bad. Walter really cares about you and he wants to talk with you so the two of you can hash out your differences.”

  Ian stood up and walked over to the window in his office, needing space. In a low, controlled voice, he asked, “Why did you do this?”

  “I’m trying to help you, Ian. If you would stop being so stubborn you’d realize that.”

  He put his hands in his pockets and turned to face her. “What exactly do you think I need help with?”

  “Well...with getting Governor Monroe back as a client.” She walked over to him. “I know how happy you were when you had the opportunity to work on a presidential campaign. Your father can get that back for you. All you have to do is forgive him so the two of you can move forward.”

  He stared at her for a moment, shook his head and then said, “You don’t know me at all, do you?”

  “Of course I know you, Ian. And I know what you want out of your career. I’m just trying to help you get it, like you helped me.”

  “This is nothing like what I did. You asked for my help. I never asked you to get involved in this issue I have with my dad.” His hands came out of his pockets and he began angrily waving them around as he shouted at her.

  “Lower your voice, Ian. Your father and Janice are out there.” She bobbed her head toward his door.

  “Don’t tell me to lower my voice. I don’t care who’s out there. I want to know why you did this.”

  She shot a glance at the door and whispered, “I already told you why I asked him to come here.”

  “But I already have a client. So I don’t need my father for that.”

  “But you don’t have the one that you really want.” Surry wanted to jump up and down, scream at Ian...anything to get him to see reason.

  “That’s not true,” Ian declared. “I don’t have the client you and your mother want me to have. But I am happy representing Juan. But I’d like to know why you are not okay with the work I’m doing.” He sat down on his couch and gave her the floor.

  “You’re only representing Juan because you passed on Governor Monroe. You told me yourself that you want to be a kingmaker. Stop looking a gift horse in the mouth and just take the job, Ian. I really think you’re going to regret sulking like some little boy and accepting this mayor campaign when you could be so much more.”

  He pointed an accusing finger at her as he stood back up and got in her face. “There it is right there.” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, gaining control of himself as he added, “I knew that your mother had a lot of influence on you, but stupid me, I convinced myself that you weren’t like her. But you are just like that woman.”

  “What are you talking about, Ian? I’m just trying to help you.”

  He paced around the room, hands flailing as he talked. “Yeah, I’m sure your mother tried to help your dad a whole bunch, too. Only trouble is, I don’t want this kind of help.”

  “Why are you so angry?” Tears were forming in Surry’s eyes. She knew Ian would be miffed because she went behind his back, but she hadn’t imagined that he’d become so angry that he would speak to her the way he was at this moment. She flopped down on the couch, distraught, not knowing what to do to make this right.

  “I’m angry because you don’t believe in me!” he shouted.

  She got in his face. “I do believe in you, idiot. I’m in love with you!” Tears were flowing down her face, but it didn’t matter. He was pushing her buttons and she was mad and ready for a fight.

  Ian rubbed his temple with his fingers. “Go home, Surry.”

  “What?” Did he just dismiss her? “Did you hear what I just told you?”

  “I heard you. But it’s not going to work.” He strode toward his door and grabbed the handle. “I want you to leave.”

  “You don’t mean that, Ian. Don’t do this.” Surry hated the sound of her voice as she watched the man whom she had fallen in love with turn into someone she didn’t even recognize. But one thing was for sure—he no longer wanted to be bothered with her, and she wasn’t going to keep begging him to listen to reason. Surry stood up.

  The door burst open and Walter stepped in. He looked toward Ian and reprimanded him. “Why are you in here shouting at Surry? She doesn’t deserve to be treated this way by you.”

  “This isn’t your business, Dad. This is between me and Surry,” Ian said defiantly.

  “It’s not between us anymore. I know when I’m not wanted. So, I’m going to do as you suggested and get out of here.” She stalked by Ian and his dad without a backward glance. No one had ever spoken to her in such a manner, and she wasn’t going to put up with it from Ian. She didn’t care how much her heart was breaking right now. She was just going to have to get over it.

  * * *

  “Your turn, Dad. You might as well follow Surry so you don’t miss your ride.”

  “I’m not going anywhere until you and I get a few things straight.”

  “Like what?”

  “Your bad attitude doesn’t scare me, son.”

  “Why should it? I doubt if there is much that could scare any man who could turn his back on his own son.”

  Walter closed Ian’s door. He grabbed the sandwich and bowl of soup that Surry had left on Ian’s desk and took a seat on the sofa. “Surry went through a lot of trouble to get us this food, so we might as well eat it.”

  “She picked it up from a deli. It’s not like she cooked the soup from scratch.”

  Walter ate a few spoonfuls of his soup and then opened his sandwich. “I don’t care where she got it from. This soup is delicious.”

  His father obviously wasn’t leaving, and Ian was hungry. So, he grabbed his food off the desk and sat down in the chair next to his sofa and began eating, as well. Neither of them spoke for a while. They were too busy fueling up for the fight to come.

  But once they finished eating, Ian’s dad surprised him by finally being honest.

  Walter said, “You were right, son. I did have something to do with you getting the assignment with Monroe.”

  “I knew it,” Ian quickly said.

  Walter held up a hand. “But not for the reasons you think.” Walter leaned forward, imploring his son to listen. “I’m not interested in being known as some maker of kingmakers as you think.”

  Ian walked over to his desk, looked in Surry’s basket and pulled out two cans of soda. He handed one to his dad and popped open the other. “Why’d you do it, then?”

  “Because I recognize talent when I see it. What you’ve been doing with the campaigns you handled over the years is better than anything I’ve done throughout my entire career.”

  Ian was stunned that his father, the man who had thrown him off a campaign, was now complimenting him in a manner that Ian had never expected. “You’ve got three presidential elections to your credit. How can you possibly think I’m doing better than you?”

  He stretched his arms wide and said, “Hey, I was lucky. But, you have real ski
ll.” His tone had been light, but now he turned serious. “I should have fired you, Ian. What you did was wrong, and it cost us that election.”

  Ian nodded. He couldn’t do anything else but agree with that. If any of his staffers did what he’d done back then, he would have fired them on the spot also. But it just hurt more when it came from his own father, a man he had greatly respected.

  “What I’m trying to say is, although you should have been fired, I could have handled the entire situation better. I never should have said that you had no future in politics, because I was completely wrong.”

  Now tears were forming in Ian’s eyes. All these years as he worked his way through one difficult situation after another, he’d wished he could call his father and ask for advice. But that door had been closed to him. If his father had called and apologized to him a few years ago, Ian would have been more receptive to it. But now... “So much time has passed, Dad. I just don’t know how to process this.”

  “We’re family, Ian. All I’m asking for is your forgiveness. Can you do that for me, son? Can you forgive your foolish old man?”

  Ian was silent...trying to put everything he was hearing into perspective.

  “I heard about Juan Manuel.”

  Ian perked up and looked at his father. He hadn’t needed this man’s approval since he was nineteen, but now that Surry had shown him that she didn’t believe in him or his plans, he needed someone to tell him that he wasn’t crazy. So he asked, “What do you think of him?”

  “He’s a winner, son. That one could go all the way.”

  And with that, something in Ian broke. He didn’t want to be angry anymore. He wanted his dad back. It no longer mattered that this man tried to hinder his dreams. Ian rushed over to his father, wrapped his arms around him and, with tears flowing down his face, said, “I’m ready, Dad. I forgive you.”

  They hugged and cried together, and then they sat back down and began to catch up. Their relationship had been stilted for so long that they had to regain their comfort level. But once they did, it was like old times.

  After a while, Walter asked Ian, “So, what are we going to do about getting your woman back?”