What Remains

by Sandra Miller

  “What are you waiting for,” she asked him with a sly grin.

  “I’m just enjoying the moment, baby.”

  “So am I…”

  Seth smiled, and pulled her buttocks forward with his other hand until the countertop was no longer a barrier to his progress.

  Again, the phone rang.

  Both his and Tessa’s breathing was labored and raspy, leaving them unable to speak for a few seconds. Just when he was about to throw the phone across the kitchen, she picked it up and looked at the name on the caller ID.

  “It’s your mother…” she giggled, sounding very much like a little girl at that moment, but looking like a woman needing to be satisfied.

  “You’ve gotta be kidding me…” Seth took the phone away from her and answered his mother’s call.

  “What is it?” he snarled impatiently.

  “Seth, I had Kristen try and call you. She said you hung up on her.”

  “Mom, I really don’t have time to talk right now.”

  “No, Son, I have bad news, terrible news, you have to come home right away…” she cried. “Mems died this evening.”

  Seth turned away from the sight of Tessa sitting naked and vulnerable in front him. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he thought seriously about ignoring the call and getting back to making love to Tessa. Not because he wasn’t affected by Mems passing, but if he let himself think about it, he would make the only responsible decision for him to make; he would go upstairs, pack his bag and head to Boston in order to make the arrangements necessary for her funeral and handle the distribution of her estate.

  As the only grandson, the only son, he was always the one who had to handle whatever crisis arose. And from her slurred speech, it was obvious that Mems’ only daughter was too drunk and too busy wallowing in self pity to do what needed to be done.

  “Okay. I’ll be there in a few hours.”

  When Seth turned around, Tessa had slipped his tee shirt back on and removed herself from the countertop. He couldn’t help but smile when he saw her diligently wiping it down with disinfectant wipes. The quirky, senseless things she did and said sometimes were endearing. Though he doubted seriously he would feel that way if it were anyone else. Tessa was not spastic because she was ditzy. She was spastic because she was genuinely weird, and Seth loved that about her. With Tess, there was never a dull moment. Only someone like himself, whose life was a series of predictable and well-calculated risks, could appreciate that about her.

  Despite her sometimes irrational behavior, Tess was no stranger to responsibility, either. Instinctively, he knew that she would understand the circumstances and offer him whatever assistance or condolences he might need, never once mentioning the fact how he had abandoned her in such a private moment, leaving her own needs unmet.

  “I’m sorry, Tess. I have to leave for Boston.” Hearing himself say it felt like a punch in stomach.

  “I gathered…are you okay?”

  “My grandmother just passed away.”

  With her hands flying to cover her mouth, Tessa gasped. “Oh my God, Seth. I’m so sorry. What can I do to help?”

  “Nothing you can do,” he told her, reaching out to draw her into his arms. “I’ll be back in a few days, maybe more, I don’t know yet. It’s according to how long it takes to get everything taken care of.”

  “Yes, of course. But please call me if there’s anything you need.”

  “All I need from you is the promise of a rain check,” he told her, trying to sound as upbeat as possible so she wouldn’t see that the news of his grandmother’s death was beginning to hit him, but also to let her know that he was not going to forget what just happened between them.

  “Don’t think about that right now. Just drive safely and take care of yourself while you’re gone…and remember to eat something. In fact, I’m going to pack you something to take with you. I’ll make you a thermos of coffee, too.”

  Before Seth could open his mouth to protest, Tess had swept past him on her way to the main kitchen; determined to do whatever she could to make his life easier, whether he wanted it or not. Unlike the women in his family who fell apart during a crisis, whether serious or trivial, Tessa Maguire always rose to the occasion. She would never know what it meant to him to have someone willing and capable of sharing his load, even if it meant simply listening to him when his responsibilities became too burdensome to keep silent.

  She was waiting at the door for him when he entered the kitchen with his bags. The way she looked, with her hair held back in ponytails at her ears, made Seth smile, though he was dreading the idea of leaving her behind. But even if he was selfish enough to ask her to go with him and face the insanity of his family, she would never agree to it, so the only option he had was to walk out that door and pray that she would still be there when he returned.

  As he approached her, Tess reached out and fastened the buttons of his coat. With his free hand, he caressed her face that was looking up at him with compassion.

  “I don’t want to leave you, do you understand that...”

  “I’ll be here waiting…besides your family needs you right now.”

  “Yeah…”

  Pulling away, Tessa took his hand and led him to the door and opened it.

  “I will be back as soon as I can,” he promised, finding it important to get that very clear. It wasn’t that Seth didn’t believe Tessa when she said she didn’t want to leave him, but because he knew her track record when it came to dealing with emotions that were confusing or difficult.

  She forced a smile and nodded, appearing very somber at the idea of saying goodbye. If he was the kind of man who could allow himself to throw caution and responsibility to the wind, he would pick up this adorable, prissy little woman and finish what he had set out to do—make her his own. To hell his with family, let his mother fall apart and drink herself into a stupor, and his dad take over the funeral arrangements and turn it end to a circus. But that wasn’t the kind of man he was, and there was little he could do to change it. He was the stoic male figure that everyone relied on.

  Placing a light kiss on her forehead, Seth stepped out into the cold night, bracing himself against the ice and snow that pelted against his face. After loading his bags, he literally had to coerce himself into the SUV. He was already backing out of the garage and turning to head down the drive when he heard pounding against the driver’s side window. Slamming on the breaks and throwing it into park, Seth opened up his door and found Tessa standing outside the SUV in nothing but her tee shirt and socks.

  “What are doing, Tess? You’re going to freeze out here. Go back inside.”

  Tessa shook her head and refused to listen to his warning. Instead, she ran forward and hugged him.

  “Baby, what is it? What’s wrong?”

  “I love you, Seth Richards,” she told him, with her teeth chattering.

  “I love you, too. Tess. Very much.”

  “Okay,” she giggled, her lips blue. “That’s all I wanted to hear. And I’m not going to run away this time, I swear, so don’t worry. Just do what you need to and come home to me.”

  Seth stared straight forward for a few seconds, options running through his mind. Finally, he turned off the motor and got out of the car, slamming the door behind him. Scooping Tessa up in his arms, he carried her back into the house and up to his bedroom. She watched wide-eyed and innocent from her spot on the bed as he removed his clothes, neither of them saying anything. After helping her with her tees shirt and tube socks, he joined her.

  Hours later, as Tessa laid beside him, physically spent and satiated, Seth rested on his elbow staring down at her as she slept. Making love to her was nothing like he expected, it was much more. She was the same sweet, silly girl in bed that she was every other second of the day. A mixture of sass and insecurity that kept him guessing what her next move was going to be, what goofy or sensual comment was going to come out of her mouth next.

  Allowing his fingertips to trace
the curve of her face as she slept, Seth was overcome with love. Her tiny body that lied so still next to him was perfect. The fleshy mound of her abdomen beckoned to be kissed. How fortunate her children were to have at one time been inside of her, enveloped in her warmth, able to feel every breath she took, every heartbeat.

  Lightly, he touched the fine lines left from carrying them in her womb, amazed that those four young adults who now towered over her, were once capable of fitting inside someone so small. With care, so as not to wake her, Seth leaned forward and kissed them one by one.

  Contently, Tess sighed in her sleep and rested a hand on his head. Drowsily, she murmured, “Is everything okay?”

  “Just making love to wife,” he grinned against her skin, knowing she was not yet awake enough to realize what he had said, before making his decent.

  For once, Seth would allow himself to be selfish. She could always sleep in after he left for Boston in the morning.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Standing in the center of the conference room of his grandparents’ attorney’s office, Seth glanced around the table at the faces of his family and their attorneys. Everyone appeared apprehensive, and showed more concern over what they may or may not receive from the reading of the will than the fact that they had just buried the matriarch of the family less than two weeks before. He was surrounded by vultures; every last one of them, and it made his stomach turn.

  After being forced to spend the past weeks with them, it was more obvious than ever that it was time to finally be rid of the albatross that had been wrapped tightly around his neck for far too long. And in a strange, comforting way, he felt his grandparents’ presence there with him, along with Tessa’s, as he clutched the good luck token in his pocket that she had given him the morning he left for Boston—an 1865 buffalo nickel her grandfather had given her, explaining that it was the first nickel he ever earned.

  With her eyes alight with love, and with the joy of having something to offer him, she had placed it in his palm and wrapped his fingers around it, telling him to keep it close, that she had spent many nights holding the coin between her hands when she was scared or while praying for courage, and knew that it would now ease his fears as much as it had eased hers. Seth couldn’t actually say that he believed in the divine, but he believed in Tessa, and that was why he held it now, drawing strength from his faith in her.

  If only he could say that he had that same faith in his family, who had refused to look at him since gathering together at Whitmore, Levine, and Starcher. Elaine Richards sat next to her husband holding his hand that was balled into a fist resting on top of the table, his usual display of intimidation that Seth knew so well. It was sign of character and dedication, however misplaced, that she was still capable of supporting a man who had put her through hell for all these years, but a shame that the united front they displayed was against their only son.

  No one was happy with him at the moment, due to the way he handled Mems’ funeral. He gave her the send-off he knew she wanted. The old girl hated crowds of people and fanfare, so he kept the wake and funeral simple, allowing only a handful of her most beloved friends and family, most of whom seemed unaffected by her passing.

  Regrettably, though not surprisingly, his father had secretly tipped off the press, hoping to cash in on the publics’ curiosity of his mother-in-law’s death. This left Seth the unpleasant task of hiring a security firm at the last minute, to stiff arm the dozens of reporters and paparazzi who clamored outside The Old North Church to get interviews and pictures of the grieving family. It was hard to believe William Richards was his father. Never could father and son be so different.

  Well, if the old man was steaming over the lost income from the funeral, he was going to lose his mind when he found out that there was more than the distribution of Mems’ estate to be discussed today. By the days’ end, they would realize just how fucked they were.

  Seth’s three sisters sat somber in their seats, whispering quietly to one another, glancing in his direction randomly during their conversation, though avoiding direct communication with him, treating him as the enemy. Had they truly forgotten all of the financial support he had offered them over the years? Extravagant weddings, the considerably more expensive divorces, new homes, monetary gifts into the hundreds of thousands, all seven of their children’s college tuition paid in full. In fact, they had enjoyed more of their grandfather’s wealth than he had.

  Except for the house, Seth had refused to touch anything associated with the inheritance, choosing to live only off his salary as senior partner, which was more than enough to provide him with a comfortable lifestyle. His hefty share of the profits from the firm, he had invested, making him a wealthy man in his own right, and he only accepted it because under his tenure, the firm’s net worth had more than doubled over the years. A testament to what one could achieve when they dedicated themselves one hundred percent of to someone else’s dream, even if it was at a detriment to their private and social life.

  Although his personal wealth wasn’t anywhere close to the hundred million left to him, it was more than enough to where he, his future wife, her children and grandchildren, would never have to want for anything. But that was a matter he needed to discuss with Tess at a later date. As it stood, she assumed he could be struggling financially when he turned the inheritance over to Whitmore’s firm to disburse according to Edward Collins’ wishes. And that was his plan. Again, he wanted her to come to him feeling as if she was his equal. It would be the only way to win her heart.

  Finally, Douglas Whitmore, Pops and Mems attorney, and executor of their wills entered the room and proclaimed it was time to get the proceedings started. He turned to Seth and offered him an encouraging nod.

  “First I want to thank everyone for coming…”

  By the time he concluded, everyone, including Seth, sat silently in stunned amazement, a few members of his family even stared at the elderly attorney with mouths agape. Ignoring them the best he could, he seated himself in the corner of the room, away from the fray that was about to take place once Seth took the floor to make his announcement. But right now Seth needed a moment to absorb the reading of his grandmother’s last will and testament.

  As he knew she wouldn’t, Mems hadn’t forsaken her seven great grandchildren, leaving each of them with one hundred thousand dollars, to be placed in a trust until they were thirty. All of her real estate holdings were to be sold off and the proceeds given to the dozen charities she supported throughout her lifetime. Her only daughter was left the set of weddings rings Edward had bought her from Sears and Roebuck when they married, before he made his fortune. Though they probably valued less than a thousand dollars in the current gold market, they were treasured by Margaret Collins, who wore them until the day she died. Seth was left two hand-written letters; one from his grandfather, and one from his grandmother, sealed in an envelope to be read in private.

  The remaining bulk of her personal wealth left to her by her late husband, some ten million dollars, were to be distributed to only a select few: the private duty nurse who had faithfully nursed her for twenty years, Carlos Martinez and his wife Angelina, and Tessa Maguire, whose name, Whitmore disclosed, was added only months before her passing.

  So Tessa Maguire was a now a wealthy woman. Once taxes were taken out, she would probably end up with around a million. Not much, relatively speaking, but to her, it meant economic freedom for her and her children. Whether she agreed to marry him or not, she would be taken care of, and it brought a smile to his face and chuckle to his lips, which drew glares from his disgruntled family.

  The joy it brought him gave him the fortitude he needed to stand and deliver his unwelcomed news. Standing, with his good luck charm clutched within his grasp, Seth addressed his family.

  “While everyone is here, I thought it would be an opportune time to tell you about my decision to relinquish control of the inheritance on May 1. That should give you ample time to get your financial
house in order. Not that you’ll stand to lose anything other than my ability to support you with the allotted amount of money I could offer as gifts.”

  There were audible gasps and grumblings. His oldest sister, Megan, sobbed inconsolable, inciting a flurry of support from her third husband and Seth’s other two sisters.

  “How can you do this to us, Seth? What have we ever done to you?”

  Since he refused to make matters worse by sharing Pops’ last words regarding his disappointment in the family, Seth simply stood quietly. Even though the fear in their faces caused him regret, the decision was final, and all of their accusations and attempts to make him feel guilty weren’t going to sway him.

  “I’m sure you’re feeling quite proud of yourself for turning your back on your grandfather’s money, but I can’t wait to see you fall flat on your face, and you will, mark my word,” his father hissed.

  “You and mother, I’m sure will live quite nicely after the sale of your overseas villas and the beach front property in Hawaii. You’re seventy two, and considering the mess you created with the SEC, I suggest you think about retirement.”

  “You don’t give a damn about me, or your mother. I devoted forty years of my life to that firm, not to get a damn thing for my dedication is criminal. I’m going to fight this, don’t for one second think I won’t.”

  “Incase you weren’t listening, you’re threatening the wrong man, it’s out of my hands now. You’ll have to take it up with the other senior partners.”

  “Don’t kid yourself; you’re not walking away Scott-free. I’m going after Whitmore and you. By the time I’m done, you won’t have a pot to piss in.”