Between the Lines

by Angela Benson

  “You’re willing to let Jake go through with his plan?” Randolph asked, obviously not believing that.

  Mathias rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Maybe it’s for the best, Randy.”

  “I don’t believe what I’m hearing. You love that paper.”

  “Maybe that’s the problem. It’s a paper. Maybe it was wrong to have so much emotion invested in something that can’t feel.”

  “What’s on your mind, Mat?” Randy asked, knowing his friend too well.

  “I’ve been thinking a lot about Barbara and about Eleanor since this morning. Maybe it’s time for Eleanor and me to move on.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, the paper has played a large role in our lives since Barbara’s death. I’ve always wondered if it kept Eleanor tied to Lamar. And to me.” He sighed. “Maybe it’s time for her to make the break.”

  “How does she feel about this?”

  Mathias sighed. He knew his Eleanor was feeling a lot of things these days. She was angry with Jake because of his plans, but she was also hurt by what she read as his betrayal. “She’s hurting, Randy, but she won’t go down without a fight. Jake’s in for it.”

  Randolph chuckled softly. “In a way, I’m proud of him, Mat. No, this isn’t what I wanted, what we wanted, but it’s something of his own doing. I can understand him wanting his own business without my interference.”

  “I feel the same way. Your boy is turning out to be quite a man. I hope my Eleanor will see it that way.”

  “I think she will, Mat. I know it sounds strange for me to say, but I think Eleanor is going to find herself in this, too.”

  “I hope you’re right.” Mathias knew his daughter was in pain, but there was nothing he could do about it. He and Randolph could step in and effect some changes on the business front, but it was her personal life that caused the greatest wounds. He hoped she and Jake would work it out.

  “So we’re going to wait it out, see what they do?”

  Mathias took a deep breath. “That’s all we can do.” He was silent for a couple of seconds. “Did you ever think it would come to this?”

  “No,” Randolph said quickly. “Do you regret what we’ve done?”

  Mathias thought hard. “No, I don’t. Sometimes change is necessary. We knew all we could do was bring them together. Now it’s up to them.”

  Twenty-Three

  Jake met his father at the Atlanta airport at noon the next day.

  “How are things going, Jake?” Randolph asked, stirring his vodka and tonic.

  Jake observed his father, still wondering about this impromptu visit. He knew his father well enough to know there was a specific purpose for the meeting. He wondered what it was. He hoped his father wasn’t checking up on him. “Moving right along,” Jake said, trying not to give away too much. He’d wait for his father to reveal his hand first.

  “Have you and Eleanor worked out the agreement?”

  Jake met his father’s gaze, trying to decide if there was more to the question than the obvious. Not seeing anything, he shrugged. “We’re making progress. I think you’ll like the proposal.”

  Randolph nodded and took another sip of this drink. “I’m sure I will.”

  They were both silent for a couple of minute. Jake watched the red, white, and blue Delta jets through the windows while Randolph nursed his drink.

  “I’m glad to have you working with me on this deal, Jake,” his father said. “I know I was a bit heavy-handed when I gave you the assignment, but I’m proud of what you’re doing. I wished we could have worked together sooner.”

  A lump formed in Jake’s chest. He hadn’t expected this. He cleared his throat. “Well, it’s been good for me, too.”

  Randolph nodded again. “I want you to run this business

  someday, you know.” He grinned. “Not too soon, though. I still have a few good years left in me.”

  Jake grinned too and his shoulders straightened. “More than a few years, I hope.”

  “Yes, yes,” Randolph said. “I’m sorry we didn’t get started together sooner.”

  Jake ran his hand up and down his glass of water. “Why did it take so long, Dad?” Jake asked the question that had puzzled him for years. He held his breath while he waited for the answer.

  “I don’t really know.” Randolph sighed. “After your mother died, I was lost. I didn’t know what to do with a child. Your mother was the caretaker.” A smile softened the older man’s face and Jake wondered at the memory that triggered it. “Anyway, after she was gone, I did what I thought was best. I took you with me.”

  “There was nothing wrong with that. I loved being with you.”

  Randolph met his son’s gaze. “I know you did, but that was no life for a growing boy.”

  “So you left me at home?” Jake couldn’t keep the distaste out of his mouth.

  Randolph winced. “I thought it was the right thing at the time. Your mother and I always wanted you to have a better life than we did. We didn’t want you to struggle like we did.”

  “So you made sure I had the best of everything?”

  Randolph nodded. “I tried. I tried my best.” He cleared his throat and Jake wondered if he was about to cry. “I’ve always loved you, Jake. I missed you and I wanted you with me, but it wasn’t fair to you. I had to work and you needed a regular life.”

  “I needed a father,” Jake said softly.

  Randolph released a long breath. “I know that now. Aw, hell, I guess I figured it out over the years. But it was too late, the damage had been done. We’d grown so far apart I didn’t know how to reach you.”

  Jake nodded. They had grown apart. Sure, they talked often and saw each other regularly, but they didn’t share their lives. He couldn’t remember when they had. “I used to sit at your desk in your office at the house and pretend I was you.” He slowly rolled his shoulders back at the memory. “I’m not sure if I wanted to be you or if I wanted to be like you. Maybe if I was more like you, you’d want to spend time with me.”

  Randolph’s eyes did mist then. “I’m so sorry, son. Do you think you can forgive your old man?”

  When Jake looked at his father, he knew the older man wasn’t sure what his answer would be. “There’s nothing to forgive.”

  “Yes, there is. I want you to forgive me for giving you things when I should have given you myself. I want you to forgive me for ignoring your interest in the business, our business, when you were younger. I should have encouraged that. I know that now.”

  Jake nodded. “Is that why you gave me the assignment in Lamar?”

  Randolph raised his brow. “You didn’t seem to be interested in the business anymore. I had to find a way to get you involved.” He paused. “Why’d you take the assignment? You didn’t have to, you know.”

  The memory of his father ordering him to take the assignment made him smile. “That’s not exactly how I remember it.”

  Randolph laughed a rich, full laugh and his eyes cleared of their mist. “I was a bit forceful, but that’s never stopped you from ignoring my wishes in the past. Why this time?”

  Jake shifted in his seat. “I thought it was some kind of test and I wanted to prove to you I could do it.”

  “It was never a test, Jake. I had no doubts about your ability. Your will, maybe, but never your ability.”

  Jake examined his father’s eyes and saw only his sincerity. His lips curved in a smile. “I wish I had been as sure.”

  “You’re doing a good job. Hell, a great job.”

  Jake’s chest puffed out at his father’s words. “Thanks. It means a lot to hear you say that.”

  Randolph cleared his throat. “Well, you’d better remember it because it may be the last time.”

  “Somehow I already knew that,” Jake said with a grin.

  “So,” Randolph began. “How’s it really going here? I got a call from Mathias.”

  Jake’s shoulders stif
fened. So, his father had come to check up on him.

  “Don’t get all ruffled on me. This is still your deal. I’m here if you need me. I want you to know that.”

  Jake relaxed. “What did Mathias say?”

  Jake nodded when Randolph finished telling him of the concerns Eleanor had expressed to Mathias.

  “So she’s right?” Randolph concluded.

  “She figured out most of it,” Jake said, then told his father the details of his plan.

  “Whew, that’s some deal you’ve worked. How did you get Hamilton News to agree to your terms?”

  Jake leaned forward, warming to the topic. “This is all verbal. Nothing has been done contractually, as you know. Hamilton News has been trying to do this for a while. They saw the Lamar Daily as their first step. When we got involved with the Lamar Daily, they thought they could work a deal with us to get a piece of it.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I countered. I hate to admit it, but I was surprised when they went for it.”

  Randolph was quick in his response. “Hell, that’s the way it is with most big deals. You study, you plan, you make your pitch, and you hope like hell they go for it. How do you think I built this business?”

  Jake grinned. “I thought you were a shrewd businessman, smarter than all your competition.”

  “That, too, but big business takes guts and you’ve got them. Not everybody does.”

  “Well, some of the credit goes to Buddy Hamilton. He’s stepped into his father’s shoes and he’s determined to make a new name for Hamilton News.”

  “Aha,” Randolph said, after taking a sip from his glass. “I ought to call the older Hamilton for a drink to celebrate.”

  “You know, this isn’t the response I expected from you.”

  “What did you expect?”

  “For you to think I’d betrayed you by trying to carve out something of my own.”

  Randolph shook his head. “Never. You remind me of me when I was younger. I wanted to build something of my own. I understand those feelings in you. It’s part of being a man.”

  Those were exactly Jake’s feelings. He was relieved his father understood. Why couldn’t Eleanor? “Too bad everybody doesn’t understand that.”

  “Eleanor?”

  Jake lifted his gaze in surprise. “How’d you guess?”

  “I saw the way you two looked at each other when you were in New York. I’m not so old I’ve forgotten what desire looks like. Do you care about her, son?”

  Jake nodded. “It’s a difficult relationship. Hell, it may not even be a relationship anymore.”

  “She’s that upset?”

  “She doesn’t trust Hamilton News and refuses to even consider our plans as a valid business decision. One that will benefit all of us. The paper is like family to her and she wants things to stay as they are.”

  “So you’ve talked to her about it?”

  Jake shook his head slowly. “Not in any detail. She’s not talking to me much these days.”

  “What are you going to do about that?”

  Jake stared at him. “What can I do? She doesn’t understand how important this is to me.”

  “And you don’t understand how important the paper is to her?”

  “That’s not it. You don’t understand—”

  Randolph held up his hands. “I do understand. But now you’re facing the decision I had to face with you. Do you make the best business decision or the best personal decision?”

  ***

  Eleanor tucked her pen in her mouth and scrawled her options on the sheet in front of her. Option 1: Shoot Jake. Option 2: Run over Jake. Option 3: Strangle Jake.

  She dropped her pen on the table, folded her hands across her stomach, and wished Randolph’s flight would hurry up and arrive. She’d been waiting over two hours now and she was getting cabin fever.

  She looked over at the bar and her gaze met that of a rather handsome, dark-skinned brother with a mustache. Any other time she might have smiled at him, but not today. Today she gave him a haughty glare that said she was unavailable and uninterested. Unfortunately, the man must have been dense for he hopped off the bar stool and made his way toward her table. Oh, no, she thought.

  “Eleanor,” she heard a voice call from behind her.

  “Randolph,” she said, relieved he was here. She stood and rose up on her toes and bussed his cheek. “Sorry,” she whispered, “but that guy over there was about to make a move on me.”

  Randolph hugged her to him and chuckled. “At least the young man has great taste.”

  Eleanor moved away from the older man and returned to her chair. A cheerful feeling bubbled up in her as she remembered the last time she’d seen him. “You’re too much, Randolph.”

  Randolph pulled out the chair next to her and took a seat. “So what’s happening with you and Jake?”

  “You don’t waste any time, do you?”

  Randolph signaled the waiter for a drink. “Time’s too precious to waste. When you’re my age you’ll appreciate that.”

  “You and Dad certainly use your age to your advantage, but I don’t see either one of you slowing down.”

  Randolph grinned at her. “Won’t work, young lady. This conversation is about you and Jake, not about me and your father.”

  Eleanor met his gaze. “I think the issue is your relationship with my father. He entered into a good faith agreement with you, and your son has reneged on it. What are you going to do about it?”

  The waiter delivered Randolph’s drink and he took a sip before answering her. “I can see why Jake fell in love with you.”

  Eleanor swallowed hard. She hadn’t expected that. “Let’s keep this professional, Randolph,” she said calmly. “Are you going to keep your word to my father?”

  Randolph sighed. “Technically, Jake has adhered to the law of the agreement. As for the spirit of that agreement, well, I’ve already spoken with your father about that. We’ve reached an understanding.”

  An understanding. That didn’t sound good. “Exactly what kind of understanding are you talking about?” she asked slowly.

  Randolph leaned forward and pulled one of her hands into his bigger ones. They were warm to the touch and she was somehow comforted by them. “Mathias understands this is Jake’s project. My hands are tied.”

  Eleanor snatched her hand out of his. “Why are you doing this to us?” she asked. “My father thinks you’re his best friend.”

  Randolph leaned back in his chair and brought his glass to his lips. “I am his best friend.”

  She snorted. “You sure have a funny way of showing it. Is that how you built Mason Publishing—by taking advantage of all your friends?”

  Randolph visibly recoiled at her words, but she didn’t feel any triumph that her jab had hit. She stood and gathered her belongings from the table. “Yes, I know about the ruthless Randolph Mason, building his empire with no regard for anything or anyone but himself. My father was never in your league.”

  “You—”

  Eleanor waved her hand in dismissal. “Forget it, Mr. Mason. I thought Jake was a bastard, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe he’s just his father’s son.”

  Eleanor turned on shaky legs, head held high, shoulders straight, and walked away from Randolph Mason.

  “Eleanor,” he called after her.

  She stopped but she didn’t turn around.

  “Be angry with me. Be angry with your dad. Hell, be angry with Jake, but don’t give up on him. He loves you and he needs you.”

  She stiffened at his words, wishing they were true. But they weren’t. She swallowed deeply and continued out of the restaurant. She had work to do if she was going to keep her newspaper.

  Twenty-Four

  Eleanor jumped when the smooth hand touched her shoulder and the keys to her cottage fell to her feet.

  “I’m sorry,” Jake said, bending over to pick up her keys. “I didn’t mean to frighten you.” He handed her
the keys.

  “What do you want, Jake?” she asked, trying to calm her shaking fingers so she could insert the key in the door.

  “We need to talk.”

  He stood so close she felt his breath on her neck. “It’s a little late for that now, isn’t it?” She breathed a relieved sigh when she finally got the door open and slipped inside.

  “You should have talked to me, Eleanor.”

  She turned around and faced him. “I should have talked to you?” she said, her voice rising. “You have some nerve, Jake Mason.” She moved to close the door in his face, but he inserted a loafer-shod foot in the opening.

  “We have to talk,” he said. “Please.”

  The softness of his plea made her heart warm to him, but she couldn’t give in to it. She couldn’t let him use her again. “It won’t do any good. I don’t trust you, Jake. We should have talked before you made plans to sell out my newspaper.”

  He blinked rapidly and she wondered if his eyes were wet. They couldn’t be, could they?

  “I care about you, Eleanor. We can’t end like this.”

  “You care about me? You care about me? Well, you have a funny damn way of showing it.” She pushed the door against his foot, hoping the pain would make him move it. It didn’t.

  “I’m not leaving until we talk.”

  She could tell from the firm line of his lips he was telling the truth. She could let him in for a few minutes or she could stand there all night. She released her hold on the door and walked into her cottage.

  Jake followed her. When he was seated on the couch, he began, “I know I should have told you about my plan . . .”

  She wiped her hands across her face. She was so tired. “You didn’t make any commitments to me, Jake. We both knew this was a business deal. I was a fool to trust you.”

  He winced at her words, then reached for her. She pulled back. “You weren’t a fool.”

  She shook her head slowly. “Yes, I was. Every time I made love to you, I was a fool.” She smiled a sad smile. “Did you get a kick out of it, Jake?”