Love by Design

by Violette Grey

“But…I thought you felt the same,” he said. “You never forget my birthday. You send me cards when I’m not feeling well. I thought…”

  This was the plight of the woman. If she does not show sympathy, she is a cold bitch. If she does show sympathy, kindness, or any other feelings toward any man, she must be in love with him. Well, she was sick of it.

  “Get out,” she hissed through clenched teeth.

  “But, Laura…”

  “I said, get out.” She stomped over to the coat closet, removed his coat and threw it at him. “I never want to see your face again.”

  Sean put his coat on and, his face falling, walked out the front door. He stopped and turned around just as Laura went to shut the door. “You know, I thought you loved me, too.”

  She slammed the door in his face and then listened as his car skidded down the drive. Dropping to the floor where she stood, she curled into a ball and cried until she fell asleep.

  ***

  Sean down the whiskey and slammed the glass down on the bar.

  “Another one,” he shouted at the bartender, who glared over at him but said nothing.

  Of course he won’t say anything, Sean thought as he returned the glare. I’m tipping him better than any of these other assholes here.

  He had been a fool to try to make a move on Laura the day of the funeral and had berated himself as soon as he peeled out of the driveway. He thought she had been sending him silent messages all these years. That if there were no Terry, maybe she would be with him. Always friendly, saying hello whenever they were together, smiling at him like she wanted him, paying him compliments about his clothes or how his hair was styled. The signals had all been there, but all she was was a tease.

  His number-one goal now was to gain full control over Jensen and Barkley Architecture. Winning over the missus of the Jensen name would be a huge bonus, though. Convinced that she still must want him but was putting up a front to grieve for Terry, he took out his phone and called his assistant.

  “Rhonda,” he said, his voice slurring a bit, “I need you to do me a favor…”

  Yes, he would win her over. They would make the perfect couple, and he would be the one with a trophy wife, just as he deserved.

  Chapter Five

  “Laura?” Polly’s voice sounded far away as it drifted through Laura’s dreams. “Laura, are you all right?” Now the woman’s voice sounded frantic as she tugged Laura’s arm.

  “What?” Laura murmured. “Stop.” She slapped at Polly’s hand.

  Polly let out a heavy breath. “Oh, thank God,” she said. “I thought maybe you were…”

  Laura opened her eyes. Her back hurt and she was shivering. As she looked around, she realized why Polly had been so concerned. She still lay on the floor in the entry hall curled in a ball where she had fallen asleep after Sean had left the night before. Or rather, after Laura had kicked his ass out.

  “No, I’m fine, Polly,” she assured the woman. Poor thing, Laura thought. I’m sure she thought I was dead.

  “Let me help you up.”

  Laura allowed Polly to help her stand, her legs wobbly and cramped as she made her way to the sofa. “Don’t tell anyone about this,” Laura said, her voice quiet. Not that Polly had anyone to tell.

  “No, I won’t,” Polly said. Her face still reflected her concern as she asked, “Is there something I can get you? Would you like a cup of tea or coffee?”

  “Polly, I told you you could take the rest of the week off. What are you doing here?”

  Polly gave a small smile. “Laura, I just couldn’t leave you here alone. Don’t worry, I won’t bother you; I’ll stay out of the way and out of sight. But if you need me, I’ll be here.”

  Laura could feel the tears threatening to fall again. “You don’t know how much that means to me,” she said as she took Polly’s hand. “But you need time for yourself, too.”

  Polly shook her head. “No, I don’t. Would you like me to make you something for breakfast?”

  “I’m not very hungry,” Laura said and then laughed when her stomach contradicted her. “Oh, very well. Just some toast and coffee, please.” As Polly headed off to the kitchen, Laura called out, “And thank you again, Polly. It really means a lot.”

  The phone rang and Laura answered it. “Hello, Jensen residence.”

  “Mrs. Jensen? This is Emily Franklin.”

  “Oh, hello, Emily.” Laura felt that odd tingling run through her body. “What can I do for you?”

  “I just wanted to let you know that I was able to get a company to deliver all of the flowers, and I kept one for you for your front hall, if you’d like it. It was the least funerally arrangement out of all of them.” Laura smiled at this. “Anyway, I also collected the cards from the arrangements and wondered what you wanted me to do with them.”

  “Why don’t you bring them over? That will give me something to do while I figure out what I’ll be doing with the rest of my life.”

  “Mrs. Jensen…” the woman stopped for a moment and then said, “Very well, I’ll stop by in about an hour, if that’s OK.”

  “That would be fine,” Laura replied. “And Emily…”

  “Yes?”

  “Call me Laura, please.”

  Emily laughed. “OK, Laura. I will see you soon.”

  Laura returned the receiver to the cradle and sat back into the sofa cushion. She wondered if she should mention Sean’s behavior from last night but decided that maybe Emily was not someone she should confide in. At least not yet, anyway. She was still Terry’s assistant, not some close friend.

  It then occurred to her that she did not have many friends, or any real friends. Jessica Spacey had her over for tea once in a while, but they were never really close. Rebecca Donaldson did a lot of charities with her, but their relationship did not extend past those activities. She had no one with whom she could share her feelings. This had never been as evident until Terry was gone. So much of her life had been tied up in him and their marriage, she never bothered to build any other relationships.

  Now she felt more alone than she had at any time in her life, a loneliness beyond what she had been feeling over the past few years as Terry had become so busy with the business. Perhaps she had not been quite as lonely as she thought.

  Before any tears could fall, Polly entered the room. “Laura, where would you like to take your breakfast?”

  “How about here?” Laura said. She did not want to sit at the dining room table alone, even though there were many times she did when Terry was working late. Yet, during those times she always knew he would be home later. Now, he was never coming home, and she refused to sit at that table alone one more day.

  Polly brought a tray in with two pieces of toast, a pat of butter, and a mug of steaming coffee with milk and sugar and placed it on the coffee table. Laura smiled as she thought about the irony of it…she was drinking coffee and having breakfast at the coffee table.

  Smiling and noticing small things was definitely helpful.

  Ten minutes later, the doorbell rang, and Laura heard Polly clicking across the tile floor to answer it. A few moments later, the woman entered the living room, a small box in her hand.

  “What’s this?” Laura asked.

  “I don’t know. It came by courier.” She handed the box to Laura who eyed it with interest. She unwrapped the foil and found a small square box covered in red velvet.

  Jewelery? Laura thought as she opened the box and saw a magnificent pair of ruby earrings set in gold. She pulled out the card.

  ‘I’m sorry for last night. Sean’

  Laura moaned inside. Was this going to be a constant irritant? Was he going to push her into being in a relationship with him? She shivered. Not in this lifetime. She slapped the box closed and threw it on the table.

  What was that man playing at? She had just lost her husband. Laura did not care that her and Terry’s marriage and moved into a more companionable relationship, or how much Sean was ‘in love’ with her; it was
just not right. And even if it were true, she certainly did not love him. She barely could stand being in the same room with him, let alone consider a romantic relationship with the man.

  She was fuming when the doorbell rang again twenty minutes later and Polly led Emily to the living room. Offering the woman a seat, Laura stood and walked over to the liquor cart. If she needed booze at any time in her life, right now would be it.

  “Are you OK?” asked Emily.

  “Yes, I’m fine,” Laura said, and then stop and said, “No, no I’m not all right. Let me ask you something…” She blushed as she realized she was standing in front of the the cart and had not even offered Emily a drink. Emily did not seem to even notice the slight. “I’m sorry, would you like something to drink? I have just about everything and Polly can bring us some coffee, tea, or anything else you might like.”

  “I’ll take some coffee, that would be great,” Emily said. “I haven’t even had my first cup yet.”

  “You’ve been running around all morning dealing with my flowers before you’d had any coffee?” Laura said with shock. She knew Emily thrived on coffee. She had even said on more than one occasion that she would be happy to just have it fed to her intravenously.

  Emily laughed. “Nope, I haven’t had any coffee. I honestly am not sure how I’m still standing.”

  Once they had settled into their seats with their coffee cups, Laura’s containing a splash of liqueur that Emily refused, Emily looked at Laura and said, “OK, now, what’s going on?”

  Laura hesitated, unsure how much she could tell this woman who worked in the same office as Sean. Could she trust her? Or was she maybe a spy? After several moments of inner debate, she finally decided that she needed someone to confide in. She liked Emily, so she took the plunge and told her about what had happened with Sean the previous evening.

  “He did what?” Emily gasped. “That…”

  “I was completely floored,” Laura interrupted. “I never knew he was in love with me.”

  Emily laughed but then closed her mouth firmly.

  “What?” Laura asked. “What do you know?”

  With a heavy sigh, Emily placed her cup on the table. “I didn’t want to bring this up, not so soon after…”

  “Tell me,” Laura demanded, her heart beating against her ribcage. “What is going on?”

  “Sean is a snake in the grass,” Emily replied. “I overheard him talking to Bob—you know, the tech guy—saying that he was going to be running things now that Terry’s gone.”

  “Can he do that?”

  Emily shrugged. “I honestly don’t know.”

  It was as if the air had been taken out of the room. Laura was finding it hard to breath and her thoughts were jumbled in her panic. “What can you tell me about the partnership?” she asked.

  “Well, I know that Sean has always been dependent on Terry.” It sounded strange hearing Emily call him Terry, but it only seemed right now that she was addressing Laura on a first name basis as well. “But my understanding is that Terry had the majority ownership in the firm. Sean tried many times to get Sean to sell him the extra one percent so they would be equal partners, but Terry refused. There was a huge explosion over it right after I first started a couple of years ago, and the business almost fell apart, but then Sean came to his senses and things returned to normal.”

  Laura let what Emily told her sink in. Terry had never mentioned any of this to her, and she wondered why. Did he think she could not handle it? Had he not trusted her?

  Yet, in her heart she knew that that was not the case. It was much more likely that he did not want her worrying. Her heart wanted to burst as her thoughts went to his love for her and she pushed it down, knowing she needed to keep her head straight right now.

  “I didn’t even know,” Laura finally said as she hung her head. “I don’t trust that weasel, I never had.” Then she looked up at Emily. “What do you think will happen if he does take over?”

  Emily did not even take a second to think before she said, “It will all fall apart. He’s incapable of keeping the company running. The clients that are there are all there because of Terry. He has always kept clients from leaving when they were unhappy with Sean. It was always his attitude, although they loved his work. But they trusted Terry, and now that he’s gone, I think many of the clients will leave, despite how good Sean’s work might be.”

  Laura considered this. Terry always had a way with people, that’s something she was well aware of. She was also well aware of her feelings for Sean.

  “What can I do about it, though?” she said aloud.

  “Well, you’re Terry’s widow…you now are the majority shareholder of the company.” She shrugged. “It’s in the bylaws that the company would go to you.”

  Laura was agasp. “Me? I don’t know anything about architecture. What would I be able to do?”

  Emily smiled. “Well, that’s where I come in,” she said. “I actually have a degree in architecture. Terry knew about it; it was why he hired me. Sean doesn’t know this, but I’ve been training to become a partner in the firm.” She sat up tall and proud.

  “Really?” Laura shook her head. “There is just so much I don’t know about that part of our lives.” A small tear tricked down her cheek. “All I have under my belt is my degree in office management, which I put to use the first year they opened the firm. Besides that, it’s just whatever charity and volunteer work I have completed while we were married. It never occurred to me I would ever have to work again.”

  “Here’s the thing,” Emily said, her voice excited, “Sean doesn’t know about my credentials. Terry told me he had some concerns about Sean, and I think he was considering hiring me on as another consultant because Sean was always messing things up with clients. There was nothing Terry could do to get rid of Sean; he’s the minority stockholder, but he could undermine him in a way he thinks the business wouldn’t be hurt.”

  Laura snorted. Terry also did not have the balls to get rid of his best friend. It was amazing to her how much Terry had not shared about the business. She was angry with him. He should have been prepared, should have prepared her, just in case.

  “Look, this has been a lot of information,” Emily said as she laid her hand on Laura’s leg. Laura’s stomach did a small flip before Emily removed it. “Get some rest. Don’t worry; Sean can’t do anything right now. It’s just too soon. We’ll talk again in few weeks; maybe Sean’s declaration to Bob was hot air. Let’s just wait and see.” She offered up a small smile as she stood.

  Laura walked her to the door and gave her a hug, the butterflies returning as their breasts touched. She felt weary and chalked it up to that as she watched Emily drive away.

  Chapter Six

  The office was abuzz as Laura stepped off the elevator into the main waiting area. Felicity was on the phone, but she glanced up when the elevator opened and gave Laura a wave and a smile to let her know she saw her.

  Laura waited patiently, trying not to listen in on the conversation, but finding it difficult not to.

  “No, Mr. Stevens, I do not know of any hostile takeovers,” Felicity was saying. The woman’s knuckles were white as she grasped her pen tightly, but her voice stayed even and pleasant.

  “I understand your concern, and I assure you that there has been no decision made to sell the company. You must understand that Mr. Jensen’s death has left a hole for us all. Mr. Barkley is doing everything in his power…” she paused. “No, sir, I completely understand…Yes, sir…Thank you, sir. Please do not hesitate to call again if you have any other questions. Thank you.”

  She slammed down the phone, took a deep breath and then put her smile back on before turning to Laura.

  “Mrs. Jensen, it is so good to see you,” she said, and Laura knew she meant it. The woman walked around the desk and gave Laura a small hug. “I haven’t seen you since the funeral. I hope you are well…or as well as can be expected, I mean.” Sadness crossed her face. “We miss Mr. Je
nsen very much, you know?”

  “I know you do, Felicity, and I appreciate your saying so. Now, is Emily in Mr. Jensen’s office by chance?”

  “Sure, go ahead and go back.” She gave Laura another quick hug and ran back to answer the phone. “Jensen and Barkley Architects…No, Mr. Rogers…I know what you have heard, but they are only rumors…” She rolled her eyes and shook her head, but once again her tone stayed pleasant.

  Laura left Felicity to field calls and walked back to Terry’s office. It had only been a month since the funeral, and it was still difficult for her as she stepped through the door and looked around the space Terry spent a good portion of his life when he was not with her.

  She drifted around the desk, dragging her fingers along the smooth wood as she remembered she and Terry making love on it in celebration of the opening of the firm. A picture of the two of them sat on the desk, she standing behind him with her hand on his shoulder in that outdated portrait stance that made them both laugh when they had taken the picture. She caressed the baseball signed by Babe Ruth that Terry had gotten from his father when he was young. Everything about the office made her heart contract, but strangely, she had no more tears to shed. It was a curious thing; she did not feel the loss of a widow. She felt the loss of a brother or a best friend, but not the loss of a husband.

  “Mrs. Jensen…”

  Laura turned and saw Emily standing in the doorway, a large box in her hands.

  “Hello Emily. Remember, call me Laura.”

  Emily laughed. It was a light tinkle in the air and tickled the back of Laura’s neck. “Hello, Laura. Is there something I can help you with?”

  “Would you shut the door, please?” Laura said as she took a seat on a soft chair that sat next to a sofa, set up something like a miniature sitting room. Laura herself had chosen and set up the area. Terry would not have had the decorating skills to pull it off.

  Emily set down the box and then shut the door.

  “Please, have a seat,” Laura said, indicating the sofa. “So, what’s the box for?”