by Anna Wells
“And what exactly was your plan?” she asked, curiosity getting the best of her as she noticed that they were pulling into her Mom’s driveway. They had reached her parents home in Plymouth, a suburb of Boston, which is about 45 minutes outside of the city. Her parents had a beautiful turn of the century colonial that had an amazing view of Plymouth Harbor and the Atlantic.
He put the car in park and turned to her. “How about I tell you later? It’s a rather long and involved story.”
“Hmmm this sounds interesting. I really have to know now.”
“Later, I promise,” he said as he reached for the car handle door. “Okay, so this is the big family dinner.”
“Yeah, I should warn you, my brother is a little over protective.”
“You mean your brother, the FBI agent who carries a gun?”
She nodded with a slight apologetic look on her face. “Yep that would be him.”
“But your parents like me, right?” he asked hopefully.
She gave him an encouraging smile. “Yes, they think you’re great. What are you so worried about? I’ve brought you to family barbecues before.”
“Well this is the first time we’ve gone as a couple,” he explained as he got out of the car and went around to Michaela’s side to open the door for her. He held out his hand and she grasped it letting him lead her to the front door.
“Relax,” she said trying to reassure him. She was about to turn the doorknob when his voice interrupted her.
“Aren’t you going to ring the bell?” he asked sounding slightly anxious.
“Jordan, I grew up in this house, I don’t ring the bell,” she told him, but she was amused that he seemed a little bit nervous about his first family dinner. She finished turning the knob and said loudly, “Hi Mom, Dad, we’re here.”
Her Mom came down the hall to greet them with a broad smile. Holding out her arms, she gave Michaela a hug. “So glad you made it, honey.” She let go of Michaela and proceeded to give Jordan a welcoming hug. “And I’m so glad you’re here as well Jordan.” Her smile was broad, Vivien was unmistakably pleased. She grabbed both their arms and pulled them toward the family room.
Michaela loved this room with its gleaming hardwood floors and the gorgeous view of the river. The house been through many renovations, but had never lost its warmth and charm. She looked over at the fireplace and noticed that her Dad had a real wood burning fire lit. Her mother had painted the walls a pale blue and there was an off white couch surrounded by two blue wing back chairs as well as her Dad’s recliner. She sat down on the comfortable sofa making herself at home.
Her dad, Will Prentice came forward and shook Jordan’s hand in greeting. “Jordan, it’s good to see you again. I understand that you and Michaela are dating now?” Like her mother, he was still fit and youthful and despite being in his sixties, he was still practicing medicine as a heart surgeon. He often said he would keep going until they kicked him out the hospital.
Jordan cleared his throat before answering, “Yes, sir that’s right.”
“Glad to hear it, that other guy was an idiot,” her dad remarked giving a quick glance at her on the couch.
“Daddy! I can’t believe you just said that,” Michaela said in an outraged tone.
Her dad looked unremorseful as he said, “Anybody that would treat my little girl like that is an idiot.” He lifted his chin slightly indicating Jordan. “This one won’t treat you that way.”
“Oh My God! Dad!” Really could her parents work any harder at embarrassing her? And to think Jordan had been nervous.
Jordan sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulder. “Michaela it’s okay, I think I just got Will’s stamp of approval.”
“Damn right,” her dad said looking pleased. “That’s what I’m trying to tell you.”
Her mom took this moment to interject. “Michaela, come to the kitchen and I’ll get you a glass of wine while your dad and Jordan have a chat.”
Michaela gratefully followed her mother into the kitchen, giving Jordan an apologetic look over her shoulder as her mother dragged her out of the room.
Her mom went to the counter and grabbed a wine glass and filled it with Michaela’s favorite Shiraz. She handed her the glass. “So how are things going?”
Michaela took the glass gratefully and sipped her wine before saying, “Things are like a roller coaster. Very fast, very exciting and out of control.”
Her mom poured herself a glass and raised it in salute as she said, “Excellent, it sounds like you’re having fun.”
“Shit, Mom. I think I love him,” Michaela admitted.
Her mom came forward and gave her a tight squeeze. “That’s wonderful honey, he’s a great guy and I can tell he adores you. But do you really have to swear?”
“I really do. How can you be so sure about him?” she asked.
“Oh honey, it’s been obvious for ages. Why else would he come to all the family barbecues? I wondered why it took him so long to make his move. I know he said yesterday he wanted you to get over Noah. I guess the time was right?”
Michaela shrugged. “I guess you could say that.”
“Stop worrying, he’s not like the other guys. You just had a streak of bad luck,” her mother assured her.
Michaela shook her head in wonderment. “You know me so well. I’ll try not to compare him to the other guys, but it’s hard. The weirdest thing is that on Friday night I went out with a friend and now here we are two days later and I am apparently in a committed relationship. The guy would move in with me now if I’d let him.”
Her mother leaned back against the counter taking another sip of her wine. “It’s not so weird, you’ve known each other for a while. You don’t need to jump through the usual hoops.”
“That’s what he keeps saying,” Michaela confided.
Her mother moved forward and gave her a quick hug. “Honey, maybe you should listen to him.”
Michaela smiled at her mom. “Well you know what they say, mother knows best.”
Her mother smiled in return before saying, “As long as you’re listening to my words of wisdom, I have to tell you I’m not a fan of the living together thing. Either get married or don’t bother.”
“Okay, Mom. I’ll remember that,” Michaela answered dryly and not in the least offended. Her mom was never afraid to tell her what she thought. They were interrupted by the sound of the front door opening.
“Hey Mom!” her brother, Donovan said as he entered the house. “We’re here.”
Michaela and her mother left the kitchen and went to the front door to greet her brother and his new wife Alaina. She threw her arms around Donovan’s broad shoulders. Her brother presented an imposing figure with his tall dark good looks and piercing blue eyes.
She then turned to Alaina and hugged her as well. “So I hear you are officially with the FBI! Congratulations!”
Alaina nodded, she was petite like herself with long dark hair. Her brother had married a smart and beautiful woman with a great sense of humor. Michaela had liked her immediately. “Thanks, I’m really excited about this opportunity. I’m really looking forward to working with the Bureau.”
“Are you okay with working out east in the cold?” Michaela asked. Alaina had been living in San Diego until she met Donovan.
She laughed. “Yeah, I can handle it, I went to law school at Georgetown University so it’s not the first time I’ve been exposed to the cold.”
“Great to hear, I was worried that my brother was dragging you into the unknown,” Michaela told her.
Donovan gave Michaela a nudge. “Mind your own business, my wife wants to be where I am.”
“Donovan,” Alaina interjected, “I can take care of myself,” She looked at Michaela again. “Don’t worry this move is perfect for me. I love my new job.”
“I’m so envious, I hate my job,” Michaela said in a half joking tone.
“Oh, that’s awful.” Alaina looked at Donovan. “Can you get her a jo
b?”
Donovan shook his head looking irritated. “No, I’m not getting my sister a job.”
Michaela laughed. “No really I don’t need new job, I need a new career and I definitely don’t want to work with my brother or the FBI. I’ll figure something out.”
“Why don’t we join your father and Jordan in the family room?” Vivien suggested as she led everyone down the hall. She glanced at Donovan and winked. “You can meet Michaela’s new boyfriend.”
Michaela rolled her eyes. Her mother was awesome, but really sometimes she went out of her way to embarrass her. Or did it just come naturally to her mother with no effort at all?
As they walked into the family room, Michaela went to Jordan’s side and wrapped an arm around his waist. “Jordan, this is my brother Donovan and his wife Alaina.”
Jordan leaned forward to shake Donovan’s hand. “Donovan, nice to meet you.”
Donovan looked intently at Jordan and said, “Jordan Marsh?”
“Yeah, that’s right.” Jordan answered with a slight grimace.
Donovan raised his brows slightly. “The Jordan Marsh CEO of ECOM Works?”
Jordan exhaled loudly before answering, “Yeah, that’s me.”
Michaela had been following the exchange between her brother and Jordan closely. She pulled back and looked up at Jordan. “What does he mean ‘CEO of ECOM Works?’ You’re in sales, right?”
Donovan snorted in disbelief. “Michaela, you’re an accountant, don’t you read the business page?”
“Apparently not,” Jordan remarked almost casually.
Donovan continued as if Jordan hadn’t spoken. “This is Jordan Marsh, one of the billionaire brothers of ECOM Works.”
She was stunned. “I don’t understand,” she said trying to absorb what she was hearing.
Jordan was apologetic as he looked at her. “Honey, your brother’s right. I’m the CEO of ECOM Works.”
“Why would you lie to me?” Michaela asked feeling overwhelmed by the implications of this revelation.
“I didn’t lie, I just left out some of the finer details,” Jordan tried to defend himself.
“So you’re a billionaire and CEO of your company?” she asked in a shrill voice.
“Apparently, I’ve done well for myself,” he answered feeling very uncomfortable about having this discussion in front of her family, although as it stood now it was unavoidable.
“But you don’t act like a mega billionaire! This can’t be right,” she protested as she remembered him being picked up by a Bentley, the expensive dinner at the exclusive restaurant, the familiarity and deference by the staff at the restaurant, and his casual offer that he could take care of her while she made her career change. All signs of wealth and power she had missed.
“Well they do call him the eccentric billionaire,” Michaela’s mother added, her tone on the dry side.
Michaela’s head whipped around to her mother. “Mom you knew about this and didn’t tell me.”
“Michaela, it never occurred to me you didn’t know. He’s all over the news. I just thought you were just taking his wealth in stride since you never talked about it.”
Okay so now she felt like an idiot. Apparently everyone knew Jordan was a billionaire executive but her. She looked at Jordan, the betrayal she felt was evident in her expression. Her father’s voice pulled her attention away from Jordan.
“I seem to recall spending a lot of money to send you to school. I’m fairly sure you should be able to read.” Her father obviously felt he needed to remind her that Jordan’s life really wasn’t a secret.
“Look, I work with numbers all day long which is boring enough! I don’t need to read the business section to be bored any further! I prefer world events,” she defended herself. “Ask me what’s happening in Afghanistan and I can tell you everything.” She turned and looked at her father. “Quick, tell me who’s the Prime Minister of England?”
Her father looked slightly uncomfortable. “Uh, Tony Blair?”
“Hah, he hasn’t been Prime Minister since 2007. It’s David Cameron,” she said triumphantly. “So please no one insinuate that I am not well informed because I don’t turn on CNBC in the morning.”
Donovan shook his head in mild disgust. “I can’t believe you didn’t even Google the guy.”
Michaela at this point felt like screaming, her whole family was going to drive her insane. She glared at Donovan. “Why would I Google someone I’ve known for over a year?”
“Next time let me do a background check on your new boyfriend,” Donovan suggested.
Until this point Jordan had been quiet while her family was pointing out to her that her ignorance was her own fault, but Donovan’s comment rubbed him the wrong way. “Donovan, there isn’t going to be another boyfriend. I’m it.” His voice was uncompromising.
Donovan gave him a wry look. “Why don’t we see what my sister wants first before you declare ownership.”
Michaela sent her brother another glare. “Donovan you need to shut up now,” she said thinking that the only person she wasn’t mad at right now was her sister-in-law, Alaina, which was probably because she was the only one who hadn’t felt the need to point out how dumb she was.
Jordan pulled her closer his hand firmly around her waist in a protective and possessive gesture. She looked up at him. “Don’t think I’m not really pissed at you.”
He smiled at her in that oh so charming way. “Oh, I know, but you’ll get over it.”
“Don’t be so sure,” she muttered. “We’re going to have a long chat about this whole billionaire thing.”
Alaina obviously had held back as long as she could and burst out laughing. “I’m sorry, but really you have to listen to yourself Michaela, you’re mad at Jordan cause he’s a billionaire! Think about it?”
Michaela looked slightly affronted. “It’s a trust issue, he lied to me.”
“Believe me, I know about trust issues,” Alaina said. “At least he’s not trying to put you in jail for being a terrorist.”
“What?!!” Jordan asked.
Michaela waved her hand in dismissal. “It’s a long story. Donovan works for the FBI’s Counter Terrorism unit. When he first met Alaina he suspected her of being involved with terrorists.”
Jordan’s eyes widened in surprise. “You’re kidding right?”
Alaina shook her head. “She’s not and obviously I was totally innocent, so if I can forgive Donovan then I’m sure Michaela will forgive you.” She gave Jordan a reassuring smile.
Donovan crossed his arms over his chest and eyed Jordan suspiciously. “I find his behavior rather suspect.”
God save him from protective FBI brothers, Jordan thought to himself. “All I did was not brag about my money. How exactly is that a crime?” His brother, Ian had been right, he should have told Michaela everything a long time ago and then this fiasco would have never taken place. He certainly didn’t need Donovan fueling Michaela’s anger.
Not one to step back from a challenge, Donovan responded aggressively. “You deliberately withheld pertinent information. The question is why?”
“Enough Donovan,” Michaela’s mother interjected, “this is supposed to be a nice family dinner not an interrogation.”
The tough FBI agent immediately deferred to his mother. “Sorry, mom.”
Jordan had to admit it was impressive to watch Vivien put Donovan in his place. Vivien Prentice gave her son another speaking glance.
Donovan looked over at Jordan. “Sorry Marsh, I’ll let you and Michaela work this out.”
Jordan acknowledged his apology with a slight inclination to his head not willing to give him more at the moment.
“Okay,” Vivien let out a deep breath, glad to have but an end to awkward exchange. “Let’s go eat shall we?” And with that her mother took charge of the evening so it once again focused on the celebration for Alaina’s new job. The family sat down at the dining room table as Michaela and her mother brought out a traditional fam
ily meal of roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy.
“Michaela,” her Mom said, “I’ll grab the salad, why don’t you grab the brussel sprouts and Will, can you bring out the wine?” Her mother now had everything running smoothly and arguments forgotten.
Michaela sat down next to Jordan and the speared a slice of roast beef with her fork. Passing the plate on to Jordan, she then grabbed the mashed potatoes before asking, “So tell me Alaina, how did my brother convince you to give up private practice as a lawyer and join the FBI?”
“Good question. Actually it was my idea to join the Bureau. After Donovan decided I wasn’t a terrorist.” Alaina paused and glanced at her husband to let him know that she was still irritated about his initial suspicions. “We started working on the case together. I found that I loved the work and it was so much more meaningful. I just couldn’t go back to labor and divorce cases.”
“So this is a big change for you?” Michaela was very interested since she was contemplating a major career change of her own.
“Yes, even though I’m still doing legal work. I’m working with the Investigative Law Branch and I handle legal issues pertaining to investigations such as asset forfeiture or jurisdictional issues. My learning curve is big but I’m totally ready for it.
Donovan reached over and squeezed her hand. “You’re going to be great in this new role. Your brain was being wasted at your other job.” The respect and admiration was evident in his voice.
Alaina beamed at her husband. “Thanks, but I think you might be biased,” she said turning her attention back to Michaela. “So tell me Michaela, are you thinking about a job change? You mentioned before your aren’t very happy now.”
Michaela nodded. “I’ve been giving it some thought, but it’s more along the lines of a career change rather than a job change. Accounting is not for me and I’ve been feeling trapped. You know, all those years of school and getting my CPA designation…it makes me feel like I just can’t walk away from it since I’ve invested so much.”
Her father interrupted in a concerned voice, “Michaela, your Mother and I didn’t know you felt this way. Why haven’t you said anything before?”
