“I don’t know how I ever found you” Alexa said and hugged him again.
“Now go along or you’ll be late” he said and patted her butt.
Alexa took one quick look in the mirror before she headed out of the door. Her knee length grey skirt looked simple and professional, while her silky white blouse made her look amiable and playful. The pop of pink lipstick she chose for the day added to the casual charm she was going for, which she believed would be the ideal look to go for a primary teacher’s job interview. Her curls were held back with black clips and she smiled, she felt like her life was great. She was confident, happy, a mother and a wife. What more could she need?
Alexa stepped out of the house after blowing the men in her life a few kisses and walked down the steps of their apartment building. Her phone buzzed in her bag and she pulled it out as she stepped out in the streets.
She had received a text message from an unknown number and curiosity made her open up the message just as she was crossing the street.
How are you doing? I got your number from my wife’s old diary and I couldn’t resist texting you. Mike misses you too.
Alexa’s heart stopped in the middle of the road as she read the message three times before stuffing it into her purse again. Her pulse was racing, her heart was beating faster than she could comprehend and she crossed the road and nearly ran into a lamp-post. This was the absolute worst day that this could have happened to her, just when everything was going so well and she was headed for a job interview. Clearly Samuel had no idea that he had fathered another child.
Alexa took her phone out to delete the text, just so that she would never have to look at it again, but there was another message waiting for her in her phone.
I remember how your tongue tasted in my mouth. I remember how it felt when I slid myself into you. I know you remember it too.
She deleted both the messages and nearly threw her phone at the street. Her phone buzzed again and she couldn’t stop herself from looking.
Alexa, if you’re reading these, please understand that I had no other choice than to push you away. I know better now.
She couldn’t delete the last one, her fingers were shaking and she just couldn’t bring herself to press the buttons she needed to. Another message took over the screen.
I heard that you’re in New York. I heard you’re married and have a baby. Something tells me that we need to talk. Please come and see me?
Alexa’s knees buckled and she leaned against the grills of the park she was walking past. She pulled the lapels of her trench coat tighter around her and started to breathe deeply. This was not helping her calm down, and as expected was making it all a lot worse, but she just couldn’t stop herself from checking her phone screen every few seconds. The fact that he knew, or had a notion or an inkling that Christopher was his son and not Chris’ was enough to send her in a tizzy. She obviously couldn’t hear him, but through his messages she could conjure up an image of what he looked like when he said those words that he typed. Another message.
Send me your address and I’ll make arrangements to come see you. And your little boy.
Alexa didn’t know if it was a threat. Whatever it was, she didn’t want Chris to find out who the father of his adopted son was. She knew he wouldn’t be happy, the fact that she had slept with another man while still going on dates with him was bad enough. The fact that the man was her employer, the father of the boy she was babysitting, was a whole lot worse.
Her phone buzzed again and this time Alexa drew in a deep breath. It had been nearly two years since she had last seem Samuel and he still had a hold on her. He still had a violent physical affect on her, even if now it was more negative than positive. She loved Christopher, she loved her son more than life itself but she hated herself for getting involved with Samuel.
Alexa clutched the cellphone tightly in her hands and battled with the tears that threatened to roll down her cheeks like lava. Hot tears that she had no control over, only minutes away from the most important job interview of her life. She had an image of her son, sitting on Chris’ lap, playing with his kind loving fingers. They were both smiling at her and she couldn’t control the tears any longer.
She allowed herself to cry and then straightened her back up and brushed a few strands of hair away from her face. She blew out some air and licked her lips. She was going to do it. She was going to go for the interview and get the job. She was confident of it. Yes, she had made mistakes, but those very mistakes had resulted in a son who she loved with all her heart and a husband who loved them both with his whole self.
She looked at the screen of her phone. The latest text message from Samuel remained unread in her phone as she flung it far and hard. She heard it land with a thud somewhere in the grass of the park and she looked away. She didn’t care if Samuel found a new way of tracking her down, in fact she didn’t even care if Chris found out who their son’s father was. She knew she had nothing to fear anymore.
Camping With My Dad's Boss
Rebecca popped a piece of chewing gum into her mouth and lazily blew out a bubble.
“I wish you wouldn’t do that” her father, John, said to her without turning to look. He was concentrating on the wheel and trying to traverse the narrow hairpin bends that took them along the woody trail towards the camp-site.
“It’s only a chewing gum dad, will you relax? You’re really on edge” Rebecca said and let out a sigh.
“You have to start acting your age Becky. You’re done with college and preparing for the real world. You can’t go in for a job interview chewing gum and blowing bubbles in people’s faces” he said with an indulgent smile. Rebecca couldn’t help but smile too.
“Well, this isn’t exactly a job interview dad” she said and lightly punched him on his arm.
“Well…” he said and she turned on him with widened eyes.
“Spit it out dad. What have you signed me up for?” she raised her eyebrows and sat up in her seat.
“Well, you know Mr. Harper? Noel Harper. My boss? He’ll be joining us as well” John said and refused to meet her eye.
“What?! I thought it was just going to be the two of us. Father and daughter enjoying their last camping trip before daughter goes away to the big city and joins the rat race” Rebecca couldn’t keep the disappointment out of her voice. She had always been her father’s favorite, daddy’s little girl. This trip was supposed to be a sentimental re-living of all the camping trips they had enjoyed together over the years.
“I know I know” he said defensively and avoided her eyes still.
“But he’s going through a bitter divorce and when I mentioned our trip to him, his eyes lit up. I couldn’t help but invite him along” he finally gazed at her briefly and she slit her eyes.
“Very naughty daddy” she rebuked him playfully and sunk back in her seat.
“It’ll be fine Becky. He’s not a bad sort to have around” he said and patted her on her head for a second before turning his attention back to the wheel. Rebecca pretended to pout and then stuck her head out of the window. She blew a huge bubble and watched it quiver in the breeze, she always felt like a young girl on these trips, without inhibitions.
Her naturally hazel colored curls blew in the breeze as she kept her head out and smacked her lips in joy and sucked back the deflated bubble. Little red marks from her bright lipstick were on the surface of the chewing gum now as she stuck it into a corner of her mouth.
She had mixed feelings about the recent news that her father had given her. Noel Harper. The man who had been the center of all her teenage fantasies when she was growing up. She hadn’t seen him in the last four years after she went away for college, but she didn’t know if she was excited to see him again or if it would be better if she never saw him. Noel and her father had always shared a friendly working relationship and he was repeatedly invited over for family dinners over the years. He usually made an appearance with his wife, an uptight woman he had been
married to for a sum-total of five years. Rebecca had always envied the new Mrs. Harper, the way she clutched the shiny diamond necklace around her throat, or the way she possessively reached for Noel’s hand at the dinner table.
Rebecca turned to her father now and asked, “What happened to Mrs. Harper? Weren’t they happy together?”.
“She cheated on him. With his brother, of all people! And now she wants his house” John said while making a slow turn, bringing them closer to the site. Rebecca turned away from him again, to think. It made her angry, she didn’t know why, to imagine that the woman had caused Noel pain. She couldn’t recall the last conversation she had with him, it must have been a formal enquiry on his part about her college plans, but he had always been polite and kind towards her. She couldn’t imagine why any woman would be willing to give all that up, willing to give him up.
“Anyway, don’t let all this bother you honey. He’s probably coming along to get his mind off everything and I can bet he’ll want to spend time by himself anyway” John said, interrupting her thoughts.
“Which means, more time for you and me” he said and started slowing down.
She could see the clearing now, a small empty space between the pine trees, overlooking the glassy green lake. The very sight of it made her heart race.
“We’re here” she said excitedly just as her father brought the car to a halt. He had barely turned off the engine before Rebecca shoved open the car door and raced over to the camp-site. The wide smile was a permanent fixture on her face, as she kept turning around in circles, breathing in the familiar pine-scented fresh air.
“Come help me with the stuff” she heard her father say and ignored him. She wanted to cherish every moment in the spot, devour all of it in before uncertainty took over her life.
“Becky, C’mon!” her father called out to her again.
“I’ll help you with that” she jerked her head over to where her father had parked his car. That second voice was unmistakable. Noel was standing next to John, exchanging greetings before walking over to the back of the car. She didn't have a clue where he had suddenly appeared from and had also not expected this physical reaction from her body, she had literally frozen in her spot.
As Rebecca silently watched Noel help her father unload all the camping gear and their food supply for the next three days, she realized how he had not aged a day. Even though they were both, her father and Noel, in their forties, he looked significantly younger than John. Where her father was showing distinct signs of male pattern baldness, Noel’s thick head of jet-black hair was only lightly dusted with specks of silver, at the bottom of his sideburns. While her father’s blue polo shirt stretched over a bulging healthy belly, Noel’s flat abdomen was neatly outlined by a wrinkle-free brown plaid shirt, tucked into a pair of blue jeans.
She remembered that beard well, however it seemed to be less cared for these days. His dark bushy beard seemed to have not been trimmed or looked after for a few weeks, but it added a certain youthful charm to his face that made Rebecca stare at him for longer.
“You remember my daughter Rebecca” John said while the two men walked towards her, carrying luggage in their arms.
“Of course I do. Look at you!” his green eyes shone as he focused them on her.
“Hi Noel. How are you?” she tried to sound casual and gazed at her father nervously, who had turned away from them, plonking camping gear on the ground.
“I hear you’ve graduated? Congratulations. You look very different” he was smiling at her, but she couldn’t bring herself to do the same. She nervously played with a long brown curl and threw him a weak smile.
He turned away from her to walk back to the car for a second trip of carrying luggage and Rebecca turned on her heels, walking over to the water’s edge. She looked over the lake, to the other side. The calm surface of the water had a soothing effect on her and she was thankful for it. She bit down on her lower lip, in an effort to make her hands stop shaking. She hadn’t expected this reaction from herself, to feel this way towards a teenage crush for an older man.
“I was just telling your dad” she heard his voice beside her and she turned her head with anxious eyes towards him, “how grateful I am to you guys for inviting me. I’m sorry for intruding on your family trip” he said with a wistful smile. He had no problem staring directly into her eyes and holding her gaze, while she struggled with her emotions.
“We’re happy to have you” she said to him, squeakily. The sun had begun to set already and Rebecca could sense her father gathering twigs and wood for a fire.
“I’ll go help John set up the fire. Marshmallows later?” he said and lightly patted her on her back before walking away. She nodded her head in response just as he turned away from her. She looked back towards the lake again, birds were flying towards far-away nests in the perfect V shape over her and Rebecca couldn’t help but feel a sudden chill, even though it was a warm day. She didn’t know how to get a grip on her own feelings.
*****
Rebecca was reading a book, with her back towards the camp fire which lit the pages in her hands. A plastic cup of hot chocolate lay beside her, which she was periodically sipping from. Her father and Noel were sitting closer to the fire, discussing work-related issues, which she didn’t want to be a part of.
“I fear I’m keeping you from precious father-daughter time” she heard Noel’s voice, and turned a page unnecessarily, she had barely been able to concentrate on the book in hand.
“Becky likes to be left alone once the sun sets. She’s always been this way since she was five and I brought her here on our first trip” her father said and she smiled to herself, nobody knew her better than him.
“And this is usually my time to go for a short walk along that trail” John continued and even without looking, she knew exactly which trail he was talking about, she smiled again.
“Care to join me Noel or are you not the walk-in-the-dark kinda guy?” she sensed her father standing up and dusting his pants.
“I think I’ll give it a miss. I have my own book which I’d like to read” Noel said as she heard her father rustling through the leaves and crunching over twigs on his way towards the trail.
The silence was unnerving and calming at the same time. She remained in the same position and concentrated on the soft cackling of the burning chopped wood for a few minutes. Noel was quiet as well and Rebecca was fighting an immense urge to say something. She reached for her cup of hot chocolate again and realized it was empty. She slowly turned around towards the fire and found Noel sitting on a fallen log. He had put on a pair of small frameless spectacles that caught the reflection of the low burning fire and his eyes were focused on the book in his hands. She cleared her throat loudly and he looked up, distracted.
“Your father’s gone for a walk” he said and she nodded knowingly.
“He always does that around this time of the night. To play with fireflies, he’s such a kid” she said and they both laughed. She noticed how his wide shoulders shook when he laughed and she blushed.
“What are you reading there?” he asked and she held up the front of the book for him.
“Zadie Smith? Yeah, she’s terrific isn’t she?” he said excitedly, Rebecca was surprised they had the same taste in books.
“And you?” she asked him and he held up his.
“Agatha Christie?!” she laughed.
“I always come back to her. I’ve read all of them but I can’t seem to give them up” he said, joining her in her laugh. She expected him to be immersed in a political biography, a light-hearted murder mystery was the last book she expected him to be absorbed by.
“What are your plans now Rebecca? Now that college is done?” he asked, she watched as he slid off the log and settled on the dusty ground underneath.
“I plan on freelancing for a while. Move to New York, freelance for small art projects and see how it goes” she said and allowed her book to snap shut in her hands.
&nbs
p; “Oh yes, your father has told me how wonderful you are as an artist” he said with a smile. The orange fire caught the green of his eyes as he pulled the glasses off his face.
“I’m sure he exaggerated” she said and blushed again.
“He showed me a book you illustrated. It was brilliant” he continued and she shook her head and in embarrassment.
“In fact, if you are planning on freelancing, I should get you in touch with our Marketing team. I’m sure they could use some of your work” he said. They were still several feet away but she could see the muscles on his arms, where he had folded the sleeves of his shirt up. His eyes were focused on her face, calm and composed.
“That’ll be great, thank you” she said and smiled. They were silent again for a few seconds and it made Rebecca uncomfortable. He was looking at her lazily and she didn’t know what she could say to him to keep the conversation going. It was against her nature to be this dumbfounded.
“I was sorry to hear about your divorce” she said, before she could stop herself or control what she blurted out. Noel smiled weakly and nodded his head.
“Yeah that was a disaster. I’m just glad it’s over” he said quietly, he finally looked away from her, towards the lake. She was at a loss for words again and he looked towards her.
“What about you? Dating anybody? Anything serious?” he asked, she detected a light heartedness in his voice and she relaxed a little. At least, he hadn’t taken offense to the topic of his divorce.
“Well, not anymore. We broke up about a year ago and there’s been nobody serious since then” she said and licked her lips. She didn’t know how to best respond to a question like that, coming from him.
“I still can't believe it. Little Rebecca all grown up and out of college, discussing serious boyfriends” he said in a dreamy voice.
Sucker for the Boss Page 31
