Lean Mean Loving Machine

by Sandra Chastain

  “Yep. I made deliveries to your house, Michelle. I worked at the Travis Drugstore on Howell Mill Road. I even asked you for a date once.”

  Michelle’s face blanched as she remembered.

  “And this,” he turned back to Stacy and pulled her close, “this is my lady, Anastasia Lanham, of the royal Lanhams. She is the sole owner of Lanham Trucking Company and Fleet Garage. Shall we go in, darling? I want to show you the window I once jumped out of during biology class.”

  The clicks of the cameras recorded Stacy and Gavin’s regal exit, and the media people trailed after them into the building.

  “Why did you do that?” Stacy whispered furiously.

  “Sorry, the devil made me do it. I would never have thought of it if Michelle hadn’t been standing there looking so smug. That’s just the way she looked in high school when I asked her for a date, just before she started to laugh.”

  “She turned you down?”

  “Not exactly. It was all right for me to kiss her in the bushes, but she couldn’t be seen with me in public. I wasn’t in her class back then.”

  Like me, Stacy wanted to say. But one look at Gavin’s face as he relived all the old painful memories made her keep quiet.

  “Was I in the School of Performing Arts?” he mimicked. “I was too busy trying to pay for my clothes and save enough money for college, and bailing my mother or Aunt Jane out of some scrape or another until the next dividend check came in. It’s very hard to run with the wealthy and be poor.”

  “I know about that. Do you think they can look at us now and tell?”

  They’d reached what used to be the school cafeteria. In the glass windows overlooking an area with trees and benches, Gavin stopped. “Look at the reflection of those two people in the glass. Do they have status signs around their necks?”

  “No.”

  “It’s obvious that they are royalty, and they look absolutely great together.”

  Stacy heard the sudden relaxation in his voice, and she understood. He’d never been to a baseball game. He’d never had time for normal high school activities. He’d been the outsider once, but no longer. Gavin had come back to his past with both feet planted firmly on top of the mountain. For today he could bask in his success. The question was where would he go from there.

  Stacy looked at them in the glass and pushed aside her reservations. This was his moment, and he’d chosen to share it with her. She wouldn’t spoil it for him. She’d give him time at the top to survey his choices. Underneath they were not so very different. They just had to decide whether he was coming down or whether she was going to try to climb back up again.

  “Gavin, old man!” A huge man with the biggest feet Stacy had ever seen caught Gavin in a bear hug. “How’s it hanging?”

  “Alvin, good to see you. Let me introduce you to Stacy, my girl.”

  “Oops, sorry, ma’am. I apologize for my loose talk, but I never did learn my social graces.”

  Alvin wasn’t Gavin’s only friend. Stacy met several, all of whom recounted stories of Gavin’s friendship and hard work. The rest of the day was a blur of reminiscences, speeches, and official ceremonies. The school cafeteria cranked out a typical lunch, over which a typical food fight broke out, with the instigators being sent to the principal’s office by two elderly teachers who’d come back for the closing of the school.

  There were tears, awkward moments, and silly giggles, and through it all Stacy began to see Gavin as the rich boy with the family but not the funds. He’d had to work twice as hard as the truly impoverished, because his mother and his aunt had had to be protected. Stacy knew that neither woman ever understood what Gavin had to go through. But she did, and her heart hurt for him.

  Lucky had wanted to play ball and he had, but his gift had been taken from him and he’d tried to recapture the glory through tricks and sham. Gavin’s glory had been there from birth, but he’d had to hustle to hang on to it, not for himself, but for his family. Stacy could understand both men, and she could love them both.

  Later, at the dance, Gavin looked around with satisfaction. He’d made it. His success had never been a secret. He’d done business with most of the men in the area, belonged to their clubs, traveled in their circles. But until now, it hadn’t seemed real. He caught sight of Stacy, beautiful, warm Stacy, in her simple purple dress, dancing with the great-great-grandson of Atlanta’s famous newspaper editor, Henry Grady.

  “Hi, Gav, want to find some bushes?”

  Michelle was standing beside him, her lips parted in a sexy pout.

  “I don’t neck in the bushes anymore, Michelle.”

  “No? Too bad. There are a couple outside the cafeteria that look just about right. You look good, Gavin. Why haven’t we crossed paths since you became king of the mountain?”

  “I don’t get to either Europe or Hilton Head much. I understand that’s where you live.”

  “My husband’s into tennis and wine. What interests you now, other than the daughter of a gambler?”

  “You know Stacy?”

  “No. I knew her father, or I knew of him. He had quite a reputation with the ladies. Lucky Lanham was supposed to be very special in bed. What about you, Gavin? We never tried a bed.”

  He gave serious consideration to her question, never allowing his eyes to lose sight of Stacy. “I’d say yes to your observation, Michelle, but not to your invitation. You’re a lot of years too late. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I want to claim my lady. We have to get back to Frankenstein and Dracula. It isn’t safe to leave them alone after midnight.”

  Over her partner’s shoulder Stacy watched the exchange between Gavin and Michelle. She saw the shock on Michelle’s face when Gavin walked away, and felt the familiar warmth flood through her when his gaze met hers. When Gavin touched Henry’s shoulder, he released Stacy, and she turned naturally into Gavin’s arms, settling there in a comfortable togetherness. She was complete again.

  “I’ve missed you, Princess,” he whispered in her hair.

  “Why didn’t you claim me?”

  “I did. I have—now.” And he pulled her so close that she could barely breathe. “Oh, lady, can we get out of here?”

  “It’s your party, Gavin. I’m ready when you are.”

  And she knew instantly that he was ready too. The evidence of his readiness was pressing insistently against her, and she was quivering in response.

  “You know I heard talk about this kind of thing happening to a guy on a dance floor,” he said.

  “Don’t tell me you never went to a dance either?”

  “Oh, I went, but I never danced. Too shy and too horny. I got this way just watching the women.”

  “This way? You mean, you stood in the shadows and—”

  “Now, I didn’t say that. I found a way to be with the ladies, or rather they found a way—outside in the dark, where their dates didn’t know. The secret stud of Northside High, that was me. Deliver your order and a little something extra. The store manager loved me—not literally, you understand.”

  “You mean, you made love to those women, but you didn’t date them and you didn’t dance with them?”

  “It wasn’t love, Stacy,” he said, waiting until the circling light overhead moved on, leaving them in the shadows so that he could cup her bottom and pull her wickedly against his erection. “Not like this. This is the first time I’ve ever—”

  But he never finished his sentence, for she caught his face and pulled his lips down to meet hers. For the second time since she’d known him, they’d shared a public kiss, a hot, deep, passionate kiss with a part of the world looking on.

  “Take me home, Gavin,” she finally said, “and dance with me. I want you to love me. All night long.”

  Eight

  They did make love. In the darkness, up the stairs, removing pieces of clothing as they kissed. In Gavin’s arms, Stacy forgot all her questions and all her doubts. She wouldn’t ask questions. She would take what life offered without worrying about t
he consequences.

  She was weak. She acknowledged that fact at the top of the stairs as Gavin removed her dress. Even if he was only temporary in her life, he was read and she wanted him. They clung to each other in the silence, both mute, both caught up in the wonder of their feelings.

  “Are you mine?” Gavin whispered as he lay her down on the bed.

  “Yes,” she said. For now, she added silently. Until you get what you want and move on.

  Gavin didn’t question her answer. He’d always flown by the seat of his pants, taking whatever came and turning it to his advantage. But he’d never expected when he’d walked into Lanham’s Garage that he’d discover a rainbow. Only Aunt Jane believed in leprechauns and pots of gold, and she’d sent him to Stacy.

  And every minute since, he’d found his attention focused on Stacy. He’d reached out for Stacy, to touch her, to feel the surge of confidence that her touch inspired. And he’d shared his past and his fears. Then, suddenly, he wasn’t on the outside anymore. The people he’d always emulated were no longer important. They were just people. Stacy, in her quiet way, had reached inside that cold spot of uncertainty and filled it with confident warmth. And he was falling in love for the first time in his life.

  Gavin lay there in the darkness, smiling. When he left her, just before sunup, he felt as if he were leaving a part of himself behind.

  When Stacy awoke, there was a note on the pillow.

  “I’ll be back. Keep the home fires burning.”

  Stacy spent Sunday morning lazing in bed, the dogs on either side of her watching her curiously. Staying in bed was new to them, but their expressions said, hey, they could learn to like it if Stacy did. Stacy knew that she was living on borrowed time. Nothing was settled. Nothing had even been discussed. Every time she started to talk about the garage Gavin kissed her and every rational thought vanished.

  In the light of morning, the question of Aunt Jane lingered in Stacy’s mind. Gavin didn’t seem to attach any importance to Jane’s connection to Lucky. He accepted the fact that his aunt had some kind of special sixth sense and didn’t question it. But Stacy had heard the exchange between Alice and Jane about Lucky. She knew that Lucky had taken Jane’s money and, according to Lonnie, never repaid it.

  Trying to make sense of Gavin’s buying her garage when Aunt Jane might even have grounds for claiming it in lieu of debt was simply not possible. When she’d asked Lonnie, he’d told her for once in her life to leave it alone. Stacy couldn’t do that forever. But for now, when the doorbell rang and the boys dashed downstairs wagging their stumpy tails, she knew that Gavin was back. When she opened the door and found him there with her favorite cheese-and-tomato pizza, every worrisome thought fled.

  Sunday afternoon they ate pizza and watched the Dodgers take the last game of the Braves’ three-game series. For dinner Gavin broiled steaks to perfection while Stacy made a credible salad and heated rolls in the microwave.

  Dessert, the nonfattening and sinfully lush enjoy-in-bed kind, quickly became a welcome, familiar treat that extended into the dark hours after midnight. The new Dean Koontz book lay on Stacy’s nightstand half-finished as it had for days. She’d read hundreds of books in her lifetime, but there was only one Gavin. And he filled her mind so completely that there was no room for anything else.

  Monday morning things were back to normal, or as normal as work could be in a garage that was already filling with special orders for antique vehicles. Stacy had never realized that so much work existed, that so many cars existed to be restored, that so many people would pay to have the work done. With Jim and his brother Stash came an accountant who was prepared to set up a proper bookkeeping system. He had Magadan Classics checks and a computer.

  “But the business belongs to me,” Stacy said firmly. “And any check written will be written by Lanham Classics.”

  “Fine,” the accountant agreed. “Mr. Magadan said for me to set up the system so that it can be easily converted when the time comes, but we’re to use your account and you’ll sign the checks and vouchers in the meantime.”

  “Mr. Magadan doesn’t have the authority to say anything,” Stacy protested hotly. Just because he’s spent the weekend in my bed doesn’t mean he owns me. This was her business, or was it? She didn’t know anything anymore.

  After an hour of pacing back and forth trying to make sense of her situation, she decided that the only thing to do was stop holding back and get to the person who could settle the issue—Aunt Jane.

  “I’m going out for a while,” Stacy said to the men who nodded and kept on with what they were doing. She stood at the doorway and scanned the busy scene. Everything had changed. Lonnie had finally found a way to keep her fingernails out of the grease. She felt a little pang of martyrdom. She should be happy with what was happening, but she only felt left out and confused.

  All the more reason for getting the issue settled, she decided, leaving the accountant accounting, and the mechanics mechanicking at ten-thirty on a Monday morning. She took the pickup because it was the only mode of transportation she had—except for the wrecker. Lonnie might drive that battered machine up the Valley Road drive, but she couldn’t.

  Stacy held her breath until she determined that Gavin’s car wasn’t in the garage. She stopped in the courtyard and waited for the kitchen door to open and the two women to come noisily out to greet her.

  “Anastasia, you must have known we needed you,” Jane said with a satisfied nod of her head, as she opened the door to the truck and climbed inside.

  “We’re so glad to see you,” Alice added, crawling into the truck beside Jane and slamming the door.

  Jane arranged her purse in her lap. “Let’s go. We didn’t know where we’d find a truck but the cards said one would come.”

  “We’re so glad, Anastasia, that it’s you. Jane knew that you’d approve.”

  As always, the whirlwind surrounded them, and before Stacy knew what was happening, they were driving down Peachtree Street to one of Atlanta’s biggest churches.

  “Why are we going to church on Monday morning?” Stacy asked.

  “To pick up the cots, Anastasia.”

  “And then we have to stop by the Georgia Power Company and talk to Randall. You did call the club, didn’t you, Alice?”

  “Of course, Jane. We’re taking Randall to lunch,” Alice explained. “Of course he’ll end up taking us. He always does. We wouldn’t want to hurt his feelings … he’s such a gentleman.”

  In the midst of the rapid exchange of conversation, Stacy was able to figure out that Gavin had disabled their car in order to keep them at home while he was out of town. Stacy felt something she couldn’t identify at the knowledge that Gavin was out of town and hadn’t told her. But she had no right to feel anything, she told herself. After all, they weren’t engaged or committed or anything, were they?

  The deacon at the church explained that they were closing out their shelter for the homeless and were more than willing to make the cots they’d been using available to Jane and Alice for their center. In fact, the minister was lending them one of his volunteers who had already contacted the restaurants in downtown Atlanta and arranged for their excess food to be delivered to the downtown center.

  “Yes indeed,” Jane explained happily, “the Lord helps those who help themselves. He’s already sent us beds, food, and a shelter director.”

  It was over chicken salad at the club that Stacy learned the reason for the lunch with Randall.

  “Now, Randall,” Alice was saying, “we don’t expect the power company to give us free power indefinitely, just until Gavin is able to arrange corporate donations to take care of expenses.”

  Stacy simply sat back and watched the two women work. By the time they ordered and polished off dessert, the CEO of the power company had agreed to provide three months’ free power to the Shelter for the Spiritual Odyssey of Man, and women, too, Alice added proudly.

  It was over midafternoon tea that Stacy finally had the
opportunity to ask Jane about Lucky.

  “Aunt Jane, I don’t know how to ask you this, but I have to know.”

  “Know what, Stacy? About Lucky and me? I’ve been waiting for you to ask. I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”

  “Did he take your money?”

  “Take my money? Lordy no. I gave it to him. I considered it an even exchange. If I’d had more, he could have had that too.”

  “But didn’t you invest in his ice-skating rink?”

  “Of course not, I invested in Lucky. I bought three months of pure lust. It wasn’t his fault I didn’t have a child. I was already too old, I guess. But I loved every minute of it. Lucky never lied about what he was offering, and I never lied about what I was asking. You know your father, whatever he did, he went all out for it.”

  “You mean, you just wanted—a child?”

  “Oh, no. Not just a child—Lucky’s child. I knew at the time it was a wild shot, but hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained. And the venture was pure heaven.”

  “But didn’t you expect him to marry you?”

  “Of course not. But I would have been willing.”

  “But Alice said that he didn’t show up for the wedding.”

  “That’s true. In a weak moment we committed ourselves. In the end, I had to confess it was my fault that the wedding didn’t take place. At least I like to tell myself that it was.”

  Stacy’s head was spinning. She thought that Lucky’s head probably had spun, too, if it was Jane who’d stopped the wedding. “Why did you stop it?”

  “Lucky thought I was wealthy. I wasn’t. The money I gave him was all I had. I couldn’t let him marry me under false pretenses. That would have been dishonest. Lucky never misled me. He only wanted a wealthy wife to be a mother to his daughter. That would have solved both our needs, but it would have been unfair. I did the only thing I could do.”

  “She burned the skating rink down,” Alice said, speaking for the first time during the exchange between Jane and Stacy.