A Very Good Life

by Lynn Steward

  • • •

  Dana knew she could do nothing about Janice and Matthew while the party was in progress, but she intended to find out what Brett and Johnny had been up to during the week. Brett, playing the gracious host, was now speaking with Johnny and Phoebe in the dining room.

  “I’ve got some shocking news!” Johnny told Dana.

  “It’s good news, I hope. Don’t keep me in suspense.”

  “I’m a free man. Dad was right to be worried about my marriage to Suzanne. It’s off, and I have Brett to thank.”

  Dana’s mouth fell open. Had Brett meddled in Johnny’s affairs? She had counseled her own mother to steer clear of the situation, so how had Brett entered the picture?

  Brett could tell what Dana was thinking, so he immediately tried to explain.

  “Don’t jump to conclusions, honey. All I did was—”

  An excited Phoebe couldn’t contain herself. “All he did was learn from documents my father received from his attorney that the Farnsworth family was using Johnny as an officer in Farnsworth Textiles in Philadelphia, in addition to other family companies—and without his knowledge. Can you believe it? They’re apparently hiding offshore assets and were willing to let Johnny be the responsible party by allowing him to be a majority shareholder.”

  “I dodged a bullet,” Johnny declared emphatically. “Brett thinks a lot of their business dealings are questionable at best. I’m convinced that Suzanne’s parents urged her to send out the invitations early before I had a chance to learn what they were doing.”

  Dana was speechless for several seconds. “And what did Suzanne think of all this?”

  “Oh, she thinks it’s all ridiculous. She said that her parents are honest people who would never do such a thing, and if I suspected them of being criminals, then she never wanted to see me again. I don’t think Suzanne herself is dishonest, but her family is certainly opportunistic.”

  “All in a day’s work,” Brett said with a Cheshire cat grin.

  “Thank you,” Dana said, putting her arm around her husband’s waist.

  “Matthew has invited me to visit him in Hawaii since I won’t be taking time off for a honeymoon,” Johnny said. “By the way, Dana—I have a surprise for you. It’s upstairs in the library, and it won’t wait.”

  “Let’s take a look,” Phoebe said excitedly. She obviously knew what waited for Dana upstairs.

  “Right now?” said Dana. “Maybe later. I’ve got to keep my eye on things down here. Guests are still arriving and I haven’t yet seen the salmon trout tartare. I need to check with the kitchen.”

  “It will only take a minute,” Phoebe said. “Brett looks like he has everything under control.”

  “Indeed I do,” Brett said proudly. “Go ahead, honey. I’ll ask one of the servers about the tartare.”

  Johnny, Phoebe, and Dana climbed the stairs and entered the library. Matthew and Janice were sitting close together on the couch, Matthew’s arm around her shoulder. Their lips were just inches apart.

  “Um, sorry to interrupt,” Johnny said, “but I left something on the desk for Dana.”

  Johnny picked up a brown box from the House of Cirone and he handed it to Dana, who slowly removed the cover, eyes wide. Lying on top of her slim black wool crepe gown was a black silk Chantilly lace shawl. “That’s why we kept telling you the alterations weren’t ready,” Johnny explained as Dana unfolded the delicate wrap. “The lace was delayed in clearing customs, and we had to rush to have the shawl made by tonight.”

  “This looks just like the vintage lace in Chanel’s last collection,” Dana said in awe.

  “Well, I don’t know for sure, but it’s from Chantilly, France, and it’s vintage,” Johnny explained. “We’re using white and black lace in our holiday collection next year.”

  “I love it,” Dana said as she hugged both Johnny and Phoebe. “It’s more than a shawl. It’s a beautiful heirloom.”

  Janice, who was still seated with Matthew on the sofa, observed all the fuss from a distance. “It’s so nice,” she stated blandly, thinking that wearing an old piece of lace was hideous.

  “Matthew, would you run down and remind Brett to have the servers prepare plates for the door staff.” Dana asked. “I want to call and thank Uncle John.” Dana wanted to get Matthew and Janice out of the library—and apart—by any means possible.

  “Say hi to Dad,” Phoebe volunteered. “I’m heading downstairs, too. I’m so tired of hospital cafeteria food! I’m starving!”

  Janice, Matthew, and Phoebe left the library.

  Johnny walked leisurely around the room, looking at family pictures that spanned the Cirones and the Martignettis over many years and holiday gatherings. His attention was suddenly drawn to a photograph on one of the bookshelves. “Hey, here we are at Villanova’s May Ball,” Johnny said to Dana. “You know, that looks like the same dress I just brought you, only yellow.”

  Dana laughed wistfully. “I still have that dress, and it still fits, but yellow? I don’t think so.” Dana paused. “Johnny, are you really glad to be free from Suzanne?” she asked.

  “It was a bit of a shock to learn I was being used,” Johnny confessed, “but once I called the engagement off, I felt nothing but relief. Suzanne and I weren’t really suited for one another, but sometimes opposites attract, right? But I guess I needed the diversion more than anything else. Dad sensed it all along, and I know he was itching to say more than he did, but he knew I had to make my own decision in the long run.”

  “Your dad is a wonderful man,” Dana said. “And he spoils us terribly!”

  “I know,” Johnny said. “And to tell you the truth, I’m glad he’s moving to the city. Now that the wedding is off, I’m going to spend more time with him aside from work. I’ll even try to like the opera! Well, at least I’ll make an effort to join him now and then. I know that would have made mom happy. In fact, he’s at the opera tonight, so don’t bother calling.”

  “You’re pretty special, Johnny, not to mention a great son.”

  “What about you?” Johnny asked. “You’ve been looking a little stressed out lately.”

  Dana sighed. “Does it show? I’m not surprised. It’s been an incredibly difficult week.”

  “Dana, you know I’m always here for you. Is everything okay between you and Brett?”

  “Yes. We have our issues like everyone else, but we’re working our way through them.”

  “I’m glad,” Johnny said as they hugged. “You deserve to be happy. From what I’ve seen this week, Brett is one of the good guys with the white hat. He really helped me out of a jam.”

  “Let’s go down and join the rest,” Dana suggested, not wishing to speak further about her marriage. “I don’t want Matthew and Janice unsupervised for too long.”

  “She’s pretty strange,” Johnny said as Dana took his arm.

  “Strange doesn’t even begin to describe it.”

  “By the way,” Johnny said. “Nice little tree there.”

  Dana could only smile at Johnny’s attentiveness. “Let’s go,” she said.

  Dana and Johnny left the library.

  • • •

  When Dana reached the bottom of the stairs, she heard Nina’s unmistakable voice talking to Bea and Helen, who had just arrived. She was relating the size and location of the original five-foot Concolor fir.

  “It’s okay, Nina,” Dana said. “We had such a good time. Finding the tree was just part of the day. What about our lunch at the historic inn? I’d say we had a few liberating conversations there and in the car.”

  “That reminds me,” Nina said. “I hope everyone will join NOW to help with the March 8th rally to celebrate International Women’s Year.”

  “Nina, come with me,” Dana said quickly before Nina had time to start a sign-up drive in the living room. “You remember my friend Phoebe Cirone? She’s planning a wine tour of the Alsace region in the spring, and I thought you would have a few suggestions for her. Bea, why don’t you and Hel
en relax on the sofa. I know it’s been a long day. We’ll be right back”

  “Bea, let me ask you an honest question,” Helen said when Dana and Nina left. “What is Dana up to with those kids in the contest? I’m highly suspicious. She keeps scooting into Bob’s office, and I can’t help but think that something’s up.”

  “Are you still upset over the teen makeup counter?” Bea asked, lighting a cigarette.

  “Counter? That’s all it is? I can live with that. But don’t quote me.”

  “Dana does have a way with Bob,” Bea remarked, “but all I know is that he gave his blessing regarding something to do with the contest. He told me before I left the store that it’s going to be a huge surprise, so I have no idea what it is.”

  “Well, whatever it turns out to be, it will need my blessing as well if it has anything to do with the Junior Department,” Helen said. “I won’t have my twenty-five years of buying experience run over by those teenagers of hers.”

  Bea raised her eyebrows and lit another cigarette. She knew Dana well. She also knew that underestimating the young woman’s abilities would be a mistake.

  • • •

  Brett stood in the center of the living room, a champagne glass raised in the air.

  “I’d like to propose a toast to all of our good friends. Thank you for coming, and may you all have a Merry Christmas, a happy holiday, and a prosperous New Year!”

  “Hear, hear!” several guests said, their voices and glasses raised.

  Dana looked around for Matthew and saw him kissing Janice on the lips as Brett finished his toast. Well, she would speak to Matthew the following day, although she noticed that Patti Hartlen was also taking a great interest in the couple, which made the situation all the more embarrassing for Dana. Patti seemed to notice everything, for that matter. She’d been eyeing Brett, Janice, and Matthew ever since arriving. What was she looking for? Dana advanced towards her brother.

  “Matthew has another year and a half at the University of Hawaii,” Dana told Janice. Dana thought that the physical distance between them in their everyday lives might pose a severe impediment to their forming an actual relationship. It was worth emphasizing.

  “Yes!” Janice said. “Brett is giving me a couple of days off next week. I’m flying back to Hawaii with Matthew on Saturday so he can give me those surfing lessons. And I suggested that we drive up to New England when he returns for Christmas break.”

  Dana nodded her head. “That’s . . . interesting.” Dana could see that Janice was aware of how upset she was that Matthew had become an object of romantic interest. Janice was relishing every second of flaunting that interest in front of Dana.

  “Johnny is going to fly out after Janice leaves,” Matthew said.

  “So I heard,” Dana said.

  “Brett told him that the islands might help him get over the cancelled wedding. I know a few friends who might help him relax a bit and take his mind off things.”

  Dana rolled her eyes. “I’m sure you do,” she said. “Just remember that Uncle John is moving to the city and needs him.”

  “No problem, big sister. Johnny is just coming out for a quick visit. He’ll be back in time for Christmas.”

  Dana smiled and circulated among her guests, her eyes continually searching for Matthew and Janice. The pair remained inseparable.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Brett and Janice emerged from a meeting with Richard Patterson and Patrick Denner at ten o’clock the following morning. The two litigators suppressed smiles at the news that had been disclosed in Richard’s office, news that would profoundly affect their careers and personal lives.

  “This is incredible!” Brett said when the two were seated in his office a few minutes later. “We’re going to San Francisco!”

  “For six months!” Janice said. “The gods have smiled upon us. We really have a sweet deal, my dear Mr. McGarry. How do you think Dana will take the news?” Janice asked, shooting a finger at a picture of Dana in the sitting area on the far side of the office.

  Brett leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands behind his head. He appeared both calm and relaxed, as if he were considering a golf game rather than his career and marriage. “She’s not going to like it initially—not at all—but if she wants the life she’s been talking about lately, she doesn’t have much recourse but to accept the arrangement.”

  During the previous hour, Richard had updated Brett and Janice on a case they’d been working on. The firm’s client, owner of an office building in lower Manhattan, had sued a construction company with offices in San Francisco and New York for installing asbestos in the ceilings of the Manhattan building. In the past ten years, asbestos had been linked to several lung diseases, such as emphysema and asbestosis. Many workers in the building, owned by an insurance company, had been diagnosed with lung illnesses and were seeking compensation, so the insurance company was, in turn, suing the builder for failing to disclose the presence of asbestos and provide a safe work environment. Precedent had been set in such cases as early as 1964. During the past six months, during which time Davis, Konen and Wright had represented the insurance company, the paper trail had led to the builder’s San Francisco office, where the decisions on construction materials had been made when the building in Manhattan had been erected in 1962. The company had also ignored medical research conducted in California, research warning of the health risks involved from exposure to asbestos. While many pertinent documents were held by the construction company’s New York office, more than half the files were at corporate headquarters in San Francisco. The judge had ordered a change in jurisdiction and that all relevant New York documents be sealed and shipped to the West Coast. Brett and Janice would remain on the case and live in the Bay area for the next six months. The defendant was suing for one hundred million dollars in compensation, and the fee for Davis, Konen and Wright more than warranted the presence of Brett and Janice in California.

  “It sure is easier than sneaking around,” Brett said, “although we’ll have to maintain separate apartments since the firm is picking up the tab. They’ll no doubt be checking in on us frequently, but three thousand miles is a pretty good buffer.”

  “We’ll have enormous freedom,” Janice proclaimed. “Amazing luck!”

  Janice was even happier than Brett realized. The separation from Dana that would be imposed by the case might represent the final breaking strain on Brett’s marriage. Additionally, she would have at least six months, maybe longer, to indoctrinate her lover in the more laid-back lifestyle of California. To Janice, the news represented a win-win situation.

  “I guess your flirting with Matthew wasn’t necessary after all,” Brett theorized.

  “To the contrary,” Janice said. “It has thrown everyone off the trail—Dana, Patti, and Patrick for starters. There’s no better way to begin our adventure than to have deflected any suspicion about you and me. It was the perfect prologue.”

  “It was quite a performance last night,” Brett admitted. “Dana, Patti, and Richard couldn’t take their eyes off you.”

  “You think I’m a naughty girl, don’t you?”

  Brett thought for a moment. “Reckless,” he said. “Refreshingly reckless.”

  “Be careful,” Janice said. “After California, you may never want to give me up.”

  Brett smiled thinly. Could Janice’s words be true? Was he in over his head?

  Brett shook off the thought quickly. He was in control. He was always in control. He would go along for the ride, so to speak, but he would never leave Dana. Sooner or later, his pleasant diversions with Janice Conlon would have to end.

  But not yet.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Dana had asked Matthew to meet her for lunch at Charleston Garden at twelve thirty on Friday.

  “Ready for the Ball tonight?” Matthew asked. “You’ve put an awful lot of effort into this contest.”

  “It always requires a lot of work,” Dana admitted, “and this ye
ar’s contest was more taxing than most. But it has been worth every second. I hope I’ve helped the contestants acquire even greater maturity and confidence. They’re all terrific. There’s one girl in particular who really needed this experience.”

  “I’m sure you helped her. You’ll be a great mom when the time comes.”

  The remark caught Dana off guard, and Matthew immediately picked up on Dana’s hesitation. “Anything wrong?”

  “Brett and I have been discussing starting a family for the first time in a long time. I really feel I’m ready. We have the money, and I’m not getting any younger.”

  “Is Brett on board with this?”

  Dana raised her eyebrows. “He says he is, and from what I’ve seen these past few days, I believe him.”

  “Good. You’ve been a wonderful wife, and I think it’s time for the next phase of your life to begin.”

  “Speaking of new phases in life, where are you, Matthew? Anyone special out in Hawaii?”

  Matthew leaned back and folded his arms after sipping from a glass of iced tea. “What you’re really asking is if I’m serious about pursuing a relationship with Janice,” he said with a grin. “I saw you staring at us last night as carefully as a private detective.”

  “Guilty as charged,” Dana admitted. “It’s just that . . . well . . .”

  “You disapprove, but you don’t want to interfere with my life, right? Just like Johnny and Uncle John with all the wedding drama before the ceremony was cancelled.”

  “You’re exactly right, Matthew. Frankly, I find Janice’s personality more than a little abrasive. At a neighborhood meeting on Tuesday, she actually—”

  Matthew held up his hand, causing Dana to pause in mid-sentence. “Don’t worry,” Matthew said. “She came on awfully strong last night, but it’s a moot point. She called me this morning to say that the firm has dumped a lot of work in her lap. She won’t be coming to Hawaii with me next week. In fact, she said that the little trip she suggested to New England over Christmas break would have to be cancelled as well. I think it’s for the best. It was fun to flirt, I suppose, but she was moving way too fast for me.”