Second Chances

by Nicole Andrews Moore

  Pacing excitedly, Hannah waited for Amy to return her call. It had been nearly three hours. She knew that it was just now nearing her friend’s dinnertime. Amy worked long hours, the typical driven single career woman. When Hannah had commented once that her friend never dated, Amy had merely remarked that it shouldn’t be surprising after all she’s seen.

  At last her phone sounded and Hannah dove on it. “I need a contract drawn up,” she said excitedly.

  “That really isn’t my field,” her best friend said with a laugh, then paused. “Have you found him? Is that why you need a contract?”

  Squealing happily, Hannah replied, “I think so. And I’m being very smart about it. We’re going to make everything very legal, lay out all the expectations and requirements on both sides. I want something…ironclad.”

  “Of course you do,” Amy said rolling her eyes. “Well, I suppose I could recommend someone. Let me think on it and I’ll get back to you. Of course anyone I select will be very discreet. Nature of the business, you know.”

  Hannah tried to be serious, but she was so overwhelmed with relief that she wanted to scream and shout and jump around. When she thought about how close she had come to complete and utter ruin. She sighed. Now they would have a roof over their heads. A very nice roof, she imagined. And it seemed like so little was being asked of her in return. She collapsed into her chair. “It’s all going to work out,” she said in wonder. “Finally. I feel like I can almost relax for the first time in months.”

  “So, may I ask the name of this savior of yours?” Amy drummed her pencil on the desk while she waited for a response.

  Shaking her head, Hannah said sadly, “No can do. It was part of the pledge I made. He has appearances to keep up. I can’t reveal his name.”

  Amy sat up, somewhat alarmed. “So, will I get to see you?”

  “Of course. I’ll be free on the weekends and we can meet,” Hannah responded vaguely.

  “But I’ll never see you there, at his place?” A note of concern was evident in her voice.

  “I don’t think so,” Hannah admitted.

  “I don’t know,” she worried. “Maybe you should hold off, wait for someone else. It’s only been a few days…”

  “But I only have a few weeks until I’m homeless,” Hannah protested. “I have to do this. He’s the one,” she finished resolutely.

  “Are you sure about this?” Aaron Maddox, head of the company’s legal department, asked when he was handed the task of creating the contract.

  “I just need an employment contract drafted,” Gavin said irritably. He hated having to explain himself. “That is what I pay you to do, isn’t it?”

  Clearing his throat, Aaron continued, “I thought I was also supposed to offer my expert opinion and legal advice.” He had worked for the company his entire career, first as an intern, then hired on full-time once he passed the bar. And through the years, this was the first time he had ever had cause to question the judgment of the CEO.

  “I know what I’m doing,” Gavin snapped. Then he paused, took a calming breath, and said, “Please have the contract ready for my perusal by ten in the morning in case it needs revising before lunch.” And without even saying goodbye, he hung up. He was flustered. And he knew what it was. Aaron had hit a nerve. For the first time since he caught his wife in bed with his sister, he felt as though he was off course, about to once again disrupt the balance of his carefully ordered universe.

  He didn’t have room for them. It wasn’t that he didn’t have room for Hannah and the children in his house. No, there was ample space for them, more than enough bedrooms and baths to accommodate, but he didn’t have room for them in his life. He didn’t like change. And having her around would most certainly change things. The kids were probably loud and unruly and messy. It was, however, the price he was willing to pay to make her pay.

  At 12:50, Hannah left her desk, and headed for the elevator. She didn’t want to keep Gavin waiting. Should she be calling him Gavin, or would he prefer to be called Mr. Meyers? This was just one of the many questions that plagued her as she walked the short distance to Rock Bottom. She sighed as she glanced at the large sign. He couldn’t have picked a place more aptly named. She did feel as though she had been skidding along her own rock bottom for some time.

  With a smile and a nod the hostess indicated that her new employer was already there. Hannah followed the perky petite blonde up the steps to the back of the top level where Gavin was reading the contract. Maybe she was being presumptuous. It could just be a contract, not necessarily the contract. As gracefully as she could muster with her knees practically knocking, she tucked her skirt and sat across from him in their secluded booth.

  From the tight smile on her lips and the slight tremble in her hand as she reached for her water glass, Gavin knew that Hannah was nervous. Part of him wanted to soothe her fears, murmur words of comfort and assurance. That was the gentleman in him, the side he blamed for his problems with women through the ages, and the side he was currently tamping down with all the strength he could muster. At the same time, he recognized that the contract wasn’t signed yet, she wasn’t yet tied to him, and hiding his satisfaction at her unease, the businessman in him took over.

  “So, you have decided to go through with it, huh?” He as asked as jovially as he could muster.

  A half smile brightened her face, “As if I have so many other more tempting offers,” she managed.

  She was honest and direct. He liked that about her. Here was a woman who didn’t seem to play games. “And I thought it was my considerable charm that won you over,” he joked.

  Hannah cocked her head to one side, wondering what she saw there in his eyes. He could barely look at her. “What about you?” She asked quietly. “Are you having any second thoughts?”

  He paused and studied her. She was really quite attractive. Dressed horribly, but he thought she might be more…presentable…if she had the means. He would ensure she had the means. Shaking his head to clear his mind, Gavin said, “No, why should I?” He set down his water glass and pushed a copy of the contract to her. “As you can see, everything we discussed is in there.” He flipped to the second page. “The contract can be terminated at any time with thirty days written notice by either party.” She nodded and glanced at him before emitting a hollow laugh.

  “Something funny, Hannah?” He stared at her with his piercing blue eyes.

  She smirked. “No, I was just musing that thirty days is more warning than I received from my husband.” She shrugged. “That’s all. Thirty days is more than fair.”

  Folding his hands on the table, he frowned. Hannah had a really refreshing way of looking at things. For her, thirty days was more than enough security. How different they were. India had been telling him their entire relationship and he had refused to hear or acknowledge. True, it wasn’t submitted in writing exactly. India was a far more…expressive creature. She painted, she sculpted, and she ran away.

  Reaching for the pen, Hannah found the lines she needed to sign with the assistance of brightly colored sticky tabs. She smiled. It was all so surreal. She was about to move in with a man that she didn’t even know. And worse, she was subjecting her kids to him. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. But he was offering her more money to do so than she could ever have made in her current position. On top of that, she had no other monthly expenses. He was covering her room and board, offering her a lease on a great SUV. She couldn’t turn this down. She couldn’t walk away. Inhaling deeply, she quickly scribbled her signature and initialed where it indicated. Emitting a sigh, she passed the contract across the table. “Now you.”

  With a smile, a flourish, and without a moment’s hesitation, Gavin quickly signed his life away. “So, you’ll be moved in by April 1st, right?” He reminded her, surprised by his own impatience for the game to begin.

  “Of course,” Hannah responded smoothly, in an effort to cover her own bout of nerves.

  “And you gav
e notice at work?” He inquired. “I need you to be at my complete beck and call.”

  Suddenly, she felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. Great, she thought, I’ve turned myself into a beck and call girl. Hannah blushed. “I’ll be turning it in this afternoon. I wanted to make sure this didn’t fall through first. You understand, right?”

  He cocked his head to the side. Clearly this woman would not trust easily. She had been hurt before, a realization that tugged at him. He was about to be just like some man before him, gaining her trust and crushing it. That thought gave him very little pleasure, and a small scowl clouded his face. “Certainly,” he murmured as he took a sip of his coffee. Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to get away. He glanced at his watch. “I’m sorry I have to cut this short, but I really need to get back to the office.” He offered her one of his winning smiles, but it didn’t quite mask the conflicted emotions he was dealing with. “We’ll have plenty of time to get to know each other,” he said smoothly.

  And suddenly he was unsure of himself. Should he give her a peck on the cheek? They were about to live together. Of course, it wasn’t a romantic situation, so maybe just a handshake? In the end, he clasped her hand in both of his. “I’m looking forward to this. I hope you are as well.” Gavin gently squeezed her hands and walked away after throwing some money on the table.

  “I don’t know what to make of him yet,” she confided in Amy. “We had lunch to finalize everything today. And he was…nice.” She struggled to put words to the feelings she had coursing through her. Gavin wasn’t what she expected. She was looking forward to the job, with even the modicum of security it would provide. And, then there was getting to know him.

  “What’s he like?” Amy pestered. “Come on. You can at least tell me that much without nullifying the contract, right?”

  “Well,” Hannah began hesitantly, “I guess. There just isn’t much to tell right now. I barely know him.” She sighed. “He’s attractive, and refined, a little too uptight for me, very proper. At the same time, as successful as he is, I don’t think he’s happy. I think that’s my real job. He just doesn’t know it yet.”

  “Oh, gawd,” her friend sighed. “You are not going to turn him into one of your lost causes are you?”

  “Whatever do you mean?” She giggled innocently before growing very serious. “I have to give something back, Amy. My very nature insists. He has given me more than you can imagine already. A huge weight has been lifted. I’m hopeful again. I have to do something for him in return.”

  Amy sighed. Hannah was better than she had been in forever. This was so like her. “What if he doesn’t want to be happy? Some people are happy being miserable and making other people miserable,” she argued.

  “Maybe he just doesn’t know how to be happy. Maybe he’s spent all his life trying to live up to other people’s expectations and never even considered what might matter to him, give him pleasure.”

  “Oooh. I see. You want to give him pleasure!” Amy squealed jokingly.

  Blushing three shades of red at the thought of Gavin that close to her, Hannah stuttered, “N…no. I just mean…” She sighed. “Oh never mind.” And with that she hung up.

  With three days left in the month, Hannah spent every minute outside of work packing and selling her wares. She had a small storage unit that was filling up quickly. Amy was volunteering numerous hours to help watch the girls while her friend packed and loaded and cleaned.

  “Am I your latest pro bono case,” Hannah joked.

  “If only. I am supposed to do more of that, but those stuffy rich folks who can’t get along keep me overwhelmingly busy.” She had files spread out all over the floor, since the living room was now devoid of furniture.

  Just as Hannah moved to load the last remaining boxes into the SUV, the phone rang. At first she didn’t recognize the warm male voice on the other end of the line, but Rick quickly reintroduced himself.

  “I told you I’d be in touch,” he reminded her. He was suddenly nervous, unsure of how this might turn out, given what he was about to say.

  “Oh,” Hannah sighed. “I don’t know how to tell you this,” she began quietly, “so, I guess I’ll just spit it out.” She took a deep breath. “I found someone…to take us in. He’s giving me a better job. It’s really a very good deal.” She felt the need to explain.

  “I see.” Rick said, the wheels still turning. “I should tell you right now, I’m not calling to offer you exactly what you’re looking for, but I might have solution of sorts to your problem.”

  Hannah’s head tipped to one side. “How’s that?” She was undeniably curious.

  Now it was Rick’s turn to take the deep breath. “Well, I work for Creative Loafing.” He waited for that piece of information to sink in. “My assignment was to see what kind of person advertises for a Sugar Daddy. Have women sunk to a new low? What could drive a woman to demean herself in that manner? That type of thing.”

  Her blood was beginning to boil. “So what did you decide?” She clenched and unclenched her fists while Amy watched wide-eyed. She moved to get up, but Hannah shook her head.

  “You weren’t what I expected,” he admitted. “I guess I expected some vapid blonde with designs on an easy lifestyle, surrounded by wealth, content to be arm candy for the first willing guy she met.”

  “And that’s not me?” Her voice was hard, defensive.

  “No, Hannah!” He exclaimed, struggling to explain. “You told me you are a good person, despite what it seemed, and I could tell that already. You’ve just been handed a really raw deal and are making the best of a bad situation.” He scowled. “The system isn’t helping you. Playing by the rules hasn’t worked. And so, you have made an unconventional choice.” He sighed before continuing. This is the part that made him nervous, revealing the reason behind his call.

  “You said you had a ‘solution of sorts’ for me?” She said with an edge in her voice. She was more than ready to conclude this conversation.

  “Yes. About that…well, my editor found your story fascinating. Despite your problems, you are a success story, a story of hope…”

  Before he could offer more explanation, she interrupted. “I’m a story of hope! I have been hanging on by a thread. For six months I have struggled with little money, few possessions, and with only the love and support of my parents and best friend to sustain me.” She shook her head vehemently. “I can’t take care of my kids, the most important things in my life.” Tears welled up in her eyes and she sniffled.

  “Hannah,” Rick said gently, “you have a roof over your head. You’re still sane. You didn’t turn to drugs or alcohol. You have never taken your anger out on your children. If anything, this has made you stronger. That is inspiring. That is the story I’d like to tell. That’s the story Charlotte would love to read.”

  “What are you talking about?” She asked exasperatedly.

  “Let me write about you and your experiences. It would be a serial, running for as long as your adventures.” He softened his voice as he added, “We’d pay you for it.”

  For a brief moment, Hannah thought about it. Share with the world her deepest hurt, greatest shame, divulge that her husband left her for a stripper and deserted her kids, that he not only left them to fend for themselves financially, but that he took everything with him. How could she reveal that and ever show her face again?

  “I can’t,” she said, her voice a mere whisper. “I can’t tell anyone about my past, and I swore not to reveal where I would be living or the nature of the contract I signed with the man who has become my guardian angel.”

  “We’d keep it completely confidential; change your name, the details, to protect you.” He could feel her closing off. “Think about it,” Rick said. “And keep my number in case you change your mind. Maybe in a few months…”

  “Of course,” Hannah murmured. She couldn’t see into the future. Her ability to plan more than a few days in advance had been one of the first casualties of Brett�
�s departure. It would be foolish to turn his offer down completely when her circumstances could change at a moment’s notice. “We’ll see.” And with that she hung up the phone, unplugged it from the wall, and dropped it into the nearest box.

  The last Saturday of March, a mere two days before April was to begin, Hannah left her children with their father for a few hours, despite his muted protests, and prepared to move into Gavin’s home.

  “I’ll be back to pick them up at five,” she explained, walking rapidly toward her beat up SUV, overflowing with boxes and suitcases. “I have to move, thanks to you.” Hannah glared at him and he squirmed slightly. “The least you can do, and I mean the very least you can do, is take care of your children for a few hours while I do it,” she snapped.