Hard As Stone

by K. M. Scott

  I shook my head. “Sorry about that. I didn’t want to leave, but I had no choice. That’s why I’m here again this morning. I’d like to take some more shots of the animals, especially that old dog.”

  Smiling, Dawn opened the metal door and welcomed me into the shelter. “Trooper? That’s wonderful! I’d really love to see him finally get a home.”

  “Great! I’ll get my equipment and set up so I can get started.”

  As I walked toward the car, Dawn asked, “Does my sister know you’re here?”

  I looked back at her and shook my head. “No, and if you could keep this between us, I’d appreciate that.”

  She didn’t answer, and I had a feeling Summer would find out before I got back to the city. It wouldn’t change anything between us. I knew that. All I could hope was what I did today would change something for these animals.

  A few minutes later, Dawn walked that scruffy old dog Summer had pleaded to be photographed over to where I’d set up my equipment. He tilted his head and looked at me with nothing less than suspicion in his brown eyes. He had a right to. Other than Dawn and the other people at the shelter, the rest of humanity had let him down, including me already. That would change today.

  “I have the perfect thing for you, buddy. You’re going to charm all the folks when they see you.”

  Taking out a red and black bandana from my bag, I tied it around his neck and gave his rough fur a pet. He looked up at me like he didn’t know if he liked his new look, but I had a feeling he liked the attention.

  “Okay, let’s see if he’ll stay without you holding him. If he starts to bolt, I’m going to need you to stay in the shot,” I said to Dawn as I stepped back to eye him through the lens.

  She moved away, and after looking back at her for a moment, Trooper turned his head to face me and just sat there staring straight ahead like he’d decided to tolerate what I wanted to do, at least for a few minutes.

  “I guess he’s okay with it,” she said quietly.

  As I began to take his picture, I smiled. Trooper was a natural. Without even looking at the shots, I knew they’d be great.

  More than an hour later, Trooper, two other dogs, and a black and white cat named Tux had become immortalized on film. While I packed up my gear, Dawn took the last of the animals back to the cages and then returned to thank me again for all my help.

  “It’s my pleasure. I wanted to help. I’ll send you these later today and you can use whichever ones you like.”

  She studied me for a long moment and said, “You know, my director got a call from the Philadelphia Beacon while you were taking the pictures. They want to do a story on the shelter. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

  I smiled and shook my head. “Coincidence, probably. You know how it is. Once people start talking about something, that’s all it takes sometimes. Probably someone who saw the pictures you already posted.”

  Dawn didn’t seem to know whether to believe me or not. “I guess. All I know is what you’ve done has already helped, so thank you, Ethan.”

  “My pleasure. I better get going. As soon as I get the shots ready, I’ll send them to you like last week.”

  “I’m sorry things didn’t work out with you and Summer. You seem like one of the good ones.”

  My response was a smile but nothing else. Looks could be deceiving, and things weren’t always what they seemed. Either were people.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Summer

  Tressa had kept me waiting for nearly twenty minutes, and each one felt worse than the one before. My stomach seemed hell-bent on purging the orange juice and blueberry muffin I’d had on my walk to work this morning, and I worried that if she made me wait much longer that my nerves would get the best of me and I’d spew my breakfast all over her desk.

  Not exactly the best way to begin what I had to tell her.

  “Charlie, I know what we used to do, but my father and I are in agreement on this. We want the Richmont brand to be the gold standard, so let’s get the designer in here and see what they’ve got. Contact my assistant later today with the details and she’ll set up a meeting.”

  With that, Tressa hung up her office phone and sat back in her chair with a sigh. “It’s like you have to fight these guys tooth and nail. He acts like if he doesn’t get the word from on high on stone tablets with Tristan Stone’s name on them that my father isn’t on board. I mean, what do these people plan to do when my father walks away from Stone Worldwide and they have to deal with me? They better hope I have a short memory.”

  I gave her a supportive nod like I was supposed to as her assistant. “I don’t think you do, so I think they’re in trouble.”

  She gave me a wide smile and nodded in return. “You’re smart, Summer. You figure people out. I like that. You’re going to go far in this world.”

  And that was my invitation to tell her what I’d come to her office to discuss.

  “About that. I’m afraid I have to give you my notice. I can’t do this anymore.”

  Tressa pursed her lips and then nodded once again. “I’m assuming you don’t mean answer phone calls and set up my appointments, so what happened?”

  Looking down to avoid facing her, I said, “I really don’t want to talk about it. I thought about this all weekend, and I just can’t do it anymore. Ethan and I aren’t going to be together, but he is back taking pictures. That’s really all I was supposed to do, so it’s not like I’m quitting so much as my job has effectively ended.”

  “Well, you were the best assistant I’ve ever had, so you should be proud of that. You’ve done everything I asked of you, so now there’s just one more thing for you to do.”

  I lifted my head in surprise. “One more thing?”

  “Yes. You have to attend my mother’s party.”

  The mere thought of seeing Ethan so soon after what happened made my stomach begin to churn again. Shaking my head, I tried to keep my composure as panic raced through me. “I don’t think I can. Your brother will be there, and I just don’t think I can be in the same room with him yet. Please, I hope you understand.”

  “Not to worry,” she said in the most sympathetic tone I’d ever heard come from her. “He won’t be there. He’s already told my mother.”

  “But he’s back to what he loves to do. Why wouldn’t he go now?”

  Tressa shrugged. “I have no idea how these artist types work, but my mother claims she understands. She says it would be hard for her too if she’d gone through what he has. Personally, I find it irritating as all hell that he thinks his problems are more important than our mother’s achievement, but she and my father seem fine with it, so I’m the odd man out, I guess.”

  Since I wouldn’t be involved with the Stone family much more, I had to ask about her sister in all of this. “How does your sister feel about Ethan’s not going? Does she agree with you?”

  Closing her eyes, Tressa took a deep breath and sighed. When she opened them again, she said, “Oh, no. Ethan can do no wrong when it comes to my sister. In her mind, the sun rises and sets on him. Always has. No matter how many times he’s messed up, Diana’s right there standing beside him ready to defend him. She’s his biggest fan. Everyone in this world should have someone like my brother has with Diana. It must be nice to have someone think you can do no wrong, right?”

  I didn’t know if I heard sadness in her tone or anger, but clearly, Tressa was the odd man out among the Stone children.

  “Must be nice,” I mumbled in agreement. How nice would it be to always have a cheerleader in life no matter what?

  “So no worries about my brother being at the party. I want you to see the fruits of your labors too. You deserve a night out to enjoy all you’ve done.”

  I didn’t really have a choice, but as long as Ethan wouldn’t be there, I believed I’d be fine. His mother would be too busy with other guests to even notice me, and it was the least I could do to thank Tressa for giving me a job.

&nbs
p; “Okay. I’ll go.”

  “Please don’t worry about moving out of the hotel quickly either. Trust me. We have rooms just for that purpose, so take as long as you want.”

  Her offer made me feel strange, even though I knew she meant it to be nice. That room would forever remind me of Ethan, so the sooner I left there, the better. I needed to do everything I could to forget him.

  “Thanks. I better get back to work. I want to check a few last things to make sure your mother’s party goes off without a hitch.”

  Thankfully, she didn’t stop me as I moved to leave her office. I didn’t know why, but all of a sudden, my emotions were all over the place, and if she mentioned another word about Ethan, I may have burst into tears right there in front of her.

  First puking and now crying. I really needed to get myself together.

  * * *

  Every minute I spent at my desk made me terrified I might see him in the last few hours I had to work for Stone Worldwide. I didn’t know how I’d avoided running into Ethan in the past few days, and I’d even considered stopping at his office after hearing from Dawn that he spent Monday morning taking pictures of Trooper and the other animals, but I stopped myself from making yet another mistake with him. She told me he didn’t want me to know, so better to let him think I didn’t hear about it.

  Lost in thought, I didn’t see Tristan walk into the office until he was standing in front of my desk. I looked up and for a moment my heart skipped a beat he looked so much like his son. If it wasn’t for that touch of grey at his temples and a few wrinkles near the outside corners of his eyes, I would have mistaken him for Ethan.

  “Hi, Mr. Stone. I’m sorry. I didn’t see you there. I guess I was daydreaming. Sorry.”

  He smiled and held up his hand to stop me. “It’s okay. I hear you’re leaving us after today. Tressa has raved about your work, so if you ever need a letter of recommendation, I hope you’ll remember us.”

  “I will. Thank you. Everyone’s been great here. I just think it’s time for me to move on.”

  Whether he knew what had happened with Ethan and me or not, I sensed in his expression that he understood how I felt. For as imposing a figure Tristan Stone certainly could be, in that moment he was just that man who had sat across from me at his dinner table quietly listening as his wife and I talked about growing up in the suburbs of Philly.

  “I hope to see you at the party tonight. I know Nina would love to see you again.”

  “I’ll be there. I’m hoping it will be something she’ll love. Tressa has worked very hard to make it wonderful.”

  He arched a single dark eyebrow and gave me a look that said he saw right through my humility. “Everywhere I turn I run into people downplaying their good work. You and my son are very much alike in that way. I’m sure the party will be great, and when it is, I’ll know who to thank for that, Summer.”

  He walked away into Tressa’s office leaving me sitting there wondering exactly what he meant by his comment. Not that it mattered. However Ethan and I were alike, we differed too much to be together.

  I heard the crowd next door in the gallery and wished I could go over there to see the pieces in Nina’s show, but I first needed to make sure everything was perfect for the party. The decorator, florist, and caterer had all done their jobs, so after one final check, I’d be done with my job as Tressa Stone’s assistant.

  Silver trays of hors d’oeuvres and royal blue plates and napkins sat on pub height tables situated around the room, along with champagne and fluted glasses enough for all the invited guests. On each table sat a large postcard announcing Nina’s show in a gold frame that the designer had suggested would look great. I’d doubted her idea, but now that I saw it, I had to admit she’d been right. After a quick check of the music set up for the night, I was done.

  I stood at the back of the room and took one last look at my work. You did good. If only you could get paid for organizing parties, your life would be set. Well, at least your work life.

  Happy everything had turned out as I’d planned, I turned to walk toward the door that led to the art gallery and nearly ran into Nina Stone herself. Looking around at the room, she smiled.

  “You did a lovely job, Summer. Thank you.”

  “It was my pleasure, Nina. I know Tressa wanted your big night to be perfect.”

  She tucked a lock of hair behind her right ear and leaned in toward me. “Between you and me, it’s not that big a night. I’m thankful people like my sculptures, but they’re more a labor of love than anything else. I just do it to remember my mother. Now there was an artist.”

  Her husband’s words about downplaying things rang in my ears. “I’m sure you follow in your mother’s footsteps.”

  Nina looked around and shrugged. “Sometimes. I think Ethan is more like my mother than I am, though.”

  Just the mention of him made me nervous, and I looked around to see if he’d changed his mind and come to the show anyway. She saw me and shook her head.

  “He’s not here. My son’s having a hard time dealing with all he’s lost. I can understand that, even if my husband and his sister can’t.”

  I didn’t know what to say now that the conversation had made the full turn toward talking about him. I didn’t hate him. In fact, I was still crazy in love with him. But I needed to get over that so I could move on with my life.

  “Congratulations on your show, Nina. I think I’m going to find Tressa and let her know I have to go.”

  “You know, I came over here because I wanted to talk to you away from everyone else. Do you have a minute to listen to what I have to say?”

  Unsure where she could be going with this, I nodded and quietly said, “Okay.”

  Like her husband, Nina had a way about her that could be intimidating. Maybe it was because she had seemed so relaxed and casual that night at dinner that her serious tone now unnerved me.

  “I’m not going to make excuses for Ethan. He’s a grown man who can handle himself. To be honest, I thought when you and he came to dinner that time that you were too good to be true. A young woman from a small town outside of Philly with long brown hair? I wondered if he had simply asked you to play the part of his girlfriend so we’d all stop bothering him about settling down. That would be a thing Ethan would do.”

  She stopped for a moment, so I took the chance to make a full confession of my guilt. “He had,” I said, hanging my head.

  I looked up at her and continued, “But for what it’s worth, I told him after that night that I didn’t want to do that anymore. You and your family were too nice to me, and I felt guilty. So even though that night we weren’t technically really dating, we did begin dating after that. I’m sorry about that, Nina. I don’t know if it makes a difference, but even though he didn’t feel anything for me that night, I did feel something for him, even that far back.”

  She nodded, but I didn’t get the sense my confession angered her. Smiling, she poured us both glasses of champagne and took a sip.

  “My son has always had a way of getting people to do what he wants. I’ve worried about him because of that ever since he was a small child.”

  “Why did you worry? Isn’t that what powerful people have that makes them successful? The ability to persuade people to do their bidding?”

  I cringed at my poor word choice, but Nina didn’t seem bothered by it.

  “Things came very easily to him. Everything came easy. Too easy. He was athletic, so he succeeded in sports. He was handsome, so girls lined up to get his attention. He came from money, so he wanted for nothing.”

  She stopped and lowered her head as if she felt embarrassed. “That last one is partly my fault. As the only boy with two sisters, I may have spoiled him a little.”

  As I listened to her talk about him, I had to admit I’d never thought of him as spoiled. Ridiculously blessed, yes, but not spoiled, strangely enough.

  “When he was almost twenty, he and his sisters came into the first part of the trust
their father and I set up for them. Tressa naturally invested it or did something with the stock market.”

  With a chuckle, I said, “Naturally. Can’t take over the world on a shoestring budget.”

  Nina winked and chuckled too. “You know my daughter well. Diana put most of it in the bank but went on a trip to Europe with her friends too. And Ethan? Well, he bought himself a car. The fastest car he could find for the money. I hated that car from the moment he raced up the driveway with it. I worried he’d get killed in that red sports car, but he loved it.”

  “Does he still have it?” I asked, sure I’d never seen him in a sports car or even heard him mention one.

  She frowned and shook her head. “No. On the night Diana got back from her trip, Ethan was waiting for her to take her for a ride. She’s always been much closer to him than Tressa, who hated the car just like I did but for different reasons.”

  I knew exactly why Tressa would have hated a flashy red sports car. It screamed cocky male, something she hated.

  “Tressa was always the planner. She was acting like an adult when she was ten years old. Diana was the smart one. She did better in school than either Ethan or her sister. Ethan was the wild child. I think it was because everything came so easily to him and he never thought he’d have to worry about anything. He was so proud of that car and couldn’t wait to show Diana, and her eyes lit up when she sat down in the passenger seat. After promising me to be careful, like every other time he got into the car, they drove away so he could show off his new car to the one person whose opinion mattered.”

  Nina stopped talking and took a deep breath before sighing. “They didn’t get very far before something happened. To this day, we don’t know what. He might have taken the turn too fast. An animal may have run out into the road. We don’t know. Not that it matters much now. The car became airborne and went careening into a yard about a mile away from our house. Ethan walked away from the accident with just a broken arm, but Diana wasn’t as lucky. She was thrown from the car. The police told Tristan and me when they arrived on the scene they found Ethan lying on the ground holding Diana in his arms. She was unconscious and had terrible lacerations on her face and all over her body.”