Sarah hugged her. "I love you, and I hate it when we fight." She kissed Melody"s lips. "Can you forgive me?"
"There is uh, nothing to forgive." Melody wobbled.
"Melody, are you sure you"re okay?"
"Fine, Sarah." She glanced upstairs. "I don"t know why I"m so on edge these days. Maybe it"s getting close to my period."
Sarah walled her eyes. "Tell me about it. Thank goodness, I"m done for the month. I don"t envy you, sis." Sarah chuckled. "I know the kitchen"s kind of bare so why don"t we go out to breakfast? Let me make it up to you about the fight last night."
Melody noticed Keith"s shadow in the upstairs hallway. She made sure not to speak until he walked on. "I"d love to Sarah but I got other plans." She heard Keith brushing his teeth in the bathroom. "I planned to go talk to Aileen today. I"ve missed her lately, and I"ve been kind of worried. With that rapist around, I get scared when I haven"t heard from her in a few days, you know?"
Sarah tilted her head to the side. She glared at Melody. "Are you sure that you"re okay?"
"Of course." She chuckled. "Why wouldn"t I be okay? Oh good news, sis. Uh, I"m going to go after the job at Caper, after all."
"Oh Mel, that"s great! I know things"ll fall into place for you now. It"s not healthy the way you hang around the house letting life pa.s.s you by. At least with a job you"ll feel like you got a purpose." Sarah checked her watch. "Well, I"d better get out of here. I"m just waiting for Keith to finish up. Can you believe it? I"m only twenty-six and already looking forward to retirement? Hey, I got a great idea."
"What?" Melody smiled.
"Why don"t you let Keith drop you off at Caper? Then you could get to know him better."
Melody no longer cared about getting to know Keith better. She"d stay away from him like her life depended on it. "Sarah, I have a jeep, remember?"
"Yeah, but you"re always harping about how much gas that thing guzzles, and we need to be extra tight around here for a while."
"It"s fine Sarah, really. Me riding with Keith is not a good idea. I hope you have a good day at work."
Sarah straightened her collar. "Oh, I have a feeling I will. I"m gonna see if Keith"s almost ready." She went back upstairs.
She always boasted about the prestige of being Mr. Pepskin"s head a.s.sistant. Melody found Mr. Pepskin to be a big jerk. He never showed Sarah an inch of respect, yet she"d obviously swallow cut gla.s.s for him. How could Melody judge? At least Sarah had a job. Melody would drown if she didn"t find something soon. She felt terrible having Sarah foot the bills for so long.
Caper Enterprises had easily become one of Albany"s most successful advertising firms. The huge skysc.r.a.per stood in the middle of the downtown area. It couldn"t be missed. Melody had always been amazed at how hectic this area could be in the mornings. Crowds of people waited at the bus stops. People ran across the intersections with cups of coffee.
Women fought the wind under overpa.s.ses to keep their skirts from flying over their heads. Groups of men in suits chatted by traffic signs. Streams of cars flowed in millions of directions. Little kids rushed to catch the city bus for school. The continuous horn honking resembled an orchestra. People scrambled to diners and doughnut shops while heading to work.
Melody felt alive just seeing everyday people carry on their normal daily routines. It beat sitting in front of the television all day. It beat lying on the couch, wondering why the last job she contacted didn"t called. She didn"t feel self-conscious today. Usually she did. No, she felt confident. Something told her that this would be the beginning of a new life for her. Sarah had been right. She needed to start living before it became too late.
She arrived at the twenty-three-story building twenty minutes later. She would have arrived sooner if it hadn"t been for downtown traffic. She gazed at the gigantic building. A wave of dizziness. .h.i.t her the moment she stepped from her jeep. Something about big buildings had always frightened her. Crowds of people scattered up the walkways.
They scurried into the building as if they belonged there. Melody felt like some caged animal. She hoped her confidence wouldn"t abandon her. You couldn"t impress people if you weren"t sure of yourself.
Four other businesses shared the skysc.r.a.per. The law firm for Caper Enterprises sat on one floor. A small cancer center took up a group of floors. A gynecologist held his practice in the building. Even a local television station shared the s.p.a.ce. Melody entered the illuminated building. She wondered how others handled such numbing, long aisles. Or maybe they only felt like that if you didn"t know where you were going.
A large sign with directions stood at the first corner. She hoped for a shortcut to Caper"s floor. She held her breath on the elevator. She"d always been afraid of the elevator dropping to an unknown destination. Instead, the elevator stopped on the desired floor. A young man waited until she got off before he got on. He smiled, and she wondered if many of the people here were friendly.
Men in white dress shirts and dark slacks smiled while she pa.s.sed. She turned to see a few of them checking her out from behind. She enjoyed the attention. Sarah had always insisted Melody to use her feminine wiles. She didn"t think she had any, until now.
She made it into the cozy waiting room a minute later. She wasn"t surprised to see it full of men. You couldn"t expect many women in the corporate world. Melody spoke to the secretary. She instructed Melody to take a seat for a moment. Melody scanned the waiting room"s occupants. All the men seemed under thirty-five. They were all white.
They all looked like they"d been born with silver spoons in their mouths. Melody crossed her legs. She imagined they had run up their trust funds, or totaled one of their many cars. They sure as h.e.l.l didn"t look like they needed to work. White-bread city. Melody swore their socks cost more than her entire outfit. They all wore Rolexes. They all wore the hottest suits for today"s male fashion.
Melody couldn"t imagine ever fitting in here. Yet, Sarah and Lucas seemed convinced that she did. She wondered if Lucas"s dad would remember her.
The secretary pulled off her bifocals. "Miss Cruz, Mr. Lawson will see you now."
Melody checked her face one last time. She took a deep breath. She entered Dave Lawson"s office. The door automatically closed behind her. Dave chatted on the phone. He smiled. Now she remembered him. Dave had always been kind back then. He had all the money he could need, yet you wouldn"t know it from his att.i.tude. He"d always been a generous and fair man.
Lucas had received the best of both worlds. He"d gotten Dave"s looks as well as his business sense. What more could a young man in today"s world need?
Dave waved. "Be with you in just a moment, Miss Cruz. Feel free to look around the office." Melody nodded. She didn"t get these corporate types. Since Dave was Lucas"s father she wouldn"t be too hard on him.
She walked around the posh office. Dave sat behind a cluttered desk equipped with a fancy computer and deluxe phone system. Behind his desk stood a giant window where he could probably see the entire city. Melody figured he stared out that window a hundred times a day. She knew she would. If she would be lucky to get her own office, she would definitely spring for one with a window.
Two big, silver file cabinets sat in the corner beside boxes of files and loose papers. Plants hung from every corner of the room. That explained the organic fragrance Melody noticed when she walked in. Dave rattled off about some rival company. He smiled at Melody, then turned the other way. He needn"t be worried. The last thing she cared about was his business deals.
She"d come to start anew. She hoped this job would help her accomplish her goal. She paced around the shelf of tumbling books. Wrinkled papers fell from the books" creases. Obviously being rich didn"t mean you were neat. Dave"s office had been the sloppiest workplace she"d seen.
A vibrant family portrait of Dave, Lucas and Lucas"s mother sat on the tiny endtable beside the door. She"d never seen such a perfect-looking family.
Melody hadn"t necessarily hated being raised by Aunt Lucia. Still, she"d missed having parents more than anything. It had been hard to grow up the product of people you didn"t remember. She questioned everything about herself, wondering if she resembled at least one of her parents in any way. She imagined that Sarah embodied all that they represented. Melody often wondered how two sisters could be so different.
She did a double-take when she saw Lucas"s mother. She"d forgotten that the lady had been some Italian model back in the day. She wasn"t famous but Melody remembered Lucas mentioning every aspect of his mother"s exciting modeling career. She glanced at Dave. He waved his hands furiously. He shouted between rapid breaths. She wondered how the Lawsons first got together.
What exactly had Dave done to pull such a fascinating creature like Lucas"s mother? Or had he been the fascinating one?
He hung up. Melody wondered if he remembered that she"d been in the room.
"Sorry about that, Miss Cruz." He smiled. "You know it"s hard to be the boss." Melody smiled. "You want respect but you don"t want to seem like some tyrant. Sometimes, it"s hard to get people to do things while trying to be so understanding."
She put the picture down. "I can imagine the hard work you do, Mr. Lawson. You should be very proud for what you"ve accomplished. It must feel great to know that you became such a success all on your own."
He blushed as he touched his scattered goatee. "Well, aren"t you the charming one? I do remember you well, you know? Lucas never really stopped talking about his old friends. When he spoke about you, though, he always acted as though something was missing." Melody looked at him. "Like, a part of himself, you know? Since last night he"s been dancing on air."
Melody grinned. "Dancing on air, huh?"
"Yep. Whatever happened between you two last night made him very happy. Anyone who makes my son happy is all right with me. Especially when she"s so attractive and witty."
She squinted. "Do you really remember me or are you just being polite?"
"Oh no, I remember you, Melody. I never forget anyone. Please sit down."
She sat in one of the cushioned chairs in front of his desk.
"Your office is amazing, Mr. Lawson. Well, the entire building is. I hope I can find my way through here each day." She caught herself. "I mean, uh, if I get the job."
"Would you like some coffee, Melody?" She declined. "Yeah, this is a big building, isn"t it? But don"t let it intimidate you, Melody. If you do get the job, I"m sure you"ll get used to things quickly. Anyway, you can always ask someone for help and that includes me." He straightened his red tie.
"I appreciate that, Mr. Lawson."
"I helped make the plans for this building, you know? I have a degree in architecture." He smiled.
"So I guess you have a hand in everything that goes on around here. I can see why you probably get overwhelmed with your job."
He clasped his hands. "No need to be nervous, Melody. Just act like we"re old friends." She smiled. "I looked at your resume this morning." She nodded. "It"s very impressive, and you made sure to detail how well you are with computers and bookkeeping. You have any experience in accounting?"
"Yes, I took a few courses in accounting at community college right after I got my GED."
"Mind if I ask why you dropped out of school?"
"Uh..." She shifted in the seat. "Well, my aunt started having mental problems. She just snapped. I don"t know why or how but she just went downhill all of a sudden. I think she had some kind of breakdown or something. Her doctor couldn"t explain it either and after she"d been put on medication, she got even worse." Mr. Lawson nodded. Melody continued.
"She couldn"t take care of things on her own. She"d gotten so bad that she couldn"t afford to take care of the house or the bills. I took a little job long enough to get money for things. It wasn"t a lot but it helped. Anyway, I was so embarra.s.sed about how things had gotten that I began to blame myself."
"Why would you blame yourself for something you had no control over, Melody?"
She shrugged. "I guess I always blame myself for everything. I"ve always taken things on my shoulders even when I couldn"t handle things on my own. Anyway, I"d been having problems in school. Craig, Aileen and Lucas were the only friends I had." She chuckled. "I wasn"t popular and I just felt so alone. Most of the other kids couldn"t stand me for some reason. I can"t tell you why. I guess because I am a bit of a loner and didn"t partic.i.p.ate in the so-called cool social activities they were all in." She walled her eyes. "Add the embarra.s.sment of my private life and then my teachers began to find out things so I just left." She shrugged. "Mr. Lawson, I"m capable of doing a good job, no matter what it is. I"m trained in working with computers, and I have certificates and..."
"Melody, I wasn"t putting you on trial, dear." He laughed. "I just wanted to know a little more about you. Believe me, it has no bearing on my decision as long as you"re qualified for what I want you to do." He scanned her resume. He asked the basic questions. She did her best to give the most impressive answers. "So..." He leaned back in his chair after the grilling.
"So..." Melody chuckled.
"Are there any concerns you have about working here, Melody? Anything I should take into account before making my decision?"
"Well, are there any women working here?" She pointed to the door. "I mean besides the secretary?"
He chuckled. "Look, I"m not one of those bigoted or s.e.xist corporate types. I was raised to believe that women can do anything men can. And sometimes even better." Melody grinned. "Honestly, the women we"ve encountered couldn"t rise to the needed expectations, and that is the truth. Some just didn"t seem to be in it for the long haul. I guess they found something better along the way. Most of the women that do work here do not work on this floor so..." He shrugged.
"Well, I appreciate the honest answer. If I do work here, I wanted to make sure this will be a decent environment for a woman."
"Melody, we have a very strict code of conduct here. We"re very strict against things like s.e.xual hara.s.sment and of course, other things that could erupt between co-workers. We discourage employees from dating, but it"s not a policy etched in stone. We allow it, if the employee"s work is not compromised by their outside relationship. Other than that, there"s no need to worry. Anything else?"
"Mr. Lawson, I want you to know that I didn"t go to Lucas for this job. I"m not using him in any way. He offered the chance to me. I work hard, and I don"t expect handouts. I"ve gotten the shorter end of the stick all my life. Believe me, I know how to prove myself. I really like Lucas. I would never use him."
He grinned. "Lucas isn"t even the type to let himself be used. Melody, I know my son does nothing unless he wants to. No one thinks you"re taking anyone for granted. I know, he set this up himself. There"s no harm done." He leaned back again. "From what I"ve seen, I think you will fit in well here. Better than some of those spoiled young bucks out there in the waiting room."
"What about all those fancy degrees and majors they have?" She grinned.
"What makes you think they have those things?" He leaned up. "Just because someone has money doesn"t mean they have a decent education, Melody. Some of them may have the smarts, but most of them just dress up and play the part. There are a lot of people working here who have no business being here. It"s how they handle themselves and push themselves that makes the difference. And you need that no matter who you are or how much money you have."
She grinned. "You remind me so much of Lucas."
He smiled. "I"m very impressed by you, Melody. We do have some young men who stand above the rest. Michael Grant and Keith Taylor are excellent employees here. They"ve built a model of leadership for others here to learn by. Michael has a BA. Keith has an MBA. Highly qualified young men. Of course, you already know Keith."
"Yes, but I had no idea he was so qualified."
"Keith is a genius when it comes to this business. It"s all about how he thinks, you know? He has that spark that will surely send him far. You know if Keith plays his cards right, he could be sitting right here in this office as CEO one day. I"ve never felt that way about anyone else. He has what it takes to go straight to the top."
She faked a smile. "So you think very highly of Keith?"
He nodded. "He"s definitely someone I have high hopes for. He"s an amazing young man. But you"ve met him. I"m sure you think so, too. I mean, everyone who"s met him does. Sure you don"t want any coffee?"
"No thank you, sir. So I guess Keith"s a big man around here, huh? Probably nothing he couldn"t do to get on your bad side."
Dave guffawed. "Well, so far it"s been a pleasure having him on the team. I"m sure he wouldn"t mind showing you the ropes."
She walled her eyes. "Well, I"m glad you have someone you truly value. I can imagine how hard it is to find good workers fresh out of college. So, what exactly will my position be at Caper?"
"Good question." He looked at her resume. "Well, I think you have the qualifications to start off as office a.s.sistant. You"ll have your own office. Uh, basically you"ll do the odds and ends that need to be done for the executives and higher employees. You"ll be in charge of files and making sure they get where they need to be on time. You"ll proofread memos, transport doc.u.ments to computer databases, record keeping and maybe even some minor accounting."
"Wow." She grinned. "Uh, I had no idea I"d start off doing such an important job. I figured I"d be answering the phone or making coffee."
"Melody, don"t sell yourself short. You have the qualifications, and with more experience, you could have the makings of an executive."
"Me, an executive?" She guffawed. "I can"t believe this! All this time I"ve been searching for any old job, setting my standards high and low and now a great job falls into my lap like this."
"I am glad you"re excited. Be warned, though, the pay starts at a little over minimum wage."
She smiled. "Mr. Lawson anything would be better than not having a job at all."
He nodded, chuckling.
Chapter Four.
Melody arrived home an hour later. She got the groceries from the backseat of her jeep. She wondered if this day had been too good to be true. Keith"s fancy car sat on the street. She took a deep breath. He wasn"t in the car, which meant he"d taken it upon himself to go inside. She did her best not to cause a scene by shouting in the front yard. She"d never been so enraged.
She didn"t know how much more of these little surprises she could take. She literally shook at the front door. Her hands trembled until it became impossible to get her key. She tried to shake this morning"s episode out of her mind. Keith a.s.saulted her. At least she"d taken it that way. He"d acted so maliciously. She hadn"t confronted him because Sarah had still been around.
Now they were alone again. Melody had every right to throw him out of the house. She unlocked the door as she cradled the groceries under one arm. Why did Keith frighten her? What if he touched her again? What if she confronted him and he turned out to be a bigger jerk than she realized?
She stepped inside. Keith wasn"t anywhere to be seen. The radio lightly played from the kitchen. Melody recognized the song immediately. She and Lucas had danced to it at Jayson"s last night. She set the groceries on the table in the den. What the h.e.l.l was going on here?
"Keith?" She touched her lips. She hadn"t expected her voice to tremble. Keith scared her to death. Unlike Sarah, Melody found it smart to listen to women"s intuition. Besides, it hadn"t steered her wrong before. She wouldn"t entertain Sarah"s "benefit of the doubt" att.i.tude any longer. Keith had a serious problem. And it went way beyond the subject of control.
She went toward the kitchen. Keith walked out with a dishrag. She"d had nightmares about that famous smirk.
"h.e.l.lo, Melody." His eyes scanned her entire body.
"Keith," she exhaled. "What...what the h.e.l.l are you doing here?"
He shrugged. "Just look, relax and don"t run off screaming." He grinned. "Sarah hadn"t realized I had the day off. She said I could come by when I wanted so I wanted to make dinner for her. You know, as a surprise."