Chapter 8
Brenden
Darin was quiet in the elevator and by the third floor I knew something had to be wrong. My friend never stopped chatting. He usually told me the most intimate and borderline disgusting things while we were in crowded elevators.
We rode up another two floors alone in the elevator.
"Did I really ruin your plans for this evening?" I asked.
I heard Darin shrug as his leather jacket slid up and down. "I dunno. We'll find out."
"Are you going to tell me about this mystery girl yet or what?" I demanded. I hovered my finger near the elevator buttons.
"Don't hit any more floors." He brushed my hand back. "I'm not saying anything about the girl because she's a mess and I'm a mess and the whole thing is just--"
"A mess?" I asked.
I wondered if it was anything like lusting after a girl I couldn't see. How could I be attracted by scent alone? No, it was more than that: her voice, her soft jokes covering a determined personality, and her complete disinterest in my money.
"It was just supposed to be this stupid thing,” Darin said. “A little hot affair. But now it's totally out of hand." He sounded miserable.
"Are you falling for her?" I asked.
"Finally. Penthouse. Let's go buy some useless crap." He slipped out of the elevator in front of me.
I took about six steps into the party and felt in my pocket for my cane. With Darin all wrapped up in his girl problems, I was on my own to navigate the crowded party.
Then I heard a subtle cough. "Sir. I believe this way is clear all the way to the bar."
"What'd you do, Jasper? Fly up here?" I followed his voice through the crush of people.
"I parked the car and took the service elevator while you were talking with that, ah, woman on the street?" Jasper ended on a curious note.
I chuckled. "Yes. A woman. Turns out some women relax in jeans and sweatshirts. Probably not her best look, but I don't mind."
"Did I recognize her from the coffee shop?" Jasper asked.
I moved to the right, continuing after his voice. "Yeah. Crazy to see her on the street, right?"
"I think it was a little more than that," Jasper said.
He cleared his throat to indicate I should raise my hands. I did and felt the smooth, polished wood of the bar. The hostess and fundraising organizer met me there. With her chattering away on my arm and constantly fretting over details, I didn't have a chance to answer Jasper. I knew he was never more than four feet away from me, but standing back like a professional bodyguard.
"Are you ready then? Want another glass of wine?" the hostess asked.
"No, thanks. Now's as good a time as any." I let her lead me to the podium and introduce me to the crowded room.
I talked about how fundraising starts with connections, weaving a bridge between those in need and those who can give. I had memorized plenty of places to pause so the crowd could congratulate themselves, and it was just after one of those rounds of applause that I heard her.
Hushed comments trickled through the crowd. I wrapped up my speech despite someone berating a bartender in the far corner of the penthouse ballroom.
I didn't need eyes to know it was Rachel.
"Get her another drink." Darin's clipped voice traveled to me through the final smattering of applause. "Then we'll get some air."
Rachel's slurred, snarky voice faded as I thanked the hostess and left the podium. Jasper's subtle grunt led me away from the next speaker being introduced and into a more private alcove.
"Where are they?" I asked.
Jasper paused a beat and then said, "I reminded Darin of the courtyard and fountain. Just outside the front doors and open to the public, but not easy to see from the street."
"You think she's here to cause a scene?" I asked.
Jasper's tight laugh was his answer. He hurried me to the service elevator and away from the crowd. The whole fundraiser was infested with reporters, social media stars, and peers that loved nothing more than scandal.
I knew which way to turn out of the service elevator because I could smell the fresh air. Darin had probably left the back door open as he struggled with Rachel. She got really pushy when drunk.
"Are you sure they're out there? I would have thought I'd hear Rachel by now," I told Jasper.
He slipped ahead of me and checked out the door. "Right this way, sir."
"I don't care if he is coming. I'm going to tell him," Rachel cried.
"No, Rach, please." Darin pleaded with her.
"I'm going to tell him that it's all his fault. This whole night's ruined. Just because Lyssa wouldn't shut up about her great engagement ring and then no one would shut up about if I even have a boyfriend." Rachel’s footsteps made skidding sounds around the courtyard as she ranted.
I listened to her voice drifting back and forth. The venom never changed target, though; it was all about how awful and self-centered I had become.
Become. There it was again. Her tolerance of my failing eyesight had faded over the years and now it had worn thin.
"I'm sorry I wasn't there." I meant it but my voice felt flat. "How about we all do brunch on my yacht tomorrow?"
"Oh, Brenden. I didn't see you there," Rachel said. "And what's the fun of the yacht? You wouldn't know if we'd left the dock."
"I would," I told her. "Just like I know you took Ivy's car tonight and have been drinking rum."
She gave a few uneven, sarcastic claps. "Great party trick. Too bad you never go to parties."
"You found the bar upstairs. Isn't that all you need to make a party?" I shooed Darin away from Rachel and hoped I could talk her down before getting her in the car. The last time Jasper had driven her home like this, she poked holes in the roof of the limousine with her stiletto heels.
"You wouldn't know. All you do is work. Like a robot." Rachel hiccupped. "Too bad you aren't a robot, because then maybe someone could fix your eyes."
"Enough," I said.
"Then I wouldn't be stuck with some no-fun, broken, boring guy," she said.
I pulled her close, my words for her only. "That's enough. More than enough. I'm done. We're done."
"Yeah right, robot. Tomorrow'll be the same as always. Get up, buy me a present, and head off to work. Reboot." Rachel tried to push away but I refused to let go.
"It's not a joke. Take her to her apartment, Jasper.” Turning back to Rachel, I said, “I'll have the rest of your things sent over in the morning."
"Wait, what?" Her pushy hands started to grasp at my collar.
I set her away from me and straightened my suit coat.
"I'll do it. I'll take her home," Darin said.
"But the closet. The pool. My favorite Picasso." Rachel began to whimper.
"None of those things were yours. Goodbye, Rachel." I turned in the direction I had last heard Darin's voice. "Are you sure you want to do this? I've already ruined your evening enough, don't you think?"
"It's fine. Her place is on the way. I've got a date," Darin said.
I heard him coax Rachel to come with him. She was fuming; I could feel it. But there was also a numb kind of echo between us. She'd been hoping for this, pushing for this, and now was the first time she wondered if she'd made a mistake.
I knew I hadn't. My chest felt lighter and my senses stronger. The fresh air had cleared my head after the drinks and small talk of the fundraiser. I had never once felt guilty for attending. Rachel was so different from me, from what I wanted, that she thought everything I did was wrong. Now I could follow my gut without someone constantly second-guessing me.
"Sir? The front door is this way," Jasper said.
"I know," I snapped. "I'm taking a walk."
His brisk footsteps followed me to the sidewalk. "You did the right thing, sir."
"Stop with the 'sirs', Jasper. You know I hate it." I paced away and then back to him. "All right. Out with it. I know you've been biting your tongue over Rachel forever. Just tell me."
Jasper straightened up so I could hear him clearly. "You should have freed yourself from her a long time ago."
I stopped and sighed. "I know. The doctors told me I could trust my gut but I just wasn't sure. I'm sure now."
"Rachel's beauty is shallow and she knows it’s evaporating. You didn't need to see her to know what that's been doing to her." Jasper said.
I grabbed his arm. "She is a decent woman who helped me through a very hard time. Nothing more should be said about her. Hear me?"
"I'm not deaf, sir," Jasper said.
I scowled at him. First Rachel, then that sensation like a scab suddenly ripped off. I knew I'd heal but it still hurt like hell. And then Jasper basically pointing out how I'd ignored the obvious for so long. Not something a blind person wants to hear after the fact.
I turned around and headed back toward the courtyard. Jasper caught up and directed me with short commands.
"Two steps left, through the gate." He followed. "I thought you were walking."
"I am. Wasn't there a bench?"
"Take four steps then turn left," Jasper said.
"Thanks, but that’s enough,” I said wearily. “I'll just use my cane."
For a man that lived alone, I was not often by myself. I tapped briskly into the public courtyard and hoped my gut had been right. Lilac.
"Oh, hi!" Faith spun around, more surprised than me.
Hope had turned to instinct the moment I smelled her soap. I had known Faith would walk back through my evening, and it was nice she did so outside of my dreams instead of merely within them.