Chapter Twenty

Harper

A chime announced the arrival of a new message. I glanced over at the email icon on my laptop screen. Any distraction from the mountain of code fixes I sifted through was blissfully welcome. Even an annoying supplier ad would present more riveting reading.

The subject line Statement of Transaction flashed in the notification pop-up. Not exactly a nomination for the Nobel prize, but still important. Julie would print out any necessary attachments for filing purposes, tax reporting, or balance sheets, but I made a habit of reviewing any kind of business receipt before forwarding to my trusty assistant.

I opened the message and noted the payment amount on the screen. Not that it made a dent in my portfolio, more like a tiny blip on the radar of a billionaire, but the exorbitant costs of today’s drug treatments and hospital stays always made me shake my head. To me, it only underscored the validity and necessity of MediGo’s existence. It was my inspiration and my mission.

It pained me to see honest, hard working folks, beleaguered by mortgages, taxes, and just making ends meet have to shoulder the staggering demands of medical care when a loved one faced illness. Just having a roadmap of the complicated processes involved was a godsend. I knew that from personal experience. Access to funding, research, contacts, and a supportive community was an added layer of benefits I was proud to provide through MediGo. I gave myself a virtual pat on the back. The years of development and personal investment in creating my platform had been so worth it.

I only hoped my personal involvement in this particular case would remain anonymous like I’d been promised by the Mayo’s financial people. Very little point in having nearly unlimited dollars to drop on health care when you were as hale and hearty as the proverbial horse. Using some of my vast resources to help an old friend and give a beautiful little girl a fighting chance against an often unbeatable enemy just felt right. In my gut. In my soul. Even though I was interfering, I hoped I hadn’t crossed the fine line between philanthropy and selfish indulgence.

Well, too late now, Harper. You’re in too deep with the man and his kid.

As I clicked ‘forward’ on the message, Julie’s extension flashed on my desk phone screen. Ordinarily, she’d just walk into my office to speak to me, so a phone call seemed strange. My heart started to pound as my palms glistened moisture. Had Reed decided to storm my office raging about my donation to Jessica’s get-well fund?

“Yes?” I answered after pushing the button for the speaker.

“Someone to see you, Ms. Payne. Are you available? The appointment is not on your calendar.”

Ms. Payne? Definitely not Reed, so I had a minor reprieve on that score. But still, my unknown visitor must be serious. “I have a few minutes. Who is it?”

“He says it’s a surprise. Certainly surprised me,” Julie quipped, piquing my curiosity to a fever pitch. I smoothed my pencil skirt and fluffed my hair. Even though I wanted to, I avoided taking a quick peek in my compact to check my make-up. Jesus, ever since Reed, I’d become a blithering nincompoop. I’d never cared what I looked like before outside of being healthy and feeling my best. My big brain, business success, and philanthropic efforts were far more important. Looks faded, but making the world a better place and having fun doing it lasted forever.

A legacy. That’s what I wanted to leave behind.

An anonymous someone still loomed outside my office door, and I’d had enough surprises lately to last me into the next decade. Only a morbid curiosity to unmask the person who could get the unflappable Julie’s panties in a wad propelled me forward. Her voice sounded almost amused. My pulse throbbed in my neck at an accelerated rhythm, but I tamped it down. Maybe it was a good surprise.

“Send him in, please.”

I straightened my desk and my chair and waited as the door swung open with a resounding crack.

“Hey, Harper. Got a minute for an old friend?” the deep and softly accented voice said.

I knew that voice. I rose from my chair, willing my jaw to remain above desk level as my mouth opened in genuine shock.

“Milo?” I gasped, the question completely unnecessary. There could be no confusion as to this man’s identity on sight.

Milogost Adamski stepped inside my carpeted enclave looking almost exactly as I remembered him. Huge. Larger than life really and still sporting a curly head of hair and a disarming, warm smile that disguised the serious, steel-trap intellect behind it.

“Still the same, including the name,” he rhymed. “Good to see you, Harper.”

My expression went from shocked to smiling so wide my cheeks hurt. “Likewise,” I said, my brain in a flashback fog. “I… I can’t believe it. After all these years…”

“I know, I know. I’m a blast from the past, aren’t I. Hopefully not an unwelcome one? I don’t think I could take it if you told me to get the fuck out of your fancy digs here.” He punctuated his last comment by clutching his huge hands to his rock solid chest as if I’d stabbed him there with a dull knife.

“Not at all,” I said, moving out from behind my desk to greet him. “Come in, sit down. Can I have Julie get you something? Coffee? Tea? Red Bull? Something stronger?”

“I think I’ll just take a hug if that’s on the menu,” he said with a chuckle, spreading his arms wide.

“I think I can manage that,” I said, stepping into a casual embrace. Yup, still built like a brick shithouse. While he hadn’t changed much, I certainly had. Milo hadn’t seen me since high school. If my appearance surprised him, he didn’t show it. As pleased as I was to see him, I couldn’t help wondering if his visit was a thinly veiled set up. Milo and Reed were like thunder and lightning. You rarely experienced one without the other. I released my hold and stepped back. “What a wonderful surprise. What brings you here after all this time?”

“I’m sorry it took so long for me to stop by. I know I’m a little late, but I really wanted to congratulate you on your success. Not often a hometown friend makes it big. And not because they were blessed with some marginal athletic talent, but because they’re smart and determined. And because they want to make a difference in the world. Well done,” Milo said, gesturing around my office. I could tell by the sincere look on his face that he really meant it.

“Look who’s talking,” I replied. “Only one of the top defensemen in the NHL.”

He waved off the compliment as he took a seat in one of my padded visitor chairs. Thank goodness I’d insisted on the oversized split-grain leather armchairs when I’d ordered the furnishings for my office. They just barely hugged Milo’s giant frame.

“Not recently,” he said. “But you seem to have reached the top of your game. Look at you.” A pause, followed by a low whistle. “I’d be unforgivably remiss if I didn’t tell you how stunning you look. You’re still Harper. Only now, it’s like Harper on… steroids.”

Coming from Milo, it didn’t sound at all sexist or patronizing. I think I actually blushed. “Thank you. I think. And thank you for not looking shocked. I know it’s quite a change from our school days.”

“You could say that,” he agreed with a nod.

I settled in the other visitor chair beside him because it seemed too weird to face such a dominating physical presence as Milo’s from behind a desk. Besides, we were old friends, and it just felt right to be in a more intimate position. Milo had always been really kind-hearted, even as a little boy and a young man. It probably came from his dirt-poor upbringing and his Polish immigrant parents. He boasted a rags-to-riches story much like my own. We had that in common. His background had kept him humble, and he’d never subscribed to the Reed Matheson playbook of taking what you want, using, manipulating, and then casting the dregs aside without a backward glance. Too bad I’d never been physically attracted to Milo, nor he to me. My love life might have turned out differently.

“I have to admit I haven’t kept in touch with many people from school,” I said. “It wasn’t a real happy time for me. So… are you married? Have kids? Other than playing for the Caribou, I don’t know that much about you, what you did after graduation.”

Milo shook his head. “No to both questions. My girlfriend, Tania, and I have been together for a long time though. And there’s not much else to tell. I’ve pretty much had to eat, sleep, and breathe hockey ever since. Made some good investments, bought a house, played golf in the off-season.” He shrugged as if his future Hall of Fame status meant nothing. Ever the humble guy. He hadn’t changed at all; hadn’t let the fame and money go to his head. “I’m comfortable. No regrets.”

“That’s good,” I said.

If he needs any regrets, I’ve got enough to go around. It was a thing people said but did they ever really mean it? I looked into my friend’s eyes as if to draw the truth out from them. Why are you really here, Milo? If you think that I’m going to give Reed a pass because I have a soft spot for you, that’s not going to happen. He fucked up. He has to learn that his actions have consequences. And not just for him.

“What about you?” he asked, seeming to sense my unspoken question and cannily dodging it. Whether or not Milo and I still had an affinity for each other really didn’t matter when the rubber met the road. He had almost thirty years of friendship with Reed. The loyalty I admired in Milo? It fell on Reed’s side of the fence, and I wouldn’t kid myself that it could or should be any other way.

“Well, I’m not married, either. Except to MediGo. You know what they say about owning a business. It really owns you instead. Come to think of it, MediGo is kind of like my brain child,” I said with a laugh, deflecting the pain I felt in my soul. I always thought I’d be married and a mother by now. Knowing the joy of having a child was still tops on my list of priorities, and I wasn’t getting any younger. “Feeding and caring for it. Watching it grow. Takes a lot of time and energy.”

“I can imagine. Anything worthwhile always does.”

I nodded in agreement and crossed my legs, interlacing my fingers over my exposed kneecap—my standard interview pose in my standard power outfit. Did I dare ask the real questions that inquiring minds like mine wanted to know? Those that raged to get out from inside my head? Milo saved me the trouble as he leaned forward, resting his bulky, powerful forearms on his muscled thighs.

“Which leads to another reason I’m here. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled to get to touch base with you and offer my kudos on your fantastic achievements,” he said with a tilt of his curly head. “But… I know you’ve been seeing Reed.”

My practiced, finely crafted, professional façade trembled then crumbled to ash at his words. So, he knew. But how much? My stomach clenched in angry anticipation. Just what had Reed told him? And why? To further humiliate me by spilling the details of his latest exploits to his best friend? Our mutual friend? Surely, he wasn’t that callous, that cavalier—that cruel.

Surely, he was.

“Oh,” I murmured, dropping my gaze. I could feel the flush of angry red migrate from my neck upward to land on my cheeks. I didn’t have to look in a mirror to know that the pain of my humiliation over my intimacy with Reed was already written all over my face. And Milo was smart as a whip. He could and would read between the lines. “I think that’s… best kept between me and him, don’t you think? I—”

I clamped my mouth shut and looked askance out my floor to ceiling windows. For a second, I considered jumping. Would that high-tech tempered glass shatter if I hurled my buck fifty body against it? I almost wished I hadn’t lost all that weight. It would have come in handy right now. I could have hurled it against the window like a lard ass battering ram.

“Harper… it’s not what you think.”

I swallowed hard and forced myself to look at him again, unfolding my posture and gripping the arms of the chair. “Look, Milo, I don’t know what he said to you, but… it was strictly business.”

There. Two could play the it means nothing to me game.

Dear, intelligent, calm, kind, and intuitive Milo shot me a look—a direct hit to my bullshit production glands—and left me defenseless. I felt foolish for even trying to deceive the man. Nothing ever got past the Polish Protector. I should’ve known better.

“If you say so,” Milo conceded. “But this…” He reached into the breast pocket of his jacket and withdrew a folded sheet of paper. “Is serious business.” He waggled it in the air then spread it out where I could see it. I recognized the Mayo Clinic letterhead on it. “I know you’ve paid Jessica’s medical bill. I think you have more interest in the Mathesons than just business. I’ve looked you up. I know all about your charitable donations making up a large percentage of your income. You’re to be respected and admired for everything you do for the sick and downtrodden. But this…” he stopped only long enough to wave the paper in front of my face like a flag of infidelity, “is personal.”

Busted.

Had he told Reed? I heaved a sigh of defeat. “I paid it, yes,” I said, tight-lipped. “But Milo, please hear me on this. Our mutual friend is governed by foolish male pride and an ego the size of the IDS Center. Reed doesn’t need to know about this.”

“Don’t beleaguer our need to protect and take care of our own, Harper. That’s not foolish pride. That’s a man stepping up to save his family. He doesn’t know about this. Not yet,” Milo said, then dwarfed my white-knuckled hand as he placed his sizeable one atop it. “But he should. Harper, I’m not here to upset you. He’s told me about your arrangement, and Irene Sutton Formals, and what happened on Friday night. It’s all safe with me, trust me.”

“I trust you, Milo. It’s Reed I’m not so sure about. He’s not like you.”

Milo shook his head like an admonishing parent. “He’s more like me than you think. He’s grown and evolved into a good man. Because he had to. He was pushed into a corner in the worst possible way, and instead of coming out swinging, he came out asking how he could do things better. You can trust him.”

I shook my head and opened my mouth, but Milo didn’t give me the chance.

“You don’t know his side of the story,” he went on. “He’s always liked you, Harper. The adoration led him astray. He was young and stupid and full of raging hormones. It happens to the best of us. He just couldn’t see his feelings for what they were back then. But he does now. He couldn’t stop talking about you once I got him started.”

“Really?”

“Really,” he said with a dimpled grin. Milo was such a cutie pie. “And you know Reed, he likes to hear himself talk. So once he got going, I had to listen to him extol your numerous virtues until my ears rang with echoes of Harper Payne.”

My face burned with embarrassment that Milo was potentially privy to the color commentary on mine and Reed’s pump and grind, but I had to know more. Shove the knife in as deep as it could go, then nothing that followed could possibly hurt me more. I steeled myself for my admission.

“Did he tell you I lied? Assumed a false identity? That he told his boss I meant nothing to him other than being his latest cheap lay?”

Milo frowned, shaking his head. “He told me he’s sick about what happened. That he never intended to hurt you, and wanted to make love to you all day Saturday to make it up to you, until you did a runner on him. He figures you overheard him talking shit to Irene that was only for her benefit. He didn’t mean any of it. He wants a real relationship with you, Harper. I know you guys were always meant for each other. I saw it. A shame neither of you blockheads know it now. Life’s all about timing. Just because something didn’t happen immediately doesn’t mean it isn’t meant to be. Some things need to grow and develop until they meet in the middle. Then they blossom.”

“He only wants me because of how I look now,” I said, interrupting Milo’s philosophical take on our sordid past. “For Reed, beauty is truly only skin deep. Look what he married. That’s what he wants. Everyone to know he’s fucking the hottest woman in the room. And that they can’t have her. I’ll never be that woman.”

“You’re wrong. You’re what he wants, and I know you’re what he needs. I know you had a crush on him growing up. Probably more than a crush since you two were so tight and talked about everything. Maybe you don’t feel the same way about him now as you once did. A hell of a lot of water’s gone under the bridge since then, I know. But either way, I think you should tell him. And I definitely think you need to tell him about this,” he said, flicking the edge of the letter. “This is a lot of fucking money, Harper. To anyone, no matter how rich they are.”

Reed wouldn’t lie to Milo. He really wanted me? My fledgling joy at hearing this was overshadowed by the fact Reed might still resent me for sticking my wallet in where it didn’t belong.

“How can I? His pride will be crushed. You know how he is. I’m sure you already offered to pay and were told to get bent. He’s so damn stubborn he agreed to be leashed by Irene Sutton in order to do things on his own.”

Milo’s jaw hardened. “If you don’t, I will. More than his pride’s about to be crushed. His principles, his self-confidence, and his dignity.”

“What do you mean?”

Milo leaned forward, his face serious. “Your mutual acquaintance, Irene, told him that she paid the hospital bill. And she’s looking for her pound of flesh in repayment. Literally, if you get my drift. Tonight. She wants to accept his debt of gratitude by taking it out in trade. The oldest trade there is.”

My mouth gaped open in shock and disgust. Had my worst suspicions just been confirmed? Had the spiderish Minnesota Madam ensnared Reed in her sticky-sweet web of deception for her own lecherous purposes? Poor Reed. Perhaps fuck currency was the only kind he had in any supply without Irene’s financial support.

“You mean prostitution or blackmail,” I said angrily, realizing Irene practiced both trades. In that moment, I hated her. I snatched up the document he’d brought. “Show him this, it proves she’s lying.”

“I could,” Milo said. “But it should come from you. He’ll see how much you care about him and Jessica. Do you really want to see him sleep with the enemy knowing it will kill him inside? He already has feelings for you. Hell, he has for years in the way that really matters. If he feels forced to betray you to save his daughter, he’ll never recover. That’s something a man can never get over. Hasn’t Reed suffered enough? He’s paid his penance a thousand times over for acting like a douche up until his divorce. You’re the only one who can stop this, steer him off this dark road he’s gone down. Shit, I love the guy. I think you do too.”

I couldn’t deny that to Milo’s face. He’d see through me anyway. I nodded in surrender. “How?”

“He’s meeting her at her office tonight at nine. If I were you, I’d show up there before he does.”