Chapter Six
I'd offered my condolences to the Yates family, I joined Norma off to one side and listened to her sob about the loss of one of the greatest men she'd ever known. I looked across the room at the Yates family and wondered how a man who was so great could have raised two entirely unpleasant sons.
"Mr. Yates always said ‘Good morning,’ and stopped in to ask about my grandchildren," Norma said as she wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. She’d been Mr. Yates' secretary for almost 20 years, and she knew him better than most people in the company. Norma was also a southern belle, who thrived on the dramatic potential of every situation, and we loved her because of it. "It's like we're losing not just a CEO, but a strong guiding light!"
"Ease up on the sainthood bullshit, Norma," Burt scoffed as he and Kevin offered us a shot from their flasks. "He was a good guy, but he could also be a real bastard."
"Don’t piss on my leg, and tell me it’s raining, Burt," Norma warned, wiping her eyes. "He was a man who sunk everything he had into the business to make it run successfully."
"And those are the guys who are usually running from something at home," Kevin said before drinking deeply. "I would know."
"He was always kind to me," I said, looking back and forth between the two men. "I'm not sure what you guys are talking about."
"Look, he was a good man," Burt sighed. "He worked hard and ran a successful company, but those sons of his are two of the biggest pains in the ass I've ever met. I don't think they raised themselves, if you know what I mean."
"Kiss my ass and go-to-hell!” Norma gasped. "Those boys have done incredibly well for themselves! The oldest one is a lawyer, and the younger one made a fortune in computers. I'd call that successful."
"Yeah, but they both hated their old man," Kevin said grimly. "I'm not sure how you missed the forced smiles and the hateful looks. Besides, Mrs. Yates had to reprimand them both in order to get them to shake hands with the folks coming to the wake. Did you miss all of this, Norma?"
"It's the grief," Norma insisted. "They're just sad that their father died."
"More like they're both waiting to celebrate," Burt muttered. "He was a good businessman, but a lousy human being. That's all there was to it, Norma."
"Don't y’all speak ill of the dead," Norma said, narrowing her eyes and giving both men a cold stare. They shrugged their shoulders and slunk off to join the other guys from the warehouse at the back of the room.
As I watched them go, I noticed that Jack Yates had moved to the back of the room as well and was talking with a tall, elegant, blonde woman. She stood close to him as she talked, and it was obvious that she was telling him something of great importance. When he looked away, she reached up and grabbed his chin, turning his face back toward her.
He caught me staring at them for a split second before I resumed my conversation with Norma. Part of me remained focused on Jack Yates, and I wondered who the woman was and what was so urgent that she had to corner him at his father's wake.
"So, what do you think, Leah?" Norma asked.
"Huh? About what?" I asked, shaking my head and trying to focus on what the woman was asking me.
"Who do you think is going to run the company now that Mr. Yates is dead?" she asked impatiently. "What's going to happen to Baby Steps?"
"I'm sure there is something in place that will take care of it, Norma," I said, trying not to let her worry work its way into my brain.
"I've been working for this company for 20 years, and I've seen everything there was to see. But I've never seen the paperwork for who would be in charge if Mr. Yates died," Norma whispered to me. "I'm wondering if it's going to be his younger son."
"You're kidding, right?" I said. I turned my attention toward Jack Yates and observed a tall, broad shouldered man who was dressed completely inappropriately for his own father's funeral and who was passionately discussing something with the tall, blonde woman in the designer dress. Jack Yates appeared to be the exact opposite of everything his father stood for. "There is no way they are turning the company over to that man."
"Who else is going to run it?" Norma asked. "I mean, his other son is a high-powered attorney at Bank of Manhattan. He's not going to drop his clients to run the company. And his wife isn't someone who knows how to run a company. Who else are they going to get?"
"There's no way they're going to turn over the company to Jack Yates," I said shaking my head.
"You wanna bet on it?" Norma said with a twinkle in her eye as she held out her hand to shake. I looked at her then down at her hand before looking back over at Jack Yates who was now downing a bottle of beer that someone had handed him. He had one arm around the woman, and he was eyeing her the way I'd seen the men at our local pub eye me after one too many drinks. I looked at Norma grinning and grabbed her hand.
"It's a bet," I said shaking firmly. "What are we betting?"
"If I win, you take me to dinner, hon," Norma said.
"What the hell kind of bet is that?" I demanded. "If you’re right, you win, and if you’re wrong, there’s no consequence!"
"He’s already made his interest in you pretty clear, so if I’m wrong and he doesn’t take over, I’ll find a way to fix you two up,” she grinned. "I might just do it anyway. You’re not a spring chicken, you know, darlin’.”
"Norma!" I protested. "I resent being treated like chattel."
"Oh honey, don’t go getting your knickers in a knot," Norma nodded. "I'll keep you posted on the progress in the executive suite."
"Norma, you’re a piece of work," I said shaking my head.
"Nah, darlin’, I’m just a woman with a mission," Norma said as she drank from her flask and watched the rest of the mourners pass by Mr. Yates's casket. "I think I need to get home."
I said goodbye to Norma, and she went outside to find a cab.
*
little while later, I stepped away from my coworkers to get some fresh air and try to keep my swirling emotions at bay. I felt a deep sadness about losing Bernard, but I also felt conflicted about my mother. For a moment, I thought about how all of this would have been different if my mother had died instead.
"Everything would be fine if it was Mama instead," I muttered as I wrapped my arms around myself and tried to put that horrible thought out of my mind.
"What’s that?" a deep voice asked breaking into my private moment.
"What?" I said as I whipped around to see who was talking to me. I found Jack Yates standing a foot away, grinning.
"I said, ‘What’s that?’" he repeated as he stepped slightly closer, closing the gap between us. I could smell his deep, musky cologne that was decidedly masculine and incredibly intoxicating. Jack Yates was well over six-feet tall and had a head full of curly dark hair that looked like it would be heaven to run my fingers through. His dark-brown eyes were warm, but had a hint of danger that made my pulse race as I looked into them. But it was his full mouth that caught my attention and left me slightly dazed. His bottom lip begged to be nipped at, and I shook my head as I looked away to keep myself from imagining what I’d do if I were alone with the man. He was wearing a dark suit with a blue dress shirt that looked like it hadn’t seen an iron in quite a while and, unlike the rest of the men at the wake, he’d skipped the tie and left the neck of his shirt open. I could see his broad, smooth chest begin to . . .
"Oh, I was just working out some frustrations," I said shaking my head and stepping backward as I tried to widen the space between me and the handsome son of my late boss.
"I know of a better way to work off frustrations," he said with a sly grin as he, again, attempted to close the gap between us.
"Did you really just say that?" I asked as I put my hands on my hips and squinted up at him. The sun was high in the sky, but Jack was so tall that he blocked it, leaving a halo of bright light shining around the outer edges of his skull. The idea that he could be wearing a halo struck me as immensely funny, and I burst out laughing.
"What? What did I say that was so funny?" he asked, obviously annoyed, but also interested.
"Your father, my boss, is inside in a casket, and you're making a pass at me out here in the parking lot?" I said bluntly. "That seems like something that would be more suited for a wedding or a formal dinner, not a wake."
"Can't blame me for trying, can you?" he grinned as he, again, stepped closer and reached out to run a finger down the side of my arm. The feeling of his skin pressed against mine gave me a jolt. I stepped backwards and tripped on a concrete barrier placed around the nearby flowerbed. Before I knew what had happened, Jack reached out and wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me tightly against his body to prevent me from tumbling into the dirt.
I looked up into his brown eyes as I felt the strength of his arm holding me against his firm body. I gasped as he lowered his head and quickly brushed his lips across mine before setting me securely on my feet and backing away. I stared at him with wide eyes, unsure whether to slap him or grab the front of his shirt and drag him back toward me so that I could kiss him again, this time harder.
"That's what I thought," he grinned as he turned and headed back inside without another word.
I stood there, staring at the empty space, wondering if I'd imagined it all or if Jack Yates had actually kissed me. If so, what I was going to do about it.