“It was all true. Skylar Butler hurt me, but he’s not the only one. I’ve allowed it. I’ve let others run my life for too long. I’m only twenty-four years old. My shares of Wade will remain under my father’s oversight until I marry. I’m not in a hurry to do that, Van.” I laid my hands out on the table, noticing my ring-free finger. “Besides, the idea that I have to marry to receive control of my shares is archaic and misogynistic. If I wanted, I could fight the will in court. Times have changed since my grandfather died.”
“You could, but that will take time. Marlin Butler had immediate plans for Wade Pharmaceutical. I slowed those plans down with the purchase of the shares I bought this morning, but if you leave your shares under your father’s control and Butler manages to connive your father into doing something unexpected, your family could lose everything. Butler currently has twenty-five percent.” Van shook his head. “Did you wonder how I was able to acquire twenty-one percent as fast as I did?”
“Yes...no.” I took a breath and released it. “I should have wondered. I haven’t exactly been thinking straight.”
“I was able to move fast because I have people working for me who constantly watch for instabilities in the market, in industries, and in businesses of all sizes. They watch for weaknesses that could lead to opportunities. Wade Pharmaceutical as well as other small pharmaceutical companies has been on our radar for some time. As I’m sure you’re aware, recent pharmaceutical developments regarding patents, fast-tracked approval, and the government trying to regulate the prices of medications have all worked together to create a volatile environment. Your father is right about the bigger companies wanting to dominate the market. In most cases they do. Their size alone gives them the advantage. The twenty-one percent of Wade I just purchased was lined up for acquisition by Marlin Butler through multiple investment brokers.” Van looked at his watch. “I would suspect that very soon, your ex-future father-in-law will realize I outbid him and stole the nest egg he planned to fry. His deals were interestingly timed.”
My thoughts were now on Wade Pharmaceutical, the company my great-grandfather founded. In this short time, Van was telling me more than I’d ever gotten from my father or my grandfather before him.
“What do you mean, interestingly timed?” I asked.
“The sales were scheduled to go down at the end of business on December 30th. He’d placed a marker and paid a hefty fee to keep the deals hidden until then.”
“December 30th? Skylar’s and my wedding was supposed to be on the 31st, New Year’s Eve.”
Van nodded. “The 30th is also a Friday. The markets never truly close, but with the combination of the insignificance of Wade, the end of the fiscal year, and the holidays, there would have been a good chance that the news of the sales would have stayed hidden until return to business on January 3rd.”
My mind was too busy trying to make sense of everything to concentrate on Van’s description of Wade Pharmaceutical as insignificant.
I took a deep breath and stood. “Skylar and I would have been out of the country by then. Why should I believe you? If everything you say about Marlin Butler is true, then I’ve been a pawn longer than I realized. That doesn’t instill trust. If I can’t trust a man I’ve known my entire life, who is also my father’s best friend, then how can I trust you? I don’t even know you.”
Van’s gaze followed me as I walked back and forth in front of the window. For a moment, I stared again out on the scenic snow-covered setting. As I watched people walk this way and that upon the sidewalks before the storefronts bundled in their winter layers, I realized there were many things I didn’t know about Van, Ashland, or the company that was destined to be mine.
Before either of us could comment, a knock came at the door. When Van and I turned, Mr. Fields appeared.
“Oscar,” Van said, “I said that we weren’t to be disturbed.”
Mr. Fields’s gaze went from Van to me and back to Van. “Sir, if you’d like me to conclude this meeting for you, I’d be happy—”
“I don’t.”
“The time...it has taken—”
Van shook his head. “Call my office and let them know that I was detained.”
“Do you have any idea of how long this meeting will last? Mrs. Preston called and you have another meeting...”
Taking a deep breath, Van stood. “Leave us. I’ll call Connie.”
Oscar Fields nodded as he backed out of the room and closed the door.
“What do you do?” I asked as Van reached for the phone in his breast pocket.
His full lips curled as his gaze met mine. “I buy and sell.”
“What?”
“Anything. Everything has a price.” Van lifted his phone to his ear. Still speaking to me, he said, “Move in with me, write my memoir, and learn who I really am.”
It was an intriguing offer.
What will I learn?
Who is this man who is a self-proclaimed significant player in the world of high finance, who dresses as if he is to appear on Esquire, and also chops wood and is comfortable in a remote cabin?
He called Skylar an infant. From what I’d seen of Van, I couldn’t judge his age. His statement would mean that he was older than Skylar and older than I.
How much?
Van’s attention went to the person on the other end of the phone call. “Connie, I’ve had a change of plans. Cancel the rest of my day.” He paused. “I agree.” His green gaze scanned from my head to my toes as a smile curled his lips. “This is highly unusual.” He disconnected the call.
“Who are you?” I asked.
His gaze glistened like fine emeralds. “Accept my offer and find out. Do you accept?”
“The job offer or the marriage proposal?”
“Accept the job offer,” Van said, “and we’ll put the proposal of marriage on hold. Those are my terms. If you want the job, the proposal won’t be taken back nor will I accept your second answer. Your first instinct, Julia, was to say yes. You want time to discover yourself. Take that time to let me do the same. And you can get to know me.”
“What about sex?” I asked.
“The job comes with your own living quarters.”
“Does that mean no sex?”
“I’d like to leave that subject open for debate. If you agree, we can get to know one another as we explore the more personal aspects of a relationship.”
I took a deep breath.
Is this exactly why I left Chicago?
Is red sin the new life I haven’t known I am searching for?
“Julia?”
“A new life.”
Van nodded.
“I think I owe it to myself to see what it entails.”
“Does that mean...?”
“It means that yes, Van, I accept.”
Julia
Somehow during my drive along the white ribbon, I’d gotten off the main road. At least my GPS had kept me on roads. The road I followed took me west of Ashland. That was how I ended up on the outskirts of Van’s property. If I would have continued, instead of crashing into a snowbank, I would have reached Lake Superior. Now after accepting Van’s offer of exploring the job opportunity, I was following his large black truck northwest from Ashland to the west side of Chequamegon Bay.