Breathless Secrets by Elizabeth Lennox
Chapter 17
“What the hell do you think you’re doing!” a female voice screeched.
James looked up from the contract he’d been reviewing to find his mother entering the conference room. It had been three days since he’d filed a harassment and defamation lawsuit against her, the newspaper who’d printed the false accusations against Molly, and the journalist who had written the article. James had been expecting this visit a lot sooner, which means that his mother had taken the time to consult with her lawyer before approaching him.
Leaning back in his chair, he surveyed his mother’s appearance casually. As usual, she was dressed to impress with her navy Chanel suit and her Manolo pumps with a matching purse. Unfortunately, James wasn’t impressed. In fact, her presence infuriated him, but he hid his anger behind a calm façade. “Hello Mother. It’s been a while.”
She tossed her clutch purse onto the table, so furious she didn’t even notice the other people in the room.
“Don’t you dare speak to me like that! Stop this ridiculous lawsuit!” she commanded, glaring daggers at him.
James noticed that his mother’s normally perfectly coifed hair was coming loose. Obviously, she hadn’t checked a mirror before arriving. “Long flight from New York?”
Eleanor glared at her son. “You’re not going to get away with this! My husband will rip you to shreds!”
James laughed in her face. “I’ve already spoken with your current husband, Mother. In case you hadn’t already heard, he filed for divorce yesterday.”
Eleanor’s face paled. “He didn’t!”
James shrugged dismissively. He honestly didn’t care about his mother’s marital status. “If you say so.”
She seemed to rally, pulling herself together. “My husband adores me. He’d never divorce me! And you,” she pointed a finger accusingly at James, “are going to stop this lawsuit! Otherwise, I will plaster the news that you are suing me all over the press!”
James stood up, signaling to the others that they could escape from this awkward discussion. All of them were aware of the lawsuit. In fact, many of them had assisted in the investigation.
He waited until he and Eleanor were alone before he continued. “Mother, not only is your husband divorcing you, but it is my understanding that the state district attorney for Portland, Maine, is filing blackmail charges against you today as well.”
Her eyes widened with horror and her jaw dropped before she rallied. “Blackmail? I haven’t blackmailed anyone!”
James tsked. “Josie?” he offered, picking up a piece of paper with the woman’s driver’s license. “You blackmailed her into opening that bank account for you.” He pulled a second piece of paper out of a file. “And this,” he handed it to her, “is from the FBI, who are now investigating you for bank fraud. Apparently, you transferred money from your husband’s account into the bank account Maria opened, then spent all of the money, sending odd ‘donations’ to Molly’s Center. Then you hired Mike Daines to take photographs of Molly and my friends with the packages.”
He shook his head before continuing. “What you didn’t know is that Molly is an innately honest person. And the Washington Post did an article about how Lilly Gataki and her husband sponsored an auction at their house the night before that incriminating article came out. Every item you sent to the Center in order to frame Molly for embezzlement, was auctioned off. An article in the Post’s ‘Style’ section detailed the event, which was published on the same day your pathetic ‘journalists’ article hit the news. The money from the items you sent to the Center is right now in the Center’s bank, waiting to be spent on tutors for the fall after school program. Plus, I’ve paid for an accounting firm to document every financial aspect of this investigation, so that there’s no confusion as to what actually happened or claims of bias against Molly or the community center.” He pulled a third paper out of the file folder. “Here is a list of the items auctioned off. If there is anything missing, please let me know. We’d love to do another auction. Molly has several more projects she’d love to fund.”
Eleanor skimmed over the papers, her face going dead white under her heavy makeup. “This…this isn’t…!”
She stammered, flustered because her plan hadn’t worked. When she tossed the papers back down, Eleanor tried to brush the issue off. “I only did it to protect you, James,” she explained. “Surely you can see that.”
James chuckled. “Mother, you’ve never done anything to protect me in my entire life. Why would you start now?’
Eleanor stomped her foot in frustration. But because the floor was carpeted, the effort was a bit…anemic. “She isn’t right for you!” Eleanor hissed.
“Molly?”
“Yes!” Eleanor snapped, throwing her hands into the air with exasperation.
“She’s perfect for me.”
Eleanor let out an inelegant snort. “She’s not polished! She wears those hideous jeans and ridiculous raggedy tee shirts! They are worn out and sloppy! Just like her!” She took a deep breath. “Molly is an embarrassment to your campaign. If you’re going to be a senator, then you’re going to have to clean up your image. And Molly is poison for that image.”
James chuckled mirthlessly. “You know what’s bad for my image?” he asked, and continued without waiting for an answer. “A mother who tries to frame my wife-to-be.” He stood up. “You know what isn’t bad for my image?” He leaned in close. “A mother in prison!”
“I can’t go to prison!” she gasped. “You can’t prove anything!”
James shrugged away her assertion. “I’ll see you in court, Eleanor.”
Her eyes narrowed at the use of her first name. “Don’t you dare, James Morgan! Suing me and trying to bring me down will only ruin your chances of winning the election!”
“No, Eleanor. Apparently,” he pulled yet another sheet out, “I’ve never cared about my image as much as you do. You’ve violated the law. As a lawyer and an officer of the court, I am duty bound to uphold the law. And you’ve violated many laws.” He shook his head. “I don’t care about my image, Eleanor. I care about Molly. I love her and I’m marrying her.” He walked around the conference room table. “I know you understand why you aren’t invited to the wedding.”
Eleanor hissed, “You can’t do this!”
“Oh, but I can, and I have,” he told her. He pressed a button on the phone. “Howard, can you call security? We have a trespasser in the main conference room.” He cocked an eyebrow at his mother. “I’d suggest you leave if you don’t want to be dragged out.”
Eleanor grabbed her purse, stuffed it under her arm, and lifted her nose into the air. “You’ll come to your senses,” she sneered. “You’ve never been a stupid boy, just a willful one. I have faith you’ll come around.”
The door to the conference room opened and two security guards entered.
“Don’t you dare touch me!” she spat. She looked over her shoulder to give James one more furious look. “We’re not finished, James.” Then she walked out, jerking away when a guard reached for her arm. The man only shook his head, and followed her out.
There was a heavy silence after she left and James stared at the door for a long moment. He remembered his initial rage when his mother had shipped him off to boarding school. After a few weeks, he’d made friends and discovered that boarding school was a whole lot better than being ignored at home.
And now…now, he had Molly.
Just thinking about her made his body ache. Instead of calling the meeting attendees back into the conference room, he walked out.
“You’re leaving?” Doris, his assistant, asked as he passed by her desk.
“Yeah. I have something I need to do.”
Doris smiled and nodded. “I’ll collect the files from the conference room and put them in your office.” She mentioned several people had tried to reach him this morning, including his campaign manager and Deni. But he brushed everything aside. “I’ll be out for a few hours,” he declared.
“Sure thing, boss,” she replied.
Fifteen minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of the center. There was a loud scream and he looked around. Sure enough, he saw Molly running around the corner. She held two round blobs and…splash!
Molly laughed as several kids hurled water balloons at her. She was soaking wet, and laughing so hard she couldn’t defend herself. The smaller kids pounced on her, soaking her with more balloons. One of the kids snatched the water balloons she’d been trying to throw, and threw them at the closest teens.
It was the last week of summer camp here at the center. Molly had organized a massive party for the kids of all ages, including the parents who would show up for a hot dog roast tonight.
“James!” a little girl with pigtails raced around the corner, her personal water balloon held protectively in her arms. Unfortunately, Janette was running faster than her four year old legs could manage and she tripped, hitting the ground. Thankfully, she was a tiny thing, so she didn’t have far to fall. She didn’t hurt herself, but as she got back on her feet, she looked around for her balloon. It was gone, obviously since she landed on it and the water had drenched her shirt.
The little girl’s lip quivered dangerously. James scooped her up into his arms. “Janette, are you really trying to keep up with the big kids?” he asked, straightening her shirt, which was smeared with chocolate, most likely from a cookie, and finger paint.
“They have more fun,” she replied, her chin still trembling.
“Are you kidding me?” he asked, pointing at the chocolate smears on her shirt. “I can see how much fun you’ve had today!” He poked her belly gently and the little girl stared down at the stain. “Is this blue? Or purple?” he asked, and tickled her. Janette giggled happily. “And this?” he pointed to another spot. “This looks like the remains of a chocolate chip cookie.”
At that point, Molly spotted him and their eyes locked. Damn, he loved her. Her jeans were soaked, her hair a mess, there was paint on her cheek that matched Janette’s stained shirt. But there was a sparkle in her eyes and her lips softened as she came over to him. Janette spotted one of her friends and began squirming, so James set her down.
“James,” Molly sighed as she stepped closer, going up on her toes to give him a welcoming kiss. “I missed you today.”
He grinned. “I missed you too. Are you ready for this weekend?”
Molly’s grin widened. “You mean when you steal me away to a fabulous island with beautiful beaches and a minister?”
“That would be the plan,” he kissed her softly. “And after that, you are never allowed to take that ring off your finger again, woman!”
She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Never again,” she vowed. “I love you, James Morgan.”
“And I love you, Ms. Molly McCabe!”
