Read an excerpt from the final book of the trilogy:
I get up and get dressed while
Penelope is still asleep, and knock on Haley’s door. She greats me with a
somewhat bleak expression. “I think I’ll skip the champagne this morning. Did
we really have two bottles, or did anyone else drink our wine?”
“I’m afraid that was all us. Listen, Haley, I was wondering if you’d mind having dinner
by yourself tonight.”
She is
amused. “I kind of expected that to happen.”
“You
could go see a Broadway show, have a few hours at the spa, have a nice dinner
somewhere?”
“Relax,
I’m not arguing. I’m a big girl, I can entertain myself for one night. I can
come to Penny’s speech though?”
“Yes, of course. I’m not that
terrible.”
She yawns. “You know, in fact
you’re not terrible at all. I assume you have something special planned?”
“Kind of. Thank you so much.” I
return to our suite where Penelope is starting to stir. For a moment, the
temptation is almost overwhelming. I love waking her like that, meeting her in
the space between sleep and awareness, starting the day with pleasure…as it is,
my phone rings. I take the call in the living area. It’s Colette, finally, and
she has something that’s close to good news.
“Tell your guys to lay low. We’re
close to finding Laurier, and once we do, we’ll make sure to ask her about
everyone who might have helped her. Should Penny’s name come up, you’ll be the
first to know, but frankly, I doubt it.”
“Thank you. You know I appreciate
this.”
“Don’t worry,” she says. “This
will be over soon.”
One way or another, remains
unspoken between the lines.
I make
a visit to another local office where the staff seems surprised, but content to
see me. The numbers have been good, great even. A little further away
from home, and the news of an FBI investigation dried up fast, especially when
the alleged victim of abduction is now my wife. Some of them I haven’t seen
since before my wedding. Carrie and Alison, both in management, present me with
reassuring numbers after congratulating me. I stay for a quick lunch, then
check in with Nick and Linda to find out nothing has changed.
“You know when the FBI brings in
the big guns, it’s serious. I want you guys to keep a low profile.”
Nick sounds dubious. “That could
give some people time to cover up their tracks.”
“By some people you mean Penelope?
Come on, don’t be stupid. She’s here with me in New York
and getting ready for her presentation. She’s not covering up anything.”
“I’ll coordinate with Linda.”
That’s as much of a concession as he’s willing to make. “Let me know if there’s
anything new we should know, and…be careful.”
Once everything is taken care of,
it’s almost time to go to the venue and be proud of my wife.
Penelope seems a bit nervous at
first, but she catches herself early on. University certainly gave her
experience speaking in front of groups, though I doubt they’ve been this big.
Listening to her speak, I forget once again about the trouble that has followed
us even here.
Traci was right about her being a
good choice for the company and this department specifically. No one doubts
that she has a right to be here as Penelope lays out a detailed plan as to
where Forbes Inc. is supporting humanitarian organizations that put a focus on
projects for women and girls. I feel pride indeed for the transformation she
has gone through in only a year. I might not be above wanting to take some
credit.
“We support this focus. We might
still have a long way to go towards equality, but there are people around the
world working hard for it, some under most difficult circumstances. The least
we can do is further those efforts best we can. Thank you.”
Next to me, Haley looks
astonished, and she has reason to be. It’s not just the expensive clothes. I’m
sure she never saw Penelope in a context like that—to her friends and family,
she was this diligent, always busy person, never time for a break. There’s so
much more to her, an intelligent, sexy young woman who is not afraid of the
darker side of me. I couldn’t be more grateful for whatever twist of fate
brought her to me, and I knew from the start there was no way I could let her
go.
Lucky for me.
“That was pretty amazing,” Haley
says.
“Yes it was. I’m sorry for
kicking you out tonight, but…”
“I understand. You don’t have to
say another word, because that might be…TMI.”
“Got it.”
Penelope takes some time talking
to guests. She looks comfortable, not at all like someone who’s doing this for
the first time. All of a sudden, I can’t wait to have her all to myself. I made
a reservation, but I can always push it back some, and I’m not above using
privilege in this situation.
When Penelope joins us, she’s
practically glowing. “That was okay, I think?”
I pull her into my arms. There
might be some hate group protesting outside, but in this context, no one will
say anything about a brief public display of affection. I might see it in the
papers tomorrow, but I don’t care. At this point in my life, very few people
can tell me what to do.
“You were great,” I whisper. “I
knew you would be, so I made some preparations to celebrate in style.”
“But Haley…?”
“She has a great night ahead of
her, and so do we.” I’m not making any promises for her and the girls coming
back sometime soon. It’s not like I’ll be okay being apart from her for more
than a day anytime in the near future. I don’t even feel sorry.
“Where are we going?”
“First, to the hotel. There’s a
table with a nice view waiting for us later.”
I know that smile of hers. Most
of the time it means you don’t have to
work so hard to impress me. She has no idea. I have to work a lot harder on
that before I’m truly comfortable.
“That’s good. My surprise will
work for that.”
I almost say it out loud, maybe
it’s not a good idea. The last time she got me a surprise was the day she sat
in a café with a woman who is stealing from me. Those words sound crazy even
when they’re in my head only.
“Okay, let’s see what you have.”
Welcome to the Hop for Awareness, Visibility and Equality May 17-24!
