CHAPTER 17
Faith woke up Saturday morning alone in bed. She sat up, bleary-eyed, and listened for sounds of Brandon moving around, but heard nothing. She flopped back down on the pillow, covered her face and groaned. “Great. He’s gone.” He’d had her so out of control with passion last night they’d never got a chance to talk. She tossed the sheet aside and spotted a sheet of paper flutter off the other side of the bed. Rising, she walked over, picked it up and read:
Good morning, sweetheart,
You were sleeping so soundly last night that I didn’t have the heart to wake you. I’ll be back later this afternoon to finish our conversation. And, yeah, I know we actually need to talk.
Brandon
She sat on the bed and released a deep sigh. Last night he had made love to her with a tenderness that had touched her soul and whispered endearments that made her almost believe he loved her. And, somehow, Brandon had gotten her to consent to continuing their relationship. For the first time in a long while, Faith had a man who made her happy and she could honestly see the two of them being together for a long time. What if she didn’t tell him? Maybe… No. She couldn’t let him walk in to that meeting on Tuesday and be blindsided. It wouldn’t be fair and he’d hate her even more.
Faith tossed the note on the nightstand and went to shower. After dressing and forcing down a piece of toast and tea, she tried to do some work, but couldn’t concentrate so she turned on the television and flipped through the channels. She settled on an old episode of Law & Order. Halfway through the show, her mind started to wander again and she shut it off. Reading didn’t hold any appeal, either, so she decided a walk might help.
She put on her tennis shoes and started toward the front of the property. Since it was almost noon, she saw several people with luggage headed for the lobby to check out. Faith walked down Sepulveda Boulevard a short distance, turned and retraced her steps to the hotel. She cut through the lobby and went out to the back, where she passed a tennis court, pool and hot tub. A few people lounged next to the pool, taking advantage of the near eighty-degree weather. A fire pit surrounded by padded chairs sat in a gated area just on the other side.
Faith took a seat in one of the chairs and listened to the sounds around her—the thwack of a tennis ball being hit, water splashing in the pool, the traffic going by and the roar of an airplane engine above her. While sitting, she realized she hadn’t spoken to her parents or told them about Thad’s offer and pulled out her phone to call them. “Hey, Mom,” she said when her mother answered.
“Faith. How are you?”
“I’m okay. How are you and Daddy doing?”
“Oh, we’re good. He’s taking me out on a date tonight,” she added with a giggle.
Faith smiled. From the first moment William Alexander came into their lives, he had been an example of what a good husband should be. “That’s great. Where are you going?”
“I have no idea. William said it’s a surprise. I told him we’re too old for this kind of thing.”
“That is so romantic. And, Mom, you’re never too old for a surprise date.” A vision of her last date with Brandon floated through her mind—the cruise, dinner, the rose petals leading to a candlelit room with a massage table, his strong hands relaxing and arousing her all at the same time—
“Faith!”
Her mother’s voice jolted her back to the conversation. “Huh? I’m sorry, what did you say, Mom?”
“Are you all right? I called you twice and asked when you were coming home.”
“I’m fine. I’ll probably be coming home in a week or so.” If things went badly with Brandon, Faith might leave as soon as that Tuesday meeting was over.
“Honey, what’s going on?”
How does she always know when something is bothering me? “Thad is retiring and wants me to assume the role of VP of the company where he works.”
“Excuse me?”
Faith told her mother about the company Thad and his friend had started and the pact they had made regarding the home safety company. “He also wants me to take his seat on the advisory committee. He said it was my inheritance.”