Accidentally Perfect (30 page)

“I could only imagine.  No, I don’t want to imagine, Nathan. These kids tonight are so strong.  Stronger than I think I will ever be.”

“They have to be, love.  They don’t have the choice.  Most of them haven’t even had the opportunity to have a normal childhood.  Most are moving from home to home never being able to finish a school year.  There are only a small few who are able to stay in a home permanently.  A lot of these kids have major issues with trust and why wouldn’t they? 
They have been let down and abandoned by those who are supposed to be there for them always; their foundation.
  Once that foundation is gone, it isn’t long before the children crumble.”

“Nathan, I think I want to do something about it.  I think I want to help. 
Somehow
I want to help make a difference.  It’s so wrong for all these kids to have to suffer at the hands of selfish parents.”

“What were you thinking?”

“I don’t know yet, but once I figure it out.  I’ll let you know.”

We listen while the kids finish up their stories.  A few adults who grew up in the foster system also share their stories.  It isn’t all positive as I had hoped.  Some of the stories are ones of addiction,
homelessness,
and suffering.  As I listened to the more desperate
stories, it was
then I decided I wanted to help change that. 
Somehow I was going to do it;
I was going to make a difference.   

I stand near the tree house and watch the girls play.  Amanda is climbing while Addie and another little girl play on the teeter totter.  Nathan is talking to a few men who I have learned are clients of Whitmore Assets.  “The girls look lovely, Laney.” 

“Thank you, mother.
  They really do
, don’t they?”

“How are they settling in with Nathan?”

“You would never know it’s only been a week.  Those three are thick as thieves.  It’s nice being able to just run and know the girls are safe at home.”

“What do you mean?  You’ve always been able to just run.  Jesus, you make it sound like you were in prison before Nathan came along.  Brad has always been there for those girls, not to mention me.”

“I know that mother.  But Brad has a life of his own.  His life is no longer our life.  I know he will always be there for the girls, but I like knowing that I don’t have to make those arrangements or wait for someone’s schedule to open up.  If I need to go, then I go.  Nathan doesn’t question.  Half the time I think the girls would rather I
be
gone so they can have Nathan all to themselves.”      

“Well,
that’s nice.  I’m glad they are happy.  I did worry about that.”

“Well,
they are.  There is nothing to worry about.”  I can’t believe we are having a decent conversation, it’s about time.  “What a story Natalie told.  I had no idea the reasoning behind the foundation.”

“Well Laney, it does pay for you to pay more attention to those who are your equals instead of keeping your head in a book all these years.  There is a world other than the world of health care.  One, I might add you are a part of. 
More so now than ever before.”

“Yes, mother, I know.  I spend my time in the bowels of society when I should be leading the way as any Jacobs should.”

“You make it sound like it’s a chore to make the Jacobs’ name live on.  It’s up to you, you know.”

“I haven’t been a Jacobs in a long time mother.  I’m sorry I turned out to be a girl and can no longer carry on the Jacobs name.”

“Oh, Laney, really.
  Have I ever taught you to lean on a man?”

“No mom, you didn’t.”

“I always wanted you to see me as a strong independent woman; o
ne who did not need a man to have power.  A man should be an
accessory, not a necessity.”

“Mother, do you hear yourself?  It was my father who allowed you to live the life you have been living most of your life.  And a man should be a partner. 
An equal. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“If he’s an equal then why isn’t the Jacobs’ name as important as the Whitmore name?”

“And why didn’t you have this conversation with me when I married Brad?  Oh I know, because Jacobs-Whitmore sounds better than Jacobs-Richards, huh?” 

“So what if it does?”

“Well,
mother, you would be happy to know the Jacobs name will be heard.  I plan on helping with the foster system in some way.  I think it’s time to give back to something I believe in.  I want to work with Natalie in the Nathan Douglas Whitmore Foundation in some capacity.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“Well, something big, I think.  Something that is going to require I get the approval of the Jacobs Cattle and Oil Board.”

“Don’t you think the Foundation is a little bit of a waste?”

“Not at all.
  You might want to remember where you came from
, mother
.  If it weren’t for my
father,
you don’t know where you might be today.”            

I don’t like the fact that Laney is speaking with her mother without my support.  But it’s more important to make sure my father or Diane
aren’t
bothering her.  I don’t need either of them to confront Laney, especially when the girls are so close by. I keep my eyes focused on Laney as I speak to a few clients about upcoming jobs and my expansion to the west coast.  I have to admit, since Laney came into my life it’s been more about spending time with her and the girls and less time about Whitmore Assets.  I may need to find someone capable of running that part of Whitmore Industries as well.  I didn’t think my personal life would come
before
my dream of making a name for myself and getting out from under the power of my mother’s name, but I guess as you get older and things shift in your life so do your priorities.  

Excusing myself from talking business, I find my sister a few feet away. 
“Great night, Nat.
  How is everything turning out?”

“I think we did well.  We may have even surpassed last year’s total.  The stories were really good weren’t they?”

“Yes, they were.  I think it stirred something in Laney.  She wants to help in some way.”

“That’s awesome Nathan.  I would love to work with her.  What was she thinking?”

“I’m not sure what she was thinking, but I know what I’m thinking.”

“Should I be afraid to ask?”

“I don’t think so.  You may even be proud of me.”

“Alright, spill it.”

“Well, I think the Foundation needs to expand.”

“Like how?”

“I was thinking of starting something called Nathan’s House.”

“Nathan’s House?”

“Yeah, I think it’s time to use the land for something meaningful.  I think I want to build a house, maybe more on the neighboring land and open it up for the kids in the foster system.”

“Like a big foster home.  They have things like that Nathan, they are called group homes, and many of the kids have a bad taste in their mouth when it comes to them. 
Usually,
kids are dumped in the group homes when the foster system doesn’t work out for them.  You have to come up with something else.”

“No, I think I have the right idea. 
Building homes on the neighboring land, finding foster families with good records in the foster care system and allow them to live there, mortgage-free
.  Not having that bill would give them an incentive to actually be positive influences in the children's lives.  I want them to help the kids in the home, not hurt them.  We can increase the equestrian area, teach riding
, and make it, so the kids feel like it’s an actual home with perks
and privileges.  We can make
it,
so they have the normal childhoods they deserve.  I’m sure between you, me, and Laney, we can make it happen.”    

“That’s going to take a lot of money.  More than what the Foundation makes in a season.  We are going to have to fundraise year round.  This is going to be a lot bigger than what we have now, Nathan.  This is a
full-time gig, not just a hobby.”

“That’s perfect.  I think Laney would be on board with it.  She has the need to help people, and I think her need to help children is greater than her need to help her patients.  I think this is her calling, Nat.  I want to support her one hundred percent.”

“Well, count me in.”

“Good.  Oh, how is the party planning coming along?  I’m sorry I haven’t had the chance to get with you on it.”

“Oh please, the girls are going to love what you have planned.  I was more than happy to make it happen.  Everything is set.  I just need the guests of honor to be here an hour early next Saturday.” 

“I want the kids who were here tonight to be invited as well.  I’m not sure how many other friends the girls have, but they seemed to have hit it off with the kids here tonight.  I think they would like to see them again.” 

“Consider it done, brother of mine.”

It’s been one week since the charity event,
and I still have the desire to help with the Foundation in some capacity.  I spoke to my uncle and cousins first thing this morning about needing the financial backing of Jacobs’ Cattle and Oil when it comes time to figure out what I want to do.  My cousin wasn’t too keen on the idea of using
Jacobs
money up here in New York when there are so many children who are in need down south.  When I told him that I planned on continuing my work down in Oklahoma once I figure out what I want to do, they were more gung ho on the idea. Getting the Jacobs name out in the big city was a good plan from a business aspect.  They think the more the Jacobs name is known, the bigger their cattle business grows.  My uncle doesn’t see why Jacobs Oil can’t one day be traded on the stock market.  Personally, I don’t see that happening in his lifetime or my own, but who am I to shoot down his dreams.  I just know that my daddy wouldn’t want our family to sell out to the flash that’s New York. 

The house is quiet as I continue to drink my coffee and watch the city come to life down below.  The quiet is calming.  I know it won’t be much longer until the girls are up jumping around with the excitement of what today means.  It’s been two weeks now, and if everything is healing right
, Addie
gets to have a walking cast, leaving those crutches in the trash.  I have felt so bad for my baby these past two weeks.  Her arms are always tired.  The bruises and red spots are never ending.  I smell him before I see him.  Fresh out of the shower, Nathan comes into the living room. 
“Good Morning, love.”
  He leans down and places a kiss on my forehead.  I love the feeling of his lips upon my skin.  “How did you sleep?”

“Well, after the workout you gave me last night. I’m surprised I’m awake as early as I am.”

“It’s because of that workout that you are able to sleep so soundly.  I
don’t think you moved all night.”

“It must be all that cum, it’s like a natural sedative.”

“A sedative, huh?
 
Well,
that’s a first. Maybe we can market it.  The slogan can be, “My man’s cum, the meme maker.”