Bedrock (7 page)

“So I hear you’re coming home today.”

“Yep, I’ve been given the all clear. They’re finishing my
discharge paperwork now.”

On the ride home, they mostly talked logistics, matter of factly.
Both of them steered clear of any and all emotion.

“So . . . Tell me about your new job. I assume you’ve decided to
take it.”

Addie relayed the details of the job, the ones she knew anyway.
Patrick explained that he’d be leaving for China in about two weeks and would
do whatever he needed to do to make her transition back to work go smoothly for
everyone even though he didn’t quite understand why she insisted on working, since
he made more than enough money for her to stay at home, and he didn’t get why
she wasn’t happy just being a mom.

Addie ignored his last comment and stared out the window instead.
There was no point in beating a dead horse, she figured. Patrick dropped her
off at home, explaining that he had to get back to the office and that his
mother would be dropping the kids off in a few hours.

As Patrick bent to kiss her goodbye, she decided that today was a
good as day as any to start letting go. When he went to kiss her lips, she
turned her head and gave him her cheek. Unfortunately for her, he was in such a
hurry that he didn’t even seem to notice.

The following few days went by in a blur. The news spread fast.
Addie found herself answering phone calls from friends and family who were
curious to find out if the news was true. After a handful or so, she stopped
picking up the phone. She was living silently in her very own version of hell.
Her marriage was in shambles, so very far from where she’d ever imagined it as
she’d said “I do” underneath the willows. The last thing she wanted or needed
was to have to comfort others or explain to them that everything was going to
be fine. So she lied. She told them that, while they knew that the upcoming
year would be hard, military families did it all the time and they were excited
for what the opportunity meant for Patrick’s career.

Perhaps, she told herself, if she repeated this enough, she might
even begin to believe it too.

William Hartman was not a patient man. He’d never had
to be. An only child, his father had bailed while he was still too young to
know any different. Luckily, for him, his mother had married well—all five
times. She married one Wall Street banker after another, each of them having a
range of feelings towards William, ranging from disdain to indifference. He
would tell you, of all of them, indifference was the worst.

William attended the best private schools that money could buy
and eventually the best boarding school in the country. While he was still at
home, he studied his mother’s husbands, listening to their conversations and
learning all things business. He understood that to get ahead you had to wall
yourself off, show no emotion, and beat them at their own game. Second best did
not a winner make. So that’s what he did. After graduating from Harvard, he
started his business, Hartman Enterprises, and began buying up businesses that
were on the verge of failing. He bought low and sold high, dabbling in real
estate as well. He was a natural at knowing what to do, what to say in order to
get what he wanted. Soon, he was well-known for having one of the best real
estate and business portfolios in the United States. By age thirty, he made the
Forbes list as one of the world’s youngest billionaires. Sure, his personal
life was nearly non-existent. He had very few close friends, and, while there
was no shortage of women in his life, he rarely dated any of them twice.
William had a philosophy about mixing business with pleasure, and, since his
world revolved around business, he found this fairly easy to manage.

Until the day he met Addison Greyer. He pegged her wrong, never
imaging that she’d have sex with him in an elevator and then refuse to return
his calls or answer his emails. That was his game. And he’d never been beaten
at his own game. Had she not been injured, he told himself, he never would’ve
paid it any further attention. But as the days went on and he thought about
their encounter, he couldn’t get her out of his mind.

He sent her flowers in the hospital and on her first day of work,
which she ignored. And the more she ignored him, the more interesting she
became. Women just didn’t treat him this way. It never happened. So he was
taken aback and all the more intrigued when it did. The thing about William was
that he trusted his intuition, and, when it told him to pursue something, he
did.

Seven

The days until Patrick’s departure were flying by in a
blur. Addie found herself collapsing from sheer exhaustion each evening, which
made it fairly easy to put what she had dubbed “The Elevator Event” out of her
mind, despite the fact that Mr. Hartman had called and emailed several times.
Addie hadn’t read the messages, instead forwarding them off to a folder to be
opened and dealt with later, when things settled down.

A week before Patrick was scheduled to leave for China, Addie
started her new job. The Carlisle Agency was an upscale placement service,
which supplied household staff, everything ranging from a single cleaning lady
or butler to full-service staff, capable of managing entire estates. Addie’s
job in particular was to interview potential clients, to understand their needs,
and then sell them on the agency.

Thankfully, she used the agency to find nanny extraordinaire,
Kelsey, to care for the boys and considered it beneficial to have gone through
the entire process and client experience herself.

It took some getting used to, having to be somewhere every day,
but overall, she was getting acclimated to being in an office again. It wasn’t
hard. Her office was beautiful, overlooking the Austin Skyline. Spacious and
contemporarily decorated, Addie did admit to feeling a little out of place, a
little undeserving of such luxury. In addition, there was something about her
colleagues that made her a little uneasy. There were ten women in her office
and three men. All of whom were beautiful enough that they could easily grace
the cover of the latest fashion magazine. Apparently, they only hired beautiful
people, which added slightly to Addie’s insecurity. Sure, she was pretty—she
had always been told so, anyway. She knew that what she wasn’t lacking in the
beauty department she was lacking in sheer confidence. On her second day of
work, her boss Sondra Sheehan barged into her office and ordered her to follow.
Addie was led to a conference room that had been set up to mimic a small
fashion show. There were clothing racks and shoes everywhere. Soon people were
circling her, measuring her body in more ways than she imagined possible. Addie
took a step back, motioning for the team to give her space. “Whoa. What’s going
on here?”

Addie couldn’t help but notice the disdain cross Sondra’s face. Next
to her, a petite man, who Addie knew as Javier, Sondra’s assistant, cleared his
throat. “Honey, there is no particularly nice way to say this, but your style
is absolutely dreadful.”

Addie cocked her head to the side, a mixture of annoyance and
confusion on her face. Admittedly, she thought she looked pretty good. “I’m not
sure what you mean.”

Sondra shook her head before finally throwing her hands in the
air. “I knew this one would be trouble.”

Javier chimed in. “Look, everyone within the agency has a
clothing budget. We just figured you could use some help: a makeover of sorts.
Consider it our gift to you.”

Addie shifted her weight from foot to foot and surveyed the room.
“That’s really nice, but I’m pretty sure this is all unnecessary. Really, I can
manage fine shopping on my own.”

Sondra slammed her hand against the massive mahogany table. Hard.
“For God’s sake, Mrs. Greyer. You are in sales. And your taste is shit. Javier
may have put it nicely, but I won’t. You are a representative of this agency, and
you will look and behave like it at all times. Do you understand?”

Addie felt the sting of her words, but, determined not to let her
emotions show, she simply replied. “Well, when you put it like that, it all
makes so much sense. Although, I have to question your judgment a little, seeing
that you are the one who hired me.”

Ms. Sheehan turned and left the room just as abruptly as she had
entered; Javier gave Addie a look of warning as he trailed right behind. Addie
knew she irritated Sondra. She knew that her words were out of line, so it only
added to her confusion as she noticed the slightest hint of a smile playing on
Sondra’s face as she rounded the corner. If Addie hadn’t known better, she’d
swear that there was a hint of satisfaction in it.

The day of Patrick’s departure had finally arrived and
Addie hadn’t slept all night long. She tossed and she turned. She stared at the
ceiling. She considered telling Patrick about the elevator incident, thinking
maybe she should come clean. She considered not telling him and begging him to
stay instead. Finally, by four a.m., she dragged herself out of bed, went
downstairs, and made some tea. After filling her cup, she sat down at the table
and opened her laptop, figuring Google might give her an inkling of what to do.
She laughed to herself, considering the phrases she might use.
“Husband
leaving family for a year” or “Wife is a cheater. Should she come clean?

Still, her thoughts led her back to William and their time in the
elevator. Curiosity got the best of her and she opened the folder she’d set up
for emails to go in to.
Six emails.
Addie clicked on the first.

From: William B. Hartman

Date: 6/12/12

To: Addison Greyer

Subject: Thinking of you

Dear Addison,

I’ve tried calling several times with no luck. I wanted to
visit you in the hospital, but I thought better of it, not wanting to make
matters any worse. I felt a little better knowing that you were given a clean
bill of health. Hopefully, you received the flowers I sent: orchids. I hear
they are your favorite.

I was wondering if you would like to have dinner. I understand
that your life situation may preclude this, but I can’t stop thinking of you
and was hoping to get to know you a little better. Clothes on this time, I
promise.

Sincerely,

William

What the hell? Who does he think he is?
Addie had to admit
she was flattered and intrigued, but, seriously, who was this guy?
And how
did he know personal details about her life?
Sure, she knew that he was
some big shot who came from a wealthy family. Hell, the building was named
after them. She knew that he’d put in a good word for her, basically landing
her the job, but, in all honesty, Addie hadn’t really thought beyond that. For
the most part, she tried to keep from thinking about him, to think about everything
but
him. And on the other hand, she’d been too busy just trying to survive
the last week that she hadn’t given it much thought. Now, she decided to do a
Google search of a different kind. Up popped his Wikipedia page, complete with
a photo. Addie gasped, the wind knocked out of her. She remembered him being
gorgeous, but seeing him there up on the screen staring at her took her aback.
In the photo, his hair was shorter. It looked to have been taken a few years
ago. Addie read about him, shocked that not only was he a billionaire but that the
building she worked in wasn’t his family’s. It was
his. Dinner, of course,
he wants to have dinner. She knew his type. At least she thought she did,
anyway. No thank you.
Addie closed out and shut the screen, frustrated.
Angry with herself, for being so stupid.

“What’cha doin’ down here.”

Addie jumped, feeling Patrick come up behind her, slipping his
arms around her waist.

“Damn it, Patrick. You scared the shit out of me.”

Patrick laughed. “Sorry. Couldn’t help myself.

“I couldn’t sleep.” Addie replied, unable to mask the irritation
in her voice.

“You should’ve woken me.”

Addie rolled her eyes. Patrick grabbed her by the hand. “Come
back to bed.”

Patrick led Addie upstairs where they argued about the reality of
their situation. Shouting, tears, and harsh words were all involved. Patrick
accused Addie of making this out to be a bigger deal than it was. The argument
ended with Addie admitting that she couldn’t promise to wait around, immediately
regretting it after she said it. Seeing the hurt on Patrick’s face, she did the
one thing she knew to do and initiated sex. It saved them every time, and she
prayed it’d work this time too.

Addie was able to finally doze off sometime before daybreak. She
awoke to the sound of her alarm, unsure exactly how long she had been asleep. Then
came the day Patrick was leaving and the realization stung. Later she would
drive him to the airport to board the flight that would take him halfway around
the world. To another way of life. To another time zone. It would be almost
three months before she would see him again, before the boys saw him again or
hugged his neck, and it broke her heart. While Connor mostly understood that
Daddy was leaving and that it would be months before he saw him again, Addie
knew deep down that, at age seven, he didn’t fully grasp the concept of time
and he had no idea what almost four months was like. And the twins had no idea.
Yes, they knew that Daddy was getting on an airplane and would be gone for a
while, but Addie and Patrick were aware that the twins were too young to
comprehend what this meant. Addie had tried to prepare them as best she could.
She bought a kid calendar like the ones in preschool classrooms that marked the
days until Daddy left and until his return.

Suddenly, sounds of the kids filled the house. She could hear
Patrick downstairs talking to them.
Up and at ’em.
She forced herself
out of bed. All Addie knew was that she had to get through this day for the
kids—to make it as normal as possible for them. Addie and the boys planned to
accompany Patrick to the airport. She debated calling the nanny and having her
come over while Addie took Patrick, but she wanted the boys to have closure, to
see that Daddy was getting on an airplane, not just walking out the door,
forcing their imaginations to fill in the rest. Of course, there would be phone
calls, Face Time, and Skype, but it wasn’t the same.

On the way to the airport, the boys did most, if not all, of the
talking. “Daddy, where is China?”

Patrick smiled but didn’t take his eyes off of Addie. “China is
located on the continent of Asia.”

Connor thought for a minute. “What’s it like there?”

“Well, there are people. Lots of people. And Chinese food.”

Once they arrived at the airport, the boys shifted their
questions away from China and began fielding questions about airplanes. Patrick
continued answering them, all the while still staring at Addie. It was as if he
was taking her in, memorizing her. Whatever it was, it made her uneasy. She was
afraid that she would crack again, the way she had last night, with little or
no warning. And that was the last thing she needed.

Addie parked and got out to help Patrick unload his luggage. She
and the kids walked him to the first security gate where they said their
goodbyes. Connor hugged Patrick with tears in his eyes. Patrick hugged him back
and told him that he would call as soon as he landed and not to worry that he
had left a special gift on his bed.

The gift had actually been Addie’s idea. She figured that it
would give them something to look forward to after coming home to an empty
house. She suggested stuffed bears, so that they had something of which they
could attach to Patrick and hug when they missed him. What Addie did not expect
was that Patrick would go out and get them a puppy. She was furious Patrick had
gone behind her back without so much as consulting her and gotten a dog. By the
time she found out about it, he’d already made arrangements for Mrs. Johnson,
the neighbor, to keep the puppy until they left for the airport. Once they left,
she would then put the puppy in their laundry room until she and the boys
arrived home. Alone.

Addie knew about the five stages of grief one supposedly goes
though during a major life change: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and
Acceptance. Oddly enough, she seemed to skip the first stage and landed herself
smack dab in the middle of the anger stage. After all, Patrick was already
leaving her with so much responsibility. Did he really think she needed a puppy
to top it all off?

“Earth to Addie.” Patrick called to her, just as one of the twins
slammed into her legs.

Too distracted by all that took place inside of an airport, the
twins refused to hug Patrick goodbye. Patrick hugged Addie so tight that she
could barely breathe. He smiled and stepped back, eyeing her up and down. “I
love you. I’ll call just as soon as I land. Can’t wait to hear how they react
to our surprise.”

“I love you too.” Addie said almost inaudibly, choking out the
words.

She looked down, unable to meet his eyes, afraid that she
couldn’t keep the tears at bay. He lifted her chin, searched her eyes, and when
he was satisfied, he kissed her. She kissed back, harder than she had intended
to.

“Ew!” The boys shouted in unison.

“I better go.” He said “Bye, guys. Love you.”

And with those words, Patrick turned and headed toward the
security line, glanced back once, and winked at Addie. She stood for a few
minutes, watching him move up in line until the boys got antsy and started to wander
off. “All right boys, grab hands and let’s go. We have something waiting at
home we’d better get to.” As soon as she said it, she considered that perhaps
Patrick was right in getting the dog. She was glad that there was something for
them to look forward to at home, knowing that the smiles on their faces would
help mend her broken heart.