The China Doll (4 page)

"Excuse me ma’am, I can help you here."
Miranda was startled out of her reverie and apologetically placed
her order. She waited to pick it up, still humming, rubbing the
back of her neck unconsciously. She floated as she made her way out
of the crowded coffee shop. Music—that was one thing that helped,
if only for a little while.

As Miranda came up the stairs, Richard was
walking out. "Thanks," he said, grabbing a coffee and Danish from
her.

"Uh, you’re welcome?" Miranda said, but
Richard didn’t turn around. He walked down the stairs and
disappeared from view.

Miranda shook her head when she saw Emily.
She handed her a soy almond steamer. "Did I miss something?"

Emily shook her head and sipped her beverage.
"Um, yeah, but I don’t know what it was. I asked how Jessie was
liking her classes so far, and I told him that if Joanna was giving
her a hard time she should let me know."

"I didn’t know Jessie was taking a class with
Professor Hazlett."

"Yeah, she is. I didn’t know it was a secret!
But if you could have seen the look on Richard’s face when I
confirmed that Jessie was...whoo." She shook her head. "I don’t
think I’ve ever—" And then she looked up at Miranda.

"What?"

"I have seen him like that, actually. Once.
And I didn’t see him." She nodded to herself as she remembered. "It
was the day I got the job with Joanna. We were on the phone, and
he—" She sighed in frustration. "He knew her first name. He said
he’d had a class with her, but I didn’t believe him. He seemed
upset. But I didn’t have a chance to ask, because that was the
night he met Zainab." She shook her head. "What’s up with Joanna
Hazlett and Richard?"

"I don’t know," Miranda said, genuinely
confused. "I don’t think I’ve ever heard him mention her name."

Miranda was wracking her brain when the phone
rang. Vijay picked it up. "Just a second please. Miranda, it’s Alex
Sheldon for you."

Miranda sighed. "I guess I need to take that.
He’s our biggest investor."

Emily put her hand on the phone. "I can take
those calls too, you know."

Miranda shook her head and grabbed the
receiver. "But he asked for me." She pushed the correct button for
his line. "Good morning, Alex. Did you sleep well?"

Jessie threw her notebook onto the desk and
sat down into the chair. She absently rubbed her pen between her
hands. Why did she still feel guilty? She’d made breakfast this
morning for Richard, Zainab and Miranda. Miranda said thank you.
Miranda smiled. Miranda gave her a kiss on the cheek as she left,
just like she always did. Jessie sighed. Always, as of two years
ago. Before that she hadn’t come out of her room. Before that she’d
been tormenting herself with her own loneliness. Miranda, who had
always been so good to her, who went to the mat with Alex and Lucy.
To protect her from Michael.

Jessie flipped her pen in the air and caught
it. She’d been out of it when that had happened. She couldn’t
understand. But Emily didn’t understand either. And Zainab, who had
seen so much of it, hadn’t given a better explanation than a shrug
and an acknowledgement that they’d loved each other. Jessie
scowled. Sometimes she hated Zainab for being so God damned
nonjudgmental.

"Careful with that," someone said. Jessie
jumped and her pen crashed to the floor. A man with red hair and a
wicked smile bent over and picked it up. "Careful. You might poke
your eye out."

Jessie smiled back and grabbed the pen.
"That’s if you’re running. With a pencil."

"I stand corrected. So let me guess, you’re
the class know-it-all?"

"Not yet—it’s just the first day."

"Oh, so I’m going to have to watch out for
you."

He had to be at least twenty-five. "Well, if
you play your cards right, I might let you look at some of my
work." She winked conspiratorially. "We’ll make sure you finally
graduate."

"Oh, I guarantee I’ll be looking at all of
your work."

"Wow, aren’t we overconfident? Don’t you
think you should at least buy me some coffee first?"

He leaned in, still smiling. "I’m Professor
Hazlett’s teaching assistant for this class," he whispered.

She looked up. "I never would have guessed,"
she said honestly. "Lucky me. I guess that means I’m going to have
to come in for a lot of extra help." She stuck out her hand.
"Jessie Bartolome."

His hand went limp. "Bartolome?"

"Oh, Jesus!" Jessie rolled her eyes. "Yes,
that Bartolome. My great-grandfather was one of the founders, my
grandfather had some building dedicated to him, and then my aunt
went and had another one built after he died. But don’t worry, I
haven’t gotten anyone fired for flirting with me—yet."

"Good to know," he mumbled as he moved to the
front of the room.

Before Jessie could get up, Joanna Hazlett
walked into class. "Good morning! Glad to see all of you made it on
time today." The door opened and two people walked in. "Or just
about," she smiled. "Please be on time from now on. Attendance is
part of your overall grade, and tardiness will count against you."
She clapped her hand. "Okay, onto the good stuff. This is Greek
Mythology, Level Three. We are way past who was an Olympian and who
was a Titan. We have moved on from the Odyssey and the Trojan War.
I’ve picked just a few epics and myths, but now we are going to dig
deep. I don’t just want you to know our myths by the time we’re out
of here. I want you to understand them. I want you to see the
archetypes. I want you to be inspired. And that, dear friends, is
part of your grade too. Not just for my class—I’m the only one
telling you about it though. How am I going to judge inspiration?
By reading your papers. And just to make sure that I catch
everything, I have a new teaching assistant for this class.
Everyone, this is Bobby Lester, and he’s pretty sharp."

There were a couple of quiet groans, but no
one left while Professor Hazlett gave out the initial assignment
and preliminary lecture. Jessie took notes, but she kept stealing
glances at Bobby. A couple of times, she was sure he was looking at
her too, but he always looked away. Jessie smiled throughout the
class.

Professor Hazlett asked Jessie to stay back
when the class was over. "Miss Bartolome, I see from your records
that you’re only a sophomore. Did you miss the note that said that
this class was for third-years and up?"

Jessie took a deep breath. She wasn’t going
to be coquettish with her professor. "I didn’t miss it, Professor
Hazlett. But your class came highly recommended to me, and I really
wanted to take it."

"And of course the registrar’s office isn’t
going to use the same fine-toothed comb that they should against
someone whose last name is Bartolome," Professor Hazlett said
sternly.

"I suppose not," Jessie said simply. "I
didn’t realize I needed to use an alias when I registered."

"I’m sure you would have found a way in no
matter what," Professor Hazlett said. "But now that you’ve found
your way in, I don’t care what your last name is and I don’t care
whether you’ve had the prerequisites. You’re going to be held to
the same standard as everyone else in this class. Is that
clear?"

"Perfectly."

"But just in case, I’d like you to set up
some time during my TA’s office hours. I’ll let him be the one to
determine whether or not you’re up for this class."

Jessie could hardly restrain herself. "If you
think that’s best," she said quietly.

"I do. Please make an appointment—tomorrow.
He and I have a couple of things to go over now."

"Thank you Professor," Jessie said as she
gathered her books. She didn’t look at Bobby, but she smirked when
she passed him. She practically skipped out of the building and
dialed Emily’s number. "Oh my God, Em—you didn’t tell me Hazlett
had such hotties for her TAs!"

As soon as the door closed, Joanna turned to
Bobby. "Do you know her, Bob?"

"I just met her today," he said, holding up
his hand as if taking an oath.

"That’s good. Because I think I’ve made my
expectations quite clear."

"You have. But you have to understand, I’ve
got to have a certain amount of latitude, or this isn’t going to
work."

"Just keep it professional, that’s all I
ask."

"Thanks Joanna, but I know how to do my job."
He gathered his things, then walked out. Joanna sighed when he
left. It was too late to reconsider. She just hoped that she hadn’t
made a mistake.

Tom Bartolome invited Alex Sheldon out to
dinner shortly after Alex’s graduation. Tom had been Alex’s sponsor
in their fraternity. Alex had thought it would be a good place to
meet people. Stephen had joined for a little while, but he left
when even he thought it got out of hand.

Stephen didn’t approve of Tom and Alex didn’t
blame him. Stephen had a wild streak which Alex frequently found
amusing. Tom, on the other hand, had a mean streak which both of
the younger men found repulsive. It was one thing to earn a slap at
the end of an evening. It was another to make a woman cry—and like
it. It was only later that Alex understood why Tom unnerved him. As
for himself, he decided that someone like that could still be
useful—as long as he could be controlled.

Tom, tall and blonde, slapped Alex on the
back when he saw him. "So, how does it feel to finally be out?"

"As if life is finally ready to begin."

"Out to conquer the world now?" Tom asked.
Alex chuckled and ordered a drink. What could Tom appreciate about
having to work for anything when everything had been handed to
him?

"Let’s talk about your latest conquests,"
Alex said lightly. "Anything new?"

Tom smirked as he picked up his second drink.
"Yeah, you could say that."

Alex was intrigued. Tom seemed unusually
satisfied with himself. "Care to give us a name?"

"Just guess."

Alex thought for a moment. He looked at Tom
through the corner of his eye. "Are you serious?" he whispered at
last. Tom shrugged and smiled. Alex was genuinely impressed. "Well,
it took you long enough," he teased. "Haven’t you been trying to
nab her since your freshman year?"

"Sophomore year," Tom corrected. "She was a
freshman."

"And I bet you put on the full court press
didn’t you?" Alex marveled. "The flowers, the chocolates, the
expensive gifts? But she didn’t want any of it. She was the one
woman who could resist your legendary Bartolome charm." Tom said
nothing but took another sip. "What finally won her over?"

"The L-word," Tom said smugly.

"She realized she’s in love with you?" Alex
was more confused than surprised.

"Wrong L-word. Leverage. Never forget it, and
always make sure that you’re the one who has it." He drained his
drink. "Because it can make all the difference."

They ordered their food, then Alex leaned in.
"Alright, Tom. What have you got?"

Tom started in on his third drink. "You have
to promise," Tom said with a little wink, "that this will stay our
little secret."

"That good, hmm?"

Tom smirked. "That good."

Alex nodded. "Go on."

Five minutes later, Alex could not stop
grinning, but he did try not to laugh. "Wow. And of course, you
weren’t supposed to tell a soul, right?"

"Of course," Tom said. "As far as I’m
concerned, you’re just a pink elephant I started talking to, and
I’ll deny everything if it ever comes up."

"Just call me Dumbo," Alex said before he and
Tom clinked glasses.

Martin waved to Zainab when she came into
Princess Cappuccino. "Hey," she smiled as she put her bag down. She
grabbed a latte and sat down. "What's up?"

Martin shrugged. "Just wanted to see how you
were doing. Since we're both Hellie's godparents, I figure we have
a responsibility to look out for each other. You know, just in
case."

Zainab laughed. "You mean in case Emily kills
Mitch and spends the rest of her life in prison?"

Martin smiled. "Is there anyone that would
give Mitch the upper hand in a struggle between those two?"

Zainab shook her head. "She could freeze his
heart with one look, so no."

Martin opened his hands. "So you see, it's
really important the two of us are on top of our game."

Zainab smiled and leaned back. "Alright, so
tell me about you. How's grad school treating you?"

Martin sighed. "A lot of reading, a lot of
writing, but I can't really complain. Better than college—at least
it's what I want to study, not just a bunch of core requirements."
He smiled. "How are you?"

Zainab shrugged. "Work is challenging, but I
like it. I still feel like I have a lot to learn, but my supervisor
is very open to all of my questions. And I like that it's
busy."

Martin leaned forward. "Uh huh. But how are
you?"

Zainab's smile wavered. "I'm fine, Martin.
Thanks for asking."

If Zainab had been Emily, she would have
snarked at him by now about Jessie to get him to leave her alone.
But Zainab wasn't Emily. "Is fine the same as happy?"

Zainab inhaled. "It is sometimes."

"It wasn't at Hellie's party."

"Were you listening in at the door when you
should have been making sure Hellie didn't take flying leaps off of
Mitch?"

"I kept Hellie and Richard's house extremely
safe, thank you, all while letting Mitch get some well-deserved
rest. Anything you guys were saying about your sex lives was
completely safe from me." Zainab's eyes widened. "What?" Martin
laughed. "What else would you three have been talking about for so
long?"

Zainab laughed which made Martin smile.
"Good, Zainab. I haven't seen you laugh in a while."

Zainab took a sip of her latte. "Well, thank
you. It feels good to do it."