The Pandora Affair Page 3

  Well? Say something, damn you.

  “As I was saying, I do not want you to waitress…I need an assistant to do my errands for me and the restaurant. I think you would work out, you’ve got attitude. You tell people what’s on your mind not caring who they are. That could be dangerous in the service field. But it could be an advantage being an assistant. I don’t like dealing with certain people…it seems you handle yourself pretty well. So maybe we can work something out. The only thing with this job, it’s very demanding but very rewarding. You would be put on as full time staff at the restaurant, which entitles you to full health and dental benefits, 401k and paid vacation. I will set you up in a new apartment close to the restaurant and get you a new car; you will need to have reliable transportation.” His newfound professionalism conjured a new feeling inside her.

  Nausea maybe?

  “You don’t expect me to…to” She hesitated, her body language unsure of how to react, her hands flopping around her sides like an out of the water flounder “I didn’t even realize it was an option. It’s strictly business,” he said before she could finish. “I will have to think about it, if I refuse do I need to look for another job?” she questioned. “If you refuse, you need your head examined because you’ve got a screw loose.” His sarcasm brought a potential pout to her alluring face. “Think about it and don’t forget to punch out before you leave.” Turning his back to her, he settled himself back into his chair. She left without a word. He glanced over his shoulder watching her leave through the slowly closing office door. He could only wonder what triggered the reaction to make her flinch. He had an idea, nothing he could confirm without chasing her further away.

  She left the restaurant at six o’clock in the evening and sat waiting at the bus stop across the street. She wasn’t sure what she was waiting for anymore. It seemed as though the opportunity she was waiting for knocked, but she stood there watching through the peephole in case something wasn’t right. It seemed so unfair to her that she had to be so fearful of something new. She thought to herself for a minute, maybe she should just dive in headfirst. If anything seemed remotely odd she would bail out quicker than the dive in. She still had a hefty amount of cash stashed away for such emergencies.

  Many buses had come and gone but she continued to sit there thinking about the business proposition offered to her. She would be obtuse not to take advantage of this kind of opportunity. But she did not want him thinking that he could treat her any way he wanted just because he gave her this job. She wasn’t quite sure why he would choose her. He did say strictly business so what was stopping her? Maybe it was the strictly business part. She was very lonely and he had been nothing but nice to her, aside from the getting her fired and his overbearing sense of derision. His personality was a bit too strong for her liking but in no way was he unfortunate looking. Not unfortunate looking at all. She almost got sick to her stomach, relishing the thought of considering a man she actually loathed. She pleaded temporary insanity due to overbearing desperation.

  She figured he stood 6’2 with dark brown hair, light brown eyes and a nice tan. He looked Italian to her. His masculine build was well defined. His body language suggested he was very easy going, but he had swiftness to him that confused her whole thought process. Most importantly he aggravated her beyond all belief.

  From the parking lot across the street James sat in his 2012 black SUV. He took notice of her 1984 black coupe sitting in his lot. He continued to watch her, deciding he could not leave her there without his conscience giving him a mental ass kicking. He finally started up the engine, pulling out of the parking lot making a u-turn right in the middle of the street. This time of night on this particular street it was easy for him to break any traffic laws without getting caught, hopefully. He sat there for a minute in front of her deciding the best approach to use.

  “You know the point of a bus stop, is the bus comes and goes, not the station…people get on and off to get to their destination and eventually they may even get there if the bus doesn’t break down,” he clearly stated to her as she blankly looked back at him, easily getting lost in his big soft brown eyes. His attempt to make her smile failed. Not once since they first met at the coffee shop had she smiled. It must be lonely being that unhappy James thought to himself. Yet, he gave her a reassuring smile anyway.

  “Don’t you have somewhere to be?” A proverbial feeling built a block wall instantaneously; she knew this pattern all too well. “Not until tomorrow morning at nine. Roger is opening up shop and I get to sleep in. Let me give you a ride home, I don’t think ole Betsy over there has the energy,” James said as he hiked his thumb over his shoulder at her car. She glanced over to her car wishing it to just start up and drive itself over. Then reality kicked in. “I’m fine.” The harsh words trotted through her lips as she stood and started to walk away from the bus stop. He guessed she was attempting to walk home. “Look, it’s not safe for you to walk home.” His voice sounded genuinely concerned for her well-being, or he could be a great actor, she thought to herself.

  Samantha continued to walk up the block. He followed close behind her in the SUV, almost as though he knew she would give in. Her facial expression suggested exhaustion. As the street grew darker farther down she slowed her pace and turned to him, trying to think of a way to keep her dignity. “Fine, I’ll take a ride home only because I want you to quit staring at my backside and it doesn’t mean I’ll take the job,” she protested as she climbed in, jerking the heavy door closed. “Fine, fine, I just don’t want you walking home alone. You can tell me tomorrow morning whether you will take the job or not, when I pick you up for work, that is.” She shot him a sideways glare but said nothing. He had some nerve assuming that he was taking her to work in the morning. Rationalizing her thoughts, she knew it would be easier than taking four different buses and leaving three hours early. As much as she wanted to say something to him, she acknowledged that he seemed to be a decent person. It was a long, uncomfortably silent ride home.

  Samantha lived in the part of town that the police were even afraid to patrol. He insisted on walking her to the door. She did not say goodnight, she just shut the door on him. There was something going on with her, and he wanted so badly to figure it out. He would figure it out, maybe not tonight, but soon. Peeking through her bedroom curtains, she watched him get into his $50,000 SUV. Her tiny one bedroom apartment in the middle of L.A. echoed with the fire of gunshots, the sound as normal as children playing in the park. As he drove off she decided to accept his offer, hoping she made the right decision. God knows she had made enough tragic ones.

  Chapter 3

  “Good morning! Coffee?” James greeted her at her door when she opened it to grab the morning paper. She stared at him in utter disbelief. Who the hell did he think he was? She was not even dressed. “What are you doing here? It’s not even 8am.” His eyes wandered to the inside of her robe that so generously opened as she bent over to pick up her paper. “It’s my turn to bring you coffee, but I can actually keep it in the cup….mostly because they put lids on. We can get acquainted while you get ready for work.” Her eyes rolled as she walked away from him.

  “Drinking coffee stains my teeth and getting acquainted means the possibility of becoming friends. I don’t plan on doing either.” She turned and stared at him. James took a quick look at both coffees and then back to her. “Okay, more for me,” he responded as though it didn’t even faze him. It was clear that being difficult was not working for her. Samantha let out a heavy breath, almost attempting to give up. Almost.

  “Have you decided to take me up on my offer?” He inquired, not helping but to notice how well rounded she looked in her silk robe, how it accentuated her breasts.

  It took all the restraint he had to just look away as she tightened her belt. “Why, are you being so nice to me, you don’t even know me.” “Have you ever thought maybe I am just a nice guy? Maybe it’s my turn to be nice to someone else. Hasn’t anyone been nice to you before
?” His words echoed in her mind. Hasn’t anyone been nice to you before? Her vacant stare made him wonder even more about her untold secrets.

  She disappeared to her bedroom to change into something less comfortable, leaving his question un-answered for the time being. She was trying to avoid answering him for as long as possible. Thoughts of his sincerity plagued her. She wondered if he had some alternative motive for offering her this prospective position. Samantha had trouble convincing herself it would be different this time, she would be aware of any warning signs leading to trouble this time. She wasn’t sure what thought process he was using for his impulsive decision making to want to hire her as an assistant. He stood to lose a lot himself, willing to take a chance on someone he barely knew. Could he be showing her that maybe his heart was in the right place? She knew exactly where her heart resided and it was far from here, locked in a place where it could never get hurt.

  Samantha emerged several minutes later wearing a white sleeveless top that hugged her body, jeans and her white sandals which were a perfect complement to her outfit. James had helped himself to her couch and her tiny dog. He looked over doing a double take, unable to think of anything appropriate to say. He said the first thing non- sexual that came to his mind. “This is the smallest dog I’ve ever seen!” He stood fluently without a sound. Handing her the dog, and then making his way to the door. ”Let’s get the show on the road!” James hurried out the door trying to take his attention off her before he said something he would surely get slapped for. She held her itty bitty Chihuahua in front of her looking right into her eyes. “This is the first day of the rest of our new life!” Samantha kissed Baby on the head and sat her down in her bag, slipped the bag over her shoulder while she locked the front door and followed James out to the SUV.

  He stood at his SUV holding the door open for her, waiting for her to slide in. As she approached the dull ache in his groin only got worse. Her soft hand touched his forearm for support as she stepped up into his vehicle. He looked down avoiding any eye contact, cursing the fact he found her so attractive. Samantha secured herself with the seatbelt. He did a quick check to make sure it was safe to close the door. She found the new car smell intoxicating. She surveyed the rearview mirror hoping to catch a glimpse of him as he came around. Surreptitiously he opened the driver side door giving her a slight scare. Never before had she witnessed someone move so quickly.

  The faint, sweet scent of his appealing cologne intrigued her once again. His shirt defined his masculine arms. While he drove Samantha studied his strong, flawless jaw line, his Adam’s apple perfected his profile. Just as he would turn to her she would glance away, evading his persuasive gaze. She kept trying to remember the fact that she couldn’t stand this man.

  “So did you make a decision?” James asked, interrupting her train of thought. He knew her brief hesitation was the confirmation he was hoping for. “As long as you have a lawyer draw up what my responsibilities include and what they do not include, and we both agree to the terms and we sign it. No exceptions. I will accept. If for any reason I feel the job is not working out I can terminate the business relationship and go back to my old job without prejudice,” she announced without hesitation, focusing on his reaction. “Sounds well thought out and perfectly fair,” James commented without taking his eyes off the road. He picked up his cell phone, dialing up his lawyer to meet him at the restaurant, ready and waiting with the papers appropriately drawn up, no questions asked.

  Darrin Maples was a witty, little, old, bald man. He went over everything in the contract with her to make sure she understood her rights as his employee and his rights as an employer. He stopped every so often, asking her if she had any special requests to be included. She was impressed with the way it was drawn up. Samantha never thought James would actually go through with making a contract. She signed her name as Samantha Anne Lockley on the dotted line with today’s date, 07/21/2012.

  “First things first!” James announced sounding as though he’d just won a triathlon. James had movers clean out her small apartment and move into her fabulous new two-bedroom apartment adjacent to the restaurant, with walk- thru closets and a Spa-sized bathtub, a stainless steel kitchen with an appliance for every occasion. They had it all done by close of the business day. It was fairly easy since she did not have her own furniture, just her clothes, some dishes and her dog. Most of the furniture was delivered in large trucks and unloaded by the company’s movers. The only thing she had to do was pick out the kind of furniture she wanted. James was an extremely good customer to get everything done the same day; the fact that he was very persuasive didn’t hurt either.

  He already had a car delivered for her, a 2012 black sports sedan fully loaded. The car had a moon roof, spoiler and CD player, not to mention it was a very reliable source of transportation. It was extremely stylish, black with tan leather interior. He had her other one towed to the nearest charity. Her eyes widened like a child in a candy store, but she held back her temptation to jump right in, for now. He made several calls to credit card companies requesting a line of credit linked to his accounts under the name Samantha Anne Lockley.

  He took her back to Pandora’s for dinner and made sure she knew how to keep the books. It seemed he now had more control over her life than she did. He had everything covered so he would be able to get a hold of her 24-hours a day if needed. She didn’t like this feeling and she wasn’t about to let her guard down. She hoped he was not actually that helpless.

  The movers had finished the deliveries and set everything up for her. Before they left they cleared out the boxes and the trash and let themselves out when they finished. James stayed behind, just watching how she reacted to such a big change in a short time. He even helped her put away new dishes and pots and pans she had bought earlier in the day. They shopped around buying her everything she might need to make her comfortable in her new home. He steered clear of any conversation that might possibly have made her uneasy.

  A good portion of the apartment had been put together in a day’s time. Everything was moving so quickly. James bought a bottle of wine while they were out to help celebrate her new house, more as a house-warming gift. He rifled through the newly bought items for some wine glasses. He rinsed them out and poured a glass for her and then himself. James looked over to her and handed her the glass.

  “To a fresh start…” He lifted his glass against hers and slammed it down as though it was a shot of bourbon. Samantha looked at him as though he was insane. “To a fresh start…” she repeated and sipped her wine. “So, do you have family here?” James asked simply enough, which managed to trigger something within Samantha. She stiffened up and set down her glass. “James, I need to get settled yet, so I think you better be going…” Her tone had changed; making him well aware he hit a sore spot. He quickly backed off. “You’re right, busy day tomorrow. I’ll see you in the morning.” He felt he deserved more than being shoved out so quickly. He felt he deserved an explanation, one he would definitely get when things settled down. Samantha watched him quickly leave, knowing he was irritated because of her sudden mood change. She could not help but to feel just a little guilty. She wasn’t ready to answer questions about her family just yet, especially to someone she barely knew. She brought the wine to her lips for another taste. Suddenly losing interest, she poured the rest in the sink, as if that rectified how she had just treated her new boss. She washed the glasses and set them in the drainer, deciding she would finish up tomorrow.

  Samantha headed back to the bedroom to make up the new bed, stopping every couple of steps, admiring the space she now occupied. She entered her over- sized bedroom and became overwhelmed with the amount of stuff she needed to find a place for. Picking up her new king- size 400 thread count sheets, she stretched the fitted sheet across the bed with ease. Her corners were tucked tight and neat. The beautiful bedspread was incredibly soft. She fell back on it and let herself finally just relax. Her bedroom had a sliding glass door that con
nected with a decent sized backyard. It was very well maintained with a six foot brick wall surrounding it for privacy and a wrought-iron gate for easy access. She had a beautiful and roomy place and she owed it all to her smart mouth. It seemed everything was finally going her way.

  She looked over at the phone by the side of her bed and just stared. The thought of “So, do you have family here?” echoed in her mind relentlessly. Picking up the phone she tried several times to dial her father’s number. Each time getting one step closer, and then hanging up. She picked the phone up for the last time and dialed it up she let it ring three times before she almost hung up.

  “Hello?” She heard a soft, deep voice answer the phone. She could not quite place it. “H-Hello? Is this the Wesley Anderson’s residence?” Samantha asked carefully. “Yes it is, may I tell him who is calling?” the voice asked. “It’s his daughter; I need to talk to him.” There was a long almost eerie silence before the voice responded. She thought maybe the phone disconnected. “Of course. Nice to finally put a voice to the stories and pictures. Your father speaks of you all the time. I’m Joseph. I take care of your father. He is sleeping right now. Shall I wake him for you?” Long silence made a shiver run through her spine.

  “No wait.” She hesitated. “You don’t want to speak with him?” “I do, but I can’t. It’s a long story and I can’t talk. Will you please just tell him I called and I love him and I miss him so much and everything is finally working out for me here and I wish he was here with me? Please tell him that I love him, please,” she begged. “Why don’t you leave me your number where he can call you and I will have him return your call as soon as he is available, then you can tell him yourself,” Joseph replied. “I can’t do that. I shouldn’t even have called him this time. Please just tell him. Goodbye.” She hung up the phone and rolled over on her extremely comfortable bed and cried herself to sleep.