Slow and Steady Wins the Race

There were a couple of uncomfortable looks from married women who saw her walking arm-in-arm with Brandon Hardaway, but no one else seemed to care. Jaydan was sure that was because there was almost always some new girl on his arm.

It was after 10 o'clock before he finally let go of her and that was only to get everyone's attention so they could sing happy birthday to Royce then shower him with gifts. The stack of wrapped boxes and packages on a very large table presented a formidable challenge. Royce did his best to pretend this was all very welcome and thanked each person or couple as he opened the numerous, often very expensive gifts.

"Okay, folks! I've save the best for last. We all know my dash-two (his favorite term for the number two man in the company) drives that crappy Toyota parked next to my Lamborghini. We also know the only reason he does is because he's a numbers guy and a...." He turned his hand sideways and put it along the corner of his mouth as though he was telling a secret. "He's a tightwad."

There was both raucous and nervous laughter and Jaydan assumed those laughing loudly were his peers while the family members who were minions took their cue from the centurions.

"So...I decided to have that piece of crap towed and demolished...." He looked at Royce and said, "Don't worry, buddy, we made sure there was nothing left inside first...so he could start driving something with a little more class."

Brandon pulled out a set of car keys and dangled them in front of Royce's face which Jaydan noticed was not only not smiling but looked angry or maybe disgusted.

"I know he'd never drive a car like mine or even a Porsche, so I settled for something more his style." He did the hand thing again and called out, "Bore-ring!" More laughter followed.

"Royce, enjoy your new Land Rover, my friend!" There was loud applause, some whistles, and a call for a speech.

Royce was clearly unhappy about something. Jaydan could tell his teeth were clenched and his eyes were narrowed into slits as he accepted the keys.

He looked out at everyone then drew a deep breath. He looked down for a moment then back up at the crowd of 'family members' standing in front of him.

He then looked at Brandon and said, "That was Cass's car you sonuvabitch," then slowly walked away.

The room went dead silent for several seconds as he walked off. Seconds later, there were quiet whispers followed by fervent voices all interrupted by Brandon's voice. "Well, that went well," he said evidently trying to make a joke. When no one laughed he said, "Okay, everyone. There's food and every kind of booze imaginable. Let's get this party started!"

As if on cue, music rang out and the crowd slowly dispersed around the room. Jaydan tried to blend in, but Brandon made a beeline for her. "How about a dance, beautiful?" he said taking her hand and not really giving her a choice.

It was a slow song and as they moved around in a circle Jaydan asked, "Why was Mr. J...Royce...so upset?"

"Ah, he'll get over it. It's just that stick up his ass. He probably turned sideways and poked a major organ. Fuck him. He has no sense of humor. I throw him this big shindig, and he sulks around here like he was on death row. It's about time he got over it."

Jaydan wasn't sure if 'getting over it' meant just the party, just the car, both, or some other deeper thing she didn't understand and wasn't about to ask. As the song ended, she said, "I really need to use the restroom."

"Well, you've come to the right place," he told her. "You have seven different choices. The closest one is right back there close to the back patio area."

She thanked him and turned to walk away. "Don't be too long. I'm kind of liking having you around!"

She smiled politely and kept walking. When she came out, she saw the huge area out back which was a massive pergola that led into a very large, green lawn and then into a tennis court at the edge of property. She saw Royce sitting alone under the pergola and pushed open the huge sliding door and stepped outside.

It was very cold and she didn't have her coat, but he'd seen her and she was now committed to at least speaking. "It's pretty chilly out here," she said.

"Oh, here," he said standing up and removing his own jacket. He draped it around her shoulders and she thanked him. He offered her a seat then set down, too.

"Are you okay?" she asked not sure whether or not she should.

"Yeah. I'm fine," he said quietly as he stared out at the court. "Brandon can be such a dick sometimes." He turned to Jaydan and said, "Sorry. I don't usually talk like that."

"It's okay. I've heard it before," she said not knowing what else to say.

"Is it the car?" she asked, her voice rising as she spoke.

Royce nodded. "Yeah, that car had so much meaning to me."

"It's your wife's, right?" she asked for clarification's sake.

"It was," he told her.

"You mean before Brandon had it um...crushed?"

"No, it was hers...before she died," he said somberly.

Jaydan was so shocked by what she heard she couldn't speak for several moments.

"I...I had no idea. Royce, I'm...I'm so very sorry," she said sincerely.

"Thanks," he replied. "It's been a little over two years and that 'piece of crap' was her car and driving it was a way I could keep the connection alive, you know?"

Now it all made sense. The ring he still wore, the way he spoke about her, the anger.

"She picked that car out herself the first year I went to work for Brandon. I was two years out of an MBA program, we were dead broke, and up to our necks in debt. Even after the money started pouring in, Cassie wouldn't get rid of it. It reminded her of our struggles and happy times. It had over 200,000 miles on it and I planned to drive it until it died."

"I can't imagine how losing it makes you feel," Jaydan said sympathetically.

"It hurts," he said looking over at it. "I have to admit the car was falling apart, but it was...ours, you know? But that's just how Brandon is. He lives in his own reality where he's the center of the universe. He makes decisions for himself and everyone around them and sees nothing wrong with it. Financially, he's a genius. Socially, he can be a real d...." He stopped, smiled at Jaydan, then said, "You already know what I think."

"Your car sounds a lot like mine, by the way. It has 150,000 on it and it needs a ton of work. If it dies before I get a real job...."

She realized this wasn't the time for that and stopped. "Royce? Is it too painful to ask you how Cassandra died? If it is, please forget I asked."

"It's painful but not like before," he said looking back out at the tennis court. "Do you play, by the way?" he asked pointing to it.

"Not since high school, I'm afraid," she said. "I played on our varsity team, but I haven't played much since. Why? Do you?"

"Whenever I can," he told her. "Hey, would you maybe like to play sometime?"

"Um...yeah. Sure. That sounds fun," she said, "Yeah, that would be nice. Just maybe when it's a little warmer."

Royce sat quietly staring at the court for a few more moments then said, "She died giving birth. Well—kind of."

Jaydan sat up straight, turned her chair toward him and said, "Oh, my God. Royce. I don't even know what to say."

"She was eight months pregnant and she noticed the baby wasn't moving one morning after I left for work. She got scared then freaked out. She called an ambulance that took her to the ER. One of the EMTs called me and I went straight there from the office. They couldn't hear the baby's heartbeat so they admitted her then did an ultrasound." He sat quietly for few seconds before saying, "They had to go in like a C-section to remove our lifeless baby...it was a girl...and somehow the doctor nicked her uterine artery and didn't notice before he sewed her back up. They wheeled into recovery and then her blood pressure just dropped through the floor. By the time they found the source of the bleeding, she was gone."

Jaydan pushed her chair next to his and put her had on Royce's. "I am so, so sorry."

"Me, too," he said sullenly.

"I feel so awful."

"Why? You didn't do anything wrong," he assured her.

"No, not just that, Royce. I do feel terrible about you losing your wife and your daughter. But I...well, I thought you were still married and...and I had this silly notion you were...I don't know...interested in me or something. I was avoiding you tonight because of that. How ridiculous and how embarrassing is that?"

He turned his head toward and said quietly, "I'm not married anymore, and I am interested in you, so it's not ridiculous at all. With you being my intern it could be considered wrong by some, but as two adults...."

Jaydan slowly withdrew her hand and said, "What? What are you talking about? You're interested in me? I'm sorry, but that just doesn't make any sense. You're the CFO of a very successful business and you're...you're a very handsome man. I'm just a single mom trying to make ends meet. I couldn't possibly be interesting to someone like you."

He managed a smile and said, "And yet you are for many reasons."

He extended his hand hoping she might take it again. She looked at it, then at him, then back at his hand before taking it.

"Since Cassie, I don't talk all that much anymore," he began. "That's one reason I haven't told you how I feel." He looked at her then said trying to smile, "Then there's the whole 'you're my intern thing', and I guess there's probably about a million years difference in our age. But other than that...."

Jaydan smiled politely and waited to say something but he kept right on talking. "I haven't felt happy or even like smiling since Cassie died. At least, not until the first time I saw you, Jaydan. I've wanted to say something, but it seemed so completely inappropriate. Besides, you're not only a lot younger, you're also very beautiful, and it would be rather unusual for someone like you to feel similarly about someone like me." She started to speak, but he plowed on. "And then there's Brandon. The unabashed Don Juan with all the flash and panache. I can't compete with that. I don't even try, for that matter. It's just not my style. I'm the tortoise to his hare—or something like that."

"You can't compete with that?" she finally said. He didn't answer so she added, "Then why am I sitting out here in the freezing cold with you and holding your hand and not his?" She smiled again then said, "Slow and steady wins the race, right?"

Her teeth soon began to chatter and Royce immediately stood up and said, "I completely forgot about how cold you must be. Come on. Let's get you inside where it's warm."

He put his arm around her shoulder as they walked and Jaydan shivered. As soon as they stepped inside it felt gloriously warm and Jaydan quickly slipped off his jacket and handed it back. "Thank you, Royce. And...thank you for sharing that with me. I wish I had something to offer that could help, but something tells me there's nothing I could do or say that would."

"That's true," he told her. "Nothing can change the past or unring the proverbial bell. It's just nice to have someone to talk to. And even nicer that she's so attractive." He smiled then said, "Thank you for listening. It felt good just being able to do that."

"You're very wel...." she started to say.

"Hey! There's the birthday boy. Where'd you go?" He looked at Jaydan then said to Royce, "Ohhh! Are you trying to steal my girl?" He leaned toward Jaydan and said, "You can't trust the quiet ones. They can be so damned sneaky. Downright devious, even."

He slapped Royce on the arm then said, "Come back inside and have a drink. After all, this is your day, buddy!"

As he wheeled around to go join the crowd, he said to Jaydan, "How about another dance?"

She looked at Royce with eyes that said, "I'll stay if you like."

He smiled and said, "Go on! Live it up. Cut a rug. Shake your groove thing!"

"Okay, um...see you later?"

"I'd like that," he said as Brandon pulled her away.

Several dances and another glass of champagne later, Jaydan needed to get home as her mother was babysitting and it was getting late. Brandon wasn't happy about it but told her he understood. He was going to walk her out when a colleague stepped in and said, "I've been looking for the right time to get ten minutes with you all night, Brandon. I really need to discuss something with you. Is now okay?"

He looked at Jaydan then saw Royce a few feet away and called out, "Yo, Royce? Can you walk this beautiful young lady out to her car for me? I've gotta give Ken a few minutes. Something tells me this is important."

"Yeah, sure. I'd be glad to," he said.

As they walked she said, "I thought you'd have left by now."

"I would have, but there was someone I wanted to see again before I did," he told her as he helped her with her coat before walking her outside.

"Oh, I see," she said with a smile. "Is it business related?"

"Um, no. I don't think so. I mean, we do work together, but I didn't want to talk to her about work."

"Her?" she said pretending not to know about whom he was talking.

"Yes. She's rather petite and has cute, short, dark hair. Oh, and she's very nice looking."

"Well, if you're looking for her, I'd say she's a very lucky girl," Jaydan said as she handed her ticket to the valet.

Royce smiled and told her, "Actually, I'd be the lucky one if I knew she didn't mind me looking."

"It seems to me she probably wouldn't mind that. She might not even mind being found. Have you looked everywhere?" she asked still playing along.

"No, not everywhere," he said. "I'm kind of hoping I don't have to keep looking. It's even possible I've found her."

"Oh, well...again...lucky her."

Neither of them spoke as they waited for her car. A minute or so later, the valet ran toward them from around the corner and said, "Ma'am? Your car won't start. The battery's dead, but don't worry, I'm having it jumped right now. If that doesn't work, we have a limo on standby to drive you home. I'm sorry for the delay. I'll let you know in a couple of minutes, if that's okay."

"I'll take her home!" Royce called out to him as he was about to run back to where the cars were parked. "You can just leave her car here and we'll come back for it tomorrow or have it towed if need be." He looked at Jaydan and said, "Is that okay with you?"

"Hmmm. Let me see. Wait for my piece of junk car to start knowing the battery will die again tomorrow anyway or ride home in a brand new Land Rover. Hmmm."

"Let me see if I can go find it," he said smiling at her. "Would you like to go exploring with me or would you prefer to wait here?"

"I'm feeling adventurous," she said cheerfully, "so...lead on!"

He held out his hand which she took immediately this time and they headed toward the place where the valet went. As they rounded the corner, Royce hit one of the buttons on his key fob and they heard a loud, 'chirp, chip' and saw headlights flash.

"Ah, there you are." He led her toward the sound and lights then said gallantly, "Your chariot awaits, madame."

"Wow! This is amazing," Jaydan said when she saw it under the bright security lights. It was very black with tan leather seats and fully loaded with every option and gadget imaginable. "I love that new car smell, too!" she said as he helped her up and in.

Royce went around, let himself in then, and pushed the 'start' button. "Okay, let's see what we've got here," he said as he got familiar with the instrument panel and the lights. He adjusted the mirrors, put on his seatbelt, and said, "Okay. I think we're all set. You ready?"

Jaydan smiled and nodded as they drove off at a normal rate of speed without violently changing lanes every few seconds.

They chatted about the Land Rover's many options for a while then switched to tennis. After explaining how they could stay warm, Jaydan agreed to play the next afternoon. "There's a great set of indoor courts at the club where Brandon bought us memberships a few years ago," he said with more excitement than she'd ever heard. "For the record, I've only been to the club twice except to play tennis and both of those were work requirements. I'm not exactly a club kind of guy."

"No offense, but you don't strike me as one," she said sweetly. "You seem very grounded and down to earth."

"Ah! In other words—boring."

Jaydan laughed then told him, "Not at all. I'd say...dependable...and I'd take that over loud and gregarious any day of the week."

Royce actually chuckled quietly. "Brandon is a handful. His brash behavior is a bit much for me, but as I said, when it comes to making deals, the guy is amazing. He didn't even graduate from college, but he has this uncanny kind of sixth sense about people and money and I'll tell you what—he's almost always right. Me? I do these complicated formal analyses for him complete with spreadsheets and trend lines along with past performance, and he just scans then then makes a decision based on that gut of his. And if you look at our bottom line, you'll know he's not just lucky. He's good, Jaydan. He's really good. And filthy rich."

"Then being a CEO is the perfect job for him. I'm not so sure about things that are really important to me, though."

"Such as?" he asked with genuine interest.

"Well, like being a good husband or a loving, involved father. But that's just my very uninformed, totally subjective opinion."

"Then you have excellent intuition," he told her. "Brandon isn't the settling down kind. Maybe someday, but for now, he's livin' the dream. He needs to be footloose and fancy free to go wherever the wind blows. Anything more than a short-term relationship would really slow him down."

"How about you, Mr. CFO? Do you ever see yourself settling down again?"

"I didn't," he told her truthfully. "At least not until I met someone recently."

"Oh, I see," Jaydan replied. "Is this someone the same someone you were searching for earlier?"

"One and the same," he told her. "I'm just a little concerned about moving too quickly and scaring her off. Any advice?"

"Nothing other than what I said before," she told him.

"Slow and steady wins the race?" he said as he turned off the freeway where'd she told him to when they left Brandon's.

"Exactly," she said. "My understanding is she's interested, too. Like you, she doesn't want to rush into anything. A part of that is because she doesn't want to get hurt again, and the other is she has a daughter she can't allow to get attached to someone who'll abandon her like her father."

"She sounds like a very loving and caring mother, if you ask me."

"She does her best," Jaydan told him. "It's really hard being away from my daughter so much, but sometimes you have no choice but to play the cards your dealt."

"A fellow pragmatist," he told her as he turned down the street where she lived.

"I'm just up here on the right," she told him pointing to her modest house she'd been left with when her ex walked away in favor of another, much-younger woman—a high-school senior who was one of his students and cheerleader to be exact.

He pulled into the driveway and they immediately saw her mother looking out the window between the drawn drapes.

"That's my mom and she's as protective of her granddaughter as her own mother is. I'm sure the car she doesn't recognize is a big concern."

"Then I think I like her, too," Royce said. He went around to open her door and help her out.

"Thank you for the ride, Royce, and thank you so much for being willing to talk to me about something so personal. My ex-husband could never open up about anything. He didn't 'do' emotions. I find men who aren't afraid to do share how they feel very...appealing."

"Appealing," he said kind of tilting his head. "That's the kind of word I'm going to call a 'good start'."