Here's another writing exercise part one of two. Hope you enjoy and thanks for reading.
Oh, she really wished she could just kick that spoiled brat of an heiress out of the penthouse suite of Houston Industries.
Serena Gambicci.
The haughty and very well heeled daughter of the very late billionaire who had blown himself up by christening a newly built ship that had a list of wealthy investors in its construction, all of them suspects in his untimely death.
In the end, it had been one of Matt's closest friends, Wildcat Callahan who had spiked the champagne with nitroglycerin and then switched the vintages. One love tap against the boat's hull by Gambicci and ka-boom.
It turned out that Wildcat had discovered that the evil Greek baron had drugged his adopted daughter, filmed himself having sex with her and then trying to threaten her with the tape. That's how he had been able to control the women in his life including his mistress Karen Ann Douglas the famous but very wholesome singer and well everyone else in his vicinity except his wayward daughter.
Serena had been the one who had hired Matt to find out who killed her father but only because the unsolved murder put his will in probate for the next 10 years if his murderer hadn't been unveiled. So she had come to her former flame Matt begging for his help, dripping terms of endearment like "mi amore" every other sentence especially when his patience for her began to flag. Mostly when he realized what a poor excuse for a human being she turned out to be since he'd last seen her. A scheming and very self-centered woman who would stop at nothing, okay maybe murder, to get what she wanted which was her father's fortune.
Oh and she wanted Matt for about a very brief period of time twice in his life. Once during a whirlwind trip he took to Europe while setting up his empire several years ago. They hadn't really done much except kiss because her father kept very close tabs on his daughter and he viewed Matt as nothing more than a member of the herd of wealthy playboys hanging around his heir.
But Serena had returned and this time her dead father couldn't control his actions though he tried even from the grave.
If only Matt hadn't slept with her in a moment of what certainly had to be weakness due to a sudden surge of testosterone, but then had tempted him after he'd been drinking. The next morning, he had been sitting naked as a jaybird in his Jacuzzi when she and Slim had entered the suite from the helipad. Matt had the most sheepish look on his face and C.J. couldn't tell whether he had regretted the passionate interlude or its discovery. Serena had breezed her way out of the office, looking at C.J. and the secretaries as if they were fleas that might be suited for her favorite dog rather than human beings in equal standing. Boy Matt sure knew how to pick them.
Of course, he had been hung over, so much so that he had her fetch his favorite homegrown remedy to relieve the headaches and nausea that hit him when he woke up that morning on the couch and the memory of the previous night hit him like a sledgehammer. She almost told him to fend his own damn remedy himself; really she had enough of her own workload to take care of and very little time to do it. Let alone take care of him.
C.J. forced the memories of that entire case out of her head. Yes, they had solved it and yes, Vince's bullet proof vest which he had given to Matt in a ritual of male bonding had saved Matt's life. Not to mention the great press write up their handling of the case and what it had done for their burgeoning agency. The cases had come pouring into their office, completely overwhelming the secretaries to the point where they nearly went on strike until they were each given trips to the Bahamas to Matt's condo there and pay raises.
All that was several years and many more cases ago so why was Serena haunting Matt's living room now, sitting on the couch looking at her latest manicure and complaining about everything and nothing to anyone within hearing range? She had given C.J. a pithy look as she always did, swirling her furred stole around her as she moved about before picking a spot to serve as her temporary throne. C.J. just looked back at her wanting to kick her royal pain of a behind off of the helipad onto the street 14 floors down.
Really, what did Matt see in these beautiful wealthy socialites with ice cold water running in their veins and airs that they were better than those around them? Matt himself had always been the opposite of that, a very warm, even hot-blooded man with a fine body that molded into his choice of attire very nicely and he genuinely treated everyone he met as if they were his equal. He could kick back with a beer with his ranch hands at least before they disappeared back to Texas and dine at a five star restaurant with the crown prince of some exotic country.
Even Matt's fiancées had been socialites for the most part. The one that had been killed by the serial killer years ago and the more recent one, the daughter of a wealthy Irish family linked to terrorism. She hadn't died but had stared it in the face, seeing her future of uncertainty ahead and had walked out on Matt and their nuptials at the very last minute. Oh C.J. had to nurse him through a few hangovers and dinners at his favorite barbecue hangout as a result of heavy damage after that heartbreak.
But Matt had recovered quickly enough and had bounced back into the dating scene, dusting off his Rolodex of attractive and eligible ladies to wear on his arm at social galas. He kept a busy schedule between his cases and really didn't have time for picking up where he left off with the spoiled heiress who set up camp in his suite.
Suddenly the elevator dinged and C.J. knew that Matt had arrived and surely enough, he had dressed in his Armani suit and all polished up from head to toe. At least he still wore his cowboy boots, C.J. sighed. Damn she liked working with the more urbane Matt that she had seen of late but she really missed the cowboy with the five o'clock shadow and the impish grin. Oh and the chaps of course, she dearly loved them.
She heard the protests of the secretaries at the front of the office which she knew by name though most everyone else identified them by their individual hair colors. Matt occasionally mixed up Julie, the redhead with Maureen the brunette but never with the latest blond, Chris because she had threatened to clock him once. Because though she was a secretary by day, Chris worked nights as a martial arts instructor and seriously wasn't to be messed with even in her business outfit and low heeled shoes.
"Oh you've got to sign this Mr. Houston," Maureen said.
"No you've got to read this first," Julie chimed in, "or Murray will be very upset."
C.J. sighed wondering when Murray hadn't been upset lately, after his apparent banishment to the basement of Houston Enterprises back in Texas. At least that's what he made it sound like in his frequent emails like the three that had greeted her this morning. When really, he had gotten a promotion a while back so Matt could turn his back on his empire and focus on his investigative work full-time leaving the company in Murray's capable hands.
Well nearly full-time, she thought looking back at a clearly bored Serena, he needed more time in his calendar for other pursuits as well besides work.
Finally Matt worked his way past the gate keeping crew and ran into C.J. who threw him an amused smile.
"What's on the agenda for today," he asked fussing with his tie.
She knew by watching him that underneath the business persona was the cowboy trying to burst out but she kept that to herself…most of the time. He had sold his ranch, sent most of his Texas crew home and started shaving all the time. His favorite hat gathered dust in a closet somewhere.
"Your old flame is waiting in the living room," she said.
His brows rose in confusion.
"C.J. that's very helpful but could you…"
"Narrow it down a bit further," she finished, "Sorry about that. She's an attractive brunette dressed in the most expensive threads by a well-known Parisian designer and her father was murdered leaving her more money than she could possibly spend in a lifetime."
Matt processed that information while still yanking at his tie and he made a face. C.J. almost laughed at him but she didn't want to rub it in that his past had come back to bite him. And even a pack of piranhas had nothing on Serena. Her cell phone rang and C.J. looked to see who was calling.
"Houston I have to take this," she said.
He looked up at her and nodded.
"I have to deal with my guest…Serena and find out why she's here."
C.J. left him, tempted to eavesdrop but the phone call was important. She had taken on a case to do a favor for her friend who had been fired from a most unusual business. Edwina had been one of C.J.'s sorority sisters who hadn't been targeted in that evil plot against them several years ago and she had called C.J. out of the blue last week about being fired from a business that offered…reproductive assistance to couples or women in need. Actually, Edwina had told C.J. that it offered a wide variety of options for family expansion and she hadn't been sure that all of them were legal.
Okay, so C.J. had decided she would look into it further before deciding if she would take the case but she didn't want to bring Matt into it until she knew for sure and that meant doing some research on her own.
But as could be seen this morning, Matt was busy doing other things and C.J. wondered how long it would take for Serena to take Matt and wrap him around her manicured finger. For some reason, he had fancied her at least twice in his life and they say that everything happened in threes. Oh wait, that was only bad things, C.J. corrected. And Serena was definitely bad news; in fact they should name a hurricane after her if they hadn't already, a Category Five one in fact.
But back to important things like Edwina's request.
This assignment might be fun, she thought. At any rate, she would learn more about the fertility business because she had after all, been thinking of the family she hoped to have some day more recently. Matt's almost wedding had really hit that home to her in ways she hadn't expected. She was still fairly early in her reproductive years but the dating scene in L.A…not very promising. Especially when the men she loved on a good day dumped her after not being able to compete with her career…let alone the man she worked alongside. On the worse days? Her boyfriends were killed by mentally deranged men from her past or turned out to be mentally deranged or sociopathic killers themselves. After all, what kind of man would commit cold blooded murder just to work his way up the career ladder to gain a high-paying anchor job on the East Coast? Sometimes she felt like a magnet that just attracted men like him from all corners of the country.
She shook her head thinking maybe she needed to consult with a dating specialist before thinking about a family planning specialist. Damn, she really wished not for the first time that Mama Novelli hadn't picked up stakes with her son's family and moved off to of all places…Texas.
Suddenly C.J. heard crystal shatter. Not a good sign.
"You….how can you be so unreasonable," she heard Serena say, "All I need from you is one little favor…mi amore."
C.J. just rolled her eyes knowing what would come next. Some people went into foreplay a more romantic way but to each his own and for Serena, apparently she damaged some expensive property and then cut right to the chase.
"Serena, it's because your favors always wind up being so expensive," Matt said, "and in other ways besides money."
"Oh darling, I have more of that than I know what to do with," she said, "I need you to help me with a case."
"And wind up hitting the sofa with you again, no thanks," Matt said, "You don't recognize the line between business and personal relationships like some people do."
Now C.J. heard that and she knew that Matt had been referencing her. That she knew how to keep her business relationships separate from well, her own personal feelings. She sighed picking up the phone and calling Edwina back.
"Hi, this is C.J."
She heard a sigh of relief.
"Oh thank god it's you," Edwina said, "I've been waiting for your call."
C.J. looked at the slip of paper with information on the clinic and the business card that had been sent to her.
"I'm researching your case," she said, "Just a preliminary evaluation and it's just routine but you say you think illegal practices are involved?"
"I don't know for sure," Edwina said, "but I got very suspicious of one doctor so I did some checking and that's when they fired me."
"What work did you do exactly?"
"I worked in the records department," Edwina said, "I had access to all the case files. Some things just weren't right."
C.J. scribbled some notes on her pad.
"I'm going to run this through Houston but I might have to handle most of the preliminary work myself," she said, "He's quite busy at the moment."
Her friend paused.
"Okay…that's fine…listen I got to go now…"
The phone call ended and C.J. returned her phone to her purse. Edwina had sounded somewhat nervous almost as if she worried that others had found out what she suspected. But C.J. hadn't been given much to work with so she could have to get more information and that meant…Oh no, she couldn't do it could she? But why not, if the place was violating the laws, she had the perfect case. If not, then she could find out more information on reproductive assistance.
Her heart warmed when she thought some day of having children of her own, tempered by some sadness that she had no living relatives left to see them. Her parents had died when she had been a little girl and she had been an only child. She loved her career and had been single mindedly focused on it for several years but she knew that when she found the right guy, she wanted to add to that chapter in her life.
But finding the right guy…even in a city of over one million of them wandering around had proven to be difficult indeed even when she hadn't been serious about a long-term relationship. She heard silence from outside the door which meant that both Serena and Matt had gone off to discuss business or the heiress had left the building. C.J. hoped for the latter when she stepped outside of her office and saw Matt nursing a drink by himself near the bar. She went to join him and went to the frig to get herself some juice.
"That bad," she commented.
He looked at her and his expression alone confirmed C.J.'s suspicion.
"She's gone if that's what you mean," he said, "for now."
After sipping his scotch, he moved to the sofa. She went with him and sat in a chair looking at him for a moment. He looked relieved but also surprised, as if he'd gotten some unexpected news.
"Houston you didn't…"
"No she walked out on me," he said, "But not after making the strangest proposition."
Which really didn't tell her very much because after all, it was Serena and very little about her was ordinary.
"What did she want," C.J. said, "or dare I even ask."
He looked down at his glass.
"She wants an heir C.J.," she said, "and she wanted me to…"
C.J. had to fight to keep from laughing but the expression on his face stopped her. Not much knocked Matt through a loop but obviously his conversation with Serena had done just that.
"You're kidding right?"
He shook his head.
"She wanted me to sign on the dotted line without giving me much time to consider it," he said, "and then she wanted to get right down to business."
C.J. tilted her head.
"You know why she picked you Houston?"
He did know. C.J. knew there were plenty of good reasons that any woman would want to pick Matt to well, sire their children but she knew Serena wouldn't be interested in any of those reasons.
Matt smiled ruefully.
"Because it would tick her daddy off, it's her way of getting back at him even though he's dead," he said, "Because he disliked me so much, what better way for payback?"
C.J. reached over to take his hand in her own and looked directly at him.
"Houston, she should feel very privileged to have a man like yourself father her baby," she said, "but that woman has never had to work for anything in her life, everything's been handed to her on a plate and…"
"She was just born rich like me."
C.J. shook her head.
"No, you've made your own way in life and made your own mark on the world," she said, "and you're the kindest, most generous man I know."
"C.J…"
"No let me finish," she said, "You're loyal to your friends, you treat people very well and your fathers, both of them, would be very proud of you."
He smiled at her.
"She doesn't even know I'm not a Houston by blood but adopted."
C.J. shrugged.
"Houston, she's too self-centered and too spoiled to appreciate the good things in life, the simple things and that not everything including a man's genes can be bought."
He sighed.
"Yeah well, I didn't even have to think about it, I told her no but I think she'll be back."
C.J. smiled.
"We can lock the elevator for a while…"
Matt finished his scotch and shook his head.
"She broke some of my crystal."
"I heard."
He straightened himself on his couch and looked at his watch.
"The day's still young and I have some meetings to attend," he said, getting up, "what's on for you today?"
C.J. hedged.
"I…got some research to do on a prospective case," she said.
"Anything I can help you with?"
She hesitated and then shook her head.
"I need to find out more information and then I'll bring it back to you," she said, and then turned to look at him.
"Houston…"
He looked up at her raising his brows.
"You do want children someday, don't you?"
His face changed and warmth lit up his eyes.
"Yeah I do C.J.," he said, "I want plenty of them to fill a home and I want to watch them grow up happy."
She nodded.
"Yeah me too," she said, "I'll see you later."
Matt watched her go and thought she sounded a bit pensive this morning. He heard her head towards the elevators. He walked towards his office when something caught his eye on the ground. It looked like a business card that had been dropped at the foot of C.J.'s office. His eyes widened when he read that it was for a clinic that involved itself in family planning services. He turned it over and saw a cell phone number on the back. It had to belong to C.J. but if so, what was she doing with it?
She couldn't be…no if she were planning on doing that he would know…because they were best friends after all. Still lately, he had been spending most of his working hours with his Uncle Roy who had recently picked up stakes and moved to L.A. Now they were a team together solving some of the toughest cases all over the country and C.J…well she spent most of her days handling cases in court…or so he thought. Clearly she had been busy doing other things or perhaps thinking about doing them.
But having a baby hadn't been one of them had it? Matt tried to think back if she currently had a boyfriend but he honestly couldn't remember. After all, he and Roy had just returned from solving a case in London involving one of Roy's old colleagues from back in the days of the Cold War and C.J. had been where she had been when they left, inside her office on her computer.
And now she was…carrying and dropping cards with information about reproductive assistance on them. He recognized the name of the business because he had a client once, a famous basketball player who had once made a…deposit there. Certainly his best friend couldn't be thinking…oh he had to go find her and talk some sense into her. But wait, if he tried to do that, she might tell him where to pack it. After all, their lives were so divergent and yet so busy that they hardly ever crossed paths and he noticed that she had changed. She would go out for these long lunches with a group of friends and come back with laughter in her voice when talking to the secretaries before returning to work. When he called her phone to ask questions on a case or just to ask her how things were going, more often than not, he reached her voicemail on both of her phones. Something had definitely changed.
He reached his office with the card still in hand and decided to do some research on the company listed on it during the hour and so sandwiched between two meetings with prospective clients.
C.J. sat in her car after having had lunch with two of her friends at an Italian eatery which served great food but somehow left her nostalgic for Mama's cooking and her sage advice on all matters of the heart including the one which weighed heavily on her own. Sophia had two adorable children which she showed in photos snapped at various stages in their lives to the other women and Elaine had been sporting a rather impressive baby bump beneath her designer business suit. They both had managed to mix their family lives with their careers, quite well though it had been a balancing act.
She knew then that she wanted to handle this case for Edwina to find out what was really going on at the clinic where she worked and C.J. knew the best way to do that would be undercover. But looking out at the traffic, she wondered which way would be the best to infiltrate. Should she pose as a single woman trying to have a baby without a man in her life or should there be another half in the equation, meaning a man to pose as her husband…or at least significant other. And if so, who?
Her phone rang and she saw that Matt's name was listed on it and rolled her eyes. What did he want now, her to draw up a pre-conception contract with her before he agreed to Serena's plan? Matt always had a weakness for damsels in distress though C.J. knew that Serena's tears had been an act and there had been more to her request than met the eye. If Matt needed some legal advice, she was duty bound as his attorney and his friend to provide it…but wait he was a big boy and knew to look before he leapt into anything.
"What's up Houston," she asked.
"I'm looking for the case file for Stewart Rickman," he said, "You know the case of the missing heirloom boots."
"Ah yes," she said, "It's in Roy's office, because he's the one working on it."
"Yeah I should have checked there first before calling you, thanks."
That might have helped not that she minded the interruption though she had to return to deciding how to handle this newest case.
"So have you changed your mind," she asked.
A moment of silence greeted her.
"About what…oh you mean Serena," he said, "No it hasn't, hopefully she won't come back."
"You know that she will," C.J. said, "She's very persistent when she wants something and if she wants to add your genes to her own, she'll definitely be back."
"She can return as many times as she wants but I'm not going to give her what she wants," he said, "I can't just father a child and walk away or be bought off and I don't want a lifelong relationship in any form with her."
"She must think that you do because she came here to ask you that favor or she doesn't want you involved in raising it at all."
Matt sighed.
"She's just not used to anyone saying no to her, or denying her anything."
"Even you?"
Matt rubbed the area between his eyes and thought that there had been times he had turned her down and turned her away and even had put her in her place accusing her of masquerading as a human being.
"I told her in no uncertain terms…"
C.J. sighed on her end knowing that he probably hadn't dissuaded Serena from her quest but decided that it was Matt's problem to handle certainly not hers. She had to focus on helping her friend out with the reproductive clinic.
"Houston, she has indelible memories of spending the night with you at the office," C.J. noted.
And she had similar memories of Matt sitting in the Jacuzzi nursing his hangover, with Serena grinning like a Cheshire Cat.
"C.J…"
She wondered what he needed now.
"Have you ever given it any thought yourself," he said, "About having children."
Of course she had and a lot more lately.
"Who hasn't Houston," she said, "I think it's something that most everyone considers at some point in their lives."
"I mean serious thought C.J."
She felt irritation creep through her. What exactly was he getting at anyway?
"Houston, I've been thinking about it yes," she said, "but I'm busy with my life it is right now and I'm not ready for a family."
"You are waiting until you meet the right guy, right?"
Oh Matt, she thought, what a traditionalist when it came to other people's lives besides his own.
"Well maybe…if that's the way it happens," she said, "But if I want to have a family, there's other ways to go about it."
Yeah Matt knew that as he had been researching what had been on that business card he found online and it didn't make him comfortable. That his best friend would even consider frequenting a place like that for that purpose, what could she be thinking?
"What about the father?"
"What about him Houston," she said, "I haven't met him yet if I'll meet him at all and I could raise a child on my own if I wanted to do so."
The thought horrified Matt. Okay, maybe he was old fashioned but a child should have two active parents involved in its life raising him or her. Surely C.J. couldn't be considering…
"C.J., you wouldn't be thinking of…well you know how they do it with prize bulls…"
Now he lost her.
"What are you talking about Houston?"
He seemed ill at ease.
"Artificial…"
"Insemination," she finished, "That's how some women do it Houston."
"Doesn't sound like much fun to me," he said.
She had to chuckle at that.
"I imagine it's not," she said, "but the end result's the same isn't it?"
He blanched. So she was seriously considering it…oh he couldn't let her go through with this and when he stopped her from running off and doing something so rash, she would thank him…eventually. C.J. on her end just wondered what he was getting at, with all these questions and probing into her personal life like that when he had no reason. After all, he was the one who had some over pampered heiress chasing him around wanting him to father her baby just to get back at her father.
Her life on the other hand was much simpler or it would be if she could help her friend figure out what was going on at the clinic.
"Houston it sounds to me like you have a very complicated life," she said, "I'll be back at the office in an hour."
Then she smiled to herself as she hung up. She decided to do some shopping before heading back to the office because if she decided she needed to go undercover to investigate the clinic, she needed some new threads.
Matt worked all afternoon in his office, with his feet up on his desk, and tried to keep all thoughts of the morning out of his mind. He promised Chris an extra week of vacation on the tropical island of her choice if she would keep the rest of the secretarial pool at bay and keep on the lookout for any sign that Serena had returned. Chris had held out, folding her arms saying that no amount of vacation time was worth having to deal with Serena but she finally did give in when Matt threw in the use of one of his sports cars located on the island of her choice.
But he found his focus returning to his conversation which really hadn't told him that much. Just that she appeared bound and determined to go off on some crazy plan to undergo artificial insemination to have a baby. No, she hadn't said anything like that but she had been dropping around business cards in his office. Had he really been focused so much on the caseload with his uncle that he had completely missed something happening beneath his nose? He had no idea she had been thinking about starting a family at this point not when he had been conducting a stakeout in San Francisco or tracking a jewel thief in London or finding a missing prize poodle in Miami.
Well just because he had been out of the loop for a while didn't mean he couldn't make up for lost time. He would just have to investigate to find out what she was up to and start off by asking her some questions. Maybe while taking her to dine at her favorite restaurant by Venice Beach.
As he reached for his cell phone to call the restaurant for reservations, he decided that this definitely sounded like a plan.
C.J. dumped her shopping bags in her office and went to check on her messages. She had passed by Matt's office and he had been on the phone so she hadn't interrupted him. She had found some really good deals on clothing that would suit her undercover persona as the successful career women trying to balance family and career without a man in the picture. She thought she could pull it off and it was a lot easier than trying to find a willing partner to pose as part of the married couple cover. There was Matt…but she shook her head quickly thinking he wouldn't do.
Suddenly Matt stuck his head in her office.
"Busy?"
She looked up at him and brushed her hair back.
"Not too much," she said, "I'm almost done with the invoices."
"Plan on eating dinner tonight?"
She smiled.
"Eventually," she said, "What about you?"
He leaned on the doorway.
"A bit later on," he said, "Would you like to join me?"
She tilted her head.
"What if Serena shows up?"
"I think she's probably moved on to her next suitor," he said.
She nodded.
"Okay I'll join you," she said, "It's been a long time since we've really spent time together."
He sighed
"Too long," he said, "I should have never let it take so long."
She smiled.
"Houston, we've both been busy and you've been making up for lost time with your uncle."
He paused.
"I just feel like we've been…a little out of touch lately and I want to change that."
"Okay Houston, that'd be great."
He left her office, smiling to himself. All he had to do was get her to her favorite restaurant, get her favorite dishes in front of her, a little wine and then she'd tell him what she was up to lately.
C.J. watched him go, shaking her head…thinking he most definitely was up to something.