Chapter 12
On Sunday evening Tony roamed over to Mona's apartment. He was unperceived from Angela who had buried herself in her study with plentiful work, inaccessible to everyone. He knocked on Mona's door.
"Come in, but only if you have something to eat," Mona shouted through the closed door.
Tony opened the door and stepped in. With a magical move he conjured a big sandwich from behind his back.
"The way to a woman's heart is through her stomach," Mona sighed happily, "Tony, you are a man who fulfills my dreams."
"I wish that would apply to Angela, too," Tony mumbled, "if it were true she would love me to the moon and back."
"What, what did you say?" Mona munched her sandwich.
"Nothing important."
"So, what do you want from me?" Mona spoke with a full mouth.
"Why should I want something from you?" Tony went on the offensive, "can't I do something nice for my best girl?"
"Not without any ulterior motives," Mona replied dryly, "but if I can do something for you, I will."
"Mona, it's something serious and I need your support. Normally I wouldn't ask you, but I need to help Angela and I'm afraid she won't let me. As her secretary you have the insight to her financial matters and you probably know about the cancelled loan. Mona, in what amount is that loan?" Tony asked and sat down on the couch.
"Tony, I don't know whether I have the right to talk about that or not. These are Angela's private financial affairs… I know you want to help, but… . It's a delicate subject."
"I can't sit around here with almost a million in my bank account and watch Angela breaking down with all this work she has to do. I can't her lose her staff, Mona, no way. I thought you would take a little bit more care of the health of your daughter. Besides Angela feels responsible to her staff and they rely on her."
"I do take care, but Angela would never take your money."
"That's what I'm afraid of and I need your help. Mona, it's the first time in years I'm able to do something important for her. She has done so much for me the last four years and I owe her so much. Without working for her I wouldn't have even won the money. Please, Mona," Tony begged her.
Mona thought for a minute, then looked at him and answered. "Ok, but you have to suffer when Angela finds out who her benefactor is and I'm going to put the entire blame on your broad shoulders."
"How much, Mona?"
"800.000 Dollars."
"Phew," Tony whistled through his teeth, "that can't be financed out of the petty cash."
"You changed your mind?"
"No way, could you arrange something tomorrow? We could meet at the Fairfield County Bank."
"Are you really sure about it? Angela will make a huge scene."
"I can be tough and I'm able to withstand stress."
"I guess you can. I'll have to find a half plausible excuse for leaving the office early, "Mona deliberated, "I'll call you tomorrow and we'll meet in Fairfield."
"You're the greatest!" Tony was relieved that Mona was on his side and jumped from the couch joyfully.
"Tony, one more thing. You're going to give my daughter the majority of your money. What if you regret it sometime?"
"I'll never regret it, Mona, never," Tony looked at her firmly, "not even if I lose everything I own." He turned to the door, prepared for a tease from her and it came as expected.
"That's what I thought," Mona said with a knowing smile, "I can always feel when love is in the air."
"Mona, it's not like…, "Tony stopped in the middle of his sentence. Mona wasn't a fool.
"Love is in the air, lalalalalala, love is in the air…huhuh" Her singing accompanied him out of the door.
The first thing Angela did when she arrived at her office the next morning was call Geneviève Pechet to plan their next steps. Geneviève was more than pleased to hear from her and told her that she had already informed Jim Peterson of the campaign. He had promised her he would work it out quickly, thereby stepping into their trap without knowing it. Together Angela and Geneviève decided it would be best if they met next Friday in Paris where Pechet Fragrances was based. Geneviève invited her to the Hotel Château where her company owned an exclusive suite. Angela was more than happy about it.
"I'll try to get some flights for Friday morning and we can clarify everything before Peterson arrives." Angela was looking forward to the meeting. She really liked Geneviève even though she had an awkward get-together with her two years ago when she urged Tony to go out with her to land a big account. Thinking back she couldn't believe what she had done. She had almost thrown Tony in the arms of another woman for her own benefit. Fortunately Geneviève was an intelligent woman who noticed the tremendous tension between them and had shown a true measure of character at the time.
"Some flights?" Geneviève asked her profoundly, "who is going to accompany you? Your husband?"
"I don't have a husband; you remember? "Angela replied, "I'm divorced."
"From Tony?"
"No, I never married Tony; I was married to Michael Bower. I thought you know that, "Angela said, surprised.
"You and Tony were in love when I saw you both the last time. So what happened to you two?"
"Nothing, but I want him to come with me on Friday."
"That will work. Paris is the "City of Love". I'll see you on Friday. Au revoir, Angela."
"À bientôt, Geneviève."
Angela was relieved when she hung up the phone. Apparently, everything went very well. The only thing that caused her quite a headache was the Fairfield County Bank. How could she raise the money by tomorrow? Almost all of her money was tied up in the agency. Tomorrow she had a meeting with the bank account manager. Hopefully he would give her more time to come up with the loan. She had a few sleepless nights because she wasn't used having financial problems. Actually, her finances were the only thing which always had been safe. She was deeply unsettled with the new situation of having financial difficulties.
Mona entered Angela's office, holding her jacket. She sat down on her desk, obviously ready to leave.
"Mother, where are you going? I need you to discuss the situation for tomorrow. You can't leave now, "Angela told her nervously, "I need a strategy."
"Oh dear, you are much better with strategies than me. You don't need me. I have an early date today because Cliff is a waiter and he works at night so he can't go out with me."
"Who is Cliff? "Angela asked, confused.
"I met him when I was out last weekend. He works in that new bar, "Africa"."
Mona smiled at her and made an effort to stand up but Angela held her back.
"You're going out with a waiter when I need your help urgently? What kind of mother are you?"
"What's wrong with a waiter? Don't be so snobby, Angela!"
"I'm not snobby and nothing is wrong with a waiter, you know that, I'm… ," Angela stopped abruptly.
"You're in love with your housekeeper, you're right, you aren't snobby." Mona teased her as she pulled away.
"I'm not, mother."
Mona smiled knowingly and had reached the door. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Angela went on with the next campaign. She worked for hours until one of the other secretaries gave her a phone call.
"Angela, the Fairfield County Bank for you on line two."
Angela sighed. The unwelcome interruption caused her nausea. What should she say?
"Angela Bower speaking, how may I help you?" Angela said in a neutral voice.
"Hi, Mrs. Bower, I'm Peter Anderson from the Fairfield County-Bank. I just wanted to tell you that our meeting for tomorrow has become superfluous. Your credit account is balanced, so your coming in isn't necessary anymore. Have a nice day." The bank manager talked to her in one go and had hung up the phone without leaving Angela any chance to answer. Flabbergasted, she looked at her receiver. What did that mean? Why was her credit settled? Angela had no idea what was going on at the bank, but she was relieved too. Having the next days safe without any threats could not harm. Nonetheless, she decided to visit her bank the next day to solve that mysterious riddle.
When Angela came home she found Tony and her mother sitting in the living room, obviously deepened in a personal conversation which stopped abruptly upon her entrance.
Mona rose from the couch, waved good-bye and almost ran through the swinging door.
"See you tomorrow."
"Mother, are you fleeing from me?" Angela yelled after her but she got no answer.
Exhausted, she sat down beside Tony and looked at him with worry.
"That was a crazy day, Tony. Mother left me behind in the office when I needed her most, suddenly my credit is settled and now she is running away from me. What has happened here? I know she is hiding something from me."
"Äh.. uuhm, Angela, she couldn't hide anything from you. The antennas from both of you work very similarly. Mona's work on men and yours work on money," Tony spluttered, "and she is your mother, she always wants the best for you, don't forget that." If only there was a hole he could crawl into. A fight with Angela seemed inevitable and the outcome was uncertain.
"Tony, you know something, what is it?" Angela asked him, bad-tempered, "all these secrets in my own house are driving me crazy. I want you to tell me the truth, Tony."
"I'll tell you, but I should warn you; you won't like it," Tony decided to get it over and done with, "and Angela, it's not just your mother who wants the best for you. I want it too, please don't ever forget that."
"Tony, please don't put me on the rack. My patience has run out," Angela got extremely uneasy.
"Ok, Ang… baby..I…We…. Your mother…..,"Tony's emotions were too intense to get the words out.
Angela wondered about his stammering. What could be that bad that he couldn't tell her? And why did he call her "baby"? That wasn't normal for him. Although she liked it. No other man would talk to her like this. In her secret dreams he always called her "baby". It was his "Brooklynness" that sometimes swept her from the feet.
"We went at the bank today."
"Who is we?"
"Mona and I, and we… we … and I settled your credit, Angela."
For a moment it was quiet. Angela looked in his eyes and let the words sink into her mind, but then in an instant she jumped from the couch.
"You did what?" she shouted," who do you think you are? I don't want your money. You shouldn't have done this. Never. I swore to myself once that I never wanted to be dependent on any man again. I don't know how, but you have to revoke it."
Angry tears were falling down her face and she sobbed as she hurried upstairs. She reached her bedroom and slammed the door behind her. Her crying was now uncontrollable and she threw herself on the bed.
Tony sighed. This was exactly what he had expected. An awful scene like that. What he hadn't expected were her words about being "dependent". He knew all too well what that meant. It happened to him the last four years and sometimes it had bothered him enormously. In a way, he could understand her, but being considered as "any man" disappointed him. He thought he was more than "any man". In fact, he wanted to be "the only man" for her. For the moment it made no sense to talk to her. He had to give her some time.
Tony turned on the TV. He zapped through the channels, but found nothing to his satisfaction. He turned it off and grabbed one of his books. He read only a few lines but couldn't concentrate. He needed distraction and entered the kitchen, deciding to make some brownies. His best thoughts came while cooking. He shoved the pan in the oven and sat down with his book again. Half an hour later he took the brownies out of the oven and filled a plate with four of them.
Tony went upstairs, plate in hand and pressed one ear to her door. Nothing was heard.
"Angela? You didn't have dinner, I've made some brownies for you," Tony whispered through the closed door, "come on, I know you're not sleeping, it's too early."
Finally Angela opened the door. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying. She wanted to take the plate, but with one step Tony entered her room.
"Angela, we have to talk, "he said, determined, "I'm not willing to leave the room until we've talked."
"Then you'll have to sleep here," Angela muttered discontentedly. A second too late, she realized what she said to him.
"That would make my dream come true, Angela, but you know we have to behave in front of the children" Tony replied, trying to sound funny but it came out more seriously than he wanted.
"That's not what I wanted to say," Angela blushed, "but I want your brownies."
"If you want my brownies you will have to talk to me, "Tony cajoled and held the brownies right under her nose. The alluring scent made Angela's stomach rumble. They both sat down on the edge of her bed.
"Angela, why don't you want my money? I thought we were friends. Best friends. Do you think I can hang around here while you are working yourself to death because you've lost your staff? It's impossible for me. I want to help you through these times. You were always there for me, every time. Whenever I needed help with Sam, when I cleaned out my father's apartment, when I found myself in trouble you were always in my corner. It's time for me to pay you something back."
"You don't need to pay something back. You were always there for me, Tony. You encouraged me to have my own agency. An agency that is in trouble right now more precisely and it's entirely my fault."
"It's not your fault and you know that."
"I just can't be dependent on a man. That's what Michael always wanted from me. He wanted me to give up my independence for him and in the end I couldn't. I'll never let this happen again. And by the way, what will happen if I'm not able to pay it back? Then you are going to lose your winnings, Tony. I couldn't live with that. The mere thought of it makes me shudder."
"If I hadn't worked for you I wouldn't have won the money. I wouldn't live in Fairfield. I wouldn't go to college. If you can't pay it back, it doesn't matter. It's only money. As long as I live here I'm happy, but I'm pretty sure you can pay it back. You're successful, beautiful; you're the best in advertising, the best in everything and beautiful."
"You said beautiful twice."
"You're two times beautiful. Angela, think of it, I was dependent on you for four years and it wasn't always easy for me, but I'm not Michael. I don't expect anything from you. I'm really happy… happy with everything, with our family, with …. you." Tony looked down.
"I'm happy, too, Tony," Angela whispered.
"So, you will accept my money? Please?" Tony asked carefully.
Angela seemed to be without any reasonable arguments.
"Ok, I'll try," she said reluctantly, "shake on it?"
With a handshake they sealed the deal but didn't let go of each other's hand. Tony glanced in her eyes and pulled her closer. With his free hand he caressed her cheek. "I meant it," he breathed in her ear.
"What?"
"You're two times beautiful."
Her heart skipped a beat when she felt his lips on hers. A radiant heat crept through their bodies. The tender kiss changed into passionate when their tongues entwined carefully. It lasted for eternity. When they pulled away slowly they were both breathless. Angela desperately tried to get her feelings under control.
"Ang..,"Tony said with a husky voice, "I need a second date with you. Do you think it's possible in the very near future?"
"Next Friday? Paris?" she asked, now smiling.
"I'll be there."
