Chapter 5: Grant
Grant Duncan would describe himself as a very important person.
He oozes importance, really, and people should take note. He isn't the type to offer his seat to the elderly on the rare and utterly unfortunate occasion he is subject to public transportation, but he is the kind to run red lights because he is always in a hurry and everyone else needs to stand aside. He is high up in the economic food-chain, and has learned to look down on lesser-mortals in order to get what he wants. Not tipping or talking down to a waiter? A necessary evil in order for him to assert himself; not everyone has the kind of power and money at their disposal that Grant does. Not everyone has the cash to fly first class from Phoenix to Santa Clarita, not for personal reasons, but simply as a way of manipulating their father. Not that he does fly first class, he takes the company jet.
Though it isn't so much manipulating as simply appeasing the old man, handling him. Nicholas Duncan may be clever in his old age, but he is still living under the impression that Grant is a warm-hearted soul. And Grant intends to keep it that way.
Either way, Grant is important and most others are not. It is just the way of the world.
His father is the founder of, and Grant himself has plenty of shares in, Duncan BioTech Research Laboratories in Phoenix, Arizona. They are one of the leading companies in developing new wonder drugs and gene therapies. They lead the world in advancements in pharmacogenomics.
Aside from his father, Grant is top dog. He runs the corporate world of the company. He oversees the research and development projects, and is responsible for promoting and selling their newest medical products to investors. Grant is very good at selling things. He could sell a glass of water to a drowning man if he wanted to.
There are plenty of disappointments down in the labs of their facility – for every one success there are at least fifteen failures, and every one of their successes takes years to fully develop – but Grant only deals with success. Other people make their products; he sells them to the public and makes the big bucks.
At just over six feet, Grant is a very imposing man. He's well built; not overly muscular, but enough to seem threatening should the situation arise. He keeps his professionally cut sandy blonde hair slicked back, and has grey eyes sharp enough to cut through steel. His preferred attire is a business suit; he enjoys looking polished as he bullies people into investing into his company's products.
Though he doesn't work in the labs, Grant does have a background in microbiology. If he really wanted to, he could be one of the top researchers. But he's always preferred black suits to white lab coats. It's just the way things work with him. Why do all the hard work when you can jump right to the end? Why spend hours doing all the research when you can skip to presenting it to the class?
Though he lives in Arizona, Grant is currently in California, on a mindless errand he is performing only to appease his father. Grant plans on taking over the company, but his father is worried he's too aggressive. So Grant forces himself to do these little mundane things to convince him otherwise. Like kissing babies or posing for pictures with puppies. He isn't a fan of it, but he'll do it if necessary.
Grant isn't aggressive. He's simply goal oriented.
Considering he works at a medical research lab, Grant is not particularly fond of hospitals. Not at all. Though, his labs are clean, spotless and well kept. Hospitals tend to have sickly and dying people lying about. It's unfortunate.
He feels the need for a coffee fix coming on, so as he leaves the patient room he was inside he stops at the nurse's station. "Directions to the nearest coffee place," he says in the general direction of the desk while looking down at his phone. One of the board directors has been trying to reach him all day; they need Grant to smooth over something with one of their investors that is having second thoughts. It isn't a problem, both the smoothing over and the getting back as soon as possible; Grant has already made plans with Joseph, the BioTech private jet pilot, he wants to leave within the next hour and a half so he can get back to Arizona.
As expected, someone at the nurse's station responds. "They have a coffee and doughnut place on the main floor," a feminine voice answers, from right next to him.
He looks up and does a double-take. Grant is not normally someone who can be taken by surprise, he prides himself on this in fact, but this woman has caused his mind to short circuit in a matter of seconds.
He's looking into the most stunning blue eyes he's ever seen. Bright and crystal like, they blink happily at him, the woman's smile reaching them fully. If Grant were a romantic, he'd say they twinkle.
His eyes rake up and down her body, taking her in, and the rest of her is just as stunning as her eyes. Tall, lean, but with well-accentuated curves, long flowing blonde hair, a child-like smile. The woman is beautiful. What someone this good-looking is doing working in a hospital, he can't be sure. With her looks, she could work just about anywhere.
"Though," she goes on when he doesn't answer, "I hear the coffee is pretty bad there. I haven't tried it, but a few of the nurses complain about it all the time. One called it black sludge mixed with tar once." She gives a shy giggle, like she thinks it's funny but isn't sure if he does.
Grant stares at her for a moment, not expecting her response at all. "Can you recommend something better?" He eventually comes up with. His voice is calm and cool, as always.
She smiles even brighter, happy with being questioned further. "There's a coffee place just down the street. I know because Judith goes there and sneaks apple fritters in here for me sometimes."
What strikes Grant is how open the woman is. Considering she works in a place where people are sick and dying and completely dependent on her care, her smile is very open. Her presence is warming, inviting. She's leaning to one side, a palm flat on the reception desk, and bouncing slightly on her feet as she regards him with bright eyes. She's waiting for him to say something.
"Just down the street?" he clarifies.
"Mm hmm," she hums happily. She's cute. And on top of cute, she has on rocking body. Grant hasn't had a good fling in a while.
"When do you get off shift, maybe you can join me?" He can easily tell Joseph to set the plane back an hour.
Her smile widens and laughter fights to bubble up. Grant thinks he's won until she shakes her head and chuckles, "I'm not a nurse here." The look on her face is surprised, as if she can't understand him suggesting such a complement.
His eyes move over her body again, taking her in a second time. She's in hospital wear and bare feet, and there's twin strips of bandages covering a line above her left temple. Despite her bright eyes, her face is void of make-up and her hair, though stunning, hangs limply around her shoulders.
"You're a patient," he states, surprised.
"Yep." She bounces on her feet again as she begins explaining, "I came to tell one of the nurses that I think Mr. Kil accidentally took the television remote with him when he was discharged; the TV's mounted on the wall and I can't reach the button to turn it on. But I think one of the patients down the hall," she points behind her, in the opposite direction Grant has just come, "started seizing or something. Right as I was walking towards the desk everyone started running down the hall. I hope whoever it is, is okay."
It takes Grant a few seconds to process this. None of the things that seem to tumble out of this girl's mouth are what he's expecting her to say.
She's still looking brightly at him, so despite a tiny voice inside him telling him if she's a patient then why is he bothering, she could be expected to drop dead in days, he pockets his phone and offers her his hand to shake. "Grant Duncan."
This causes the smile on her face to bloom even brighter, and she quickly moves to shake his hand. "Bethany."
"You have a last name, Bethany?"
"Oh," her face falls slightly. "I… no. Bethany isn't actually my name, it's just a name I picked for people to call me until I can remember my actual name." She points to her head, "Amnesia. I was hit by a car." Despite the sadness of the story, her energy level doesn't decrease.
"You were hit by a car?" He's a little surprised with this. Again, everything she says surprises him. She surprises him.
She intrigues him. He's never met someone quite so bubbly before; especially someone who was recently hit by a car. He has to wonder what she was like before she forgot herself.
"Mmm," she bobs her head. "Yeah. So now I don't remember anything. But Mr. Kil's daughter thought I should pick out a name so people have something to call me until I remember. And that makes sense, it's so much easier to talk with people when they can associate you with a name. Plus the doctor said it was a good exercise in stretching my memory."
Something makes his eyebrows draw closer together, "No one's come looking for you?" He can't imagine that. How someone like this is alone in a hospital. How she had to come up with her own name since no one was there to tell her hers.
Her eyes loose some of their shine and her lip tightens slightly, "No." She hesitates a moment before forcing another smile and changing the topic. "So why are you here? Are you sick?"
His lip twitches, "No." He doesn't like sick people, so this whole trip has been rather unpleasant.
"Visiting someone then?" Bethany offers.
"Yes. My father's third ex-wife, I came to pay my respects."
The girl standing before him looks horrified, "She died? Oh, I'm so sorry."
"No, no," Grant clarifies casually, "But she's nearing her end. Figured I'd go and get it out of the way before she died." That and his father insisted he go and see Ex-Wife Number Three as soon as he heard she was in the hospital. His father seems to think Grant has wonderful relationships with all his ex-wives. Grant doesn't, but if it appeases his father then he's willing to pretend for a few hours.
"Oh, that's so nice of you. I'm sure she appreciates it." The way she says it, Grant almost believes her. "Third wife," she goes on. "That's a lot."
A lot indeed. A lot of women to have to play nice with while his father spends all the family money doting on them. "Yeah. He's on his fifth wife at the moment." His father is 'sure this one is going to last.'
"Wow," Bethany says. "That's… wow. That's a lot of weddings."
It's a lot of honeymoons is what it is. Grant's father tosses money away like it's lint on an expensive suit. Though, Grant would too if we here head of the company. But he isn't, yet. So naturally he's critical of every move his father makes.
"It gets old," he answers her. "Watching him promise to cherish and love her, only to have that diminish after a year or two."
"That's sad," she says softly. "That he can't find someone to be truly happy with. I think everyone deserves to find their true love. Find them and never let them go."
"Mmm," he says, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Grant's a practical man; true love doesn't exist in his world. But this girl? This girl is definitely worth more of his time. Not love, he doesn't believe in love, but she is sure worth his affections. "I have to head out; I have a plane to catch."
"Oh, okay. It was nice talking with you."
"It was nice talking with you too, Bethany. You going to be here much longer?"
"I'm not sure," she answers honestly. "Dr. Richards says it all depends on how I progress over the next little while – I've only been here a few days – and if anyone comes looking for me. I don't really have anywhere to go."
"Well," he says, his mind spinning, "Maybe I'll see you around sometime." Ex-Wife Number Three is definitely going to be getting more visits.
He's never had a fling with an amnesia patient. This could be interesting.