Part 22: A WEEKEND AWAY
It was mid Saturday afternoon and Elana had jogged, showered, gotten dressed, made breakfast and lunch for herself, cleaned her house and was curled up in her love seat formulating the questions that she would ask each employee within the different departments of Crealite starting Monday or Tuesday. She wore a pair of black stretch pants and a long navy blue T-shirt with a picture of Elmo on the front and her hair was in a ponytail.
As Elana contemplated the questions she would ask her thoughts could not help but drift to the kiss that she and Sean had shared the day before. Lightly rubbing her lips with heR forefinger and thinking about it made her see what she had been missing all her life and now she wondered if leaving Sean was actually the best thing for him. She had done it because she loved him so much and did not want to see him ruined, but in doing so, had she ruined both of them in another way. Had she ruined their hearts? It was true that no one had ever been able to reach her emotionally after Sean, and it seemed apparent that the same was true for him. Even though he was dating Sheridan, she had not been fulfilling that need that he and Elana had for each other.
She reasoned that while she used her studies and her business to patch up any emptiness within herself, then maybe Sean had used other women. At first she winced at this, and it pained her to think of him making love to other women. It was especially painful because she knew she had made him wait so long for her as he anticipated the reward of pleasure that they; as two people deeply in love, who had saved themselves only for each other, would share together when they were to be married in about a year before she ended it all. These thoughts also saddened her because she actually wished to some degree that she had let him make love to her. But Elana knew herself and she knew how hard she had worked to keep herself chaste for Sean. When they were in college she reasoned that if she could resist the man she loved and was severely attracted to then when they married it would make their marriage all the more solidified. Sean would never have to worry about her giving into the temptations of another man and she would not have to worry about him in that way either. Now she drifted back to what Gail had always said 'You need to be with the man you've been saving yourself for all these years', she would always say. Even though Elana never consciously kept herself away from men because of Sean, she wondered if self-consciously she had done so. But she thought it really didn't matter anymore. Sean obviously went on and did his thing and she had done the same.
But as the thought passed, she realized that a man would always try to find comfort in sex. She could not blame him for being with others, but she felt that he still had not really made love to anyone because if he had he would not be so intense whenever he was around her. Elana reckoned that he could feel her presence just as she could his. She had to admit that whenever he would come into her office, even if he tried to not make a sound she always knew he was there.
But now, what would she do with all of these feelings. Was he still threatened with being ousted from his family if they got together? 'Maybe things had changed.' She thought. 'Then again maybe they have not.' Elana realized that she had not seen Phillip around even though he is listed as the CEO. 'Where was he? Surely he had to know that she was the one who was revamping the company. Did he remember her? Did he have a hand in selecting her company? If so, maybe he would not be immune to the idea of Sean and her being together now that she was independently successful. Elana sighed and tried to go back to her task. There were just too many questions that needed to be answered and it was just too much flooding in on her. What she needed was a break from it all. As she continued to ponder over these things her doorbell rang.
"Wait a minute. Here I come." Elana shouted as she put her paperwork to the side and rushed to the door.
Looking through her peephole she saw that it was James, so she opened the door.
"Hi?" She said with a surprised look on her face.
"Hi gorgeous. How are you?" He said standing in a pair of twill slacks and a neutral colored dress-shirt, covered by an open cardigan sweater.
"I'm alright. Come on in." She moved back and let James in as she closed the door behind him. "What are you doing here?" She asked.
"I came by to apologize for yesterday afternoon. I was being a little persistent because I've gotten so used to being around you this past week. I didn't want to go the whole weekend with the possibility of not seeing you. I'm just sorry Sean came in. Can you believe that guy? Interrupting us like that. You'd think he was jealous or something. He needs to take care of his own girlfriend if you ask me."
Elana's interest was peaked at the mention of Sheridan and so she decided to use this opportunity to try and get some information about Sean and Sheridan's relationship. "What do you mean?"
"What? About Sean and his girlfriend?"
"Yeah. Come on into the living room and have a seat." As he talked she led him into her spacious living room and he took a seat in a chair after she crunched herself up in her love seat.
"Well, he's dating this high society woman from Connecticut. She's picture perfect and Sean avoids her like the plague. Before they actually started dating, she used to call him every day asking him when he was going to take her out and he never would, but finally one day I guess her persistence paid off and they started dating regularly. If you call once a month regular."
"Well, maybe he's really interested in someone else." Elana said matter-of factly.
"You may be right, but I have never seen Sean with any woman on a consistent basis. A few years back he dated this one woman who seemed to be good for him, but eventually she just disappeared. So most of us have speculated that Sean will be one of those eccentric bachelors as he grows older, then again maybe Sheridan will convince him to marry her eventually. But I'm not here to talk about Sean Logan. I came to see you. I was going to ask you this yesterday, but I just left because it's not a good idea to argue with your boss. If you know what I mean?"
"Yeah, I know." Elana said trying to sound amused.
"I wanted to see what you were doing today and tomorrow."
Picking up the paperwork she was trying to work on, Elana answered him. "I'm just going over my interview schedule for this week."
"Did Sean, put you to the grinding board on that."
"No, I just need to do it. It's part of the project. Remember the meeting everyone had Monday? I explained that this would be the first phase."
"I must let you know that I've been thinking of you and I know that you had been stressed over something all day Friday. In fact I was hoping to be able to help you alleviate some of that stress by taking you to Cape May, NJ with me. I have a house on the beach and I was hoping you could take a break and join me."
"I'm not sure James, as a matter of fact..."
Interrupting her before she could finish James exhorted, "Now before you go turning me down, I was just thinking that maybe we could go down together and enjoy the scenery and relax. I have an indoor pool and steam room, a game room with ping pong, pool and some video games."
"James I don't know about going off to New Jersey with you and spending the night. It just doesn't sound right. What would everyone say at the office?"
"Hay, before you get the wrong idea. I can stay in a hotel, if you prefer and I'll just come around on Sunday morning and we can spend the day together and then come home Sunday night." He reached out and took her hand, which rested on the arm of the love seat and cradled it within his, trying to dispel her apprehensions and grinning from ear to ear he continued "As to my coworkers, I certainly hope they find out you spent the weekend with me. It would definitely help me uphold my reputation as being a lady-killer." He stopped and they looked at each other and a sheepish smile formed on Elana's mouth, then James asked "So, how about it?"
Elana sat silently contemplating James offer which sounded tempting. She hadn't been away in years and she was under a lot of stress. If James were sincere about staying in a hotel, it would give her an opportunity to think and decide what she would tell Sean and how their relationship should continue. New Jersey was only an hour or so a way and she could easily get home if she needed to. "Ok. James I'll go, only if you promise to be a perfect gentleman."
"I promise! Now all you'll need is a change of clothes for tomorrow. A dinner outfit and hopefully a very sexy swimsuit!"
"James!" Elana hit him on his shoulder as he shrieked back and they both laughed.
"I know, I know you said don't touch, but I should still be able to look, right?"
"You're too much James. Now before I go anywhere with you, I'll need the address, phone number and some other info, so that I can give it to my girlfriend in case you decide to kidnap me or something."
James relayed all of the information that Elana asked for and afterwards she called Gail and gave it to her for security purposes. They had always agreed that when they went out with someone new for the first couple of months they would let each other know where they were going in case something happened. Gail only checked in with Elana the first few weeks during graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania, where she met Maxwell Saddom, a young Indian professor who owned his own independent consulting firm that operated throughout the U.S., Germany and India. Gail had fallen head over heels for her professor after attending one of his international business lectures and she vowed to Elana that she would have that man or die trying. It turned out that Max had the same idea about her and they got married a few months after they started dating.
So after that Gail's sole mission was for Elana to reconcile with Sean so that they could marry and be as happy as she was with her own husband. No one except maybe Sam, Sean and Elana herself knew how much Sean and Elana belonged together as much as Gail did, so when Elana called to relay the New Jersey information to her friend, Gail was not too happy with Elana's decision especially since it was not with Sean.
"Gail, I told you that it's just for the night and he's going to stay in a hotel. I need to do this and I don't need you judging me!"
"Girl, I ain't judging you, I'm just tryin' to help you out. That man ain't bit more plannin' on stayin' in no hotel than you plannin' on retiring this week. He probably hopes he'll wine and dine you right into his bedroom. You just got to be careful these days. Some white men think that black women will jump into bed with them just because they're white and James may be one of those, so just watch yourself, girl. I'd hate for him to take advantage of you or anything."
"I know Gail. Thanks for your concern, but I do work with him and he can't afford to do anything stupid. I think it'll be good for me. James is ok. I know he's really interested in me, maybe I need to give myself a chance to get to know him better. He's not all bad."
"Well, you're right about you guys working together, so that makes me feel better, but as far as you giving yourself a chance to get to know him better, you need to give you and Sean another chance to get reacquainted with each other. Sean is the only man for you Elana and you know it. It's just too convenient that you two are together like this after all these years. Love never fails and it's giving you another chance, so you need to be working on that instead of chasing straws with this James fella. But hey, thanks for the info. I want you to call me tomorrow night by 12 o'clock so that I know you're ok. And please don't drink too much. You know you can't handle too much liquor, so be careful."
"I will Gail. Thanks. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Elana hung up the phone; relieved that she had not told Gail about the kiss she and Sean shared Friday. She knew that if she told her friend about that and about her subsequent trip to Cape May with James, that Gail probably would stop talking to her.
Elana changed into crème colored slacks and a crème colored angora sweater, and brown alligator skinned flat shoes then she gathered what she needed for the two-day trip. When she was finished she and James left to go to his home to pick up what he needed and afterwards they drove to Cape May.
The drive was nice. It was a cool August afternoon. James and Elana spent a lot of time talking about New York and the many advantages of living and working there. The final part of the trip Elana was quiet as she watched the scenery and thought about Sean. She had settled on talking to him within the next two weeks. Elana began to dread her meeting with Sheridan on Wednesday. All of this time she had imagined that Sheridan and Sean were actually in love and that for some reason things were not going so well for them, but that they would iron it out. Unfortunately James, Gail and even Sean, were convincing her that they never were in love and that it was actually just a convenient relationship for Sean at least. Elana continued to think that maybe after seeing Sheridan and directing their conversation toward Sean, she would find that Sheridan really does love Sean and wants him to love her just as much. She reasoned to herself that after hearing this she would have the strength to continue to keep her promise to stay away from Sean, so that he could continue his family's legacy without scandal.
James and Elana arrived in Cape May at around 5:30pm and elected to go to a dinner club for food and dancing. They went to James' house to change and afterwards headed for the dinner club. While they waited on the hostess James couldn't keep his eyes off of Elana who had worn an elegant sheer, chiffon, black body-fitting evening gown, with long sleeves. The bodice of the dress was embroidered with sequined circles stitched strategically to hide certain body parts that would have otherwise been exposed through the sheer material. From mid-thigh down to the fringe of the dress the material was simply sheer and ended at a pair of satin heels. Her hair was pulled up and loosely curled in the top allowing several strands to topple down the sides of her face. James was nonetheless pleased with her selection of attire as they entered the dinner club and the men tried to find unconcealed spaces in Elana's sheer dress while the women speculated about where the dress was from.
After they were seated James spoke, "You certainly know how to make an entrance."
"What do you mean James?" Elana was being coy with him knowing that the people were staring because of her.
"You know good and well what I'm talking about. I think the guy two table over is on the verge of a mild heart attack if he looks at you any harder."
"You think?"
"I know because I'm close to one myself."
"I'm glad you like it. My girlfriend designs my dresses. She's a fashion designer in New York. She has a children's clothing line, but she's trying to expand into other areas."
"Well she certainly knows how to get people's attention."
"Yeah, that's what her husband always says about her."
"What does he do?"
"He owns People Resources, Corp."
"Really? That company did some consulting work for Crealite a few months back. They charged us a pretty penny, but they're really good at what they do. Max may be on his way to being in the top 100 richest men next year. You keep some good company I see?"
"Gail and Max are good people."
"I have to say that I never would have thought and Indian woman would design something like what you have on. They seem to be a little more modest."
"Well I think they are, but Gail isn't Indian, she's black."
"Really now? How did she snag an Indian guy with that kind of money? Usually the parents make sure their sons marry a woman from India so that us dirty Americans can't get our hands on their money."
"Like you said Gail knows how to get attention and she put out all the stops to get Max's attention and he was pretty much helpless after she set her sights on him."
"Gail must be as captivating as you are to have that kind of power over a man."
"She is very beautiful, but I think they fell in love after seeing that they were made for each other. They are true compliments to one another."
"She must keep him a very happy man because I remember when he would come in and check on the consultants he had placed in my department, he was always smiling and happy. The consultants said that he never works past 6 o'clock unless it's absolutely necessary."
"Yeah, Gail has established a 7:30 curfew for him when he's in town, if he wants to have her do an Indian mating dance for him with the scarves and everything."
They laughed as Elana revealed some of Gail and Max's less intimate secrets. They ordered more drinks and their dinner then continued to talk.
"What about you Elana?"
"What about me?"
"Do you know how to keep a man happy?"
"I'm sure I can keep any man I truly love happy, if he loves me just as much and is willing to keep me happy."
"Then why aren't you married? I mean, you're young. You're successful. You're brilliant. Why hasn't some man come and snatched you up for himself?"
"Oh, haven't you heard? I'm not very approachable. I'll bite your head off if you get too close to my inner circle and It's impossible to argue with me and win." They laughed lightly because James had heard these things and more about her, but somehow she did not appear now to be that way. Eventually their dinner came and they continued to talk about how Elana had developed the characterization that so many had come to identify her by. After they finished dinner, James ordered more drinks and they talked about their past relationships. James started out and delineated some of the women he had long term relationships with then he handed the conversation over to Elana who was feeling a little more than giddy after working on her third drink.
"Actually I've had a few offers, but they just weren't what I was looking for."
"And what are you looking for?"
Elana pondered briefly over his question and thought about Sean, so she expounded on what she knew he was and on what she wanted him to be to her. "I'd like someone who's serious about life, but willing to take chances. I want someone who doesn't let others define who he is. Someone strong willed and willing to fight for what he believes in. Someone who's willing to love me completely and able to receive that same type of love from me. I need someone who knows everything about me and can handle whatever I put out because sometimes I can be brutal even if I don't mean to be."
James clutched her hand in his and stared at her seriously. "Where do I fill out an application?"
She did not say anything, but returned his stare. As she looked in his brown eyes she wondered if James could bring her any happiness. He certainly made her feel attractive and he seemed to dote on her when they were together, but there was something about him that she just couldn't figure out. A certain distance that she felt he was trying to hide. Then again she thought maybe there was no distance but only his own insecurities about how she would react to him.
"Would you like to dance?"
"Yes, I need to stand up and settle some of this food."
James stood and then went over to help Elana out of her chair. With his hand on the small of her back he led her to the dance floor during a slow dance. Once he found a suitable spot he turned around and held her close to him for the dance. Elana was a little tipsy and indulged herself in the moment. The music was slow and mellow, James had been the perfect gentleman all afternoon and evening, he was handsome and he was very attracted to her. Elana couldn't help but be attracted to him also and for this brief time she did not want to think any further than that. She decided to put her analytical mind to rest for the remainder of the weekend. As he held her close to him they continued to slow dance for several songs and Elana rested her head on James' shoulder and allowed herself to enjoy the smell of his cologne and the feel of his body close to hers.
James thought about the wonderful time he was having with her and the fact that she was so easy to talk to and she did not seem to care about his money. He felt that Elana was the type of woman he could prosper with and not worry about whether she was trying to rob him blind behind his back. She was so honest about her feelings and he enjoyed her taking an interest in him as a person. During his thoughts he noticed that she seemed to be a little more open to him and when she rested her head on his shoulder he put her hand on his chest as he continued to hold it during their dance. He knew that Elana was someone he could really get serious about and he had never felt that way in a long time about a woman. Finally at around 11:00pm and after about an hour on the dance floor James broke their silence. "Are you tired?"
"Yeah, I had a long day."
"Do you want to go back to the table?"
"Yes. Actually I'd like to leave, if you don't mind."
James really was not ready to end their evening together, but he consented not wanting to be persistent and ruin the good time they had. He asked for the check, paid it and he took her back to his beach house. Once they arrived James opened the door and they went in. He showed her around the house because earlier they had been in such a hurry to make their dinner reservations that he could only show her where to change before they had to leave. After the brief tour they sat in the bar area. James poured champagne for them and took the glass over to the couch where Elana was and sat down close to her.
He turned to face her, with his drink in one hand and he put his elbow up on the back of the couch and rested his head in his hand giving Elana his full attention. "You still never told me about the one man you said you would have married. What happened to him?"
Elana had drank a few too many drinks so she opened up somewhat to James.
"We started dating my final year in high school and all through undergraduate school. I was in Georgia and he was in Boston so whenever he would get a break he would fly down and we'd spend time together."
"That seems like a long time to date. Why didn't you get married?"
"His father didn't like me for his son, so it caused complications eventually I cut off the relationship, and changed schools. I was supposed to join him at Harvard, but I switched to the University of Pennsylvania instead hoping that he would come to his senses and come looking for me, but he never did, so I figured that was that and here I am today still looking for Mr. Right."
James put his glass down and placed his hand on the right side of Elana's face to caress her. "Well, maybe you finally found him." Elana went flush as she realized that James was serious. He moved his hand slowly down the side of her face and glided his fingers across her bottom lip and before she knew it James had moved into her and captured her lips with his own. At first his kiss was slow and searching; searching for how far she was going to let this go. All Elana allowed herself to think about was that this man was there with her and he had no misgivings about being with her. She felt that if anyone asked him to leave her alone because of her skin color, he would not give in. She wondered if he was what she needed to get Sean out of her mind, so she fell into his kiss and placed her hand on the back of his neck. James felt this as a sign, gently pushed her head back against the couch and proceeded to deepen their kiss. After a few seconds...
"Maybe it's time for me to go." He said as he continued to kiss her lightly on her lips.
Elana remained silent, and continued to receive his affections. After not getting an answer James did not know what to think. He had no problem with spending the night with her but he knew she had at least four drinks and he did not want to be accused of taking advantage of her later on, especially since she worked at his company and her findings may determine who stays and who goes at Crealite. He also got a sense that she was trying to escape something that he just couldn't put his finger on, but he did not want to be a scapegoat for whatever had been bothering her, so he broke their kiss and looked at her.
"Elana, do you want me to go now?"
She could feel a slight dizziness from all of the spirits she had consumed and she remembered Gail's warnings. She also felt that this was not the time to start acting out of character especially since she was so confused about the things that were going on with her and Sean so she answered him.
"Yeah, you should go James. I've had a little too much to drink and I don't want to ruin this great evening that we've had."
"Oh it wouldn't be ruined if I stayed. I can assure you of that."
"Yes, it would because we would only be acting impulsively. You have to know that I'm not in love with you and I'm not in the habit of sleeping around. So if I did tonight I would just end up hating and resenting you, which would not make for a very good working relationship."
"I guess, you're right Ms. Powers." James said as he stood up and rubbed his fingers through his hair. "So I see I have some work to do to get you to fall in love with me and then maybe we can continue what we started."
They both chuckled at what he said and James went to get his overnight bag and then left for a hotel.
The next morning, he came by and they spent some time in the Jacuzzi then went to breakfast. Afterwards, James showed Elana around Cape May and eventually they went back to New York. At her townhouse, Elana thanked James for his invitation and let him know that she had a wonderful time and that he had given her just what she needed.
Elana was grateful for the trip because after James left the beach house, she had thought long and hard most of the night about what she would tell Sean. She had decided to just tell him that she wanted to see if he really loved her and she wrote the letter to test him and when he never came looking for her she knew that he didn't love her as much as he had claimed. As she mulled over this explanation she reasoned that Sean could not deny that he did not look hard enough to find her and she would still be protecting him from loosing everything he had. She convinced herself that after he realized how strongly she felt about him not looking for her he would stop his intimidation and their connection would end with their discussion of what happened. Also, eventually when she finished her assignment with Crealite she would walk out of the place leaving it and Sean Logan behind forever.
It was mid Saturday afternoon and Elana had jogged, showered, gotten dressed, made breakfast and lunch for herself, cleaned her house and was curled up in her love seat formulating the questions that she would ask each employee within the different departments of Crealite starting Monday or Tuesday. She wore a pair of black stretch pants and a long navy blue T-shirt with a picture of Elmo on the front and her hair was in a ponytail.
As Elana contemplated the questions she would ask her thoughts could not help but drift to the kiss that she and Sean had shared the day before. Lightly rubbing her lips with heR forefinger and thinking about it made her see what she had been missing all her life and now she wondered if leaving Sean was actually the best thing for him. She had done it because she loved him so much and did not want to see him ruined, but in doing so, had she ruined both of them in another way. Had she ruined their hearts? It was true that no one had ever been able to reach her emotionally after Sean, and it seemed apparent that the same was true for him. Even though he was dating Sheridan, she had not been fulfilling that need that he and Elana had for each other.
She reasoned that while she used her studies and her business to patch up any emptiness within herself, then maybe Sean had used other women. At first she winced at this, and it pained her to think of him making love to other women. It was especially painful because she knew she had made him wait so long for her as he anticipated the reward of pleasure that they; as two people deeply in love, who had saved themselves only for each other, would share together when they were to be married in about a year before she ended it all. These thoughts also saddened her because she actually wished to some degree that she had let him make love to her. But Elana knew herself and she knew how hard she had worked to keep herself chaste for Sean. When they were in college she reasoned that if she could resist the man she loved and was severely attracted to then when they married it would make their marriage all the more solidified. Sean would never have to worry about her giving into the temptations of another man and she would not have to worry about him in that way either. Now she drifted back to what Gail had always said 'You need to be with the man you've been saving yourself for all these years', she would always say. Even though Elana never consciously kept herself away from men because of Sean, she wondered if self-consciously she had done so. But she thought it really didn't matter anymore. Sean obviously went on and did his thing and she had done the same.
But as the thought passed, she realized that a man would always try to find comfort in sex. She could not blame him for being with others, but she felt that he still had not really made love to anyone because if he had he would not be so intense whenever he was around her. Elana reckoned that he could feel her presence just as she could his. She had to admit that whenever he would come into her office, even if he tried to not make a sound she always knew he was there.
But now, what would she do with all of these feelings. Was he still threatened with being ousted from his family if they got together? 'Maybe things had changed.' She thought. 'Then again maybe they have not.' Elana realized that she had not seen Phillip around even though he is listed as the CEO. 'Where was he? Surely he had to know that she was the one who was revamping the company. Did he remember her? Did he have a hand in selecting her company? If so, maybe he would not be immune to the idea of Sean and her being together now that she was independently successful. Elana sighed and tried to go back to her task. There were just too many questions that needed to be answered and it was just too much flooding in on her. What she needed was a break from it all. As she continued to ponder over these things her doorbell rang.
"Wait a minute. Here I come." Elana shouted as she put her paperwork to the side and rushed to the door.
Looking through her peephole she saw that it was James, so she opened the door.
"Hi?" She said with a surprised look on her face.
"Hi gorgeous. How are you?" He said standing in a pair of twill slacks and a neutral colored dress-shirt, covered by an open cardigan sweater.
"I'm alright. Come on in." She moved back and let James in as she closed the door behind him. "What are you doing here?" She asked.
"I came by to apologize for yesterday afternoon. I was being a little persistent because I've gotten so used to being around you this past week. I didn't want to go the whole weekend with the possibility of not seeing you. I'm just sorry Sean came in. Can you believe that guy? Interrupting us like that. You'd think he was jealous or something. He needs to take care of his own girlfriend if you ask me."
Elana's interest was peaked at the mention of Sheridan and so she decided to use this opportunity to try and get some information about Sean and Sheridan's relationship. "What do you mean?"
"What? About Sean and his girlfriend?"
"Yeah. Come on into the living room and have a seat." As he talked she led him into her spacious living room and he took a seat in a chair after she crunched herself up in her love seat.
"Well, he's dating this high society woman from Connecticut. She's picture perfect and Sean avoids her like the plague. Before they actually started dating, she used to call him every day asking him when he was going to take her out and he never would, but finally one day I guess her persistence paid off and they started dating regularly. If you call once a month regular."
"Well, maybe he's really interested in someone else." Elana said matter-of factly.
"You may be right, but I have never seen Sean with any woman on a consistent basis. A few years back he dated this one woman who seemed to be good for him, but eventually she just disappeared. So most of us have speculated that Sean will be one of those eccentric bachelors as he grows older, then again maybe Sheridan will convince him to marry her eventually. But I'm not here to talk about Sean Logan. I came to see you. I was going to ask you this yesterday, but I just left because it's not a good idea to argue with your boss. If you know what I mean?"
"Yeah, I know." Elana said trying to sound amused.
"I wanted to see what you were doing today and tomorrow."
Picking up the paperwork she was trying to work on, Elana answered him. "I'm just going over my interview schedule for this week."
"Did Sean, put you to the grinding board on that."
"No, I just need to do it. It's part of the project. Remember the meeting everyone had Monday? I explained that this would be the first phase."
"I must let you know that I've been thinking of you and I know that you had been stressed over something all day Friday. In fact I was hoping to be able to help you alleviate some of that stress by taking you to Cape May, NJ with me. I have a house on the beach and I was hoping you could take a break and join me."
"I'm not sure James, as a matter of fact..."
Interrupting her before she could finish James exhorted, "Now before you go turning me down, I was just thinking that maybe we could go down together and enjoy the scenery and relax. I have an indoor pool and steam room, a game room with ping pong, pool and some video games."
"James I don't know about going off to New Jersey with you and spending the night. It just doesn't sound right. What would everyone say at the office?"
"Hay, before you get the wrong idea. I can stay in a hotel, if you prefer and I'll just come around on Sunday morning and we can spend the day together and then come home Sunday night." He reached out and took her hand, which rested on the arm of the love seat and cradled it within his, trying to dispel her apprehensions and grinning from ear to ear he continued "As to my coworkers, I certainly hope they find out you spent the weekend with me. It would definitely help me uphold my reputation as being a lady-killer." He stopped and they looked at each other and a sheepish smile formed on Elana's mouth, then James asked "So, how about it?"
Elana sat silently contemplating James offer which sounded tempting. She hadn't been away in years and she was under a lot of stress. If James were sincere about staying in a hotel, it would give her an opportunity to think and decide what she would tell Sean and how their relationship should continue. New Jersey was only an hour or so a way and she could easily get home if she needed to. "Ok. James I'll go, only if you promise to be a perfect gentleman."
"I promise! Now all you'll need is a change of clothes for tomorrow. A dinner outfit and hopefully a very sexy swimsuit!"
"James!" Elana hit him on his shoulder as he shrieked back and they both laughed.
"I know, I know you said don't touch, but I should still be able to look, right?"
"You're too much James. Now before I go anywhere with you, I'll need the address, phone number and some other info, so that I can give it to my girlfriend in case you decide to kidnap me or something."
James relayed all of the information that Elana asked for and afterwards she called Gail and gave it to her for security purposes. They had always agreed that when they went out with someone new for the first couple of months they would let each other know where they were going in case something happened. Gail only checked in with Elana the first few weeks during graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania, where she met Maxwell Saddom, a young Indian professor who owned his own independent consulting firm that operated throughout the U.S., Germany and India. Gail had fallen head over heels for her professor after attending one of his international business lectures and she vowed to Elana that she would have that man or die trying. It turned out that Max had the same idea about her and they got married a few months after they started dating.
So after that Gail's sole mission was for Elana to reconcile with Sean so that they could marry and be as happy as she was with her own husband. No one except maybe Sam, Sean and Elana herself knew how much Sean and Elana belonged together as much as Gail did, so when Elana called to relay the New Jersey information to her friend, Gail was not too happy with Elana's decision especially since it was not with Sean.
"Gail, I told you that it's just for the night and he's going to stay in a hotel. I need to do this and I don't need you judging me!"
"Girl, I ain't judging you, I'm just tryin' to help you out. That man ain't bit more plannin' on stayin' in no hotel than you plannin' on retiring this week. He probably hopes he'll wine and dine you right into his bedroom. You just got to be careful these days. Some white men think that black women will jump into bed with them just because they're white and James may be one of those, so just watch yourself, girl. I'd hate for him to take advantage of you or anything."
"I know Gail. Thanks for your concern, but I do work with him and he can't afford to do anything stupid. I think it'll be good for me. James is ok. I know he's really interested in me, maybe I need to give myself a chance to get to know him better. He's not all bad."
"Well, you're right about you guys working together, so that makes me feel better, but as far as you giving yourself a chance to get to know him better, you need to give you and Sean another chance to get reacquainted with each other. Sean is the only man for you Elana and you know it. It's just too convenient that you two are together like this after all these years. Love never fails and it's giving you another chance, so you need to be working on that instead of chasing straws with this James fella. But hey, thanks for the info. I want you to call me tomorrow night by 12 o'clock so that I know you're ok. And please don't drink too much. You know you can't handle too much liquor, so be careful."
"I will Gail. Thanks. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Elana hung up the phone; relieved that she had not told Gail about the kiss she and Sean shared Friday. She knew that if she told her friend about that and about her subsequent trip to Cape May with James, that Gail probably would stop talking to her.
Elana changed into crème colored slacks and a crème colored angora sweater, and brown alligator skinned flat shoes then she gathered what she needed for the two-day trip. When she was finished she and James left to go to his home to pick up what he needed and afterwards they drove to Cape May.
The drive was nice. It was a cool August afternoon. James and Elana spent a lot of time talking about New York and the many advantages of living and working there. The final part of the trip Elana was quiet as she watched the scenery and thought about Sean. She had settled on talking to him within the next two weeks. Elana began to dread her meeting with Sheridan on Wednesday. All of this time she had imagined that Sheridan and Sean were actually in love and that for some reason things were not going so well for them, but that they would iron it out. Unfortunately James, Gail and even Sean, were convincing her that they never were in love and that it was actually just a convenient relationship for Sean at least. Elana continued to think that maybe after seeing Sheridan and directing their conversation toward Sean, she would find that Sheridan really does love Sean and wants him to love her just as much. She reasoned to herself that after hearing this she would have the strength to continue to keep her promise to stay away from Sean, so that he could continue his family's legacy without scandal.
James and Elana arrived in Cape May at around 5:30pm and elected to go to a dinner club for food and dancing. They went to James' house to change and afterwards headed for the dinner club. While they waited on the hostess James couldn't keep his eyes off of Elana who had worn an elegant sheer, chiffon, black body-fitting evening gown, with long sleeves. The bodice of the dress was embroidered with sequined circles stitched strategically to hide certain body parts that would have otherwise been exposed through the sheer material. From mid-thigh down to the fringe of the dress the material was simply sheer and ended at a pair of satin heels. Her hair was pulled up and loosely curled in the top allowing several strands to topple down the sides of her face. James was nonetheless pleased with her selection of attire as they entered the dinner club and the men tried to find unconcealed spaces in Elana's sheer dress while the women speculated about where the dress was from.
After they were seated James spoke, "You certainly know how to make an entrance."
"What do you mean James?" Elana was being coy with him knowing that the people were staring because of her.
"You know good and well what I'm talking about. I think the guy two table over is on the verge of a mild heart attack if he looks at you any harder."
"You think?"
"I know because I'm close to one myself."
"I'm glad you like it. My girlfriend designs my dresses. She's a fashion designer in New York. She has a children's clothing line, but she's trying to expand into other areas."
"Well she certainly knows how to get people's attention."
"Yeah, that's what her husband always says about her."
"What does he do?"
"He owns People Resources, Corp."
"Really? That company did some consulting work for Crealite a few months back. They charged us a pretty penny, but they're really good at what they do. Max may be on his way to being in the top 100 richest men next year. You keep some good company I see?"
"Gail and Max are good people."
"I have to say that I never would have thought and Indian woman would design something like what you have on. They seem to be a little more modest."
"Well I think they are, but Gail isn't Indian, she's black."
"Really now? How did she snag an Indian guy with that kind of money? Usually the parents make sure their sons marry a woman from India so that us dirty Americans can't get our hands on their money."
"Like you said Gail knows how to get attention and she put out all the stops to get Max's attention and he was pretty much helpless after she set her sights on him."
"Gail must be as captivating as you are to have that kind of power over a man."
"She is very beautiful, but I think they fell in love after seeing that they were made for each other. They are true compliments to one another."
"She must keep him a very happy man because I remember when he would come in and check on the consultants he had placed in my department, he was always smiling and happy. The consultants said that he never works past 6 o'clock unless it's absolutely necessary."
"Yeah, Gail has established a 7:30 curfew for him when he's in town, if he wants to have her do an Indian mating dance for him with the scarves and everything."
They laughed as Elana revealed some of Gail and Max's less intimate secrets. They ordered more drinks and their dinner then continued to talk.
"What about you Elana?"
"What about me?"
"Do you know how to keep a man happy?"
"I'm sure I can keep any man I truly love happy, if he loves me just as much and is willing to keep me happy."
"Then why aren't you married? I mean, you're young. You're successful. You're brilliant. Why hasn't some man come and snatched you up for himself?"
"Oh, haven't you heard? I'm not very approachable. I'll bite your head off if you get too close to my inner circle and It's impossible to argue with me and win." They laughed lightly because James had heard these things and more about her, but somehow she did not appear now to be that way. Eventually their dinner came and they continued to talk about how Elana had developed the characterization that so many had come to identify her by. After they finished dinner, James ordered more drinks and they talked about their past relationships. James started out and delineated some of the women he had long term relationships with then he handed the conversation over to Elana who was feeling a little more than giddy after working on her third drink.
"Actually I've had a few offers, but they just weren't what I was looking for."
"And what are you looking for?"
Elana pondered briefly over his question and thought about Sean, so she expounded on what she knew he was and on what she wanted him to be to her. "I'd like someone who's serious about life, but willing to take chances. I want someone who doesn't let others define who he is. Someone strong willed and willing to fight for what he believes in. Someone who's willing to love me completely and able to receive that same type of love from me. I need someone who knows everything about me and can handle whatever I put out because sometimes I can be brutal even if I don't mean to be."
James clutched her hand in his and stared at her seriously. "Where do I fill out an application?"
She did not say anything, but returned his stare. As she looked in his brown eyes she wondered if James could bring her any happiness. He certainly made her feel attractive and he seemed to dote on her when they were together, but there was something about him that she just couldn't figure out. A certain distance that she felt he was trying to hide. Then again she thought maybe there was no distance but only his own insecurities about how she would react to him.
"Would you like to dance?"
"Yes, I need to stand up and settle some of this food."
James stood and then went over to help Elana out of her chair. With his hand on the small of her back he led her to the dance floor during a slow dance. Once he found a suitable spot he turned around and held her close to him for the dance. Elana was a little tipsy and indulged herself in the moment. The music was slow and mellow, James had been the perfect gentleman all afternoon and evening, he was handsome and he was very attracted to her. Elana couldn't help but be attracted to him also and for this brief time she did not want to think any further than that. She decided to put her analytical mind to rest for the remainder of the weekend. As he held her close to him they continued to slow dance for several songs and Elana rested her head on James' shoulder and allowed herself to enjoy the smell of his cologne and the feel of his body close to hers.
James thought about the wonderful time he was having with her and the fact that she was so easy to talk to and she did not seem to care about his money. He felt that Elana was the type of woman he could prosper with and not worry about whether she was trying to rob him blind behind his back. She was so honest about her feelings and he enjoyed her taking an interest in him as a person. During his thoughts he noticed that she seemed to be a little more open to him and when she rested her head on his shoulder he put her hand on his chest as he continued to hold it during their dance. He knew that Elana was someone he could really get serious about and he had never felt that way in a long time about a woman. Finally at around 11:00pm and after about an hour on the dance floor James broke their silence. "Are you tired?"
"Yeah, I had a long day."
"Do you want to go back to the table?"
"Yes. Actually I'd like to leave, if you don't mind."
James really was not ready to end their evening together, but he consented not wanting to be persistent and ruin the good time they had. He asked for the check, paid it and he took her back to his beach house. Once they arrived James opened the door and they went in. He showed her around the house because earlier they had been in such a hurry to make their dinner reservations that he could only show her where to change before they had to leave. After the brief tour they sat in the bar area. James poured champagne for them and took the glass over to the couch where Elana was and sat down close to her.
He turned to face her, with his drink in one hand and he put his elbow up on the back of the couch and rested his head in his hand giving Elana his full attention. "You still never told me about the one man you said you would have married. What happened to him?"
Elana had drank a few too many drinks so she opened up somewhat to James.
"We started dating my final year in high school and all through undergraduate school. I was in Georgia and he was in Boston so whenever he would get a break he would fly down and we'd spend time together."
"That seems like a long time to date. Why didn't you get married?"
"His father didn't like me for his son, so it caused complications eventually I cut off the relationship, and changed schools. I was supposed to join him at Harvard, but I switched to the University of Pennsylvania instead hoping that he would come to his senses and come looking for me, but he never did, so I figured that was that and here I am today still looking for Mr. Right."
James put his glass down and placed his hand on the right side of Elana's face to caress her. "Well, maybe you finally found him." Elana went flush as she realized that James was serious. He moved his hand slowly down the side of her face and glided his fingers across her bottom lip and before she knew it James had moved into her and captured her lips with his own. At first his kiss was slow and searching; searching for how far she was going to let this go. All Elana allowed herself to think about was that this man was there with her and he had no misgivings about being with her. She felt that if anyone asked him to leave her alone because of her skin color, he would not give in. She wondered if he was what she needed to get Sean out of her mind, so she fell into his kiss and placed her hand on the back of his neck. James felt this as a sign, gently pushed her head back against the couch and proceeded to deepen their kiss. After a few seconds...
"Maybe it's time for me to go." He said as he continued to kiss her lightly on her lips.
Elana remained silent, and continued to receive his affections. After not getting an answer James did not know what to think. He had no problem with spending the night with her but he knew she had at least four drinks and he did not want to be accused of taking advantage of her later on, especially since she worked at his company and her findings may determine who stays and who goes at Crealite. He also got a sense that she was trying to escape something that he just couldn't put his finger on, but he did not want to be a scapegoat for whatever had been bothering her, so he broke their kiss and looked at her.
"Elana, do you want me to go now?"
She could feel a slight dizziness from all of the spirits she had consumed and she remembered Gail's warnings. She also felt that this was not the time to start acting out of character especially since she was so confused about the things that were going on with her and Sean so she answered him.
"Yeah, you should go James. I've had a little too much to drink and I don't want to ruin this great evening that we've had."
"Oh it wouldn't be ruined if I stayed. I can assure you of that."
"Yes, it would because we would only be acting impulsively. You have to know that I'm not in love with you and I'm not in the habit of sleeping around. So if I did tonight I would just end up hating and resenting you, which would not make for a very good working relationship."
"I guess, you're right Ms. Powers." James said as he stood up and rubbed his fingers through his hair. "So I see I have some work to do to get you to fall in love with me and then maybe we can continue what we started."
They both chuckled at what he said and James went to get his overnight bag and then left for a hotel.
The next morning, he came by and they spent some time in the Jacuzzi then went to breakfast. Afterwards, James showed Elana around Cape May and eventually they went back to New York. At her townhouse, Elana thanked James for his invitation and let him know that she had a wonderful time and that he had given her just what she needed.
Elana was grateful for the trip because after James left the beach house, she had thought long and hard most of the night about what she would tell Sean. She had decided to just tell him that she wanted to see if he really loved her and she wrote the letter to test him and when he never came looking for her she knew that he didn't love her as much as he had claimed. As she mulled over this explanation she reasoned that Sean could not deny that he did not look hard enough to find her and she would still be protecting him from loosing everything he had. She convinced herself that after he realized how strongly she felt about him not looking for her he would stop his intimidation and their connection would end with their discussion of what happened. Also, eventually when she finished her assignment with Crealite she would walk out of the place leaving it and Sean Logan behind forever.