Chapter 10

Written by Tita Calderón

Translated by Fay

The office door opened after a few light knocks. Margaret entered with a folder in her hands. Albert didn't even raise his eyes to look at her. He was concentrated on some statistics that Archie had just given him.

The girl put delicately the folder on the table, waiting for him to look at her. She hesitated a moment, not deciding to approach him. She knew he was concentrated on his work and she didn't want to bother him.

-"Sir..." she called him in a hesitant voice, seeing that he hadn't even noticed her presence.

Albert didn't take his eyes off the document.

-"Yes, Margaret," he answered in a distracted manner.

Archie looked up. It seemed to him she was nervous.

-"There's a young man outside who wants to talk to you."

-"Does he have an appointment?"

-"No, sir."

Albert sighed in resignation. Margaret didn't use to overlook those things.

-"Ask him what he wants to talk to me about and then give him an appointment," he said wearily.

-"Yes, I did," she assured him awkwardly. "But he says it's very personal."

-"Very personal?"

-"Yes, sir."

-"Ask George to attend to it."

-"He said that when I tell you his name, you'll receive him immediately."

Albert's blue eyes looked skeptical as he was waiting for her to tell him the name of the mysterious man who considered himself so important.

-"He told me that his name is Terrence Granchester," she said with some apprehension.

Albert made no gesture; he just squeezed the paper he was holding in his hands. Deep down he had been expecting that visit since New York Times had published his engagement.

-"You aren't going to receive him, are you?" asked Archie, annoyed by the arrogance of that conceited aristocrat.

-"Why not?"

-"But..."

Archie looked at him, without understanding his calm attitude. Didn't he realize what that stuck-up noble want? Evidently he did not!

-"Let him enter in five minutes, Margaret," requested Albert without getting upset.

-"Yes, sir," she answered, surprised to see that that young man was right.

-"Albert, I'm leaving through the other door," said Archie, unable to hide his irritation, as soon as the secretary left them alone. "I don't want to see him."

-"Are you sure? I thought you were good friends," joked Albert, trying to alleviate the tense atmosphere.

-"Oh, please," replied Archie. "That aristocrat and I have nothing in common."

Except our old love for Candy, he thought with nostalgia.

Albert took a deep breath while he was preparing himself to face what he considered a trial. If Terry had come all the way to Chicago from New York because of that announcement, then he must have something important to say about it. He touched his chin somewhat restlessly.

The knock on the door accelerated his pulse a little. He focused his eyes on it cautiously as it opened.

-"Enter, please," said Margaret, holding the handle of the open door.

A pair of deep blue eyes looked coldly at the man who was standing behind the desk.

-"Terry, how nice to see you," Albert greeted him politely.

The door closed behind him and his eyes turned to ice. He took two big steps to get close enough to the desk and throw on it the newspaper that had brought him from so far.

-"So, then, 'the only one acceptable for Candy'!" he snapped raising his voice.

Albert saw Terry's hand trembling slightly while he was leaning on the newspaper as if it were going to fly away...He knew he was facing a man who hadn't said yet a final goodbye to his past, even though he had taken a completely different path.

-"Maybe I exaggerated a little," declared Albert, making a gesture to him to sit down.

-"Damn!" shouted Terry, striking a blow on the photograph that lay on the table, as if that could put out the fire that burned inside him.

His breathing became agitated as if he had run for miles.

-"You should have told me!"

-"Would that have changed anything?" asked Albert calmly, as he was heading to the little bar that was in a corner of the office and serving two glasses of whisky.

-"Yes, I would have smashed your face that very moment and saved me the trip."

Albert smiled faintly as he extended a glass towards him. Terry took it after hesitating a bit. He had wanted to beat Albert, but standing in front of him, all his anger was subsiding. Deep down he knew that he had nothing to say about it.

After taking a couple of sips, Terry decided to accept Albert's invitation to sit on a sofa that was a few steps away from the large desk.

-"Well, I don't even know why I'm here. I wanted to punch your face," he admitted, taking another sip. "But now I feel a little like an idiot."

-"You're just trying to say goodbye to your past in order to be able to face a new life."

Albert's words were spoken very firmly.

-"Maybe...You're right..."

Both kept silent for several minutes.

-"Now I can understand why it was...easy for Candy to say goodbye to me," said Terry sadly.

-"I can assure you that it was not..." Albert defended her.

He had felt Candy's pain almost as if it had been his own.

Terry made a gesture to him to continue.

-"She had you...here...waiting for her..."

He accentuated every word.

The words spoken in that New York hospital resounded loudly in his mind as if he were listening to them at that precise moment.

-"I have to return to Chicago...Albert needs me," Candy had told him during their farewell...

-"You had Susanna."

Albert's words took him out of his reverie.

-"It wasn't the same."

-"Candy was suffering very much when she came back. You have no idea how..."

-"I'm sure about that," Terry scoffed, interrupting Albert.

Albert looked at him for a moment and saw his contained resentment slowly coming to the surface.

-"I don't understand what this is all about now," declared Albert, getting up. "You're supposed to be getting married and to be in love with...Karen, right?"

-"Yes, I am," confessed Terry firmly.

-"So?"

Terry was silent and started walking to and fro.

-"I want you to understand why I left my past aside...why I am here... why I never tried to see her..."

The last words were spoken almost in a whisper.

-"You don't have to do that."

-"I want to do that..." Terry assured him decidedly.

He needed once and for all to get out what he had kept so jealously inside him during all this time.

Night was falling over Chicago but Albert was still in the office, looking through the windows, without seeing anything, with his arms crossed.

A loud sigh came from the depths of his soul when he spotted a couple walking hand in hand in the street...How much he wanted to walk with Candy like this...

But now he felt that future which had seemed so close to him was moving away as if it were the light of a shooting star.

What had he done?

He had sent Terry straight to Candy himself after listening to his reasons.

The knock on the door interrupted his thoughts but he didn't turn around.

-"William, I have just reviewed the bank's accounting and everything is in order," said George behind him.

-"Thank you, George."

Seeing that Albert was not turning, George knew that something was wrong.

-"It seems young Granchester's visit was not a friendly one," he remarked cautiously.

-"No; on the contrary, it was very convenient," explained Albert in a distant manner.

-"Is that right?"

-"I've just been thinking," declared the young man after a moment.

George shook his head in confusion. He knew he'd better leave him alone, battling with his internal demons.

-"I'll see you tomorrow," he said.

-"Yes...all right, George...Please tell Margaret to go too and Richard to leave me the car keys..."

George raised an eyebrow, confirming his theory, as he was leaving. Young Granchester's visit was not as nice as Albert was trying to make it seem.

Margaret was disappointed to learn that her boss was left alone. No doubt the handsome actor's visit was not so pleasant, because since he had left, he had seemed worried.

-"Sir," she said, leaving the door open and hoping he would turn around, "I'm leaving."

She expected him to confirm that this was his order.

-"Have a good rest, Margaret," he replied in a distant manner, without turning.

-"You...you too..."

Albert didn't answer; he just kept looking through the window.

Margaret lowered her head, feeling unable to help him, as she closed the door.

The building was completely silent. Night was darker than usual, just like his soul. He closed his eyes for a moment, recalling the last words of his conversation with Terry.

...

-"She had the opportunity to talk to me and she did not." – The last three words were spoken harshly. – "She left me in that traveling theatre without saying a single word to me."

Bitterness was palpable in each word of his.

-"You should ask her why she did it," suggested Albert.

-"What for?"

-"So that you can free your soul," he added.

Terry remained still as a statue, astonished at Albert's words.

-"Can I see her?"

There was a mixture of surprise and bewilderment in his voice.

-"Of course. Candy is my fiancée, not my prisoner," Albert assured him.

-"Well...I don't know where I can find her..."

That seemed more like an excuse.

Albert took a piece of paper from the desk and wrote down the address Terry needed.

-"You can meet her there," he said, extending the paper towards him.

-"You don't mind?"

Terry was confused.

Albert smiled sadly. He did mind, of course. But he was a man who had always respected freedom...Moreover, it was himself who had guided Candy towards Terry that time in Rockstown in order to encourage a meeting between them, thinking that would be enough for them...But he had been mistaken...

...

A muffled sigh came out of his chest. For the first time he didn't want to return home. Maybe she was waiting for him and he would see in her eyes the crystallized anguish after that encounter which he had propitiated once again.

He needed a drink. He took the car keys and drove down a few streets until he found an open bar. It had been a long time since he had entered a bar, but now he needed something to help him forget his impotence...his stupidity...his cursed idea of freedom...

The hours passed slowly as he remembered how his feelings had changed little by little for that little crybaby he had met on Pony's Hill...

At the beginning, when he met her crying on the hill, he felt tenderness for her. Later, when he rescued her from the river, he felt the desire to protect her, not only because she was so young and facing life alone, but also because of the injustices she suffered from the Leagans, who despite having so much money had forced her to sleep in the stable...

The letter he received from his nephews was the incentive he needed to put her under his care and adopt her...Since then he felt the responsibility to watch over her, and although he couldn't show up freely as the man who had adopted her, he did watch over her, pretending to be a vagabond who was always there when she needed him the most...He had lived longer with her than with his own nephews. It was because of her that he traveled to the other side of the Atlantic, to be close to her and take care of her, to support her in her crazy and rebellious actions.

At that time Candy was still a child and Albert only felt the desire to protect her.

Everything was fine, until he lost his memory and their paths crossed in Chicago...It was at that moment that everything began to change. He didn't remember anything and therefore he didn't know what joined him to Candy, except what she told him.

He took a sip from the glass he was holding in his hand, while thinking that he should have left when there was still nothing binding him to her...But Candy found him...Only she could know where to find him...

Living with her was as easy as breathing, as easy as smiling. He knew very well that Candy's heart was not free and he never thought that his feelings were changing until she left for New York...

That precise moment he understood that what he felt for her went beyond mere friendship. He didn't need to recover his memory if Candy was with him.

He took another sip, thinking in detail of everything he had kept silent about for so long, everything he had concealed, everything he had refused to accept, believing it was only friendship.

Now he breathed because she breathed, he smiled because she smiled, his heart was beating because she was by his side.

That feeling was sometimes confusing.

-"I'm sorry, sir...We're closing."

The voice of the barman made him look up.

He wasn't drunk, maybe a little tipsy...but nothing made sense anymore. He wished he could become a vagabond again and disappear without giving any explanation. Suffering in solitude was the best remedy for the soul...He knew that very well.

He got up, unwilling to return home. He felt lost in a feeling that now

filled his entire soul, but with a million thoughts on his mind.

Everything was dark when he spotted the great mansion. At least Candy would be asleep. That relieved him and at the same time caused him a profound sadness.

He entered stealthily so as not to wake anyone. He was about to climb the first step of the stairs when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw something white on the big sofa of the living room. He turned his face slowly to discover Candy lying there. His heart skipped a beat with penitence. He hadn't thought she would wait for him so late. On the other hand, he didn't want to feel so dependent on her.

He approached slowly and took her gently in his arms. He smiled faintly despite himself while he was carrying her to her room. It was so good to see her asleep...to feel her safe in his arms...He pulled her a little closer to his chest trying to fill himself with the subtle floral scent emanating from her hair.

He put her to bed very carefully, trying not to wake her up, but as he was tucking her in she inevitably was awakened.

-"Albert?" she said in a sleepy voice as she tried to see him in the darkness.

-"Go to sleep, little girl. It's very late."

-"What time is it?"

-"I believe it's three o'clock."

He was a little doubtful before answering.

-"Three o'clock?" repeated Candy in astonishment, fully awake now.

Albert had never come home so late.

-"Why did you come so late?"

-"I had things to do," he replied simply, moving away.

Candy bit her lip...Albert was a little strange...and smelled very slightly of alcohol. Had he been drinking?

-"Wait, Albert," Candy asked him.

She had to hold him back somehow. Her heart was screaming to her not to let him go.

-"It's very late; we'll talk tomorrow, little girl," he said in a distant manner.

-"I just...just..."

She hesitated, visibly sad. She didn't know how to detain him.

Albert, tormented by Candy's pleading voice, approached the edge of the bed where she had tried to sit up. The plaster didn't let her move freely.

When he was close enough, Candy hesitated a little and extended her hands, trying to invite him to come closer to her. With somewhat clumsy movements she made him bend over to her. Hesitantly she touched his face, first with her fingers and then with both hands. She could perceive Albert's distressed look in the half-light. Something was wrong. Her heart constricted.

Not knowing how, she stretched herself a little until her nose brushed Albert's cheek. She intended to place a kiss there but Albert turned slowly and their lips met, soft, warm, eager. That touch left both of them paralyzed for a moment...

Albert pressed her lower lip between his own lips and her taste instantly intoxicated him. Almost blinded with longing, he gently moved his mouth over those inexperienced lips trying to open them delicately...It was then that he felt her tremble and open her lips to the unknown, inviting him to enter her mouth...His tongue subtly explored that longed-for interior while a moan came out of his throat.

-"Candy..." he murmured in a muffled and distant voice.

Candy felt her body dissolving...Albert kissed like an angel or rather like a god...She had never thought that a kiss could ignite her whole body...

She felt Albert holding her head to bring her closer to him, while his fingers sank into her curly hair. How many times she had dreamed of such a kiss...

She moved her fingers to his face and maybe it was that movement which made him stay still...Terrified of what he had done, he walked away abruptly...That wasn't the way to kiss her. Not like that, not after a few drinks...She deserved a kiss with all senses involved and in broad daylight.

Candy staggered a little at his distance, visibly disturbed by the kiss.

-"Albert?" she said, seeing he had gone rigid.

-"We'll talk tomorrow...Now it's not time for...for a conversation...You know what Aunt Elroy is like," he said apologetically, trying to hide the turmoil inside him.

Candy watched Albert turning around stiffly. Before leaving, he turned slightly, without facing her. It was as if he wanted to say something to her...but in the end he continued on his way.

When he closed the door, Albert leaned on it for a few moments, trying to find his normal breathing. He couldn't talk to her in that state...He needed to have all of his five senses.

Candy hugged the pillow, trying to calm her heart. She felt like floating...Without realizing it, she licked her lips, in an attempt to preserve the taste of his own lips. That was what she called a kiss in the full extent of the word...It was like reaching heaven and talking to God.

-"Candice?"

Candy looked up quickly from her cup of milk when Aunt Elroy called her. She was on the clouds.

-"Yes, Aunt Elroy?"

-"When you get married, you will continue living here, won't you?"

Her voice showed some fear.

-"I...I think so," she answered hesitantly. "Why?" she asked, somewhat surprised by the unusual question.

-"Well...because...Will..."

-"Good morning!" Archie greeted them, entering the dining room.

The old lady decided to keep her questions until she was alone with Candice.

-"Albert has already left for the office?" asked Archie, seeing that he was not at the table.

-"He hasn't got up yet," replied Aunt Elroy in her usual rigid tone that didn't allow another question.

-"That's strange, isn't it?" said Archie, as if talking to himself.

Candy lowered her head, trying to hide her blush, when she heard his name. Her heart responded with a strong beating and she recalled that kiss in the darkness, while stifling a sigh that came from her soul. "And what about the visit you received yesterday, Candy?" asked Archie naturally.

Albert was about to enter the dining room with a big smile on his face, when he heard his nephew's question. He stood still.

-"It was entertaining; I hadn't realized how much I had missed talking like that."

-"I can imagine," added Archie amused.

-"It's as if time hadn't passed at all."

Candy's voice revealed a mixture of emotion and happiness.

Albert remained breathless. He had come down willing to tell Candy everything he felt...willing to put his heart into her hands...He was about to turn around when the butler greeted him.

-"Good morning, Sir Ardlay."

-"Eh...Good morning."

He entered the dining room almost inertly. He rather wanted to run away from that place.

-"Good morning," he said, forcing a smile. "I'm sorry I was late," he added apologetically, as he was sitting at the head of the table.

-"Don't worry, my boy," replied Aunt Elroy immediately.

Candy smiled at Albert, but unlike other times he didn't even look at her.

-"I just want some strong coffee, thank you," he said to the maid who approached him with the coffee pot.

-"Right away, sir."

-"You should have asked your friend to stay here, Candice," snapped

Aunt Elroy.

-"I did, but that was not possible," answered Candy, trying to ignore the fact that Albert wasn't looking at her.

Maybe he felt uncomfortable because of the kiss.

-"At least I hope your invitation for lunch was accepted," the old lady said somewhat reproachfully.

-"Yes, Aunt."

-"All right. I don't want anybody to think that the Ardlays are not hospitable."

Albert choked on his coffee as he listened to that conversation. He was confused. On the one hand he was annoyed by the way Candy was talking about her visitor; on the other hand he didn't understand why his aunt showed so much kindness towards Terry.

The best thing for him to do was to go to the office immediately. He made an effort to finish his coffee and got up, apologizing to everybody.

-"If you'll excuse me, I'm leaving. I was late. I have a meeting."

-"Are you coming for lunch?" asked Candy, almost at the moment Albert was crossing the threshold.

He stopped for a moment...

-"I'll do what I can," he answered coldly, as he was walking quickly away from the dining room.

Everyone looked at each other in surprise. Candy bit her lip. She was sure that something was wrong with Albert. Her heart felt heavy in her chest.

When George arrived at the office, he found Margaret busy in writing.

-"Too much work?" he asked naturally.

-"Good morning, Mr. Johnson," Margaret greeted him with a quick smile. "It seems that Sir Ardlay is not in a very good mood," she confessed uncomfortably.

-"I can't believe that," declared George incredulously.

-"Believe it...He has made me repeat the same sentence three times," she added distressed.

George straightened up a little...Maybe young Granchester's visit had been worse than he had thought.

He entered the office and found Albert looking carefully at some documents.

-"Good morning, William."

-"Hello, George," he answered, hardly looking up at him.

-"Is everything all right?" George asked cautiously.

-"Fine," Albert replied curtly, sinking back into his papers.

His expression was strained and one could notice that he didn't look well.

-"This document is ready, sir," said Margaret, with the paper in her hand.

-"Leave it there," he said coldly. "I need the statistics of last month."

-"Yes, sir, immediately."

-"But we have already filed them," added George.

-"I want to see them again."

-"I understand."

He could notice that Albert was not in the best of spirits. And he was sure that a certain blonde girl had something to do with that...

Archie noticed too Albert's bad mood as soon as he arrived, and it was getting worse as the day progressed.

-"I think we should send for Candy," he mused, as if talking to himself, while he was leaving his uncle's office to do a few things.

-"That's a good idea," added George, as the two men exchanged a knowing glance.

Margaret just looked at them anxiously. She had never seen her boss so annoyed. She doubted that this Candy could do anything to calm him down.

George entered with several folders while he was developing an idea that might improve his boss's mood.

-"Here are the bank reports of the last months."

-"Thank you."

-"William..." he called him somewhat hesitantly.

Albert fixed his blue eyes impatiently on him.

-"May I ask you something personal?"

-"I don't want to talk about Terry," he said wearily.

-"Actually my question concerns Miss Candy and Margaret," replied George.

Albert frowned, without understanding, looking at him apprehensively.

-"I was wondering what Miss Candy had against Margaret," he added, as if he were really wondering about that.

-"What are you talking about?"

George simulated a smile; he knew that was the point where his bad mood might change.

-"Yesterday, when I returned to the mansion, Miss Candy asked me about you. When I told her you had stayed at the office, she became very sad; too sad, I would say. Then, when I was about to leave, she caught up with me and asked me a rather unconventional question..."

George kept silent on purpose.

-"What did she ask you?" Albert asked impatiently.

-"If you had remained alone with Margaret at the office."

He raised his eyebrows, waiting for William to process that information.

Albert barely smiled. That was a good sign.

-"When I answered her 'no', she smiled relieved," George continued, while observing with pleasure William who had changed his grim attitude and seemed more relaxed.

He waited a little; he knew William didn't need much information to draw his own conclusions.

-"I have the slight impression that she is jealous of Margaret. Before I left she asked me not to mention the matter to you."

-"And why did you?" Albert asked, somewhat reproachfully.

-"Because I wanted you to change that face of a living dead you've had all morning," he said smiling. "I'm sure Miss Candy will forgive my indiscretion, knowing it was for a good cause."

The two men exchanged a smile.

-"I'm sorry," apologized Albert.

-"You don't have to apologize. But may I know what has annoyed you so much?"

The confidence that existed between them for so long gave George the freedom to ask such direct questions.

Albert turned his eyes away, interlacing his fingers and bringing them to his chin.

-"Candy is very happy with Terry's visit," he confessed.

-"What?" asked George confused.

-"Yesterday Candy received Terry's visit and she is very happy with that. I know that shouldn't bother me but I can't help it, even though I gave the address to Terry myself so that he would visit her."

-"Are you sure about that?" asked George.

-"Of course I am. This morning everybody was talking about it."

George raised an eyebrow with resignation, hiding a smile.

-"What's more, they even invited him for lunch and nobody included me in that," he confessed annoyed.

-"But it's your house; you should be there," added George.

-"Do you think I should show up?"

-"I'm sure about that," affirmed George with something similar to a mischievous smile. "Besides, in that way you would clarify certain misunderstandings."

-"Misunderstandings?" asked Albert.

-"That's right," George confirmed. "Moreover, I think you should go if you want to get there before that 'guest'."

-"You know something, George?" he asked, clearly noticing the inflection in George's words.

-"Nothing that might worry you."

Albert looked at him out of the corner of his eye. He knew George was hiding something from him; he was no fool.

But whatever it was, he was going to find out. He took his jacket and

went straight to the mansion. He wouldn't leave the battle so easily...

especially since it was at his own house...

To be continued...