Dancing Hours (22 page)

“Now, I believe she may have some difficulty gaining respect using her own authority and so she acts in my name.  Are you following me?”

“I am.”

“I trust her completely and I trust you completely.  You have both proven that trust to be well placed.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet.  You see, I need you to take some time from your other clients and get Miss Swift completely educated about the assets and liabilities of my businesses.  And I need you to meet regularly to advise her of your recommendations and handle any tax matters that arise.  She has my authority to sign on my behalf.”

“Mr.
Wright
, may I ask why you will not be handling these matters yourself any longer?”

“You may ask, but it’s none of your business Samuel.  Your father and I had an understanding which you and I will also have – you do as I ask as long as it does not violate the law and you keep your curiosity in check.”

Samuel Moore was
unphased
by Leonard’s chest pounding display. 

“In that case, I would be happy to assist Miss Swift in any way I can.”

Vanessa hoped her cheeks had not colored.  She’d never watched such a conversation take place and to be so much about her.  She was dumbfounded that Leonard knew she was running the business, that he’d come so clearly out of his fog and that he was still commanding this accountant to assist her.   She had worried that he would be angry, but it did not appear to be the case.  She also no longer drea
ded the accountant, Samuel, and
welcomed
the chance to spend time with him.
  Overall, it was an excellent evening.

Samuel left immediately after dinner.  As Dorothy closed the door behind him, she turned with a smile to Vanessa.

“I think that went well.”

“I should say so.  How did you do it?”

“It was easy, really.  I listened to him for a long time.  We spent days talking about Katherine and the wonderful wife she was, the life they built together.  I pointed out, gently, that he’d built this life for her and that she would be sad to see it fall apart.  I explained what you’ve been doing and – he really cares for you quite a
lot .
  I don’t know if he’s come
out
of it yet.  I suspect he still wants you to do what you’re doing… he’s not ready to come back, but it won’t be long.  He’s a very strong man.”

“That’s absolutely true.  Whew!  I was as nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.”
  Both women laughed.

Leonard walked in with a freshly made drink in hand.  “That was obvious Nessa.”  He wrapped an arm genially around her, feeling very much like a father figure she’d never had.

“Leonard, are you sure you want me to keep doing this?  I never meant to take over your business, just babysit it for a while.”

“I know that and you’ve done more than I ever could have asked of anyone.”

“It was the right thing to do.”

“You are always trying to do the right thing – even for the wrong people.”

Vanessa knew he was hinting at the side of the business that she had kept away from.  She made no judgments – although she assumed that innocent people were not getting hurt.
  She left that night and continued doing exactly what she had been doing.  Another year went by before Leonard stepped foot into The Club again.

Nessa’s
relationship with Samuel Moore developed so gradually
from business to romance
that she hardly realized she had f
allen
in love with him by the time he proposed to her.  He was the opposite of everything she loved about Los Angeles.  He was predictable, dependable and rather quiet.
  In a way, those things appealed to her so much more than her busy, exciting life running Leonard’s business.  She wanted, for once in her life, to know what was going to happen next.
  She wanted to have plans and a family and a regular, steady life.  Fortunately, Samuel did too.

They were married in a small and quiet ceremony.  Samuel’s sister was there, along with a few close friends.  For Vanessa, only Leonard and Dorothy were witnesses to the wedding.  Dorothy had moved in with Leonard shortly after Vanessa met Samuel.  Although she knew that she could never replace Katherine in his eyes, they loved and needed each other and decided to be together.  Dorothy was expecting a child soon and she simply glowed with love and happiness.

3

Mr. & Mrs. Samuel Moore lived in Los Angeles for
several
more years and Vanessa continued to operate much of Leonard’s business even after he returned to it.  Just before Vanessa’s thirtieth birthday, they discovered that they, too, had a baby on the way.  For Vanessa, there was no question what had to be done.  She would not raise a child in the
kind of life that her job required – late nights, early mornings, loud music and louder parties.  Samuel did not require much convincing. 

For Vanessa, the only kind of life she could imagine was a small town. 
She would find t
he kind of good-hearted town where the town mayor doubled as the
school crossing guard.   Eventually she found that town, not too far from a major city where Samuel could start his business again. 

They left with not only Leonard’s blessing, but a
sizable gift to purchase their
home outright and get them by until Samuel’s clients were enough to sustain them.  It was a tearful departure and Vanessa held baby Edward, showering him with kisses and hugs.  She hoped that her baby w
ould turn out to be as handsome as Dorothy and Leonard’s son.

As it turned out, baby Josephine
Moore
was a lovely child.  She was happy and carefree.  Vanessa and Samuel worked to ensure that she experienced very little pain, no hunger and none of the chaos that had been their previous lives.  Of course, for all she knew, her parents had lived in this quiet town forever. Children rarely are curious about their parents’ former lives until they have children of their own.

Among the town Vanessa had chosen for her family, she became a highly respected member of society.  A small town like that could be a tough nut to crack if you weren’t born and raised there.  She volunteered and attended church; she helped those who needed helping and even those who didn’t think they needed helping.  Only a few members of the community held her flashy style of dress against her or questioned her background and her morals. 

Rosalie Merchant was one of the few who did.  It wasn’t easy for Vanessa to turn the other cheek when Mrs. Merchant said that their daughters should not keep company with each other.  She felt sorry for little Theresa – a girl who would inevitably adopt her mother’s prejudices, not because she was mean spirited or
judgmental herself, but because most children are raised to blindly follow their parents’ lead.  And Rosalie Merchant was a bitter, angry woman who saw in Vanessa
all that was wrong with the world.

Josephine never felt the stigma of being an outsider. 
 
She went to school with the same children she had played on the playground with. 
She
knew
why T
h
eresa Merchant didn’t like her
, but
didn’t care. 
Jose
phine
was popular and social, but she believed she
lived a quite boring life
and
dreamed of seeing the world much like her own daughter would do.  Vanessa indulged
Josephine
with weekend trips away, summer vacations to the National Parks and whatever books
she
wanted. Still, Jose
phine wanted to go far from home
.

She was away at college when her father passed away from a stroke.  Although Vanessa never pressured her into it, or even suggested it, Josephine decided to come home after
she completed her degree
.  She
reconnected with and
married her high school sweetheart
, Andrew Taylor,
and started her own family.  In many ways, leaving home had brought
Josephine
closer to it.

4

Josephine’s daughter, Andrea, was born an old soul.  As a baby, she would watch the adults interact with such fastidious interest that her first babbles seemed to mimic the tone of adult conversation.  She immediately stole Vanessa’s heart.  It was as if it was beating so loudly it might pound right out of her chest the first time she held her granddaughter.  It was
even more powerful
than holding her daughter for the first time.  Just as she had vowed with Josephine, she knew that she would protect this tiny creature until her last breath and then come back as an angel to finish the job.

She reluctantly agreed to be called “grandma” – a term for old
bitties
as far as she was concerned- but fate stepped in when Andrea had trouble pronouncing her Gs and “grandma” came out as “
Nanah
” and eventually shortened to Nan.

There were
very few
other children in Andrea’s world until she went to preschool.  Nan watched her much of the time while Andrea’s parents worked, taking her along to the senior center for dancing classes and to church for office work.  There was never a shortage of spare hands to hold her and everyone
kept an eye on
Andrea.

At the age of 4, Andrea knew she was a little different than the other girls.  They were in full-blown princess and pink wonderlands.  Andy’s favorite color was green
and she liked to make mud pies.  When her father sat in the living room watching nature shows and the travel channel, Andy snuggled up next to him and asked constant questions.
  It wasn’t until she met Kate that she really started acting like a child in Vanessa’s opinion. 

Andy won spelling bees and citizenship awards every year in elementary school. 
She also loved to dance.  From Andy’s first class at Miss Celia’s, Vanessa saw the fire she wished Josephine had felt. 
Nessa
hoped that Andy might want to be a professional dancer, perhaps a ballerina.  Andy loved to dance
, but
hated to perform in front of others.
So much for Broadway.

As
Andy
grew into a young woman, she
became
curious about the world, but
also
really liked the comfort of her own home.  She took odd jobs and started volunteering and did
both with maturity and responsibility.  As many of the little old ladies in town liked to say, Andy had her head screwed on straight. 
Because of that,
no one was worried
when Andrea
began dreaming of
moving to a far
away place
.