Melody (THE LOGAN FAMILY) (6 page)

He smirked. “Well, I can see nothing gets past you, Mel.” He slurped the ice cream. “I haven’t had a chance to call him yet.” He scraped his spoon against the carton. Melody hated that.

“Why do you speak as if you’ve known me for years, Keith?”

“Feel like I do. Sarah and I talk about you all the time. I know about how you grew up apart. I know how different you are from each other.” He looked at her thighs again. “I know how you’re both the same.”

She moved from the countertop. “Why do you keep staring at me?” she whispered.

He licked the end of the spoon. “I bet you wish I was Lucas, huh?”

“Excuse me?” She frowned.

“I said you probably wish I was Lucas, right?”

“No, I wasn’t thinking about him.” She glanced out the window behind his head.

“Bull, Melody. I can see it in your eyes. I know enough about you already to know when you’re lying.”

“Really?” She smirked. “So you must have known I couldn’t stand you from the moment we met.”

He shrugged. “I kind of picked up on that. But there’s nothing I enjoy more than changing a beautiful woman’s mind.” He set the ice cream beside him. “You think that this with Sarah is just a fling, don’t you?”

“Maybe.” She waved her hands. “I have no cause to think otherwise.”

He stood. “Are you always like this, Melody? Do you always think that your word is law? That what you think is the only thing that matters?”

“I don’t have to listen to this garbage.” She turned to leave. He blocked her. Funny, she expected him to. “Move, Keith.”

He smirked. “I want us to clear the air, once and for all.”

“Where’s Sarah?” she exhaled.

“Why do I get the feeling that you’re um…” He stared at her neck. “Are you trying to change the subject right now?”

“There is no subject where we’re concerned, Keith.”

“You can’t see how much Sarah and I care for each other? I’m not going away, Melody.” He rubbed her hair. She shoved his hands away. “So you can get that thought out of your head. Try any little tricks to…”

She grinned. “Believe me, I won’t have to. If you’re anything like the other men she’s been with, you’ll be gone by the end of the month.”

“But I’m not like anyone she’s been with, Melody.”

“Oh believe me, you don’t have to tell me twice!” She tried to leave again. He pulled her back. He wrapped his hands around her waist. “Let go of me, Keith!”

“This is a different feeling for you isn’t it, Mel?” She struggled in his arms. He forced her back inside the kitchen. “We both know how much you like to be in control.”

“Let me go, you bastard!” She struggled, and he smiled.

“You see…I’m the same way.” He held her tighter. “We both want control, Mel. We want to keep control, don’t we?” He pressed her against the refrigerator.

“If you don’t let me go right now, I’ll…”

“What, huh?” He grinned. “What will you do, Mel? You can’t stop me from being with Sarah. I think I need to make that clear.” She whimpered. “I think this could be a great experience for all three of us.”

She broke free. “Fuck you all right! Who do you think you are coming in my home and manhandling me?”

“I just wanted to get things out in the open, Melody. I really meant no harm.” He laid the ice cream in the sink. “Did I scare you?”

“Don’t you ever touch me again, Keith.” She slapped her hair from her eyes. “Ever!” She stomped out of the kitchen. He followed.

“Melody?” She stopped by the stairs. “For what it’s worth…I did come to your room on purpose yesterday.” She shook. “And I can do it again, any time I want.” He stood directly behind her. “You want to play the game with me, then we ’ll play it.” She gaped. “And baby, I play it like no other.” He went upstairs.

Sarah came downstairs fully dressed. Melody struggled to gather her senses. She knew the feat would be useless. Sarah wore a dark pants suit that put most supermodels to shame. Melody rarely complimented her these days. Why remind the angel that she had wings?

“Morning, sis.” Sarah kissed her cheek. Melody held her trembling hands behind her back. “Listen, I want to apologize, all right?” Sarah slipped her purse on her arm. “We just have to meet some common ground about Keith, Mel. I really don’t want this to get out of hand.”

“Keith?” Melody shook. Just thinking of his name petrified her. He wanted something. She assumed that had been Sarah. She remembered how he just held
her
in the kitchen. Now, Melody wasn’t so sure. A man had never been so forceful with her before.

“Mel!” Sarah shook her. “Jesus Christ, this daydreaming you do, sis.” Sarah sighed. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look flushed.”

“I’m fine, Sarah.”

“And you’re shaking. How come you’re still in your pajamas?”

“Sarah, something uh…in the kitchen…Keith…”

Sarah hugged her. “I love you, and I hate it when we fight.” She kissed Melody’s lips. “Can you forgive me?”

“There is uh, nothing to forgive.” Melody wobbled.

“Melody, are you sure you’re okay?”

“Fine, Sarah.” She glanced upstairs. “I don’t know why I’m so on edge these days. Maybe it’s getting close to my period.”

Sarah walled her eyes. “Tell me about it. Thank goodness, I’m done for the month. I don’t envy you, sis.” Sarah chuckled. “I know the kitchen’s kind of bare so why don’t we go out to breakfast? Let me make it up to you about the fight last night.”

Melody noticed Keith’s shadow in the upstairs hallway. She made sure not to speak until he walked on. “I’d love to Sarah but I got other plans.” She heard Keith brushing his teeth in the bathroom. “I planned to go talk to Aileen today. I’ve missed her lately, and I’ve been kind of worried. With that rapist around, I get scared when I haven’t heard from her in a few days, you know?”

Sarah tilted her head to the side. She glared at Melody. “Are you sure that you’re okay?”

“Of course.” She chuckled. “Why wouldn’t I be okay? Oh good news, sis. Uh, I’m going to go after the job at Caper, after all.”

“Oh Mel, that’s great! I know things’ll fall into place for you now. It’s not healthy the way you hang around the house letting life pass you by. At least with a job you’ll feel like you got a purpose.” Sarah checked her watch. “Well, I’d better get out of here. I’m just waiting for Keith to finish up. Can you believe it? I’m only twenty-six and already looking forward to retirement? Hey, I got a great idea.”

“What?” Melody smiled.

“Why don’t you let Keith drop you off at Caper? Then you could get to know him better.”

Melody no longer cared about getting to know Keith better. She’d stay away from him like her life depended on it. “Sarah, I have a jeep, remember?”

“Yeah, but you’re always harping about how much gas that thing guzzles, and we need to be extra tight around here for a while.”

“It’s fine Sarah, really. Me riding with Keith is not a good idea. I hope you have a good day at work.”

Sarah straightened her collar. “Oh, I have a feeling I will. I’m gonna see if Keith’s almost ready.” She went back upstairs.

She always boasted about the prestige of being Mr. Pepskin’s head assistant. Melody found Mr. Pepskin to be a big jerk. He never showed Sarah an inch of respect, yet she’d obviously swallow cut glass for him. How could Melody judge? At least Sarah had a job. Melody would drown if she didn’t find something soon. She felt terrible having Sarah foot the bills for so long.

Caper Enterprises had easily become one of Albany’s most successful advertising firms. The huge skyscraper stood in the middle of the downtown area. It couldn’t be missed. Melody had always been amazed at how hectic this area could be in the mornings. Crowds of people waited at the bus stops. People ran across the intersections with cups of coffee.

Women fought the wind under overpasses to keep their skirts from flying over their heads. Groups of men in suits chatted by traffic signs. Streams of cars flowed in millions of directions. Little kids rushed to catch the city bus for school. The continuous horn honking resembled an orchestra. People scrambled to diners and doughnut shops while heading to work.

Melody felt alive just seeing everyday people carry on their normal daily routines. It beat sitting in front of the television all day. It beat lying on the couch, wondering why the last job she contacted didn’t called. She didn’t feel self-conscious today. Usually she did. No, she felt confident. Something told her that this would be the beginning of a new life for her. Sarah had been right. She needed to start living before it became too late.

She arrived at the twenty-three-story building twenty minutes later. She would have arrived sooner if it hadn’t been for downtown traffic. She gazed at the gigantic building. A wave of dizziness hit her the moment she stepped from her jeep. Something about big buildings had always frightened her. Crowds of people scattered up the walkways.

They scurried into the building as if they belonged there. Melody felt like some caged animal. She hoped her confidence wouldn’t abandon her. You couldn’t impress people if you weren’t sure of yourself.

Four other businesses shared the skyscraper. The law firm for Caper Enterprises sat on one floor. A small cancer center took up a group of floors. A gynecologist held his practice in the building. Even a local television station shared the space. Melody entered the illuminated building. She wondered how others handled such numbing, long aisles. Or maybe they only felt like that if you didn’t know where you were going.

A large sign with directions stood at the first corner. She hoped for a shortcut to Caper’s floor. She held her breath on the elevator. She’d always been afraid of the elevator dropping to an unknown destination. Instead, the elevator stopped on the desired floor. A young man waited until she got off before he got on. He smiled, and she wondered if many of the people here were friendly.

Men in white dress shirts and dark slacks smiled while she passed. She turned to see a few of them checking her out from behind. She enjoyed the attention. Sarah had always insisted Melody to use her feminine wiles. She didn’t think she had any, until now.

She made it into the cozy waiting room a minute later. She wasn’t surprised to see it full of men. You couldn’t expect many women in the corporate world. Melody spoke to the secretary. She instructed Melody to take a seat for a moment. Melody scanned the waiting room’s occupants. All the men seemed under thirty-five. They were all white.

They all looked like they’d been born with silver spoons in their mouths. Melody crossed her legs. She imagined they had run up their trust funds, or totaled one of their many cars. They sure as hell didn’t look like they needed to work. White-bread city. Melody swore their socks cost more than her entire outfit. They all wore Rolexes. They all wore the hottest suits for today’s male fashion.

Melody couldn’t imagine ever fitting in here. Yet, Sarah and Lucas seemed convinced that she did. She wondered if Lucas’s dad would remember her.

The secretary pulled off her bifocals. “Miss Cruz, Mr. Lawson will see you now.”

Melody checked her face one last time. She took a deep breath. She entered Dave Lawson’s office. The door automatically closed behind her. Dave chatted on the phone. He smiled. Now she remembered him. Dave had always been kind back then. He had all the money he could need, yet you wouldn’t know it from his attitude. He’d always been a generous and fair man.

Lucas had received the best of both worlds. He’d gotten Dave’s looks as well as his business sense. What more could a young man in today’s world need?

Dave waved. “Be with you in just a moment, Miss Cruz. Feel free to look around the office.” Melody nodded. She didn’t get these corporate types. Since Dave was Lucas’s father she wouldn’t be too hard on him.

She walked around the posh office. Dave sat behind a cluttered desk equipped with a fancy computer and deluxe phone system. Behind his desk stood a giant window where he could probably see the entire city. Melody figured he stared out that window a hundred times a day. She knew she would. If she would be lucky to get her own office, she would definitely spring for one with a window.

Two big, silver file cabinets sat in the corner beside boxes of files and loose papers. Plants hung from every corner of the room. That explained the organic fragrance Melody noticed when she walked in. Dave rattled off about some rival company. He smiled at Melody, then turned the other way. He needn’t be worried. The last thing she cared about was his business deals.

She’d come to start anew. She hoped this job would help her accomplish her goal. She paced around the shelf of tumbling books. Wrinkled papers fell from the books’ creases. Obviously being rich didn’t mean you were neat. Dave’s office had been the sloppiest workplace she’d seen.

A vibrant family portrait of Dave, Lucas and Lucas’s mother sat on the tiny endtable beside the door. She’d never seen such a perfect-looking family.

Melody hadn’t necessarily hated being raised by Aunt Lucia. Still, she’d missed having parents more than anything. It had been hard to grow up the product of people you didn’t remember. She questioned everything about herself, wondering if she resembled at least one of her parents in any way. She imagined that Sarah embodied all that they represented. Melody often wondered how two sisters could be so different.