Robin's Reward (Bonita Creek Trilogy Book 1) (20 page)

“What will you do?”

“Since this individual visited Bonita Creek Christian Fellowship last Sunday, she is entitled to a complimentary home visitation from a representative of the church. I’ll take my dear wife, Marian, with me. Don’t fret. Marian will know exactly how to handle this delicate matter. After all, where do you think I learned all of my human relations skills? The Marian White School of Etiquette has served me well for the past forty-plus years.”

Suddenly Robin had an epiphany about the situation. “Susan Stinson is behind all this, isn’t she? She’s seriously disliked me since I arrived in Bonita Creek when I was a teen, and she’s made no secret about how she feels about me. She cornered Jeff after church on Sunday and threw a temper tantrum when he once again told her once again he wasn’t interested in dating her. I can’t believe she would stoop so low . . . What have I done to her to deserve being bullied?”

“I always try to remember to follow Christ’s example and act charitably toward those who would harm us, just as He did to those who spoke out against Him. Leave this in the Lord’s hands for now. Let’s have a moment of prayer before you leave; it will help your soul to feel calm and at peace.”

After the pastor prayed aloud for Robin and Susan, he shook her hand. He promised her a telephone call as soon as the matter had been handled. When Pastor White asked her to talk to no one but Jeff about the matter, she naturally agreed.

She walked swiftly back to the library and tried to call Jeff again. This time he answered the call immediately, and reassured her he and his firm were found to be not at fault in the Parson case. Their client’s previous accountant, Charles Watson, had enticed Mrs. Parson into signing a Power of Attorney form when she was in the early stages of dementia. By signing the document she unknowingly gave Watson complete control over her financial holdings in perpetuity or until another party was given Power of Attorney. She didn’t remember signing the document and didn’t report it to Jeff when he took over.

Jeff explained, “Watson used the document to sell off Mrs. Parson’s entire portfolio for his own benefit. He’s serving time in jail, but he was unable to pay back the money due to Mrs. Parson. The story doesn’t have a happy ending for the victim. Mrs. Parson’s family is scrambling to pay for her care each month out of their own meager funds.”

“I feel sorry for the woman and her family,” Robin said.

“I do, too. She was a really nice lady before the dementia drained her of her faculties. Have I mentioned your compassionate nature is one of the things I most admire about you?”

“I don’t think so. Thanks.”

She shared what Pastor White had related about Susan Stinson. Jeff admitted he’d had a bad feeling about Susan’s emotional state after their conversation outside the church. He encouraged Robin to have confidence in Pastor and Mrs. White’s ability to resolve the problem directly with Susan.

“I’m really sorry for any trouble Susan has caused you because of my rejection of her.”

“It’s not your fault Susan is a pain in the neck.”

“Now I’m doubly glad I didn’t get involved with her. She obviously has some personal issues which need to be dealt with on a professional level.”

“Let’s just hope the Whites can put an end to it today. Talk to you tonight.”

Robin finished out her day at the library by reading two stories to her preschool story time group. She used some
Little Red Riding Hood
hand puppets Penny had designed for the purpose. Predictably, the children begged for Miss Robin to tell the story all over again. Story time was stretched from fifteen minutes to thirty minutes.

After clearing the library, Robin locked up, set the alarm, and walked home briskly. She had some gardening chores she wanted to finish up before dinner and her call with Jeff. As her mind wandered back to the email messages, she stopped to thank God for His intervention in the situation. As difficult as it was, she also took a moment and sent up a quick prayer for Susan Stinson.

Chapter 25

When her phone rang at six o’clock, Robin thought it was Jeff.
She was startled when she heard Pastor White’s cheerful baritone on the other end.

“Robin, I didn’t catch you at a bad time, did I?”

“No.”

“Good. I’ll make this brief because Marian’s got dinner waiting for me. We had a heartfelt and fruitful discussion with Susan Stinson this afternoon. Susan gave me permission to share our conversation with you and Jeff. She vowed not to bother either of you again. She confessed to us she’s been trying to cause you to lose interest in Jeff Clarke by defaming his character.”

“Wow.”

“She was humiliated when he didn’t want to date her and chose you instead. Confidentiality issues preclude me from saying anything more about our discussion.”

“She might be upset about my relationship with Jeff, but it doesn’t explain why she’s tormented me for the past decade plus.”

“Only God knows what’s in her heart. Who knows? Susan may gather the courage to apologize to you in person someday soon. I’d better go now; Marian is calling me for dinner for the umpteenth time. Goodnight.”

“Thank you, Pastor,” she shouted into the phone just before he disconnected the call. Unwilling to wait any longer for Jeff to call, she scrolled down to his number and relayed the conversation to him.

“Amazing. I’m grateful you went to the pastor instead of to the sheriff. Thanks for handling this mess. Do you have any questions or qualms about the integrity or trustworthiness of Brownstein & Associates or a certain Jeffrey Clarke?”

“No. I never doubted for a moment you
would do anything dishonest or in any way attempt to abuse a client’s trust. I just wish I could trust you completely about
our
relationship.”

“I’ve been transparent with you since we began dating, Robin.”

“I have trust issues going way back to my father and then with Thomas. It’s not all about you.”

“Well, let me know when I’ve passed your test.”

“Here’s how off base I was. It briefly crossed my mind
Thomas
was behind the nasty email messages campaign. Now I know Susan was involved and why, I’ll try to move on.” Robin’s voice caught on the last sentence.

“You don’t sound too confident you’ll be able to move on. How can I help?”

“I just don’t trust Susan. What if she starts up again? I guess then I’ll have to get Sheriff Snead involved.”

“Hasn’t Susan been a thorn in your side for a while now?”

“Yes, she’s been a trial and tribulation in my life since I moved to town when I was fourteen. She was the class bully through high school, and she just never stopped hassling and taunting me, Penny, and Jorie. There are probably many others who feel the same way about Susan. Maybe she’ll finally become a friend instead of a rival. How about we talk about something else now?”

“I just realized we’ve survived more than a week apart without taking any desperate measures.”

“Oh, I took desperate measures all right,” joked Robin. “I dyed my hair shocking pink and got a large butterfly tattoo on my left cheek. I wanted to see if another guy would notice me.”

“Did he? I mean, notice you?”

She laughed lightly. “No worries for you, Jeff. I love you.”

~*~

During the next three weeks they each had obstacles and challenges to overcome at their respective jobs. They never took their eyes and hearts off of their love for each other. Jeff initially made plans to return to Bonita Creek for the long Labor Day weekend in September. However, holding to the schedule meant he’d be away from Robin for another grueling seven weeks. He decided it would be impossible for him to stay away from her so long.

It took a few days, but Jeff gathered his courage to speak to his boss. He’d discovered over the years the straightforward approach worked best with the curmudgeonly leader of the firm.

“Sir, I’d like some time off soon. I’m distracted because I’m in love with a woman who lives on the West Coast. I can work straight through on several weekends in exchange for some weekdays.”

He was surprised when Mr. Brownstein laughed and approved the leave request without further discussion.

“I remember what it feels like to be in love, young man. I’m not that old yet.”

Jeff booked his airline flights for early August and sent his itinerary to his favorite librarian. She was ecstatic and let him know through a text and an email she was literally counting the hours until he arrived in Bonita Creek.

~*~

Jeff made the decision to propose to Robin on his visit to Bonita Creek. She hadn’t mentioned his previous dishonesty and secrecy in a couple of weeks. He hoped it meant the wound in their relationship was healed.

After researching the demographics and market viability, he decided to investigate establishing his own financial consulting firm in Bonita Creek. First he wanted to clear this with Mr. Brownstein. His employment contract stated Jeff could not set up a competing accounting firm within one thousand miles of the Brownstein office. Jeff checked a travel website and found that Bonita Creek was over 1,700 miles from Illinois. This meant he
was
within his legal rights to open an office in Robin’s hometown. However, Jeff didn’t want any issues or negative feelings to arise between his employer and him, so he’d speak with Mr. Brownstein privately about his Bonita Creek business plan.

Next on his ‘to do’ list was locating office space in Bonita Creek. He’d been in contact with a realtor in town who’d identified available space in the old town area near the bank and City Hall. The office was scheduled for extensive renovation with the projected completion date of late February. The realtor sent images of the office’s exterior and interior via email and shipped a copy of the architectural plans to Illinois for Jeff’s scrutiny.

Jeff met with a college buddy who was now a respected architect to check on the integrity of the plans. His friend, Patrick Stahl, offered several suggestions on how they could improve the design to provide more privacy for confidential conversations along with implementing a couple of essential security components such as a concealed fireproof safe and built in locking record cabinets. The world of finance was not paperless. After a brief exchange with the realtor and developer, agreement was reached on the modifications to the original plans.

The rent was reasonable, and Jeff felt he’d be able to pay his first six months’ rent using funds he’d been setting aside for some spectacular destination vacation he’d likely never have time to take. He planned to continue working in Illinois until his contract with Mr. Brownstein terminated on the final day of March so he’d have a steady income until he moved to California.

Once each detail was in place, he called the realtor and requested him to place a deposit on the office space with the landlord under the condition Jeff’s name and business plans remain completely confidential for the moment. The realtor agreed and handled the details immediately. The next afternoon he received a three-word text from the realtor, “It’s all yours!”

~*~

Since stage one of his relocation plan was complete, Jeff began working on stage two—the proposal. He planned to present Robin with an engagement ring when he proposed. He searched all of the local jewelry and antique shops for the perfect symbol of his love. He looked at tray after tray of engagement rings in all shapes and sizes. He found the perfect ring for his,
hopefully
, bride-to-be in a vintage shop specializing in garden-themed treasures.

He’d been wandering through the store looking at the contents of all of the glass cases when he saw a gold ring on an antique ring holder. The ring appeared to be ordinary at first glance. As he leaned in for a closer inspection, he realized it was exquisite. It was exactly the style of ring he’d hoped to give to Robin.

The wide gold band was sprinkled with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires. Her birthstone was an emerald and his was a sapphire. The stones were joined together with intricate engravings of vines, leaves and flowers of all types. In the center was a flower created with a topaz in the center surrounded by oval diamond petals. The hand-lettered sign displayed next to the glass hand read, ‘This one-of-a-kind ring was made in 1906 by local jeweler Hanford Corning for his wife.’

The sales clerk walked over to join him. Smiling broadly she said, “The artist, Hanford Corning, made the ring especially for his bride, Rose, for an engagement ring. They had no children or heirs, so the ring was sold to us as part of their estate when they both died.  Since you became so animated when you saw it, I imagine it may have special significance to you and someone special. Would you like to look at the ring out of the case?”

“Please.” He was delighted to find a hand-engraved inscription on the inside of the band. ‘I’ll love you forever.’ Without hesitation he told the clerk he’d purchase the ring. He added, “Will you place it in a special box tied with a large robin’s egg blue ribbon, please?”

“I’ve got the perfect box. Give me a few moments to pretty it up for you.”

Jeff grinned broadly. “No rush, no rush at all.”