The Money Is Green (21 page)

There was a pause on the other line. “Uh, today’s Thursday. I think I could get there by Saturday. The plant will still be open and operational.”

“Good, Saturday will work,” she said. “And by the way, the plant will be operational seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day from
now until the last panel is shipped. There will be no exceptions. When you get to Shanghai, call me and we’ll compare notes on what needs to be done next.”

“Okay, Mei, I’ll do that. Tell Brian I hope he gets well soon. I’m looking forward to working with him on Copper Mountain.”

Mei leaned forward and looked toward the bedroom. “I’ll be sure to tell him for you, Jason, and I’m looking forward to working closely with you.” She smiled and ran her tongue across her lips as she set the phone on the desk. You don’t know how close we’re going to get, Jason, and it will be more than just work.

T
WENTY
-E
IGHT

T
he white iPad sitting in its docket on the Formica kitchen counter top softly played a song from the 80s band The Outfield. Janine hummed along as she carefully stirred a simmering pot of pasta sauce that she had made from scratch. She wiped her hands on a white apron that covered her light-colored jeans and set a pot of water onto a burner next to the sauce. A glass of chardonnay sat on the other side of the stove, beads of condensation covering it.

The front door opened and she heard some rustling in the entry. “I’m in the kitchen, Crystal!” she called out. She listened for a minute and waited for a response. Finally, Crystal appeared carrying her backpack at her side.

“I’m going to go study in my room,” she said flatly and turned away.

“Okay, but if you’re hungry, dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes.” Janine listened for a response but none came. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed. What am I going to do with this child? Jason’s not going to be home for another day, but it’s like living with a mime. How do I break through to her?

She shrugged, picked up her glass of wine, and leaned against the counter, away from the stove. Crossing her arm across her chest, she sipped her wine.

A noise from the living room brought her out of her thoughts. She turned back to the stove and continued stirring the sauce.

Crystal poked her head around the corner and then came into the kitchen, taking a seat at the breakfast table. She had changed from her soccer uniform into a pair of shorts and a tee-shirt with a San Francisco 49ers logo on it. “What are you cooking?” she asked in a soft voice.

“Oh, it’s a Bolognese sauce my grandmother used to make for me when I was a child,” she answered without turning from the stove. “She was an Italian woman whose parents immigrated to the United States from Naples at the turn of the century.” She turned and looked at Crystal. “My, that woman could cook. She made some of the most fantastic dishes I’ve ever eaten. She taught me to make some of her dishes and this is one of my favorites. I’m boiling some water for pasta shells and when they’re done I just pour some sauce over the top and serve. Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, I am,” she answered.

Janine smiled at her. “Good, it should be ready soon.” She came over to the table and pulled out a chair, setting her wine glass in front of her. “How was school today? Did you learn anything interesting?”

Crystal shrugged. “It was the same as always. We’re studying United States history during the Civil War. A lot of stuff about battlefields I have no intention of ever visiting. Other than that, the rest was boring.”

“Your dad says you’re going to try and get a scholarship to go to college. Do you have any particular one that you would like to attend?”

Crystal answered, “I’d love to go to Pepperdine University, over in Malibu. To be right on the beach and attend college would be
awesome. Or UC Santa Barbara would be cool too. Both of them have great soccer programs for women.”

“Yeah, those are good choices. They’re tough academically to get into also, but I understand you’ve gotten good grades, so that shouldn’t be a problem. Have you ever thought about an out-of-state school?” Janine asked.

“No, why?”

“No reason. I graduated from Arizona State and it was a wonderful experience at a wonderful school. If you get a chance, you ought to visit it.”

Crystal studied her in silence for a minute. “How long have you dated my dad?”

Janine rose up and stirred the sauce. She pulled a wine bottle from the refrigerator and refilled her glass. I wonder where this is going, she thought. At least she’s talking. “I think it’s been about thirteen months, maybe a little less. We met at a Christmas function at the Galleria. We’ve been seeing each other ever since.”

“Are you sure it’s only been thirteen months?” Crystal asked, her eyes boring into Janine’s. “It seems a lot longer to me.”

“No, it’s been twelve or thirteen months. I remember very distinctly the first time I met your dad. Is the date important to you for some reason?”

“No,” she answered. “I was just wondering. Is the pasta ready yet? I’m starving.”

Janine turned back to the stove. She poured the pasta into a colander and set it in the sink to drain. “Let me get all the water out of the pasta and I’ll serve you right up. There’s some parmesan cheese in the fridge if you want to get it. I love it on my pasta.”

Crystal pulled out the green canister of grated cheese and set it on the table. Soon she was stuffing a forkful of sauce-laden pasta in her mouth. They both ate in silence for a few minutes.

Finally Janine asked, “Well, what do you think? Should I keep the recipe?”

Crystal, her mouth full, nodded.

“Good, I’m enjoying it myself.” She put another mouthful on her fork and then paused. “We haven’t checked out those houses you and your dad had picked out to buy. Do you want to go see some of them tomorrow? Your dad will be home in a couple of days and maybe you could narrow down the choice of houses for him to look at.”

Crystal set her fork down and her eyes narrowed. “Are you going to move in with us?” Her voice was hostile. “My mom says you’re just waiting to make your move so you can get your hands on my dad’s money.”

The tone of her voice startled Janine and she was caught off guard. “I have no intention of moving in with your dad, Crystal. I’ve got my own place,” she said. “I’ve got a good job and have my own money. I don’t need or want your dad’s money.”

“Oh yes you do. My mom says you just won’t admit it.”

Janine felt her anger mounting. “Let me set something straight for you, Crystal. Contrary to what garbage your mother is feeding into your head, I met your dad long after they were split up and divorced. I have no interest in his money or any other material thing he has. I’m interested in Jason the person. You’re a smart young lady. Why don’t you do a little research and figure out when exactly your father and I met? I can give you the date and the function we attended. I know it might not fit the fantasy your mother is spinning, but it will be the truth!”

Tears gathered in Crystal eyes, and she got up and headed for her room. “I’m sorry,” she said over her shoulder. “I’ve got homework to finish. Thanks for dinner.” She shut her door and the apartment went silent.

Janine sat for a moment. Well, she thought, at least that’s out in the open. I’ve tried to be reasonable, but if Crystal is going to continue treating me like this, it may be time for me to move on.

♦

The soft knock on the door brought Janine to her feet, and before she could get to it, Jason had opened it and stepped into the apartment. He slid his rolling suitcase to the corner and came up to Janine, kissing her on the lips.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back. “Welcome home. How was your trip?”

“It was good, except I didn’t have as much time as I needed to get the changes I wanted implemented done. The plant we run in Shanghai has so many things that need to be fixed, I’m going to have to go back there in a week.”

“Really?” she said as she let her arms fall from his neck. “That soon? I hope you’re not going to ask me to take care of Crystal again.”

He turned and looked at her, an expression of concern on his face. “I assume things didn’t go well with Crystal? You didn’t say anything to me on the phone.”

Janine blinked back tears and moved to the couch in the living room, where she took a seat, her legs curled up under her. “It’s not going to work, Jason,” she said. “I can’t fight them both. It’s not fair and I don’t have a chance.”

“Fight both who?” he asked. He moved across the room, taking a seat next to her, reaching out to hold her hand. “Tell me what happened.”

“I can’t fight Crystal and her mother. They’re not going to let me have a relationship with you. They’ll sabotage everything I try to do. Nothing I can say or do will ever convince Crystal that I had nothing to do with your breakup or that I am anything other than some cheap tramp who only wants your money. It just isn’t fair.” She started crying and tried to wipe away her tears with the back of her hand. She reached down to the coffee table in front of her and pulled out a Kleenex from the box sitting there.

“I’m so sorry, Janine,” he said, his voice strained. “You’re right, it isn’t fair. I don’t know everything Debbie’s told her, but I can
imagine none of it is going to put you in a positive light. I was hoping that Crystal would come around, but I see that it’s going to be impossible with her mother in her ear.” He squeezed her hand. “I’m so sorry I placed you in this mess. I hoped that it would work out, but I don’t want you hurting. I care about you too much.”

She dabbed her eyes softly. “I think I need to stay away from you for a while, Jason.” She sniffled back a tear. “I love you so much, but as long as your daughter feels this way, there will no chance for us. As much as I want to will this relationship to work, I don’t see it happening.”

Jason pleaded with her, “Please don’t give up on us, Janine. I can do more to help diffuse the situation. I’ve felt so guilty about our divorce, I’ve let Crystal run amok with her feelings. I’ve told her what really happened and all it’s done is make matters worse. She thinks I’m lying to her.”

“I’m not asking you to alter your relationship with Crystal because of me, Jason,” she said, her eyes red from crying. “That would make me sadder than anything if I caused a rift between you two. She’s your daughter and she needs your love. I don’t want to have any part in changing that.”

Jason took a deep breath and let out a sigh. “I promise you that won’t happen. I’ll be home for the week and I’ll have a chat with Crystal. I’ve already told her the circumstances of our divorce, but I guess I’m going to have to be more forceful and actually show her how you weren’t involved. I won’t jump her case or raise hell with her if that’s what you’re thinking, but this incivility has to stop.”

“Please don’t drag me into this, Jason,” she said. “Crystal already can’t stand me and I don’t want you to try to stuff me down her throat. It won’t work and she’ll resent me even more.”

“I will not stuff you down her throat. I know her better than that and I know that won’t work.” He turned and stared out the window. “I know what to say and how to handle her. Things are going to change, just wait and see.”

♦

Crystal sprinted left, her cleats digging into the turf as she cut off the wayward ball her teammate had passed. Deftly, she stopped the ball with the side of her foot and stopped next to it. Laughing, she shouted at her teammate, who was twenty yards across from her, “Nice pass! I hope you don’t do that in the game.”

The teammate, looking sheepish, laughed back, “I put it there on purpose. You need to run a little harder.”

Crystal was about to retort when she spotted her dad leaning against his car, his hand shielding his eyes from the sun. Even though he wore dark glasses, the glare was intense. Crystal yelled at her coach, who was across the field showing a couple of girls a new move, “I’m gonna take five!” She sprinted across the field and came up to her dad, giving him a big hug. “Daddy! I’m so glad you’re home. I’ve missed you!”

Jason leaned down and kissed her on her forehead, holding her tightly. “I missed you too, pumpkin. Go ahead and finish your practice. I’ll wait for you.”

The next twenty-five minutes flew by as Crystal went through the motions. The coach blew a whistle and brought all the girls to a circle around him in the center of the field. After a brief pep talk, he dismissed the team. Crystal grabbed her backpack from the sideline and walked to where her dad was parked.

After she threw her backpack in the back, she settled in her seat next to her dad.

“Hey, do you want to get a yogurt? That Honey Bear shop you like is right up the street,” he asked.

Crystal gave him a smile. “Yeah, that would be great. I haven’t had one of those in weeks.” She leaned down and untied the laces to her cleats. “So, how was the China trip? It seems like you were gone a long time.”

“Everything went well in China. There are lots of things going on there. We’re buried trying to ramp our production up to service the Copper Mountain job.”

“That’s a good thing right?” she asked as she switched from her cleats to tennis shoes.

“Oh yes, it’s a very good thing,” her dad answered. “It’s just a challenge for me to herd all these cats at once.” He pulled the car into a strip mall down from the soccer field and parked in front of a shop with colorful rabbits eating yogurt cones painted on the windows.

After ordering, they took a table with an umbrella outside the shop and sat down. Crystal eagerly spooned out the contents of her chocolate peanut butter special. “I forgot how good this stuff is,” she remarked between spoons of yogurt. “We should do this more often.”

“We should,” he said, nodding. He wiped his hands with a paper napkin and pushed his cup away. “I’m glad to be home and it’s great to see you again, Crystal. But there’s something I want to talk to you about.”

Crystal finished scooping out the last remnants of the yogurt. Uh oh. Here comes the lecture. I wonder what Janine told him. Every time he leaves me with her I get into trouble.

Jason cleared his throat. “I kept a lot of things from you regarding what happened between me and your mother because I thought it best to keep you out of the sordid details.” He locked his eyes on hers. “But I think it’s time you know the whole truth. Back in 2007, we all were living well. My business was booming; we had lots of money and took lots of trips.”