The large white plantation house sat several miles outside of town, but I had never minded the drive. I always enjoyed the trip to the semi-isolated home, the scenery a pleasant sight that never seemed to get old. I parked my car and made my way up the large front steps of the house, the floorboards creaking under me. It was the original house, built before the Civil War, and the little faults like that floorboard only attested to its age and the history that it had witnessed. No, I had no problems making the hour-long trip out here to visit these clients.
After taking a brief moment to straighten my tie, I knocked on the door, which was soon answered by the house's maid, Helen. An elderly woman, she recognized me on sight. "Well, hello, Mr. West!" she greeted me. She stepped back, letting me into the spacious foyer. The sounds of a distant piano swam through the air, the gentle melody giving the home an aura of comfort. "I'll go get Susie. You can wait in the parlor if you'd like."
Thanking her, I moved to the parlor. The entire house had Victorian-era décor, and the parlor was the centerpiece. A few chairs, a couple of large couches, a mirror over the fireplace's mantle, and the handsome coffee table were all authentic or imitation Victorian furnishings, placing visitors in that long-ago period. I sat down with a sigh and put my briefcase on the table in front of me, awaiting the mistress of the house.
The soft chimes of the piano stopped, and I could hear the soft beat of footsteps on the hardwood floor as they came closer. I turned my head to greet the young woman that soon stood before me.
Susie had definitely blossomed into womanhood, the change suddenly obvious and drastic in my mind. This family had been one of my first clients after I left college, and Susie had been an obnoxious and loud pre-teen, just starting to be a trial to her parents. Now, she was a demure and polite young woman, with a maturing beauty that left me breathless. Her slender form was encased in an ankle-length pastel yellow sundress that hugged the sultry curves of her body. Her long blonde hair hung loose to the middle of her back and seemed to glow in the light that flooded from the windows, giving a soothing and evasive halo about her head. It was hard for me to believe that this same heavenly creature had once dyed her hair bright neon pink several years ago.
She smiled at me when I stood, striding forward to grasp my outstretched hand. "Mr. West!" she said. "How are you?" Her long, graceful fingers were warm and soft in my grasp.
We broke apart, but I couldn't help feeling reluctance at it. "Please, call me Allan," I told her. I opened my suit jacket and pulled out the small rectangular velvet box that I had in my pocket. "Happy belated birthday," I said, giving it to her.
She took the box, her perfect smile brightening her face. She opened the package slowly and gasped as she saw its contents. The simple silver heart-shaped locket inside was a nice addition, I thought, but the real jewel of her gift was the diamond tennis bracelet. It had been a pain trying to find the two, but regardless of the cost, I knew that they were perfect.
Taking out the bracelet, she set the box down and struggled with the clasp, finally wrapping the jewelry around her slender wrist. She picked up the accompanying locket and handed it to me.
"Help me?" she asked, turning her back to face me.
I took the locket and lifted it over her head, spreading the near-invisible strands to wrap it around her elegant throat. She lifted the tresses of her hair out of the way and I clasped it closed, the scent and feel of her skin around me causing my heart to race. It had been awhile since I'd seen her, and her sudden beauty was causing thoughts that I shouldn't have been thinking.
I stepped back from her and she turned around to look at me, spreading her arms at her sides. "What do you think?" she asked.
It took me a second to find my tongue, which had felt as though it had fallen somewhere around my feet. "You look like an angel," I said quietly. I regretted the words the instant that they slipped out, but they still felt good to say. Her parents were my clients, my best clients, and my body was stirring for their daughter. My mind was in turmoil.
"Thank you," was all Susie said.
I could feel the awkwardness in the air between us, as though neither of us was sure why we were there or what we supposed to do. Perhaps I shouldn't have gotten something so personal for her gift, I thought.
I cleared my throat, breaking a silence that I hadn't known existed. "So, uh, where are your parents?" I asked. "They wanted me to come out here today."
"They went to visit Grandpa in the hospital," she said.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Susie," I said. Grandpa Patterson was her last living grandparent, and had been in a nursing home for a couple of years now.
"They went up to see him and find out what's wrong. They left this morning, but I don't know when they'll be back. They said they'd call as soon as they could." She paused before speaking again. "So what did my parents want you to come out here today for?" Susie asked, shifting the topic. It seemed as though her grandpa was a topic she didn't want to dwell on.
"It was about you," I answered, sitting down. She sat down beside me. I opened up my briefcase and pulled out several papers, some pamphlets, and file folders. "Since you're eighteen now," I began, "all of the accounts and trusts that your other grandparents had put into your name are now yours. Now that they're ready to be put in your hands, your parents and I were going to sit down and discuss everything with you. We were going to arrange the transfer today, but it looks like it'll have to wait." I paused. "Actually, we could do most of it now, if you want. Or, you can wait for your parents. It's up to you."
Susie shook her head. "No, we can do it now. You drove all the way out here."
For the next several hours, I laid everything out before her: legal documents, financial status, responsibilities, my role in the whole thing, her parents' wishes, and everything else that she had to know. She was now a fairly well-off young woman thanks to her grandparents, and I tried to explain what that entailed. I knew that it would be a little much for her, so I tried to put everything in words that she'd understand. To her credit, she seemed to grasp everything very well. Helen stayed close and refilled our drinks as the hours passed by until she left for the day. Fortunately, Susie and I were also almost done.
"Well, that pretty much covers it," I said, stretching my back. "Is there anything that you didn't understand and want me to go over again?"
She shook her head. "No, I think I get it."
"Then I guess we're done for now," I said. I started to gather up the papers that we had strewn over the table. Snapping the briefcase shut and picking up the suit jacket I had taken off a few hours before, I got up to leave. "Tell your parents that I said hi, and we can finish this later. All we need now is their signatures."
Susie got up with me, barring my way to the door. "Do you have to leave?" she asked.
"Well, no, I can stay if you'd like." I put the suitcase back down and took my jacket back off. Sitting on the couch, I regarded her as she sat beside me. "What did you need?"
She shrugged, looking as though she was mulling something over in her mind. As I watched that innocent troubled face, my feelings toward her came back with a rush. I'd managed to keep them quelled during all the legal talk, but they hadn't left.
