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"Yes Mr. Buchanan," she said rushing over to pick up the red cloud of discarded dresses. "On your account then?"
He nodded, adding, "Throw some jewelry in, too. Whatever would look good." He didn't know why he threw in the jewelry and he didn't really want to ask examine his reasoning too closely. Nolan had thrown him off with his amateur hour psychoanalyzing and now Vince was off-kilter.
Why’d Nolan have to go poking at the hornet’s nest? He hated that Nolan knew him so well. He hated that Nolan knew how he’d called their personal jeweler to look at some rings because he’d been on the cusp of throwing everything he had on the table and asking Isabel to marry him. He would have even raised Dillon’s child as his own. In fact, he would have done anything for Isabel. But things had spiraled out of control so quickly, he hadn’t had the chance to make his offer. The day Isabel had taken a swan dive from the top of their building, was the day that Vince realized he'd been beyond foolish to imagine he would be a proper choice for anyone respectable. Deep down, he was missing something crucial — something that kept him from breaking other people. So, yes, there had been a time when he'd naïvely thought he was capable of settling down but he wasn't a foolish boy any longer and for that he was grateful. Now he went into each situation with his eyes wide open. He made no promises and he offered no sweetness. He liked a firm ass, nice tits, and plenty of variety and he made no apologies for it. And if anyone had a problem without they could go fuck themselves — including Nolan.
#
Emma had just exited the shower when there was a soft knock on the bedroom door. She quickly wrapped herself in a large fluffy white towel and for lack of any other clothing had no choice but to open the door wearing only the towel. She was surprised to see a plain-faced, but very kind looking older woman on the other side. "Hi,” she said with a smile wreathing her face. “I'm Janie. I'm here to do your hair and makeup."
Hair and makeup? There had to be some mistake. "I'm sorry, I don't know why you would be here to do my hair and makeup."
"I don't know but it must be something special because Mr. Buchanan said he wanted you to look your best, which shouldn't be hard because you're already beautiful."
Emma blushed around a wan smile, not quite sure how to accept the compliment without seeming as if she were condoning Vince’s inappropriate gesture. She didn’t want the woman to get the wrong impression about her but then, Emma didn’t want to be rude, either. Her brain blanked and she had no choice but to allow the woman to walk in and get settled with her makeup trunk and hair accessories. Emma had never had anyone do her makeup and hair in her life. She’d missed out on prom, being too busy trying to scrape by with a little sister to feed. So when her girlfriends had been going to the salon for their special dates, Emma had stayed behind with Lana, splurging on popcorn and soda for a rental movie night. And it definitely felt weird to have it done now. Particularly knowing that Vince Buchanan had ordered it so. "This really isn't necessary," she began as she sat in the chair that Janie had pulled forward. "Mr. Buchanan I are not dating or anything like that." She wanted to make that very clear right away. "I don't even know why he wants this done. We have more of a business relationship. We’re not even friends. I don’t really like him in the least," she tacked on just to make sure there was no confusion as to how she felt.
"Oh, honey you don't have to explain your relationship with Mr. Buchanan. It's none of my business."
Emma cringed, wondering how many women this Janie had primped for dates with Vince Buchanan. He probably made silly women who valued silly things swoon at the attention. The idea made her want to shave her head so he had nothing to have primped but her hair was her one vanity and knew not even she could go that far. "I'm not that kind of woman," she felt it necessary to clarify. "We are working together to…" She searched for the right words. "Well, we have mutual business interests that we are trying to protect." What a total lie but she couldn't rightly say that Vince was blackmailing her into helping him solve a crime that should’ve been reported to the police. But it didn't matter what she said because Janie simply smiled and went about her business without comment. "Maybe just a blowout and some light makeup," Emma suggested, looking for the easiest way to be done with this embarrassing situation.
Janie clucked and giggled. "Oh, no honey. Mr. Buchanan gave express instructions for you to have an updo. He wants to see your beautiful neck." Janie leaned down to whisper conspiratorially. "Don't be surprised if he wants to put a lovely necklace on that beautiful neck of yours. Mr. Buchanan loves showing his appreciation for a woman’s attributes."
"God, I hope not," she muttered, appalled. "I don't want jewelry from him. I don't want anything from him," she couldn't help but add.
"Be that as it may, Mr. Buchanan gets what he wants and if he wants you to look like a gorgeous princess on his arm that's what he's going to get because that's what he’s paying me for."
"Not to be rude or anything but is there anything Vince Buchanan can't buy?"
Janie didn't take offense and answered cheerfully. "Not that I'm aware of. He is a very good customer. In this economy when you find a good client you hold on to him even if sometimes his requests are a little bit different."
Okay, that comment piqued her curiosity. "What do you mean? How different?"
"Sorry, nondisclosure."
"Oh yes, of course,” Emma said. “I'm being required to sign one of those tonight, too. Makes you wonder…what does he wish to hide from the rest of the world? Normal people certainly don’t walk around shoving nondisclosure paperwork in people’s faces the minute they meet unless they have something to hide."
"Forgive me dear, but you’ve obviously never been around extreme wealth.”
She frowned. “Well, that’s true but I don’t see how that’s relevant.”
Janie’s voice was indulgent as she explained, “It's a necessary component when dealing with someone as highly sought after as Mr. Buchanan. You know how many women have tried to put a ring on that man's finger? They’ve chased him from one end of the globe to the other. Not that I blame them, Mr. Buchanan is a beautiful man."
"I wouldn't say beautiful," Emma said, pursing her lips in disagreement. "Maybe mildly handsome or deviously charismatic or maybe even fiendishly seductive but definitely not beautiful. When I hear the word beautiful I think of nice people — people whose goodness radiates from the inside out. I definitely would not call Vince Buchanan beautiful. The man doesn't have a single cell of innate goodness in his entire body."
"My my, he's sure made an impression on you I can see. You're probably the only woman in the city who doesn't want a piece of him."
"Damn straight I don't want a piece of him. At the moment I have too much of him and it's definitely not on my list of desirable."
Janie chuckled as she quickly blew out Emma’s hair and began setting it in big rollers. "I've worked with Mr. Buchanan for a very long time and I can tell you that while he may bark, he rarely bites. And that's all I’m going to say."
"Oh, he bites all right." But Emma had to wonder what Janie meant by that. How could she possibly mean that he was all bark and no bite? He’d obviously never threatened Janie's livelihood. Perhaps he had never coerced her into doing something she didn't want to do. "Well, let's just say that perhaps the way he treats you is not the way he treats everyone."
"Oh, that's entirely possible. But I know a thing or two about people. Comes with the territory. When people sit in my chair I become the therapist. I don't know how it happens but it does. And I can tell you Mr. Buchanan is one of those people who puts the meaning behind the saying ‘still waters run deep.’ Personally, I find a man like Mr. Buchanan fascinating. That and he's definitely not hard on the eyes. If I were just a bit younger and as pretty as someone like you I might be one of the many women chasing him down."
>
Emma shuddered at the thought. "I'd rather be running in the opposite direction." At that Janie laughed and begin carefully applying Emma's makeup. "So how did you meet Vince?" No offense to Janie but she didn't seem the type to be running around Malvagio. "I mean, you seem nice."
"Thank you honey, I like to think I am. I met Mr. Buchanan at a fundraiser."
"Fundraiser?" She barked a short laugh filled with derision. “Fundraising for what?”
“Breast cancer research,” Janie said, effectively snuffing out Emma’s plethora of rude comebacks she’d been thinking of spouting. “I was one of the speakers as a survivor and Mr. Buchanan was moved by my story. He’s been a loyal client ever since.”
“Oh.” Now she felt like a jerk. “You’re a survivor?”
“Yes, ma’am. And every day is a blessing that I won’t soon forget.”
Should she ask? Emma had to know. “Not that it isn’t a great cause, but why was Vince at a breast cancer fundraiser?”
“It isn’t for me to say but I can tell you that he feels very strongly about the research and he’s a generous contributor to the cause. Even if he can’t attend the local fundraiser, he always sends a big check. I wouldn’t say this if it weren’t already public knowledge, but it’s because of Buchanan Enterprises that anyone who can’t afford a mammogram can apply for a free exam, courtesy of a special fund facilitated by the Buchanan family.”
Emma fell silent, unable to process this information. How had her research missed that little nugget of information? Because she hadn’t been looking for positive news about the Buchanans, only the dark, salacious kind that they would’ve been more inclined to hide. “I didn’t know that about the Buchanans,” Emma murmured, momentarily speechless at the information. Well, one good deed did not exonerate them, she told herself. But, she’d be lying if she didn’t admit that the information had tilted her ship just a little.
