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Chapter 7
Essex
“What kind of car is this?I don’t believe I’ve been in anything this sporty and definitely not this expensive, man.”
Mr. Bailey wants to talk about the car. My interest is in Quintessa. I say, “It’s a Ferrari Roma.”
He strokes the leather interior. “Nice. This must’ve set you back a pretty penny.”
“It wasn’t that bad,” I say, but I don’t go into any detail about the car, the price or anything related to the car. I ask, “What kind of food should we get? I’m down for whatever as long as Quintessa’s happy.”
Mr. Bailey smirks. “Women—they reallydorun the world, don’t they?”
“Yes, they do. We men don’t want them to know that, though.”
He lets out a gruff chuckle. “Right, but somehow, I do believe they know it already, especially my woman. And be warned Essex—Quin is just like her.”
“Trust me, I’ve already picked up on that.”
Since Mr. Bailey didn’t throw out any ideas for lunch, I decide to go to Mama’s Family Restaurant – a place I’ve been many times before that serves a gambit of everything you could ever want, and it’s only a few miles up the street.
Upon stepping inside, we both grab menus. I order the steak sub for myself and Quintessa. Mr. Bailey orders a baked chicken dinner. And now we wait, seated on a long bench that looks like it belongs inside a church.
It’s a noisy place filled with chatter, hungry families and eager workers. It’s a good thing we’re ordering takeout because the line for dine-in is ridiculously long. People are waiting in whatever corner they can find. Most are outside, clogging up the front entrance.
Mr. Bailey says, “I’m glad we were able to get out together, man. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about Quintessa.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah.” He crosses one leg over the other. “She’s my only child, so I make sure I keep tabs on her, you know.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You care about her—that much I can see with my own two eyes.”
“Yes, I do,” I tell him. “I care about her very much, Mr. Bailey.”
“Please, just call me Amos.”
“Okay.”
He continues, “I find it interesting that you care about her. I mean, you two have only known each other for a short time and you are this powerful man of influence. My Quin—she’s just an ordinary—”
“Excuse me for cutting you off, but she’s not ordinary to me.”
“Well, I didn’t necessarily meanordinary. I mean, she’s not a part of your world. You’re a millionaire. You own this mega tax company and my daughter is on the complete opposite end of your spectrum. Sheworksfor you. I guess what I want to know is, what are your intentions with my daughter?”
“I can assure you, Amos, I have the best of intentions where Quintessa is concerned. I haven’t told her any of this exactly, but I’m looking for a wife—a partner in life—and she’s everything I want in a woman.”
“Is that right?”
I turn to my left to look him in the eyes so he can know I mean business when I say, “Yes. That’s right.”
I consider telling him who I really am, but I want to tell Quintessa before I talk to anybody else about it, so I hold off.
Amos says, “Well, you certainly sound like a man who knows what he wants. As long as you don’t break her heart, I think we’ll get along just fine,Stewart.”
I frown and nearly gasp. He knows. How does he know? It was on the tip of my tongue to ask when he proceeds to explain, “I was at your mother’s funeral. I’m sorry to hear of her passing, by the way. I remember running into her and your father years ago. My wife asked them how you were doing and her response was,let’s just say he’s not the same, but he’s very successful and rich. That’s what she said. I thought that was a strange answer, and I didn’t put it together until I saw you at the funeral, sitting next to your father. I said so myself—nah, it can’t be, because I know what you used to look like and now, you look like a new person. But I knew your parents only had one son. I knew it had to be you, especially when you stood up there and said a few words about her.”
