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Simon stared at Hudson. “Excuse me?”
“Honest to god, that’s what he said. He fully expects us to just throw him out, so he’s eager to find a place as soon as possible.”
“Why on earth would I throw him out?” Simon asked, honestly confused.
“He seems to think he’s imposing is my best guess. Which, yeah, I can see his point, only that’s not the case here. Is it?”
Simon gave Hudson a hard look. “Of course I’m not throwing Ben out. Hell, I wanted him with Roberta because I was certain he’d disappear on me if I left him alone.”
“Good news, he’s still here and eating his own shepherd’s pie downstairs. Which he’s never eaten before and seems to find some sort of gourmet treat.”
“Roberta’s cooking is very good,” Simon allowed.
“Boss, the kid is down in the kitchen eating a salad and shepherd’s pie like he’s never tasted anything as good in his entire life. Don’t get me wrong. Bobbi’s a great cook, but still. It’s pretty much just a casserole, for fuck’s sake. I think the kid might explode if you gave him anything actually fancy. But that’s beside the point. Obviously we are not kicking out someone who’s recovering and has nowhere to live. But that does make me wonder. Whatareyour plans for him?”
“Plans? I didn’t know I needed to have plans. I thought he’d stay here until he was fully recovered.”
“Yes. And?”
“And what?” Simon asked. “That’s reasonably straightforward.”
Hudson covered his eyes with one big hand. “I don’t know which one of you is worse,” he muttered.
“What was that?” Simon asked.
“Nothing,” Hudson said. “Look. Say we give the kid a week and he’s all better. Lungs clear, no longer prone to fainting, the works. Then what?”
“What do you mean, prone to fainting?”
“Oh. Forgot to mention that the kid got all worked up thinking we were about to throw him out of the house that he kinda passed out on us. I think he hyperventilated. He was back with us almost immediately and started eating Bobbi’s food like he’d never been fed before in his entire life. See? No harm done.”
“I can’t think passing out is something normal,” Simon insisted. “Perhaps he needs to be seen by another doctor. A neurologist. The best neurologist. I’ll have Celia find out who the best neurologist in Chicago is and then arrange an appointment as soon as possible for Ben.”
“Or you could just reassure him that you’re not going to throw him out and that he’s not on his own. That he has people who will help him now and please stop worrying so much.”
“I didn’t realize he’d be worried,” Simon confessed. “That never occurred to me.”
“Yeah, well, you’ve also never been poor a day in your whole life. You’ve got the whole silver spoon thing going on. You’re at the very top. He’s at the very bottom, or close enough to it as makes no difference. So yeah, he’s nervous. I think he’s been living on the edge of things so long he doesn’t know how to relax. So you two have that much in common, I guess.”
“I don’t want him to leave,” Simon said.
“I didn’t think you did. You obviously like the kid and he’s like this bird with a broken wing you found that you want to nurse back to health. But the thing about birds, you know. They fly away. Unless they’re like those goddamned geese you see all over the place who no longer fly south for the winter because they have more than enough food to eat and places to nest up here.”
“What does Ben have to do with geese, Hudson?” Simon was sincerely confused.
“If you want him to stay, boss, don’t give him a reason to leave. And give him every reason to stay. And since you’re one clueless son of a bitch, pardon my language, what the kid clearly wants isyou.I don’t think your money has even really registered with him. I think it’s all so big he hasn’t wrapped his head around it, and that’s probably for the best, because on paper, boss, you are one scary motherfucker, again pardoning my language. But all that kid knows is the nice guy who found him in the snow and rescued him and took him back to his house, which is the nicest place the kid has ever seen, and I got out of him that he moonlights as a house cleaner around here. So he knows from rich people, but he still doesn’t get exactly how much money you have.”
“There’s a lot less now that I’ve turned the company over to Jeff,” Simon pointed out.
“Oh,” Hudson said. “So that means we’re gonna need food stamps?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Simon snapped.
“That’s my point, Simon. So. You seem kinda stuck on this kid, and hey, that’s cool. No one said you had to settle down with a lady. Well, except your mother, but forget her for right now. You’ve been ignoring her dictates for decades. If you want Ben, make it so he never wants to leave. If he’s what you truly want. If you’resure.And if you think you can.”
“What do you mean by if I think I can?” Simon asked, not at all sure he liked where this was going.
“Meaning that kid doesn’t want your money. As far as I can tell, he’s almost the complete opposite of a gold digger. Buying and giving him things is only going to make him more uncomfortable. This is one problem throwing money at won’t solve.” Hudson paused. “Well, that’s not strictly true, but I’m talking about money on a scale Ben can understand, not money on the scale you’re used to spending it.”
