“I’m not working with June Myers.”
“I see,” his mother said. “According to her,you yelled when you fired her.”
“I don’t recall yelling. If I did, it was toget her attention. The woman talks like a horse racing at theKentucky Derby.”
His mother huffed. “Lance! I can’t believeyou would be that unprofessional with a top celebrity weddingplanner.”
“Look, I didn’t like what she presented. Shecut me off. She cut Chantelle—”
“Chantelle? You took Chantelle with you?Why?” His mother asked.
“She’s profiling the wedding.”
“I don’t want gossip to spread around aboutyou two. Almost everyone in Delta Heights knows your history withher. Try to minimize your time with her, please?”
“I have a meeting in the morning. Can we talkabout this later?”
“Lance I—”
He hung up. Despite her calling back, hedidn’t answer. He felt trapped. The walls were closing in on him.Lance walked over to the small couch in his room. Plopping down inthe seat, he rested his head back on the chair. He inhaled andexhaled.
***
Chantelle’s manicured fingers typed at thekeyboard. Her notes were coming along about Lance. She shared abouthis family life, and how he became a pivotal person in thecommunity of Delta Heights.
Her eyes scanned along the tabloid magazinesnext to her. Her stomach soured at the gossip about him and Andrea.Where was the bride? Would there be a wedding? Was there trouble inparadise?
She had to admit Lance was right. Between thepress and social media, it compromised Lance’s privacy. All hewanted was a small wedding with Andrea and their families andfriends. Yet, it spiraled out of control. Now he was trying toregain it.
Lance wasn’t happy. Even she could tell. Hisscrunched face and his clenched jaw proved it.
Then again, her chest swelled when he firedJune Myers. The woman’s fair skin turned beet red. He walked outthe door without a flinch.
Chantelle could have kissed him. Kiss him?She swallowed the moisture in her mouth. Proceeding with her notes,she wrote about Lance losing his sister. Not wanting to dwell onthe past, she highlighted how Lance organized a foundation inAmelia’s name to grant scholarships to athletic students along witha few academies.
Her eyebrows raised. She could ask him that.It didn’t pertain to his personal life with Andrea. Chantellechecked her phone again. He was only an hour ahead of her and itwas 8:30 P.M. She bit on her bottom lip for a moment, but decidedto FaceTime Lance. The phone rang in her ears like a drum.
He answered. “Chantelle?” He dabbed the backof his head with a towel.
“I didn’t mean to disturb you. I can callback later or we can talk when you get back.”
“No, it’s fine. Is something wrong?” Heasked.
For a moment, she lost herself in his eyes.Using her free hand to pinch herself, she said, “Nothing’s wrong,but I wanted to see if you could answer a few questions.”
“You want to interview now?”
“I think you’ll like this.”
He sighed and sat on his hotel bed. “What isit?”
“I was going over my notes and I want toinclude the foundation.”
“My sister? Why?”
“I think it’ll be a good angle. You don’ttalk about it, but I think the public needs to know more.”
He rubbed his face. “That’s a tough one.”
She should have known it was difficult forhim to talk about his sister. “I know you don’t want to get toopersonal. Forget I said anything.”
“No, wait a minute.” He waved his free handas if to dismiss her comment. “What do you want to know?”
“How important the foundation is to you. Themedia portrays you as an easy going bachelor who’s the face of hisfather’s firm, but this will show more of you.”
He bobbed his head. “You have yourrecorder?”
She took it out and hit the record button.“Ready when you are?”
He exhaled. “Losing my sister was tragic. Wethought she would go all the way to the Olympics, but we lost her.Some talented athletes are in our cities and neighborhoods can’tafford the training they need to take them all the way in the sportof their choice.”
“So, you created Amelia’s Foundation tohelp?” She wrote on her notepad.
“She had the opportunities that other kidsdon’t. So, we take in applications and help them with funds tosupport their dreams. ”
Chantelle asked. “What about students on theacademic side?”
“We don’t discount them. Amelia’s Foundationis not limited to kids wanting to go to the Olympics. Kids insports are the primary focus, but I know not everyone plays sports,so we try to be as inclusive as possible. We take theirapplications too for those who want to pursue education. Noteveryone wins, but they are on our radar for the future.”
Chantelle wrote down his last quote.“Anything else you’d like to share about it?”
He scratched at his chin. “I think… it’s okayto dream. Sure, sometimes we have to be realistic and takeresponsibility for what's in front of us, but don’t kill a child’sdream. Amelia dreamed big, and even in her death, she inspiredothers to do the same.”
Nodding in agreement, Chantelle stopped therecording. “That was incredible.”
“It was your idea.” He smiled.
“I hope I didn’t open an old wound.” Shestood to her feet with her phone in hand and walked to her bed.
“You didn’t. Every day gets a littleeasier.”
She pulled her lips into a thin line. Herfather crossed her mind. “I hope so.”
“Thinking about your dad?” Lance asked.
She wouldn’t cry. Despite the time that hadpassed, he knew that was still a sore spot for her. “A little.”
“I’m here if you ever want to talk.” Heraised his free hand in the air. “Judgement free.”
Chantelle gave half a smile. “I’m trying toopen up more to my stepdad.”
“He’s not a terrible guy. I can tell he lovesyour mother.”
She rubbed at her eyebrow. “I know he does.He’s just…”
“Not your dad.”
She bobbed her head. “I only need more time.That’s all.”
Lance rubbed at his chin. “My father won’teven talk about Amelia. One mention of her name and his stare is ascold as ice.”
Chantelle touched her stomach. Her breathingslowed as another memory took over. “Can I ask you something?”
He smiled. “Off the record?”
She returned the gesture. “Yes. Off therecord.”
“Sure.”
“What… names did you have in mind?”
Lance squished
