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Working with Bradley Youngson was certainly going to be interesting.
Chapter 2
It was a month before Je
One hot afternoon in mid-August Je
Je
Je
She emerged to find Lee Youngson lounging against the wall outside her office. She stopped, startled. Then she glanced at Dolores, who shrugged slightly and gave her a “your guess is as good as mine” look.
The minute Je
“Hi,” he said. “Got a minute?”
“Hello, Lee,” she responded, schooling herself to react casually. “Sure I do. Come on in.”
Je
Lee stood uncertainly, watching her. He was wearing a loosely woven cream knit top with wheat cord jeans of a slightly darker shade. He looked so vibrant, brimming with health, that he made Je
“Have a seat,” she said, and he did. She noticed again his impeccable ma
She glanced at him inquiringly.
He extracted a folded sheet of paper from his pocket “I received this in the mail this morning,” he said, rising to hand it to her.
It was the schedule for the mall opening on Saturday.
“And?” Je
“There are a couple of things I’d like to change, if I can.”
“Such as?”
“I’d like to drive myself there rather than go in the limousine. I feel like King Farouk pulling up in one of those hearses. I know where the place is, I’ll be there on time.”
“That’s not the issue,” Je
He looked uncomfortable. “No, but…”
“You’ll find that we here at the Freedom are just as cautious and solicitous of your safety as your previous employers,” Je
He held up a hand. “All right, all right, I give up. I’ll ride in the limo. Do you supply bulletproof vests, too?”
“Are you expecting an assassination attempt?” Je
They eyed each other, evenly matched, stalemated. The silence in the room lengthened.
Lee sighed. “Moving right along,” he said, “do I absolutely have to spout the party line about what a great place Philadelphia is, and how happy I am to be here, and how wonderful the people are? They’ve heard it all before, and that kind of speech can be phoned in.”
Je
His eyes widened i
Je
“I think we can trust your judgment on it,” she said neutrally, wanting to end the interview as soon as possible. She was growing increasingly wary— exchanging banter with him was dangerous.
“Thank you so much,” he said, with exaggerated courtesy. “It’s heartening to know you have such confidence in me.”
“Is that all?” Je
He stood. “That’s all. I’ll see you at nine-thirty on Saturday.”
Je
Dolores materialized in the doorway seconds after he passed through it. “What was that all about?” she hissed in the tone of a conspirator.
“Dolores, don’t you have work to do?” Je
“Aw, come on. Don’t be a spoilsport. What did he want?”
“He just had some questions about Saturday,” Je
Dolores evaluated that. “Hmm. If you ask me, he wanted to see you again.”
“I’m not asking you,” Je
“Along with several hundred other people,” Dolores said. “I think he wanted a cozy little tete-a-tete in your office.”
“It was hardly that. We seem to get on each other’s nerves. And if your theory is correct, why did he wait so long?”
“Ah-ha!” Dolores pounced. “Expecting him, were you? Disappointed that he didn’t show until now?”
Mercifully, at this point the phone rang. “Will you get that?” Je
Dolores went back to her desk, leaving Je
* * * *
On Saturday, the weather was stifling, so Je
The day was overcast and humid, which made the heat seem worse. The driver arrived for her at 9:15, and she stared moodily out the window during the drive to Youngson’s condominium complex in Yardley.
The townhouses all looked the same, set decoratively amidst the exquisite plantings and Immaculately landscaped lawns. There was a security station at the main gate, and Je
He was wearing a navy blazer with charcoal gray slacks and a club tie. Cochise as Young Republican, Je