Hide & Seek - James Patterson [46]
I did fear I was being conned. But I figured he was trying so very hard … and he was sweet that day. And, I have to admit, to be truthful, he was gorgeous to look at.
A patch of laughter, scattered party applause, snuck through the blackthorn bushes. I looked at my wrist-watch.
“I don’t believe it. We’ve been talking for over an hour. I do have to go. It’s my night to cook. Will, I’m sorry.”
“I’m not. Not a bit. I’m some terrific guest of honor though. This could be my last retirement party. I’d better go back too.”
As we walked back to the clubhouse, he took my arm for a second, a gentle touch on my elbow, then let it go. “I needed that,” he said. “I haven’t talked to anyone like this in a long, long time.”
“I haven’t either.” I admitted. I smiled. “There—we’ve shared a secret.”
“Could we see each other again? I’m really not the way you think.”
I knew he would ask, and I knew my answer. “I’m afraid not. It’s too soon for me.”
“You’re right,” he said. “Besides, there are far better men for you than a retired football bloke.”
I liked his self-deprecation, at the same time suspecting it might be part of his seduction routine. It must be terrible for an athlete to retire, to be finished with a career so young. How would I feel if I had to give up singing?
“And there are younger and more beautiful women for you,” I said to him.
“I’m looking for something a little deeper than that now,” he said. “And besides, you are beautiful. Don’t you know that? … You don’t, do you, Maggie?”
“I really have to go now,” I said.
But I already realized he was different from what I had originally thought. He had substance, but he was very complex. Interesting.
CHAPTER 50
MAGGIE BRADFORD WAS everything that her songs promised, and maybe even more, Will thought. She wasn't aware of it, but she was very attractive as well.
She was the one who could save him. He was convinced of it, and he began to be obsessed by her. He had to see her again. He listened to her songs constantly, at home, and in his car.
He planned everything carefully, beginning with a long letter asking not for a meeting, but for her understanding. Another time he wrote of his mother's desertion when he was a boy, then of his father's suicide. He told Maggie how her songs soothed and helped him, and asked only that she respond in some way.
There was no word from her, and, as was the usual case, he turned to other women. He lashed out at one of them. Nothing as bad as Rio, but scary anyway. The werewolf of New York.
But out of the blue, Maggie wrote him a letter. She told him that the first step was to face his pain, as he so obviously had. He finally called her and asked for a meeting—just once, in New York, and only for lunch.
They met at one o'clock, November 12, at the Oak Room in the Plaza Hotel. The locale was meant to be as nonthreatening as possible. He had it all figured out. He was going to win Maggie over. He couldn't bear to lose again.
He planned to seduce her.
He planned to win.
He had no doubt that he would.
CHAPTER 51
A MONTH AND a half passed before I saw Will again. He wrote to me several times. The letters revealed even more than talking with him had. He was deep, and also sensitive. When he finally called, I was ready to see him again. Just a lunch. Harmless enough, or so I thought.
This was lunch with Will Shepherd! Even if it was in the dark, gloomy Oak Room. I was sure a lot of women would have died for the opportunity. A few of them were actually there, it seemed, checking us out from nearby tables.
I must admit, he was nice to be with. Will was personable, articulate, warm, and he continued to be sensitive. As I look back on the meeting now, I have a terrible suspicion