Playing In Shadow by Lesley Davis

Author:Lesley Davis [Davis, Lesley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781626393813
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2015-04-19T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

The Tweedy Contractors company offices hadn’t changed much since Scarlet had been a child. Computers had taken over from the filing cabinets full of the records of completed or future jobs. Scarlet’s growth as a child had been measured by what letter of the alphabet on the filing system she had reached. All the company’s details were ably run by Alice Judson. She was her dad’s long serving office manager. Her delight at seeing Scarlet enter the office trailing after her father had made Scarlet feel five years old again. Her father had disappeared into his office to return a call Alice had told him needed to be dealt with, leaving her and Scarlet alone.

“Well, it’s about time you found your way back home, young lady. I was thinking you’d forgotten Missouri existed on the map,” Alice said. She took a hold of Scarlet’s hands and looked her over. “Haven’t you grown into even more of a beauty?”

Scarlet smiled. “I was only gone three years, Alice, and I still came home for the holidays. I haven’t changed that much and I saw you at Christmas.”

Alice waved her objections away. “Your father has shown me all the photos you sent him. He loves showing them off. You’re very talented in that field, young lady. Are you serious about that work?”

Scarlet nodded. “It’s more than just a hobby, Alice. I love it. It lets me be creative, and you know that’s where my heart lies.”

“And yet you’re here, helping your father out.”

“Once he knew I was losing my job, he started with gentle hints, then the not so subtle coercion. That evolved into the ‘I’m not getting any younger’ comments. I know he wants me to take over from him, but…”

“But you’re not sure if you want it,” Alice said.

“I love the manual work. I know it’s odd, but I enjoy the slapping of paint on a wall. It’s so different from the techniques I employ when I do my portrait paintings. But with my camera work, I can capture a moment and suspend it in time. I don’t want those moments lost being shut in this office having to hustle up work for the guys Dad employs. That’s a little too much responsibility on these shoulders.”

Alice squeezed her arm gently. “You’re such a free spirit. Just like your mother was. Victor could never quite keep that girl’s feet on the ground.”

“I’m grounded, Alice, but I think the earth beneath my feet is a different soil from what Dad wants me to grow roots in.”

Alice burst out laughing. “Poetic too. You’re way more than just your mother’s image.”

“What do you think she’d have wanted me to do?”

“She’d have wanted you to live your life your own way. She never got the chance to fulfill her dreams. Life’s too short, sweetheart. But your father has had your future planned from the minute he held you in his arms. His business was always meant for you. You’re his sole heir.”

“I don’t know that I can do this.

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