Chapter 4

            True to his word, Scott returned to her house three days later. They were in the kitchen sitting at the table. His sketches were beautiful.

            “Did you make these yourself?” she asked.

            “With the help of graphic software, yes,” he said sheepishly. “As you can see, I have a sketch of just the pool and hot tub. The second sketch is with a privacy fence. And this one,” he said as he pulled out the third sketch. “Is what I had in mind for your backyard.”

            Her mouth dropped open. “Wow.” The sketch had a full patio area with an in-ground, square pool, a large grilling area with steel cabinets, a patio set with lounge chairs, and a small brown building.

            “The hut is where we’ll put the hot tub. It will provide you privacy, and the design I have in mind has a skylight. So if you want to look out, you can,” he explained.

            “This is fabulous. You can really do all this?”

            He gave her a million-dollar smile. “Yes, ma’am.”

            “How much is this going to cost?”

            “Including labor and materials, the quote is between forty to fifty-five thousand,” he said.

            That was a little more than she was planning to spend, but if he could do what he said he could do, it would be worth it. “I have been thinking about what you said . . . about getting this done to increase the value of the house. I mean, I’m not going to sell the place. I just wanted a pool and a hot tub to make this place nicer for when we come down for vacation. Okay, let’s go with the super-deluxe design,” she said with a smile.

            He grinned. “Great. Will your husband be okay with this design?”

“Yes,” she said quickly. “He usually lets me do the decorating.” After they got over this hump in their marriage, they’d come down here for a few weeks to enjoy the new outdoor area in the evenings.

“Okay. All I have to do is get the building permits, and if that goes smoothly, we can start at the end of the week.”

            “Really? You don’t have other jobs that you have going now?”

            “Nope. I just finished a job last week,” he said.

            “Oh, I see. Would you like some more sweet tea?”

            “No, thank you. I have to get going. I need to pick Clay up from school.”

            She looked at her watch. “It’s only one o’clock. Doesn’t school let out at three?”

            “Well, yes, but I have to run some errands before I pick him up.”

            “Oh. I’m sorry he couldn’t come back today with you. He’s adorable.”

            He gave her a proud smile. “Thank you. He’s a good kid. Smart as a whip too, and he gets smarter every day. Do you and your husband have kids?”

            “No,” she said with a small smile.

            “Ah, so what do you do for a living, Regina?”

            She was grateful for the change in topic. Some people would needle her with questions to see why she didn’t have kids. “I’m the proud owner of seventeen hair salons.”

            “That sounds like a lot of work in its own right.” Scott stood.

            “When I was first starting them up, they were. Now, I have managers in each place who are very competent. I just visit them every quarter or so. The managers send me financial reports every month.”

            “Nice. What does your husband do?”

            They started walking to the front of the house.

            “He’s an orthodontist with his own practice.”

            “When will he be joining you down here? I don’t want my guys and me to disturb him if he does work in a home office.”

            “Oh, he won’t be down here for three or four months, so no worries,” she said with a smile. That was the timeframe she expected Sidney to come running back to her.

            “Sounds like perfect timing. The job will probably take us about a month and a half. Maybe it can be a surprise for him.”

            “Oh yes. That’s what I’m hoping for.”

            They stopped at the front door.

            “I’ll give you a call to let you know what day we’ll start working.”

            “I’ll look forward to hearing from you.”

            They shook hands.

           

****

            There was a row of limos and town cars waiting outside of Bartholomew Prep School. Scott sat in the back of his limo while his driver was standing outside waiting for Clay. Scott had put on a gray suit with a burgundy tie just in case someone got a glimpse of him. It would look odd to the other parents and teachers to see billionaire Scott Kelly in raggedy jeans and a T-shirt with paint stains.

            He had taken on the persona of small independent contractor and single dad Scott Jenkins after his divorce from Marlena. During that time, the press and thirsty single ladies were all over him. He couldn’t take the pressure, and Clay was only a toddler. To keep his sanity and to protect Clay’s privacy, he had dropped out of society. He had become the elusive billionaire – so much so, half of his employees at Kelscot Construction didn’t even know what he looked like. The only time he was seen as his true self was when he had to speak to teachers and attend events at Clay’s school.

            It had been seven years since the divorce, and he was thinking about trying again, but this time, he would be smarter about it. He would present himself as Scott Jenkins, the middle-class, small business owner who raised his son alone. When he found the right woman, that’s when he would reveal who he truly was.

            Scott liked his neighbor Kat Evans, but he wasn’t attracted to her physically. She was pretty, but he preferred more exotic women. And he liked strong and slightly more aggressive women. Kat had a nice personality, but she was a Suzie-homemaker type.

His thoughts drifted to Regina Jackson. She had mocha skin and short, dark hair with blonde highlights. He liked how her silky hair framed her round face. She was classy and attractive. The only problem with her was that she was married. However, Scott wondered how happy of a marriage it could be if her husband was willing to leave her alone in another state for three to four months. He wouldn’t let his thoughts go any further. He wouldn’t dare attempt to seduce another man’s woman because he knew all too well how that felt.

His driver opened the door.

Clay happily hopped in wearing his burgundy-and-white school uniform and carrying his black backpack. “Hi, Dad.” He sat in the seat across from Scott.

“Hey, son. Did you have a good day?”

“Yeah,” he said as the driver closed the door. “I really like my new teacher.”

“Good.”

“She’s pretty and single,” Clay said with a grin.

Scott laughed. “Are you trying to tell me something, son?”

“No . . . just saying she’s pretty and single.”

Scott had met Ms. Faulkner before school started for the year. She was an attractive brunette, but he didn’t know she was single. “Son, I don’t think it is a good idea for me to . . . get involved with your teacher.”

Clay shrugged. “Maybe you can next year.”

The chauffer got into the driver’s seat.

“What is this sudden interest in my love life?” Scott asked with suspicion.

Clay cleared his throat. “Well, I have been thinking for a while . . .”

“Yes,” Scott enunciated.

“That it would be nice to have . . . a mom. Everyone in my class has a mom. And I think it would be nice for you, too.”

Scott was surprised. “I see.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I like it when it’s just us sometimes, but I think it would be nice to have a girl around sometimes, too. They smell good, they can cook, and they got pretty eyes . . . most of them anyway.”

Scott couldn’t help but chuckle at his son’s comments about women. “I tell you what, kid. I’ll keep my eyes open.”

“Cool,” Clay said as he leaned back in the seat.

The limo started to move.

Clay reached for his small garment bag in the seat next to him.

“Hold off from changing until we get on the highway, Clay. You never know if we’ll get stopped before we completely get off the property.”

“Okay,” he happily chirped.

Their routine was simple. They changed into regular clothes in the limo as the chauffer drove them to their drop-off location, which was in the back of an old sawmill that Scott owned. He used it for storage. From there, they got into his Ford truck and drove to their modest suburban neighborhood.

Clay didn’t mind the secrecy. He thought it was exciting, and he liked the fact that he shared a secret with his father. Sometimes, Clay pretended they were secret agents or cops working undercover.

“Put your seatbelt on, buddy,” Scott said.