Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Rutherford Series: Kabanata 141 - Kabanata 150

Jazz played in the background from a live band off in the corner as Jacqui wandered the border of the floor, shaking people's hands and smiling as much as she could. She hated fundraisers, even the ones she held. She just didn't like asking people to give money to a cause she felt should already have their donations. They should do it voluntarily, without the fancy schmoozing that seemed to be standard fare. They should not have to spend money to get people to donate money. Marc was much better at fundraising, seeing it as a necessary evil. He could charm the checks right out of people's hands while she stood by his side and laughed at all the proper moments. She was happy to step to the side and allow him the spotlight in that instance—in any instance, really. Fundraisers were his stage, not hers. Now, however, the choice was ripped from her and if she wanted the Maggie Karston Community Center to succeed, she had to be the equivalent of the snake oil salesman. At least, that's what i

She was going to kill him. She wasn't sure when or how, but sooner or later, she was going to kill Morgan Brewer. Her father had only said, "Have fun," as she was dragged from his side onto the dance floor, her mortification reddening her face and neck. She wasn't sure what kind of point Morgan was trying to make, but she would make life hell for him for embarrassing her like this.Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Vince, leaning against the bar on the opposite side of the room, a bourbon in his hand as he watched them sway back and forth to the music. His forlorn expression put a knot in her gut, his pain quite visible. Pain she knew she had caused. Yet, she had given him no indication in the past year that would have even hinted that he could waltz back into her life and attempt to sweep her off her feet. He had just assumed, and he had assumed wrong. He popped into her field of vision again as she circled around and she could see the thickness of his arms. They were strong enoug

Pulling into the parking lot of the new offices of Rutherford Construction, Morgan was pleased to see that some work was actually beginning on the remodeling. Vince was already there, guiding a crew in the framing of the interior the way they had drawn it up. It was a simple plan, mainly because Morgan knew Neal would move them to a bigger location, sooner or later. Morgan would have his own office as well as Vince, leaving Kari to share the front with whoever else was hired for the phones. For now, while the remodel was underway, Kari was set up in the small trailer off to the east of the parking lot.Morgan joined Vince beside a piece of plywood sitting atop two sawhorses as a makeshift desk, blueprints sprawled across the top along with a Thermos and a mug of coffee. As he saw Morgan approach, he gestured to his Thermos. "I hope you brought your own. That girl in there can't make coffee to save her life."Morgan chuckled as he held up his own travel mug. "I'm always prepared for the

"With just last night's checks, so far we've pulled in over two hundred thousand with monthly pledges at sixty thousand. I'd say that's a great start." Brent flipped though his notes as he sat in the leather chair opposite of Jacqui. "Since it's a non-profit, we'll do a fundraiser every year and keep the center in front of people's minds. With your name attached to it, I'm sure it'll keep the money coming in."Jacqui nodded as she watched him. Brent always grew excited talking about numbers, any numbers, really, but especially financial figures. With the preliminary results from last night, he was practically giddy. She wished she felt his enthusiasm, though. Two hundred thousand was a decent start, but they needed more. Much more. "We'll need to think about how we can get people to donate throughout the year. I'll have Miss Anderson come up with some sort of marketing campaign we can send out quarterly."He nodded. "Just don't overdo it. Too hard of a push or too much spam mail coming

Jacqui locked her office door behind her as she left, wishing Miss Anderson a good evening as she passed her personal assistant's desk. She felt as if she had wasted an entire afternoon. Since Brent had left her office, she kept finding herself distracted with thoughts of Morgan and Vince, both. It was keeping her frustrated in a moist sort of way and, if she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure how to cope with what she was feeling. Since her indiscretion with Vince, she had managed to keep herself like a nun, focusing on her service to Biloxi and not her own desires and needs.Yet, Morgan was not about to leave her alone. He seemed bent on keeping her off guard and thinking of him. Add to that the reemergence of Vince Andrews and no matter how much she fought it, her panties stayed perpetually wet. It was intoxicating as well as infuriating. Realizing she wasn't going to get anything accomplished, she decided a nice drive might clear her head. The day was practically over anyway,