Harry watched the elevator through
the barely open door. "A bit like old times, ey, Daniel?"
Daniel nodded. "A bit."
"Tell me the truth, don't you miss the life at times?"
"At times, I suppose, but not enough that I'm willing to
risk what I have with Abigail to return to it. It's not often
someone gets a second chance to turn one's life around."
Harry frowned. "Second chance?" he asked, then the question
was forgotten as the elevator doors opened. Harry silently closed
the door, nodding in Daniel's direction,
"Harry, my boy," Daniel said in a loud, frustrated voice
that was certain to catch the attention of anyone passing the
room. "Can't you see what she's up to? Really, your judgement
in women is -"
"Is only coloured by YOUR idea of what kind of woman YOU
want for me," Harry countered loudly. "I won't stop
seeing Penny, Daniel. Either you accept that and give her a chance,
or-"
"Or?" Daniel prodded him to complete the threat.
"I'll leave. Your choice." He turned the doorknob. When
Daniel didn't respond, Harry said, "I guess that's it then."
Opening the door, he said, "G'bye, Daniel-" and very
nearly ran into Penny who was standing in the hallway, obviously
listening to the conversation.
"H-Harry," she said. "I was - uh- just going to
my room -"
"Penny," Daniel said, smiling at the young woman. "I
see eavesdropping is another of your -talents."
Harry took her arm and turned toward the elevators. "Let's
get out of here," he began.
Daniel let them get as far as the doors opening before he spoke.
"Wait, Harry." Harry stopped, putting out a hand to
keep the sliding doors open, but he didn't turn around. "You
win." Harry turned, a smug smile on his handsome face. "Penny
will have her - chance-" Daniel's eyes glittered dangerously
as they raked over the woman. "IF she can convince me of
her sincerity."
"I'll do whatever it takes," Penny told him.
"I'm sure you will, my dear," Daniel replied, his gaze
still focused on those green eyes. "Why don't you go for
a walk, Harry?" he suggested.
"A walk?" Harry questioned.
"While the young lady and I get a little better acquainted."
"Daniel-" Harry said, shaking his head.
But Penny turned and placed a manicured hand on his chest. "It's
all right, Harry. I'll be fine. It might be a good idea for your
uncle and I to get to know each other."
Harry smiled down at her, his hands on her arms. "Don't let
him bully you. He's good at that."
Penny gave him a quick kiss. "I won't."
Harry sent Daniel a warning glance as he turned and moved back
to the elevator.
Indicating the still open door of his suite, Daniel said, "Shall
we, my dear?"
**********
Inside the room, Penny sat gracefully on the sofa. "You don't
like me, Mr. Chalmers. Why?"
She wasn't going to beat around the bush, Daniel realized. Good.
"Because I think you're wrong for Harry."
"He doesn't seem to agree with you."
"Shall we cut to the heart of the matter, Penny? How much
will it take for you to clear out?"
Penny sat back, crossing her long legs. "Oh, I don't know.
Harry offered me a VERY good job as his personal assistant-"
"If HE doesn't have a job, then neither do you," Daniel
reminded her. "Unless you take this offer, I'll let Harry
walk away - and then you'll have nothing- because he won't have
anything."
"You're bluffing," she accused.
"Shall we put it to the test? As much as I care about my
nephew, I will NOT allow someone like you to get your greedy little
claws into him."
"No. You'd rather have that little mouse Lisa -"
"Her name is Laura. And she's NOT a mouse, my dear. Laura
Holt has more class in her little finger than you have in your
entire body. The package might not be as glamorous, but what's
inside is worth a king's ransom." Daniel pulled an envelope
from his pocket and tossed it into her lap. "Fifty thousand
dollars. Cash. That should more than cover your bill here, air
fare to wherever you want to go- and be enough to keep you going
until you pull the next poor fool into your web."
Penny opened the envelope and silently counted the money. "And
what am I supposed to tell Harry?"
"Tell him you've changed your mind about young Harper. That
you're going to try and make a go of it with him after all."
"Fifty thousand. That's all your nephew is worth to you?"
"Harry is worth ten times that amount. Don't get too greedy,
my dear," Daniel warned, reaching out and taking the envelope
back smoothly- "or you'll wind up with nothing. Nothing except
Harry, of course. And I somehow don't think you would be able
to keep him in the style to which both of you seem to be accustomed."
He put the envelope back into his pocket again. "Well?"
"Why do I get the idea that you're used to winning, Mr. Chalmers?"
Penny asked. "Very well. I'll take it." She held out
her hand.
"Oh, no. I'm not going to simply hand the money over to you,
my dear. You'd take it and then tell Harry about it. I'll leave
it at the desk downstairs. Once you've said your farewells to
my nephew, you can pick it up."
**********
Harry was sitting in the lobby when he saw Penny and Daniel come
from the elevators. Daniel moved to the desk, handing the clerk
a sealed white envelope as Penny moved toward Harry.
Rising, Harry smiled. "How'd it go?"
"All right, I guess. I've- decided to give James another
chance, Harry-"
"What? Why? Daniel said something-" Harry said, his
eyes searching the lobby, trying to find his "uncle".
"He just made me realize that I really DO love James - I
shouldn't have let him go so easily. I've already called him,
we're having dinner tonight-"
"I see. You're certain about this?"
"Yes. I'm sorry, Harry, but-"
"It's all right." He looked at her. "Good luck,
then."
"You too. I think you're going to need it with that uncle
of yours." She let him kiss her hand, then watched as he
moved toward the entrance, before turning toward the desk. "Mr.
Chalmers left a package here for me, I believe?"
"Yes, Miss Burns," the clerk said, handing her the envelope.
Penny tore open the flap and pulled out the money- but it wasn't
money at all. Only strips of paper. Her gaze flew to the entrance,
where Harry and Daniel were getting into a taxi. They were both
smiling, and Harry held up another white envelope. She'd been
duped! As she started toward the doors, she didn't notice James
entering the hotel.
Seeing her, he turned and followed her out to the curb as she
watched the cab disappear down the street. "Damn!" she
muttered.
"Penny?" James said, concerned.
Penny turned around. "James? What are you doing here?"
"I couldn't wait until tonight to see you. Mother's agreed
to have you over for Christmas dinner- and -"
"She has?" Penny said, linking her arm though his, shivering
in the cool air. "Let's go up to my room and discuss it,
shall we?"
**********
Harry handed Daniel the envelope. "Yours, I believe."
"Thank you." Both men were smiling. "Did you see
James Harper arriving as we left?"
"I did. It won't take her long to reel him back in,"
Harry said.
"I thought you didn't believe she was running a scam."
"Really, Daniel. Of course I knew. I was just-"
"Being stubborn?" Daniel suggested. "Well, at least
I won my bet."
Harry grimaced. "About that, Daniel, -"
"You're not going to welsh on this one, Harry. You agreed
to have Christmas Eve dinner at the Pipers, and that's EXACTLY
what you're going to do."
"All right. But I won't enjoy myself."
"Oh, I think you will. Besides, Laura's going to be there-"
"Ready to point out what a fool I made of myself with Penny,
no doubt."
"Well, Laura might have a point there, my boy."
Harry sat back in the seat. He was NOT looking forward to this
evening. "I can't go, Daniel. I don't have any gifts - "
"All taken care of, Harry," Daniel assured him.
"Pretty sure of yourself, weren't you?"
"No, but I was sure of Miss Burns. Now relax. And stop looking
as if you're heading toward a firing squad. It's only a family
get together."
"It's that word family that bothers me," Harry muttered.
Daniel sighed. "Harry, whether you want to be or not, you
and I are as much family as anything else. Do it for me? Please?"
Harry met that gaze and smiled. "For you, Daniel, anything."
**********
Daniel gave Abigail a brief kiss as they entered the Piper house.
"Sorry we're late, my dear."
"Laura explained everything," Abigail told him. "Did
Miss Burns take the bait?"
"Took it and ran -" Daniel told her. "Right into
the arms of James Harper."
"Did you pull the switch?"
Daniel laughed softly. "You're beginning to sound like me,
Abigail. Yes. We did." He patted his coat pocket. "It's
safe." He noticed Harry standing near the door. "Come
along, Harry."
Abigail drew the younger man to her other side. "Everyone's
already in the living room," she told them. "Except
Laura, that is. She's on the phone- Laura, dear!"
"The telephone?" Daniel asked.
"Wilson called to wish her a Merry Christmas," she explained,
glancing at Harry as Laura came from another room that Harry assumed
was the study.
"The banker?" Harry asked.
"Yes, the banker," Laura confirmed, giving Daniel a
hug. "How did it go? Did she take the offer? Did you make
the switch?"
"I'll tell you all about it later," Daniel promised,
laughing. "Right now, I think Frances and Donald are waiting
for us to join them."
**********
They left for the small chapel where the ceremony was to be held
right after dinner, and Laura found herself in Frances' car with
Harry. "Turn here," she told him.
"So, how serious is it between you and your banker friend?"
Harry asked.
"I don't know yet. We've only been out a couple of times,"
she said. "The chapel's right around the corner."
Harry parked the car behind Donald's and turned to her. "You
weren't lying to me about the security system around that diamond."
"How did you find out?"
"I did some checking. I WOULD have been caught - just like
you said I would be. I'm just sorry that you got hurt-"
She smiled. "I recovered," she told him. *Except for
my broken heart* she reminded herself. "We'd better go inside."
Harry nodded thoughtfully as he opened the door.
**********
They had all agreed to wait until after the rehearsal to open
the gifts beneath the Christmas tree that sat proudly in the corner
of the living room of the Piper house. "We usually don't
open the presents until Christmas morning," Frances told
Harry, "but I don't think we're going to have time tomorrow."
She handed him several brightly wrapped, beribboned packages.
"Here."
Harry was surprised to find they all had his name on them. He
looked up to find Daniel smiling at him, surrounded by packages
himself. Once they were all distrubuted, Abigail said, "Well,
someone open something."
The next few minutes were a bit frantic as they packages were
opened, the sounds of "ooh" and "Ahh," and
"Thank you" filling the air. Harry surveyed the silk
scarf, gloves, the box of handkercheifs, then paused as he picked
up the last gift. "To Harry From Laura," the card read.
He glanced over to see Laura watching him. Tearing the paper,
he lifted the lid of the small box to find a set of cufflinks
set with a blue stone, sapphire, probably, and a matching tie
tack. "Thank you," he said as she moved toward him.
"I wasn't sure what else to get you," she told him.
"The sapphires reminded me of your eyes -" she stopped,
as if uncertain about what to say next.
He closed the box and carefully set it with the rest of his gifts.
"I need some air- want to take a walk?"
Her lips curved into a smile that reminded him of the old days.
"Let me get my coat."
Daniel and Abigail looked up as Laura left the room and Harry
stood. "What's going on?" Abigail asked.
"Uh, Laura and I- we're going for a walk - get some fresh
air-"
"Don't be out too long," Frances said. "It's cold
outside. They're expecting more snow before morning."
**********
As they walked along the street, Laura concentrated on admiring
the decorations in the yards of the houses. "I'm sorry I
didn't pick anything out for you, Laura," Harry told her.
"Daniel got me some earrings and put your name on them,"
she said. "I didn't really expect you to buy me anything-
I know you don't like Christmas very much."
"Yes, well, there wasn't a lot of reason to celebrate when
I was growing up. Once I was out on my own, it became just another
day, more or less. Oh, Daniel tried, but -"
"It's not too late to change, you know," she said, putting
her gloved hand on his arm.
Harry covered her hand with his, then pulled it through his arm
as he continued walking. "I'm not sure I can change. I've
never known any thing else."
"Daniel's changed," she pointed out.
"He was ready to."
"Then- maybe - someday - you'll be ready to change? To -
settle down?"
"Maybe. Maybe not. Luck's a fickle thing, Laura. One day
it's your friend, then the next it's nowhere to be found. My luck
could run out-"
"Not yours. Daniel once told me that you're just about the
luckiest man he's ever met."
"It seems sometimes that I've more than my share," Harry
admitted. "I think my luckiest day was the day I met you."
Laura stopped, turning to look up at him. "Really?"
"Really," he said, and before he knew it, his lips were
on hers, his tongue finding hers, renewing his memory of how she
tasted, how right she felt in his arms. "Oh, Laura,"
he sighed at last. He looked down at her glowing face. "Why
did you tell Daniel about us?"
"I didn't mean to," she said. "I was upset, angry,
hurt that you'd run away like you did. I didn't realize I'd even
said it until it was too late." Her dimples appeared. "He
was furious. I think that if you'd been there, he would have -"
"Why didn't he say anything about it before?"
"I convinced him that I'd wanted it to happen as much as
you had. That it wasn't your fault. Just like my falling wasn't
your fault." She felt him begin to pull away again. "Harry,
it was an accident."
"You could have been killed -"
"But I wasn't." She pressed her ear to his chest, hearing
his heart beat even through his overcoat. "I've missed you,
Harry."
His arms tightened around her. "It's snowing," he told
her. Laura looked up, watching as the flakes fell on his shoulders.
"Let's start back," he said, keeping his arm around
her.
Laura pulled away as they walked up the path leading toward the
house and scooped up a handful of snow, fashioning it into a snowball
and tossing it at his back as he continued on. Harry stopped at
her laughter and turned. "Sneak attack, ey?" he said,
bending down to gather some ammunition of his own. Another snowball
hit him on the head. "No fair," he said, lobbing a snowball
in her direction.
"Not bad!" she said as it missed her. "You couldn't
hit the broad side of a barn!" she laughed, then stopped
as the next one hit her in the head.
Inside the house, Frances looked up. "What in the world is
going on out there?" she wondered.
The four of them went to the window that overlooked the front
yard and stood there watching as Harry and Laura chased each other
around, throwing snowballs and laughing. Laura finally lifted
her hands. "I surrender!" she shouted as Harry stood
there, watching her suspiciously. "No, I mean it this time,"
she insisted, trying to catch her breath. He moved closer, only
to have her hit him dead center of his chest with her last snowball.
Before she could run, Harry grabbed her, and they both went tumbling
into the snow piled beside the walk, laughing, before their laughter
stilled and their lips met.
Daniel took Abigail's hand in his as they turned from the window.
"Things might just work out after all, my love."
**********
After the wedding the next day, Daniel and Abigail left for New
York City, and from there to Hawaii for a month's honeymoon. Harry
watched the cab disappear, his arm around Laura. "Have dinner
with me tonight?" he asked.
She looked at him. "All right. But not here."
"I didn't mean at Frances and Donald's -"
"No, I mean, not HERE. Let's go somewhere - just you and
I."
"Such as?"
"You decide. London, Paris - San Francisco."
He stopped. "San Francisco?"
"You could come out there - "
"I don't think so, Laura- Why don't you come with me? We
could go to Rio - see the New Year in -"
"New Year," Laura said, as if the words reminded her
of something.
"What?" he asked.
"I promised to spend New Year's Eve with Wilson," she
told him. "He's made the reservations -"
"So much for that," Harry said, stepping away.
"You could still come back to San Francisco with me,"
she said.
"And share you with your banker friend?" he asked. "I
don't think so, Laura." He sighed. "I guess I was right
all along. We each have our lives - and they just don't QUITE
seem to be able to merge properly."
"Harry-" Laura said, reaching out to touch his cheek.
But he grabbed her hand. "No. It's just not the right time,
I guess. You go on back to your college friends and your banker.
I'll go back to my world." Laura threw her arms around his
neck, holding on tightly. Harry returned the embrace, then looked
down into her face. "Friends?" he asked.
"Always, Harry," she promised. "You'll keep in
touch?" she asked.
"As best I can. If you need me - call Daniel. He'll be able
to track me down." He lowered his lips to hers once more,
then released her, turning away. As he neared the end of the walk,
she spoke.
"Be careful."
"You too," he said, giving her that crooked smile before
turning to walk down the street. He'd call a cab back to the hotel
when he found a phone.
"Laura?" Frances called from the front door. "Where's
Harry?"
"He- He had to leave," Laura told her sister. "Some
-business to attend to tomorrow-" She swallowed heavily and
hoped that Frances wouldn't see the tears in her eyes as she passed.
Late that night, in the guest bedroom, Laura sat beside the window,
looking out over the front yard. Harry was gone again. Would they
EVER find a way to meld their lives into one that would make them
both happy? Right now, Laura doubted it. Maybe he was right. Maybe
it was impossible. But if there WAS a way, she'd find it.
The End of "Steele Curious3"