Christmas 2011 Trio A. Кейт Хьюит

so sorry to interrupt you,” she said, clasping her hands tightly.

      “If this has to do with the Christmas scene on the windows, then—”

      “Oh, no,” she insisted, “it’s not about that.” Her throat felt dry and it was difficult to concentrate. “This has to do with Jason …”

      “And who is Jason?”

      “The security guard downstairs. He tells me Julie Wilcoff has been banned from the building. I know it was her father’s doing, but Jason seems to believe you supported that decision. Did you?”

      His demeanor changed, and his mouth and eyes softened. “I might have. Why?”

      “She’s here.”

      “Now?”

      Anne nodded. “Jason won’t let her in to speak to you.”

      “She came to see me, did she?” He folded his arms and seemed to consider this information with some amusement. Then the humor left his eyes. “Did she give you any indication why she wanted to speak to me?”

      Anne shook her head. “Not really.”

      His mouth twitched. Was that a smile trying to emerge? “Ms. Johnson did her best to talk Jason into letting her in, but he won’t budge.”

      “I’ll call him myself,” Roy promised. “Go ahead and have Ms. Johnson bring Julie up to my office. Tell her I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.” He glanced at his watch. “Make that twenty.”

      “I hope I did the right thing,” Anne said.

      “You did exactly the right thing,” he said, and to her complete shock, he took her by the shoulders and kissed her cheek.

      Anne hurried downstairs. Jason was on the phone when she got off the elevator. He muttered something that sounded like “yessir,” replaced the receiver and walked over to the glass door, holding it open for Julie.

      “You can come in now,” he told the young woman, who stood outside.

      Julie walked into the building slowly, as if she expected alarms to ring the instant she stepped over the threshold.

      “Thank you,” she said to Anne.

      “Mr. Fletcher would like you to wait in his office,” Ms. Johnson told her.

      “I’ll be up in a moment,” Julie said. She turned to Anne and the Christmas scene she’d started painting on the windows. “You painted these angels?”

      “Oh … yes.” Anne had almost forgotten the reason she was in the lobby at all. She’d painted three angels this time, floating on a cloud and looking down at Bethlehem and the manger scene. The angels dominated the painting, their joy at the Savior’s birth evident.

      “They’re absolutely lovely,” Julie said.

      “Thank you.”

      “I had plenty of time to look at them while I was waiting, and they seem almost real to me.”

      Anne blushed with pleasure. “How kind you are.”

      “Roy said you were an artist. You’re obviously very talented.”

      “Roy mentioned me?”

      “Yes, although I don’t know him well.” Julie shrugged. “We definitely got off on the wrong foot. I’m here to talk to him and, well, I hope we can start again.”

      Anne clasped Julie’s hand in both of hers. “I hope you can, too. Could—could you and I talk sometime?”

      Julie smiled. “I’d like that very much.”

      “So would I,” Anne said. “I’ll be in touch.”

       Twelve

      Julie was waiting in his office when Roy returned from the meeting, which he’d adjourned rather quickly. She sat in the chair across from his desk, looking unusually demure. His mood had improved from the moment he learned she’d come here to see him. He’d been thinking of her ever since their pizza dinner, and he’d wondered if he’d see her again soon. He had his answer now and frankly, it was one he liked.

      “Julie.” He greeted her warmly, walking over to his desk and sitting behind it. “This is a pleasant surprise.”

      “I hope I’m not disturbing you.” She’d apparently come to his office immediately after school, not bothering to change into street clothes first. Despite the weather, she wore shorts and a sports jersey, and a whistle dangled like a long necklace around her neck.

      “Not at all. What can I do for you?”

      He assumed she was there to accept his settlement; she didn’t need to show up in person, but he was delighted she had. So she was like everyone else—willing to take easy money. Yes, he was a little disillusioned, but he still liked her. He couldn’t blame Julie Wilcoff for a quality shared by practically every other person on Earth. Greed was part of human nature, and he’d long since reconciled himself to that.

      “I came to talk about what happened on Monday,” she said simply. “My father felt I was out of line bursting in here the way I did.”

      “You were angry.”

      “Angry,” she repeated, and with a soft chuckle added, “You have no idea. I don’t think I’ve ever been more insulted than—” She bit off the rest of her thought. “At any rate, Dad’s right. I should never have reacted like that. I made a fool of myself.”

      Roy was quite enjoying this. “So you’ve come around. Somehow, I knew you would.”

      “Come around? To what?”

      He didn’t know why she insisted on denying the obvious. Certainly, the settlement was foremost in her mind; it had to be. “I’m talking about the money.”

      Julie frowned and shook her head. “This has nothing to do with money. It has to do with an apology.”

      “You’re not here because of the settlement?” He wasn’t fooled, but decided to play along for the time being.

      “I came to apologize for storming into your office and for the things I said. I’m not here about that stupid, insulting settlement offer, which I have repeatedly rejected. I’d think that by now you’d get the message.” With a visible effort, she managed to keep her anger in check.

      Roy’s own anger was rising. “Everyone’s interested in money, Julie, so don’t even bother pretending otherwise. Let’s both be honest, shall we? You aren’t going to get a better offer, so just sign the papers my attorney mailed you and be done with it.”

      “I believe I already told you what I think of that,” she muttered. She slid closer to the edge of the upholstered chair. Soon she was barely perched on the cushion at all. He thought she might be in danger of slipping onto the floor.

      “You’re holding out for more money, aren’t you?”

      She bolted to her feet as if someone had pinched her. “You’re impossible, you know that? I came here in good faith—”

      “Good faith?” Roy didn’t see it that way. Not when she said one thing and wanted another. But ultimately, human nature at its most basic couldn’t be defeated.

      “I thought we’d made some progress, you and I, and … well, I can see you’re hopeless.”

      “Me?” he shouted. “You’re the one who’s got her eye on the almighty dollar.”

      “I don’t want any of your stupid money! Why can’t you get that through your head?”

      “Because you’re just like every other woman.”

      Her eyes seemed to grow wider. “Now you’re