Page 29 of The Billionaire Benefactor

Chapter 10

Jenny wondered if her talk with Denise had been premature. After church on Sunday, Roman didn’t call or message. Lucy did get sick, so Jenny was busy with a doctor’s appointment, making a run to the pharmacy, and snuggling while Lucy’s fever came down. It served as a distraction, but her thoughts and emotions wouldn’t stop circling around Roman.

Why hadn’t he called?

How had she misread things?

Had she done something wrong?

Why did she let herself get caught up so quickly?

Her gut was a mess of emotions, but the two strongest ones that kept rising to the top were sadness and shame. Though Jenny had thought it was probably too soon for a new relationship, Roman had stirred awake that desire, only to leave her feeling emptier than she had before. The shame would roll over her like a second wave of sadness, telling her she was stupid for ever thinking Roman was interested.

Every time her phone rang, hope ran through her, only to be disappointed: insurance, solicitors about insurance, lawyers, or basically anyone who thought they could stand to make a buck after someone died. By Friday Jenny barely registered the caller ID, which is how she ended up answering a call from an unknown number.

“Is this Jenny?”

It was a woman. Not a salesperson—too brusque. Bill collector? Whatever it was, it was not good.

“Yes. Who’s this?”

“This is Amanda. Hank’s fiancée.”

Jenny had been folding laundry and sank down onto the couch next to some of Matt’s athletic shorts. A cascade of socks fell to the floor. Fiancée.

Hank hadn’t shared many details of his other life. Jenny knew that a year ago, he started working more. He had one of those financial jobs for an e-commerce firm—the kind of job that makes your eyes glaze over to talk about. His hours had usually been more of the 9-to-5, or the Houston 7-to-6 with added time for the commute. First he was coming home at ten or later. Then he spent a few nights a week in town or on business trips that were unexplained. He’d never taken them before and hadn’t changed positions, but suddenly he was out of town a lot more.

Jenny felt so stupid when he finally sat her down and told her. It was incredibly obvious. She should have said or done something. Or even done more to keep him. He said that too—that the fact that she didn’t notice or seem to care made him feel like it was okay. She didn’t really miss him. Did she love him at all?

Denise assured her that it was passive aggressive nonsense and not her job to somehow know that he needed reassurance about their relationship. But the guilt was there, along with the anger.

He was engaged?

“Oh,” Jenny said. What was the correct response to this? She searched her mind for the protocol, but like so many other things in her situation, there wasn’t a right answer.

“Look, I don’t want to be talking to you any more than you want to talk with me. I just need to know about the will. The lawyer didn’t call me or anything.”

“The lawyer?”

Amanda let out an irritated sigh. “Yes, the lawyer. The will. This sounds crass, but I need to know what he left me. He said that he had talked to the lawyer and updated the will to reflect the new changes. It’s been a month and I thought I would have heard by now.”

Jenny’s mind spun. She’d met with a lawyer a few weeks before. Everything had been standard—things she and Hank had talked about years before. If he’d been planning to change the will, he hadn’t done it. Maybe he wasn’t planning to at all. At this point, nothing Hank did would surprise her. There wasn’t a lot after the funeral expenses, especially considering the mortgage and the fact that Jenny had no steady income.

“I’m so sorry,” Jenny said. “I spoke with the lawyer last week. Hank hadn’t changed the will. You weren’t in it.”

The doorbell rang and Tiny began barking, which drowned out some of the cursing on the phone line. Jenny bit her lip and went to the door. She didn’t care who it was—it was a needed interruption from this call. But when she opened the door, she wasn’t prepared to see Roman standing on her porch.

Tiny vaulted out and licked his hands while a slow smile took over his face. Jenny wanted to think about how she had felt all week when he didn’t contact her, but she couldn’t help smiling back. She was thrilled to see him. She waved him in, pointing to the phone. Rubbing Tiny’s ears, he followed her in and locked the door.

“Are you even listening to me?” Amanda shouted into the phone.

Roman grimaced and Jenny held the phone away from her ear a bit. She needed to not have this conversation now. And she wished that she had finished the laundry that had been piling up all week while she took care of Lucy. He only smiled as she swept the laundry back into the basket. She would have to fold it again later. Roman sat on the edge of the sofa, looking out of place and uncomfortable. Jenny held her hand over the phone and whispered, “I’m sorry—just another sec. Can I get you a water?”

He nodded, waving a hand to let her know not to worry about the phone call. She walked to the kitchen and grabbed a water. “Amanda, look. I don’t know what to tell you other than I’m sorry.”

“You’ll be saying something else when my lawyer’s done with you.”

“You’re calling a lawyer? What could they possibly change now that the will has been executed?”

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