Page 52 of Call Sign: Thunder
When she’d moved out of sight, Zach took a step in the direction of the great room, hoping to get this confrontation over, but the senator instead suggested, “Let’s take a walk to my office.” Glancing up the stairs he added, “There are less ears there.”
Zach reluctantly fell into step behind Allie’s father, heading to the wing of the house he’d never stepped foot in.
Dim lighting came on automatically as the men walked into the massive den. Other than the full wall of windows on the far side of the room, the office was covered in dark, masculine colors and decor. Burgundy leather couches and chairs… mahogany bookshelves, coffee tables, and desk… dark, intricate decorative rugs over wooden plank flooring. The room screamed wealthy masculinity. The only thing out of place was the expensive camera and lighting equipment in the far corner.
When her father saw what had caught Zach’s attention, he answered the unasked question. “I often have to appear on news programs when something happens in the world that warrants my public statement. I’ve equipped each of my homes with the studio equipment needed so I don’t have to travel to news stations.”
“Makes sense,” Zach mumbled, realizing that was just another of the thousand things he didn’t have in common with Allison’s wealthy father.
“Have a seat near the fire,” Mr. Benson said as he pushed a button on a remote control device. A gas fire sprang to life in the fireplace that took up half the left wall of the room.
“What would you like to drink?” he asked as Zach took his seat.
“I don’t need anything, sir. Thanks.” Zach didn’t want to do anything that might prolong the ass chewing he was expecting.
“Well, I hope you don’t mind if I pour myself a scotch. I find I do need one,” he said cryptically.
Zach glanced over to see a half dozen glass decanters in the small wet bar not far from the desk. Knowing Mr. Benson was going to have a drink helped him change his mind.
“In that case, I’ll take a bourbon if you have it.”
“Of course.”
An awkward minute passed as Zach tried to figure out what exactly the senator planned on giving him shit about first.
When the men were both seated and had taken their first sip of alcohol, Zach racked his brain for how to start the conversation. The elder man had insisted they talk, so why wasn’t he doing the talking?
“I wanted to say thank you,” Allison’s father finally said.
Thank you? Really?
“Okay, I admit. That wasn’t what I expected you to say,” Zach confirmed.
“Oh? What did you expect?”
“I don’t know. Maybe ‘how dare you make my baby cry?’ or ‘what are your intentions with my daughter?’”
The senator smiled a sad smile. “I do hate to see her cry, but… well…”
He paused long enough that Zach wondered if he’d lost his train of thought. Zach waited him out until he finally explained. “I’ve had time this holiday to do a lot of thinking. As you can imagine, I rarely slow down for long, but I’ve used much of this time thinking about Allison’s mother.” The men’s eyes met just as he added, “I wish you could have met Kay. She was the most amazing woman… and she would have loved you.”
Whoa, this conversation was not going were he’d thought it would at all. Zach had no clue what to say to Walter’s statement giving the older man time to continue.
“Kay was exactly Allison’s age when I met her. She was in her final year at UV, studying poly sci. I was seven years older. I’d just passed the bar and was working as a clerk at the federal court house when she’d come in for a short internship.
“Hell, I was already disillusioned with D.C. Trying to figure out what the hell I wanted to do with my life, and in walks this young breath of fresh air.” His face cracked into a broad smile. “I fell hard.”
Zach had no idea why Mr. Benson was sharing these very personal memories with him, but he suspected he had a good reason so he sipped his bourbon, giving the senator time to continue with his story.
“Believe it or not, she was the one who pushed me to do more…bemore. Hell, she believed in me before I believed in myself.
“Allie was so much like her mother, especially when she was a kid. Nothing held her back. She was in every club. Insisted on having a lemonade stand when she was eight because she wanted to make her own money, which unfortunately didn’t work very well in the upscale neighborhood we lived in.” He chuckled before adding. “The two of them volunteered at a different charity one weekend each month and even took two mission trips to Haiti with our church group. I was so damn proud of them both.”
Zach heard the silent ‘but’ that hung in the air between them.
“Kay got sick just when Allison needed her the most. Teenage girls need their mothers, but instead, Allie found herself playing nurse — having to stand by and watch the mother she loved waste away before our eyes.
“I’ve made so many mistakes since losing her mother. At first, I was so lost that I didn’t know how to handle my own grief, let alone Allison’s. It was easier to throw myself into my work. I farmed out parenting to housekeepers and nannies. I showered her in money and gifts because… well, that was easier than doing the hard work of being the kind of parent she really needed. The kind of parent her mother would have been if she hadn’t died.”
