It was the fifteenth of April in sunny Chicago; Joss had been walking along the sidewalk window shopping like she did every Sunday since she had moved to the city. She had already visited the open air Farmers market where she picked up two pears and an apple. Her dark denim jeans, tall brown boots and breezy sweater was the perfect outfit to wear on this in between spring and summer day. Joss was admiring a scarf in the window that would go quite nicely while she nursed the vanilla bean frap that was nearly emptied, when she felt a tap on her shoulder.
"Excuse me, "The gentleman said, "I believe you dropped this back at the market, I did not want you to fret." He grinned as he held out the chartreuse scarf that she was just admiring in the window. His salt and pepper hair lay perfectly, and although it was warm enough to go without an overcoat, he was well dressed in a suit and tie.
"Sir, that can't be mine. It is beautiful but you must be mistaken." Joss smiled back kindly, but had a sense of alarm as she started to walk away. He was charming and handsome of course, she thought, but she also knew she had been admiring that exact scarf for the last month. How strange.
"How silly of me," The older man called out still extending the scarf toward Joss, "Forgive me, take it anyway?"
Joss paused frozen with a suspicious grin. She was 25, and he must be at least 45, twenty years her senior. Before she could turn around to reply, he was coming up beside her, pulling at the scarf with both hands.
"Do I know you from somewhere? Maybe the school or the store?" Joss held her arms open as if trying to offer up an explanation that she didn't have. She was referring to the children's art academy where she taught or her parents store in Odem, just outside of the city.
"No, neither of those, but I do know you Jocelyn." He grinned a wide toothy smile, he was disarmingly charismatic.
Joss studied him carefully trying to recall a date or time where she had met this beautiful stranger. Perhaps he was a friend of her fathers, which would make even more sense, as he was the only one that still referred to her as Jocelyn.
"Jocelyn? Only my father calls me that." She smiled letting down her guard a bit.
"I know," The stranger stepped in closer gently wrapping the scarf around her neck while brushing away her long, dark hair.
"So Jocelyn, I see you have completely finished that coffee, and it is nearly noon. That tells me, you have not had a satisfactory lunch and would be thrilled to accompany me to Naples for some pasta, would that be true?" He held out his arm and took her tote of fruit off of her arm.
"As long as we walk, Ok? No taxis." Joss insisted.
"Smart girl." He whispered. That was the first time she noticed his slightly British accent.
"Now I know that I don't know you, I would have remembered your accent!" She said with a slight giggle as she pulled her arm away abrubtly.
The man grasped at her fleeting wrist and turned it upside down, placing his thumb firmly near her wrist bone.
"I never said you knew me," he drew her in closer, held her eyes and whispered again, "But I do know you."
Joss immediately withdrew her hand and jerked away in fear.
"I do not want to do lunch anymore." She abandoned her tote of fruit that he held and turned to run. It was the middle of the day on a busy street but she never felt so secluded.
The man cackled loudly enough for her to hear, and called out again, "Jocelyn, dear, I have it on good authority your father is dangerously close to losing his business. You would not want to be the stake that nails the coffin, do you?" The man smiled a twisted, content smile with his arms crossed.
Joss stopped dead in her tracks, how could he know? Was he with the bank? She thought she knew everyone involved with the store, how could this be happening?
She turned to meet his stare again. His eyebrows had high arches that reminded her of every villain she had ever seen in a film. He was removing his suit jacket and laying it across his arm and pulling her in once again with his offered hand.
"Now that I have your attention Jocelyn, I will not give you any more insight into my plans than I have already. At least not until we have eaten." He said placing her arm again in his.
Joss thought her eyes screamed "Help!" to every passerby. But what could she be yelling for? She was not in pain, she was not in harm's way, that she knew of, but she knew something was very wrong.
They walked the sidewalks completely silent. He towered over her 5'3 stature; she was guessing he was probably six foot three, and around 250 pounds. He could probably outrun her, and most definitely could overpower her. He did not exude his strength or size on her at all. Perhaps, she thought, he merely wanted to talk about her father's business after all. However she knew in the back of her mind that he wanted something else entirely.
Lunch
When they arrived at the restaurant, the matre d apparently knew the man.
"Mr. Fairfax, we have been expecting you! We have your usual table, by the window in the back. Your niece is joining you today?" The maître d asked chummily, smiling gleefully at Joss. Joss decided to stay quiet and go along with the charade to determine what was going on.
"That would be fine Maxwell, very well." The gray haired man replied with a sigh. The pair followed the waiter back to a very private table set for two. It appeared to be a banquet room that could hold nearly fifty people, but today it was entirely dim, and removed. It was a vast contrast from the beautiful sunny day on the Chicago streets.
"I am not hungry." Stated Joss emotionless.
"We will both have the lamb, rare, a house salad, and a bottle of the best champagne Maxwell, we are celebrating!" The man ordered, removing Joss' sweater, and pulling out her chair.
The Maitre d nodded and disappeared from Joss' sight. She felt like she had just lost a lifeline.
"I will walk," she whispered with a harsh tone, "No...I will run, out of this place as fast as I can if you do not tell me who you are and what it is that you want from me immediately."
He chuckled again in a low gruff manner placing his hands in front of his mouth, as if hiding a secret.
"Very well, Jocelyn." He sipped the water set in front of him.
"My name is Vance Fairfax," he replied, "Does that sound familiar to you at all?"
It did to Joss, but she shook her head and touched her forehead as if trying to recall the information.
"VF?" She mouthed with her lips.
"Yes, that's right. Good girl. You do remember me." He smiled again, pleased.
"VF.....VF.....you ran for an office? Last November?" Joss held a hand up in the air, as if grasping for a thought. She couldn't imagine, what in the world this political figure would want with her? Why in the world would he have had that scarf?
"VF was a part of my campaign, your right. I was a senator for two years..........and now I am the attorney general." He smiled dancing his fingers on the lip of his glass.
"I am sorry Mr. Fairfax... I haven't the slightest idea what this has to do with me or my family." Joss leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms.
The waiter carried out a plate of rolls and butter, champagne and glasses. The waiter was silent and precise. Mr. Fairfax never even blinked.
"All in time Jocelyn." Vance Fairfax winked as he held up his glass in a faux cheers and swallowed the champagne.
The food came out shortly after, and Joss finally broke the silence when the waiter walked away.
"I don't really care for lamb." Joss stated scooting the plate away.
"Have you ever had it?" he asked and she shook her head.
"Well, it's absurd that you would deny yourself any pleasure simply because you had never had it before. How would you know if you enjoyed it or not? I request that you at least try it...I did buy it for you." He ushered the plate back in front of her. He did make a point. She was already at the restaurant and whether she wanted to admit it or not, she was starving.
She took a small bite and enjoyed it so that she began eating it fervently.
"Good girl." Vance smiled again.
At the end of the meal, they both sighed loudly and began their conversation again.
"So tell me, Mr. Fairfax, what business you have with me so that I may be on my way." Joss explained matter of factly. "Please call me Joss."
"I will not call you Joss, your name is Jocelyn and I prefer it. We can talk business now if you like...would you like to talk about it here or your loft?" The smirk he had hidden while he was eating had come right back to his face and rested quite comfortably there.
"How do you know about where I live? How do you know about my family?" She questioned as she could feel her chest rise and fall quickly with haste.
"Alright, we can talk here..." he swallowed the last bit of champagne and began, "Well I ordered the champagne because we are indeed rejoicing. We are celebrating your new scholarship opportunity. I had come across your application to complete your Master's Degree with the University, which is my alma mater. I wanted to inform you that you had been chosen."
Joss remembered the paperwork she had filled out in the fall but they had called to tell her she was denied.
"I know the University denied your request, however, I made a considerable donation to help them.......reconsider." Vance leaned in to the table as if telling a secret.
"But, I don't..." Joss protested and he held his hand up to silence her.
"I am not done." He continued with a stern tone.
"Your father is in far over his head and understanding when it comes to that poor excuse for a diner. He has two loans on it with the bank, and is within a blink of an eye away from losing it. I have it in my power to close it for good, or help it sustain into the far distant future. Your poor mother has had ill health for what, five years now? I can see to it that she never has another hospital bill, with the best care possible, for as long as she lives. Your brother, overseas in the military, yes? I can make one simple phone call that can have him on a plane in an hour and on your parents door step tonight."
