Teresa Southwick - The Beauty Queen's Makeover

Joining that boys-will-be-boys society was something else he wished he could forget. How in God’s name had his past become so littered with regrets? Where was the guy with dreams of using his knowledge and skills for people in trouble who desperately needed it? Officially that’s what he did, but only someone in trouble who could afford his exorbitantly high fee. How had he gone so far off his original path?

He pushed the thoughts away and braced for hurricane Sandra. He held out his hand. “Sandra? Nate Williams.”

Her eyes widened. “Nate Williams? You loaned me your handkerchief.”

“When you were crying,” he remembered. “I hope everything is better now.”

“Williams,” she said. “That’s what the W was for. I’ve been calling you Mr. W.”

“That works. Thanks for meeting me.” He sat.

“Fortunately you caught me on a Friday. The only other days I come into Saunders are Monday and Wednesday.”

That was still enough time to do the professor damage, unless he could convince her to abandon her crusade. “Have you already ordered?”

She shook her head. “Not yet. But I know for a fact that the food is great. David and I have eaten here and I highly recommend the pasta primavera. Unless a macho guy like you needs his daily ration of raw meat.”

He wondered if the barb indicated she was aware of his high-profile profession. When she didn’t say more, he ignored it. And he was grateful she apparently didn’t remember that in his fraternity days he was the overweight geek in the corner, hibernating and hoping no one would notice him. These days he always made healthy food choices. It was easier with money. Almost everything was.

“That sounds good to me.” He ordered for them, then met her gaze. “How are you and David?”

She looked radiant. “We couldn’t be better.”

“Tell me about the two of you.”

“We have a family. Twins. Molly unfortunately inherited my naturally curly hair and Michael favors David with his black hair.”

“That’s great. Twins must be a challenge.”

“Yes. But I love it. Takes some doing to juggle motherhood with my job at the newspaper. So right now I just do small-town stuff. David coaches Little League and soccer for our kids’ teams. Once an athlete, always an athlete. Passing those good physical genes on to the next generation. Although how that translates into Ping-Pong is anyone’s guess.”

“Excuse me?”

She laughed. “The twins have their hearts set on being the first brother-sister Ping-Pong team in the Olympics.”

“Goals are good.”

“And to pay for those goals we own a small grocery in the North End of Boston. Which is probably way more information than you wanted.” She took a breath. “And what about you?”

“I’m a lawyer. My office isn’t far from where your store is.”

“So you’re an attorney,” she said, studying him closely.

“Yes.” He tensed, waiting for the “aha” moment. The instant when she recognized him from some press conference for a high-profile case he’d handled or a news segment analyzing his courtroom performance. He hoped Nickelodeon trumped nightly news in her house. When she didn’t say anything, he allowed himself to relax.

“Did you always want to be an attorney?”

He nodded and relaxed a little more. Anyone who really knew him from college would remember that.

“Do you like what you’re doing?”

“Do you always ask so many questions?”

She smiled. “It’s a reporter thing.”

“Is your vendetta against Professor Harrison a reporter thing?” Nate asked.

“It’s a reporter’s responsibility to search out the truth.”

“No matter who gets hurt?”

She sighed. “I look at it like going to the doctor. Sometimes it hurts, but knowing what’s going on always brings you peace of mind in the long run.”

“I disagree.” He didn’t want anyone knowing what was really going on with him. Especially Katie. “So, what have you got against the professor?”

Frowning, Sandra leaned forward. “Are you asking specifically? Or just inquiring about my general motivation?”

“Either. Both.” Nate lifted one shoulder. “Whatever you want to tell me.”

“I’m simply trying to learn the truth.”

“Even if it costs him the career he loves? A way of life that’s all he has since his wife died?”

“There’s something strange going on with him, Nate.”

“Define ‘something.’”

“I’ve been digging—”

“From what I hear, you could be halfway to China.”

She smiled. “Very funny. The thing is, I’m finding some disturbing patterns in the professor’s behavior.”

The waiter appeared and set their plates of pasta in front of them. When they were alone again, Nate met her gaze. “What kind of patterns?”

“Let me start with David. He’s a gifted athlete, and a very intelligent man—”

“I can see you’re not prejudiced,” Nate commented, noting the glow of love that sparkled in her blue eyes. A hollow feeling opened wide in the center of his chest because a man like himself could never hope for what she had—love and a family.

She grinned. “Not me. I’m into the facts. The fact is, I love my husband.”

“I envy you.”

“Don’t sidetrack me.”

“Okay. So you were saying that David’s a rocket scientist,” he said, getting back on the subject.

She laughed. “Hardly. But in spite of above-average IQ, in high school he was more interested in sports than learning and no one was more surprised than David when he received a scholarship. There are supposed to be academic standards for those and his grades just weren’t high enough.”

“How did he get it?”

“Courtesy of a mysterious benefactor.”

The professor had mentioned that. “Do you know who this person is?”

“That’s what I’m trying to find out. I’ve come across more records and found some troubling irregularities.”

“So what does that have to do with the professor?”

She frowned. “I haven’t found a solid link, at least not on paper. But in every instance of an undeserved scholarship or pulling strings in some way, the person involved was mentored by Professor Harrison.”

“That’s not proof of anything. It’s coincidence. Circumstantial.”

“Tell me about it. But he’s the common denominator. The link to this mysterious patron.”

“I don’t get it, Sandra. Someone is doing good—like the Lone Ranger—and you’re looking to lynch him from the highest tree.”

“It’s never okay to do the wrong thing, even if it’s for the right reason. There are rules and they’re meant to be followed. As a lawyer, I’m surprised you’d even question something so basic.”

That’s because she didn’t know him. “As a lawyer I know everything isn’t always black and white. There’s a lot of gray areas, which is why we’ve got judges.”

She put down her fork and studied him closely. “Hmm.”

“What?” he asked sharply.

“You remind me of someone. I thought so the couple times I saw you on campus and I can’t shake the feeling now.”

Oh, for crying out loud. Did she mean the geek he used to be? Or the high-profile defense attorney he was now? If she remembered either one it was bad news.

“They say everyone has a double.”

“I’ve heard that.”

Time to change the subject and one of his favorites was Katie. “Do you remember Kathryn Price?”

Instantly she looked up and frowned. “Do I? College beauty queen. Model on her way to superstardom. Yeah, I remember her.”

“What’s wrong?”

“David and I decided to start a camp for disadvantaged children.”

“Wow.”