Chapter 4 - THE PRICE OF BEING HIS WIFE
Adrian stared at Mara across the study.
For fifteen years, powerful men had learned not to challenge him twice.
But his wife stood before him with trembling hands and refused to look away.
"I was trying to honor you," he said.
"Then you should have asked what I wanted."
"Every woman in Providence would be grateful to have a building named after her."
Mara felt the words like a slap.
"I'm not every woman in Providence."
Celeste shifted beside the desk.
"She's right about one thing, Adrian. We should have discussed the name."
Mara looked at her, surprised.
Adrian turned sharply.
"You suggested it."
"I suggested recognizing her work. Simon's marketing department chose the final presentation."
"Then Simon can change it."
Simon Kells was the longtime director of Valente Harbor Development, a man Adrian trusted to manage complicated real estate transactions.
Apparently, he had been making decisions about Mara's life, too.
Mara pointed toward the portfolio.
"I want to see the relocation plan."
Celeste hesitated.
Then she handed it over.
Mara sat at Adrian's desk and began reading.
Five minutes later, her expression changed.
"Where's the temporary center?"
"Six miles north," Celeste answered.
"There's no direct bus."
"Transportation assistance is included."
"Twice a week."
"We're negotiating additional service."
Mara turned another page.
"Families need a permanent address and twelve months of residency to receive continuing assistance."
"Those are the foundation's preliminary requirements."
"What about people living in shelters?"
"Exceptions can be considered."
"By whom?"
Celeste said nothing.
Mara looked at Adrian.
"Raymond lives in temporary housing. He has an eight-year-old daughter. If he can't prove twelve months of permanent residency, he loses access to the caseworker helping him find a stable job."
Adrian reached for the document.
"That restriction can be changed."
"Then why was it approved?"
"I didn't review every intake requirement."
"That's the problem."
He frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"You make decisions about people without seeing the people inside them."
Adrian opened his mouth.
Then closed it.
Celeste moved toward the window.
"My mother kept every family who came through that door," she said quietly. "Even when she couldn't afford the electricity."
Mara softened slightly.
"Then you understand why this matters."
Celeste turned.
"I understand better than you think."
Her fingers moved to an old wristwatch with a worn brown leather band.
The glass was cracked.
Mara noticed that the hands weren't moving.
They rested permanently at 6:14.
Celeste saw her looking and pulled her sleeve down.
"My mother almost lost that building three times," Celeste said. "I won't lose it through sentimentality."
"Who said anything about sentimentality?"
"Adrian can finance a modern facility. Families can receive better services. The old property can become something sustainable."
"And the people who don't qualify?"
Celeste's voice hardened.
"We cannot save everyone."
Mara stared at her.
"That's what makes us different."
Adrian interrupted.
"Enough."
His tone silenced the room.
Mara looked at him.
For one heartbreaking second, she expected him to ask Celeste to leave so they could speak privately.
Instead, he turned toward Celeste.
"Give me until tomorrow. I'll speak with Simon and review the requirements."
Celeste nodded.
"Thank you."
Mara understood the unspoken order.
Celeste's problem would be handled.
Her own feelings could wait.
She stood.
"Adrian, I need to ask you something."
He looked at her.
"Have you ever told Celeste that she matters more than I do?"
The silence came immediately.
Celeste stopped moving.
Adrian's expression became unreadable.
"Where is this coming from?"
"Answer me."
"Mara, my history with Celeste is complicated."
"That wasn't my question."
"I've made commitments that existed long before our marriage."
"Commitments to what?"
Adrian looked toward Celeste.
She shook her head almost imperceptibly.
Mara saw it.
And Adrian saw that she saw it.
"There's something I can't explain tonight," he said.
Mara laughed once.
It was a terrible sound.
"You can command half this city, but you can't answer your wife."
She picked up her purse.
Adrian moved toward her.
"Don't walk away while we're talking."
"We stopped talking the moment you decided she knew things I wasn't allowed to know."
Celeste suddenly spoke.
"Adrian, tell her about the mortgage."
He froze.
"Celeste."
"She deserves to understand why we can't simply postpone everything."
Mara turned back.
"What mortgage?"
Celeste opened another folder.
"My mother borrowed against the building years ago. The balance has grown. There's a deadline coming."
"How much?"
"More than the property can support."
Mara looked at Adrian.
"Then help her refinance it."
Adrian's expression had darkened.
"Who's holding the loan?"
Celeste swallowed.
"Simon sent me the current ownership statement last week."
She slid one page across the desk.
Adrian read the company name.
Then read it again.
His face changed in a way Mara had never witnessed.
Not anger.
Recognition.
Because the debt belonged to an old financial company his father had owned.
A company now folded into Adrian's waterfront empire.
Celeste's voice broke.
"If this sale doesn't happen, the lender can foreclose."
Mara looked between them.
"Who is the lender?"
May you like
Celeste's eyes filled with tears.
"Adrian, your company isn't just buying my mother's building. Your family has been collecting payments on it for fourteen years."
