Chapter 2
“The Elite Club is not just about a number of rich guys getting together to have imported beers and talk about the stock market. It is about rich guys bonding together to get away from the humdrum of the business world,” Robert Langley, owner of the club, said with a loud laugh as he lifted the beer to his lips. He was being interviewed for the prestigious magazine ‘In Touch’ and he intended to give them plenty to write about! The club was a part of the legacy left by his own father and had been handed down to him. He had in turn handed it down to his son who had died tragically a couple of years ago leaving his son and wife.
“Would you mind if I walk around and interview several of the members?” the male reporter asked the man politely as he looked around the prestigious club.
“Go ahead.” Robert waved an expansive hand. “I see Jason Collins just coming in. You might be able to get a few sentences from him. Over in that corner there is a sheik from the far eastern country and going into the games room is a real Texas billionaire. You have plenty to write about, son.”
Jason had just sat down at his usual table when the man came over. “I am sorry to intrude, but I am doing a piece on the club and would like your input.”
Jason looked up at him a little annoyed. He just wanted to unwind from the day and lose himself into a glass of the finest chardonnay the club had to offer. “I am sure the owner will have more to say than I do.” He signaled to one of the bartenders and the man nodded.
“He was the one who suggested I come over. You have been a member for how many years?” He had taken his seat without being invited to do so and Jason tamped down his annoyance.
“Three,” he said abruptly.
“What about the service?”
“Excellent until now,” he said pointedly.
The man ignored the subtle inference to his intrusion. “I know that this is a club that caters to the upper echelon of societies but don’t you think it should be opened up to the not so wealthy? Even the businessmen who are out there on the periphery?”
Jason looked at the earnest young man in amusement. A bottle of chardonnay had been brought over to him along with a glass. A bowl of mixed chips was on the table and he dug several out offering some to the man.
“Thanks.”
“To answer your question, I think it would be a very bad idea.”
“Why is that?”
Jason poured his wine slowly looking at the rich texture. “Do you know the club’s history?”
“Not entirely.”
“It was formed by Eric Langley first as a shelter for men who wanted to take their mistresses here where they would be guaranteed the utmost discretion and where it would not be leaked to the wives’ ears. But over the years it changed especially when Robert Langley took it over.” Jason leaned forward. “You see, while Robert was not madly in love with his wife, he had no intention of stepping out on her and he hated to see men stepping out on theirs. It is not about the men with the wealth and means but as a way of having a place to discuss sensitive business that will not be leaked to the rest of the business world. Discretion is still the name of the game but in a different way.”
*****
went home that night exhausted but satisfied with the work done. It had been a bit strange working with Jason Collins, knowing that the man held her future in his hands, but he had turned out not to be a bad sort after all. The time had flown by so fast that it was when it was almost eight that they realized that it was so late. She took a quick shower before going into her small kitchen to prepare herself some tea. The pizza had been consumed and also the bottle of wine which had started to make her feel sleepy. was used to being by herself and it never usually bothered her but tonight for some reason she felt the loneliness encompassing her. The silence of the apartment was even more pronounced in the quietness of the night. Her mother had spoken to her about marriage and children and she had laughed it off and told her that she was not ready yet. “Honey, you are not getting any younger,” Michelle had said to her softly. “You are too involved in your work; it is not going to keep you warm at night.”
sipped her chamomile tea reflectively and considered. She and Jason Collins had gone through several files and she had been quietly shocked at the amount of trouble the company was in. If he had not intervened they would have been facing bankruptcy very soon. The company had been in danger of closing its doors and they would have been out of work. Rather than thinking about her own job she had thought about the children who depended on the foundation in order to survive. She had asked him about it just before they left.
“Will they still be a part of the new company?”
He had looked at her, his dark blue eyes unreadable. “It means a lot to you, doesn’t it?” he had asked her.
“It does.”
“Then it will still be a part of the new Communications Link,” he had told her softly.
“Thank you.”
“You are welcome,” he had told her with a nod of his head. “I will be here for a little bit. See you in the morning.”
“How long are you planning to stay?”
“As long as it takes to get the company back on its feet so to speak. Are you trying to get rid of me?”