One in a Million Read online

  “What?” Patrice said.

  But Kennedi was too taken aback to say anything.

  “What?” Patrice repeated, and then turned all the way around in her chair. “Oh my God,” she said, almost shouting, after seeing Blake stretching his hand toward some slightly attractive yet uncultured-looking woman and holding her hand. “Please tell me he’s not already flauntin’ that tramp out in public like this.”

  Kennedi still didn’t respond, and just at that moment she and Blake made eye contact. He stared for a few seconds and then looked away, and Kennedi could tell he didn’t know what to do.

  Patrice, on the other hand, was steaming. “I oughtta go tell him and that streetwalker what I think of both of them and then—” Kennedi didn’t let her finish her sentence; she was out of her seat and over at the table without even realizing it.

  “So, is this the hooker you’re leaving me for? Huh? Is this the piece of trash you’ve been sleeping with behind my back for—what did you say? Two years?”

  “Kennedi, please don’t embarrass yourself this way,” he said. “You’re making a scene, and I think it would be best if you went back to your table.”

  “Back to my table? So, now you’re going to try to dismiss me? Even though you’re the one sitting out here with your little weave-wearing whore. The one who obviously can’t even afford to get her hair done on a regular basis. The one who clearly doesn’t know that her kinky hair doesn’t match up with that silky mess she’s got plastered all through her head.”

  “Kennedi, I’m asking you nicely.”

  “You can ask me any way you want, but I’m not leaving here until I get good and ready. I’m still your wife, remember?”

  “Not for long,” the tramp commented matter-of-factly.

  “Are you talking to me?” Kennedi asked, and Patrice attempted to pull Kennedi away. But Kennedi jerked away from her. “So, are you?” she asked the woman again, but she got no response.

  “Kennedi, why don’t you leave us alone?” Blake blurted out.

  But Kennedi had had enough.

  “You make me sick!” she yelled, and then she grabbed Blake’s salad plate and flipped it toward his chest. Next, she snatched what looked to be a full glass of flavored tea and poured every ounce of it, ice and all, on top of the woman’s head.

  “You crazy lunatic!” the woman shrieked, and slid her chair backward.

  Blake jumped up. “Okay, Kennedi, that’s it. Either you leave or I’m calling the police.”

  “You can call whomever you want because, sweetheart, this is only the beginning. When I’m finished with you, you’ll regret the day you ever met me.”

  Patrice pulled Kennedi’s arm with a lot more force, and this time she didn’t resist. This time she followed behind her and back over to where they’d been sitting, but she made a point of looking back at her husband, who was trying to help Miss Thing dry her body off. She watched and had a mind to rush back toward them, but Patrice picked up their handbags and said, “Kennedi, please, let’s go.”

  Kennedi hesitated, but when she saw people staring at her from just about every direction, she did what Patrice told her. She followed her out of the eatery like a good little girl but couldn’t wait to get even with Blake. She couldn’t wait until he found out about all the money she’d won and how he wasn’t getting one dime of it.

  She couldn’t wait to hear him groveling like some sick animal.

  Chapter 4

  Are you okay?” Patrice asked as soon as they sat inside her car.

  “I’m fine,” Kennedi answered, but knew she was anything but.

  “This is all my fault, and I am so sorry. I’m the one who suggested we stop to get something to eat, even though you kept saying you didn’t want anything.”

  “No, this is Blake’s fault. Period.”

  “I really thought he was a better man than this, and I certainly never expected to find him parading his mistress around in public. Not while you and he are still married.”

  “He’s so different. And he’s acting like this woman means everything to him.”

  “Who is she, anyway? And how did he meet her?”

  Kennedi had no clue, but she couldn’t deny that she was bothered by the fact that Miss Thing looked at least five years younger than her. She knew this should have been the least of her worries, but she couldn’t help the way she felt. She was equally bothered by Blake’s new willingness to miss a day from work. Like her, he’d never liked being absent, but it was now pretty obvious that he had no problem doing whatever he had to in order to spend time with that tramp. Kennedi knew this because he worked all the way in downtown Chicago at an ad agency, and there was no way he could simply be taking his normal lunch break out here in Covington Park.

  “I wonder if she’s one of his coworkers,” Patrice continued.

  “No offense, P, but it really doesn’t matter who she is, because the bottom line is that she’s been sleeping with my husband all this time like she had every right to. The bottom line is that regardless of who she is, my marriage is over and my whole life is about to change forever.”

  Patrice slowed toward a stoplight. “I guess you’re right.”

  They drove the rest of the way to the law firm without words, and soon they were stepping off the elevator at the office.

  “It’s to the left,” Kennedi said, and they walked in that direction. When they arrived at Attorney Newman’s suite, Kennedi turned the doorknob and went in. Patrice walked in behind her but went ahead and took a seat.

  “Hi. I’m a little early, but I have an appointment with Attorney Newman.”

  “Your name, please?”

  “Kennedi Mason.”

  “I’ll let his assistant know you’re here.”

  “Thanks.”

  The receptionist adjusted her headset, dialed the number, and told the assistant that Attorney Newman’s 2:15 appointment was there.

  “She’ll be right out to get you.”

  “Thanks again,” Kennedi said, and sat down next to Patrice, who was reading a magazine she must have gotten from the rack across the room. But only minutes later, a petite and very attractive twentysomething young woman came out to get them.

  “Mrs. Mason?” she verified.

  “Yes.”

  “Please come this way.”

  They followed the woman down a long corridor and into a medium-size conference room.

  “Attorney Newman will be in very shortly, but can I get either of you something to drink? Coffee, tea, bottled water, soda?”

  “Actually, I’ll take some water,” Patrice said.

  Kennedi took a seat. “No, thank you, I’m good.”

  The assistant left the room and Patrice elbowed Kennedi. “The least you could do is hydrate your body.”

  “I will. Just not now.”

  “Kennedi, I don’t want to keep harassing you, but if you don’t take better care of yourself, you’re going to get sick.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “No, you won’t be. If you don’t eat, you don’t drink, and, according to you, you’re not even getting proper sleep, then how do you expect to survive? How do you expect to deal with everything you’re going through?”

  “You worry too much.”

  “Well, you don’t worry enough. At least not about yourself.”

  “I’ll get something later when I’m back at home.”

  “I wish you wouldn’t be so difficult.”

  Kennedi smiled. “I love you, too.” Patrice smiled back at her, and then the door opened.

  “Kennedi,” Attorney Newman said, shaking her hand. “It’s good seeing you.”

  “It’s good seeing you as well. This is my best friend, Patrice Johnson.”

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “Nice meeting you, too.”

  “Sooooo. What brings you in today? When you called this morning, you said it was sort of an emergency situation, so I’m glad I was out here in the suburbs and not at the downtown o
ffice. Oh, and by the way, the accountant I asked to join us works a couple of floors up and is on his way down here right now. Although you probably should go ahead and tell me what you’ll be needing him for so I can be sure I’ve chosen the right person.”

  “I have the winning numbers for this week’s Mega Millions game. All of them, including the Mega Ball.”

  “Whoa,” he chuckled. “Yes, that would definitely constitute an emergency situation. Unbelievable.”

  “I know. I’ve known since yesterday and it still seems unreal.”

  Attorney Newman relaxed farther into his chair and laughed. “Wow.”

  “That was my reaction, too,” Patrice said, laughing with him.

  Kennedi was still upset about her run-in with Blake but still managed a smile.

  “Well, congratulations. Also, I have to say that I’m now very glad I chose the accountant that I did, because he’s one of the most competent professionals we deal with. He specializes in taxation, and he knows some of the best money managers in the business. As a matter of fact, two of those managers are part of the reason he’s so independently wealthy himself.”

  “Thank you for contacting him.”

  “No problem at all. I was glad to do it, but even more so now that you’ve told me about all the money you’re about to come into. You hear so many stories about people who win or inherit millions of dollars and how they never even take the time to plan out everything. They act hastily and irresponsibly, and the next thing you know, they’re broke.”

  “Very true,” Patrice said. “And I think the reason this happens to certain people is because they’ve never acted responsibly with any amount of money. And if you can’t do the right thing with twenty thousand dollars, you certainly won’t be able to handle seven or eight figures.”

  “Exactly,” Attorney Newman agreed.

  Just then, his assistant knocked at the door and walked in, escorting a man who must have been the accountant.

  “Thanks, Karen,” Attorney Newman said as she left. “Miles, thanks for coming. Kennedi Mason, this is Miles Avant. Miles, this is Kennedi Mason and her friend Patrice Johnson.”

  The three of them exchanged greetings and Miles took a seat. He was at least six foot two, dressed impeccably, and strangely enough, he was handsome—strangely because Kennedi expected a numbers expert to look just a bit more boring and a lot more studious, so she hoped he was as good as Attorney Newman had claimed.

  “Well, Miles, I think you’d better brace yourself for what I’m about to say,” Attorney Newman said.

  “Okay.”

  “You know that mystery lottery winner they’ve been talking about on the news for the past couple of days?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, you’re looking at her.”

  Miles sat up straighter. “Is that right?”

  “Yes, and that’s why she needs our services.”

  Miles switched his attention to Kennedi. “Congratulations.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I guess we’ve got our work cut out for us,” Miles told them.

  “That we do,” Attorney Newman added. “I’ll be handling her will, trust, and all of the estate planning, but we’ll need you to do whatever it is you numbers people do with large sums of money like this.”

  “Of course, I’ll do my absolute best.”

  What else was he going to say? That he was going to do his worst? Especially since Kennedi was sure he’d be charging a pretty hefty fee, the same as her attorney. But just as quickly as she’d had these sarcastic thoughts, she tried tossing them from her mind. She tried to rid herself of any skepticism because she knew this was all because of Blake. She knew this was all because of the way he’d deceived her and because she wasn’t planning to trust another man for as long as she lived. She would have to deal with Attorney Newman and Miles Avant because she needed them, but after that she was through with any and every thing that resembled the male of the species.

  “I think the first thing we should do is schedule at least two and possibly three more meetings before you claim your winnings,” Miles began. “We have a lot to go over and a lot to get in order, but I’m thinking we can do this by early next week. Today is Thursday, so if we schedule the next meeting for tomorrow and another on Monday, you should be pretty set by Tuesday or Wednesday.”

  “Before we go any further, though,” Attorney Newman said, “there is something I have to ask. I assume there’s a reason why Blake isn’t present, but it would help if you can tell me why. I hate having to get so personal, but we sort of have to know.”

  Attorney Newman had become acquainted with Blake when he and Kennedi had hired him to draw up their latest wills and power of attorney documents, so Kennedi had wondered when he would ask about him. “Long story short, we’re getting a divorce.”

  “I see.”

  “Is that going to be a problem?”

  “It could be. You see, if we were talking about a gift or some form of an inheritance, he wouldn’t have any entitlement to it, but lottery winnings fall into the category of marital property, and that makes it a lot trickier.”

  “Well, I may as well tell you right now that I don’t want him walking away with any of it,” she said matter-of-factly. “Not under any circumstances.”

  “I understand.”

  “And I’ll tell you why,” Kennedi continued, her voice elevating. “He’s the one who’s been having an affair, he’s the one who walked out on me, and he’s the one who wants a divorce. So as far as I’m concerned, he barely deserves to live, let alone get any of my money.” Patrice rested her hand on top of Kennedi’s arm, and Kennedi tried to control herself. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s no problem at all, and I’m the one who’s sorry that all of this is happening to you. Maybe we’ll get lucky and Blake won’t have the nerve to fight for anything.”

  “Maybe,” Kennedi said, but knew it was wishful thinking.

  “However, if he does try to go after some of the money, we’ll come at him from every angle. Just the fact that he’s already deserted you will give us at least some ammunition, and before it’s over, I’ll come up with a whole lot more.”

  “I appreciate anything you can do.”

  “That’s what I’m here for.”

  “What would happen if she held on to the ticket until after the divorce is final?” Patrice wanted to know.

  “I wish it were that easy, but my best advice would be that Kennedi should make her winnings known up front so that if we do end up in some sort of court battle, neither Blake, his legal counsel, nor the judge will be able to say she tried to conceal property that potentially belonged to both of them. It may not seem like it now, but in the end, it will be better to just deal with all of this head-on until everything is finalized.”

  Attorney Newman and Miles asked Kennedi a few more basic questions and then they prepared to adjourn.

  “Oh, and before I forget,” Attorney Newman added, “have you decided where you’re going to keep the ticket between now and next week?”

  “In a very safe place. It’s not that I don’t trust you or Miles,” she lied, “but I think I’ll feel a lot more comfortable if I keep the exact location to myself.”

  “I agree,” he responded. “I just wanted to make sure it’ll be secure for the time being.”

  “Well, if you want,” Miles said, standing up, “you can follow me up to my office, and I’ll have my secretary get you onto my calendar for tomorrow morning. I think I’m pretty free, but it won’t hurt to check for sure.”

  Then Attorney Newman stood. “I’ll try to sit in at the beginning and then we’ll figure out what day you and I should get together for everything else we need to get drawn up.”

  Miles lifted his leather organizer from the table. “I’ll also contact our number one investment guy so we can set up a meeting with him for Monday.”

  “Sounds good,” Kennedi acknowledged, but she couldn’t help thinking how overwhelming this was a
ll going to be.

  Deep down, she couldn’t stop thinking about Blake, that woman, and how they deserved whatever they got. Even if she would have to be the one who gave it to them.

  Chapter 5

  Kennedi stared at the huge wedding portrait of her and Blake, the one that hung over the fireplace in the family room, and had a mind to snatch it down with all her might. As a matter of fact, she was now contemplating total destruction of every single thing that reminded her of that lowlife she’d called her husband for the last ten years. She didn’t want to hate him and was trying her best not to, but her efforts toward maintaining a forgiving heart, something she’d never had a problem with in the past, weren’t working. Her mother had taught her a long time ago that God was a forgiving God and therefore expected everyone else to act in the same manner, but for the first time in a long time, she couldn’t see herself doing it. Not after the way Blake had broken their marital vows. Not after the way he’d smiled in her face for months and months and all the while was bedding down with someone else.

  But regardless of how outraged she was, there was still this underlying layer of sadness that she couldn’t seem to rid herself of. Partly because she couldn’t stop thinking about the day they’d met and how quickly they’d fallen in love with each other, and partly because the more she thought back, the more she regretted not paying attention to all the signs she’d talked about earlier with Patrice—signs she easily would have noticed had she not loved and trusted him so completely. Now she wondered if maybe she’d been more aware of what Blake was up to, she could have called him on it in time for them to seek out counseling. Maybe she could have stopped this whole disaster from ever happening.

  Although what she wanted to know more than anything was where they’d both gone wrong. Where she’d gone wrong. Especially since they’d always seemed so happy with each other. In all honesty, Kennedi hadn’t just seemed happy, she was happy. She was content and had always been very proud of how close they were as a couple. She’d always been extremely proud of the fact that they rarely argued and when they did, they never stayed angry for any extended periods of time. Not to mention she and Blake seemed to have so much in common that she couldn’t imagine how he could have possibly entertained the idea of having an affair, let alone actually indulging in one. But this just went to show there were no guarantees about anything. There was no such thing as living happily ever after.