“See what I mean?” Ashley asked me and then turned to her parents. “I’m not marrying Brett, and I’m not working for the warehouse company while he works there.”
“We’ve talked about this. Brett’s a good employee,” Hiram said.
“I didn’t tell you to fire him,” Ashley shot back.
“And if you’re not going to work for me, you need to figure out what you’re going to do.”
Ashley looked defeated. It was a perfect opportunity, so I ran with it.
“You want to work for me? I have businesses with offices in LA, Chicago, and my hometown. I even have contacts in New York. One of them owns an adult film company.”
“David Allen Dawson!” Mom barked.
Ashley, to her credit, began to laugh uncontrollably. She kept pointing at the expression on her dad’s face and then would start to laugh again.
“I’m sorry. That came out wrong. I’d never have even thought to bring it up, but last night Ashley said she wanted to explore all her options, and I was just trying to help. I didn’t mean it to say anything about her character,” I backpedaled.
Now Ashley was howling with laughter, and it didn’t take long for everyone else to get the humor of it.
“You don’t even know what my degree is in. How would you know if I would fit in?” Ashley asked when she finally could speak.
“I do know that you were able to give tours to a bunch of cocky athletes. You have a sense of humor and can think on your feet,” I said.
“What is your degree in?” Mom asked.
“Art History.”
“Can you say, ‘Would you like fries with that?’” I asked.
This time, Hiram and Marianne laughed. They knew she’d never have to stoop to that, but an Art History major didn’t translate into a real-world job, either.
“Hey, I figured I could land a job with the Mobile Museum of Art,” Ashley said to defend herself.
“More like you were working on your MRS degree,” Marianne said.
I knew right then that I would get along fine with the Kincaids. I also understood now why Ashley had said her situation wasn’t as bad as Scarlet’s. If it weren’t for the ‘you must get married’ mentality of parents in the Deep South, Ashley would be okay. They weren’t going to throw her and her babies out into the street if she didn’t cooperate, and it was clear they wanted the best for her. They just had very conservative ideas of what the best for her was.
Then Ashley got serious.
“Is the job offer still available even if we find that Dawson and Allen aren’t yours?”
“Have you ever thought about becoming a real estate agent?” Mom asked.
I knew then that Mom liked Ashley.
“I’m not sure if I want to go into sales.”
“In real estate, if you’re selling, you’re doing something wrong. Your main job is to help people find what works for them. You don’t have to twist their arms if it’s the right choice,” Mom explained.
“I like that,” Hiram said. “I can see where that would work for Ashley.”
“Here’s what we’ll do,” Dad said. “I’ll have Caryn, our chief operating officer, call you on Monday and let you know what we have available.”
Ashley asked her mom and dad to give us a moment alone. My parents also left. Ashley got up and hugged me and began to cry.
“I’m sorry,” she managed to get out.
“If I remember correctly, we were both there. I should have insisted on using condoms.”
She then admitted that she was flat broke, didn’t want to hit her parents up for more cash because of the Brett situation, and needed stuff for the boys.
“Brook, would you go with her and help her get what she needs?” I asked, and she nodded, so I turned back to Ashley. “Do you know what all is involved with your trust fund?”
“Not really. I can see now that I need to investigate that for the boys’ sake. I just don’t know where to start,” she admitted.
“That’s another thing I can help you with. I have people who can figure it all out for you. You also have my mom in your corner now. With the help of your parents and mine, we’ll be okay. We just have to go through the steps to do this right. We want what’s best for those little boys.”
◊◊◊
Next up was Scarlet. She’d told her family and boyfriend she wanted to handle this alone. Scarlet walked in and handed Carol to me. It hadn’t been missed that Scarlet had named her after my mother.
“How did you know that Carol was my mom’s name?” I asked.
“Google. You can figure out all kinds of stuff on the Internet.”
“Don’t I feel stupid.”
Mom and Dad smirked.
Carol snuggled down into my arms and had a silly smile on her face.
“Wow. I’ve never seen her take to anyone like that,” Scarlet admitted.
“It’s his superhero ability, baby whisperering,” Dad said.
I’d take that.
“So, tell me what you want?” I asked.
Scarlet got a determined expression on her face and launched right in.
“I’m not living in a trailer on a farm, and I’m not picking cotton for the rest of my life. If I don’t find something soon, that’s exactly what I’ll be doing.”
“Would you be interested in what David offered Ashley? Would you like to work for one of his companies? They’re located in LA, Chicago, and our hometown,” Dad said.
