Shoe Strings

alienated some very powerful people at home.   I’m safe in the States, but if I were
forced to leave…”
    “What does this have to do with me or my business?   And if they close the consulate, can’t
you just apply for a green card?”
    “You need work to get a green card and the hurdles you must
jump through to obtain one are numerous.   I can’t risk my life waiting for a card.”   He cleared his throat and changed his
tone to one of authority.   The father
was once again speaking to his lowly daughter.   “You’re on the brink of expansion, a
wise decision I must admit.   Your
suppliers are many and from around the world.   I can streamline your operation and get
all of your product from Brazil.   It
would go a long way to keeping the consulate open and guarantee my safety.   If I were to go home and be…eliminated,
some things would come out that wouldn’t look so good for you.”
    She refused to be intimidated by his threats.   Not anymore.   “Anyone who’s familiar with me or my
company knows we have very little to do with one another.   I don’t see how your problems can affect
me or how my suppliers would affect the government’s decisions to keep the
consulate open.   You’re greatly
exaggerating my output.”
    “What you call exaggeration I refer to as prediction.   If you expand, the sky is the limit for
you.   You’ll need to get your hands
on a lot of materials very quickly.   I can do that for you—at the best price.   My safety would simply be a side
benefit.”
    “You can’t possibly think I’d trust you with anything to do
with my business.”
    “If you don’t, you’re signing my death warrant.   Can you live with that, Angelita?”
    ***
    Bryce expertly parallel parked the car in front of an old
two-story stone building along one of Asheville’s many side streets.   The gaslights burning on either side of
the double doors and flower boxes in the long, narrow windows made Kerri Ann
feel as if she were stepping into a fairy tale.  
    During the ride to Asheville, she’d been dazzled by the way
Bryce looked behind the wheel of his high-end sedan.   She’d ridden with him hundreds of times,
but somehow tonight felt different.   The car smelled of leather and man, a combination that had her head
tingling with a mix of desire and nerves.  
    Their talk had been innocent enough.   She told him about Ty’s grades and his
exemplary performance at the last baseball game.   The coach was already talking to her and
Jesse about making some calls to college scouts.   Somehow, it hadn’t felt real until she’d
said the words out loud to Bryce.   He’d smiled and reassured her by placing his hand over the one she’d
rested on the soft black leather seat, as if he’d known how anxious talks of
college and Ty’s leaving made her.   It was several years away, but of course he’d understood, she thought as
she watched him skirt the hood to open her door.   He was the one man who knew her better
than anyone.   The one man who could
make her toes curl with one smile from his handsome face.  
    When he helped her out of the car, she stumbled slightly
into his chest.   With the added
height from the heels, they stood nose to nose.   When his blue eyes darted down to her lips,
her knees practically buckled.   If
he’d kissed her then, she’d have simply melted to the ground.  
    In the car, when she wasn’t forced to look at him, their
conversation had been easy, like it always was.   He’d listen and interject every now and
again.   He told her about his
caseload and for most of the drive it seemed like just another evening with her
old friend.   Until he touched her
and offered a steady hand to her as she got out of the car.   Now she felt as if she were wading
through boggy ground with no sure footing in sight.   How the hell was she going to get
through dinner?
    His eyes returned to hers.   “You okay?”   He moved away and she stepped onto the
curb.
    “Yes, I’m fine.”   She looked down at the glittering crystals on her feet and
chuckled.   “Lita’s shoes are going
to take some getting used to.”
    “I like them.”   He grabbed her hand and led her to the restaurant’s door.   “It’s kind of nice to see eye to eye
with you for once.”  
    Their table was tucked in an alcove next to a huge stone
fireplace.   Bryce ordered the wine
when Kerri Ann urged him to pick his favorite.   She knew she’d never be able to choose