The Hellman

Chapter 3

Alexander waited until Jessica left the conference room before he spoke up.

“So, what’s been happening with you guys?” he asked as he uncovered the lunch that she had brought in for him. She had ordered from their usual restaurant and himself and his brothers had decided to remain in the conference room for lunch.

“Nothing has changed in our lives since the last time we spoke.” Jamie said hastily, “what we want to know is what’s happening with you and that new assistant of yours.”

Alexander chocked on the piece of celery he had been chewing.

“What?” he asked looking around the room at the eager looks on all his brothers’ faces.

“What do you mean what?” William asked, “she’s by far the most beautiful woman I’ve personally ever seen.”

“Yes and?” Alex asked

“Yes, and what’s going on with you two?” Theodore asked.

“Nothing.” He replied, “For God’s sake she’s my assistant.”

“I see the way you look at her.” Jamie said, “looks like there’s a part of you that would like her to be more than just your assistant.”

“I don’t see how that could be possible.” He replied, “I respect her as a woman and I plan to keep my boundaries in the workplace.”

“Perfect.” Theodore said, “with you out of the way I think I could get her number.”

Somehow the thought of his brother and Michelle together did not sit so well with him.

“I don’t think it’s right for you to mix work with pleasure.” He said flashing Theodore a wary look, “plus you’re about to go into the field for a very dangerous mission.”

“I think it would be perfect.” Theodore said, “after all, she’s going to be running my mission. We’ll be spending all that time together over the phone, in emails. I can see the love story developing.”

Alexander was doing his best to ignore his brother’s goading.

“If anyone is going to date her it should be me,” Jamie said.

“How do you figure?” William asked.

“Well, she’s beautiful and charming but I think with your track records of being players, you would ruin this poor girl. I can give her stability.” Jamie said.

It took all of Alexander’s strength to not laugh at his little brothers. Michelle was far too perfect for any of them and he had no doubt about that.

“Is that so?” Alexander asked.

“Well, I think she liked me. She couldn’t keep her eyes off me the entire meeting.” Jamie said

“She does not like you,” Alexander replied in a tone much too commanding.

It wasn’t that he was trying to be territorial with his assistant, it was just that the thought of any of his brothers trying to gain her attention didn’t sit so well with him. He knew she was new to the area and without much thought behind it, he had envisioned himself as a protector of some sorts of her. She was beautiful, shy and the frailest woman he had ever come across. There were times he wondered if she was a good fit for such a grueling job but then she would always surprise him by being the best assistant he ever had.

“You can’t stop me, brother.” William said “And why would you want to? It's not as if you want her for yourself!”

“Oh, since we all think she’s beautiful to let have a wager of this.” Jamie said, “the first one to get a date is the winner.”

“What would I win?” Theodore chimed in before anyone could say anything.

“Ah, you win a trip to any destination paid for by Alexander,” Jamie replied with a low chuckle.

“Alright, I think this has gone on long enough.” Alexander said, “I will not allow you guys to harass my secretary. She’s the best one I’ve had and I can’t risk losing her because you boys can’t keep it in your pants. If I hear one word about you troubling her or making her feel uncomfortable I will whip you into a frenzy!”

“Who says you have any say in the matter?” William asked, “I mean she’s unattached, beautiful and since you’re not interested she’s fair game.”

“She’s not a game.” He replied, “you guys know how I feel about these antics.”

“We promise we’ll be gentle,” Theodore said.

Alexander had no idea what was happening but the sudden urge to punch his younger brother was becoming almost too hard to ignore.

“I thought you were dating that French model William,” Alexander said turning the conversation in his favor.

“Compared to Michelle?” He said with a shrug, “I’d rather Michelle.”

The whole room erupted in laughter as they thought about the loud shrill model William had been dating for a few months. It didn’t seem as if the relationship was going anywhere and knowing William, it was likely that he planned to end it as soon as he went off on another mission.

“We can forego all this petty gaming Alexander if you admit that you’re into her,” Williams said sheepishly.

Alex thought about it for a moment and he didn’t want to commit himself to her. She was charming far beyond compare but he knew that he wasn’t interested in a relationship which made it hard for him to accept the goading of his brothers.

“I think you guys need to go at this with respect for her,” he said, “If I realize any of you hurt her feelings better believe I will hunt you down and destroy you.”

Alexander looked around the room at the shocked expression on his brothers’ faces. They all looked as if they hadn’t expected that answer.

“Good luck gentlemen.” He said before covering the last of his lunch and walking out of the conference room. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be with them, but he was having a hard time dealing with the complex emotions he was feeling.

He walked into his office and sat down fully ready to begin prepping the procedural reports he needed to go over with Michelle before they began setting up the mission for Theodore. Instead, his mind wandered to the beautiful black-haired beauty who was now officially no longer an option for him. His office door creaked, and he looked up to see Theodore wandering in.

“Hey bro.” Theodore said, “you got a minute.”

“Yeah” Alexander replied shoving the wayward thoughts from his mind.

Theodore walked across the room and came to sit across from him.

“I hope you didn’t feel bad in there,” Theodore said

Out of all his siblings, he was closest with Theodore. They were the first two children and had shared a bond that was much different from the one he shared with the rest of his siblings. He confided in Theodore more than anyone else and as it stood, only Theodore knew why he wouldn’t throw his hat in the ring for Michelle or any other woman.

“I know.” Alexander said, “I don’t mind, it’s what brothers do.”

“You might not realize, but nobody has any sights on your secretary,” Theodore said

“Not William?” Alexander asked with a grin.

“Ok, maybe William because he has no self-control.” Theodore said, “I guess we all just thought when you two walked in that more was going on between you too.”

“How so?” Alexander asked

“Well, you looked at her the entire meeting.” Theodore said, “you might not notice either but she’s into you. William has no chance.”

Hearing those words made Alexander feel an odd sense of satisfaction but it was soon replaced by a cold indifference.

“Well, even if I did feel anything for her, we all know it could never happen,” Alexander said.

“Do we?” Theodore asked.

“We do.” Alexander replied, “love is not my thing anymore.”

“You can’t still be pining after Elizabeth, can you?” Theodore asked, “that was five years ago! You were both children and we all know she only loved your money.”

Alexander held himself back expecting the same pain that had plagued him for so many years to resurface. When it didn’t he realized that the thing with Elizabeth had finally washed out of his system.

“It’s not about Elizabeth,” Alexander replied suddenly unable to account for the loss of feeling for his ex-girlfriend.

“What is it then?” Theodore asked.

“It’s that thing called love.” He replied, “I don’t think it’s for me. I don’t think I can fall in love ever again.”

“Are you kidding man?” Theodore asked, “Of course you can.”

“I know I can, I just don’t want to,” Alexander replied.

“Well, you might want to think about this.” Theodore said, “are you willing to subject yourself to a life without love? Or are you willing to risk your security for a chance to be happy.”

“Where’s all this coming from?” Alexander asked looking at his brother in a new light.

“I found someone.” Theodore said, “I can tell you that falling in love is the most dangerous risk I’ve ever taken but I’ve never been happier. I can’t think of you living your whole life without experiencing that.”

“And you think I can have that with my assistant?” Alexander asked incredulously.

“It doesn’t matter.” Theodore said, “it would be nice to see you trying at something.”

“Listen, you shouldn’t worry.” Alexandre said, “I can’t promise that I’m looking for a relationship or even love, but I can promise you that I will be alright.”

Alexander noted the way his brother looked at him and the concern he saw on his face.

“I’ll be fine Theodore.” He said

“If you say so,” his brother said, “if I were you I’d take the chance to get to know my assistant.”

Alexander chuckled. It was inevitable that he would get to know his assistant, he just wasn’t interested in knowing her the way they thought he should.

“What about this assignment you have me doing, what’s the real reason for keeping it so hush hush?” Theodore asked.

“We think the cell is being used by a CIA mole.” He said plainly, “it’s very dangerous.”

“Wow, another mole. Why the hell do they always call us in when they have moles.”

“We get the job done.” Alexander replied, “and we have no ties beyond our country so it's not likely that we’d change allegiances.”

“I see.” Theodore replied, “I can handle the danger.”

“I know” Alexander replied, “you should take care of yourself now that you’ve found someone.”

“Yeah, she’s amazing Alex. Nothing like the other girls I’ve dated before,” Theodore said once again with an unmistakable look of adoration on his face.

“How did you guys meet?” Alexander asked not so eager to hear about his brother’s love life but interested enough to want to know what he found so fascinating in one woman that he was ready to commit to her forever.

“She’s beautiful. Not nearly as beautiful as that assistant of yours but she’s charming. She listens to me and I just love being around her.” Theodore replied, “I have the feeling whenever I’m away from her that I need to be back to her and when I get back I never want to leave.”

“Sounds serious,” Alex replied.

“It is, I was thinking of taking her to the house to see mom and dad soon,” Theodore said carefully.

“Are you sure?” Alex asked just as carefully.

The thing about their parents was that they were eager for their children to be married off. Alex was the most pressured of them all, but Maud always said that if any of his children would get married and have babies, he would be happy. His mother and father were old now and wanted nothing more than grandchildren which was something he and his siblings had put off to chase their dangerous careers. If Theodore carried a woman home, they would instantly think that a grandchild was on the way. Sometimes he wondered if it would be easier to just adopt a baby and give them the grandchild so they would stop pestering him.

“It’s fine.” Theodore said, “If I take her there I’ll be sure that she’s the one.”

Alexander laughed.

“Yes, you do that bother.”

There was a knock on his door and he looked up to see Michelle standing there with a slight blush on her face. When she looked over at him and their eyes met he felt a strange pang in his stomach.

“I’m back from lunch.” She said smiling as if she was embarrassed to be there.

“Yes, we had a great time.” His sister said breaking their eye contact as she walked around Michelle and into his office.

Laura walked over to his desk but Michelle stood in the doorway.

“I have a few things to catch up on. I’ll talk to you later” She said before turning and walking away. He wanted to tell her not to leave but he knew if he did, Theodore would take that as a symbol of his affection for her.

Although he had no idea how to interpret how he felt, he didn’t want his siblings pressuring him into anything.

“So, brother,” Lura said, “Can I steal your assistant.”

The twinkle in his sister’s eyes told him she was up to no good and suddenly he wanted to know what they had been discussing at lunch.

“What do you want Laura.” He asked getting straight to it.

“Leave it to you to find the most beautiful woman in America and make her your assistant.” She said

“I actually had nothing to do with that.” He admitted. “I told Jessica to find one and a few days later I came in and she was there.”

“Well, you are a lucky man,” Laura said throwing herself down in the seat next to Theodore’s.

“Yes, she’s an excellent assistant.” He replied.

“And a fascinating woman,” Laura said, “you’d be blind if you didn’t realize that.”

“Why does everyone think something is wrong with me?” he asked.

“Because you’d have to be stupid to let that woman out of your view. I realized she’s not just good on the outside, she’s genuinely sweet. She’s perfect for you Mr. Moody.”

Alexander tried not to feel insulted but it was difficult when his sister called him moody. She knew how to press his buttons just right.

“Listen, I am done with you guys thinking you can mess with my love life.” He said

“What love life?” Laura interrupted.

“Enough,” Alexander said running an agitated hand through his hair. “I have too much work to do and you guys need to get back to your jobs. I will see you at dinner next weekend.”

With defeated shrugs, he watched as Theodore and Laura walked out of his office. When they were gone he stood and walked over to the window overlooking the city. He was having a hard time getting thought of Michele out of his mind but after today he was sure he would never be able to look at her as just his assistant. She was an enchanting beauty and she could never be his no matter how much his heartbeat sped up when she walked into a room.