Damaged Souls (Broken Man) - By Christopher Scott Page 0,54

Greg. Does it bother you.”

“No, not really,” he seemed very uncomfortable as he replied with an awkward smile. “It’s just that I want it to be special for her. And I really don’t know what I’m doing.”

He is so sweet, Amanda thought to herself as she enjoyed his honesty and tried not to smile. “Don’t worry, Greg, you guys will figure it out. Just be yourself. I know how much the two of you love each other and that is the first step.”

“You think so, what if I screw it up, what if I get too excited.”

“That is just natural,” Amanda replied as she again hid a smile. “You two will be fine, Delaney is trying to figure things out just like you. Just take your time and express the love you feel for one another. Trust me, Greg, it’s not rocket science.”

“I hope not,” he seemed relieved as he stood up. “Thanks for talking to me, Amanda.”

“You are welcome,” she managed to answer before he quickly escaped the room.

He is so funny, Amanda thought to herself as she smiled. He’s always been that way, refreshingly honest yet so shy. Delaney really is a lucky girl.

Both of them seem so young and innocent. I was nothing like that at their age and neither was Jack. Perhaps we sheltered them too much, Amanda considered that maybe they should have done things differently, maybe exposed them to the real world a little bit more. Who knows, maybe we didn’t shelter them enough, Amanda remembered everything that happened the weekend before and realized they had been right to protect them as they had.

But, they are going to be okay. Greg and Delaney are never going to have to go what Jack and I went through, having to figure everything out on our own, no one there to talk to or guide us through our young adult years. No, they are going to have all the support and love they need, Amanda decided as she reopened the file and prepared for her appointment.

Jack and I will make sure of that.

Chapter Nineteen

Are you ready, Jack,” Mike questioned him as he sat down at the conference table.

“As ready as I’m going to be,” he answered in the affirmative. “Your assistant knows exactly what to say, right.”

“Don’t worry, we went over it several times.”

“Good,” Jack replied as he checked his watch. “Timing is going to be critical. I just need you to go over what we reviewed and then just follow my lead, okay”

“I got it, Jack. Try to calm down a little before we get started.”

That’s probably a good idea, Jack thought to himself as he closed his eyes and tried to relax. Don’t get too excited, don’t show your hand too soon, he reminded himself as he visualized the process.

“Mr. Leach,” the sound of the intercom interrupted his thoughts. “Mr. Caldwell is here for his 4:00 appointment.”

“Have them take a seat for a minute,” Mike followed the carefully prepared script and smiled at Jack.

That will annoy him, Jack pictured Mitch having to wait for once as he tried to suppress the adrenaline rush for which he had prepared. You’ve got this, he closed his eyes and gave himself a pep talk as he went over the script one last time in his head. “I’m ready,” he opened his eyes and gave Mike the go ahead.

“Send them in please,” Mike instructed his assistant as they stood up for the greeting.

“Mitch, good to see you,” Jack welcomed him as he gave no indication of what was to come. “Steve, how are you,” he also welcomed Mitch’s attorney as they shook hands and he carefully directed them to their seats.

“Thanks for putting this meeting together,” Mitch tried to be civil while attempting to take over the proceedings as Jack hoped he would. “I’m glad we could come up with a suitable compromise on this matter.”

“I’ve provided a copy of the police report that documents the incident that occurred in the early morning hours of June 1st at the Caldwell residence,” Mike ignored Mitch and went throughout the formalities as he handed their adversaries a pair of manila folders. “The report finds that Jeffrey Gross acted in a criminal manner when he assaulted Gregory Leonard by kicking him in the head.”

“We already know that,” Mitch rudely interrupted. “We are familiar with the report.”

Of course you are, you practically wrote the thing, Jack thought to himself as he tried to control his anger. Just keep going Mike, stick with the