his mind; it was enough for her that William wanted to see his only son.
'I'll call Richard in San Francisco immediately and invite them both,' she told him, and was pleasantly surprised that the word 'both' didn't seem to shock her husband.
'That will be fine,' said William, quietly. Tlease tell Richard that I want to see him again before I die.'
'Don't be silly, darling. The doctor said that if you take it easy you'll live for another twenty years.'
'I only want to complete my term as chairman at the bank and see Richard take my place on the board. That will be enough. Why don't you fly to the coast again and tell Richard of my request, Kate?'
'What do you mean, again?' asked Kate nervously.
William smiled. 'I know you've been to San Francisco several times already, my darling. For the last few years whenever I go away on a business trip, you've always used the excuse to visit your mother, but when she died last year, your excuses became increasingly improbable. We've been married for twenty - eight years and by now I think I'm aware of all your habits. You're still as lovely as the day I met you, my darling, but I do believe that at fifty - four you're unlikely to have a lover. So it wasn't all that hard for me to work out that you had been visiting Richard.'
'Yes, I have been seeing him,' said Kate. 'Why didn't you mention that you knew before?'
'In my heart I was glad,' said William. 'I hated the thought of his losing contact with us both. How is he?'
93oth of them are well, and you have a granddaughter now as well as a grandson!
'A granddaughter as well as a grandson,' William repeated.
'Yes, she's called Annabel,' said Kate.
'And my grandson?' said William, enquiring for the first time.
When Kate told him his name he had to smile. It was only half a lie.
'Good,' said William. 'Well, you Ay to San Francisco and see what can be done. Tell him I love him.' He had once heard another old man say that who was going to lose his son.
Kate was more content that night than she had been in years. She called Richard to say she would be flying out to stay with them the following week, bringing good news with her.
When Kate returned to New York three weeks later, William was pleased to learn that Richard and Florentyna could visit them at the end of November, which was the first opportunity for them to get away from San Francisco together. Kate was full of stories of how successful they both were, how young William Kane was the image of his gr - and - father and how they were all so much looking forward to coming back to New York for a visit.
William listened intently and found he was happy too, and at peace with himself. He had begun to fear that if Richard did not return home soon, he never would, and then the chairmanship of the bank would fall into Jake Thomas's lap. William did not care to think about that.
William returned to work the following Monday in high spirits after his lengthy absence, having made a good recovery from Ids second heart attack and now feeling he had something worth living for.
'You must pace yourself a little more carefully,' the clever young doctor had told him, but he was determined to reestablish himself as chairman and president of the bank so he could make way for his only son. On his arrival at the bank he was greeted by the doorman, who told him that Jake Thomas was looking for him and had tried to reach him at home earlier.
William thanked the senior member of the bank, the only person who had served Lester's more years than the chairman himself.
'Nothing's so important that it cant wait,' he said, 'No, sir.'
William walked slowly to the chairman's office. When he opened his door, he found three of his directors already in conference and Jake Thomas sitting firmly in William's chair.
'Have I been away that long,' said William, laughing. 'Am I no longer chairman of the board?'
'Yes, of course you are. Welcome back, William,' said Jake Thomas, moving quickly out of the Chairman's seat.
William had found it impossible to get used to Jake Thomas calling him by his first name. The new generation were all too familiar. They had only known each other a few years, and the man couldn't have