Chapter One
“Mr. Carbone, do you have any questions? Mr. Carbone?”
Jerking his head up, Teddy met the estate lawyer’s gaze and shook his head. “No. No, I think I understand everything.”
“Excellent,” she said, her smile restrained. Ruth Warren had been a consummate professional ever since she’d first contacted him about a meeting two weeks ago. “I’ve already spoken with Mr. Monroe, who unfortunately couldn’t be here today. However, he’s aware of the terms of the will and has agreed to our drafting the deed to transfer the ownership of the Oasis Theater into both of your names. Is that acceptable to you?”
Teddy blinked rapidly at the onslaught of information. Deeds. Ownership. Just last month he’d shown Richard the finalized schedule for the holiday season and now….
“Mr. Carbone?”
Teddy nodded automatically, running her words through his head. “Yeah, that’s fine. Uh… is there anything else I should do?”
“Nothing at this time. I’ll notify you and Mr. Monroe once the deed is ready for your review and signatures.” Her gaze softened, and she picked up a piece of paper off the tidy surface of her desk. “I know this is a difficult time, but you may want to contact Mr. Monroe soon to discuss the details of your joint ownership. Here’s his information, and with your permission, I’ll forward yours to him as well.”
The sheet of paper was smooth under his hand, and Teddy glanced at the name, phone number, and e-mail address printed on it. Carter Monroe. Teddy had a hazy recollection from the memorial service a few weeks ago of broad shoulders, a well-tailored dark suit, and dark brown hair.
God. The memorial service.
“Do I have permission to give him your information, Mr. Carbone?” Ruth asked gently.
Shoving all of those thoughts aside until later, Teddy nodded. “Yeah, go ahead and give it to him.”
“Thank you. The last thing is this envelope. It contains a letter Richard wanted you to have, to be read after our meeting in your own time. I don’t know the contents of it, but I gather it’s of a personal nature.”
Teddy took the legal-sized envelope and added it to the stack of papers Ruth had given him. The farewells that followed were perfunctory, but polite, and Teddy soon found himself in the parking garage behind the wheel of his Prius, wondering what the hell had just happened.
His boss, Richard Monroe, had been hale and hearty one day, and the next there’d been a phone call letting Teddy know he was gone. A brain aneurysm at the age of sixty.
There was nothing anyone could’ve done about it.
Teddy’d been shocked, to say the least, and he’d spent the last few weeks wrapping his head around the fact that the man who’d hired him nine years ago—and who’d promoted him up to his current position of the Oasis’s general manager—was no longer coming and going from the marigold-painted office at the end of the hall.
The show must go on, though, and Teddy and his staff had worked through the community play and improv set that had shown in the last month. They’d dedicated the theater’s earnings from that first night’s performance to the Mayo Clinic in memory of Richard, and slowly things had begun to feel a little more normal.
Vaguely, he’d known there would be a new owner, but because he hadn’t heard a word in the past month, he’d continued with the status quo.
To learn today that he was the new owner, though?
Shock City, Part Deux.
Well, the new co-owner with Carter Monroe, who held the other fifty percent of the interest.
Teddy glanced at the stack of papers he’d tossed onto his passenger seat, and his gaze caught on the white envelope. His name was written on the front in a bold hand he instantly recognized.
He started up the car and pulled out of the space. As he turned toward home in the late afternoon, a thought crossed his mind that brought forth a reluctant smile.
Maybe Richard will have some answers for me
“Mr. Carbone, do you have any questions? Mr. Carbone?”
Jerking his head up, Teddy met the estate lawyer’s gaze and shook his head. “No. No, I think I understand everything.”
“Excellent,” she said, her smile restrained. Ruth Warren had been a consummate professional ever since she’d first contacted him about a meeting two weeks ago. “I’ve already spoken with Mr. Monroe, who unfortunately couldn’t be here today. However, he’s aware of the terms of the will and has agreed to our drafting the deed to transfer the ownership of the Oasis Theater into both of your names. Is that acceptable to you?”
Teddy blinked rapidly at the onslaught of information. Deeds. Ownership. Just last month he’d shown Richard the finalized schedule for the holiday season and now….
“Mr. Carbone?”
Teddy nodded automatically, running her words through his head. “Yeah, that’s fine. Uh… is there anything else I should do?”
“Nothing at this time. I’ll notify you and Mr. Monroe once the deed is ready for your review and signatures.” Her gaze softened, and she picked up a piece of paper off the tidy surface of her desk. “I know this is a difficult time, but you may want to contact Mr. Monroe soon to discuss the details of your joint ownership. Here’s his information, and with your permission, I’ll forward yours to him as well.”
The sheet of paper was smooth under his hand, and Teddy glanced at the name, phone number, and e-mail address printed on it. Carter Monroe. Teddy had a hazy recollection from the memorial service a few weeks ago of broad shoulders, a well-tailored dark suit, and dark brown hair.
God. The memorial service.
“Do I have permission to give him your information, Mr. Carbone?” Ruth asked gently.
Shoving all of those thoughts aside until later, Teddy nodded. “Yeah, go ahead and give it to him.”
“Thank you. The last thing is this envelope. It contains a letter Richard wanted you to have, to be read after our meeting in your own time. I don’t know the contents of it, but I gather it’s of a personal nature.”
Teddy took the legal-sized envelope and added it to the stack of papers Ruth had given him. The farewells that followed were perfunctory, but polite, and Teddy soon found himself in the parking garage behind the wheel of his Prius, wondering what the hell had just happened.
His boss, Richard Monroe, had been hale and hearty one day, and the next there’d been a phone call letting Teddy know he was gone. A brain aneurysm at the age of sixty.
There was nothing anyone could’ve done about it.
Teddy’d been shocked, to say the least, and he’d spent the last few weeks wrapping his head around the fact that the man who’d hired him nine years ago—and who’d promoted him up to his current position of the Oasis’s general manager—was no longer coming and going from the marigold-painted office at the end of the hall.
The show must go on, though, and Teddy and his staff had worked through the community play and improv set that had shown in the last month. They’d dedicated the theater’s earnings from that first night’s performance to the Mayo Clinic in memory of Richard, and slowly things had begun to feel a little more normal.
Vaguely, he’d known there would be a new owner, but because he hadn’t heard a word in the past month, he’d continued with the status quo.
To learn today that he was the new owner, though?
Shock City, Part Deux.
Well, the new co-owner with Carter Monroe, who held the other fifty percent of the interest.
Teddy glanced at the stack of papers he’d tossed onto his passenger seat, and his gaze caught on the white envelope. His name was written on the front in a bold hand he instantly recognized.
He started up the car and pulled out of the space. As he turned toward home in the late afternoon, a thought crossed his mind that brought forth a reluctant smile.
Maybe Richard will have some answers for me
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