Kelly looked at Mark in astonishment.
The announcer continued. “Playing forward, Sidney Gouvou…”
“Number fourteen,” Mark enthused. “He’s incredible. Last week, against Auxerre, he scored a goal in the last minute of the game.”
Kelly listened in amazement as Mark knowledgably discussed all the other players.
The game began and the crowd went wild.
It was a frenzied, exciting game, and goalies for both teams fought hard to keep their opponents from scoring. It was difficult for Kelly to concentrate. She kept looking at Mark, amazed by his expertise. How could I have been so wrong?
In the middle of a play, Mark exclaimed, “Gouvou’s going for a flick kick! He made it!”
A few minutes later, Mark said, “Watch! Carrière’s going to be fined for handling the ball.”
And he was right.
When Lyon won, Mark was euphoric. “What a great team!”
As they were leaving the stadium, Kelly asked, “Mark—how long have you been interested in soccer?”
He looked at Kelly sheepishly and said, “About three days. I’ve been researching it on my computer. Since you were so interested, I thought I should learn about it.”
And Kelly was incredibly touched. It was unbelievable that Mark had spent so much time and effort just because she enjoyed the game.
They had made a date for the following day, after Kelly finished a modeling assignment.
“I can pick you up at your dressing room and—”
“No!” She did not want him to meet the other models.
Mark was looking at her, puzzled.
“I mean—there’s a rule that men aren’t allowed in the dressing rooms.”
“Oh.”
I don’t want you to fall in love with—
“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, please fasten your seat belts and return your seat backs and trays to their upright and locked positions. We’re approaching Kennedy airport and we’ll be landing in just a few minutes.”
Kelly was jolted back to the present. She was in New York to meet Tanner Kingsley, the man whom Mark had worked for.
SOMEONE HAD INFORMED the media. When the plane landed, they were waiting for Kelly. She was surrounded by reporters with television cameras and microphones.
“Kelly, would you look this way?”
“Can you tell us what you think happened to your husband?”
“Is there going to be a police investigation?”
“Were you and your husband planning a divorce?”
“Are you moving back here to the States?”
“How did you feel when you heard what happened?”
The most insensitive question of all.
Kelly saw a pleasant-faced, alert-looking man standing in the background. He smiled and waved to Kelly and she motioned for him to come over to her.
Ben Roberts was one of the most popular and respected talk-show hosts on network television. He had interviewed Kelly before, and they had become friends. She watched as Ben made his way through the crowd of reporters. They all knew him.
“Hey, Ben! Is Kelly going to be on your show?”
“Do you think she’ll talk about what happened?”
“Can I get a picture of you and Kelly?”
By this time, Ben had reached Kelly’s side. The tide of reporters was pushing against them. Ben called out, “Let’s give her a break, boys and girls. You can talk to her later.”
Reluctantly, the reporters began to give way.
Ben took Kelly’s hand and said, “I can’t tell you how sorry I am. I liked Mark so much.”
“That was mutual, Ben.”
As Kelly and Ben made their way toward the baggage claim area, he asked, “Off the record, what are you doing in New York?”
“I’m here to see Tanner Kingsley.”
Ben nodded. “He’s a powerful man. I’m sure you’ll be well taken care of.”
They had reached the baggage counter. “Kelly, if there is anything I can do for you, you can always reach me at the network.” He looked around. “Are you being picked up? If not, I’ll—”
At that moment, a uniformed chauffeur came up to Kelly. “Mrs. Harris? I’m Colin. The car is right outside. Mr. Kingsley has checked you into a suite at the Peninsula Hotel. If you’ll give me your tickets, I’ll attend to your luggage.”
Kelly turned to Ben. “Will you call me?”
“Of course.”
TEN MINUTES LATER Kelly was on her way to the hotel. As they weaved through traffic, Colin said, “Mr. Kingsley’s secretary will telephone you and set up an appointment. The car will be at your disposal whenever you need it.”
“Thank you.” What am I doing here? Kelly wondered.
She was about to get the answer.
Chapter 14
TANNER KINGSLEY WAS reading the headline of the afternoon newspaper: “Hailstorm Batters Iran.” The rest of the story went on to call it a “freakish event.” The idea of a hailstorm happening in summer, in a hot climate, was bizarre. Tanner buzzed for his secretary. When she came in, he said, “Kathy, clip this article and send it to Senator Van Luven, with a note: ‘A global warming update. Sincerely…’ ”
“Right away, Mr. Kingsley.”
Tanner Kingsley glanced at his watch. The two detectives were due at KIG in half an hour. He looked around his extravagant office. He had created all of this. KIG. He thought about the power behind those three simple initials, and how surprised people would be if they knew the astonishing story of KIG’s humble beginnings, a mere seven years ago. The memories of the past raced through his mind….
He remembered the day he had designed the new KIG logo. Pretty fancy for a nothing company, someone had said, and Tanner had single-handedly turned that nothing company into a world power-house. When Tanner thought about the beginnings, he felt as though he had performed a miracle.
TANNER KINGSLEY HAD been born five years after his brother, Andrew, and that had totally shaped the direction of his life. Their parents were divorced, and their mother had remarried and moved away. Their father was a scientist, and the boys had followed in his footsteps and had grown up to be science prodigies. Their father had died of a heart attack at age forty.
The fact that Tanner was five years younger than his brother was a constant frustration. When Tanner won the top award in his science class, he was told, “Andrew was number one in his class five years ago. It must run in the family.”
When Tanner won an oratorical contest, the professor said, “Congratulations, Tanner. You’re the second Kingsley to get this award.”
On joining the tennis team: “I hope you’re as good as your brother, Andrew.”
When Tanner graduated: “Your valedictorian speech was inspiring. It reminded me so much of Andrew’s.”
He had grown up in the shadow of his brother, and it was galling to know that he was considered second best only because Andrew had gotten there first.
THERE WERE SIMILARITIES between the two brothers: they were both handsome, intelligent, and talented, but as they grew older, major differences became apparent. While Andrew was altruistic and self-effacing, Tanner was an extrovert, gregarious and ambitious. Andrew was shy around women, while Tanner’s looks and charm drew them to him like a magnet.
But the most important difference between the brothers was their goals in life. While Andrew was deeply concerned with organizing charity and assisting others, Tanner’s ambition was to become rich and powerful.
ANDREW GRADUATED FROM college summa cum laude and immediately accepted an offer to work at a think tank. There he learned what a significant contribution an organization like that could make, and five years later Andrew decided to start his own think tank, on a modest scale.
When Andrew told Tanner about the idea, Tanner was excited. “That’s brilliant! Think tanks get government contracts worth millions, not to mention corporations that hire—”
Andrew interrupted. “That’s not my idea, Tanner. I want to use it to help people.”
Tanner was staring at him. “Help people?”
“Yes. There are dozens of Third World countries that have no access to modern methods of agriculture and manufacturing. There’s a saying that if you give a man a fish, he can have a meal. If you teach him to fish, he can eat for the rest of his life.”
You could cut down an oak tree with that old saw, Tanner thought. “Andrew, countries like that can’t afford to pay us—”
“That doesn’t matter. We’ll send experts to Third World countries to teach them modern techniques that will change their lives. I’m making you a partner. We’ll call our think tank Kingsley Group. What do you say?”
Tanner was thoughtful for a moment. He nodded. “As a matter of fact, it’s not a bad idea. We can start with the kind of countries you’re talking about, then go after the big money—the government contracts and—”
“Tanner, let’s just concentrate on making the world a better place.”
Tanner smiled. It was going to be a compromise. They would start the way Andrew wanted to and then they would gradually build up the company to its real potential.