A Promise of Forever (12 page)

Katelyn dialed Adam’s number and, after much debate with him, she agreed to meet him at a midtown tavern.
It wasn’t far from the office and since it had been a favorite meeting place for the staff, she knew where it was.
She had met Jake there on occasion for dinner.
She could see her friend shaking her head in disagreement.
Rosa thought meeting Adam alone was a bad idea
.
Could anything positive come of this meeting?
Rosa pondered.

If Katelyn was insistent on meeting Adam, Rosa would offer some kindly advice.
“If you’re going to insist on meeting him, then at least do me one favor.
You know that red dress that he hated on you and you loved so much?
Wear it to your meeting with him.
Let him see that you’re declaring your independence from him.
It might give you that extra bit of courage you’re going to need.”
Katelyn hadn’t known the depth of Rosa’s dislike for Adam until now.
“
Does Rosa know something about Adam that I didn’t share with her?”
She didn’t have time to think about that right now but she would ask Rosa about it in the future.

Katelyn silently contemplated what could be worse; a marriage of convenience to Gianfranco or a life alone without him in it?
“Maybe you’re right; it’s time for me to make some changes in my life.
I might have bought that red dress on a whim but why shouldn’t I wear it.
I love it and that’s all that should matter.
I’m going to go and meet Adam later on today, say what I have to and leave in the red dress that he told me never wear,” she said aloud, declaring her independence, and, for the first time today, giggling.

Rosa assured her once again that she didn’t mind taking care of Jenny, at all.
As a matter of fact, she was going to suggest that Jenny spend the night with her so that Katelyn could pack for their trip.
“I’ll drop by a little earlier to pick her up; that way you’ll have plenty of time to get ready,” Rosa smirked.

“What would I do without you?
I only hope that I don’t regret putting off confronting Gianfranco until after I speak to Adam.”
It was strange but since she hadn’t heard from Gianfranco after last night, she couldn’t shake her feeling of unease.
She worried when she had those feelings because she had learned long ago to trust her instincts.

Katelyn decided she would tell Gianfranco the truth as soon as she finished with Adam.
She couldn’t help but wonder if Adam would accept that they were only friends and move on.
She was uncertain about their meeting, after witnessing the other side of Adam.
Frankly, it was a side of him that she didn’t want to see repeated.
She had a little time to reconsider the dress but after thinking about his behavior toward her she opted to wear it.
The dress would make it clear that they were not a couple.
It should be safe for her since they were meeting in a very public place and, if nothing else, Adam was always concerned about keeping up appearances.

Rosa grabbed her coat and made Katelyn pledge again to wear the red dress.
After Rosa left, Katelyn walked into her bedroom, went to her closet and took out the infamous red dress.
She held it up against herself, looked in the mirror and smiled.
She’d purchased the dress on a whim after work one night and didn’t think she’d ever have the nerve to wear it.
It was very expensive but after trying it on and seeing the responses of all the women in the dressing room, she threw caution to the wind and purchased it.
It was a simple design but the material was clingy.
After trying it on in the store, she knew it would have a better effect if she wore it without a bra.

Dana watched as her boss moved from the file cabinet that he seemed disinterested in to his desk.
It’s amazing that a man who looks as good as he does, has remained single for so long
. It came as no surprise to her when most of the women in his employ flirted with him but got nowhere.
They found out immediately that he didn’t date the women he worked with.
It was great, as far as she was concerned, because working without the pressure of advances from her superior was quite a relief and very unusual for her.
Sexual harassment was something she had dealt with in the past; she didn’t want to deal with it ever again.
She couldn’t help the way she looked and tried without success to dress less sexy.
Having a boss like Gianfranco was a welcomed bonus.

Gianfranco Broccolini was an enigma all his own.
He didn’t keep women around for very long; Dana was privy to that information, first hand.
He was generous to a fault.
His parting gifts to the women he dated often cost him dearly.
He didn’t mind as long as the female in question left him alone once the relationship had ended.
Dana was convinced that there was a woman out there for him somewhere, one who held the key to his frozen heart.
She often wondered if that someone, whoever she was, realized the power she held over him.
Dana knew instinctively that his heart was broken a long time ago and that the woman was the reason he was dead set against relationships that lasted for any length of time.

One of the many phone lines in the office started to ring and Dana quickly picked it up.
After her usual business greeting, she realized that it was Kevin Donavan, Gianfranco’s good friend.
“Hello, Mr. Donavan, he’s in and I’m sure he’ll take your call.
Hold on, while I connect you,” she replied.

“Mr. Broccolini, Kevin Donavan is on line two for you.
He’s says it’s not important.
If you don’t have time, he can call back later.”
Dana knew immediately that Kevin Donavan was one of the few people in his life that, no matter how busy Gianfranco was, he would take his call.
He told her to put the call through immediately.

“Kevin, miss me already my friend?
I was going to call you later myself.
Have you spoken to Katelyn yet this morning?” he asked. Gianfranco knew she would have called her brother by now and told him that he had offered to fly her and Jenny out to Montana.

“Actually, that’s the reason, I’m calling.
I appreciate what you’re doing for her.
I’m sure your schedule is busy enough with the takeover we talked about last week.
You didn’t have to do this,” Kevin stated appreciatively.

“I wanted to do this for her, Kevin.
If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have offered.
That is, of course, if you don’t mind seeing me again, so soon,” Gianfranco added with a grin.
He knew Kevin better than anyone and there was no doubt that his best friend would be glad to hear that he would be delivering both his sister and his niece personally to the ranch.
Kevin loved his sister and their relationship was one of the most important relationships in his best friend’s life, besides his wife, of course, and Gianfranco envied him for that.

Kevin nearly climbed through the phone at the suggestion that he would not want to see him.
“What are you talking about; do I want to see you again?
You can visit anytime, no invitation needed.
I’m only calling to thank you personally and say again that I appreciate what you’re doing,” Kevin reiterated.

“I’ve got the jet on standby for tomorrow night.
I had Dana email Katelyn the itinerary.
Since she called you, I assume she got it.”
Gianfranco was interrupted by another call, after taking the brief call he instructed Dana to hold all future calls until after he was finished talking to Kevin.

Kevin and Gianfranco spoke for some time about the takeover and how it was evolving.
It didn’t take long before the conversation shifted to his sister again.
“I’m glad Katelyn has agreed to come out here for a visit.
The poor kid has been through a lot lately and could use a break.
She’s had a lot to deal with these past few days,” Kevin said dryly.

“If you’re talking about her job, Kevin, don’t worry about it.
The confidential merger I spoke to you about last week was with
Glitz
magazine.
I have it on good authority that the CEO is quite a nice guy; he insisted she keep her job.
You’re a big fan of his, aren’t you?” he teased.
Though they never talked about the name of the company that he was taking over, Gianfranco was surprised that Kevin never grilled him on it.

Kevin laughed out loud.
“At least I don’t have to worry about you hurting her.
I can’t believe what that idiot Taylor said to her about Jenny.
By the way, has she dumped that moron of a son yet?” he asked.
“Have you had the pleasure of meeting Adam?” a bewildered Kevin asked.

“I can assure you that she will not be seeing Adam Taylor anytime in the near future.
I think she knows what a mistake that match would have been,” he added proudly.
Gianfranco believed he cured her of that lowlife.

“I can’t say that I’m not happy to hear that.
I’m a little shocked though that she took you into her confidence.”
Kevin hesitated and wondered if he wanted to continue voicing his thoughts.
“If there’s something going on Gianfranco, I’m not asking, don’t tell me.
Do me one favor, don’t hurt her.
She was hurt once and it took her years to get over it.”
Kevin couldn’t have made it plainer that he was warning his friend that a relationship with Katelyn had to be handled differently than any of his past conquests.

Gianfranco took out the photograph that he had kept hidden in his desk, a photo that only he knew existed.
He ran his fingers over the tattered, worn picture.
He’d had it for years.
He cherished it the same way he cherished her.
“Kevin, I promise you, on my life, that I’d never do anything to hurt her.
You and I are friends and she’s your little sister; I just want to help.”

He wanted Kevin to trust him and yet he understood his reluctance.
“She’s handled everything life has thrown at her with class.
Believe me, having me in her life, even temporarily, is a piece of cake for her,” Gianfranco added blatantly.

“I hope you’re right my friend, because you have no idea the pain she went through before and after she gave birth to Jenny.
I know how much she wanted Jenny’s father to be part of that process, even though she never mentioned it.
I don’t think she’s ever let her guard down since; with you she’ll different.
I believe she trusts you because of who you are to me.
Don’t take advantage of that trust,” Kevin added.
This conversation felt familiar to Kevin as he remembered having a similar conversation with Gianfranco at his wedding.
He assumed Gianfranco had heeded his warning because he didn’t believe that anything had ever come of his fascination with Katelyn all these years.
He was shocked though that Gianfranco would seek out Katelyn after all this time.

The mere mention of Katelyn’s child’s father drove Gianfranco mad with jealousy.
He was the one who taught her how to love.
He was the one who wanted to share the rest of his life with her.
He had never, for one second, thought that she would leave his bed for another man so soon after he left.
I have to find a way to control this jealousy or Katelyn will never let me back into her life
.

He took one look at the picture he held in his hand and decided to press Kevin again for some answers to questions that have haunted him for years.
“I’m more afraid of what she can do to my state of mind, Kevin, than what I’ll do to hers,” he stated truthfully.

Kevin said nothing.
How could he explain the depth of the pain Katelyn’s felt to his friend?
He hoped that Gianfranco was correct and that, one day, she would find someone who could make her happy.
It was Gianfranco’s track record with other women that frightened Kevin.
He loved his friend like a brother but he was known to be the ‘love them and leave them’ type and they were talking about Katelyn, his sister.
The silence over the phone had become eerie.
It was a few long seconds before Kevin finally confided in Gianfranco.
Kevin put his feet up on his desk and got comfortable as he continued to speak.
It had been a long time since he had spoken about Jenny’s father to anyone.

“Katelyn never asked for anything from Jenny’s father.
She was too proud and thought that if he knew about the baby’s existence she would be forced into a loveless marriage. She couldn’t accept that situation and, after a long discussion, I reluctantly agreed to support her decision.
She’ll expect a commitment from you, if you pursue a relationship with her, and, if you can’t give her that, end it now before someone gets hurt,” Kevin pointed out.

“Do you think that I would ever consider her just another conquest?”
Gianfranco asked the question but realized his friend had no reason to believe otherwise.
“Don’t answer that question; I’m not sure I’d like the answer.
I can tell you one thing for certain; I want to pursue a relationship with your sister but I can’t promise a fairytale wedding because I’m not sure if it’s what Katelyn wants.”

Patience,
Kevin thought to himself.
He knew his sister better than anyone and a ring on her finger is exactly what she wants.
The idea that Gianfranco would even mention the word marriage with his name attached was a good sign.
He only hoped this endeavor would not turn into a disaster, for all involved, including him.

“What was he like, Jenny’s father, I mean?” Gianfranco queried.

“I don’t know who he is.
Katelyn never told anyone his identity.
She thought it best not to.
It bothered me for some time but, in the end, does it really matter?
The only thing she said at the time was that all she meant to him was a summer fling and she’d rather forget it.
It’s funny though, everyone always assumed it was someone she met at school over the summer and that was the story she told but I learned a few years later that she never attended the summer classes as she planned.
That could only mean that Jenny’s father was someone local.
I never questioned the contradiction in her story because she was upset and depressed at the time.
She was pregnant and I didn’t want to push her; I just assumed that when she was ready to talk, she would tell me.
Though I’m sure that conversation never happened,” he added.

A spark lit, not only in his brain but in his heart as well.
Gianfranco felt as if someone had just stepped on his chest and physically ripped it wide open.
He needed the answer he craved and he needed it now.
“When is Jenny’s birthday, Kevin?
I’d like to be prepared when I finally do meet Jenny for the first time, I mean,” he said with a note of silent sarcasm.
He tried to remain calm as not to give anything away.

Kevin didn’t seem to catch on to Gianfranco’s discomfort so he answered the question without thinking.
“As a matter of fact, her birthday is in May.
Jenny will be seven on May 19th.
You know we got so involved talking about Katelyn that I neglected to tell you my news.
Sylvia and I are expecting our own little bundle of joy in October,” Kevin said bubbling with pride.

Gianfranco congratulated Kevin and could hear the excitement in his voice but he couldn’t concentrate on his friend’s good fortune as dates were being tossed around in his head.
“Kevin, I can’t tell you how happy I am for the both of you.
Give my best to Sylvia and you take care of her.
You both deserve this.”
He made a mental note to have Dana send Sylvia flowers and a baby gift.
Gianfranco didn’t want to believe that Katelyn was capable of this deception but he knew if his math was correct that perhaps he should have been congratulated as well.
But the congratulations were seven years too late. He didn’t know why but he knew without counting numbers that he was Jenny’s father, without a doubt.

He sifted around in his desk for a pen and paper and, after cutting his conversation short with Kevin, began to work out the figures for himself.
Based on Jenny’s birthday, he went back nine months and added seven days.
Wasn’t that how Dana, his administrative assistant, figured out the new interns due date.
He recalled walking in on them when Dana was doing the calculations.
Apparently, things had changed since he had been a young adult; it was normal these days for paternity to be questionable.
Gianfranco recalled being disappointed in the young intern since she needed to figure out exact dates because there was a question of paternity.
He doubted he could have figured out his parentage this quickly, without that information.
So, for that he subconsciously thanked her.
He was the father of Katelyn’s child.