A Promise of Forever (16 page)

She was overwhelmed at the extent to which he was making plans.
“You’re not planning on announcing that Jenny is your child, are you?”

The room was full of emotions that ran from hostility, to regret and she could see he was trying very hard to keep his emotions in check.
He took a couple of steps closer to her, thinking that, if he moved forward, she would somehow stop defying him.
“I’m going to recognize Jenny as my own no matter how you feel about it.
I want everyone to know that I’m her father.
I’d love to shout it from the rooftops but I won’t do that until we explain to her where I’ve been all this time.”

There was awkward tension in the air.
She was afraid to say anything to him.
If he went back on his word and made the announcement before giving her time to explain it to Jenny, she would never forgive him.
It was as if he could read her mind because he walked over to her and gently lifted her chin so she could see into his eyes.
“I promise you that until we have both sat her down and explained everything to her, nothing will be made public.
Besides, I still have to deal with Kevin.
He’s never going to forgive me for this.
You know that, don’t you,” he added disappointingly.

The note of his concern for Kevin’s feelings didn’t surprise her.
Gianfranco could care less about her feelings but he couldn’t fathom the idea of hurting Kevin.
She wondered what Kevin would say.
He would probably feel let down by them both but she knew her brother well enough to know he’d forgive his friend.
Gianfranco circled once again and then, as if he could take no more of her, he strode out to the hallway that led outside and dialed a number on his phone before leaving.

Katelyn was left in the apartment alone with plenty of sleepless hours to think about all that had transpired between them.
She was glad that the truth had finally come out and maybe now she could give her daughter what she wanted most in the world, a father.
She never did find out from Gianfranco how he figured it out but she was sure that no one else had yet.
Her cell phone began to ring and Katelyn wondered who it could be and whether or not they knew the identity of Jenny’s father.
She saw that she had multiple missed calls from Jake.
Her caller identification told her that it was Jake, calling again.
“Hi Jake, why are you calling so late?” she asked, knowing it had something to do with her exit from the tavern.

“Are you alright, Katelyn?
Did Gianfranco make it there?” he asked.

“Yes, I guess, I have a lot of explaining to do, don’t I?
Does Kevin know anything yet?” she asked.
Jake wanted her to know that he wasn’t calling for any reason other than to check in on her and make sure she was alright.

Katelyn and Jenny arrived at Kennedy Airport precisely at six p.m. and because they were flying in Gianfranco’s personal plane, they didn’t have the hassle of security.
They were escorted to an awaiting Boeing 727, sitting on the tarmac.
Katelyn felt like a celebrity with all the fuss being made over them.
The surprises kept coming; the pilot and co-pilot were on hand to greet them, as well as their private steward and stewardess.
It seemed a bit over the top but who was she to complain.
Jenny was really excited about all the attention she was getting and didn’t want the day to end.
Neither of them had ever been on a private plane before and both were looking forward to the tour promised them by the stewardess when they boarded.

Katelyn watched her child thoroughly enjoying herself and didn’t want anything to disturb her daughter’s enthusiasm.
She, on the other hand, couldn’t think about anything else.
Her life was about to take some drastic detours and she was afraid of what the future held in store for them.
The first obstacle she had to deal with would be telling Kevin the truth about Gianfranco.

“Mom, I don’t think anyone else is getting on this plane.”
Jenny said, looking around the plane and then looking out the window.
She didn’t see anyone else boarding and turned to her mom.
“Is Uncle Kevin’s friend, Mr. Broccoli, that rich?” she asked struggling with his last name.
Katelyn realized that in a few short weeks it would be their name as well.
Somehow she had to prepare Jenny for that reality.

Katelyn took another look around the plane and it wasn’t at all what she had expected.
In the first compartment, there were buckled seats but they were captain’s chairs that swiveled as well as reclined.
It looked a whole lot more comfortable than any first class section that she had seen before.
As they walked down the aisle, the next compartment they came to was a sort of den or library-type room.
She didn’t dare go any further than that without permission but she couldn’t contain her curiosity.
Jake had told her that he often slept in one of the bedroom areas during long flights so she assumed there was a lot more to see.

I’m afraid, we’re not in Kansas anymore
, silently to herself, mocking the children’s story.
Is this, what we can look forward to in the future?
Katelyn still held Jenny’s hand, looked down at her little girl and smiled nervously.
“It is nice, isn’t it?”

Jenny turned her attention to the unexplored area and jumped, as the stewardess came up from behind.
She hadn’t meant to frighten them and apologized for sneaking up on them.
The stewardess had come to offer her services.
“Mr. Broccolini has left strict instructions that you are to be made as comfortable as possible.”

“I’ll take you both on a tour of the plane once we are airborne; there is little that you could possibly need that we can’t offer.
The aircraft has every comfort of home and then some.
Believe me ladies, you’re in for a treat if this section of the plane is impressive to you,” she stated with a grin.
The takeoff was smooth and without incident; before long the seat belt sign was off and they were free to move about.

The stewardess walked over to them and requested they follow her toward the tail end of the plane to begin their tour.
“There are sleeping quarters, a dining area, as well as a personal board room and an office.
Mr. Broccolini left explicit instructions that the areas normally off limits to his guests are to be made available to you and little Miss Jenny here,” she said smiling at Katelyn’s little girl.

“Thank you for all this but I’m not sure Mr. Broccolini wants us to have access to his private quarters,” Katelyn stated as a matter of fact.

She couldn’t get over the luxury in which Gianfranco traveled.
Anyone could see that he was a man of impeccable taste, and, if this aircraft was anything to go by, he was used to getting what he wanted, when he wanted it.
Jenny was grinning from ear to ear as she followed the stewardess; then she caught sight of the clouds as she looked out the window.
Jenny couldn’t get over how high they were flying, looking out at the clouds in the sky.

She stared at her daughter incredulously.
It must be great to be a child.
They were offered food and beverages fairly early in the trip which Jenny accepted rather quickly since they were her favorites.
It seemed as though Gianfranco made sure that anything his daughter would ask for was aboard the plane.
She couldn’t believe the extremes he had gone to making sure that Jenny’s trip, was a memorable one.
He had left instructions that they have available all the food and drinks and games a seven-year old would want.
After finishing a second portion of dessert, Jenny was tired and fell asleep.

The stewardess offered to show Katelyn their temporary bedroom.
Katelyn picked her sleeping child up and followed the woman to the rear of the plane.
As they proceeded to the back of the plane, she was mesmerized by each of the compartments they passed.
It was a shame that there were people who lived in the street while others lived like this.
As they reached the master suite, the stewardess had to assure Katelyn that it would be alright to put Jenny on the large bed that dominated the room.

“I’ll leave you here to rest with your daughter; if you need me push that button over there.
You can speak to me from there, without my having to disturb you.”
She went over to the intercom system and showed Katelyn how to work it and then left, but not before wishing them a pleasurable rest.

With Jenny fast asleep, she could explore the bedroom that her future husband spent time in on his long journeys.
With the exception of a delicately carved silver picture frame on a nightstand opposite Jenny, the rest of the room was tastefully masculine.
Katelyn stepped closer to get a better look at the picture but, before she could, the stewardess reappeared.
She told her not to feel uncomfortable about using anything in the room; it was what Mr. Broccolini wanted.
She thanked her again and, as much as she could, she tried to put him out of her mind but she felt his presence everywhere she looked.

“I don’t mean to pry but are you, by any chance, going to visit his friend, Kevin Donavan?
I know that he and Mr. Broccolini are friends and when we were ordered to fly there, I assumed as much.
The Donavan ranch is often his destination,” the stewardess stated clearly but friendly.

“As a matter of fact, I’m Kevin’s sister and that little minx is his niece,” she said smiling.
“Do you go there often?
I mean, does Gianfranco go there often?”

Katelyn asked the stewardess to join her at the table in the corner of the room.
It would be nice to have company while Jenny slept.
“By the way, my name is Katelyn Donavan.” She said offering a handshake as introduction.

“Mary Alice Duggan, I’ve been flying with Gianfranco for years.
We spent most of our time in Europe but we always knew that he had every intention of moving his holdings here to the States and eventually we’d be coming home.
I’ve met your brother on numerous occasions, as well as Jake Lonetree.
They’re some team, the three of them.
Once in awhile, Brody Calder would join them.
Do you know Brody?” she asked with peaked interest.

Katelyn knew Brody well.
He was Kevin’s law partner these days and good friend.
He and Brody began their own firm when Kevin left the larger firm that had first recruited him to Montana.
Mary Alice seemed overly interested in Brody and rather shy when she spoke about him.
It had been a long time since she had seen Brody.
She had very fond memories of him and the times they shared together on the ranch.
He had once offered to marry her to give Jenny the father everyone thought she needed.
He was convinced that a marriage between them would have been beneficial to them both.
Katelyn had declined the offer, even though, at the time, it was a tempting one.
“I know Brody well.
He and Kevin are law partners as well as neighboring ranchers.
He’s a great guy.”

As they sat and chatted about Brody and Mary Alice’s secret desire to meet him, Katelyn felt, for the first time since yesterday, that she could forget the problems that were lying ahead for her.
Mary Alice was proving to be a genuinely caring person and a nice diversion from her own problems.
Katelyn felt compelled to help her out, if she could.
She decided that she would do just that when she reached Montana.
If Brody was interested, she would set them up on a date.

She was also a bit curious about something Mary Alice had said in passing.
She had mentioned that Gianfranco seemed out of reach to all the women that passed through his life since she had known him.
She said he had many women who showed more than casual interest but he was never interested in more than a passing fling with any of them.

“I’ve always believed that there was someone from his past who had hurt him, but, until now, I never knew who it was.
He never spoke of you but I know it was you,” she said.

Before Katelyn could question her any further, it was time to land; she had to get Jenny back to their seats to buckle up.
She buckled Jenny in first and then herself and once again contemplated what their future held for them.
The plane landed without incident; Katelyn thanked everyone for their wonderful hospitality and readied Jenny to disembark.

As they descended the aircraft stairs, she spotted Kevin standing about fifty feet away.
She couldn’t wait to hug him.
The terror attack of 9/11 had made everyone more aware of how important it was to keep family close and let them know how much you loved them, as often as possible.
Jenny ran to her uncle’s waiting arms and, without a care in the world, jumped into them.
She wasn’t satisfied until she wrapped her legs around his stomach and her arms tightly around his neck.
Katelyn could see Kevin was enjoying every second of it.
He smiled to Katelyn, kissed her cheek and asked if she was doing alright.

“It’s been too long, Irish.
I’ve missed you guys,” he whispered in the dark, as he reached over with one finger and wiped the tears he knew would be there.

“I’m glad, I came too.
It’s been rough, not having you around,” she stated as she guided Jenny’s hair gently away from her face.
They reached the car, buckled Jenny in and, within minutes, she was fast asleep again.

Kevin listened intently as Katelyn filled him in on her life since they had spoken last.
Of course, Katelyn left out the bit about Gianfranco, for now.
Every once in a while she would turn around to check on Jenny, who was fighting sleep so that Kevin could talk to her too.
Of course, Jenny would remember to tell her uncle all about Gianfranco’s visit and his plane.
It would be out of the mouths of babes that Katelyn would suffer her embarrassing moment.

“Did you know, Uncle Kevin, that Mr. Broccoli owns his own plane?” she asked her uncle.
Kevin didn’t miss a beat.
He laughed at her pronunciation of Gianfranco’s last name.

“You must be tired my little munchkin,” he said as he pulled his truck out of the airport.

“You should have seen the plane, Uncle Kevin.
It has couches and a bed and a shower too.
You could live up there in the sky.
There was a kitchen, too.”
Jenny rambled on and on until all the excitement finally wore her out.
It would take a little longer to reach the ranch but Katelyn loved having Kevin to herself, even if it was for a short time.

“Don’t read anything into that, Kevin.
Gianfranco checked in on us, for you.
He and I are friends.”
Katelyn lowered her eyelids and knew, without a doubt, that Kevin could tell she wasn’t telling him the whole truth.
“I can’t wait to see Sylvia.
I’m so happy for the both of you.
It will be nice having another child around.”

“Wait until you see how much work we’ve done to the nursery; we still have months to go before this baby arrives.
My wife is so excited that I didn’t have the heart to stop her.”

Katelyn was aware Kevin had allowed the change of subject and she appreciated it.
She knew he worried about her and, no matter how old she was, that didn’t seem to change.
Without looking in his direction, she could feel his eyes glance her way every once in the while.
It was as though he were waiting for her to fall apart from all the stress but knew better than to expect it.
They arrived at the ranch to a welcoming committee.
Sylvia was there as well as some of the familiar ranch hands.
Mrs. Footy, the cook, had also come to welcome them.
It was then that she spotted Brody, standing next to a tree in the front yard.
Brody was Kevin’s law partner and over the years had become one of Kevin’s closest friends.