With Love; Now & Forever (5 page)

Ana uncomfortably took a sip of wine when Jennifer burst out laughing.
“Oh, Ana! You
are
quaint! I would never dream of having you be a part of a psychiatric meeting! Heavens,
I
wouldn’t want to be a part of that either! Rick’s not a therapist although I guess some would categorize him as one. He
does
help people deal with their grief, just not in the traditional way that most people would think. Rick is a psychic, he communicates with the dead!” Jennifer giggled.
Ana felt her confusion turn into irritation at being laughed at and then at the thought of a psychic being here. She had heard of people hiring so called psychics to get answers and help deal with the pain of loss but being a logical, intelligent business woman, she knew they were just predators, taking advantage of those grieving with the loss of loved ones. The last thing she wanted to do was be a part of taking advantage of Jennifer’s pain.
“Forgive me, Jennifer, but I’ve heard of these
psychics
before and I really don’t want to be a part of any séance. I respectfully decline and beg that you consider doing the same, I worry that you may get hurt worse in the process.”
Instead of Jennifer being disappointed as Ana had expected, Jennifer got more excited and clapped her hands. “Oh goody! A skeptic! Rick said that skeptics are actually easier to do readings on! He said logical, business-minded people tend to be the best because they don’t have their auras muddled with tons of expectations.” Seeing that Ana was mildly insulted, Jennifer hurried on, not giving Ana a chance to respond. “Oh Ana, please reconsider, as a favor to me, the woman who has lived in your shadow for the past seven years! You don’t have to participate, just be there as a supporter for me.”
Seeing Jennifer’s reaction and remembering why she was here, she felt herself soften. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt anymore than you already have.”
“I won’t, promise. Please, Ana, for me.”
All the logical reasons in Ana’s mind dissipated with that request and she relented. “Fine, I’ll come but don’t expect me to participate and if I become uncomfortable, I will go back to my room, no arguments!”
“It’s a deal! This is going to be great! Thank you, Ana, you won’t regret this.
“I’m sure you’re tired, so I’ll let you retire to your room if you wish. A car will be provided for you tomorrow to do any sight-seeing you may want to do. If you don’t feel comfortable driving, I will have Devon, the driver who brought you here, take you anywhere you want to go.”
Remembering the cold driver who brought her hours earlier, she quickly declined. “Thank you but I’m not ready to go out and about yet. Actually, I was hoping to look over your beautiful grounds. They are breathtaking!”
Jennifer visibly swelled with pride. “Thank you, I’ve tried hard to make them welcoming.”
Ana gaped at her, astonished, “You take care of the grounds?” and saw Jennifer blush.
“Well, not all of it. We have grounds keepers to mow the lawns and keep the weeds out but I’ve designed and planted all of the gardens. There was a lot of time in between Austin’s showings, while he was creating more paintings to be displayed.”
Realizing it must have been very lonely for Jennifer and not wanting to dredge up painful feelings, she quickly returned to the original topic. “They are beautiful and I know I irritated Devon by rolling down the window to take in the beauty and the fragrance but I just couldn’t resist!”
“Oh, don’t be put off by Devon!” she mused, “He’s been around so long that I don’t think he appreciates the beauty of nature anymore. He maintains all of the cars we have and I think he only appreciates the beauty and smell of perfectly tuned engines!”
Ana was dumbfounded, “You have enough cars to maintain someone full time?”
Now Jennifer looked confused. “Of course! He takes care of the Mercedes that we use for going into town, then there’s Austin’s toys, the Lamborghini, the Ferrari and his American favorite, the Corvette convertible. My cars include the BMW convertible and the limo we use for the art receptions and of course…”
“I get it! Devon has a full-time job!” Ana was laughing in spite of herself. She saw Jennifer’s features soften as she realized how silly it all sounded.
It was then that Ana saw the beautiful woman that Austin had fallen in love with. All of this, the cars, the manor, the life, was what Austin and Jennifer had created together. Sobering with the pain of seeing the life Austin created in her absence, Ana gently declined when Jennifer offered to open another bottle of wine and stated that she was tired and wanted to retire to her room.
Sensing the change in Ana’s demeanor, Jennifer hospitably accepted her request and bid her goodnight. “If you’re unsure of how to get back to your room, Stavros can show you.”
“I think I can find my way back. Thank you, Jennifer, for your hospitality.” Ana meant it, considering the past hour, and she hesitated as she turned, “I do mean it.”
“I know you do, thank you for flying over here. I’ll see you tomorrow. Good night, Ana.” And with that Jennifer turned and left in the opposite direction.
Ana found her way back to her room but this time had the luxury of being able to stop and view Austin’s work along the way. As she lay in bed, she reflected on the work that Austin had composed after she had ended their relationship. Most of the work was of landscapes and still life’s that she wasn’t familiar with, but there were many that she recognized of the hometown that they had shared. The city park gazebo where they had talked of getting married in, the river they had spent time playfully splashing about and then sunning along its banks to get dry before going home.
All of the pain came flooding back to her again. The loss of her one true love hit her so hard that the pain of it took her breath away and she was unable to hold back the sobs that she hadn’t allowed herself to experience since that fateful night. How could the one person, so important in Austin’s life, put her in a situation that forced her to
leave
Austin’s life? She had felt hurt and betrayed that night but knew if Austin had ever found out he would be devastated and it would tear his family apart. She would rather have him believe that she fell out of love with him than for him to find out the truth that one of his parents betrayed him. She cried herself to sleep, knowing that now he would never know.

he next two days were relaxing and enjoyable much to Ana’s surprise. She found herself touring the grounds and exploring the manor

without any resistance. Busy with her own schedule, Jennifer was present during meals and occasionally had the time to join Ana on the grounds. The conversations were a lot more relaxed and companionable during those times, both women seemingly dropping their first impressions of each other. Ana was at first, slightly uncomfortable with the easy conversations that they had together. She was getting to know Jennifer as the warm, easy-going woman that Austin fell in love with. She sensed Jennifer letting her guard down and was surprised to find her own guard coming down as well. She told of her first experience with Dwayne Allen and the subsequent job offer from Greg Smith. They were both tearfully laughing at the vision of Mr. Allen flaunting his flabby body on the beaches of Fiji and of Ana’s initial indignation of Greg’s offer of a job, when Ana had assumed it was to be a concubine.

After they both had themselves under control and hearing Ana’s endearing recollection of Greg, Jennifer questioned Ana’s relationship with Greg. Feeling at ease,

Ana explained.
“Greg made it very clear that he had romantic feelings
for me but was very respectful when I explained that I was
unavailable, my feelings must have been apparent that I
was still in love with someone else…” Ana faltered
abruptly, realizing what she was saying and to whom. Ana
saw the pain in Jennifer’s eyes and regretted that she failed
to remember that she was talking to Austin‘s wife. Seeing Ana’s dismay, Jennifer softly asked, “If you have
been in love with Austin for so long, can I ask why you
didn’t seek Austin out sooner? You said that it was
because of your careers but that was well before Austin
finished school, before you got into the travel industry and
before he met me. You could have sought him out, why
didn’t you?”
“We were living two separate lives, I knew we couldn’t
make it work.”
Even Jennifer knew it was not the truth but had the
decency to once again to let it drop. Feeling contrite for
not being honest with Jennifer but unable to open up with
Austin’s wife, Ana claimed she was tired and begged for
forgiveness for wanting to return to her room. Jennifer
played the gracious hostess and accepted but stopped Ana
cold in her tracks.
“Ana, I never thought I would like you, being the other
woman in Austin’s life but I want you to know, I’ve come to value you as a friend and I hope that the feeling is mutual. I would like to continue our friendship even after
all is said and done.”
Feeling the same but knowing the truth might jeopardize
family relationships, Ana cautiously responded. “I can see
why Austin fell in love with you. You’re beautiful, you’re
gracious, you’re smart as a whip and your sense of humor
is endearing. Austin made the right choice, never doubt
that, Jennifer.”
As Ana left the room, she thought she heard Jennifer
say, “I do.”

Ana walked into the room for dinner and was surprised to find another person sitting at the dinner table, softly talking with Jennifer and holding her hand. Neither one of them noticed her enter the room, being so engrossed in their conversation. It was Thursday night and she wasn’t aware of anyone else joining them for dinner but it was obvious that there was a connection between Jennifer and the handsome stranger. Ana felt like she was intruding and was about to leave when she saw Stavros standing in the corner, once again, in the shadows. He looked at her and nodded, indicating that she was expected and was not intruding.

Without them noticing her, she had a chance to evaluate the newcomer sitting at what she now considered her place at the table. Though he was sitting, he appeared to be tall, at least six foot three, with dark hair and light complexion. He had an aristocratic face that was handsomely chiseled and she imagined that with his complexion he would have blue eyes. His arms were very well defined and muscular and she caught herself wondering what they would feel like wrapped around her body. He was currently holding Jennifer’s hands, his arms stretched across the table to meet her slender ones. His hair was longer than the current fashion, not quite feathering on the sides but definitely cut in layers so that he had a wind-swept appearance. She found herself physically attracted to him and was uncomfortable with the sensation since she assumed this must be Jennifer’s psychic.

“Oh, Ana, I didn’t hear you come in.” Jennifer caught Ana off guard and staring at her guest. “Please, let me introduce you to my
therapist.”

Ana heard the humor in Jennifer’s voice but also caught the raised eyebrow that Jennifer’s new guest gave her. Thank heavens Jennifer hadn’t told him of their
conversation.

“Rick, this is Anastasia Cassadine, from New York. Ana, this is Rick Montgomery, from well, all over the United States. Tell me, Rick, where is it that you reside right now?”

“Enough of your teasing, Jen. I will pick a place to settle down when the spirits tell me!” Ana heard the joking in his voice and relaxed a little. At least he had a sense of humor about his work. “Hello Anastasia, it’s nice to meet you.” He rose to shake her hand and she found she was correct about his height and his eyes.

“Hello Rick, it’s nice to meet you. Please, don’t let me interrupt, I apologize for the intrusion.” she answered politely, attempting to ignore the unexpected electricity she felt when their hands touched.

“No intrusion at all. We were just making small talk until everyone was here to start our magnificent meal. Stavros, I hear we are going to be honored to have your wonderful seafood this evening. I have been looking forward to it since Jennifer told me.” Ana was impressed at his warmth and sincerity.

She seated herself across from Rick and accepted the glass of white wine that Stavros offered. After a few minutes of polite conversation, Stavros started serving the courses of the meal, each one magnificent and succulent in itself. All three seemed at ease with each other and Ana was pleased that none of the conversations included the touchy subject of Rick’s occupation. Ana knew that she was very prejudiced in her limited knowledge of psychics and was relieved that she didn’t have to express her thoughts on the subject. The topics seemed to flow more around the grounds of the manor and decorating talents that Jennifer possessed.

After a wonderful meal, they retired to the library for drinks. Feeling uncomfortable with her portrait hanging above them over the mantle, she felt herself clam up, unsure of what direction the dialogue would go.

Rick had tried to keep his composure and conversation cool and casual but felt like everyone could see right through him. From the moment Anastasia had entered the room, his focus and his balance became distracted. He had felt her presence before he saw her, felt her aura, her femininity, her essence which was very powerful and very female and when he turned and saw her, his body had reacted immediately. She was tall, stealthy and elegant and she held herself as someone who was secure with who she was and all that was around her. Her flowing locks were pulled back, but from the strays at the sides of her face, saw that they were long and appeared soft. When she spoke, it was like the spring song of the Larkspur, soft and lilting. He had tried to focus his attention on Jennifer and Stavros’ wonderful dinner but his eyes kept steeling glances of her, as if keeping his eyes off of her would cause visual starvation. Now that they were in the library, he found a conversation piece that focused on her.

“A very beautiful portrait, if I may say so, Miss Cassadine. Austin has captured you beautifully.” Rick pointed out.

Feeling the blood rush to her head, she glanced at Jennifer, hoping that it wouldn’t spark the hostility that it had the night she arrived. Jennifer smiled at her and nodded.