Authors: Amity Maree
"What more proof do you need, baby? I'm going to fire her ass right now!" Craig declared, turning to head for the door.
Will stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Don't be so hasty, son. Let's let Jenna do what she does best, and get an admission of guilt first. Then we'll have an arrest and Katy's name will be cleared."
Craig slowly nodded, and then said, "All right, but I really want to wring that bitch's neck!"
"Understandable," Will nodded. "I feel exactly the same way." He looked at Jenna. "Where do you want us, honey?"
The next few hours were busy and eventful. Jenna skillfully wrung a confession from Megan Marshall, an attractive woman a few years older than Katy Nadine, and once the woman started talking, she couldn't seem to stop, even though Jenna did warn her she had a right to counsel. Megan had secret hopes that Craig would show an interest in her, and when he married Nadine, Megan was crushed. She methodically set about seeking revenge on the other woman, deciding that if she was out of the picture, Craig would turn to her. It didn't once cross her mind that both Craig and his father would believe in Nadine's innocence. The police were called, and Megan was arrested. Warner Values Exemplified would still have to settle with the wronged company, but Frank was elated that his daughter-in-law was cleared.
"I would like a few moments alone with my daughter," Will announced politely, but in a voice that told everyone he was used to being obeyed. "Would you all mind giving us some privacy to talk?"
Craig looked to his wife, willing to offer her his protection if she needed it, but she nodded and motioned with her pretty eyes for him to do as her Father requested. "Dad, Jenna, we can go to my office," he said.
Jenna gave Will a look that spoke volumes, and his response was to raise one eyebrow meaningfully, which meant, "Butt out!" just as clearly as if he spoke the words aloud. She exited the room ahead of the two men, but her consternation was clearly written all over her face.
"They need to make peace, Jenna," Frank said comfortingly. "Don't worry now; I'm sure Nadine is ready to do some placating and Will is ready to do some forgiving. This moment is long overdue."
"You're right, Dad," Craig agreed. "I can't help but worry, though. Right now Jenna needs comfort and not scolding."
"Will is her father, son. Give him a chance to make this right," Frank warned. "He is here, isn't he, and that shows where his heart is."
"I agree, Dad. It is good of him to come and support Nadine." Craig nodded. "Jenna, when this all started, I asked Nadine if she wanted to call her Father, and she refused. I didn't have a clue who her father was, just that they were estranged. She wouldn't discuss it with me."
"Will wouldn't discuss it, either. I tried to get him to contact Nadine last Christmas, and he flat out refused."
"It would seem that our Nadine is much like her father," Frank said with a chuckle.
"Jenna, thank you for proving my wife innocent. I know you were doing your job, but it was personal for us, and I'm thankful you believed in Nadine and looked further. To tell the truth, Megan Marshall is the last person I would have suspected. I didn't have a clue that she had a romantic interest in me. I certainly never gave her any encouragement along those lines; I didn't even take her to a business lunch!" he insisted.
"Nadine will believe you, Craig," Frank told his son. "Don't worry about that."
"She'd better believe me!"
Frank just chuckled, and then started discussing settlement strategy with Jenna. He felt it best to keep his son's mind on something other than what was going on with his wife and her father.
In the conference room, Katy Nadine was looking at her parent warily. Her father was a strict and stern man, but usually fair. At the moment she was still trying to get used to the idea that he was actually here, and here to support her. "Daddy, I'm so sorry I was such a horrid brat when Mom died." She made herself speak the words that she needed to say; words that she should have spoken years ago.
"It was a huge mistake to keep the truth from you, sweetheart, but your Mom didn't want your last year of high school ruined. She was determined to get well, beat the cancer, and she fought so hard. She wanted you to have a wonderful senior year, and she wanted you to go on to college. I did my best to support her decision. Naturally you were shocked by what seemed so sudden."
"I felt like such a selfish brat when I realized how much she hid her symptoms from me. I was only concerned with myself," she admitted.
"You were a kid and that is what kids do," Will said with complete understanding. "Your Mom didn't want you to worry about her. She didn't want you to miss out on all the dances, the parties, and everything that was so important to you then."
"And then I blamed you," she whispered, tears in her eyes.
"You were hurting, and so was I. I didn't handle it well, sweetheart. I am so sorry for not coming after you right away and making you sit down and listen to me. We wasted precious time we can't get back," he stated. "I am terribly sorry, and if your Mom was here, she'd be mad at both of us," he said with a grin.
"Yes, she would!"
I think we need to start over now and forgive each other and move forward."
"I would like that." She nodded in agreement.
"I don't know how else to say this, Katy, so I'm going to be blunt. I will always carry your Mother in my heart; I loved her. But, Jenna is my wife now, and I do love her. I expect you to give her a chance. She is one very special woman."
"I expect the same of you with Craig!" Katy Nadine said just as emphatically.
"He seems like a good man. He loves you," Will stated, smiling at her.
"And Jenna loves you, too. She worked so hard to defend me because she knew I was your daughter; even though she'd never met me before. That alone tells me what a wonderful person she is."
"She is a brilliant lawyer, too," he agreed.
"Does she have children?"
"No. This is her first marriage, and neither of us anticipate having children. She loves her career, and she's worked hard to earn her position in the law firm she partners in."
"I haven't told Craig yet, Daddy, but I am carrying our first child," she said with a watery smile. "I would love it if you would be a Granddad to him or her."
"I would love that, too, sweetheart!" Will hugged her tightly, amazed she would tell him before she told her husband. "You make sure you tell Craig tonight. You two have a lot to celebrate... No drinking, however," he added firmly.
Katy Nadine laughed. "I promise, Daddy. No drinking."
"I am going to expect you and Craig to come and spend a weekend with Jenna and me very soon. We have a lot of catching up to do."
"And you will have to come up here, too. Our home isn't fancy, but it is nice, and we do have a guest room. Craig is fantastic on the grill, and I make a good salad," she said happily.
"We'll plan something very soon, sweetheart." He pulled her close and simply enjoyed hugging her. "Katy, you and I will butt heads sometimes. Your Mom isn't here to step in and stop that, but I want you to learn one thing from this experience... I will always come when you need me. You are my little girl, and I will always love you unconditionally."
* * *
"I really don't feel like driving home today, Will," Jenna said with a pout as they drove back to the hotel. "I'd like to stay one more night and drive home tomorrow." After she soaked in a hot tub a couple of times, and used something to take away the soreness of her backside.
"Jenna, you are going to follow me home just as soon as we get packed up. We have a serious matter to discuss when we get home, and I can guarantee you would rather be home than here and have to drive home tomorrow when sitting is going to be even more of a problem than it is now."
"What? Why? I haven't done anything!" She was clearly shocked.
"You knew it was Katy you were defending and you withheld that from me."
"I didn't know how you would react, and I needed to be able to concentrate on her case. I didn't want you fussing and butting in and making things more difficult."
"I had every right to know, Jenna. I want you to think about that while we are on our way home. I'm going to punish you for what I consider disloyalty."
"No!"
"It won't do any good to argue with me, Jenna. I am seriously upset with you for not telling me the minute you knew the truth."
"You can't have it both ways, Buster! I asked you about Katy several times, and each time you clammed up and said it wasn't up for discussion. And now you're all pissed off because I didn't bring her up to you again? Forget it. I was not disloyal; I defended her, didn't I?" She turned her back to him, afraid she was going to cry! "Sometimes you are so arrogant it is unbelievable."
"How would you feel if the situation were reversed?" Will demanded.
"If the situation were reversed, I wouldn't have been so damned pigheaded in the first place, William Cole! You are the one who made it clear you didn't wish to discuss Katy with me, and you have yourself to thank for the fact I wasn't comfortable coming to you immediately."
Will shook his head. "You have a way of twisting things to suit yourself, Jenna." He looked at her small bag and asked, "Are you ready to leave?"
"Yes, I am ready to leave."
"Good. We'll discuss this at home." Since Jenna had already checked out electronically there was no need to stop at the front desk. Their cars were brought around, and Will put her in her car with orders to stay close. Jenna didn't say a word and followed Will to the Interstate. When he turned on the ramp that led the way home, she went on by and turned in the opposite direction on another ramp. By the time Will realized she wasn't behind him, Jenna was on her way somewhere he wasn't.
When her cell phone rang, Jenna answered. "I'm not coming home, Will. I think we need some time apart to reconsider this marriage." She hung up, and then turned off her phone.
Will was angry. By the time he got off the highway and turned around, she was so far ahead of him, he couldn't catch up. He was positive of one thing, when he found his wife, he was going to paddle her butt until she couldn't sit comfortably for a month!
Chapter Six
Will was nearly out of his mind three days later when he tried Jenna's cell phone for the umpteenth time. Instead of going to voice mail as it had countless times, his wife actually answered. "Jenna, where are you?" he asked, thankful to know she was alive.
"I'm almost home, Will. I should be there in another thirty minutes. Will you be there?" she wanted to know.
"Yes."
"Please put on some coffee. I've been on the road since three AM, and I need a cup of the good stuff."
"I will. Jenna...?"
"Yes...?"
"I love you," he said hoarsely, his voice full of emotion.
"I love you to desperation, William Cole," she breathed the words. "We'll talk when I get home. Don't forget the coffee, please."
Will wasn't surprised to realize his hands were shaking as he shut off the telephone and placed it back on the charger. He hadn't slept much the last three days, and he felt it physically. He carefully measured out coffee and started a pot. He needed a cup as much as Jenna did. He also turned on the oven and took some muffin dough out of the freezer and put the little squares into a greased tin to bake. They should come out about the time Jenna arrived. His stomach was too nervous to handle anything more than that at the moment. He put two small plates on the table and got out the mugs they normally used. The sayings on them were cute and only served to strengthen his resolve to work through this crisis in their marriage.
He hated admitting he was wrong to threaten Jenna with a spanking for not confiding in him about Katy, but he
was
wrong. He'd been so stubborn, refusing to discuss Katy with his new wife, and letting her know that the subject was 'closed'. How was Jenna to know that his heart was broken and he wanted nothing more than an excuse to end the estrangement? How was she to know that his damned pride was involved and refusing to be the first to back down? The trouble was that he and his daughter were too much alike, and Katy's Mom wasn't here to fix things. He, arrogant ass that he was, expected Jenna to 'know' that he would do anything to protect his daughter. He was out of line, and he could only hope that Jenna would accept his apology before he blistered her butt for putting him through a living hell the last three days!
He finally heard the garage door opening and he hurried to welcome her home.
Jenna was nervous. She knew without a doubt that Will was going to punish her for running away as she had, not that she hadn't already inflicted enough suffering on herself, but she doubted he would take that fact into consideration. The laundry room door that led into the house from the garage opened before she even had the car engine shut off. The look on Will's handsome face told her more than any words could have that he was happy to have her home. She hurried out of the car and into his arms, suddenly crying. "I'm so sorry, Will," she begged forgiveness.
"I'm sorry, too, honey. Now come on inside and we'll have coffee and talk. We'll make this work, I promise." The last thing he could bear was to have her tell him she actually wanted a divorce.
"We'll make it work, darling. I promise," she echoed his words, and then she retrieved her bags from the car. She'd purchased a few items of clothing and shoes the last several days, and acquired a bag to put them in. Will took the bags from her and carried them inside the house. Jenna took care of closing the garage door. "Just put them on the washing machine, Will. I need to do some laundry later. He complied, and then held her hand as they walked into the comfortable, homey kitchen. The timer on the oven beeped then and Will hurried to take out the muffins before they burned. "Those smell wonderful, Will," Jenna inhaled appreciatively, pouring coffee for both of them while he put a muffins on plates and carried them to the table.
"Where have you been, young lady?" Will's natural firmness was asserting itself now that they were seated at the breakfast table.