Stormy Passion

by Brenda Jernigan

  Chapter Fifteen

  “You know, we haven't discussed names for the baby,” Dani said, moving over to the couch where she settled in and propped her puffy feet on the coffee table. “Oh, that feels so much better,” she murmured as she pushed off her shoes.

  “I'll pop some popcorn and get a couple of sodas, and we'll talk about it.” Adrian didn't wait for her reply, but headed for the kitchen.

  “Need some help?”

  “No. I got it. There's supposed to be a good movie on television tonight. See if you can find the channel.”

  “What's the name?”

  “Can’t remember.”

  Dani picked up the remote control and switched on the tube, flipping several channels until she found it. “ 'Casablanca.' That's a good movie. It starts in ten minutes,” she shouted, then turned to see if he'd heard her.

  “At your service, ma'am.” A few minutes later, Adrian handed her a big bowl of buttered popcorn and set two icy drinks down on the coffee table.

  “This smells great. Grab that letter off the bar before you sit down,” Dani said as she reached into the bowl.

  When Adrian joined her on the couch, he handed her the cream colored envelope, and said, “I hope this isn't going to put you in a bad mood.”

  “No. I got that out of my system before we left. Read it.” She shoved the envelope toward him. “And see what you think.”

  She watched as he quickly scanned the page, and wondered if he'd ever been sued before. Probably not, she assured herself, because this was a first for her. “What do you think?”

  “Sounds serious. Do you have a good lawyer?”

  “I have Kevin.”

  “Kevin? Not Mr. so-and-so-big-shot lawyer?”

  Dani laughed. “Actually, Kevin is a great lawyer. I used to date him during breakups with Steven. He's a good friend, and I'm sure he'll help me.”

  An unexpected twinge of jealously struck Adrian. He didn't particularly like the way her eyes lit up when she said Kevin's name. “He does know that you're married?”

  “One of the few people. He drew up our prenuptial agreement, remember? The only people that know we're married are Susan and our parents.”

  Adrian chuckled. “I think your mother was a little surprised.” He could still see the woman face down in the cake.

  “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

  “I am.” He tried to look virtuous.

  “Look, the movie's starting.” Dani picked up her soda and turned the volume up on the television.

  Adrian knew he should turn off the tube and make Dani listen to him. He needed to tell her the whole truth. However, this evening had been so wonderful that he didn't want it to come to an end just yet.

  He pulled Dani back to lean against him. Why couldn't life be as simple as a movie? He knew the answer, of course. In a movie, a director called the shots and told everyone how to feel and how to act. Real life, however, wasn’t nearly as predictable.

  He'd once been happy with passionate affairs and meaningless relationships, but recently, he'd grown tired of the games.

  And then there was Dani, his sweet, sweet Dani. He needed her in a way he couldn't explain to either of them. He didn't want anything to jeopardize the new contentment he'd found with her. Maybe he could find a way to persuade Coffee to settle out of court. With a slight feeling of hope, Adrian settled down and watched the movie with Dani's head snuggled on his shoulder.

  The next morning Adrian awoke to a ringing phone. It took him a few moments to realize they were still on the couch. He rolled his head around his shoulders to relieve his stiff neck. Dani stirred and sat up still half asleep.

  “Is that the alarm clock?” she mumbled.

  “No, sweetheart. It's the phone.” He reached for the offensive instrument beside the couch. Hello.”

  “Thank goodness, you answered the phone,” Marty said on the other end. “We've got a snag in our German deal, and I need you up here for an eight p.m. conference call with Reiner.”

  “Are you sure?” Adrian sat up a little straighter. He had a lot of money tied up in that deal.

  “They said they'd only talk to the head of Mass. Not second in command. I'll send Pete down with the plane.”

  Adrian glanced at Dani who was listening to his conversation. “Book me a flight for ten.”

  When he hung up the phone, his wife said, “A flight?”

  “It's just overnight, sweetheart. The boss thinks I can handle a problem in New York.” Adrian almost choked on the half-truth. But he hoped to persuade Coffee to drop his suit while he was there. Then Adrian could tell Dani everything after the baby was born.

  But things didn't work out as Adrian had planned. Coffee wouldn't even talk to Adrian's lawyers, and they also wouldn't cancel the subpoena. The man was holding a personal vendetta against Dani, and was intent on dragging her through court.

  The good news was that Adrian didn't have to testify against his wife, but he couldn't avoid having to take the stand. “Damn Double damn!” He didn’t want Dani to learn about his subterfuge in court.

  Twelve hours after he’d left Dani at home, he had to call and explain that he wouldn’t be able to make it home tonight. He didn’t know who’d been more disappointed.

  At least, he had been able to satisfy the German businessmen and close the deal. But, it was late into the night before all the necessary paperwork was completed.

  Adrian rose early the next morning with plans to get to San Antonio very early. The air traffic controllers had different ideas and, it was 9:30 a.m. before the fog lifted and Adrian's plane was permitted to take off from New York.

  “Damn,” he swore for the hundredth time. Now he'd have to go straight to the courtroom. He just hoped he could talk to his wife before her case was called.

  It was mid-morning when Dani entered the courtroom and took a seat in the back of the room. She still had a hard time believing that Coffee Advertising was suing her and using the work she'd created to prove their case. The fact that she was waiting to testify proved the extent to which Coffee was willing to go. She wasn't sure if what she had to say could help win the case, but she was going to give it a college try.

  The door opened, and Mr. Coffee entered the courtroom with his lawyer beside him. When Coffee looked her way, he frowned. “Miss Kapur.” He nodded slightly, his contempt evident.

  Dani stiffened. “It's Mrs. Massimino now.”

  “Really.” His gray eyebrows raised. “How convenient.” Mr. Coffee turned and took his seat on the other side of the courtroom.

  Dani couldn't believe she'd blurted out her married name so naturally. It was almost as if she said it every day. What an odd response?

  “How convenient?”

  Did he mean because of her condition which was obvious to anyone who looked at her?

  Again, the door squeaked open, causing Dani to gasp. Adrian was there. He smiled then crossed the room to sit beside her.

  “What are you doing here?” she blurted out.

  “Where's your attorney?” Adrian whispered.

  “He hasn't shown up yet. Kevin is always late. What are you doing here?”

  “I came for a couple of reasons.” Adrian took her hand in his. “The first is that I wanted to be with you and the second--”

  Finally, Kevin Cook arrived. Dani stood and picked up the black cases of sketches. “Wish me luck,” she said to Adrian.

  “I do. But, Dani I need to tell you something.”

  “It'll have to wait. Gotta go.” She met Kevin in the aisle where they both proceeded to the front of the room.

  “Coffee verses Kapur,” the clerk called.

  “Damn,” Adrian swore. He should have told her before he went to New York.

  He wasn't sure how Dani was going to take the news that she was actually working for him. And he was damned sure that she was going to be mad as hell, thinking the worst. Of course, she'd think she hadn't gotten the job because of her ability, but preferential treatmen
t, which wasn't true. He had accomplished the one thing he'd set out to do. He had gotten to know Dani on his own terms without money being involved. The fact that she’d done a good job for him was just another bonus.

  He still wasn't sure how Dani felt about him. She hadn't come out and said she loved him, but Adrian felt that what they had was a good beginning.

  Now with each passing day, he knew with more certainty that Dani wasn't nothing like his first wife. In contrast to her, Dani was sincere and caring.

  Adrian drew in a long deep breath. He'd done what he said he wasn't going to do ... get involved with another woman. But she'd had him hooked by the second day, though he had been reluctant to admit the fact. He stared at her now, her back straight, head held high, and her enormous tummy, he knew he loved this woman more than he'd ever loved anything in his life. He had no intentions of this being a marriage of convenience forever.

  Kevin leaned over to Dani. “Separate your sketches.” He patted her hand. “Don't worry. We have a good chance. I think.”

  The judge cleared this throat. “Coffee Advertising is suing Kapur Associates for conflict of interest and is seeking a half-a million dollars.”

  “What! That's absurd.” Dani blurted out without thinking.

  The gavel hit the piece of wood on the judge's desk, bouncing the block up in the air, he'd hit it so hard. “I don't like outbursts in my courtroom. If I have to warn you again, I'll fine you, Miss. Kapur.” He drew his shaggy brown eyebrows together and looked over a pair of small reading glasses perched on the end of his nose. Dani blushed. “How does your client plead?” The judge continued.

  “Not guilty, your honor.”

  Dani listened to Coffee's lawyer explain how she took the drawings from her old job with the intention of landing the amphitheater account, and that she willfully wheeled and dealed to sneak the account out from under Coffee Advertising's nose.

  The insults were bad enough, but when the clerk called Adrian Massimino to the stand, Dani became angry.

  Wondering how he'd gotten in the middle of her fight, she watched as he was sworn in. If Coffee Advertising tried to slander him in any way, they would have a fight on their hands. Coffee's fight was with her, not her husband.

  “Mr. Massimino can you tell us what your occupation is?”

  Dani wondered what difference it made to anyone where he worked unless they were trying to prove his character. Her husband might be merely a construction worker, but he was respectable. Dani could see Adrian was embarrassed because it was taking him much too long to answer.

  “Do I need to ask the question again?” Coffee's attorney asked.

  “No. I am the CEO of Mass Corporation.”

  “What!” Dani came to her feet, knocking her chair over with a loud bang.

  “Two hundred and fifty dollars, Miss Kapur. I warned you.” The judge hit the desk again.

  Kevin righted her chair, and Dani slumped back down into it. What had happened to the construction worker? Had Adrian just said he was the head of Mass? But he hadn't been at the meeting when she went there. And the Vice President, Marty whats-his-name, had only introduced Adrian as a friend. What kind of game was this?

  “As the head of the Mass Corporation, did Kapur Associates approach you about advertising for your amphitheater?”

  “No. She did not.”

  “Are you sure, Mr. Massimino? Perhaps, I don't understand.” The lawyer rubbed his chin. “She does have your account, doesn't she?”

  “Yes, but she didn't meet with me. Dani met with my Vice President, and Coffee Advertising presented their plan to me.”

  “And you were impressed with Miss Kapur's work?”

  “Yes, I was. Both companies had a good layout, but I wouldn't have picked Kapur Associates unless I thought she had done the best job. And to set the record straight, she is no longer Kapur--my wife's name is Massimino.”

  “Really. Did you marry your wife before you hired her or afterwards?”

  Adrian gripped the side of the chair. He didn't like the way this SOB made their marriage sound. However, if he got up and punched the man out like he'd like to, he would probably end up in jail and of little use to anyone.

  “I married my wife after I made the decision.”

  “No more questions.”

  Kevin stood and picked up a drawing. “Can you tell me which proposal you bought?”

  “The one on your left.”

  “Did you ever see the other set of sketches?”

  “No. I didn't.”

  “Thank you. No more questions.”

  “Next we'd like to call Danielle Kapur Massimino to the stand.”

  Dani's legs shook when she stood to walk to the stand. She felt numb and stupid for believing Adrian was a bum, but mostly she wanted to cry. Instead, she placed her shaking hand on the Bible.

  “Do you, Danielle Massimino swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?”

  “I do.”

  Kevin leaned on the railing and looked at her. “Did you take your drawings for the amphitheater when you left Coffee Advertising?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “Why did you leave Coffee Advertising?”

  “I used to date Steven Coffee, and when we broke up, it became difficult to work for his father. I had always wanted to start my own agency, so I took a chance.”

  “Did you use the drawings that you'd drawn up while you were with Coffee to win over Mass Corporation?”

  “No, I didn't. I drew up a completely different advertising campaign, an even better idea than my first one.”

  “And did you sign a non-compete agreement with Coffee Advertising?”

  “I did not.”

  “Thank you.”

  Coffee's attorney approached. “You're telling me Miss K--Massimino, that you didn't use any of the material that you developed at Coffee Advertising?”

  “That's right.”

  “Come now. Advertising must be very easy if you can just whip up new drawings? So good, I might add, that you can land a big account on the first try.”

  “I am good. What can I say?” Dani realized she sounded flippant. “It isn't easy to plan an advertising proposal, but I had plenty of time to think up something new since I wasn't working at full capacity at first.”

  “So why did you take the original drawings?”

  “They were mine and unfinished.”

  “No, Mrs. Massimino. They were the property of your employer.” The lawyer stood a moment rubbing his chin as he thought. “You mean to tell me that you didn't purposely go after the account just to get even with Mr. Coffee because his son jilted you?”

  “I'm the one who broke up with Steven. Revenge wasn't on my mind.”

  “Well, Mrs. Massimino, I find that hard to believe.” The lawyer turned and walked away.

  “Truth is always harder to believe than fiction,” Dani said, then watched the judge frown, gavel in hand.

  “You may step down, Mrs. Massimino. Recess for fifteen minutes.”

  Dani walked out into the lobby to the first restroom. She never knew a woman could pee so much. After she washed her hands she realized she was trembling. Dani guessed she had plenty of reason – it wasn’t everyday she was on trial and it wasn’t everyday she found out her husband wasn’t who she thought.

  Dani walked back out into the lobby where Adrian stood waiting for her.

  “Why didn't you tell me?”

  “I have reasons, but this isn't the place to discuss them.”

  “Well, I hope you've enjoyed laughing at me behind my back!”

  Adrian grabbed both arms. It wasn't like that. I never laughed at you, Dani.”

  “I'm not sure I can believe anything you tell me anymore.”

  Kevin joined them. “It's good to see you again.” Kevin shook Adrian's hand. “Keep your fingers crossed. It's time to go back.”

  Minutes ticked away before the judge finally spoke. “This case is a little unusual. Kapur Associat
es went after the same account as Coffee Advertising, but with a different set of drawings. On the other hand, Coffee Advertising had plenty of time to make new drawings and win the account. But Kapur Associates first learned of the account while she was working for Coffee Advertising. Therefore, I do think that Coffee Advertising is due compensation. I fine, Kapur Associates one half of said income from the Mass account.

  “Case closed!” The gavel hit the desk.

  Dani really didn't think it was fair, but she thankfully kept her mouth shut.

  “Sorry, Dani,” Kevin said while he stuffed the papers back in his briefcase. “Anything's better than the half a million they wanted.”

  “I guess so.”

  “Why didn't you tell me you were married to the head of the company?” Kevin asked.

  “Because I didn't know until a few minutes ago.”

  “You're kidding.”

  She turned and saw Adrian say something to Mr. Coffee, whose face then turned bright red. When she reached her husband she couldn't help asking, “What did you say to him?”

  “I simply told him it wouldn't be worth his time to seek any of my business in the future.”

  “Thank you, Adrian, but I can fight my own battles.”

  “I can help, too.”

  She stared at him for a long moment, realizing she really didn't know the real Adrian Massimino, only someone she had dreamed up in her mind. Or, maybe, she made him into the person she wanted him to be. She sighed. “Let's go home,” Dani said, then bent and grabbed her side.

  “What's wrong?” Adrian reached out for her.

  “Nothing. The baby just moved the wrong way.”

  Adrian put his arm around her and they left the courthouse. Drained of all emotion, Dani didn't have the energy to protest.

  She thought about Adrian all the way home. He was rich. Not just rich, he was very rich. Steven had been rich, and he turned out to be a very sorry person. Would Adrian be the same way?

  Yet, Adrian didn't act like Steven. Still, he hadn't been truthful with her, either. And she was getting pretty steamed about the subject. The more she thought about it, the madder she got.