Forever (2 page)

Thanks to my mother and assistant, Anne Kingsbury, for your great sensitivity and love for my readers. You are a reflection of my own heart, Morn, or maybe I’m a reflection of yours. Either way we are a great team, and I appreciate you more than you know. I’m grateful also for my dad, Ted Kingsbury, who is and always has been my greatest encourager. I remember when I was a little girl, Dad, and you would say, “One day, honey, everyone will read your books and know what a wonderful writer you are.” Thank you for believing in me long before anyone else ever did. Thanks also to my sisters Tricia and Susan and Lynne, who help out with my business when the workload is too large to see around. I appreciate you!

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Thanks to Katie Johnson, who runs a large part of my business life-everything from my accounting to my calendar. God brought you to me, Katie, and I’ll be grateful as long as I’m writ. ing for Him. Don’t ever leave, okay? And to Olga Kalachik, whose hard work helping me prepare for events allows me to operate a significant part of my business from my home. The personal touch you both bring to my ministry is precious to me priceless to me. … Thank you with all my heart.

And thanks to my friends and family, especially my sister Sue, who is a new addition to my staff, and to my niece Melissa Kane, who helped me with a major project this past year. Thanks to Ann and Sylvia and all of you who pray for me and my family. We couldn’t do this without you. Thanks to all of you who continue to surround me with love and prayer and support. I could list you by name, but you know who you are. Thank you for believing in me and for seeing who I really am. F true friend stands by through the changing seasons of life and cheers you on not for your successes but for staying true to what matters most.

You are the ones who know me that way, and I’m grateful for every one of you.

Of course, the greatest thanks go to God Almighty, the most wonderful Author of all-the Author of life. The gift is Yours. I pray I might have the incredible opportunity and responsibility to use it for You all the days of my life.

xiii FOREVER IN FICTION

A SPECIAL THANKS to Heidi Jones, who won the Forever in Fiction auction at the Veritas Classical Christian School in Oregon. Heidi chose to give the gift to her friend Susan Johnson, who chose to honor her sister, Cynthia Crivellone Deming, by naming her Forever in Fiction.

Cindy Deming died in a car accident at age thirty-seven. She was pregnant with her first child and survived by her husband, Sean. Cindy was passionate about animals, and at the time of her death she had eight cats, three dogs, two ferrets, and a rabbit. She was a very giving person, quiet by nature, and a good listener. She was petite with long, naturally curly brown hair, and she had just one sibling, Susan Johnson. She was also survived by her parents, Leonard Murphy and Barbara Murphy, who died seven months after Cindy.

Cindy enjoyed scuba diving and hiking the Oregon mountains, because she was always up for a challenge. She once went to Europe with friends and stayed at hostels, figuring out transportation as they traveled from one place to another.

Even so,

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xiv being a mother.

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her favorite vacation spot was easily Hawaii. Cindy was a dedicated sister and daughter and granddaughter and would go out of her way to spend time with family. She was looking forward to

In Forever, I chose to make Cindy a neurosurgeon so her character could take part in saving the life of someone who had also been in a terrible car accident.

Heidi and Susan, I pray that Cindy is honored by her placement in Forever and that you will always remember her with a smile when you see her name in the pages of this novel, where she will be Forever in Fiction. For those of you who are not familiar with Forever in Fiction, it is my way of in you, the readers, in my stories while raising money for charities. To date this item has raised more than $100,000 at charity auctions across the country. If you are interested in having a Forever in Fiction package donated to your auction, contact my assistant, Katie Johnson, at [email protected]. Please write Forever in Fiction in the subject line. Please note that I am able to donate only a limited number of these each year. For that reason I have set a fairly high minimum bid on this package. That way the maximum

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1

THERE WERE moments when the sun shone SO brightly on her life that Katy Hart could barely stand beneath it. Moments when she would be getting ready for a day of Christian Kids Theater rehearsals or folding laundry or filling her tank with gas and she’d have to check her ring finger. Just to be sure it had really happened.

Dayne Matthews had asked her to marry him.

She opened the door to her apartment, stepped inside, and exhaled. She’d spent the afternoon and evening with the Flanigans, first shopping with Jenny and then having dinner and watching a movie with the family. Now she wanted to be upstairs when Dayne called, the way he called every night around this time. She closed the door behind her and leaned against it for a minute.

Overnight God had taken her life from foggy uncertainty to crystal clear panoramas. She and Dayne wanted a simple wedding on the shore of Lake Monroe. He had already met with a wedding planner in Hollywood, a woman known for her 2

brilliance at pulling off secret ceremonies, events the paparazzi never figured out until they were over.

The job would be a tough one, and Katy had resigned herself to the possibility that the press might find out, that helicopters could circle overhead and cameramen could infiltrate the trees along the lake to get a picture. Whatever.

They’d already dragged her name across the cover of the tabloids.

She was marrying Dayne Matthews. Soon the whole world would know anyway.

They hadn’t picked a date, but spring seemed perfect. Bloomington was beautiful in April and May. Dayne would have time to film one more movie by then, and it would allow enough time to find a wedding dress and figure out the reception, time to fly to Chicago and talk to her parents about the plans. Dayne had told her they didn’t have a budget, but Katy wanted something simple and elegant, something she could find in Indianapolis as easily as in New York City.

It was the third week of July, which meant they had eight or nine months. Not much time considering how busy they would be in their separate lives over the next few months. Dayne was working six-day weeks filming his current movie in Los Angeles, the romance film with Academy Award-winning actress Randi Wells.

And Katy needed to sort through the scripts for the lineup of plays slated for CKT’s coming year. Sometimes she felt dizzy with everything that had happened in the last two weeks.

Katy sighed. Yes, the sun was shining brighter than ever in her life.

She changed into her pajamas and brushed her teeth. As she headed for bed, the phone rang. She darted across the room, grabbed the receiver, and bounced onto the mattress. The caller ID told her what she already knew. It was Dayne. She hit the Talk button. “Hey.”

“Mmmm.” He sounded tired, lonely, but even so she could 3

practically see his eyes dancing. “Do you know how good that feels?”

“What?” An intimacy filled her voice, one that was reserved for him alone.

“Hearing you, knowing you’re at the other end of the line.” He drew a slow breath. “I look forward to this minute all day long.” She smiled. “Me too.”

They talked about his day, and eventually that led to Dayne’s recent conversation with his missionary friend Bob Asher. “God’s making it all so clear-the future and how it’s supposed to play out.”

Katy thought about the weeks and months when the future had seemed anything but clear. During Dayne’s involvement with Kabbalah or his time with Kelly Parker.

“There were days I didn’t think we’d ever be here.”

“I know.” He was quiet for a moment. “I thank God every night, Katy. Every night.”

The topic shifted again, and he told her about the movie he was making. The director still believed they had a major hit on their hands, and a buzz had started that maybe this was the film that would earn Dayne his first Academy Award. That led to talk about the paparazzi and how a reporter for Celebrity Life magazine was getting closer to the truth about the identity of Dayne’s birth family.

“It doesn’t matter.” Katy leaned back against her headboard. “They’ll find out one day anyway.”

“Not now, though. Not before the wedding.”

They talked about the Baxters, how Ashley had accepted the role of assistant director for CKT’s coming season and how the other Baxters were excited about Thanksgiving, when the whole family would be together for the first time.

Dayne steered the conversation back to the two of them. “Have you found it?” His voice held depth and tenderness, a tone that told her how much he missed her.

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“What?” She glanced at a photo of them on her nightstand. “Our house. I keep thinking you’ll call and tell me you found it

Katy sat up and crossed her legs. “You’re serious?”

“Of course.” An easy laugh came from him. “If you like it, I’ll like it.”

“But …” She ran her fingers through her hair. “Shouldn’t you be here?”

“You find it and I’ll fly out and take a look. How’s that?”

“I don’t know.” If he were any other guy, she’d ask him about their price range.

But that wouldn’t be an issue with Daynesomething else that would take adjusting to. “I know we talked about it before, but really, Dayne, you should be here.

You said near the lake, but do you want acreage or a smaller place closer to town?”

“Not near the lake.” He chuckled. “On the lake. A big yard and a sweeping porch.”

She grinned. “I told you … lakefront property is almost nonexistent.

Something near the lake, maybe. But on it?”

“I can dream, can’t I?” He laughed again. “Okay. Eventually I want to be on the lake, but for now it doesn’t matter. As long as I’m with you we can pitch a tent in the Baxters’ backyard. Which we might have to do if you don’t start looking.”

“All right, I get it. I’ll look.” She gazed at her ring and adjusted her left hand so the diamond sparkled in the light. “I’ll start tomorrow. I have a CKT

meeting at Ashley’s house; then I’ll drive around the lake and see what’s for sale.” The task ahead still felt daunting, but if Dayne trusted her, that was all that mattered.

“No pressure, Katy. As long as we’re in Bloomington …” She could almost see his smile over the phone line. “Although …1 have this props job I’m interested in, so I should probably be pretty close to the theater.”

She giggled. Gone were the sad, drawn-out conversations between them. Instead they were always laughing, always play4

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ing. She tried to sound more official. “If the director hires you, you mean.”

“True.” He paused. “But see, I know her. Got her wrapped around my finger.”

“Is that right?” She held the phone closer. If only they didn’t have so long to wait until they were together again.

“Yep.” His tone changed just enough to let her know this next part was serious.

“But not nearly like I’m wrapped around hers.” He hesitated. “By the way, my director says I’m more convincing than ever.” Dayne’s voice filled with tenderness. It felt like he was sitting beside her. “Can you believe that?”

“Must be Randi Wells.” Katy was teasing. Dayne obviously wasn’t interested in his costar, though at first the tabloids questioned an offscreen romance. He had kept things so platonic that after a few weeks of filming, the gossip rags did an about-face and hinted at feuding between the two.

“You know what it is, right?”

“What?”

“It’s you.” His tone changed, and she could almost hear his beating heart. “I’ve never been in love before . . so how could I have been convincing?”

She sighed. “How am I going to survive until I see you again?” “If you figure it out, let me know.”

Katy opened her mouth. She was about to suggest that maybe she could come out for a weekend, stay at a local hotel, and at least share a few days with him between weeks of filming. But the last time she’d been in Los Angeles the paparazzi had chased them and nearly caused a major collision. Dayne had made it clear: until they were married, they needed to do their visiting in Bloomington.

She would’ve suggested he break away for a visit, but during filming there was often weekend work. They’d have to wait until his film wrapped up.

They talked for another half hour, dreaming out loud about their wedding and the days ahead.

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When the call ended, Katy turned off the light and lay back on her pillow. For a long time she stared into the dark, replaying the conversation and missing Dayne. Maybe she would fly to Los Angeles anyway. Show up on his set and surprise him. If they didn’t run from the paparazzi, maybe they could avoid a chase. She was still thinking about the possibility when she fell asleep.

The next morning Katy woke up later than she’d intended and hurried through her morning routine. As she raced out of the house, she checked her watch. Thirty minutes until the nine o’clock meeting at Ashley’s house, and she still wanted to pick up coffee for the group. Ashley was thrilled about her new position with the theater kids. A week ago CKT coordinator Bethany Allen had asked Ashley to join the theater group’s artistic team. She would oversee sets and work with Rhonda Sanders as an assistant director. All of which was wonderful, since Katy would be busy planning a wedding.

This morning the team wanted to come up with a list of props and sets needed for the three upcoming productions. But that wasn’t all they would talk about.

Ashley was about to become Katy’s sister-in-law. By now, all Ashley’s siblings knew that Dayne was their brother. It was why they’d made plans for a Thanksgiving celebration.