Stormy Passion (25 page)

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 treatment, 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.”