9781631052347OnCallKenyan (21 page)

“I’m
sorry, Toffer. How are you?” She let out a giggle when her feet lifted off the
ground. Katherine looked on and waited for Duke to realize she was around. And
when that didn’t happen she waved at her sister in-law and walked toward her
father’s bed where Lyle was standing. Lyle handed her the chart and she
couldn’t help the smile that crept on her lips.

“Trust
you to find your father’s heart attack funny.” The steel on the tip of her
mother’s tongue slashed through her.

“It’s
nice to see you too, Mother. I am only guessing here, but are you the one who
diagnosed father’s heart attack?” Victoria had a way of exaggerating. A
molehill to her was a mountain. And when she shrugged as if it was obvious,
Katherine couldn’t help but laugh. Cautiously she stepped beside her father.
Chancing rejection she leaned own and kissed his cheek. “How are you, Daddy?”

“According
to your mother I’m having a heart attack. But I’ve missed you.” He smiled at
her and she was relieved.

“Well,
I guess I can start coming around more. Plus, you didn’t have a heart attack,
just a severe case of indigestion. The discomfort you probably felt on your
chest was heart-burn. We’ll prescribe you some antacids and send you home.”

“I knew
it,” Harold grumbled. “Promise me you’ll come for dinner tomorrow. It’s Sunday.
I’m sure you won’t have much to do.”

“And
you can bring your doctor friend,” Victoria piped in.

“A
second ago you thought Daddy was on his death bed, now you are playing match
maker?” Katherine snorted. “I’ll be there, Daddy, alone.”

“But
I’m inviting your friend.”

“Don’t
give him any ideas. I’m seeing someone else.”

“Oh?
Who?”

“The
same guy you tried to run off a year and a half ago. You see, Mum, I’m worth
fighting for.” Katherine gave her father a quick kiss and started to leave when
Duke called her. “Dear God, Duke, it’s a miracle. The phone does detach from
your ear.”

“Very
funny, Kat. I was wondering if you would mind giving Yvette an ultra-sound.”

“No!”

“I
don’t mind.” Katherine frowned at the pregnant woman when she realized they had
both spoken at the same time but with different answers. “I seriously don’t
mind. I have a few minutes to spare.”

“I’m
just—I’m not wearing the right outfit.”

“Okay.”
Katherine had never had the time or patience to try and decipher anything
coming out of Yvette’s mouth. And if she didn’t want Katherine to give her an
ultra-sound then even easier. She didn’t know what they would say to each other
during those few moments. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

Epilogue

It had
been a month since Catalella’s attempted suicide and AJ’s return. Catalella had
been doing better and the transplant had finally taken place. The hours
Katherine spent pacing the waiting room with Catalella’s family stuck with her.
She felt like she belonged.

But she
didn’t like feeling helpless. It was her own fault she was kicked out of the
operating room in the first place. She kept on questioning every move the
surgeon made. Finally exasperated and at his limit, the old man tossed her out.
Now she sat at AJ’s bedside waiting for him to gain consciousness. He was
taking his time.

Impatiently
she poured cubes of ice in a cup and held it in her hand trying to figure out
if what she was about to do was insane. Medically it wouldn’t hurt him or come
in the way of his recovery. Tilting the mouth of the cup over his neck, she let
two ice cube fall out, and as soon they came into contact with his skin, AJ’s
eyes flew open.

“Hey,
sweetheart,” she cooed at him.

“What
the hell, Kat!” His voice was hoarse, as he shook the ice off himself.

“I
wanted you to wake up.”

“So
dropping ice cubes down my gown was your last resort. Why couldn’t you wait
like normal people?”

“I’m
not normal. Scoot over.” Katherine helped AJ move while making sure he remained
on his side. “Are you in pain?”

“I’ll
survive. But I don’t think I can handle any more ice baths, so just get over
here.” AJ curled his arm around her and pulled her into him. “I missed you.”

“I
missed you too. Close your eyes. Now I know you’re okay, you can go back to sleep.”

AJ
closed his eyes and before he fell back to sleep he whispered, “I love you.”

“I love
you too.”

*The End*

About the
Author

Love is
supernatural. When I write romance its just like I’m writing a fantasy novel. I
believe in love and love believes in us.

BETRAYED;
THE NEW YORKER I;
Reno Kanaloa Kent, had been abandoned by both his
mother and father. His father, Dennis Kent, a prestigious business man in New
York, left his family behind when his inheritance was threatened. He had been
given a choice the love of money or that of his family and he had picked the
former. His mother Kono Kanaloa, a simple island girl, had stopped taking care
of his little sister, him and herself when the love of her life walked out the
door. Reno’s misfortune didn’t end there. In the dead of the night his sister
had been abducted from his bed and he wasn’t able to save her. The guilt of
letting down his little sister, Rhyne has followed him through his entire life.
Revenge for the betrayal of his father is the only thing that drives him,
especially after his mother’s death. He goes to New York to seek his revenge.
His luck improves when he meets Dennis Kent’s godchildren at a university end
of summer bash.
Lisette had always wanted freedom to be a woman. But her adoptive father and
brother are overprotective of her. Her potential boyfriend betrays her and runs
off with her underage sister to get married in Vegas. Reno seems to be the only
one to help keep her sanity. But she learns that he isn’t who he says he is.
She angry with him, but she can’t deny the love in her heart.
Reno and Lisette have to work through the betrayal they feel to be together.
Their relationship runs a course filled with obstacles and they finally reunite
they love.

DENOUEMENT;
Marietta Parks believes that the only way to stop surprises from
happening in life is to control your own fate. Paying attention to every detail
she scripts out her own life. Leaving love, romance and children out of it. But
then she meets a man who just has to be added into her story, Tobias Harden was
the man of everyone’s dreams but t her he was a lovely addition to her already
scripted life.
Tobias Harden was the modern day Casanova. Love was not in his vocabulary, and
he was allergic to the word commitment, like poison Ivy to the bare skin. A
chance kiss with Marietta Parks makes him question his single life. He was to
be the best for her, and oddly enough she happens to be the only woman he wants
to kiss. Tobias convinces Marietta that she needs him in her life. But after three
years of marriage and life’s obstacles, he finds himself in bed with another
woman. He has to convince her that he is still the man for her, especially now
that she’s pregnant.

RED TEARS BLUE BLOOD; Alma had said no to love. The pain
of a lost love was too much. But when Christoffer walks into her life, Alma
decides to give love a second chance, hoping that fate would be kinder to her
this time. However, loving Christoffer seems to take everything out of her.
They are so different. He’s white, and she black, he’s rich and she’s poor. But
Alma is determined to fight for her love.
Christoffer was running away from his past and future and ran into Alma’s arms.
Al he wants is to see a smile on her face, but his secret is threatening their
happiness. Christoffer is living a double life. He was brought up to honor his
duties to his family. But now he has to honor duty to his love, Alma.
Christoffer has to hope that Alma will keep standing by his side.

THE NEW YORKER III

BEATING THE ODDS

He sat
at the bar, his eyes glued on the bronze beauty. Her skin was like a mocha
latte; her full lips gleaming from the almost pink gloss. He could almost taste
them. He couldn’t see her eyes because her head was bent over a stack of papers
she had on her table. But he had a full view of her hair, thick, curly, forced
in the death grip of a simple but stylish grip at the back of her head. Her
beige business suit and the lack of color in anything she wore told him she was
business oriented, a career woman who didn’t have time for fairy tales. She was
serious but and would want to be treated as an equal.

He
smiled, knowing she was the perfect description of a one night stand. But part
of him wanted to set her free. How he wanted to release her hair, to let it
free and see how wild it made her look. Usually he was confident in approaching
a woman but there was something about this one that made him hesitate. The aura
around her just said ‘fuck off’.

“Don’t
try it.” The barman warned.

“Why?”
He smiled at his friend and was amused by the concern in his eyes.

“Don’t
try it, Rich.” The barman shook his head. “She has a habit of castrating every
man who tries to approach her. Sometimes I think I should put a sign at her
table, ‘Beware’.”

“Don’t
be ridiculous.” Rich laughed at his over dramatization. “She just needs someone
to thaw her out.”

“I
guess you’re the guy?”

“I’m
the guy.” Rich chimed.

“You
are one of my closest friends and the owner of this restaurant. Before you
venture into the dragon lady’s cave, could you leave a piece of paper that says
the restaurant is mine upon your untimely death?”

“Yeah,
right.” Rich cleared his throat and stood up. He slowly closed the gap between
him and the beauty. But before he was even close to the table he watched as her
hand went up to stop him. He froze and looked around. He looked at the
bartender and saw him grin. He decided he wasn’t going to fail, he was
determined to leave her table with a number and his balls intact.

“I—”

“I said
no.” She spat out even without looking up at him.

“I just
wanted to ask if you need another table.” He started and when she didn’t cut
him off he went on. “I can see you’re pretty busy and you have a lot of stuff
on that one table. I thought you might want another one. I’ll bring it to you
of course.”

He felt
his breath hitch as her head slowly raised. He stared into her evasive eyes and
felt as if he was swimming in a pool of honey. Although there was a hard set in
her face and jaw, her eyes sold her out. She was kind, sweet even. So he
wondered why she hid all that behind a wall.

“I
never thought about that,” she said as she looked around her workspace. “I
guess I could use some more room.”

“You
might even be able to make room for a plate of food.” Rich added with his best
smile on display.

“I
guess I should eat something,” she said seeming a bit lost. “I swear that was
my intention when I walked in here. But I got lost in all of this.”

“I’ll
bring you the table and call a waiter for you,” Rich offered and walked away.

* * *
*

Catalella
watched the man as he walked past her and toward a waiter. The first things she
had seen when she looked up at the strange man were two beautiful aqua-blue
eyes and a killer smile. She was glad he was gone because she didn’t know how
long she could pretend he didn’t affect her in anyway. There was an aura of
confidence about him which she liked. His six-foot-three frame was padded with
muscles. She couldn’t see much from all the clothing draped over him, so she
let her imagination filled in the rest. But what she could see was his taut,
broad chest, and how his jeans hugged the muscles in his thighs—and she liked
it. Physically he was delicious, and if she was the person she used to be, she
wouldn’t have let a second pass before she praised his beauty.

But
life had forced her to change. She was done with men and the only ones she had
patience with were the ones with the surname Ross. Her father and her brother
were the only men she needed in her life. Sure, they wouldn’t be able to give
her the intimacy she needed but she could depend on them. At this point in her
life what she needed most was a pillar of strength and not a whirlwind romance.

She
watched him as he walked back to her table. His smile was as wide as that of a
Cheshire cat. He was planning something but she knew his type of guy. Unluckily
for him, he didn’t know the kind of girl she had been forced to become. Her
break-up with Michael Mathews had taught her a thing or two about being
skeptical about every man she met.

“Over
here,” he said, while Catalella watched him instruct the waiter where to put
the extra table.

Once
she had arranged everything in her new space and placed her lunch order,
Catalella went back to her work. Her cold demeanor had protected her and not
let her down so far. It didn’t matter that he made her tingle in all the right
places, or that she could barely catch her breath under the intensity of his
gaze. Catalella wasn’t about to let him in, only for him to destroy her on his
way out. She heard a chair being dragged toward her. She lifted her head and saw
him take a seat in front of her. There were two tables between them, but that
wasn’t enough of a distance.

“Thank
you,” she said in a dismissive tone, hoping that he would leave her alone. But
he didn’t, he just sat there, staring at her, a smile and a quizzical look in
his eyes.

“You
are welcome,” he said flashing his dazzling smile.

A trade mark.
Catalella thought.
I bet that’s how he gets all the ladies.

She
pushed her papers aside when her plate of salad arrived. All she wanted to do
was to sink her teeth into a big juicy steak. But she couldn’t risk soiling all
her papers, they were the only copies. Plus, she needed her daily intake of
greens for her nutritious diet. Catalella was determined not to let any form of
sickness or diseases claim her body ever again. She hated how weak she had felt
when she had leukemia. She didn’t leave anything to chance these days. A
headache had her seeing a neurologist, she admitted herself into hospital when
she got a cough or flu, she dared the Manhattan traffic by taking her own car
so that she wouldn’t be exposed to secondary smoke, and she had a nutritionist
on speed dial.

“The
usual, sir?” she heard the waiter ask.

The usual? Here I thought that I
was their most loyal customer. This guy even has a usual.
Catalella thought. But having a
usual made him a creature of habit. Safe, predictable and maybe, just maybe,
the kind of guy she needed. But she didn’t recall ever seeing him in this
restaurant before. Since she’d started her job a year ago
De Alma,
had been her go-to restaurant.

“Would
you like anything else?” It wasn’t until she was looking deep into the aqua
blues that she noticed she was staring. Catalella could hear a hint of humor in
his tone; it was obvious he had noticed her ogling him.

“No
thanks, just a glass of water.” She smiled weakly at the waiter.

“Do you
only eat salads?” He said as he seemed to be skimming over her body. What
exactly was he looking for? “You are very curvaceous for someone who only eats
salads.”

The
desire that burned bright in his eyes was obvious and change of tone in his
voice only expressed what he was feeling.

“I
don’t want to get sauce all over my papers,” she said as she gestured toward
them.

“Oh!”

“Is
there something you need?” she asked her intention to chase him away.

“Just
food and your company.” He smiled at her, his eyes finally leaving her stack of
papers.

“I
really just want to be alone.”

“Why?”

“Honestly,
I don’t see how it is any of your business.” She wanted to take back her words,
when the friendly set in his face disappeared and hostility replaced it.

“Ice
queen,” he muttered.

“Excuse
me, what did you just say?” Catalella pushed her plate aside, her arms crossing
over her—just ready for a battle of words. He wasn’t going to insult her and
get away with it.

“Do you
have a boyfriend?” He smirked. “Let me rephrase that. Is there anyone who can
stand being in your presence for more than a second? Do you know anyone who
isn’t affected by your venomous tongue?”

Catalella
grinned back despite herself. She wasn’t going to let him know how his words
cut deep into her. Ice Queen, she had heard that before. People in the office
referred to her as the African-Latin-American Hitler. According to them there
was a bad mix in the test tube she had come from that made her sour inside and
out. She had heard every single joke thrown her way and she never let anyone
see how they hurt.

She
didn’t know what her retort would be, but words started flying out of her lips.
“No, I don’t have anyone not blood related to me who can stand my venomous
tongue. But I had a husband, and he didn’t leave me because I was an
Ice Queen
but because I kept on ‘almost’
dying. When he saw I wasn’t dying soon enough he decided to divorce me.”

Shit! Did that just come out of
my mouth?
Catalella cursed herself as the man’s stoic look turned to that of pity. She
hated being pitied. She had seen how people looked at her, and hovered over her
when she was sick. Catalella had promised herself that she wouldn’t be subject
to such an emotion ever again.