by Rose Francis
But Kent was also angry at himself—how could he have let himself get so blinded? How could he have let himself get outfoxed?
Kent was especially angered by her stubbornness. Why didn’t she call him or make a move toward reconciliation? Why did she always think she knew what was best? Why not demand he listen to her every word and tell him he had no choice but stick by her? Why not go ahead and tell him what to do, but this time, in favor of the two of them instead of against them? Didn’t she know there was nothing more he would have liked than be by her side? Even now, he couldn’t shake it. Maybe it was that baby in her belly making him feel like he couldn’t abandon her.
Kent sighed and decided to forget it.
She wanted to walk away, let her. He was tired of running after her.
He decided to drown himself in his work.
***
Kimberly sat on her old bed, enjoying the familiar feel of everything around her. She was sort of glad to be back at home fully again—the house and her room still held some comfort despite her mom being gone, the family unit now broken ever since her mom decided finally being with the long-lost love of her life was more important than anything.
Kimberly knew she was doing the right thing. She had caused so much pain and it tore her apart to have hurt Kent so, and more than that—hurt his faith in people. She was the only one he trusted the way he did and she had shattered that trust. She didn’t blame him one bit if he wanted to leave her. Besides, she could do it—she could raise the baby on her own. She didn’t need him to help her.
But how would others take it? She didn’t want people to think he’d left his pregnant fiancé; most people already believed the worst about him before believing the best.
No, she’d find a way to clear his name. She didn’t know how, especially since she knew the child wasn’t Damien’s after all, which brought her to another thought: could she really keep Kent away from his own child simply because she didn’t want him to feel stuck with her? She knew Kent wouldn’t appreciate that to say the least—if there was anything that could upset him more than finding out about her plan, it would be finding out that she kept him away from his child because she felt they shouldn’t be together out of obligation. She absolutely had to tell him—but when? Certainly by the time the baby was due, right?
The house phone rang, interrupting her thoughts. She knew her dad or Monique could have gotten it but she felt this time it was for her, and hoping it was Kent, didn’t want to waste a minute—she hadn’t seen him in days and she didn’t realize how badly she wanted to hear his voice until now.
Her heart soared as she answered, impatient to hear his voice.
“Hello?”
“Kimberly?”
Her heart sank.
“What is it Damien?”
“I’d like to see you—I have something very important to talk to you about.”
“What could you possibly have to say that’s important?”
“Kim, please. See me just this once okay? Can you meet me at my place?”
Somewhere within her a red flag went up.
“I don’t think so Damien.”
“Why not? Okay I’ll come pick you up—you choose the place.”
“Okay but Damien, what is this about?”
“You’ll see sis.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Kimberly knew it was a bad idea but she was curious.
As she was leaving she told her father she was going for a drive with Damien, and he said straight up it didn’t sit right with him—he was only letting it go because he figured they were trying to build their relationship as siblings.
***
Damien sat in the car waiting for Kimberly when he noticed her telling someone goodbye although he couldn’t see who exactly.
He cursed under his breath.
That ruined everything—for today anyway. He needed her to have been alone when she left, preferably not telling anyone where she was going or who she was going with.
Change of plan. There will be another time.
He decided to take a different approach today: he would woo her in a way, lull her into thinking he genuinely wanted to stay out of her life and be respectful of her relationship with Kent, that he really just wanted to be a brother to her. He would get her to the point where she wouldn’t have to mention anything to anyone anymore, and just go with him the next time he asked.
When Kimberly hopped in, he asked:
“So where are we going sis?”
“Um, how about we just drive around?” she said, strapping on her seatbelt. “I’m sure there’s not a whole lot you have to tell me.”
He smiled and drove off.
“Kim, you’re still on the defensive I see. I just wanted to discuss our last encounter.” He sighed heavily. “Really, I wanted to apologize for my behavior then, I know it was weird. It was just so hard for me to let go of my feelings for you, especially since you ended up with that snake…I mean, my ex-best friend and half-brother, that…Kent. It hurt me pretty badly Kim, I mean, I could hardly get over you as it was and he jumped right…”
“Moving on Damien.”
“Yeah, sorry. Old pain dies hard, you know? So anyway, since we’re related and all, I figure we shouldn’t have to be cut completely out of each other’s lives.”
“Well I agree Damien but I just don’t know how…”
“That’s what I wanted to discuss with you.” That and the fact that you’re carrying my child. “How can we remain in each other’s lives without it being all…you know, weird?”
“Well…”
“So I was thinking, we can still talk to each other. I mean, like I know you’ve been having trouble dealing with this pregnancy...” His eyes shot quickly to her face to see her reaction but he didn’t get much, “...and it might be personal, but if you ever wanted to talk about anything, anything at all, I’m all ears. And you won’t have to worry about me telling anyone; I’ll keep your secrets Kimberly.”
“Well, Damien, that’s very nice of you but I don’t know if I’ll be talking to you about my pregnancy.”
“I know sis—I was just saying, you know, for example. Hey, if you don’t feel too weird about it, is it okay if I talk to you sometimes about any girlfriends I might get?” he said with a huge grin.
She smiled back and he saw an encouraging change come over her face.
“Wow Damien, you sound like you’ve got someone on your mind already!”
He grinned back. He most certainly did.
“Well there’s this girl at work—Kenya—she’s pretty hot…”
Kimberly laughed.
“Does she like you?” she asked.
“Yeah she does. I’m a little uncomfortable with work relationships though. But I know what you’re thinking, and you’re right. To heck with it. I should give it a shot!”
Kimberly smiled again.
“Yeah, maybe you should. I don’t know.”
“Right again! Maybe I shouldn’t move too quickly. After all, Alicia’s pretty hot too. And then there’s Sarah…”
“What?”
Kimberly burst out laughing, looking highly amused.
Their small chat, the drive, and lunch went even better than he imagined.
It felt like Kimberly was opening up to him again, and he knew his future plans were on solid ground.
***
Kimberly was smiling as she said goodbye to Damien when he dropped her back home.
She couldn’t believe she had thought about getting a restraining order on him two months ago—the poor guy just needed some time.
She’d had fun talking to him and hearing him go on about his dating possibilities. She found her guard going down, lower and faster as their time together progressed. She began to see him differently—it seemed like he had finally started moving on and was getting past his obsession with her, like he really wanted just a brotherly relationship with her and had put their history behind him. Maybe there was hope for a heal
thy sibling relationship after all.
For a split second she wondered why he didn’t bother building a relationship with Monique since she was now his sister too, then she shrugged it off. In time I guess, she thought.
***
A few months passed, and according to Damien’s calculations, Kimberly was due any day now—overdue even. He had to hurry.
She would never go with him willingly, but he had to make her see. And he absolutely needed to be there for the birth of his child.
His grandfather, Luke Davenport, was instrumental in helping him plan, had even hinted he and Kimberly weren’t really siblings, a sentiment which he shared in his own heart.
Damien remembered three months ago when Luke had first called him over to talk to him.
“Damien my boy,” he began, “it seems you still have an interest in your sister.”
Damien didn’t know how to react, but he decided to play it safe.
“Luke. What’s it to you man?”
“You’re my grandson! Well, so most believe at this point.”
“What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”
Luke shrugged.
“I have my suspicions.”
“You mean Kimberly and I aren’t really brother and sister?”
Luke shrugged again.
“Who knows for sure?”
Damien let his guard down.
“You know, that’s exactly what I was thinking Luke! I feel it in here,” he said, putting his hand over his heart.
Luke let out the heartiest laugh Damien had ever heard. Tears even came to Luke’s eyes.
Damien looked at him quizzically.
Luke simply replied:
“Oh I’m just so happy for you Damien—I believe she’s about to have your baby!”
He continued to laugh.
Damien was confused.
“How do you know?”
“Oh I overheard Kent and Elliott talking about it. It doesn’t seem like Kimberly had planned to tell anyone. And you know what Damien? I’ve always liked you. I can help you with Kimberly. I think you two belong together.”
Damien felt hope surging through him.
“Oh so do I grandpa Luke, so do I.”
Since his first plan had failed, he decided to enlist the help of Luke after all, and Luke had certainly kept his word, helping him plan an elaborate setup this time, guaranteed to succeed.
CHAPTER NINE
In the months after losing Kimberly, Kent found himself losing touch with the softer side she’d brought out in him.
But while his assistants and coworkers seemed to find him less pleasant to work with, the female sector appeared to be paying him rapt attention. He wasn’t sure if it was because of his relationship with Kimberly that he missed most of it before—blinding himself to the temptations out of respect for her—or if word of their split had somehow gotten out and the women had gotten bolder; after all, he had some power, lots of potential, and he knew from previous experience, plenty of magnetism.
Besides, it had been awhile—months. He couldn’t help but notice the sly smiles, the blushing, the flirtatious manners of some of these women. He hadn’t been paying attention to the needs of his body and deprivation had made his senses more aware.
Despite this, he still felt like he was with Kimberly.
She managed to avoid him—his calls, his attempts to visit—either by ignoring him or sending a relative to lie for her and say she wasn’t home.
It drove him crazy at first, but eventually he calmed down some and began to mourn her, them.
He knew he needed to accept she no longer wanted to be with him, but he was wary of the opportunistic members of the opposite sex surrounding him—he needed to be careful and protect his assets—all of them. He needed to proceed carefully.
However, there was one female who was relentless in her pursuit. She worked in an entirely different section from Kent’s yet managed to run into him every now and then and even offered to help him.
“Hi, I’m Amy. I can help you in any way you need,” she had told him on one occasion, to which he responded, “That’s not in your job description,” and went on his way.
But it didn’t seem to discourage her at all.
To Kent’s surprise, there she was again—the only one who had made it onto his radar. A beauty with wavy, strawberry blond hair, clear blue eyes, an hourglass figure that she made sure was noticeable by wearing just the right clothes and the most heavenly perfume.
She always made sure she crossed paths with Kent, even dropped a pen once so she could bend down in just the right way to retrieve it.
He remembered her introducing herself and offering to help him once but he knew what she really wanted.
Now here she was again, entering his office with the file he had requested.
He knew he hadn’t spoken with her about it—she must have intercepted his assistant who was probably only too happy to avoid him.
“Here’s that file you wanted Mr. Davenport.”
“Thanks, but I didn’t ask you to get it.”
“Mr. Davenport, I was just helping out…”
“Great! Now help yourself out.”
He could see that almost did it for her. But as she reached the door, she turned back to him and said: “I offer many services Mr. Davenport. If there is anything you need…” she looked at him suggestively, “...I am at your disposal.”
Kent thought about her many advances, then it really registered how deprived he’d been in the sexual department. And here she was, offering carnal pleasure with no strings attached. Definitely the kind of girl he liked back in the day. And he did need a stress reliever…
He put down his pen, got up and went straight to her, one hand shutting the door she’d been about to exit.
He took in her beauty, those inviting eyes, that intoxicating perfume and said:
“Listen Shelly...”
“It’s Amy, Mr. Davenport.”
“Whatever. Look, I know what you want so quit the games. Meet me at my place tonight and you’ll get what you’re asking for.”
She mocked disappointment and pouted.
“You mean I don’t even get dinner?”
“We both know it’s not your stomach you want to feed. But if you really want to, I’ll put something in your mouth.”
She seemed suddenly very excited.
“Oh Mr. Davenport, you’re a bad boy!”
“Tonight you can call me Kent. Meet me at eleven. On second thought…”
Her shoulders drooped.
“Meet me at the Lucky Six Motel instead.”
A whore should be treated like a whore, he thought, watching her let out a sigh of relief.
“Same time.”
***
Kimberly sat thinking on her bed. Her time was almost near. She had about two more weeks, and the baby she and Kent Davenport had made would be here.
She touched her protruding belly. She had to tell him soon. But how?
For now, she knew she was safe because no one would be expecting her to deliver early anyway. Everyone still believed it was Kent’s.
***
As soon as Kent let himself into the rented room Amy was all over him. She pulled his head down for a long, sensual kiss and her hands started working on his buttons.
“A little eager aren’t we,” he said as her mouth went from his lips to his neck.
“Oh Kent, I’ve wanted you so much for so long…”
He stopped her feverish kisses, held her head in his hands and looked her in the eye, then brought his mouth down against hers. By now his shirt had been unbuttoned and she started tugging it off. Once that came off, they were kissing again.
“Oh Kent,” she said in between kisses.
“Kimberly,” he replied, snapping them both out of the moment for a second. She didn’t bother to correct him this time—clearly not about to let anything stop her.
“Call me what you want you freak,” she said, smiling, resum
ing her activities.
Kent ignored his verbal blunder.
***
Kimberly had to call him. She knew she had to tell him, somehow.
Before she realized what she was doing, she had picked up the phone and dialed Kent’s cell.
***
Amy groaned.
“Please don’t get it,” she pleaded.
They were in bed, and she was down to her lingerie, while he was down to his boxers, and having just grabbed a condom, they were about to get down to business.
“Are you crazy? This could be important! Probably something at work…”
He got up and grabbed the phone.
“Kent Davenport,” he answered, but there was no response.
He knew someone was there, and he knew then, it had to be Kimberly.
Was she having the baby? Was she wanting him there at her side as she gave birth? Was she finding it hard to speak now because she felt bad it was Damien’s baby? His mind flooded with possibilities. It was as if all he’d buried bounced back and now, he could think of nothing else.
He was certain it was her, but he wasn’t certain why.
He had to find out what was going on with her.
“So who is it?” Amy shouted from the bed.
Kent heard the phone disconnect.
He started yanking on his clothes.
“Something came up at work,” he said. “You can show yourself out.”
“Is this to be continued? Some other night?” she asked pleadingly, looking up.
He didn’t answer.
***
Kimberly stared at her phone in horror. She was sure it was a woman’s voice she’d just heard with Kent and it seemed she had interrupted something between them.
She started feeling sick to her stomach.
She couldn’t believe she had just tried to contact him—what a stupid thing to do. What did she think, that he was there every day waiting on her call? Waiting for her to call him back to her?
Kimberly took a few deep breaths and tried to keep herself calm. She mustered up all the pleasant thoughts she could and continued to breathe deeply, closing her eyes. She rubbed her stomach thinking, I’m sorry baby, I’m sorry I subjected you to that, then she got up from the bed and turned on the same classical music Kent had played in the car when he took her to the hospital.