Crossroad to Love (Fab Five Series)

chapter 29

Marianne dropped Katy off at the restaurant with a promise to stop by later. Katy carried her briefcase full of designs, swatches, and color palettes into the lobby. Chloe was waiting and waved for her to join her in the private dining room.

“We can work undisturbed here.” She offered Katy coffee and they set to work immediately. Chloe was so impressed with Katy’s ideas, she finally sat back and said, “Babe, you have taken a load off my shoulders. I am putting you in charge of all the decorating. You make all the decisions, do it all. Can you take it on?”

“Well… I am still finishing up with Angie. When I get back home, I need to meet with her and start ordering all her supplies. If I can work it all out, I’d be honored to take over the decorating for you.”

“It’ll mean spending most of your time in Dallas. Can you handle it?”

“I’ll have to, now, won’t I?”

“Good girl. Oh, look, here’s Ryan coming in to check up on us.”

“I was just checking to see if you needed me for anything.”

Only everything, Katy thought. I need you for everything, Ryan.

“No, we’re doing just fine. In fact, Katy is so talented, I have just put her in charge of all the decorating for the O’Grady chain. That’ll free me up to work on recipes and kitchen stuff.”

“Katy, you can give up your other clients to work exclusively for the O’Grady chain? You do realize this will be a full time job?”

“I do realize that, Mr. O’Grady. At present, I have only one other client and that’s Angie. I’ve already told Chloe that I need to see that project through and then I am free to devote my time to O’Grady Enterprises. She has agreed to that stipulation. So you see, we really have it all worked out.”

“And you will be moving to Dallas, then?”

Katy had not thought of that. “That would be a major, life-changing decision. I have my home and my son to consider. I think it would be a bit much to move to Dallas for a temporary job, when I have no other reason to be here, don’t you?”

Ryan winced at her last words. “And what makes you think this job is temporary? If O’Grady Enterprises gets off the ground and we build all over the country, the job could last for years. You ought to seriously consider giving up your new business and joining our payroll.”

“We’ll see. I am not making any rash decisions yet. There really is no need to, now is there?” She looked directly at Ryan. Chloe had sneaked out of the room unnoticed, leaving the two to talk. “And if I did that, joined the O’Grady payroll, who would I answer to in that position?”

He looked at her with guarded eyes. “You would answer to me.”

“And you think that would work?”

“Why wouldn’t it? There is no reason I can think of that the two of us can’t work together, can you think of any, Katy?”

“No, of course not. I’ll give it some serious thought. As for now, I need to check and see if Marianne has returned to pick me up. Good day, Ryan.”

Shaking, she walked into the main dining room to see Marianne and Chloe chatting. She walked over and said abruptly, “I’m ready to go. Chloe, I’ll call you tomorrow. We need to talk about the offer you made me in more detail. Ryan brought up some things I hadn’t thought of.”

“Sure, sweetie. Call anytime and I’ll make time for you. We’ll get out of here and have some girl time while we’re at it. Everything ok?”

“It will be. He may think he can tell me what’s what, but I can make my own decisions.”

Chloe and Marianne were at a loss as to what that meant. They said their goodbyes and after Katy and Mari had gone, Chloe went in search of her brother-in-law.

“What did you say to her? You didn’t blow it, did you? I was serious about her taking this job. It would be a great load off me. Just because you’re a stubborn fool, don’t ruin things for the rest of us. I have had it with you, Ryan O’Grady. Up to here.” She held her hand up under her chin to demonstrate her frustration.

Ryan looked at her in shock as Shane entered the room. “Simmer down, Chloe, what’s wrong? I can hear you all the way in the dining room.”

“Chloe offered Katy a job as the O’Grady chain full time decorator. I was simply pointing out a few facts to Mrs. Barron about what taking the position would mean.”

“Which were?” Shane asked.

“I told her she’d have to give up any other clients she had, except for Angie, as that was a commitment made before she met us. I pointed out she may as well give up her new business and join the O’Grady payroll and she’d have to move to Dallas. And I mentioned that she would be answering to me if she took the position. All true. And all things she needs to consider.”

“All crazy! You are going to run her off. Just because you don’t want a relationship with her, you don’t have to treat her like an idiot. She is perfect for the job, and a good friend,” Chloe spouted.

“I have never said I didn’t want a relationship with her. I said it wasn’t going to happen.”

“Both of you calm down. Let’s let Katy think about it and reach her own decision. You two will accept whatever she decides. If she takes the position, you, big brother, will in no way make her life miserable. If she declines, you will accept it graciously and wish our friend well, Chloe. Is that understood?” Shane spoke in a stern voice.

Both Ryan and Chloe nodded.

There had never been animosity between his wife and his brother before, and Shane did not like it.

Meanwhile, Marianne drove Katy home. She decided to forego the movie as she got the feeling Katy needed to vent. When they arrived at the house, Katy went out to sit by the pool, while Marianne went into the kitchen. She carried a tray of iced tea and sandwiches out and set it on the table.

“Eat some lunch, Honey, and then for goodness sake, tell me what happened there today.”

“I just don’t get it. He doesn’t want anything to do with me. But he wants me to give up my life in Chicago, move to Dallas, and go to work for his company, reporting directly to him. He expects me to make those decisions.”

“He offered you the job? I thought Chloe did.”

“Originally she did, but then he told me all the details as he saw them. I don’t get it. And I more or less told him I didn’t know if a job was enough reason for me to uproot and move to Dallas.”

“Good for you, give him something to chew on for a while. But seriously, would you really consider moving out here and working for them? I mean it would be a great opportunity. They are really growing and going places and you’d be getting in basically from the ground up.”

“I have no idea, Mari. I’d have to speak to Alex, and there’s the house to think about. What if I moved here and it didn’t work out? What if we couldn’t work together after all?”

“Want my opinion?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No, not really.” Mari laughed. “Seriously, I think you should go for it. You said you were ready to start a new life. Alex doesn’t live at home anymore. You just started your business, it isn’t even really off the ground yet. You don’t need that big house to take care of alone. You have friends here… And then there’s Ryan… Need I go on?”

“You make it sound so easy.”

“It is. You just make the decision and do it.”

Katy met with Chloe the next day. She told her in confidence she was going home to finish her work with Angie, speak to her son and place her home on the market. She was taking the position with the O’Grady chain and she was moving to Dallas. Ryan was not to know until it was a done deal. Chloe breathed a sigh of relief and promised not to say a word to Ryan. The women hugged, shook hands, and Katy went to Marianne’s to pack for her flight home.

The next two months were spent in a flurry. Thanksgiving came and went. Alex was home on holiday break and helped her pack up the house. He was, as always, supportive of his mother’s decisions. He was hoping she and Ryan would work out their differences.

Katy finished ordering everything for Angie’s hotel. The only thing left to do was be there when it was time to get ready for the opening and make sure everything went smoothly, and Chloe had already agreed to give her the time off to go to Iowa.

“Ryan can suck an egg,” was Chloe’s reply when Katy reminded her that Ryan would be her boss.

One night in early December, the phone rang. It was Angie. “Hey, Katy.”

“Anything wrong?” Katy asked.

“No, everything is right on schedule. I won’t need you for a few months, but I had a great idea.”

“What’s that?”

“Michael is going back out to Dallas for a few days and I was thinking about a trip back home for a few days while he’s gone. I’d like to hang out with Mom and discuss the wedding. Would you like to ride down with me? You could visit your folks. We can get some holiday shopping done and there’s a place I want to see.”

“Actually that sounds great. I need to get down and see Mom and Dad before I move.”

“Really going through with it, huh?”

“That’s the plan. Where’s the place you want to see?”

“Remember the old Sheraton Hotel over in French Lick, and the dome that was all run down and empty for years?”

“Yes, I vaguely remember that.”

“Someone bought all that and renovated both hotels. I hear the Dome is gorgeous. I saw pictures in one of my casino magazines. They’ve built a casino between the two hotels. I would love to see what they’ve done with the place.”

“That would be fun. Yes, I’ll go. Just tell me when and where to meet.”

They made their plans to meet and drive to southern Indiana together the following Tuesday. They would stay until Saturday and then drive back home. Katy was looking forward to getting away and to seeing her parents. She had told them her plans. They told her they hated to see her move even farther away, but felt it was good she was doing something for herself after all these years. It’ll be good to see them, she thought.

The trip was all Katy could have hoped for. The visit with Jackie and with her own parents was delightful. She was able to complete her Christmas shopping while there, and had even won a little money at the casino. Angie had been right about the Dome. It was beautiful. It was sad saying goodbye to her parents, but they promised to fly out for a visit once she was settled.

Christmas was a quiet affair. She and Alex had dinner out and exchanged gifts afterward. The house was pretty well packed except for the things she used on a daily basis. A lot of her excess furniture had either been put in storage for Alex to use later or had been sold. The house was on the market, and the day after Christmas an offer was made. Katy and Alex accepted the offer, and in thirty days Katy would be homeless.

She called Marianne, who immediately began the search for an apartment for her friend with the help of Chloe. They were able to secure an attractive two bedroom apartment for her not far from Marianne’s house.

Katy’s friends and neighbors in Chicago had thrown a party in her honor. She had said her goodbyes as they all wished her well on her venture.

Things had gone too smoothly, too quickly, Katy thought as she packed the last suitcase. The furniture she was keeping and the boxes were already on their way to Texas. She would be driving the car out with the rest of her things. Alex was driving out with her to help her get settled over the weekend, before he had to fly back to school. She looked around the bedroom one last time.

It was time to turn the keys over to the new owners, a young couple, much like she and Bill when they had bought this place. Her thoughts wandered to the day Bill had brought her here for the first time. They had been so happy as together they had planned their future. She could almost see him standing in the middle of the empty room, beckoning for her to join him. Bill had kissed her and told her he wanted to raise a family with her in this house. She remembered him carrying her to the bed and making love to her the first night they had lived in the house. She blew a kiss into the air and said, “Goodbye, Bill, I love you and I’ll never forget our life together.”

Katy walked into the hallway and stopped outside the room that had belonged to her little girl, recalling the day she and Bill had brought their baby daughter home from the hospital. Walking into the room, she thought about the many times Bree had sat on the floor playing with the dollhouse Bill had built for her. Alex and Bree had played hide-and-seek in this room, with Alex always letting his sister find him. Even though she had been two years older than Alex, Bree had always let him be the protective one. The four of them had been a happy young family and in an instant, it had all been taken from them. Katy had not only lost the husband she adored, but the daughter she cherished. And her son had lost his father and beloved big sister. Wiping a tear as she turned to go, Katy looked back one last time. “My little angel, you’ll always be with me, no matter where I go.”

Alex was waiting for her downstairs. She stood in the dining room, recalling the dinners they had shared as a family, discussing the day’s events. As she turned, she handed the keys to the realtor, took one last look around and walked to the car, her son following with her bags. They were planning to drive outside the city for a few hours and then stop for the night. They wanted to get an early start in the morning and drive as far as they could the next day.

It was late January, the start of a new year. She had said goodbye to one chapter of her life and was driving toward the next. She had an exciting new job, a new home, and friends, but she did not have the one thing she desired most in the world. Ryan O’Grady. Sure, I’ll see him every day, but it won’t be the same. Katy resigned herself to the fact and accepted the terms. She could work with him and be his friend. Her decision had been made and it was too late to back out now. Texas, ready or not, here I come.