That One Time by Aja Foxx

Chapter Twenty Four

~ Henry ~

 

"He called again."

I turned away so Ryan couldn't see the smile on my face. "Yeah? And did you talk to him this time?" Martino had called every single day for the last month, ever since Ryan left the hospital.

So far, Ryan had refused to speak to him.

"No, and I'm not going to," Ryan insisted. "He had his chance five years ago and he didn't want it. Why should I give him another one just because he changed his mind?"

"I'm not saying you have to, but what about Arty?" I turned to look at my best friend. "You're denying him a chance to get to know his father."

Ryan's lips parted.

"Look, I'm not saying you have to play happy family with him, but Arty does have a right to meet Martino and get to know him. Even as angry as you are at Martino, you know that. Start small. Let him go to the park with you and Arty, or better yet, come to lunch with us and we'll invite Martino along."

"His parents are going to be there," Ryan said. "Do you really think it's a good idea to add in another grandchild?"

"Please?"

"Oh, I see how it is." Ryan laughed. "You want me there as a buffer."

I winced because he was right. This would be the first time I'd seen Frank's parents since they kicked me out all those years ago and I was terrified. Not only was my last meeting with them horrible, but now I was supposed to introduce my daughter to them.

"Maybe if we went together, we could show a united front."

Ryan's eyebrows lifted and I knew he liked that idea.

"It could be fun."

Ryan snorted.

"Okay, it'll be grueling, but we'd be there to support each other. Besides, Nonna is going to be there and you'll adore her. She's great." She was one of the main factors in me agreeing to have this lunch. I had missed her something fierce. "She'd be crazy about Arty, especially since you named him after her husband."

I walked over to take Ryan's hands in mine. "Look, you don't have to talk to anyone if you don't want to, not even Nonna, but I think you'll want to once you meet her. Besides, you can leave whenever you want. Just give it a shot."

"I'll agree under one condition. Martino has to sign that parenting agreement you had Frank sign."

Uh... "I can ask, but I can't guarantee he'll do it."

"He signs or I don't go. I'm not giving him a chance to take Arty away from me."

That I could understand.

"Let me call Frank." I pulled out my cell phone and dialed my new fiancé. I'd finally accepted his marriage proposal a couple of days ago, which was why we were going to see his parents. "Hey, Frank," I said when the man answered. "I need a favor."

"Anything, amore mio."

"You know, one of these days you're going to say that and I'm going to ask for something really outrageous."

Frank chuckled. "For you, I would do it."

"Keep that thought in mind when I ask you about my favor. Ryan has agreed to come with us so your parents can meet Arty, but he wants Martino to sign that parental agreement Mr. Evans wrote up for us first."

"I see."

Yeah, I didn't think it would be that easy.

The front doorbell rang. Ryan motioned that he would go answer it. I nodded and continued speaking to Frank. If it was for me, Ryan would come get me. "Can you see if Martino would be willing to do that? You can sweeten the deal by letting Martino know that Ryan said he could be there, too."

"That might actually make a difference," Frank said. "Martino has been going out of his mind trying to get Ryan to talk to him."

"Ryan's not doing much better."

"This would cause us all a lot less headaches if those two would just sit down and talk to each other."

"Yeah, maybe, but I can understand where Ryan is coming from."

"And I can understand where Martino is coming from."

I chuckled lightly. "Maybe you can explain it to me later, you know, if we ever get two seconds alone together without your daughter demanding your attention."

Eva had taken to Frank like a duck to water. I was almost jealous of how much time she wanted to spend with him except I knew he was the shiny new toy of the moment and that interest would end as soon as he told her no for the very first time.

It had yet to happen.

"Maybe we can convince Ryan to take Eva for a couple of hours while we go out to dinner or something."

I was really interested in that something. The first week after Stewart was arrested, I refused to be parted from Eva even when we were sleeping. That first night she slept in her own room, I was up and down all night long, checking on her. It took almost another week before I was able to stay in bed all night long.

And Frank had been right there with me every step of the way, but there had not been a whole lot of adult time.

I needed to get laid.

"You still have your hotel suite," I said. He might have been sleeping in my bed every night, but he visited with his family at the hotel. "Maybe Eva and I can come spend the night. I'm sure we can get one of those rollaway cots for her. And after she goes to bed..." I trailed off, letting Frank fill in the blanks.

"I'm liking this idea already."

I grinned even though he couldn't see it. "I thought you might."

"Henry, that detective is here," Ryan said as he walked into the room. "He needs to speak to you."

"Okay, Ryan. Tell him I'll be right there." I waited for Ryan to walk away before saying, "I might be a little late. The detective is here. He needs to speak to me."

"Leave me on speaker. I want to hear what he has to say."

"Okay, hold on." I put my phone on speaker and walked into the living room. "Detective? You needed to see me?"

"Afternoon, Mr. Warner. I just wanted to come by and give you an update on the case."

I wasn't sure I wanted to know what the detective had to come to my house to tell me.

"After Mr. Marcum was processed and put into the system, we started getting phone calls from all over the place. It looks like Mr. Galeazzi wasn't the first person he tried to scam money out of."

Not surprised in the least.

"After he gets tried here, we're shipping him off to California. Texas and Maryland want him, too. If he's found guilty here, he'll still has to serve his time for kidnapping and for the numerous attempted murder charges, but there are a lot of other charges pending. I don't think you have to worry about Stewart Marcum any longer."

"Oh my god, that is so great." I'd feared for ages that he'd get out on bail or something. "What about your men? Did they all recover okay?"

"They did, thank you for asking."

"What about Trevor?" Frank asked. "What's going to happen to him?"

"We're currently holding Mr. Franklyn as an accessory since he gave confidential information to Mr. Marcum, but we're still trying to determine how much he had to do with everything. He is wanted in Texas, however, so once we're done with him, he'll be extradited there."

"Can he get out on bail?" Frank asked, but I kind of wanted to know that as well.

"Technically, yes, but his bail has been set at five million dollars, and unless you want to bail him out, he has no other funds. All of his assets have been frozen by the FBI as they are handling the investigation since this was a kidnapping, and that's a federal offense."

I couldn't help thinking we should have gotten the FBI involved earlier.

"I'm not sure if this will mean anything to you or your brother, Mr. Galeazzi, but we did find out some information on Jack Marcum. He committed suicide after he became broke and destitute. We also believe he was on drugs due to the autopsy they did at the time."

I didn't think that was going to make Martino feel any better. He might have been pissed at the guy and feeling betrayed, but I was sure Martino never wished him dead.

"Several of the states who contacted us had information on him," the detective continued.  "Your brother was just one in a long line of men he tried to con money out of. His brother and he were working together, and then they brought Mr. Franklyn into their little scheme. You know where it went from there."

Unfortunately, we all did.

I smiled and held out my free hand. "Thank you for coming to let us know, detective."

I shook the man's hand and then showed him to the door before holding the phone to my ear again. "So, did you get all of that?"

"Yes," Frank replied. "I'll inform my family before you get here so you don't have to."

I wasn't sure I liked that idea or not. If he told them beforehand, they were going to have gold digger on the brain. If he did it after I arrived, same thing, but I'd be there for them to turn their anger on. Either way, I was kind of screwed.

"Maybe we need to plan this for another day?"

"It'll be fine, Henry. I promise. My parents are very sorry for the way they treated you."

That did not make me feel any better.

"Please give them a chance."

I huffed. "Fine, but the first time they start in about money, I'm done. I'll leave."

"Agreed, as long as you take me with you."

I grinned. "Agreed."

 

* * * *

 

"I'm going to throw up," I whispered, hoping only Ryan could hear me. Little ears and all that. "I swear I am."

"You dragged me along on this circus," Ryan countered. "I get to throw up first."

Yeah, okay, Ryan might have it a bit worse than me. Frank actually wanted me. The jury was still out on Martino.

When the elevator doors to the penthouse suite opened, Frank was waiting for us. I felt a little better when I saw him. I was even happier when Eva squealed and ran into his arms. Frank grabbed her and swung her up into the air before hugging her. He locked her into his side before reaching for me and planting a kiss on my lips.

"You ready for this?" he asked.

"No," I whimpered.

Ryan snorted. "He's five seconds from spewing."

Frank raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, so, I'm a little nervous."

"No reason to be nervous, amore mio. We're just going to have a little meet and greet and then some lunch. And I'll be with you every step of the way, whether we stay or go."

"Yeah, okay." I drew in several slow breaths to calm myself then shot Frank a wobbly smile. "Okay, let's do this."

"Are you sure?"

I wasn't sure, but the longer I pushed it out, the more time I'd have to worry about it. It was just better to get this over and done with. "Yes, I'm sure."

Ryan snorted again. "I'm glad one of us is."

I leaned over to him and whispered, "Use Arty as a shield. They can't jump you if you're holding the kid."

Ryan laughed, which was what I had been hoping for.

"Martino is here, but he did sign the parenting agreement," Frank said. "I have a notarized copy if you want it."

Ryan shook his head. "Not right now. I'll get it from you before I leave."

"You guys ready?"

I nodded. Ryan shrugged.

Frank squatted down and set Eva on her feet before grabbing her hand and then Arty's. "I have some people for you to meet, okay? If you feel uncomfortable at any time, you just tell me or your dads. Understand?"

Eva and Arty nodded.

"Okay." Frank stood, still holding their hands, and started walking into the main room. Ryan and I followed after.

The ball in my throat thickened when I spotted Frank's parents sitting on the couch, Martino standing behind them. His father was sitting ramrod straight. His mother had a handkerchief held to her mouth and tears in her eyes. Martino's expression was blank until he spotted Ryan and then a mix of emotions slid across his face. Hope, despair, need, and a little bit of anger.

When I spotted the one person I really wanted to see, I let out a little cry of joy and raced across the floor to give Nonna a hug. She was waiting for me with open arms.

"It's about time you came home, young man."

I laughed as I hugged her. "I missed you, Nonna."

"I missed you, too, son. Now, where is this little angel I've been hearing about?"

I turned and held out my hand. "Eva, come here. I have someone I want you to meet."

Eva gave her father a kiss on his cheek and then ran over to me. I sat down on the couch next to Nonna and wrapped my arm around Eva when she reached me. "Poppet, this is Eva Galeazzi, your papa's grandmother. We call her Nonna and I bet if you asked real nice, she'd let you call her Nonna, too."

Eva leaned toward me and whispered loudly as only a child could. "She has my name, Daddy."

I grinned when Eva laughed. "Actually, you have her name. You were named after her just as Arty was named after Nonna's husband."

Eva glanced around. "Where is he? I don't see him."

"Oh, child, he's here." Eva's voice was a little shaky. "But he's an angel now so you can't see him, but he will always look over you and Arturo."

Eva was mesmerized by Nonna as I knew she would be. She hadn't had a grandparent figure in her life since Ryan's grandmother passed away. When Eva stepped closer to Nonna and looked up at her, I held my breath, waiting to see what would happen.

"Do you miss him?" Eva asked.

"I do," Nonna admitted. "I miss him very much."

"Is that why you're crying?"

"Some, but most of these are happy tears because I get to meet you and Arturo. I've been waiting a very long time to meet both of you."

"Does Arturo look like him because I look like my daddy and my papa?"

"I'm not sure."

I knew everyone had to be holding their breath. I was. It was also almost silent in the large living room.

Eva turned and ran over to grab Arty's hand and then pulled him over to Nonna. "This is Nonna. I think she's like a grandma, but older. I have her name and you have her husband's name so you probably look like him."

"Would you like to see a picture of him?" Nonna asked.

Eva and Arty both nodded.

"Francesco, get my bag off the end of my bed."

Eva leaned in and whispered again. "That's my papa."

Nonna smiled. "I know," she whispered. "Your papa is my grandson, which makes you my great-granddaughter." Not to leave the other child out, Nonna turned to Arty and tapped his chest. "And you, young man, are my great-grandson."

"Is that why we can call you Nonna?" Eva asked.

Oops. She was supposed to ask. "Oh, Eva—"

"You are a very smart young girl," Nonna said. "That is exactly why."

Frank came back into the room and handed Nonna her bag. She opened it up and pulled out a small locked metal case. I saw that it was a photo holder when she opened it. Nonna picked the very first picture off the stack and held it out to the two small four year olds.

"This is Arturo before he became an angel. You don't look much like him here, but he was very old in this picture." She reached for the next picture. "But this one, you look just like him in this picture. He was around your age when this photograph was taken."

I hadn't realized how much Arty looked like Frank's grandfather until I saw the picture Nonna was holding. He looked more like Arturo than he did Martino. There was no denying the family resemblance.

"Daddy, look." Arty grabbed the picture and ran back to Ryan, who dropped down to one knee to see what his son wanted to show him. "Look, Daddy, I look like an angel."

They both did.