Vivian finished trying on some outfits that she had bought at the mall, and came downstairs when the doorbell rang.
"Did it work, Frankie?" Vivian asked, as she let the person standing on the other side enter.
"Georgia seemed to have bought it," Frankie replied, setting her purse down. "She's probably on the phone with Lalie right now."
Vivian nodded. "You were very vague, right?" Vivian asked. "I mean, you just said that you were secretly together in high school and walked away?"
"Pretty much," Frankie answered with a smile.
"What do you mean, 'Pretty much'?" Vivian wanted to know. "Did you say more?"
Before Frankie could reply, the doorbell rang again. Vivian slyly peeked out the window and widened her eyes when she saw who was standing there.
"Frankie, take your purse and go in the kitchen and don't come back out until I tell you to!" Vivian demanded, picking up Frankie's purse and handing it to Frankie.
"What?" Frankie asked. "Why?"
"Just go in the kitchen!" Vivian ordered as she watched Frankie fly off into the kitchen area.
Vivian adjusted her clothes as she opened the door.
"Lalie," Vivian acknowledged. "Didn't expect to see you here."
"I bet," Lalie replied, walking into the house and standing in the front area by the door. "This is where we last spoke, or yelled as I recall."
"Why rehash the past?" Vivian asked her.
"I could ask you the same thing," Lalie shot back.
Vivian looked confused as Lalie said that. "What do you mean?"
"You just don't learn your lesson," Lalie replied. "You used Heather, and now you're using Frankie the same way. Do you have some incriminating tape that you're holding over Frankie's head, too?"
Vivian walked into the living room, trying to think of a reply to that. "I'm not using Frankie," Vivian defended. "I had people over for dinner, and Frankie and Kevin just happened to connect there."
"They might have connected in some way, but I'm connecting the dots," Lalie retorted. "Frankie won't succeed, just a warning, not a threat."
"I didn't even do anything!" Vivian shouted. "Stop being paranoid and thinking that everyone is out to separate you and Kevin!" she continued. "You hurt Kevin and me by those words you spoke, and now he's just finding some comfort with one of his former girlfriends!"
"That's just it, there is someone out to separate Kevin and I: you!" Lalie shouted. "Also, Heather told me there is no way that Kevin and Frankie were together in high school."
Frankie listened by the door before sitting down at the kitchen table.
She picked up her cell phone and dialed a number. "Hi! What time was I supposed to meet you tonight? Okay. You have something to tell me? This ought to be good. You know I will!"
"What are you doing here?" a voice asked, coming through the back kitchen door.
"Oh, James," Frankie nervously said as she stood up in a flustered fashion, brushing away her hair as she wondered just how much of that conversation he heard.
Vivian looked at Lalie in shock. "Since when is Heather such a trusted source?" Vivian asked. "Kevin and Frankie carried a low profile in high school, no one really knew about it."
"Vivian," Lalie began, putting her hands on her head. "I know you. And again, I'm not paranoid, I'm just tired of you coming between people."
"Well, I didn't have anything to do with Frankie and Kevin," Vivian once again told her. "I just invited Frankie over for dinner, along with my two sons, and James brought Georgia."
"Okay," Lalie finally said.
Vivian raised her eyebrows at Lalie. "Wow, you believe me?"
"I don't believe or disbelieve you," Lalie simply replied. "I'll just figure everything out on my own. God help you if I find out my suspicions were right. Again, it's not a threat, just take it as an FYI."
"I'll do that, Lalie," Vivian told her, as she walked over to the door and opened it. "Thanks again for making my day so much brighter."
"You know how I love to spread sunshine," Lalie sarcastically shot back, heading out the door.
"Why are you sitting in the kitchen by yourself?" James asked, setting his keys down on the counter.
"She was just waiting for me," Vivian cut in, as she made her way into the kitchen.
"Vivian, I really must be going," Frankie told her. "Call me later."
"I'll do that," Vivian replied as Frankie headed out the kitchen door.
"Thank God this is over for one day," Frankie muttered as she was by herself in the living room. "Now, I can finally concentrate on an enjoyable evening."
"Where were you, James?" Vivian wanted to know, filling up a glass with cold water.
"At an interview," James replied. "Hopefully, I'll get that job so I can get my own apartment."
"Is Georgia going to move in with you?" Vivian asked.
"Probably not," James replied. "She's pretty happy up in that penthouse," James added, he paused for a moment. "If you don't want me to leave, especially since the divorce is final, I can hold off on getting my own place for a while," he offered.
"Of course not!" Vivian exclaimed. "Don't worry about me, do what you need to do."
"Thanks," James replied, as he left the kitchen.
"And I'll do what I need to do," Vivian muttered, as she walked over to the drawer and pulled out the pad with her ex-husband's contact number on it.
That night, dark clouds were beginning to overtake the star-filled sky that illuminated the early hours of the evening.
Frankie and Ryan arrived back at his apartment around nine thirty after enjoying a wonderful evening of fine dining.
"You never told me what you wanted to tell me yet," Frankie mentioned, watching Ryan walk over to the torch lamp.
Ryan slightly turned the switch, making the lamp project a dim light, before walking back over to Frankie. "I know," Ryan replied, taking Frankie's hand.
Frankie looked down as Ryan lifted their hands up. "What are you doing?"
"I'll tell you out there," Ryan replied, referring to the balcony. He led Frankie out to the wooden balcony, which he had decorated with a few flowerpots and a small white bench.
"The wind is picking up," Frankie commented, hearing the leaves on the tree beginning to rustle.
"Maybe the heat wave is finally breaking," Ryan replied, looking out over the balcony.
"That would be nice," Frankie said, sitting down on the white bench, Ryan did the same thing, and faced her as he sat down. "Now, what did you want to tell me?" Frankie once again asked.
"I got myself a job today!" Ryan exclaimed, as a broad smile came across his face.
Frankie's eyes lit up as she reached over and hugged him. "Ryan, that's wonderful!"
Ryan pulled back slightly to make eye contact with Frankie. "We can finally concentrate on a permanent future together, now!"
"Yes, we can!" Frankie exclaimed, changing her position on the bench so she could lay her head on Ryan's chest.
"Everything we talked about in college can come true now," Ryan whispered, as he kissed the top of her head. "It makes me so happy to know that I accomplished something. I paid for this apartment on my own, I found a job, and pretty soon, we'll be all set to start a family."
"A family," Frankie repeated, as she looked at the sky. She noticed in the distance that a couple of the clouds began to light up. "I think it's starting to storm, Ryan."
"Let it," Ryan replied in a carefree tone.
"Ryan," Frankie sat up and looked at him. "Maybe it's just me, but I don't think this balcony so many stories up in the air is the place to be in a storm."
"You're right," Ryan said, finally coming to his senses and standing up. He slid open the door and they both went back inside his apartment. "Do you want to celebrate tomorrow night around seven or eight?"
"Of course!" Frankie replied, as she looked out at the patio once again, noticing the lightning becoming a little brighter. "I should get back before this storm hits."
Ryan turned on the television and noticed a weather bulletin scrolling across the bottom of the screen. "Frankie, you can't go out. Look, we're in a severe thunderstorm warning."
"I'm sure I could make it home in-" Frankie began, but before she finish her sentence, a large streak of lightning and a booming sound of thunder interrupted her. "Oh, my God!"
"Frankie!" Ryan embraced a clearly shaken Frankie. "See, you have to stay here."
As the wind, lightning and thunder began to become more frequent, Frankie looked straight into Ryan's eyes. "I think I will wait out the storm." She grabbed his face and kissed him passionately.
"We could begin our celebration a night early," Ryan added, distinctly looking over in the direction of the bedroom. Frankie followed his eyes towards the bedroom and then
looked back at him, seductively raising an eyebrow as she did so. "Let's relive old times."
Ryan picked Frankie up and kissed her passionately as they headed off into the bedroom.
Though, the lightning was vivid, the thunder was blaring, the rain was torrential, the wind was ferocious and the hailstones were pounding, Frankie and Ryan only had one thing on their minds during that storm: each other.
Chapter 12
Non-Nsync Fiction
I'll Never Stop {Fiction}
Email Tracia