Chapter 17

Anita Lucas Taylor was leaning back in her executive chair with her eyes closed, reflecting on the events of the last few days. She thought about the dinner at home the night before, smiled warmly to herself, and opened her eyes to look at the new watch on her wrist. It was an 18-ct. gold woman's Rolex that had been presented to her by her brand-new parents.

Actually, it had been an embarrassment to both Kelly and her. They had been planning for an anniversary celebration for their parents and had decided to make it a first anniversary in spite of them having been married for nine years. Mom — Nita was so happy now to think of Andy as Mom — insisted that the first eight years were a total loss and shouldn't even count.

The hangup in their planning was the problem of gifts. There was nothing they could think of to give their parents. Then at dinner the previous night — Andy had asked Kelly and her to please dress — after finishing the main course, Mom had asked Ellie to bring out champagne flutes. When she did, it was obviously by prearrangement because she brought out six and she and Sam pulled chairs up to the table after Sam had poured the Dom Pérignon.

When the Duncans were seated, Jack reached into his jacket pocket, took out two pieces of paper and, after checking to see which was which, passed one to Kelly and the other to her. Both were still folded. Opening hers, Nita saw that it was a sealed court order of adoption: Anita Lucas was now the adopted daughter of Andrea Pierce Taylor and John Fletcher Taylor, III. When she saw what it was, Nita jumped from her chair and ran to Jack — Kelly had already bolted towards Andy — sat across his lap and kissed him with all the love she possessed.

When she broke the love-laden kiss, she whispered, "Dad, this is the happiest and proudest day of my life! I can't tell you how happy you have just made me." Leaving his arms, she went to Andy and sat across her lap. This time, though, she completely lost control and started to bawl.

Andy hugged her tightly and whispered, "We love you so much, darling daughter! You and your sister give us such incredible joy!"

Nita was so stunned by Andy's words she recoiled and said, "Mom, how can you say such a thing? Of course, Kelly and I love you desperately, but how can we possibly give you joy? All I ever do is cause trouble."

Andy melted her lips against Nita's and the flow of purest love almost knocked the girl out. When Andy relaxed her hold, she said, "Darling, that's what is so joyful! You and Kelly are constantly teasing each other, chasing each other around the apartment ... And you are so incredibly beautiful!"

By now Nita had reached her physical objective: She was a physical duplicate of Kelly and Andy herself. Her brown hair was now so sun-streaked that it was a virtual duplicate of Kathy's hair, with colors ranging from medium brown to platinum blonde. Moreover, it had been styled by Henry Hall in a very short boy's cut to replicate Andy's.

Returning to her seat, she sat down facing Kelly. The champagne was still sitting untasted in front of them and Jack was making no move towards his glass. Instead he reached down beneath his chair and brought up two identically wrapped and sized boxes. Giving one box to each girl he said softly, "Happy birthday to Anita Lucas Taylor and Kelly Carmichael Taylor. I can't tell you how happy your new mother and I are right now!"

Unwrapping the package, Nita's eyes widened as she saw it was a Rolex box. Opening it, she found her gold watch. Carefully removing it from the box she looked at it and then turned it over. On the back was engraved: "To Anita Lucas Taylor from her parents who love her with all their hearts on the day of her 'birth'." When Nita looked up, tears were streaming down her cheeks. Although she couldn't focus her eyes very well, she was almost certain that Kelly had received the same gift and was reacting the same way.

Then Jack raised his glass and said, "I would like to offer a toast to two of the finest young women in the world; two women who have honored Andy and me by allowing us to adopt them as our daughters. To Kelly Carmichael Taylor and Anita Lucas Taylor: A loving welcome from their parents who adore them."

Kelly replied to the toast first, and then it was Nita's turn. She raised her glass, while tears streamed down her beautiful face, and said, "Thank you, Dad, and thank you, Mom. Today I am the happiest person in the world. I have been welcomed into the most loving household in the whole world. How loving is it? Let me tell you about my wonderful new kid sister, Kelly:

"We were talking in bed awhile ago about things that would make us most happy. Do you know what her ideal would be? It would be to donate her beating heart to you, Mom, or to you, Dad, if, by doing so, your lives might be extended. She said she would kiss the other parent, then kiss the recipient and then lay down on the operating table beside them so that her heart could enable him or her to live."

Looking towards each end of the table she saw that tears were flowing from her new parents' eyes. Then she said, "That would truly be the height of Kelly's happiness: to give her life that you might live! This is my new kid sister.

"Is there more? Of course! Do you remember a week ago Saturday when Kevin was over and we watched that sexy movie on cable?" Looking at Jack she said, "You got so carried away you took Mom right on the floor. I can remember her trying to look over her head while you were reaming her so she could still see what was happening—"

"That's right!" Andy interjected. "And, Jack Taylor, I'm still mad at you, too. The least you could have done was to take me in the ass or from the rear so I could watch, too."

"Anyway," Nita continued, "Kelly got carried away and took Kevin in her mouth while he ate her cunt. I just sat there."

Looking back and forth she asked, "Do you know what happened later? I went to bed while Kelly rode home with Kevin. I was sleeping soundly when I was awakened by this marvelous feeling in my crotch. Opening my eyes I turn on the light and see this hump under the covers. Throwing them back, I find my kid sister eating my cunt. As soon as I did, she changed positions, put my legs over her shoulders and worked on me for nearly an hour. I must have cum continuously for nearly thirty minutes before she put me out. When I asked her about it the next morning, do you know what she said?"

Looking right and left she saw her parents shaking their heads. Answering her own rhetorical question Nita continued, "She said she could see me writhing on the sofa with no way to satisfy my own passion, so she decided to do it for me. Can you imagine? That's my kid sister."

Nita looked to her left at Andy and said, "But most of all, there's my mother." Pausing for a moment she said, "I realize that it's a little odd when a girl's mother is only five years older than she is. But what does a mother do? She guides, she teaches, she trains, she motivates ... But most of all, she loves! Mom, that's you."

Turning to Jack she said, "And then there's my father. He loves me, he protects me, but most of all, when he's with Mom he shows me what married love can really be. He is Mom's motivating and powering force."

After pausing for a moment she added, "You know, it's a damned good thing that we're on the fortieth floor. Any lower and we might be drowned by all the love that's generated here." Then with a little grin she added, "I wonder if it leaks through the ceilings of the apartments below... ?"

Nita's reverie was interrupted by the telephone. It was Charles Mason's secretary calling to ask if she was free to come to the store president's office. After saying she would come over immediately, Nita checked her appearance in a small mirror she kept in her office and then went down the hall to his. When she entered the office, Mason smiled at her and indicated for her to take a seat. He was just ending a phone conversation.

After hanging up the instrument, Mason looked at the girl sitting across from him and thought again of the fact that people who are together all the time rarely see physical changes in their colleagues. The first day he had met her, which was shortly after she joined the store, he thought she was a very pretty girl. But now she was stunningly beautiful. Moreover, every move she made was incredibly graceful and easy, reminding him of an athlete or a trained dancer. She was sitting at ease and yet her back was up straight, her head was up and her hands were folded in her lap. Even her hands are beautiful, he thought.

As the president of a top women's fashion store, Mason was always conscious of a woman's dress. Today he saw that Nita was wearing a beautiful gray wool suit with a high-necked silk blouse. Aside from the gold watch she was wearing, her only adornment was a double strand of pearls.

The girl was stunned at Mason's first words: "Nita, it really doesn't work."

"What doesn't work? I'm afraid I don't understand."

Mason was in his late fifties. He looked distinguished in a very conservatively-cut suit. Born to money, he mingled easily and freely with the store's customers and moved in the same social circles. Now he just grinned broadly and said, "Nita, I hope you know how highly you are regarded by everyone here at Bergdorf's? There are even some of us who love you. To me, you are the beautiful daughter that my wife and I never had."

The grin turned into a warm smile as he continued, "Because of who you are, some of us watch you very carefully. For example, you're going to be in a meeting with Bill Johnson today, aren't you?"

Nita was so shocked her jaw almost dropped. "Yes, sir," she replied slowly, "but how did you know?"

"I didn't know, Nita, I guessed." Now he looked amused as he explained, "I guess it's something I noticed for the first time a couple of months ago. Whenever you come to work doing your nun imitation, it means you're meeting Bill Johnson. But it doesn't work. You see, you are so incredibly beautiful, your beauty would show if you were wearing flour sacks."

Now he grinned and added, "By the way, please don't! Some of our customers would see how beautiful you look in them and will want them, too. Then where would we be? How could we make any money? And what would our suppliers think?" Then he asked, "But why do you do it? Bill is really a very nice guy."

Nita just slowly shook her head. Mason was absolutely correct, of course, but she wasn't about to admit it.

Fortunately, she didn't have to, as he changed the subject. "Nita, first of all, congratulations! I learned yesterday that you are now Anita Lucas Taylor, the daughter of John Fletcher Taylor, III, and Andrea Pierce Taylor. I think it's wonderful! Your new mother called me yesterday to tell me and asked me to go over a few things with you."

He looked down at his desk pad and then back up at her eyes. For the first time, he noticed how beautiful her gray eyes really were and then noticed that in spite of wearing no makeup, her whole appearance was vivid. Even her lips were cherry red and yet there was no sign of any lipstick. She was truly an incredible beauty.

Continuing, he said, "I think your mother wanted me to talk to you in order to get your true reaction and opinion. She thinks — correctly, I believe — that she loves you so much and you return the love that you would answer, not in terms of what you want, but rather in terms of what you think she would want. That's true, isn't it?"

Nita started to object but then just nodded ruefully and said, "Yes, sir. I guess it is."

He smiled warmly and continued, "First, your parents asked me to give you this." With that he passed over a Morgan-Guaranty cashier's check in the amount of $100 million. Nita looked at the amount — the numeral one followed by eight zeros — and almost fainted.