Chapter 34

"Emily! What a nice surprise."

Monica kissed her daughter's cheek and then offered her a seat. Emily had decided to visit her mom in her office at the hospital.

"It's good to see you," she continued. "How are Zander and the twins?"

"Everyone's fine. How about you and Dad?"

"We're doing well. Your father is getting restless, though. We'll probably take a vacation soon."

Emily smiled her approval. "Good for you guys."

"So what's new with you? Are you still enjoying your job?"

Emily's brown eyes lit up. "I love it," she gushed. "I recently had my mid-year evaluation with Skye and Tom, and they said if I was interested, they would recommend me to go through their program to become a counselor. I told them I'd have to think about it and discuss it with Zander, but if it's at all possible, I've pretty much decided I'd like to do it. It's so rewarding to work with the teen-agers at the Center. Being a counselor would give me a chance to work with them one-on-one or in small groups."

"Sounds very worthwhile. Your father and I are proud of you. I hope you know that. Paige would be proud of you, too."

Emily's expression turned somber. "I do know that. Mom, do you and Dad realize there's another sibling you should be *very* proud of?"

Monica clasped her hands together on her desk blotter and sat up straighter in her high-back chair.

"You're talking about A.J."

"Yes," the brunette said. "That's exactly who I'm talking about."

Monica nodded. "I want to be proud of him, Em, but he hasn't given us a chance to *be* proud of him. He lit into all of us that fateful night, over Courtney and Jason, no less, and then he stormed out of the house and out of our lives. Do you know how many nights I worried myself sick and cried myself to sleep wondering if he were dead or alive? He never called, Em. He left, and it was as though we never existed."

"He left because Dad threw him out of the house. What was he supposed to do?" Emily insisted. "And besides, not long after, you knew he was all right."

"Sure. Because he finally got in touch with you and Skye. I'm his mother, Em, and I stood up for him many, many times. I tried to reason with everyone that night. I pleaded with A.J. to get help, but I didn't tell him to leave. I didn't automatically take my husband's side when he told our son to leave. But your brother was drinking again. It got to be too much. After he cooled off, he should have had the decency to at least call *me*."

Emily couldn't argue with her mother's reasoning because she knew how devastated she would be if her children were to ever disappear from her life without a trace. But she also prayed she would never treat her children the way the Quartermaines had treated A.J.

"Is A.J. out of chances as far as you're concerned?"

"I didn't say that," Monica defended. "But A.J. certainly doesn't seem interested in a possible reconciliation. His silence all these years is proof positive of that."

"I wouldn't be so sure."

Monica narrowed her gaze. "What does that mean?"

Emily steeled herself for her mother's reaction.

"A.J.'s back in Port Charles. And he wants to see you and Dad."

*~*

"A.J.," Keesha admonished, "stand still. You are a nervous wreck!"

In her bedroom, Keesha tried to help him with his tie. He had arrived a few minutes earlier to take her and Julianna to the Quartermaine mansion for what he hoped would be a clearing of the air and a fresh start for everyone.

"Tell me something I don't know!" he snapped, and then immediately apologized.

She pushed his hands away so she could straighten his dark blue tie and shirt collar.

"A.J., you can't let your parents do this to you. You've come too far to backtrack. Answer me honestly. Are you craving alcohol?"

"No," he said, clasping her hands in his after she'd finished with his shirt and tie. "I promise you I don't want a drink. I don't. I did go to three AA meetings today, I'm constantly reciting the Serenity Prayer in my mind, and I've got my sponsor's phone number ready on my cell phone, but I don't want a drink, Keesha. I just want this to be over."

"I know you do," she said in a sympathetic voice.

A soft knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

"Do I look presentable?" Julianna asked, stepping into the room.

"You look beautiful," A.J. said, his fatherly pride showing.

Julianna had chosen to wear a pastel print skirt with a magenta short-sleeve top. She wore a gold necklace and one gold bracelet. Her mahogany curls cascaded about her shoulders.

"Your father's right," Keesha said. "You look lovely, sweetheart."

"Are you okay, A.J.?" Julianna asked. "You look a little pale."

"I'll be fine," he said and offered her a warm smile.

"I'm ready whenever you are," she said, and then left them alone.

A.J. wiped his sweaty palms on a towel in Keesha's bathroom and cursed himself for letting this meeting get to him. He kept telling himself everything would be okay. When he returned to the bedroom, Keesha had finished putting on her make-up.

"You look lovely, too," he told her, coming to stand behind her at the vanity table.

He placed his, for the moment, dry hands on her shoulders and gently squeezed them.

Keesha, dressed in a white linen pantsuit, smiled at him in the mirror.

"Have I told you how very thankful I am that you and Julianna are going to be with me?"

"Yes," she said, turning to look at him. "But I wouldn't mind hearing it again."

"Keesha."

He said her name almost as a reverent sigh. She rose from the chair and stepped into his waiting arms.

"I wouldn't even be doing this if it weren't for you. And Julianna. I have absolutely no idea what to expect from my parents, but knowing you and our daughter are going to be with me, I know I can do this. And I know I can be successful."

"I know you can, too," she said. "But how about some reassurance?"

"I won't turn it down," he said.

She embraced him and told him she had every confidence in him.

"Just keep your cool," she advised. "Don't let them rattle you."

"I'll try to remember that," he said and smiled.

"Remember this, too," she said.

Keesha pulled A.J. closer and initiated a searing, passionate kiss that left them both dazed when it was over.

"I'll definitely remember that," he said, his voice husky with a growing desire he knew he would, unfortunately, have to find a way to quell. Eventually.

Because with a fire having been ignited by Keesha's kiss, A.J. couldn't resist the temptation to draw her into his arms and kiss her again, slowly, teasingly and oh so thoroughly, and then wait with a smile on his face as she gathered herself and reapplied her plum-colored lipstick.

"It's now or never," he said when he knew there was no further reason to delay the inevitable.

*~*

Julianna couldn't help but be impressed when A.J. drove onto the sprawling grounds of the estate and navigated the car along the stretch of winding pavement that led to the main driveway. A.J. couldn't help but notice that his late grandmother's rose bushes were still kept neat and tidy. Keesha had trouble believing they were actually minutes away from entering the Quartermaine mansion.

A.J. parked the car and killed the engine. He used a towel he had brought to wipe his hands and his face. Keesha reached over to give his thigh a loving squeeze. Julianna waited anxiously to exit the vehicle.

AJ. looked out the car window to inspect the rambling house he had once called home. Not that many happy memories came flooding back, even though the mansion hadn't changed much in eleven years. He sensed Keesha's watchful eyes on him and turned his attention to her and to Julianna, who was sitting in the back seat. He pasted on a brave smile.

"Are we ready?" he asked.

"Are *you* ready?" Keesha asked, sincerely wanting to know.

A.J. nodded. "I am. I'm ready to get this over with."

*~*

Reginald was very businesslike towards A.J. when he opened the door and ushered the Quartermaines' guests into the marble-floored foyer, but his expression softened when he saw Keesha and especially Julianna. A.J. thought there might have even been a hint of a smile on his face.

He escorted them into the living room and told them to make themselves comfortable.

"Comfortable?" A.J. said and gave a bitter laugh. "Yeah, right."

"A.J.," Keesha quietly chided.

"I'm okay," he whispered.

He held out his hand to show her he wasn't shaking. But when his eyes spotted the crystal decanters displaying several kinds of liquor, he quickly looked away and began to silently recite the Serenity Prayer once more.

Keesha noticed that Julianna had crossed the room to look at the family photographs proudly displayed on a round, lace-covered table near the fireplace.

"I met her the other day at 'Kelly's,'" Julianna told her mother.

"Oh my, is that Brooke Lynn?" Keesha asked. "Wow, she's so grown up. She's your cousin, Julianna."

"That's what Michael told me. She was with someone named Lesley Lu."

"I'd love to see her, too," Keesha said. "I forgot to ask Nikolas about her. She's his younger sister."

"They both seemed very nice."

Keesha's ever-perceptive eyes fell to the 8x10 silver framed photograph of Jason and, she assumed, Courtney. She tried to picture the woman with A.J., but somehow, she couldn't. When A.J. approached the table a few moments later, Julianna wore a frown.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

She looked at her father with sadness. "I...I don't see your picture, A.J."

He laughed sardonically. "Why am I not surprised?"

Julianna thought it was very unfair; A.J. told her he was okay with it.

A moment later, the trio heard a click and turned as a group to face the double oak doors. They held their collective breaths as the doors opened wider and Monica and Alan, looking older but still attractive, stepped into the room. The tension grew. They all stared at each other, but no one spoke until Keesha covertly nudged A.J., who finally took a step forward. After clearing his throat, he attempted to speak.

"Mom. Dad. I know it's been a long time."

"Too long," Monica said, wondering if she was doing the right thing by restraining herself from running to her only son and embracing him with all her might.

She felt she needed to give him more time even as she longed to tell him how wonderful she thought he looked.

A.J. did not let his father’s stony expression deter him.

"I know there are many things you probably want to discuss, but first, I need to tell you the main reason I'm here. The *only* reason I'm back in Port Charles for that matter."

A.J. motioned for Keesha and Julianna to stand on either side of him. He placed his arms around their backs.

"Mom, Dad," he said, trying unsuccessfully to keep his voice steady, "I want...I want you to meet Keesha's and my daughter, Julianna Mae Ward."

"Your...daughter?" Alan inquired, his tone skeptical.

Tears of joy gathered in Monica's eyes.

"Yes," Julianna spoke up. "I am A.J.'s daughter."

"A.J., this is wonderful!" Monica exclaimed. "Julianna, hello! I'm so happy to meet you."

But Alan had a different take.

"If Julianna is your daughter, how come her last name isn't Quartermaine?"

"I can explain that," A.J. said. "It's true that Julianna is my daughter, but I didn't find out until recently."

Alan snickered. "See, A.J. Keesha knew better, too, than to let you be a part of your child's life."

"Alan!" Monica scolded.

"Whoa, wait a minute," Keesha said. "Yes, it's true that A.J. didn't know about Julianna until recently, but there were many factors involved in my decision. I know A.J. has gotten his act together. I want him to be a part of Julianna's life."

"I'm the reason my mother didn't tell A.J. sooner," Julianna said, her voice soft and subdued.

"You call him A.J.?" Alan questioned. "You don't refer to him as your father? Oh, this is priceless."

"We're in the process of getting to know one another," A.J. said. "I'm okay with Julianna not readily accepting me as her father."

"Because you didn't have anything to do with her upbringing anyway," Alan said dismissively.

"But now that A.J. knows he has a daughter," Keesha said, quickly growing exasperated, "he's willing to do whatever he can to be a good father to Julianna."

"Are the three of you together?" Monica asked.

"Not in the strictest sense," A.J. replied. "Keesha and Julianna are staying with Dara and Justus. I'm at the Port Charles Hotel. But we've been spending a lot of time together."

"And still your daughter refuses to acknowledge you as her father," Alan said, shaking his head in disgust. "Can't you do anything right, A.J.?"

"I'm trying," A.J. said, his patience growing thin. "Julianna has a lot going on right now. It's okay that I'm not her first priority."

"Alan," Monica chided her husband, "have you listened to one thing your son has said? He's okay with this situation. He's accepting it the way he should be. Why can't you give him the benefit of the doubt? Just this one time?"

"Benefit of the doubt about what?" Alan asked. "I think Keesha's actions, and Julianna's, speak volumes. Just because A.J. is no longer drinking doesn't mean he automatically gets to be Julianna's father. I applaud Keesha's decision. I'm sure she made the right one."

A.J. gave up. He thought he had a real chance to make a connection with his parents, but he realized his father held a grudge against him a mile long.

"It's comforting for me to know you're getting so much pleasure out of the fact I was kept from my daughter for almost sixteen years," he said, his voice filled with sarcasm. "Maybe it will also please you to know that I came here because Julianna wanted to meet you. That's right. She wanted to meet *my* family. Well, Julianna, you've met them. What do you think?"

"A.J., that's not fair," Monica protested. "I want Julianna to give us a chance. I want to get to know her."

"I have a question for you," Julianna said, speaking more to Monica than to Alan.

"Of course," Monica said. "Ask me anything."

"Why don't you have a picture of my father on your family photograph table?"

"Julianna," Keesha cautioned, afraid her daughter was about to cross a line.

"I'll answer that," Alan said. "The reason is simple, Julianna. For the past eleven years, we haven't had a son."

"I left because you ordered me to!" A.J. yelled.

Any restraint he thought he had was gone.

"You told me I was no longer welcome in your home. You told me to get help and to get a life. That’s exactly what I did."

"I told you to leave because you were causing nothing but trouble for this family," Alan said. "You couldn't even be civil to your brother and his wife."

"You mean the wife he stole from me! Jason never cared about this family, but the minute he could flaunt his relationship with my ex-wife in my face, he chooses to start coming around? And nobody questions him?! Yes, I had too much to drink that night and I should have left, but not one of you ever saw the irony of the situation. When I was married to Courtney, you didn't want to be around her, but suddenly, she's Jason's wife, so that makes her special? Someone to be loved and respected? You know what? I'm not doing this. I'm not getting into all of this with you again. I have my own life now, and I am very happy. I have Keesha in my life again, and now I have a beautiful, sweet daughter who does not need to witness anymore of this. I tried. Dammit, don't ever tell me I didn't try. But this is not worth it. Mom, I'm sorry, but it's eleven years later. I'm older. I have my own things that I'm dealing with, and I will not go through this again. I won't. And I will not *let* you put Keesha and Julianna through any of this. Come on," he said, turning to look at Keesha and Julianna with determination in his eyes. "We're out of here."

"Not yet," Julianna said.

A.J. looked at her in surprise when she reached out to hold his hand.

"I need to say something," she said, tears gathering in her eyes. "I am the one who asked to meet you, and my father arranged this, even though he must have known this meeting wouldn't be a pleasant one. I'm guilty of not wanting my father in my life, but it was because I was scared. I was frightened of the man I thought he was. I was scared for my mother. I didn't want her to get hurt again. But ever since A.J. has come into our lives, he's brought us happiness. Mama has never smiled as much as she has these past few weeks. I've gotten to know my father, and I think he's wonderful. He makes me laugh, and he laughs at himself."

She turned her attention to her grandfather.

"You seem to want something from your son, but I don't think you're doing a very good job explaining what it is you think he owes you. He came here, wanting to see you, and talk to you, but that's not what you want. You just want him to feel guilty, all over again, for something that happened so many years ago."

She looked at both of her grandparents.

"When my father arrived at our house in Philadelphia, after my mother had written to him, he didn't make my mother pay for keeping me away from him for all these years. He didn't stress my mom out with questions and accusations about why he didn't know about me sooner. He came, ready to help us, and wanting to know me. On our terms, not his. My father has the biggest heart. He told me he loved me, unconditionally, because I was his daughter. He made no demands on me or on my mother. He just wanted to be in our lives. He told me he would never cut me out of his life or not be there for me. I took those words for granted because I wasn't ready to hear them, but now, after witnessing this scene, my father's words are precious to me. All he's ever asked of me is that I give him a chance."

She turned tear-filled hazel eyes towards her father.

"I'm ready to give you that chance, Daddy. I love you so much. I didn't realize how much I loved you until I saw how a father can so cruelly treat a child he can't or won't love. You told me that about your father, but I didn't truly believe it. Now, I do. I love you," she said, throwing her arms around a very shocked but ecstatic A.J. and giving him a giant hug. "And I thank you for loving me the way that you do."

Keesha let the tears fall freely from her eyes as she watched father and daughter come together for the very first time as parent and child. Her heart was ready to burst. She had never been prouder of her daughter, or of A.J., for that matter. It had taken Julianna a long time, but she had finally accepted her father into her heart and into her life. Keesha had never been happier.

Alan and Monica looked on in stunned silence.

"Thank you," A.J. said when father and daughter had gotten their emotions under control. "All I ever wanted was for you to accept me as your father."

Julianna nodded. "I know. And I do, Dad. I do accept you as my father. I love you."

Feeling as though he were walking on air, A.J. looked at his parents. He had no anger or regret in his heart, only sadness. "This didn't go as I had hoped it might, but I'll be in Port Charles for a while. Call me at the Port Charles Hotel if you want to talk. I'm not leaving this time because I've been thrown out. I'm leaving because my daughter has made me the happiest man alive, and I want to celebrate with *my* family. And the irony of this is: I have you to thank for helping make this happen for me. Thanks. Dad."