Aiden (Members From Money Book 8)

by Katie Dowe

  “I am afraid I have bad news or at least disappointing news.” She handed Angela the letter. The woman opened it and read it quickly, looking up at her when she was finished.

  “Mind if I asked why?”

  “I cannot tell you.” She bit her lip and took a breath. “It is highly personal.”

  “I suspect so.” She studied the girl for a moment. “Holly is going to be devastated.”

  “Could you tell her that I am going to miss her?”

  “I will, and I want to say that I saw the signs between you and my son and was hoping…” She smiled at the girl’s gasp of surprise. “I am very observant, my dear.”

  “I can see that,” Ciara said faintly.

  “My son is a stubborn creature and refuses to see what is in front of him. Are you sure you would not want to stay and fight?”

  “I would not know what to fight for,” Ciara said with a glimmer of a smile. “Thank you, Angela, it was a pleasure.”

  “I hope to see you again, my dear.”

  Ciara carried her suitcase out and put it inside her car, slamming down the trunk before going into the driver’s seat. She sat in her car looking out over the grounds. The gardeners were there every day since the snow had melted from the grounds and now the gardens were rioting with colors. She had been on a picnic with Holly somewhere further up in a wooded area where they had pretended that there were forest monsters out to get them. They had had so much fun that day that she had declared that it had been the best day ever. She had let her guard down and allowed herself to get involved with a man who had no intention of seeing himself in a relationship with her, and now she was going to break a little girl’s heart. His mother had said she should stay and fight, but this time she was the one doing the leaving!

  Chapter 8

  “What are you doing, Regina?” her husband asked her softly the night after Ciara had settled into the room they had given her and their son had been put down for the night. Paul stood behind her as she brushed out her natural curls and braided her hair in one thick braid down her shoulder.

  “What do you mean?” she asked, meeting his slate grey eyes. He was still trying to get accustomed to a love that bowled him over every single day!

  “I thought we were going to wait until our son was at least four months old before we hired someone.”

  She got up and stood in front of him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He was solid and beautiful and she loved him so much that it took her breath away! She was now complete with a husband and son who meant the world to her. “She is in trouble, darling, and I am just helping out a situation. She did not tell me why she left the Carter’s, but I have a feeling why. She just needs a place to be for a little bit.”

  His eyes searched hers and he bent his head to kiss her lips softly. “Okay. You know I cannot say no to you.”

  “I was counting on that.” She bit him softly on the lip, sending the usual jolt through him.

  “Your minx,” he said huskily as he swung her into his arms and into the bed.

  ******

  Aiden came back and found his daughter looking disconsolate and inconsolable, demanding to know why Ciara had to go away. His mother had not called and told him about it, but he had come home Sunday night to find out that she was gone.

  “Where is she?” he asked his mother, trying to quell the anger inside him. She had up and gone without giving them any notice! He tried to convince himself that it was his daughter he was concerned about.

  “She did not tell me,” Angela said mildly as she looked up at the tall, formidable man who was pacing the length of her sitting room.

  “And you let her leave?” he bit out, his eyes glaring at her.

  “You wanted me to tie her to her bed and lock her door?”

  He realized how foolish that sounded and felt the anger whoosh out of him. “Holly is devastated.”

  “How about you?” Their eyes identical in color and shape met and held.

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “You are acting like a bear with a sore head, darling, and I have noticed the way you two act around each other. She left because of you.”

  “She told you that?” he asked her sharply.

  “She did not have to. She is drawn and unhappy, and I had the feeling that she could not bear to be here anymore.” Angela got to her feet and touched her son’s arm briefly. “You need to sort out whatever it is you need to do.”

  *******

  A week later, Holly was taken while she was at the park with one of the maids. They had not bothered to find someone else to replace Ciara because they knew she could not be replaced! Besides, Holly would be going to the exclusive school a mile away from the house in September so they were making do with the staff who was at the manor.

  The flustered and frightened maid said she had taken her eyes off her for one minute and when she looked around she was gone! Aiden left his office after the police had been contacted and had called his P.I. team to help in the investigation. He had thought at first that it was her maternal grandmother, but she had been far away at a casino in Las Vegas at the time.

  Angela had also rushed home from the hospital. An amber alert had been put out on her and a command center set up in the vast living room at the manor as the detectives and the family waited for the call. Aiden had not wanted it broadcast, but a news team had gotten wind of it and it was now streaming live on the internet and on television. That was how Ciara found out!

  “I have to go there!” she told Regina urgently.

  “Of course, honey.” Regina put her son in his cot and rubbed his back. It was in the middle of the afternoon and she had just fed him. She and Ciara had gotten close. “Ciara?”

  Ciara stopped and turned to look at the girl.

  “You have to tell him.”

  “I know,” she said with a slight smile. She had confided in Regina and the girl had been encouraging her to go to Aiden and tell him she was pregnant. “He is going to be pissed.”

  Gina grinned at her words. “You will hold your own. Let me know about Holly.”

  Her expression clouded over. “I will.”

  ******

  The call came a few hours later with the garbled voice asking for five million dollars by nightfall. “If I see a cop, you will never see your daughter again.”

  “I want to hear her voice,” Aiden said grimly. “And you piece of crap, if you touch one hair on her head, you are not going to live very long,” he added, ignoring the signs the detectives were making.

  “No need for threats, Mr. Carter.” The voice sounded wobbly for a moment as if the threat had gotten through to him. “Talk to Daddy.”

  “Daddy! I want to come home,” Holly’s voice came over the line.

  “Soon, baby girl. Can you be brave for Daddy?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay.”

  “That’s enough talking. I will call and tell you where the drop off point is,” the voice said and hung up the phone.

  They looked towards the technician and he shook his head in regret. “Only a partial trace.”

  “What now?” Aiden asked impatiently.

  “You are going to get the money and we are going to follow you. We will find your daughter, Mr. Carter.”

  Without a word, he left the room to make a phone call. “Tell me you have something.”

  “Does the name Paddy Malcolm ring a bell?”

  Understanding dawned immediately. “I had to fire him some time ago.”

  “He hooked up with your ex Michelle. I have no idea if they are both in on it, but I have been following him. What do you want to do?”

  “He expects me to drop off the money some place where he will name in a few hours. I want to personally go and get my daughter and have a talk with Paddy,” he said grimly.

  “We do not have the exact location where he has her but give us an hour.”

  “Make it less and there is a bonus in it,” Aiden told him.

&nbs
p; “Done. I will be in touch.”

  Aiden called Michelle.

  “Darling, what a surprise!”

  “Where is she?” His voice sent shivers down the woman’s spine.

  “I don’t know what…”

  “If anything happens to her, one scrape that was not on her before, a hair out of place or even a smudge on her face, and you are going to wish you were dead.” His voice was soft and sinister, and Michelle felt the fear clutching her throat.

  “I had nothing to do with it!” she said hoarsely, knowing that he would make good on his promise.

  “Call him and tell him to bring her to the park, I will be there waiting. If I find him first, it is not going to go well with him. I will go easy on him if he bring her back.” He hung up the phone, expecting to be obeyed.

  He strode back into the room and stopped short as he saw her! His heart thundered inside his chest as he looked at her. She was dressed in faded denims and a blue and white open front shirt with the tails hanging out. She looked thin, he thought, and almost ran to scoop her into his arms! He schooled his features into one of indifference and came inside. “Ciara,” he said with a nod. She was sitting beside his mother, and she jumped up and faced him.

  “Have you heard anything else?” she asked anxiously.

  “What do you care?” His tone was cold and brutal. “You left her without so much as a goodbye.”

  “Don’t!” she said sharply, feeling as if he had ploughed a fist into her mid-section. “Now is not the time.”

  “She is right,” Angela said, looking at her son reprovingly. “She came and that’s what matters.”

  He looked at the two women for a moment before turning to the detectives. “I know who has her.”

  *****

  Paddy sweated profusely. Michelle had sold him out and now he was in deep trouble! He had agreed to the terms because now he was up against a very powerful man and there was no way he could escape his far reach. Aiden came alone, that was how confident he was that Paddy was ineffective.

  “Daddy!” Holly cried out as soon as he came out of the vehicle. He stooped and caught her into his arms, hugging her tight to him and burying his face into her hair. The little girl wriggled out of his arms. “I was not scared, Daddy.”

  “I am glad.” He shifted her to his hip and looked over at the man who stood there waiting for his fate. “The police are right behind me.”

  “I did not mean any harm,” he said, twisting his hands together. “I was desperate.”

  “Not my problem,” Aiden said coldly. “I would have respected you more if you had come and asked me for help. You took my child and for that I show no mercy.” He nodded to the officers who raced towards Paddy. He strode to his vehicle and strapped her into her car seat before driving off. He adjusted the mirror and looked at her. “Did he hurt you?”

  She shook her head no. “He was just talking funny, that’s all. Can we stop at McDonald’s?” she pleaded.

  Aiden laughed softly at that. “Of course, sweetie, anything.”

  *****

  Ciara pulled the doors open as soon as the car pulled up and raced outside. Holly screamed and could hardly wait until her father took her out of the car seat. “Ciara!” She flew into the girl’s arms and they hugged. Aiden stood there looking down at them. Dusk had fallen and there was the sweet smell of oleanders and jasmine heavy in the air.

  Ciara lifted her into her arms and took her inside, not even looking at Aiden. The command center had been dismantled in the living room and it was like it had never happened.

  “Darling!” Angela opened her arms and Holly left Ciara to go to her, hugging her tight.

  Ciara felt him behind her and moved away, the betrayal of her body evident.

  She waited until the little girl had showered and was in her bed. She had requested that Ciara read her a story. “Are you going to leave again?” she asked anxiously.

  Ciara hesitated and then responded. “Even if I am leaving, I will never do so without saying it to you.”

  “I don’t want you to leave,” she said, her lips wobbling.

  “We will have breakfast in the morning,” she promised.

  “Okay.” She hugged Ciara and snuggled into her pillows. “Goodnight.”

  “Goodnight, sweetie.” She kissed her forehead and pulled the sheets up to her chin. Her eyes drooped, and before long, she was fast asleep.

  She bumped into Aiden right outside the door. “She is asleep.”

  “I figured.” His eyes raked her face. “Are you leaving?”

  Ciara stiffened. “I am spending the night. I promised Holly I would have breakfast with her in the morning.”

  He nodded and stood there staring at her.

  “I need to talk to you,” she told him.

  He nodded again and led the way to his suite of rooms where they went into the sitting room. “Would you like something to eat?”

  “No.” She had eaten something while he had been gone and it was not settling well in her stomach.

  She sat in one of the single chairs and clasped her hands in her lap.

  “What is it, Ciara?”

  “I want you to know that I never planned for this to happen.”

  He looked at her frowningly.

  “I thought it was hard for me because I was not regular and I never took anything,” she rushed on.

  “It would help if I knew what you were talking about.”

  She stared at him in frustration and then blurted out, “I am pregnant!”

  His blue eyes were unreadable as he stared at her. Ciara fidgeted and wished he would say something.

  “You knew before you left?” His voice was cold and she felt the despair flooding her.

  “Yes,”

  “You knew you were carrying my baby and you left with the intention of keeping the knowledge from me?” he continued in an awful voice. His face was hard and his fists were clenched, and with a sinking feeling, she knew he was thinking about what Holly’s mother had done.

  “You made it hard for me,” she cried in her defense.

  “You think that is any excuse?” He got to his feet and strode to the window, shoving his hands into his pocket. “If you had not heard about Holly, would I know about it?”

  Her silence told him what he needed to know, and with a muttered sigh, he left the room with her sitting there.

  He did not come back even after a few minutes, and Ciara wondered what she should do. Should she go to her room and allow him to cool down or should she stay?

  She got up and went into his bedroom, but he was not there, and with a trembling sigh, she went to the room she had used when she was living there. She was sitting on the side of the bed when her door swung open and he came in. “You are not leaving here while you are pregnant with my child. We are getting married as quickly as possible. My mother will help with the arrangements and you can hire a wedding planner.” His eyes raked her face coolly. “Holly needs a mother, so it might as well be you.”

  “You don’t get to tell me what to do.” Ciara got to her feet, shaken by the coldness of the arrangement.

  “Don’t test me!” His voice was soft as he came further in. “I am holding it together by a very slim thread, so do not test me.” Without another word, he turned on his heels and walked out of the room slamming the door shut.

  Ciara never thought it was possible to feel worse, but she was wrong! She sank down on to the bed and felt her whole world crashing down on her! He had every right to be angry, she thought, but that did not stop the tears from trickling down on her cheeks!

  ******

  Aiden paced the length of the room. Not only was he royally pissed at her, but he wanted her so bad that he was aching from it! He had missed her so much and when he had come back to hear that she had left, he had wanted to die! He had spent night after night in his room unable to sleep in his own bed because she had not been in it and now to tell him she was carrying his child and had kept it from him! He shoved
his fingers through his hair as he sat heavily on the sofa. Even feeling like he wanted to shake her, he had felt the need of her pressing down on him so badly that he had had to leave the room in a hurry! He was going to be a father again, and this time he was going to be there every step of the way!

  ******

  Ciara kept it together for Holly’s sake. She knew they were going to have to tell her about the baby soon and explain to her that she would still be loved just as much. That was one of the reasons why she had not really welcomed the news of her pregnancy. Holly was just getting to know her father and now for another child to get in between them, Ciara wondered if it was going to be hard.

  She had washed her face with cold water and tried to get rid of evidence of her restless night. Her heart quaked as she noticed him standing at the sideboard and pouring his coffee. “Daddy!” Holly pulled her hand away from Ciara’s and raced to him. He managed to put away the hot coffee and scooped her up into his arms. Ciara’s heart quivered at the tender expression on his face as he bent to nuzzle his daughter’s neck.

  “How did you sleep?”

  “Like a baby,” she said with a laugh. “I heard Ciara say that before.”

  She turned as her grandmother came into the room dressed for the hospital. “Hi, Grandma.”

  “Hello, sweetie.” She came over and kissed her cheek.