That got Harris’ attention as he sat in his chair. “I’m listening. It’s nice to see you finally contributing and taking an interest in my life.”
He was delusional.
Standing there silently for a brief moment, I looked over at Harris. He was smug and arrogant in his charcoal-gray suit. There wasn’t a person I hated more than him. In fact, he was the only person I hated.
I pointed to the papers. “It appears some of the dirty secrets of your family’s past have been given to a reporter. It could cause you trouble if more of these stories get out, considering the new merger deal you have on the table. I know who talked to the reporter.”
Yes, Harris. I got caught up on current events last night with a certain reporter.
Harris steeped his fingers. “Who?”
I took the paper out of my bag and slammed it down on the desk. Victory roared through my veins and I simply said, “Me.”
“What the fuck, Ashlin? You’re going to force my hand aren’t you? I’m going to show you I’m not fucking around here. Consider this a warning.” Harris picked up the phone.
Pointing to the paper, I spoke with absolute finality, “I’m not finished. I’d put down the phone until you hear everything. I’m renegotiating our deal.”
Harris narrowed his eyes at me as he assessed my threat. “A deal is a deal.”
Tsking, I spoke as Harris sat back in his chair after hanging up the phone. “The story published today outlining the deals to keep your mom’s DUI’s out of the paper with the city official payoffs are simply the cherry on top. I have all the documentation to show your dad bribing congressmen, paying off senators, getting insider information, and embezzling money for years. You’d be crawling with auditors. I’d imagine you would lose everything you have since it was essentially obtained illegally. I know how much you love your money, Harris.”
I slammed both my palms on the desk to emphasize my next point. Fire burned within me as all the irritation from the last few days came to the surface. My voice was steel and ice. “If you so much as interfere in my life again, I will send more stories to the paper. If I so much as think you are behind something, I will send more stories to the paper. I am going to get Gael back and you are going to let me go forever. If something happens to me or anyone I love, more stories will go to the paper. If Amelia receives anything less than the best care, more stories will go to the paper. I shit you not, Harris, I will strip away your precious empire and leave you with absolutely nothing. I never want to hear from you again. There are contingencies in place of everything I have to be sent out if something happens to me. Don’t fuck with me.”
Pushing off the table, I stood there in a standoff. His ice-blue eyes assessed my turquoise ones. His eyes softened. “Let’s talk about this reasonably.”
For emphasis, I looked at my watch. “What’s it going to be? Tick-tock, baby.”
“I want copies of everything.”
“No. My deal is not negotiable.” My hands sliced through the air.
He closed his eyes for a second. “What guarantees do I have that you won’t leak the stories anyway?”
“Because I want my life back and I want you out of it. I never would have gone this far if it wasn’t for you. Leave me and everyone I love alone and you’ll keep your precious empire.” I was breathing hard.
He nodded. I turned and walked out. As I reached the door, Harris spoke, “I really do love you, Ashlin. I wish I had done things differently.”
There was no reason to respond. I walked out of the room without looking back. Now it was time to catch the plane to Savannah.
Leaving a shop in downtown Savannah with a purchase I needed for what I was about to do, I tried Gael for the millionth time. The restaurant had confirmed he wasn’t due in until later this evening. The hostess hadn’t hung up on me which I took as a good sign. His employees were fiercely loyal.
If I couldn’t find him, at least I knew where he’d be at seven tonight. Driving on instinct, I headed toward the island. It had felt like a lifetime ago even though it’d only been five days. My palms were sweating as I prepared to explain myself to Gael. Hopefully, I wasn’t too late and he was waiting as his note had said.
After what seemed like an eternity, I pulled into the gravel driveway. Gael’s car was here. My love is here. Throwing my car into park, I ran up to the house and banged on the door. With how things were between us, it didn’t feel right using the key. There was no answer.
Not giving up, I headed around back and paused when I saw the tree where Daniel had made a statement of his love for Sophia. That carving was a testament to tried and true love standing the test of time.
Love does live on in our hearts.
Rounding the corner of the house, my heart stopped. Gael stood on the sandy beaches with his hands in his khaki pants as he stared out into the ocean. His dark-brown hair blew in the wind. It was a beautiful crisp day. His look mirrored mine when I had seen myself in the mirror—alone and lost.
Gael turned my way. I ran toward the love of my life while yelling, “Gael! Gael! Gael!”
“Ashlin!” Relief was in his voice as he called for me. He ran my way.
My heart picked up when I saw him coming for me. If he hated me, he would’ve stayed where he was. As we met, I jumped into his arms. Gael buried his noise in the crook of my neck.
He said, “You came. You actually came. I thought I might have been wrong.”
He put me down and I put my hands around his face. Needing to get it all out there, I gave him the cliff notes version. There’d be time to give him all the details. “Harris made me do it. He wouldn’t call the doctor Amelia needed for the brain surgery. He forced me to break up with you to save her. Her life rested on my shoulders. I’m so sorry, Gael. I had to do it. I had to save my best friend. I’ve been a wreck, but couldn’t contact you at all or he’d take away all the help Amelia needed. When you came to the cafeteria he was watching. He’s been watching us all along. He knew when we stopped using condoms. I’m so sorry. I love you! I love you with my whole heart. I had to wait until I could get free of his hold permanently. Please say I’m not too late.”
Gael crushed his lips to mine and I wound my arms around his neck. The taste of mint I had pined for over the last few days flooded my mouth. I would forever love this man. He put his forehead to mine.
I whispered over and over again, “I’m so sorry. Never doubt my love for you, Gael.”
With a vicelike grip, Gael held me to him. “It’s okay, sweetheart. You’re not too late. It’s okay. I thought something was up with how scared you looked in the cafeteria. Then Steven texted me and told me how sorry he was for my mom and he was glad I was coming to see you. He said you needed me. I’ve been a mess not knowing what was going on. But if Steven didn’t know we were broken up, then I had hope.”
Sobs erupted as I thought about it all. Gael held me to him as I cried. “Ashlin, I’ve got you back. That’s all the matters. If I could kill that son-of-a-bitch I would. What’d you do to get away from the deal?”
Looking into his eyes, I spoke, “I found some documents in all my office stuff he’d sent to Amelia’s. It implicated illegal activity his father had done. The corporation would be seized and Harris would lose everything. I had a contact in one of the boxes to a newspaper. When I brought her the story, she explained how this would damage an important merger Harris’ company was working on. If he tries anything, I’ll send the stories to be published. He’ll be ruined. It was my only choice to be free of him forever. I couldn’t let him play with my loved one’s lives.”
We stood there embraced as our love was rekindled. “Ashlin, I will always love you and I’ll always be waiting for you. There’s no one else. I need to make love to you, sweetheart. I need to know you’re really here and mine again.”
I stepped back and prepared for what I was about to do. Gael looked at me in confusion. Starting my prepared speech, I said, “I was always yours and will always be yours.
When I first met you, I asked for a recipe.”
Gael nodded.
From my pocket, I took out the ring I had purchased earlier. I got down on one knee. Gael’s smile grew wide. “You said that if I wanted to know the family recipes, I would have to bring a ring and bended knee. I have both and I’m asking to be yours forever and always.”
Gael didn’t say a word as he brought me back up to a standing position, then proceeded to get down on one knee as he revealed a black velvet box. “I’m yours forever and always, Ashlin. You will forever have my heart. I’ve had this ring since I knew I wanted you to be my wife. I’ve been carrying it around since Thanksgiving, waiting for the perfect moment. I’m here asking you, with a ring and bended knee, to be my wife.”
I tackled Gael as he fell back in the sand and kissed him. “Yes! Yes! Yes!” Our tongues danced, then I pulled back with a grin on my face. “Wait, I asked you first?”
He laughed. “But, you answered me first. I’d say me asking you was a yes to your question. I wanted to make this moment special for you.”
I kissed him again. We were the perfect pair.
“Being back in your arms is all I need, Gael.”
Between more kisses, I asked, “Does that mean I get the recipes?”
He chuckled, his warm brown eyes dancing with happiness. “It does. But you can’t cook. What were you ever going to do with the recipes, now that I think about it?”
“I don’t know, honestly.” We both laughed and kissed. Idly I wondered if it was the presence of Sophia and Daniel pushing us together.
Gael slipped on a beautiful princess-cut diamond that sparkled in the setting sun, then he slipped on the titanium band I’d gotten him. Gael picked me up and cradled me in his arms like a bride. As he walked he held me and kissed me more, showering me with love. This was my happily ever after.
As he climbed the steps he paused. “Ashlin, I want to get married at Daniel and Sophia’s tree. Fate brought our predestined hearts together. Because of Daniel and Sophia’s sacrifice, we have love.”
A little over three years later—
A BABY CRIED. “Gotta go, Ashlin. We can’t wait to see you next week. Ashton is waking up.”
“Tell my sweet niece I love her and can’t wait to see her for her birthday. I can’t believe she’s going to be a year old. Gael and I are anxious to hold her again.” A door opened and I knew Amelia was in Ashton’s baby room.
“I’ll tell her. Take care of yourself. Talk to you soon. Love you.”
“Love you, too.” I hung up the phone and walked the kitchen to get a drink before I finished unpacking a trunk we’d found in our Savannah home, buried in the far corner of the attic. It was early spring. The windows were open and a gentle breeze blew through the house.
Amelia had been blessed with a beautiful baby girl, Ashton, almost twelve months ago. For nearly a year after her accident, Amelia had busted her ass to get back to her pre-accident state. The rehabilitation had been hard, but my strong friend had persevered. Then after another year of trying, Amelia had finally become pregnant. Ashton had been named after me. I cried when I found out. Amelia had dreamed I had saved her when she was pregnant and knew she needed to name the baby after me. Besides Gael, no one had ever known what Harris had put me through during those bleak days at the hospital. And they never would.
In the three years since the accident, I’d only seen Harris once about a year and a half ago. I hoped I never saw him again.
Gael and I were married. We were visiting Amelia and Steven for the baby shower in New York. We’d taken a long weekend and were staying at Waldorf Astoria. We’d spent all morning in bed, making love and now we were leaving one of my favorite little bistros in downtown Manhattan.
At a crosswalk, Gael came up behind me on the packed street. He’d turned me around and the world faded away as I stared up into his chocolate eyes. With all the sounds of the busy city, all the people pushing by, Gael took the time to still show me how much he loved me. Barely putting his tongue in, Gael teased my mouth and I smiled.
“Want to go back to the hotel room, sweetheart?”
I bit his lip. “I thought you’d never ask.”
We started for the crosswalk and froze as Harris stood on the other side, staring. He was as I remembered him, tailored suit and looking like he could conquer the world. People were walking around us as the light indicated we could go, but none of us moved. Moving his arm around my waist, Gael brought me to him in a protective stance. Harris watched the gesture and a regretful look passed over his face.
The crosswalk indicator beeped, signaling people to hurry across. We remained resolute. I wanted to think Harris was penitent for all he had done, but it was probably the fact that I was one of the few deals he’d lost. All the pain I’d felt during those days at the hospital had me melding myself to Gael, thinking of a life without him. Without warning, Harris turned and strode off in the opposite direction.
Sometimes, I saw magazines with Harris’ picture in the stores. He was voted most eligible bachelor for the last three years, but was never photographed with anyone. When I’d come home, after Amelia had been released from the hospital, I’d found the note Harris referenced in the hospital. It was in the briefcase bag from when my things had been sent from the hotel after Aunt Leelyn’s death. Without looking at it, I shredded it. There was nothing in there that would change what had happened or detour my love for Gael. Whether what Harris had said was true or not in the hospital about the note, he was a manipulator.
The back wall of the family room was filled with memories of Gael and me. Beautiful memories. With a glass of water in one hand, I touched our wedding picture. We’d been married out by Daniel and Sophia’s tree. It’d been a simple wedding, exactly what we’d wanted. Friends and family had surrounded us in elegant white chairs. The tree had twinkle lights all through it. I’d worn an elegant white silk dress that had organza on top that blew gently in the breeze. I’d left my hair down. A flower was tucked in above my ear. Gael had worn a dark suit. The wedding, like our journey, had been magical. As Gael slid on my ring, he’d stopped and showed me the inside of the band so I could read the inscription.
Predestined Hearts
As the preacher had pronounced us man and wife, we’d both looked at the tree with Daniel and Sophia’s initials carved into it. I kept walking toward the living room and stared down at my ring. After all the heartache I’d had, my happily ever after had happened.
The old, wooden trunk had worn leather straps that kept it fastened. It had been behind what I’d assumed was a row of empty bookshelves that had all been stacked in front of each other. In the last few weeks, I’d gotten this insane desire to clean everything all over again. Gael had been a good sport about it and I’d found some heirlooms that I hadn’t known about. Since Aunt Leelyn’s death, the attic had been one of those things on my list but never had enough time to go through.
Undoing the leather straps, I opened the trunk. There were several old quilts. Underneath that was a frame with a picture. I turned it over and gasped.
The same excitement returned that reminded me of the day I’d found Sophia’s journal and started the incredible journey. I could not wait to show Gael. It would be perfect to add to the shadow box of their journals that hung on our living-room wall.
Gael called from the doorway. “Hey, I thought you were going to wait until I got back? I didn’t want you lifting that heavy lid.”
I gave him an adoring smile. “Come here, you need to see this!”
Gently, Gael caressed my stomach as soon as he made it to me. “I think Sophia missed her daddy.”
“She’s been active this morning.”
Being seven months pregnant, Gael became more protective by the day as the birth of our child neared. He’d been very protective all along, but wanted to dote on me every chance he got. I was barely cleared to fly next week. Since I’d had an easy pregnancy, the doctors thought it’d be fine. Of course, Gael was worried
, but after enough research he’d come around to the idea. When we’d found out we were having a girl, we’d decided on the name Sophia Danielle Stowe.
The baby kicked up a storm as she felt and heard Gael. His eyes roamed to mine and were filled with love. He never tired of feeling her move.
“She did miss you. I think she’s already a daddy’s girl.”
Keeping his hand on my stomach, he kissed me. Our passion never faded for each other. “What did you want to show me?”
I flipped back over the picture. In it, a woman sat on a couch with a man beside her, a hand on her stomach. The look of love was the very same I’d seen moments ago in my husband’s eyes. Besides my lighter hair, I was a replica of Sophia. Gael favored Daniel even more so.
Excitedly, I rambled, “Gael, that’s Daniel and Sophia the day before he left on the ship. It’s them. It’s really them! I can’t believe we had this and didn’t know about it.”
“Wow.”
For a moment we looked at the couple in complete silence that was almost reverent. Their journey was unlike any other. As I ran my hands over their faces, I relived the moments from their life. Daniel and Sophia’s first meeting in the park, their tryst in the Garden, the time at Tybee Island, and their last beautiful moments they had before she was taken from this world.
Because of them, I had my happily ever after—the life I’d never dreamed of.
I was loved.
As I had done a million times before, I silently thanked Sophia and Daniel for all they had sacrificed for two hearts later in life to become one.
Gael finally spoke. “I feel like I know them.”
“Me, too.”
We looked down at my stomach and I realized Gael was in the same position Daniel had been in the picture. All had come around full circle. After all, weren’t all destinies predestined?
Three years later …
Predestined Hearts Page 34