by Juanita Kees
Harold grumbled, ‘You should be sleeping in jail.’
Jaime pulled a face at him. ‘Even that would be preferable. She couldn’t get to me there. Give me a break, Harold. I had no idea Maria wouldn’t take no for an answer. And now I’ve lost my last chance with Peta. I threw it away.’
‘Go after her, Jaime. If she really means that much to you,’ Harold said. ‘But be warned, I will be there to make sure that you make the trip to the altar with her this time or you’ll have to answer to me.’
Jaime shook his head. ‘It’s too late, Harold, she won’t take me back a third time.’
Mark intervened. ‘Don’t be too sure,’ he said. ‘Go and see her when you take Maria to the airport. At least give her an explanation. She deserves it.’
‘What if she won’t listen?’
‘Then you’ll get no less than you deserve.’
Mark knew his sister too well.
Chapter 19
It took ages for Jaime to convince Maria he’d never marry her and just as long to console his mother, to make her understand that his heart belonged to the woman he’d lost twice—the one the tattoo over his heart symbolised forever. But Maria wasn’t a woman who would take no for an answer.
The final scene at his mother’s house had not been a pretty one, especially when Jaime explained the extent of the trouble Maria had caused. His mother had been in a state of shock when she discovered the existence of a grandchild, which had then turned to frantic sobbing when she realised that she may never get to meet the little girl. Peta may not be her choice of an ideal wife for her son, but a grandchild was a different matter altogether. Maria had been sullen, like a spoilt child whose favourite toy had been taken away.
‘Now once and for all, Maria, I have no interest in marrying you. Ever. I don’t love you. Hell, I don’t even like you very much. Go home and find yourself the rich man you seem so determined to capture. I am a grown man and I will choose my own wife. Although now, thanks to the two of you, I have probably lost the only woman who ever meant anything to me at all.’ He’d stormed out after that and gone down to the bar where Harold had found him and nearly ripped his head off.
The longer he waited, the more agitated Jaime became knowing every moment he was away from Peta counted. Every delay gave her the opportunity to fly away again. He pressed his hand to the tattoo on his chest and tried to still the stabbing pain that thought brought with it as he escorted Maria into the airport, waited as she passed through security and the point of no return, making sure she understood it was over. He did not want her getting off the plane again the moment his back was turned.
Satisfied she’d gone; he made his way through the crowd towards the airport doors and sped down the freeway to Peta’s penthouse, ignoring the beauty of the Swan River and the modern architecture that had consumed the city skyline over the years. Glancing at the address Mark had given him, he pulled up in the parking lot. Taking the entrance stairs two at a time, cursing the pain and stiffness in his leg, he found the elevator bank. Breathing deeply, he punched the button for the penthouse.
‘Oh, you won’t find anyone at home, love.’
He turned to look at the woman in her bright yellow tracksuit with a ratbag of a dog tucked under her arm.
She smiled sympathetically at him.
‘Peta and Bella left yesterday.’
Jaime groaned, his heart sinking to his shoes. He was too late. He pushed down the panic that gripped his stomach. What to do now? He couldn’t let her fly away again. Thanking the neighbour, he ran back to his car and drove to the second address on his list—Peta’s mother’s house. Jaime hammered at the door until he heard footsteps coming down the hallway.
‘Jaime?’ Mary Johnson pulled open the door, her face pale, eyes wide. ‘What do you want?’
Oh good God, he hadn’t meant to scare her, but if she’d meddled in their lives again, he’d never forgive her. He tried to ease the scowl from his face and curb the impatience that chafed at his good sense. ‘Where is she, Mary?’
‘Who?’
Jaime blew out a long breath. Who else would he be looking for? ‘I need to find her. Please tell me where she is.’
Mary huffed and placed her hands on her hips. ‘You’ve come to the wrong door if you think I’m going to help you. Don’t you think you’ve done enough damage?’
Jaime shook his head. ‘I don’t think we want to get into a discussion on who has done Peta the most damage, Mary. I would say that you are just as guilty of that as I am. Peta knows you and my parents connived to keep us apart. That you destroyed my letters and intercepted my phone calls when I tried to contact her. Now I’m running out of time and patience. Where is she?’
Mary’s lips thinned. ‘Peta chose not to confide in me about what happened in Williams. All I know is that she came back and packed her bags, leaving me to sort out her mess as usual. As if I have time for all this. If she wanted you to know, she would have told you herself where she was off to.’
She tried to push the door closed but Jaime blocked it. ‘Please, Mary. Help me out here.’
Mary’s lips remained stubbornly shut.
He tried again. ‘You know, there was a time when you actually liked me. How come your opinion can change so quickly when things don’t go the way you want them to? I loved your daughter then and I love her even more now. I thought I was doing the right thing by leaving and giving her space to grow up. I might even have come back for her, but between you and my family, you made that impossible. Instead you rushed her into the arms of a violent man with a serious gambling problem and some pretty shady friends. If you want to hate me for what happened all those years ago, then go ahead, but please don’t spoil my last chance to make things right.’
Mary had the grace to look ashamed. She’d know he was right, that forcing Peta and Paul together had been a mistake.
‘He might have been good to her and Bella at first, but he went off the rails when he opened that damn nightclub and ended up in the wrong company. She won’t be in that kind of danger with me, Mary. I can promise you that.’ He waited, watching her chew her lip as she processed what he’d said.
She stepped aside with a sigh. ‘Come inside, Jaime. She flew to Sydney. From there she’s flying to Auckland to stay with her uncle for a while. I’ll give you her itinerary. But be warned, if you mess with her again, you had better run fast and very far because this time I will deal with you myself.’
Jaime grinned, dizzy with relief. ‘Join the queue, Mary,’ he said. ‘I have had that same warning issued so many times in the last twenty-four hours that I’m just not scared anymore.’
Mary gave a glimmer of a smile as she retrieved Peta’s itinerary from the fridge door and handed it to him.
Jaime took the printout from her hands and bent to kiss her cheek. ‘I promise I will not hurt her again. If she sends me packing, I’ll go and never come back again.’ The pain of that thought was almost too much to bear. ‘But if she decides to give me another chance, not you, my parents or anyone else will ever come between us again.’
Mary read the underlying warning in his voice and nodded. ‘I’m sorry, Jaime, for all the trouble we’ve caused the two of you. I only did what I thought was best for my daughter at the time. Good luck. Now get moving. Your time is running out.’ She pointed to the paper he was crushing in his hands. Gently she pushed him out the door and waved him away down the drive.
Jaime wasted no time getting back to the airport. According to her itinerary, Peta’s plane left for Auckland the following morning. If he could get a seat on the next plane to Sydney, he may be able to catch her at the international airport.
He made his way to the standby desk where seconds later the flight attendant shook her head regretfully. ‘I’m sorry, you’ve just missed the last flight.’
Jaime swore silently. ‘When is the next one?’
She consulted her list. ‘Tomorrow morning at five.’
Jaime rubbed a weary hand over his f
ace. He’d be cutting it fine. ‘Can you get me on it?’
The flight attendant consulted the list again. ‘The only seat I have left is in First Class,’ she replied.
‘I’ll take it.’ Jaime handed over his credit card. She processed it and handed him his ticket. He wandered through to the passenger lounge and flopped into a chair to wait, praying he would make it in time.
He heard a voice calling his name through the thick fog of sleep. Jaime sat up, rubbing his eyes. An attractive flight attendant stood over him. A few months ago, he might have flirted with her, now he just wanted her to get him to Sydney fast. ‘Your flight is about to be called, Mr Caruso,’ she said.
‘Thanks.’ He stretched his cramped muscles and made his way to the gate.
The flight still seemed endless no matter how good First Class was and even if he felt like drinking, no amount of alcohol could dull his pain or impatience. He paced the floor, soothing the muscle in his leg, flicked through the movie channels and tried to listen to music. None of it could stop him thinking about losing Peta.
Four hours and ten anxious minutes later, they arrived in a wet and stormy Sydney. Jaime’s heart fixed in his throat. What if they couldn’t land? What if the plane got diverted because of the weather? What if he was too late?
He would follow her without question, but Auckland was a big town and she’d be hard to find. Although, she probably wouldn’t consider that he’d come after her. He hadn’t the first time. Finding her once she got there would take precious time. Always considering she wanted to be found, of course. Panic rose in his throat. He had to find her.
Relief flooded him as the captain announced that they would be able to land safely. He glanced at his watch. He had a little under an hour to get off the plane, through the airport from domestic to international. Not nearly enough time. He cursed the pain in his leg that slowed him down. Hopefully Peta and Bella hadn’t progressed through Customs yet. If they had … no, he couldn’t afford to think he’d lose them this time.
Jaime had a hard time keeping his feet still as he waited for the plane to taxi to a stop and the seatbelt light to go out. He shot out the door as soon as the flight attendant opened it. He played dodge as he ran through the crowded airport, praying his leg would hold up. As he neared the international side he heard the announcement.
‘This is a call for all passengers on Flight 332 to Auckland to please proceed through Customs immediately. Thank you.’
‘Please don’t let it be too late,’ he prayed as he shouldered his way through to where a queue of people lined up at the security check point. It was Bella he saw first.
***
‘Bella!’
Peta heard the shout and felt the tug on her sleeve as Bella swung around.
‘Daddy!’ she called. ‘Mum, my dad’s here.’ She bounced up and down, her excitement tearing at Peta’s heart.
Peta looked over to where Jaime made his way towards them. No, she couldn’t go through this again. She didn’t want to hear excuses or explanations that would give her hope of happy-ever-afters. ‘Come on, love, the man is waiting to check our hand luggage. We must go.’ She placed an arm around Bella’s shoulder and tried to guide her through.
Bella pulled free of Peta’s restraining arm. ‘No. I want to see my dad.’ She ran to meet Jaime and threw herself into his arms.
Peta sighed and reluctantly vacated her place in the queue. What was it about Jaime that had girls of all ages throwing themselves at him? She made her way towards them.
Jaime hugged Bella tightly. He stood up as Peta approached, holding onto Bella’s hand.
Peta stopped in front of him. ‘We have to go, Jaime. It’s too late.’
‘Not until you let me explain,’ he answered.
She shook her head. ‘There’s nothing to explain. You have a fiancée. You’re committed. We’re going to miss our flight.’ Peta glanced down and saw Bella’s grip on Jaime’s hand tighten, her little fingers white with the effort. ‘Bella, please, you have to let Jaime go and come with me now.’
‘Please,’ he begged. ‘I need to talk to you. Please don’t get on that plane. I can’t lose you again. Please give me another chance.’
Peta sighed. She glanced around, embarrassed to see they had attracted an audience. And damn it, Jaime decided to use it as an advantage. Letting go of Bella’s hand, he went down on one knee and took Peta’s hand instead.
‘Wait, what are you doing? Oh no, Jaime …’
‘Peta, I made a big mistake letting you go, then and now. I am lost without you. I have missed you so much. I never want to see you walk away again. I wish I could change the past but I can’t, so I’d rather change the future with you. Will you please give me a chance to explain?’ He turned her hand palm up and placed a kiss there, curling her fingers around it. ‘I love you. I love my daughter. I’d like us to spend the rest of our lives together, as a family.’
It sounded like heaven after the hell they’d been through, but it wouldn’t change a thing. It wouldn’t make a difference to what his family wanted for him. Her mum might finally be seeing the consequences of her actions, and Peta could forgive her for her part in separating them all those years ago, but his mum still clung to her dream for him. It had been there in the clutch of her hands and the happiness on her face at seeing him and Maria together. A look that had haunted Peta’s thoughts since walking away. This time he’d come after her. Could it be enough? Did it mean he really cared or was it only for Bella’s sake?
She’d been running for so long. If she at least gave him his chance to explain, she could walk away knowing they’d cleared the air between them. If she lost this last chance of happiness with the man she loved, it would be with a clear conscience. He promised forever, but what if that was just another lie? What if it was the truth?
Pushing the doubts aside, she pulled her hand from his. ‘Get up, you idiot. The whole airport is watching.’
He stood, hands at his sides, his gaze pleading, his smile gone.
‘We need to go somewhere a little less public for this discussion.’ She looked back at him, trying desperately to keep the hope out of her eyes.
Releasing a breath on a long sigh of relief, he drew her into his arms, closed them tightly around her and buried his face against her hair, his heart beating rapidly. ‘Thank you, baby.’
‘You don’t get to call me that yet.’
Gently, he raised her chin with his forefinger and stared into her eyes. ‘Do I get to kiss you?’
Peta shrugged, a smile teasing the corners of her mouth. She’d be mad to say no. ‘Okay. Maybe just this once.’
‘I plan to do it a whole lot more than once.’
He lowered his lips to hers and her resolve melted amidst the heat and taste of Jaime, whose mouth promised sweet things to come. He withdrew from her slowly as their audience around them broke into applause. ‘Let’s get out of here,’ he said to Peta, slipping one hand in hers and the other taking Bella’s.
‘Our luggage …’
‘I’ll arrange for it to be retrieved and held for a flight change,’ he reassured her.
She watched the girls on the flight desk fall for his charm and nudge each other when he smiled, but his fingers were threaded with hers and his eyes were only on her. Peta caught the look of envy on the flight attendants’ faces and smiled as he secured their seats on a return flight to Perth.
Too exhausted to resist, Peta let her head rest against Jaime’s shoulder. She couldn’t summon up the energy to remove her hand, so she left her fingers entwined with his against his thigh and closed her eyes. The buzz of inflight noise floated through her sub-conscious as she dozed, Jaime’s warmth solid and reassuring in the seat in between her and Bella.
She opened her eyes as the plane bumped down on the tarmac in Perth and taxied along the runway, and heard Jaime say, ‘Bella, sweetheart, would you mind very much if we dropped you at Uncle Mark’s house for a while when we get home?’
Bella looke
d at him, her eyes sad. ‘Are you going to leave us again?’
Jaime shook his head. ‘I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart, but your mum and I have a lot we need to talk about first, okay?’ Bella nodded and Jaime hugged her tightly. ‘Whatever happens, I will always be there if you need me.’
Three hours later they dropped a sleepy Bella at Mark’s door. Mark wore a very smug look on his face as he and Bella waved them down the driveway. They drove in silence, each wrapped up in their own thoughts and doubts until Peta asked, ‘Where are we going?’
‘Somewhere where we can’t be disturbed,’ he replied.
Minutes later he pulled the car into a secluded area down by the river. Memories rushed back. Memories of those long sultry summer nights on a blanket under the trees, youth and discovering the joys of love.
He walked around to her side of the car and opened the door, holding out his hand. ‘Remember?’
She placed her hand in his, her palm cool against his warm one. ‘Yes.’
Oh God, yes. She remembered every tender moment they’d had there, every sweet, innocent touch and kiss until they’d taken it beyond that to a level she hadn’t understood then but wanted now.
They walked down to the riverbank, their hands swinging between them, where the water lapped at their feet until they reached the tiny alcove secluded by the trees. Jaime sat and tugged Peta down until she sat in the V of his outstretched legs and her back rested against his chest. He folded his arms around her and they watched the last rays of the setting summer sun sparkle on the water.
Jaime sighed. ‘I owe you an explanation about Maria.’
‘I guess you do.’
With his heart beating rapidly against her back, Peta relaxed against him, absorbing his strength. All she wanted was to put all this behind them and start over, whatever their future together held. She was tired, so very tired, of running, fighting, and the disappointment that came with the struggles.
He picked up a handful of river sand and let it slide through his fingers. Peta imagined those long fingers sliding down her body, working their magic on her senses and turning her to jelly in his hands. She gave her thoughts a little shake and concentrated on Jaime’s words as they fell into the silence between them.