“Okay.” She walked out the door over to the carriage and let Deacon help her up.
“There’s nice warm rugs and if you get really cold, I have fur lined capes to keep you warm.” He tucked a blanket over her knees. “Just say the word and I’ll grab one. But for now, sit back and enjoy the ride.”
“Thank you, Deacon.”
He climbed up on the front seat and picked up the reins. She’d never been in a horse drawn carriage before. It felt both exhilarating and a little indulgent. The children would love it. One day she’d have to take them for a ride around the harbor with Deacon.
She watched the small town go by as they headed up the coast road. April was sure they were going to Drew’s house.
Deacon turned around. “You okay back there, April? Not too cold are you?”
“I’m fine, thank you.” She enjoyed the fresh air, even when it came whipping off the ocean. It had a cleanliness to it that couldn’t be replicated in the city. The view seemed different when you looked at it from a carriage. She had more time to take in the scenery as she passed, seeing things that before had gone unnoticed.
Just before Drew’s house came into view around the cove, Deacon turned down a dirt road. The lighthouse. The first parking spot they gravitated to when they were younger. The place they’d first made love before they were forced to look elsewhere when their secret spot was no longer so secret.
The horse slowed at the gate and came to a halt. Deacon turned around and smiled from underneath his big, bushy brown beard. “This is as far as I go. Sorry but Drew said you’d know the way from here.”
“I do. Thank you very much. I loved every minute of the ride.” April pushed aside the blanket and climbed down from the carriage, her heart racing in anticipation as she used the turnstile to get into the lighthouse property.
“Enjoy the rest of your day, April. Hope we catch up again soon.” He clicked his tongue, flicked the reins, and turned the carriage around.
She took a deep breath and looked up at the old building towering above the scrub. She kept her eyes on the sandy pathway as she moved forward.
***
Drew stood with his hands clasped together waiting for April to appear. He’d heard from Liam when she left the carpark with Deacon, gave them enough time to arrive, and now his heart was in his mouth.
This was the place he’d brought her when they finally realized that they were no longer just friends. Something had changed between them. They’d spent many a day exploring the cliffs and caves below and much more time exploring each other. This was where they’d often made love before they had to find a more secluded spot. The place they’d cried when faced with being parted by college, where April had gone to cry over the dysfunctional relationship she had with her parents.
Would she think he was being morbid or would she feel as he did, that this was their special place where memories were made?
She walked out on the path and his heart pounded. His gorgeous April. She stopped and smiled when she saw him, then continued, her step lighter.
He walked toward her, his arms out. “I wasn’t sure you’d come.”
April stepped into his embrace. “Of course I would. But you didn’t need to bring me out here to talk to me, Drew.”
“It felt right.” He put his arm around her waist and drew her toward the lighthouse where he’d set up a picnic under the shelter of the old lighthouse porch.
“Hang on. Is that our old blanket?” She looked at him with her mouth open, eyes wide.
“Yes. I couldn’t bear to throw it out when I went to college. And when I came back, it was stored at Dad’s with the rest of my gear. Call me sentimental, but the early years here with you was the best part of my life. I had to cling to what I had.”
“I never thought you were that sentimental.”
“Where you’re concerned, yes.” He guided her over to the blanket and tugged her hand until she sat beside him. “I’m sorry about the last few weeks.”
“You don’t have to apologize. I know there were things you had to deal with in your own time. I had no right to push you.”
He skimmed his hand under her chin, down her throat. She had such perfect skin. “Yes, you do. If left to my own devices, I’d still be hiding behind my mother’s death. I know that now thanks to my father and Bradley. In my mind it all made sense to send the expectant mothers to the mainland to have their babies so I wouldn’t have to deal with the possibility of something going wrong, but it wasn’t fair on everyone else.”
“Understandable after what you went through though.” She gazed at him with such love in her eyes, Drew felt humbled and more determined than ever to make her his once again.
“Perhaps, but if it wasn’t for you, I’d still be in denial. You always did make the most sense out of the two of us.”
“We make a great team.”
“We do and I’m glad you said that because I want to marry you, April.”
She shook her head. “No, you don’t. You only think you do. There’s so much you don’t know about me anymore, Drew. I’m not the right girl for you. It’s taken me a while to accept that, but I know I’m right. You deserve better.”
“No, I don’t. You’re all I need.”
“Can’t we leave things as they are? I’m not asking for more than that.”
The troubled look in her eyes upset him. There wasn’t anyone else he wanted to be with. “I don’t agree. There’s nothing you can say that will change my mind, April.”
She pulled her hand away and clambered to her feet, a sob in her voice. “Oh, don’t be too sure about that.”
Drew hurried after her as she stumbled across the lawn and down the sandy track that led to the beach. “April, wait!”
She was almost at the water’s edge when he caught up with her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her around so he could hold her against his chest. Tears streaked down her face. “Tell me what’s wrong?”
“I’m a horrible person. I’m not the nice little girl that you used to know.”
“We’ve both grown up since then.”
“But you didn’t grow up nasty.” She sniffed and leaned against him hiding her face in his neck.
How was he going to convince her she wasn’t the person she thought she was? April was a great nurse and superb mother. There wasn’t anything she could say that would make him change his mind. He had to convince her of that.
“Listen, how about you tell me the worst thing you’ve done and we can toss it in the waves, okay?”
Her shoulders trembled before a muffled voice reached his ears. “We’re not kids anymore. That won’t work.”
Drew pushed her away, looked into her face. “How do you know?”
“Remember what Leo said? Mothers know everything.”
“I may or may not concede that point, but not until you tell me what has you so convinced you’re evil.”
Her eyes clouded over with pain. “You’ll never look at me the same way again. I don’t know if I can handle that.”
“Try me.”
She took a fortifying breath. “Rob threatened suicide on more than one occasion. In fact, he used it to keep me where he wanted me. He knew if he threatened to kill himself I would stay and take more of his violence.” The tip of her tongue swiped around her lips and she swallowed. “One day it got too much. I’d left by then, run to a shelter with the children. He got my phone number, not sure how, but he did and called me. Threatened to do something if I didn’t bring his children back. Said I could go to hell, but I wasn’t taking the kids with me.”
Drew’s stomach dropped knowing what was coming. He held her tight, tucked her face into his neck and held onto her.
“I told him…I told him to do whatever he had to do because I wasn’t bringing the kids back to him.” She gulped down a breath and let out a strangled sob. “The police called me the following day.” Sobs wracked her body.
How could any man do that to his wife? Drew understood better than
she thought. It was a common ploy in family violence. Do this or I’ll do that scenario. I often worked well, but had disastrous consequences for the wife and children. She wasn’t to blame and now he had to convince her to believe that.
Drew held her while she sobbed in pain. Eventually her cries subsided to small hiccups which slowed to deep uneven breaths.
“Okay now?” He lifted her chin, kissed the tears drying on her cheeks.
April shook her head.
“Leo was wrong. You don’t always know what’s right. I don’t hate you, April. I love you more than ever for standing up for your children, for not giving in to his demands which could easily have put you in more danger.” He kissed the tip of her nose, looked into the dark depths of her eyes.
“I have limited experience with depression but I know this. If you’d gone back to him, the only thing that would have changed would have been your safety. He still would’ve found a way to escape his demons no matter what you did. He may easily have taken you and the children with him. You have to believe me.”
“Bradley said the same thing, but I feel so bad about letting him down. I loved him once, the children did too.”
“I understand that. But you have to realize that what you did saved your life and the children’s. Now you have to put it behind you and accept what you have—a chance to start again where you have people that love you. And none more than me. I meant it, April. I want to marry you.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“Mom, yes. Do it please.” Leo peered at her from the small screen of Drew’s phone.
“Are you sure you’re okay with it? It’s been a big change for you both lately. Moving here, new school and friends. I worry that I’m rushing you.”
Tilly nudged her bother out of the way and looked at her. “Mom, its fine, promise. We spoke to Drew about it yesterday. He wanted to make sure we were cool with it and we are. Mr. Hope, tell her, will you?”
She handed the phone back to Atticus. His cheerful face filled the screen with her children peeking over each side of his head. “The children are excited, April, as am I and Gigi. We can’t wait for you two to tie the knot. It’s been a long time coming. Now, go and celebrate and don’t worry about the children. We’re going to go over and see Arlo. He needs help with his oyster pots and the children are keen to get involved. He’s making a new section up and promised to show Leo how it’s done.” He cleared his throat. “Listen, the children want to have a sleepover at our place. Gigi has offered to do hotdogs on the fire with s’mores. Is that okay with you?”
“Please, please, Mom,” they both cried out in unison.
“You’re so good to us, Atticus. Thank you.” She hung up and handed back the phone to Drew. He took it and slipped it into his pocket.
“Ready to give me an answer now?”
“Maybe.” She lifted herself up and reached for him, locking lips with enough force to have him falling back on the blanket. April laughed and lay on top of him. “I love you, Drew. I don’t think I ever fell out of love with you.”
“Don’t ever feel bad about the past, April. It happened and that’s fine. Let’s use our energy to build a future for us and the children and anymore we might have.”
“You want more?”
He wiggled his eyebrows. “I’m keen if you are. If not, well I guess I can live with that. So long as I have you in my arms, I can deal with anything.”
She kissed his throat. “Maybe, but not yet. I want to enjoy being married first. Plus, I like my job even if the boss is a bit pushy.” She giggled. “I do love you, Drew. Deeply love you.”
“Love you more.” He rolled her over and lifted himself up, slipped his hand into his pocket bringing out a velvet jewelry box. “Let’s do this properly shall we.” He opened it while shuffling onto his knees.
“April Williams, will you do me the honor of being my wife?” He opened the box and held it out to her. A sparkling solitaire diamond glinted at her.
“Drew, it’s gorgeous.”
“Is that a yes?”
“Yes.”
He picked it out of the box and slipped it on her finger. “I don’t know about you, but I can think of a better place for us to be than here right now. Fancy a walk around the bay to your new home? I have champagne on ice.”
“Does that mean I get to have a sleepover as well?”
“I was hoping you would. And yes, I know I owe my father for this.”
“He knew?”
“Of course. I had to have his help to set this up, get Deacon and the horses and arrange to look after the children. I didn’t ask him to have the children for a sleepover though. That would be his idea, promise.”
“Let’s go then. We have a lot of years to make up for.”
The End
Hold Me Now, Book 2, Coming Soon
Author links
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Author Bio
#1 Best Selling Author, Ann B Harrison takes you to the places she loves the best. The wide open countryside of Montana where cowboys roam free and the ever changing Australian Outback where no two days are the same.
Ann lives in the beautiful Hunter Valley with her own handsome hero of many years. She has always loved the ups and downs of life in small communities and she shares this with readers in her novels.
Strong sexy heroines with a good dash of sass thrown in feature in her stories. Of course these women need an equally strong man to complete the story. Bring on the hero and watch the passion ignite.
When not writing Ann enjoys reading, gardening, walking her dog and letting her imagination go wild.
Forever This Time (Hope Harbor) Page 15