“He doesn’t deserve you as a granddaughter.” My mother placed her hand on my cheek softly. “I will never forgive him for taking you away from me.”
“What if he thought I was dead, too?”
“I doubt that,” she glared. “He was so angry when he found out I was pregnant. He made me feel dirty and worthless.”
“Was it because you were so young?”
“That was part of it…but it was more to do with your father than anything.” She was watching my reactions carefully as she spoke. I had heard very little of my father since my mother and I had been reunited, and I had already gathered that he may not have known about me.
“My father?” I asked, intrigued.
“I know I haven’t told you much about him, but it is still a really painful subject for me.”
“You don’t have to. I…”
“No, Darling. You have a right to know,” my mother interrupted. “Your father and I grew up together. He was the son of my father’s dearest friend, and was like the son my father never had. We never intended on falling in love. We had been friends for so long, and I didn’t realise how I felt until he joined the army. The thought of him going away upset me so much. He was my best friend.” Tears filled my mother’s eyes as she spoke of her lost love. “He was a few years older than me, so I never dreamed he would feel the same way. It all happened on the night of my sixteenth birthday. My father had organised an amazing party with all my friends, and your father got jealous when some other boy asked me to dance.” My mother laughed to herself at the memory. “He kissed me that night after the argument we had, and we were inseparable from that moment on. We kept it a secret because of my father, but he found out in the end, anyway. We were forced apart until the night your father was due to go into the army. We never intended on going all the way…it just happened. I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to see him again, but I never regretted a single moment of our last night together. He died after six months of duty.” Tears were filling my eyes as she spoke. My parents had been in love when they made me. I was taken aback by how it made me feel to know I had been conceived out of love. “Your father was a wonderful man, Shannon. You really have only the best of both of us. Finding you again was like finding a small piece of him, too.” I hugged my mother to comfort both her and me.
“What was his name?” I asked, still hugging her tightly.
“Stephen Cooper,” she whispered. I could feel the pain in her voice as she spoke. “Love is a painful thing, Shannon. Never forget that. Powerful love is the only thing that can make you weak.”
I didn’t really understand what my mother was trying to say. I knew love made you weak. I had almost given up my whole life to save Charlie’s over a year ago because of it, but love was definitely not bad. It had given me everything. If fate, however, had dealt me a different hand—if I had lost Charlie permanently—I knew my idea of love would be entirely different, just as my mother’s was.
I was still reeling over her words when I returned home. Charlie was playing his guitar on our sofa as I walked in.
“Did you have a nice lunch with your mother?” he asked as he looked up at me, obviously pleased that I was finally home.
“Yeah,” I smiled, realising just how lucky we were…how things could have turned out so differently for us, and how grateful I was that Charlie never gave up on me. I strolled over to him, knelt on the floor by his feet, and kissed him powerfully on his lips. Charlie dropped his guitar, wrapping his arms securely around my waist as he pulled me closer towards him.
“What was that for?” he whispered when our lips parted.
“I just want you to know how much I love you,” I whispered back.
“I know that, Sweetheart,” Charlie sighed, touching my face with one hand. “No one will ever separate us again. You know that, don’t you?” He pulled me onto his lap, kissing me in earnest when I agreed.
It was difficult to worry about anything when I was with Charlie. He made my life so complete. Sometimes it was as if I could drown in my feelings for him; nothing would ever mean more to me than he did.
I began to notice my confidence grow as the months drifted by. I attended major conferences around the world with my mother, making life changing decisions for the people who worked for us. She was ruthless in business, that was for sure. On our latest trip, I could hardly watch as we sold off half of our German based company. How would our staff find new jobs?
“Shannon, you cannot think like that. This is business. We either lose the dead weight or we start to sink ourselves.” It was the first time my mother had ever really raised her voice at me, and I must have looked alarmed because she took my hand in hers. “I know this is all new to you, Darling, but you need to be prepared for what will be coming your way.”
“I know. It’s just that so many people will lose their jobs.”
“You cannot have a heart in business.”
“I am starting to realise that,” I whispered under my breath, hoping my mother didn’t hear me.
“Oh, I forgot. You will need to call Charlie and tell him we are extending our trip. I need to talk to my directors in Moscow.”
I wanted to complain, but I didn’t want to sound like a churlish child. “Okay, I will call him later.”
“Is he still in London?” my mother questioned, sounding truly interested.
“No, he’s home now.” I tried not to sigh as I spoke. I missed him so much and didn’t want to extend our trip.
“I am very impressed with him, you know.”
“You are?”
“He’s made a real name for himself. He has quite a business head on him, too.” My mother smiled to herself. “I wonder if he would ever work for me.”
“Only if you want a photographer,” I teased. Charlie would never give up his dream job, and I would never want him to.
“It would be great to keep it in the family, though. I mean, there aren’t many of us.” I smiled, proud that Charlie was counted as family to my mother.
“So, when do we fly to Moscow?”
“We’ll leave as soon as Rachel gets back.” Just then, a knock came from the door. “Speak of the devil.”
“Jennet, I have arranged the board meeting. Only Dominic can’t attend,” Rachel called as she strolled gracefully into the room wearing her white suit; her dark brown hair was tied up in a neat bun. I spent more time with my boyfriend’s mum than Charlie these days. Rachel was a wonderful lady, and doted on me almost as much as her son. “Shannon, you look so tired. Why don’t you rest for a few hours before we fly?”
“Rachel, you are such a mother. I really need to learn some pointers from you,” my own mother teased.
“It has been a long few weeks for her, Jennet. I mean, the rest of us are used to it, but she isn’t.” Rachel winked at me. “And truthfully, my Charles is missing her like crazy. Does she really need to come to Moscow? She has already seen most of the contracts we have.”
“No, I’m fine. If you really need me in Moscow, I will come.”
“I think Rachel is right, Shannon. I have overworked you.” I didn’t really want to argue so I held my tongue; the thought of seeing Charlie was too great after being away from him for two weeks.
I packed my things quickly and raced to catch the flight to New York. I wanted to surprise him, so decided not to call Charlie to tell him I was coming.
I sat reading the paper while I waited for my flight to board. My mind was drifting, thinking about my reunion with Charlie, when someone called my name. It took a moment for me to register who it was. Tim Scott had grown his hair out and was more muscular than before. He was obviously still trying to attract Megan’s attention, I suspected.
“Shannon, it is so good to see you!” he greeted, sitting next to me as his tall, dark haired colleague stood, hovering over me.
“Hello, Tim. How are you?” I asked, putting my paper down.
“I would rather talk about you. I never knew you had it in you. How is
Charlie, by the way?”
Tim nudged me, smirking. “He is fine, thank you,” I said sternly.
“How long were you guys seeing each other while he was with Megan? Was it long after he found out about Megan and me?”
“Is that what Megan told you? That we were seeing each other behind her back?!” I asked in anger.
“Yes, Megan told me you and Charlie were after the Fields’ money…that you were going to divorce Will and take whatever you could before running off with Charlie.” Tim looked at me like he was impressed. “It was a shame they found out the morning of the wedding. If they hadn’t, your plan may have worked.”
“It didn’t happen like that at all, Tim.”
“I did wonder,” he laughed. “It sounded a little extreme, but you know how Megan can be.”
“Tim, we need to board our flight,” his colleague interrupted. I hadn’t noticed much about him until now, but as his deep brown eyes looked into mine, something about him seemed familiar. I just couldn’t place why.
“Okay, Mac.” Tim got up. “This is Shannon Davis, by the way.”
“It’s lovely to meet you, Shannon. I have heard a lot about you,” Mac smiled.
“All bad, I expect,” I teased, shaking his hand.
“Well, I do work with Field Organisation,” he laughed.
“It’s definitely all bad then.” It was probably worse than I could have ever imagined.
“Well, now that I have met you, I realise what William was talking about. I can see the draw.” Mac smiled warmly at me. “It was really a pleasure to meet you.”
“It was so good to see you, Shannon. Tell Bradley I’ll call him next week about the game tickets,” Tim said as he hugged me. “Say hello to Charlie for me, too, and tell him thanks.”
“You are seriously not still pursuing Megan, are you?” I sighed, shaking my head at him.
“No!” Tim shouted as he began to make his exit. “I am dating her.” I froze, watching Tim and Mac make their way to their gate to board their plane.
Megan was dating Tim. Was he joking, or had he finally broken through her defences? I knew I shouldn’t let it bother me, but it was difficult not to when I had been involved in her life for such a long time. I knew she hated Tim Scott. That was clear from the first time I had met her. Had Megan been forced by her parents because of the mistakes she had made with Charlie and me? I didn’t owe her anything—I knew that—but I didn’t like the thought of her being trapped again, whether our friendship had been a lie or not.
Charlie and my mother would no doubt be angry if they heard me thinking like this. They hated the entire Field family with a passion. Why didn’t I feel the same way sometimes?
I slept most of the plane journey. Rachel was right: the last two weeks had taken it out of me a little. It wasn’t just the physical work, either. My mind was almost on overload as I realised exactly how much I would be taking on when I officially became Jennet Downing’s daughter. I could now fully understand why my mother had decided to let me adjust to my surroundings before everything went public.
My heart was pounding outside my chest as I waved down a yellow cab. I was beginning to wish I had called Charlie in case he had gone out.
The taxi glided across the Brooklyn Bridge and I looked out towards the rest of New York, watching all the twinkle lights flicker in the distance. The night air was muggy as I stepped out of the cab, but still refreshing to me; I was finally home.
Charlie was sat sipping his beer on our veranda when he caught sight of me.
“Shan!” he beamed, rushing over to me. “I thought you weren’t due back for another few days.”
“I thought I would surprise you.”
“I’ve missed you so much.” He pulled me into his loving embrace as he gently kissed me. My heart leapt as our kissing became more urgent. It was clear it had been a long two weeks for both of us.
“So what have I missed?” I asked, resting on his chest on our couch a few hours later.
“Not much. Bradley and Lorna had a fight,” Charlie laughed. “Brad stayed here for a night.”
“Was it that bad?” I asked in shock. Bradley and Lorna hardly ever fought.
“Not really, but Lorna was trying to prove a point.”
“What point?”
“Bradley told her he couldn’t see the point of marriage.”
“Oh, dear.” Lorna would not be happy about that. I was surprised he was only kicked out for one night.
“Yeah, I think Brad gets it now.” Charlie laughed, and I couldn’t help but chuckle with him. “What are your thoughts on marriage, seeing as how we are on the subject?”
I was a little stunned. I had never really thought about it before, but I knew I would only ever want him. “Marriage, well…it’s nice, I guess.”
“Just nice?” he laughed.
“Why do you want to know?” I questioned, suddenly turning to look into his beautiful blue-green eyes. The emotion in them almost pierced my own eyes.
“I want to marry you one day, Shan,” he admitted, never breaking eye contact. “How would you want to be proposed to when the time came?”
“I am sure you can think of far more romantic ways than me, Mr. Notice Me,” I teased. It was true; he was the most romantic man I had ever known.
“I guess so.” Charlie kissed my forehead. “Would you say yes, though?”
“Maybe…if the proposal was good,” I teased. He looked at me in shock before beginning to tickle me. I squealed with laughter, trying desperately to get away.
“You, Miss Downing, need to realise what a catch I am,” he laughed, carrying me over his shoulder into our bedroom. We carried on from where we left off in the lounge.
Chapter Four
“Earth to Shannon!” Lorna waved her hand in front of my face. “Are you with me now?”
“Sorry, I was lost in thought,” I replied, coming out of my daydream.
“Are you heading the meeting tomorrow?”
“Yeah, I have a few items to address.”
“Are there going to be any changes?” she asked with interest.
“A few. Jennet really wants us to go for that major contract.”
“The one Field Organisation has almost taken control of?”
“Yes.” Lorna smirked at me. “Mother thinks it will be good for me to gain the upper hand with them.”
“I think you need to have it out with William and Megan Field, if the truth be known.”
“You are probably right, but they have kept their distance for some reason since my mother threatened them,” I laughed.
“I think you need a bit of closure, that’s all.”
“No, you’re right. Megan and I have a lot of unfinished business, and I guess Will and I do, too.” I shuddered, knowing I still wasn’t ready for that meeting. “I just need to be stronger before I face them so I can get my answers.”
I wasn’t sure how I would ever get the answers. The friendship I had had with the Field family had been torn apart by lies. Did I really know Megan at all? Had Will been made to court me? Was any of the last four years real? It made me shiver to think about those early days before Charlie, when I truly thought my life could never get any better than Megan Field.
Charlie was away for a week, working on a private shoot in Canada. He had left in the middle of the night, making sure not to wake me. That annoyed me, but he knew I would try to make him stay if he had woken me. I stretched across the bed, finding the sheets empty when I awoke. I hated weekends on my own. I was glad they were rare.
As I wandered downstairs into the kitchen, I noticed a piece of paper. My heart skipped. It had been months since Charlie had left me a note.
Shannon,
I am sorry I did not wake you, but you looked so beautiful sleeping like you were. I just couldn’t bear to wake you, but…
I carry your heart with me
I want no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and you are whatever a moon has
always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
by E. E. Cummings
I love you and will see you in a week.
Notice Me
xxxx
How Charlie knew so many poems still amazed me. It was as if he had a photographic memory. This excerpt, however, was the most beautiful he had ever recited. Plus, it was one I had never read myself, which impressed me. I was meant to be the bookworm, not Charlie.
I spent most of the day putting finishing touches on the new merger that Headcom was slowly stealing from Field Organisation. I was enjoying having the upper hand more than I thought I would, too. Whatever the Fields offered, I knew we could outbid them. Plus, the new merger with Roman Marketing would make Headcom unstoppable. I was sure the Field family knew who was out bidding them by now. There was no other business with enough collateral to match their demands. I was so much stronger now. My confidence was beginning to overpower the old parts of my personality. A part of me even hoped that William Field would come storming into my office so I could finally give him a piece of my mind and tell him exactly what he had done to me.
Monday morning came, and I was shocked to have my wish come true.
When Claire, the receptionist, told me William Field required an urgent meeting with me, I thought Lorna had put her up to it as some sort of joke.
“Um…no, Miss Davis, Mr. Field is here,” Claire replied, confused.
“Are you being serious?” I didn’t wait for her to answer. I ran down to Lorna’s office, not even bothering to knock in my state of panic. “I…Lorna, can you sit in a meeting with me please?” I asked, completely flustered.
“Shan, are you okay?” Lorna questioned with obvious concerned.
“William Field is here.”
“Crap, seriously?”
“Yeah, I think I am going to need your support. I’m not sure if I am really ready for this showdown yet.”
“You’re ready,” Lorna beamed as she put her jacket on to follow me into the boardroom.
We made Will wait outside for a few minutes simply because we could. I was glad I had worn my dark brown hair down and put my best black suit on today. As Will wandered into the boardroom, he took a breath as he caught sight of me.
Embrace Me Page 3