"Okay, okay." Cassandra lounged back against the arm of the love seat, a fur-clad arm draped along the back of the seat. She crossed her long elegant legs and patted the seat beside her. "Why don't you come over here and sit by the fire?"
Chloe shook her head. "No thanks," she said coldly. "I'm fine here." The last place she wanted to be was sitting next to this horrible woman.
"I don't suppose you'll believe me if I tell you that this is for your own good. I think you have a right to know what kind of man you're marrying."
"I do know," Chloe said angrily.
Cassandra gave her that patronising look again. "I know, I know. Now hear me out. Gaelan told you Colleen died when she fell from the cliff. Is that right?"
"It was an accident. There was an investigation into her death."
"You know there are other theories. Her body was never recovered - you do know that, right?"
"I hope you're not going to sit here and tell me that Gaelan played a part in her death. Because if you are, you can get out. I've heard it all before from Bowen."
"Does Bowen think Gaelan pushed her off the cliff?" Cassandra sounded genuinely taken aback for a moment. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Bowen always liked to think the worst of Gaelan. Still, I am surprised he didn't suggest suicide. That was another theory going around."
"It doesn't matter what Bowen or anyone else thinks," Chloe insisted. Bowen had definitely suggested suicide as a possibility. "It was an accident."
"How would you react if I told you it was none of those things? Murder, suicide, or accident?"
The room seemed suddenly quiet. There were no other possibilities, were there? Murder, suicide, accident. What else could there be?
Cassandra uncrossed her legs, stood up, and went over to the fire. She held out her hands toward the flames for a moment. "I’d forgotten how cold this bloody island can be in May," she said as she turned toward the window. "Look out there. It's the first of June tomorrow, and it's snowing."
Chloe glanced out the window, barely registering the large white flakes. "What happened then?"
"There was no accident," Cassandra said at last, her brightly painted lips curving into a smile.
Chloe stood still. She had no idea how to begin to process what she was hearing. "What do you mean?"
"Just what I said. Colleen didn't fall from the cliff."
"Then how did she die?"
Cassandra looked at Chloe, and for a moment Chloe thought she could see pity in the woman's eyes.
"Are you sure you don't want to sit down?" she said almost gently. "This might come as a bit of a shock."
"For the love of God, just tell me, then leave me alone!"
"Perhaps a bit of background will help you understand better. You do know that Colleen and Bowen were lovers before she married Gaelan."
Cassandra's story was the same as Bowen's. Colleen and Bowen were lovers until Gaelan had stolen her away from him. He was possessive and overbearing. She was unhappy.
She paused. "Is this sounding familiar? Is this what Bowen told you?"
Chloe nodded wearily. "Yes, I've heard this all before."
"Bowen doesn't know the rest of this story. Colleen never had the chance to tell it to him. Colleen told Gaelan she wanted a divorce. He was furious and refused. He couldn't bear the thought of Colleen going back to Bowen. And so he made her a deal.” Here Cassandra straightened up and stared directly at Chloe, who couldn’t tear her eyes from her.
Cassandra continued. “He would let her go, but on the condition that she disappear, become a new person, and never see Bowen again. He promised her a large sum of money to go away. And she took it. It seemed like a way out. She was heartbroken about leaving the child, but she knew Gaelan would never let her get custody.” Cassandra was stony-faced as she talked, her face betraying no emotions. “She decided it was time to wipe the slate clean - pretend she had never met either of the Byrne twins, never lived at Widow's Cliff, never had a child." Cassandra sighed in a way that seemed to deflate herself. "So she went to Italy, changed her name, and started a new life for herself."
She stared at Chloe long and hard as she stood up. "Do you understand what I'm saying to you?"
Chloe looked at her blankly, the feeling of nausea coming back. She could hear the sound of her own breathing and prayed this was all a nightmare. Soon she would wake up, and it would be her wedding day. A wedding day like this one could only exist in a terrible dream.
"Who are you?" said Chloe, her voice sounding strange and faraway to her own ears. She didn't need to ask though. She already knew the answer.
The woman pulled herself up to her full height. "I'm Colleen Byrne, Gaelan Byrne's wife."
Chapter 9
His friends would be amused. Gaelan smiled in the mirror at the sight of himself in a tuxedo. Rarely had his friends ever seen him in anything other than jeans, and this was as formal as they come. A jacket with tails. He looked like he was ready to step on the set of a movie set in Victorian England. The kind with the tall, dark, broody hero who mopes around the moors. Not that he looked broody today. How could he, when in just a few hours he and Chloe would be husband and wife?
He was in his room at the bed and breakfast in Puffin's Cove that Renée had booked for Chloe's family. Her mother and father were in the next room getting ready, and elsewhere in the house were a handful of aunts, uncles, and cousins.
He had enjoyed getting to know Chloe's parents, Adèle and Doug, in the car. They were gentle people whose lives had been primarily occupied with their jobs and child. It was going to be great having them as his in-laws, and it was nice to be part of a family again. Adèle and Doug had held hands in the car, and Gaelan was touched by their devotion to each other after almost forty years of marriage. He liked to picture himself and Chloe forty years from now, holding hands, as much in love as they were now.
He couldn't wait to see Chloe again. Despite the fact that he had spoken with her several times, these two days away from her had been torture. And as much as he was looking forward to the ceremony and the chance to publicly state his vows to her, he couldn't wait for the day to be over and for them to be alone. They would leave Widow's Cliff after the reception and stay in St. John's before flying on his jet to Paris the next day.
The night before, he’d had a long talk with Marcus, who’d agreed to take on even more responsibilities in the running of Byrne Enterprises, freeing up Gaelan to spend his energies on his more philanthropic endeavors, the things that made a real difference in the world, the things he loved to do. But most importantly, it would give him more time with Chloe and Sophia. Until now, he had filled his days with work and sought to fill the void in his life by building Byrne Enterprises. But all that had changed since Chloe had arrived. It was time to let someone else do the work. He had a life now.
Thanks to Chloe, he knew now he loved Sophia like his own child and always would. Still, he would like more children - his and Chloe's. Sons and daughters to carry on Byrne Enterprises and Widow's Cliff. He would have to be wiser than his father in dividing up his estate - he didn’t want his children to fight over property the way he and Bowen had. He sighed. He didn’t want to think of Bowen now. This was his wedding day. A new beginning.
Gaelan put on his long black cashmere coat over the tuxedo, the image in the mirror suddenly more familiar. He ran his fingers through his unruly waves and went to collect Chloe's parents for the ride out to Widow's Cliff.
Already it was starting to snow, big wet flakes like a Christmas card. The owners of the B&B congratulated Gaelan as he left the house, cautioning them to drive safely. "Only in Newfoundland," they said with a stoic shake of their head. "A May wedding in the snow."
The roads weren't too bad yet, and the trip to Widow's Cliff went smoothly. It wasn't until they arrived that things started to go wrong. Gaelan knew something was amiss the moment he saw Marcus waiting anxiously inside the front door. Gaelan introduced Chloe's parents to him, and, after leaving the
m in the capable hands of an usher, allowed Marcus to steer him to his own office where they would wait until Renée told them it was time to go to the ballroom.
"Mon dieu, Gaelan! I've been trying to reach you, but your cell was off."
Gaelan pulled his cell out of the pocket of his long coat. "Damn, I must have forgotten to turn it on after I got off the plane. What was it you needed me for?"
"It's Chloe," he said.
Gaelan felt a sudden panic as he imagined a dozen different scenarios, none of them good. "Oh God, she's okay, isn't she? She's not sick, is she?"
Marcus put his hand on Gaelan's shoulder. "Calm down. There's no need to panic." Marcus went to the mantle and poured a small measure of scotch. "Here, drink this. Chloe, like you, is probably just suffering from nerves."
Gaelan swallowed the drink obediently, thinking that until Marcus decided to scare him to death, he had been as cool as a cucumber over the whole thing. "So what do you mean by nerves?"
"Well, Kathryn went up there just over an hour ago to meet her, but Chloe refused to let her in. She told Kathryn she wanted to speak to you before the ceremony. Renée and I went up and tried to talk to her through the door, but she wouldn't even answer us."
Gaelan nodded and handed Marcus his empty glass. "On second thought," he said, reaching for the glass again. "Pour me another one. Maybe this is all Chloe needs." Gaelan took the drink. It didn't seem like Chloe to behave this way, but then maybe it was to be expected. She was about to marry a man she had only known for two months, not to mention one with a six-year-old child. Maybe panic was the most sensible reaction a woman could have in this situation. "How much time do I have?"
Marcus looked at his watch. "Twenty minutes. Renée wants you ready to go in half an hour."
"Okay, I'll be back."
Gaelan took the stairs at the end of the hall two at a time and knocked on Chloe's door. "It's me, Chloe." There was no answer, and again he felt that pang of fear. Perhaps Marcus was wrong. Maybe it was more serious than a case of nerves. He tried the door. It was unlocked, and he opened it slowly to let himself in, closing it softly behind him.
He looked around the room, taking in the wedding dress still hanging on the wardrobe. Renée said it was bad luck for the groom to see the dress before the wedding. He had laughed but gone along with tradition. Until now.
He didn't see her at first. But then he noticed a pair of stockinged feet protruding over the arm of the couch facing the fireplace. She must have fallen asleep. After all, she should be dressed by now, ready to go downstairs. He approached the couch slowly, not wanting to startle her when she sat up.
Gaelan froze. He couldn't believe his eyes. This must be a nightmare.
"How sweet," she said. It was a voice he never thought he'd hear again. "I could use a drink about now."
Gaelan dropped the glass. It bounced on the carpet, and scotch splattered the hem of his pants. "What the hell are you doing here?!"
"It's nice you still recognise me after all these years." She leaned over and picked up the glass at Gaelan's feet. "Shame about the drink though. First time I've ever seen you waste good scotch."
"You're supposed to be…" He stopped. Really he wasn't totally surprised. He had somehow suspected this all along. It was why he had hired those private detectives. It was why he had called Italy last week. But when it turned out not to be her, and the private detectives had turned up nothing…. he too had finally accepted Colleen had died in the fall from the cliff.
"I know. I know. I also know it caused quite a stir. Did the billionaire kill his wife? Drive her to suicide? Or was it an accident after all?"
"Why the hell did you do it?"
"What?" she said innocently, getting up from the couch.
"Stage your own death. That’s what you did, isn't it?"
"Something like that - I am an actress after all. Besides, I couldn't let Bowen get his hands on the money. You know what they say about a fool and his money being soon parted. And I always thought leaving before the divorce was final might come in handy one day."
She was standing very close to him, and yet Gaelan felt as if the whole thing weren’t real. It wasn't that he wished Colleen was dead, but he sure hadn't cared ever to see her again. Especially on the day he was marrying the woman he loved.
"Where's Chloe?" he demanded, not wanting to spend another moment with this woman. "No wonder she wants to speak to me. I take it you've introduced yourself, and she's now wondering what the hell is going on."
Colleen lifted one of her shoulders in an elegant shrug. "I don't think Chloe wants to speak to you."
"She told Kathryn she wanted to speak to me, and that's what I'm going to do. I don't know what little game you're playing by being here today, but I have every intention of marrying Chloe in the next hour."
"I don't know if that's possible. Can you marry Chloe when you're still married to me?"
Gaelan felt himself nearly blinded with anger. He had never struck anyone in his life, let alone a woman, but he felt dangerously close to it now. "You…,” he started to say but couldn’t finish. What could one possibly call someone this conniving and evil? “Don't even think of interfering in my wedding," he finished in a low voice.
"You know that part in the wedding when the minister asks if anyone objects? I figure that's my cue." She smiled coldly.
Gaelan had no idea what to do now about the ceremony. If he went forward with it, was he committing bigamy? Plus he had no idea how to stop Colleen from carrying out her threat. And if he was upset, he couldn't imagine what Chloe must be going through right now. God knows what Colleen told her. He grabbed Colleen by the arms, shuddering at the touch of fur and the thin arms underneath. "Where is she, Colleen?"
"I don't know, darling. She didn't tell me where she was going. She did put on her coat though."
Gaelan let go of her arms abruptly, and they dropped limply to her sides. He turned and strode for the door. He opened it, looking over his shoulder at this woman he hadn't seen in four years. A woman he had once been married to. The mother of Sophia. She had made his life a misery once before, and he'd be damned if he'd let her do it again. "You stay here - I'm not done with you yet!"
He slammed the door behind him and ran back downstairs to his office.
"Thank heavens you're back!" Renée said, leaping up from the couch. Renée, Marcus, and Kathryn gathered around Gaelan.
"Is everything okay?" Kathryn asked anxiously.
Gaelan shut the door behind him, leaning against it for a moment as if to regain his strength. “Okay is hardly the word I'd use," he said.
They listened in stunned silence as he quickly filled them in. When he finished, no one spoke.
"I should have told Chloe I suspected Colleen might still be alive," Gaelan said finally.
Marcus was the first to recover. "Don't be so hard on yourself. It was only a hunch. And God knows you paid enough private detectives to try and locate her."
Gaelan straightened up. "You're right." This was definitely a time for action and not for wallowing in past mistakes. The most critical thing was to find Chloe as soon as possible. He turned to Renee. "This is going to take major damage control. You're really going to earn your fee on this one, Renée. First, I want you to find Chloe's parents. Tell them that Chloe has gone for a walk, and I've gone to look for her. Let them stay here in the office and assure them I'm doing everything I can to find her." Gaelan strode back and forth in front of the fireplace, his brow furrowed as he took control of the situation. "Then I want you to find Windy. She's pretty level-headed. Get her to stay with Chloe's parents."
The Billionaire's Secrets Page 15