He held her to him, unable to answer, his eyes full of tears of gratitude and love. How did he ever deserve this woman's love?
There was a light knock on the bedroom door. "It's me, Marcus. May I come in?" Not quite in charge of his voice yet, Gaelan murmured his permission. He had been so concerned with Chloe's safety, he had almost forgotten that Marcus had been left not only to deal with Colleen but also with a houseful of storm-marooned guests and Chloe’s anxious parents.
"Really, Marcus. After this, I'm going to have to give you a raise."
Marcus smiled at him. "Your gratitude is all the thanks I need," he said jokingly. Like Gaelan, Marcus was dressed in tails, and he gave a mock bow, flicking the tails behind him in a comic gesture. They all laughed, glad to find some comic relief in the situation.
Marcus picked up one of chairs in front of the fire and turned it around to face the bed. "I think," he said as he sat down, suddenly serious again, "all things considered, you're going to be pretty happy after I give you the lowdown on my chat with Colleen."
"Good," Gaelan said with relief.
Before embarking on a description of his discussion with Colleen, Marcus smiled gently at Chloe. "I'm happy to see you're feeling better."
"I'm sorry I worried everyone," she said meekly.
"Don't apologise. That was a terrible shock you had. We're all just glad you're safe." An hour after the wedding was to begin, Marcus felt it was time to tell the guests that Chloe was missing. The mood had turned immediately sombre, and Marcus had the terrible thought that the wedding might turn into a funeral. Marcus had never considered himself to be a religious person, but he prayed then to anyone who might care to listen.
"But I feel bad. All these people came to the wedding, and now they're stuck here."
"I wouldn't worry about them," he said. "Now that they know you're safe, they're having a great time. Your mother and Windy are already best of friends, and Sophia is so happy with her puppy I don't even think she's noticed that things haven't gone according to plan."
"I really do appreciate everything you've done today," Gaelan said, thanking Marcus again before asking him what happened with Colleen.
"Not much really. By the time I spoke to her, I think she realised that she had really gone too far this time. So I told her we could ruin her in a legal battle or she could simply agree to sign the divorce papers. Your lawyer faxed them over, and she signed them without protest. They now await your signature."
"She didn't mention more money?" Gaelan asked, surprised. Everything with Colleen had always come down to money.
Marcus shook his head. "You know, I don't even think she was here for more money. From what I can gather, she's done quite well with the money you gave her. Perhaps this isn't exactly the time to say this, but I felt a bit sorry for her by the time she left. She's a pretty unhappy woman. I think she got a short-term high out of shocking you and Chloe, but in the end she seemed to realise it was a pretty empty victory. I think she sensed how much you both were in love and how very much alone that made her."
Gaelan was silent for a moment. "You could be right," he said. "She's a bitter woman. In the end, she even cut off Bowen." But Gaelan had an even greater concern. He tried to tell himself it wasn't that it was easier when he thought Sophia's mother was dead, but this was going to be difficult to explain to the girl. "Did she want to see Sophia?"
Again Marcus shook his head. "No. I'm not even sure the child exists to her."
It was hard to comprehend a woman having so little feeling for her own child, and Chloe vowed to herself that she would make up for it by being the best mother she could to Sophia. "Where’s Colleen now?" she asked.
"She asked if I knew where Bowen was. When I told her he was still in Puffin's Cove, she asked me how she could get to him. I told her it wasn't safe to drive but she insisted on going. In the end, Windy's nephew took her in his four-wheel drive. I bet Bowen was pretty surprised to see her."
"I bet he was. And you know, despite all their faults, I think they really did love each other, until their greed got the better of them. Who knows, maybe after all these years, those two have learned their lesson."
Marcus shook his head in amazement. "That is incredibly charitable of you after all they've put you through. I'm more inclined to say that misery loves company."
"I don't know," Chloe said. "I hope they can be happy together. He is your brother, and she is Sophia's mother."
Gaelan sat down again on the edge of the bed. "You're the one who's wonderful. After everything you've gone through…" He kissed her hair.
"But what are you going to tell Sophia?" Marcus asked.
"We'll tell her in time," Gaelan said, looking at Chloe "We'll find a way." With this wise, beautiful woman at his side, everything would be okay.
Suddenly the door opened, and Sophia herself burst into the room, a wide-eyed spaniel puppy pressed to the breast of her silk flower girl's dress. Poor Renée, Chloe thought, she must be on the verge of a nervous breakdown by now. This had to the craziest wedding ever.
"Daddy!" Sophia cried. "Thank you for the puppy!" Gaelan swept her, puppy and all, into his arms.
"Daddy," she protested. "You're squashing us!" Gaelan laughed and set her down again on the floor, listening attentively as she praised every aspect of the dog. One day Sophia would have to learn the truth about her parents, but not today.
When finally she stopped, she noticed Chloe wrapped in her dressing gown on the bed. "Why aren't you dressed?" she asked in a puzzled voice. "You and Daddy have to get married. Everybody’s waiting."
Gaelan searched quickly for an explanation Sophia could understand when Chloe said, "You know, I feel so much better now. It would be a shame not to get married today."
"Are you sure?" Gaelan asked, and Chloe could hear the excitement in his voice.
"More than ever," she said quietly. "It may not be exactly the wedding we planned, but I don't think I could stand another minute of not being your wife."
Gaelan turned to Sophia, smiling "Looks like your puppy is going to get to come to the wedding after all."
* * *
Chloe knew she would never forget any moment of her wedding. The guests had cheered as she and Kathryn walked down the aisle, a beaming Sophia following behind, puppy clasped in her arms, flowers long forgotten. She and Gaelan exchanged vows and walked back up the aisle amid thunderous applause. She threw her bouquet to Kathryn. She had caught it, and Marcus had rewarded his girlfriend with a kiss. Chloe hoped they would be as happy together as she and Gaelan were.
It was well past midnight by the time they reached the honeymoon suite of their hotel room in St. John's. The storm had let up by early evening, allowing the plows to clear the roads. They had driven to St. John's through a winter wonderland, a shimmering blanket of white under the stars, so strangely marvelous at this time of year.
Gaelan picked her up and carried her over the threshold, dropping her onto the bed and falling down beside her. "Mrs. Byrne, I don't think I have ever been so exhausted in my whole life."
Chloe drew herself up on one elbow and looked down into his eyes. "That's a pity," she said slyly. "Because I still had some wonderful plans for the evening."
He reached up and started to unbutton her coat, drawing it off her shoulders, his finger tracing a tantalising trail down her back. "I will never be too exhausted for this," he said, kissing her, a long deep kiss that Chloe returned with all the love and passion she felt. When he broke off, his eyes were full of a deep tenderness, his voice both gentle and serious. "When I saw you out there in the snow, and I thought I had lost you… I didn't think I could go on living. I love you so much, Chloe. I know it may sound a little cliché, but I do mean this with all my heart. You have made me the happiest man in the world today."
"Only the world?" she said softly. "Because I think I can do even better than that." She leaned over and whispered her wonderful news into his ear. "We're having a baby, my love."
Ep
ilogue
It was a glorious day for a first wedding anniversary, and a perfect day for a picnic. The breeze was warm, and fluffy white clouds sailed across a brilliant blue sky. What a contrast to their wedding day! Across the green grass of the headland, violets bloomed, their fragrant scent combining with the saltiness of the ocean.
Supporting herself on one elbow, Chloe lay on her side on the quilt next to little Ryan and Rory, who reached up with their little hands as if they could catch the clouds. They laughed and gurgled and tried again while Chloe watched them with amazement. What had she ever done to deserve such happiness? They were four months old now, and Chloe still couldn't believe that these two gorgeous little creatures were hers. Twin boys, hers and Gaelan's. They were identical, with Gaelan's dark hair and eyes. Gaelan joked that while they looked like him, it was lucky for them all that they had inherited their mother's good nature. And they were dreams. Happy and contented, the only thing that could upset them was being apart.
A few feet away, Gaelan gazed over the ocean, lost in thought. The light danced off the waves like diamonds spilled by the sun. Below, the white surf rolled off the rocks, the sound sweeter than any music. He was thinking about Bowen. He had shown up at Widow's Cliff only two nights before, and when he'd left, Gaelan knew it would be a while before he had processed everything that had happened.
When he answered the front door, he had been shocked to see Bowen. He had not spoken to his brother since the day in the wrecking yard when he discovered that Bowen had tampered with Chloe's Jeep. He had pretty much written him off after that. He eventually heard that Bowen was living in New York with Colleen, just like the old days before they had hatched their plot to get their hands on Gaelan's money. A part of him wished they were happy together. Bowen was his twin, and looking at his own babies and the bond between them, he knew he could never be fully free of his brother.
Gaelan had let him in the foyer, closing the door behind him. "What do you want, Bowen?" he asked. He assumed Bowen had come to ask for money as he had so many times in the past.
Bowen leaned against the front door, looking down at his feet. "I know you don't want me here, but I didn't know where else to go." His voice was quietly desperate, and Gaelan heard the intake of his breath like a sob. He knew then that this wasn't a simple request for money. Something, he knew, must be terribly wrong, and he felt an instinctive desire to comfort his twin.
"What's wrong, Bowen?" he asked gently.
It took several minutes before Bowen could compose himself enough to talk. "Colleen's gone, Gaelan," he said as his voice cracked again. "And this time, she won't be coming back."
Gaelan stiffened at the sound of Colleen's name. "She left you?" he asked without much surprise. Colleen had always been on the lookout for greener pastures, and Gaelan figured that going back to the perpetually broke Bowen had not been her first choice.
But Bowen shook his head. "She died last week, Gaelan." His voice was barely a whisper.
Shocked, Gaelan didn't know how to react. "Are you sure?" he said. After all, Colleen had supposedly died before.
"She died in my arms, Gaelan. It was cancer. She had just been diagnosed when she heard you were getting married. I think that's why she came back…" His voice had trailed off.
Now Gaelan looked down the cliff to where the water pounded against the rocks, rolling back into the ocean in its tireless battle to wear away the island. He recalled the look in his twin's eyes. The look of anguish, grief, pain, regret. "I'm sorry," he had said to Bowen.
"I know you don't believe this - but I loved her, Gaelan," Bowen managed to say, and Gaelan took his brother into his arms and comforted him.
They had talked late into the evening, and Gaelan had the sense they were on the road to being brothers again. It would take a very long while for him to trust Bowen again, but it was a start. He realized now how much he had missed him. He thought of Rory and Ryan and how they couldn't bear to be apart. He and Bowen had been like that once. They would never be that close again, but he was glad they could at least be brothers again.
As for Colleen's death, he was surprised at his own sadness. Not just for her death, but also for her life. He couldn't wish that level of bitterness on anyone. He sighed and watched as a gull dove into a wave and emerged with a shimmering fish. One day he would have to explain all this to Sophia. He prayed he would find the way to tell her about this woman who had been her mother in name only.
But Bowen had brought good news too. He remembered the puzzled look on Bowen's face as he spoke. "There was something Colleen wanted me to tell you."
Gaelan braced himself.
"She said to tell you that you're really Sophia's father. Did she tell you that you weren't?"
Gaelan remembered how he had nodded calmly, a hundred different emotions threatening to overwhelm him.
"She never told me that," Bowen said. "Didn't you have paternity tests done?"
Clearly it had not crossed Bowen's mind that Colleen had named him as the father. Paternity tests meant nothing when the potential fathers were identical twins.
Bowen had eventually left, and Gaelan went to his and Chloe's room. Chloe had been awake, feeding Rory and Ryan. It was when he told her that the news really sank in. He was Sophia's father! Her real father!
Gaelan looked down the headland to where Sophia was playing with her puppy. Not really a puppy anymore, Snowstorm had grown to his full size. He could hear her laughter float on the breeze and said a small prayer of thanks that this wonderful child was really his. One day he would have to explain the strange, sad story of her mother, but at least he didn't have to tell her he wasn't her father. For that he could be thankful.
He watched the sun dance on the waves and felt suddenly at peace. There was so much to be grateful for, so much to be happy for. His home, his children, and his wife. Especially his wife. He turned to where Chloe lay next to the twins on the blanket. She looked up at him and smiled, and he felt a lump in his throat. God, how he loved her!
He watched as Chloe got up from the blanket and walked toward him, the breeze lifting her long white gauzy skirt. He held out his arms to her, and she slipped into them, her body fitting into his, so familiar now, but at the same time so exciting. He thought ahead to the evening. After the children were in bed, they would share a bottle of wine to celebrate their anniversary and afterwards they would make love. He thought of the years ahead of them, and he knew they would always be like this, their love deepening with the passage of time.
Chloe looked up at him, and he could see the love in her eyes. "You've been far away," she said softly.
"I'm back now," he said, holding her even tighter in his arms.
There was a shout, and they turned to see Sophia running toward them, Snowstorm at her heels. "Mommy, Daddy!" she called as she neared. Gaelan released Chloe and swept her up in his arms. It felt so good to hear her call him Daddy and know that she was truly his. And as for calling Chloe Mommy, well Chloe was everything that a child could want in a mother.
"What is it, honey?" he asked.
"Look out on the water!” He turned around, and together they all focused on the ocean. "Dolphins!" Sophia exclaimed, pointing to a school of dolphins jumping gracefully through the waves, water glistening on their backs. "Get Rory and Ryan," Sophia said, struggling out of Gaelan's arms.
Gaelan set her down and went over to the blanket, returning with a baby in each arm. He planted a kiss on each of their dark heads. "Do you see the dolphins?" he asked them for Sophia's benefit. The babies reached out toward the water with their little hands and made their lovely baby sounds.
"See the dolphins, babies," Sophia said in the special quiet voice she reserved for her little brothers.
Chloe stood at Gaelan's side, tucking her arm through one of Gaelan's, her fingers brushing Ryan's soft hair. Gaelan turned and kissed her tenderly. They watched as the dolphins frolicked in the waves. "Happy?" he asked her softly.
The Billionaire's Secrets Page 17