A Miracle for His Secret Son
Page 17
‘It’s fabulous, isn’t it?’ Freya said. ‘The best piece of untouched real estate in the Bay.’
‘My father bought it when he was living here. I guess, being a bank manager, he had an eye for a good investment.’
Freya’s lovely eyes widened. ‘I hope he hung on to it. It must be worth a fortune now.’
‘He hung on to it,’ Gus said quietly, then he smiled. ‘He and Mum want to give the land to us as a wedding present.’
Her shock must have rendered her speechless. It was ages before she spoke. ‘That’s so generous,’ she said at last. ‘But—’ She frowned and looked out to sea, to the dancing waves and dazzling sun pennies. ‘But would you want to build a home here? Wouldn’t it be too much of a tie?’
Gus chuckled, felt the excitement inside him begin to bubble over. ‘Ever since Dad’s phone call on Christmas Day, I’ve been hatching a plan. I’d like to build a cluster of cottages here for the families of seriously ill children. It would be somewhere peaceful, with a holiday atmosphere for them to come to—after a big operation perhaps, or chemotherapy. A place for the whole family to relax and recover.’
Freya was shaking her head.
‘You don’t like the idea?’
‘I do like it,’ she said. ‘I’m just taking it in.’
‘It’s what I do best, Freya. I’ve got the experience and the contacts.’
‘And we both know what it’s like to have a seriously ill child.’
‘So I’d have your support?’
Her eyes were shining. ‘Absolutely.’
‘We could stay on here then,’ Gus said. ‘At least until Nick finishes school. You could run your gallery. I’d set up a foundation to fund the cottages, and manage the construction. I’d create a website to handle publicity and bookings.’
‘It sounds perfect.’ Freya was laughing and hugging him. ‘Gus, I can’t imagine anything better.’
‘I can,’ he said, gathering her into him.
‘What’s that?’ she asked on a breathless whisper as he began to kiss her bare shoulder.
‘A lifetime with you.’
As he kissed her again, he heard a boy’s happy shout and a dog’s bark and the slap and roll of the sea.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-6997-6
A MIRACLE FOR HIS SECRET SON
First North American Publication 2010
Copyright © 2010 by Barbara Hannay
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