For the Sake of the Secret Child

by Yvonne Lindsay

  There would be no mistakes. None.

  The next day, Mia took the morning off. Jasper’s doctor had a brief Saturday morning surgery at the clinic, and Mia wanted to take Jasper back into Queenstown to be rechecked. She herself was pleased with his progress, though. Right now he behaved as if he’d never been sick, whereas she was still struggling to recover. It didn’t help that her nights were now fractured with dreams of Benedict del Castillo. Dreams which delved into the one day and two nights they’d shared, leaving her aching and irritable when she woke.

  Jasper always loved the trips into town and especially loved to watch the gondolas climb the side of the mountain leading up to the Skyline complex. For his third birthday, coming up in just over two and a half months, she planned to take him for a ride to the top and a special birthday meal in the restaurant. She wasn’t sure if she was brave enough to take him on the luge ride just yet and hoped he’d be satisfied with watching this year. Right now, though, her little boy was happy to be sitting on Don’s lap, pretending to skipper the boat as they drew closer to the public dock.

  “Don’t worry about waiting for us,” she said to Don, “we’ll probably head out to the Remarkables Shopping Centre for a bit and after that we’ll just get a water taxi home.”

  “If you’re sure,” Don said. “I don’t mind waiting, you know that.”

  “Yes, but I think it’s more important you be available for Mr. del Castillo should he want the boat for any reason today. Let’s not do anything that might ruffle his feathers, hmmm?”

  “Anything you say. You’re the boss.”

  Don gave her his trademark smile and ruffled Jasper’s hair with one of his work-roughened hands. “So, skipper. Are we ready to dock?”

  Jasper nodded enthusiastically and hopped off the older man’s lap and made his way to another seat so he wasn’t in the way. Mia watched him with pride. So young and yet already so responsible. She’d done a good job so far with him, she told herself. And nothing and no one was going to jeopardize that, no matter how big their threats or how much money they had to wield at their disposal.

  The visit to the doctor went smoothly and to Mia’s relief, Jas was given the all clear to go back to day care on Monday. As lovely as it had been to have him home, he was rather wearing for her mother on a full-day basis. Something that would only become more obvious as his need for stimulation became more demanding.

  Well, she consoled herself, for as long as she kept Parker’s Retreat running smoothly, there would be no problem with affording his day care’s fees or the fees for the next level of pre-school provided by the facility. Her heart crunched a little on the knowledge that her son was fast growing up. Every day with him was a gift she readily accepted with open arms.

  Jasper was excited on the bus ride to the shopping center and jiggled up and down on his seat asking umpteen questions as they passed along the main bus route. The trip to Frankton didn’t take long and Mia held his hand firmly as they alighted from the bus. She’d promised him a special treat from the large multipurpose store there, followed by lunch at the café right by the bus stop.

  It was as they were moving up and down the toy aisles in the store that Mia suddenly had the sensation she was being watched. She turned her head, catching a glimpse of a young woman staring at her intently before rapidly averting her head and showing a sudden interest in a stand of action figures. Maybe she was just being paranoid, but Mia moved Jasper on to another aisle, distracting him with a junior construction set he’d seen on television and had been nagging at her to get for days now.

  The pack was a great deal more expensive than the “treat” she’d planned for him, but the other woman’s perusal had left her feeling edgy. For some strange reason it reminded her too much of the way she’d been hounded when her father’s scandal had hit the news. Right now she was keen to follow her instincts and get back on the next bus to Queenstown.

  At the checkout, she quickly made her purchase and hurried Jasper back to the bus stop.

  “I want lunch, Mommy. You said lunch,” Jasper complained, and started pulling at her with one hand as he pointed with the other to the café doors.

  “I know, honey, but I remembered I have to get back home. I promise I’ll get you something in Queenstown before we get the water taxi back. Okay?”

  “No.” Jasper’s lower lip began to wobble ominously. “I want lunch now.”

  Juggling her bag and the bulky construction kit, Mia bent to pick Jasper up, but he wasn’t having any of it. Simultaneously, she sensed someone beside her. The woman from the store—except now she had someone with her. A man with a camera, its shutter working flat out as he took several photos of her and one very unhappy little boy.

  “Ms. Parker, is it true that Benedict del Castillo is staying at your hotel?” the woman asked, her tone smug and more than a little pushy.

  “What? I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Come on now, Mia. Benedict del Castillo was seen in Queenstown yesterday and he’s news wherever he goes, particularly since his accident. A source tells us you two were lovers some time ago. Is his visit now a reunion?”

  Bile rose in Mia’s throat and she pulled Jasper up into her arms and turned his head into her shoulder.

  “As I said,” she answered as calmly as she could, “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Now please, you’re distressing my son. Stop taking those photos. You’re invading my privacy.”

  She glared at the photographer, who completely ignored her.

  “We're in a public area, Mia," the reporter reminded her with a smile that was anything but friendly. "Tell me, how does one of Europe's most sought-after bachelors feel about being a father?”

  Eight

  Mia clutched Jasper to her so tight he wriggled in protest. She felt a sting of remorse, but right now, having the photographer’s camera thrust right in her face hard on the heels of the reporter’s last question, she was determined to protect her son’s privacy by preventing them from capturing another image of his face. She could only hope against hope that they hadn’t already done so.

  To her relief, a taxi pulled into the shopping-center car park, disgorging a very obvious pair of foreign tourists. She shot across the roadway and climbed in the open door, pushing Jasper down on the seat beside her.

  “I’m sorry, miss,” the driver said. “But my current fare is paying me to stay and wait for them.”

  “Please, I need to get away from those people. I’ll pay you double the fare to take me back to the wharf in town. Triple! Just please get us away from here.”

  “Just a minute, then,” he said, and alighted from the car.

  Mia watched from behind locked doors as he jogged over to the tourist couple and with a series of gestures indicated he would be back in half an hour. When they nodded Mia groaned with relief.

  Beside her, Jasper lay facedown on the car seat, sobbing his little heart out. Mia shrugged out of her coat and covered him with it, her hand stroking his narrow wee shoulders through the material. The driver returned to the cab and got behind the wheel. All the way back to the town center she looked out the back of the cab, noting the red hatchback that followed them every kilometer of the way. For the second time in her life she rued living in what was a relatively small town. There really was no escape. Nothing to even stop them hiring another water taxi and following her out to Parker’s Retreat if they really wanted to.

  Jasper had finally quieted, she noted with relief, but though the tears had stopped, he still seemed upset and confused. Her heart throbbed for him. He didn’t deserve this. Not a bar of it. He was an innocent. A cold chill settled deep inside her. She knew what the media were like. Relentless when they thought they were onto a good story. The prospect of them dragging her innocent child into their gutter press filled her with equal parts of fear and anger.

  Of even greater concern was how on earth they’d even found out about Ben’s relationship to Jasper, let alone t
he short-lived affair she and Ben had indulged in. Even her own mother hadn’t been privy to the truth.

  Just out of Frankton, Mia noticed the red car slow down and pull over to the side of the road. She could see the female reporter with her cell phone to her ear, her free hand gesticulating wildly as she spoke. In the passenger seat the photographer trained his camera on Mia’s face and she quickly turned her head away, relieved to see they’d given up the chase for now.

  Within fifteen minutes, the cab pulled up at the Queenstown wharf. Her whole body trembling, Mia reached into her purse and pulled out all the money she had in there. She knew it was far more than the fare—even more than triple the fare—but she was so grateful to finally be away from the reporter she didn’t even care.

  She scooped Jasper from his seat and grabbed the shopping bag with his treat inside—and as she did so, she heard the cab driver’s mobile phone chime. He picked it up and answered, his gaze suddenly fixing on hers as she began to get out of the car. Another chill ran down her spine as she watched him end the call and press a few buttons on his phone—which he then aimed directly at her and Jasper. Before she could block his view of them both she heard the telltale click of her picture being taken. Even her knight in shining armor had his price, it seemed.

  The reporter must have called the cab company and somehow been patched through to the driver, she surmised as she hustled away toward the water-taxi jetty. She wondered just how much money he’d agreed to, to give her privacy away.

  “Come on, Jas, let’s get to the boat and get home, hmmm?” she said, trying to keep her voice as upbeat as possible.

  “Lunch?” he asked, his voice once again a tear-soaked whimper.

  “I’m so sorry, baby. We have to get home.”

  The construction set bumped against her leg as she half walked, half ran to the jetty. She only hoped that she’d be able to persuade the skipper of the vessel to break his schedule to take her out to Parker’s Retreat right now rather than wait for other concession passengers on his regular service.

  Thankfully, the skipper was amenable, agreeing to bill the trip—with a premium—to the Parker’s Retreat account. As they headed out past the Queenstown Gardens and into the lake Mia finally allowed herself to relax. The rush of adrenaline that had propelled her from the shopping center to here had run its course and right now she felt completely deflated.

  Deflated and worried sick about what she was going to do next. She knew she shouldn’t be surprised that Ben had been spotted in Queenstown—he’d told her himself that he’d gone out to see friends—but how on earth had they made the connection between him and her? Who amongst her old friends had spilled the beans about their previous affair? Few people had known about it at the time. Jim and Cathy Samson—the couple Ben had seen yesterday—and one of her old girlfriends were the only three that sprang to mind.

  She knew for a fact that the Samsons were as fierce about their privacy as anyone could be. But her old girlfriend? Much as it pained her to admit it, Sue had always had a bit of an ax to grind as far as Mia had been concerned. In the shallow social pond in which they’d swum, Mia had always shrugged it off as a touch of misplaced envy, but she’d never believed Sue could be malicious.

  She knew Sue worked in the CBD of Queenstown in a building overlooking the wharf. Had she caught a glimpse of Ben when he’d gone into town yesterday? Maybe she’d gone so far as to call the local paper and tell them what little she’d known.

  Yes, she was definitely the most likely culprit, though the idea that someone she’d known so well could turn into an enemy so easily really hurt. No matter what the circumstances were, Mia knew she could never do something like that. But the knowledge was cold comfort in the face of what she now had ahead of her.

  Mia saw Ben standing on the dock at Parker’s Retreat when the water taxi pulled up behind the Parker’s launch. The cream wool Aran-knit sweater that he wore emphasized the width of his shoulders and his stone-washed jeans hugged his hips and thighs in all the right places. He looked strong and confident and put together—all the things that she wasn’t, at the moment.

  As traumatic as her day had become, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief that he was here waiting for them. She was going to have to tell him what had happened and she’d rather deal with it sooner than later. First, though, she had some serious making up to do with her little boy.

  A little boy who seemed all too happy to be lifted into Benedict’s arms rather than be held by his mother a moment longer. Mia didn’t blame him for wanting to have nothing to do with her right now. He’d been frightened, had promises broken, and now, without a doubt, he was terribly hungry, as well.

  “There have been helicopters overhead all morning,” Ben said to her after the water taxi had motored away from the dock.

  Mia nodded and swallowed against the lump in her throat.

  “Can we talk about it after I’ve fed Jasper? I promised him lunch back in town, but something happened and we had to leave before he could get anything.”

  Ben shot her a piercing look. “Something happened?”

  “I will tell you the minute he’s been fed, I promise.”

  “Well, then,” he said, lifting Jasper high and settling the squealing boy on his shoulders, “we’d better get you some lunch, young man.”

  Mia was painfully aware of Ben’s gaze upon her the whole time she prepared a bowl with nacho chips, tomato ketchup and melted grated cheese for Jasper. Once she’d settled him on the couch with his fuzzy blanket, the bowl of nachos and his favorite DVD on the television, she knew it was time to face the music.

  “Tell me, then, why has the place been buzzing with helicopters all morning?” Ben demanded the minute they were more or less alone in the kitchen.

  Mia cast a glance at her son, reassuring herself he was happily occupied before answering.

  “I think you were spotted during your outing yesterday and that the rumor mill has been well and truly put into action.”

  “Rumor mill?”

  “Jas and I were bailed up outside a shopping center just outside Queenstown late this morning.”

  She shuddered at the memory—at the sheer and utter helplessness she’d felt with nowhere to turn and no way out.

  “And?” Ben prompted.

  Mia suddenly wished she’d had more time to think about exactly what she had to say to Ben. More precisely, exactly how she was going to say what she had to. One thing she was absolutely positive about. She would not tell him about the questions about Jasper being Benedict’s son. It would give him too much power over her—would force her to admit his paternity and with it, his rights to Jas. She wasn’t in any way ready to do that.

  “Someone has told them about our affair during your last visit,” she said bluntly. “They asked me if your being here was a reunion.”

  “To which you replied?”

  “I told them I had no idea what they were talking about, of course. Then I got in a taxi and came back home.”

  Ben gave her another probing stare. “I have a feeling you’re leaving something out.”

  Mia shook her head. “I’ve told you what happened. It was horrible the way they harassed us. Jas was so upset.”

  “They? How many were there?”

  “A reporter and a photographer.”

  “So I imagine we can expect to see some photos of the two of you in the near future.”

  Mia bristled with anger. “Is that it? Is that all you can say?”

  “What else is there to say, Mia? Unless, of course, something else happened that you’re holding back from me?”

  She tamped down on her fury and dragged in a deep breath. “There’s nothing else to say. We had a bad experience that left us both upset. Obviously the helicopters were here taking aerial shots of the retreat and hoping for a glimpse of you. No doubt, no matter what I said, they’ll just make up their own stories to suit themselves.”

  “Exactly,” said Ben. “I’ll talk to Andre an
d we’ll concentrate on a program that’ll keep me away from the public eye. And I’ll put any sightseeing trips we’d planned on hold for now. Don’t worry, if I know the paparazzi—and I’ve had some experience with them—they’ll disappear as soon as they realize that there’s no story here.”

  Mia nodded, but deep inside she was still very afraid. She, too, had had up close and personal experience with the paparazzi and she knew full well that for as long as they thought they had a lead on something, they’d be more tenacious than a starving dog with a bone. But without giving Ben the full truth about what had happened today, she had no way of telling him how wrong his perception was.

  The following Monday Elsa took Jasper to day care but was quite flustered when she returned back on the boat with Don and, unfortunately, a very teary grandson.

  “What happened?” Mia asked her the minute she heard they were both back home.

  “It was awful, Mia. A wretched woman came up to me at the wharf and started to follow us, asking all sorts of questions about you and Mr. del Castillo. I didn’t even give her the time of day and eventually she disappeared but when we reached day care there were a whole swag of them there. Reporters, photographers. Poor Jasper was terrified and I have to say that the other parents and the staff weren’t happy at all.”

  Mia’s heart sunk to the soles of her shoes. Were they not even able to go about their everyday lives now? As much as the money from Benedict’s stay was a lifesaver, right now she wished she’d never taken his booking. Her entire world had been turned upside down.

  “We’ll just have to keep Jasper home until it dies down.”

  “Dies down? What exactly is ‘it,’ Mia? Why this sudden interest in our lives again?” her mother pressed.

  Mia looked into her worried eyes and realized it was past time for her to tell her mother the truth about Ben and Jasper. To her credit, her mother took the news pretty well.