“Sure,” said Destiny. “We’ll be here.”
As Destiny ended the call, Amber gathered her purse.
“What are you doing?” asked Destiny.
“Getting out of your way.” Amber started to rise.
“Well, don’t. That was about you.”
Amber sat back down. “What about me? Am I being fired already?”
“No. Good grief, where did that come from?”
“Roth’s still a VP.”
“And Cole still owns the company.”
“Only until the deal is finalized.”
“Don’t be paranoid. You’re good at your job, and the new guys are going to see that. And this has nothing to do with your job.” Destiny grinned.
“So who was that?” asked Amber.
“Fredrick Galloway of Galloway, Turner and Hopple.”
“That means nothing to me.”
“He’s Cole’s new Atlanta lawyer.”
A wave of apprehension washed over Amber. “What does he want?”
“He was pretty cagey. Galloway’s the top attorney at the top firm in the city.”
“I’m sure Cole can afford the best.” Though she didn’t need it, Amber took another sip of her martini.
“He’s got some kind of paperwork for you.”
“I don’t know what more I can give him. I’ve already given him—” Amber suddenly teared up. “Oh, damn.”
Destiny reached for her hand. “It’s going to be fine.”
Amber looked into her friend’s eyes. “Why did I go and fall in love with him?”
“I wish I could—”
“Ms. Frost?”
Amber looked up to see a sixtyish, fit, well-groomed man standing next to their table.
Destiny came to her feet, purely professional and polite. “Mr. Galloway. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Amber managed a smile.
“I’m sorry to interrupt your evening,” said Mr. Galloway. “And, please, call me Fredrick.”
“This is my client, Amber Welsley.”
“Ms. Welsley.” He gave her a nod.
“Amber,” she automatically corrected.
Fredrick looked around. “Reception was able to provide us with a private meeting room on the fourth floor. Would you mind joining me there?”
“We’d be happy to,” Destiny answered.
Amber took her purse and her coat, doing a double check behind her to make sure she hadn’t left anything on the table.
They made their way to the reception elevator, going up one floor to the club’s meeting rooms. Fredrick led them down a quiet hallway to a large boardroom. The lights had been turned on and coffee set out on a side table.
Destiny poured herself a cup, but Amber decided to let her stomach rest for a bit.
Fredrick took a seat near the end of a long table. Destiny and Amber sat across from him.
“As I said on the phone,” he opened, “you’re welcome to take the package with you to read over the weekend. I’d appreciate it if we could talk again Monday morning.”
“We can make that happen,” said Destiny.
Amber slid a sideways glance at Destiny, gauging her reaction. She seemed impressed by the man, and not overly concerned about the paperwork.
“In a nutshell,” Fredrick continued, “Cole Henderson is setting up a trust fund for Zachary.”
Amber couldn’t hold her tongue. “How incredibly magnanimous of him.”
Fredrick gave her a surprised look.
Destiny grabbed her knee under the table.
“What?” Amber looked at them both. “He steals a billion dollars from Zachary, and now he wants to set up a trust fund? What is it, for college or something?”
She wasn’t clear on what it had to do with her. Maybe Cole wanted her to believe he was taking care of Zachary so she wouldn’t go gunning for him.
Wasn’t that a rule of a good con? Make sure the mark’s not too angry with you when you leave? She was sure she’d seen that in a movie somewhere.
Fredrick cleared his throat. “My client has requested that Ms. Welsley, Amber, be named trustee with full power to make all decisions regarding the trust fund until Zachary Henderson reaches the age of eighteen.”
“Sure,” said Amber with a careless shrug. “I’ll make sure he gets to college.”
This time, Fredrick seemed to be fighting a smile. He slid a sheaf of papers across the table to Destiny. “The trust fund will also provide a salary for Amber.”
“I’m not taking any of the money for myself,” Amber scoffed. “Just because certain other people believe it is perfectly acceptable to—”
“Amber,” Destiny interrupted.
“—use a defenseless baby as a means to—”
“Amber!”
Amber snapped her mouth shut. “What?”
“It says all proceeds from the sale of Coast Eagle Airlines.”
The words didn’t mean anything to Amber.
Destiny spoke slowly, articulating each word. “All the proceeds from the sale of Coast Eagle go into the trust for Zachary.”
Amber cocked her head sideways, struggling to make sense of Destiny’s words. “I’m not following.”
“Cole is putting the whole billion into a trust fund for Zachary.”
“Dollars?” Amber asked in a dry whisper.
“To be managed by you, as accountant, and he’s suggested me as legal counsel, but you have discretion over that.” Destiny sent a glance to Fredrick.
Fredrick nodded his confirmation.
Destiny continued, “Until Zachary is eighteen, at which time an orderly and gradual dispersal will begin to move control to Zachary.”
Amber swiped her hair back from her forehead. “I know I’m a little tired. But I thought you just said Cole put me in charge of all of the money.”
“He did,” said Destiny, a grin nearly splitting her face.
“And unlimited trips to Alaska,” said Fredrick. He leaned forward and pointed to a spot on the page. “You get an annual salary, benefits and he was very specific about the unlimited trips to Alaska.”
Amber instantly woke up. Her mind flashed back to the fight they’d had in Cole’s office. I have a plan, he’d said. A plan for us. I want you to come to Alaska as often as possible.
Her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, no.”
“This is good,” said Destiny. “This is amazing. I’m...” She looked helplessly to Fredrick.
“Mr. Henderson’s instructions are clear and specific,” said Fredrick. “And Galloway, Turner and Hopple is pleased to be working with you. This file will have my personal attention.”
“He wasn’t a fraud,” said Amber, as much to herself as to Destiny.
Cole wasn’t a fraud, and that meant Amber was in love with him. And she’d made a horrible mistake.
* * *
Cole now knew where he’d gone wrong. He never should have left Amber in Atlanta. And he should have brought her in on the decisions around Zachary from the very beginning. He knew she’d seen the trust fund documents; Fredrick confirmed he’d delivered them Friday night.
Cole had expected to hear from her. He’d expected her to understand his logic and like his solution. But it was Monday morning and there hadn’t been a single word. Luca had called Destiny, but even she didn’t respond.
It was late last night when he’d had the epiphany. Amber didn’t want to be brought in at the end of the discussion. She wanted, needed and deserved to be a part of any decision involving Zachary. She also needed to be part of any decision involving Cole.
He knew he was in love with her, completely and forever. That meant they’d be partners, completely and forever. So long as he could convince her to forgive him.
He wheeled his SUV into the terminal parking lot at the Juneau airport and turned to Zachary strapped into the car seat behind him.
“Got another trip in you?” he asked.
“Gak,” said Zachary.
Cole grinned. “I�
�m going to take that as a yes.”
He extracted Zachary, opened the hatchback to retrieve the small duffel bag he’d thrown together this morning. They were catching a scheduled flight, a big, fast jetliner that would get them to Seattle and then Atlanta as quickly as possible.
He balanced Zachary on one hip and lifted the duffel bag with his other hand, elbowing the hatchback closed. “Let’s go get her, buddy.”
It was a short walk to the main terminal entrance.
Cole would normally just hop in the back of the plane, not particularly caring about amenities. But with Zachary in tow, he’d gone with a first-class ticket. He’d been up most of the night figuring out his problems, and he hoped both of them could sleep for a few hours on the way.
He crossed the lobby toward the check-in lineups.
“Cole?” came a soft, familiar voice.
He stopped dead, not believing it could be true.
But when he turned, there she was, less than five feet away. She was smiling and her blue eyes shone. His heart lurched in his chest.
“Amber.” He was in front of her in two strides, dropping the duffel bag to the floor.
“I was coming to see you,” she told him.
Zachary immediately lunged for her. She caught him and pulled him to her chest.
“I was coming to you,” said Cole. “I was so wrong. I’m so sorry.”
Zachary patted her cheek, and she laughed.
“I’m the one who is sorry.” She sobered as she told Cole, “I never should have doubted you.”
“You had plenty of reasons to doubt me. I hoped you’d understand when you got the trust fund.”
“I did understand. That’s why I’m here.” She gave a little laugh. “Well, that, and it was included in my salary package.”
“I was wrong,” Cole repeated.
Her expression faltered.
“About selling Coast Eagle,” he quickly clarified. “That’s not my decision to make alone.”
She looked confused. “But you said you couldn’t run them both.”
“I know. And I can’t. But I didn’t explore all the options. I have now. And we have another option. But I’m not making this decision without you.” He took a breath, steadying himself, realizing he was trying to tell her too much and all at once.
He stopped talking and drew her into his arms, her and Zachary, holding them both close.
“I love you,” he whispered in her ear. “I love you so much. And I need you. And Zachary needs you. And you have to marry me. And you have to be his mother, because that’s the only way this works. It’s the only way he gets what he deserves out of life.” He was talking too much again, but he couldn’t stop himself. “You and I both had to compromise, but Zachary doesn’t. He can have it all, Amber. But only if you’ll marry me. I’m sorry. That was too much to throw at you. But once I started talking—”
“Yes,” she said, drawing back. “Yes, I love you. And yes, I’ll marry you. And of course, yes, I’ll be Zachary’s mother.”
He kissed her deeply, until Zachary squirmed between them. “Gak!”
Cole chuckled, and Amber laughed as he drew back to give Zachary some space.
“Can you handle another thing?” he asked her.
“Things like you love me and want to marry me? Those kinds of things? Bring them on.”
“We can merge the airlines.”
She looked confused.
“But only if you want to do it. This is a decision we’re making together. We can still do the trust fund instead. But Luca and I sat up all night last night. He’s on board. We merge the airlines and run them together.”
“Coast Eagle expands to Alaska?” she asked.
“No.” Cole shook his head. “Aviation 58 expands to Atlanta. The head office stays here, but we live in both places.”
“Yes,” she said again. “Oh, yes.”
“Can you handle one more?” Cole asked, feeling as if he was on a roll.
“There you are!” Destiny appeared out of the throng. “Hey, Cole. How did you know we were coming in on this flight?”
“I didn’t,” said Cole. “I was heading for Atlanta.”
Destiny grinned at that. She turned to Amber. “I told you so. Did I not tell you so?”
“You did,” Amber agreed with a smile.
“Hey, Zachary,” Destiny greeted him.
“Does Luca know you’re here?” asked Cole.
“I just called him.”
Cole glanced at his watch. “Then, I expect he’ll be here in about two minutes.”
The Aviation 58 offices were on the far side of the airport grounds, but Cole knew Luca wouldn’t waste any time getting to Destiny.
“So how’re you two doing?” asked Destiny, jiggling Zachary’s little hand.
“He’s not selling Coast Eagle,” said Amber.
Destiny froze, looking worriedly at Amber. “So you’re out of a job?”
“She just agreed to marry me,” said Cole.
“I was gone maybe five minutes,” said Destiny.
“I work fast,” said Cole. “We’re going to run it together, as a family.”
Luca appeared at a run, laughing as he scooped Destiny into the air, kissing her hard and twirling her around. “I hope you don’t plan to leave anytime soon.”
Cole drew Amber close again. “You’re not leaving, ever.”
Fine by her. “I’m staying right here.”
“I love you so much.”
Zachary reached for Cole, and he lifted him from Amber’s arms, settling him once more on his hip. Then he looped his arm around Amber’s shoulder, realizing in a rush of happiness that he had a family. He had a perfect little family of his very own.
“That last thing?” he whispered into her ear.
“Yes?”
“Brothers and sisters for Zachary?”
“Just as soon as you’re ready.”
Cole was ready now.
* * * * *
If you loved THE MISSING HEIR, pick up these other stories from USA TODAY bestselling author Barbara Dunlop
REUNITED WITH THE LASSITER BRIDE
THE LAST COWBOY STANDING
A COWBOY’S TEMPTATION
MILLIONAIRE IN A STETSON
A CONFLICT OF INTEREST
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Ten years ago one devastating night changed everything for Austin, Hunter and Alex. Now they must each play their part in the revenge against the one man who ruined it all.
Austin Treffen has the plan… Hunter has the money… Alex has the power!
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Prologue
Jillian Novak stared across the table at her sister, not believing what she’d just heard.
Jillian placed the glass of wine she’d been holding on the table, barely keeping the drink from spilling. “What do you mean you aren’t going with me? That’s crazy, Paige. Need I remind you that you’re the one who planned the trip?”
“A reminder isn’t needed, Jill, but please understand my dilemma,” Paige said in a rueful tone, her dark brown eyes shaded with regret. “Getting a part in a Steven Spielberg movie is a dream come true. You can’t imagine what I was feeling—happiness at being chosen one minute, and then disappointment the next, when I found out that shooting starts the same week I was supposed to be on the cruise with you.”
“Let me guess, your happiness overpowered your disappointment, right?” Jillian felt a pounding pressure in her head and knew why. She had been looking forward to the Mediterranean cruise—for many reasons—and now it appeared she wouldn’t be going.
“I’m sorry, Jill. You’ve never gone on a cruise and I know it’s one of the things on your bucket list.”
Paige’s apology only made Jillian feel worse. She’d made her sister feel awful for making a choice Jillian would have made herself if given the chance. Reaching across the table, she grabbed Paige’s hand.
“I’m the one who should be apologizing, Paige. I was only thinking of myself. You’re right. Getting that part in the movie is a dream come true and you’d be crazy not to take it. I’m truly happy for you. Congratulations.”
A bright smile spread across Paige’s lips. “Thanks. I wanted so much for us to spend time together on the cruise. It’s been ages since me, you, Pam and Nadia have had sister time.”
Nadia, a senior in college, was their youngest sister. At twenty-one she was two years younger than Paige and four years younger than Jillian. Pamela, their oldest sister—who Jillian, Nadia and Paige were convinced was the best older sister anyone could ever have—was ten years older than Jillian. A former actress, Pam had given up the glitter of Hollywood to return home to Gamble, Wyoming, and raise them when their father died. Now Pam lived in Denver. She was married, the mother of two and the CEO of two acting schools, one in Denver and the other in Gamble. Paige had followed in Pam’s footsteps and pursued an acting career. She lived in Los Angeles.
The Missing Heir Page 19