Sophie flinched and she closed her eyes for a second.
Michael’s pained one word, “Yes,” screwed into her heart like an electric drill. She opened her eyes, witnessing his pale face.
Edmond punched him with his fists and words. “Because you’re no one, Dante. I wasn’t supposed to be jealous of a boy who couldn’t buy a car. A kid happy with a cheap toy boat from his dad when I could have anything I wanted.”
Michael held back his fists but his lips thinned. “I don’t understand.”
Edmond pushed Michael down to the ground and grabbed for the gun. Michael rolled and reached for the same gun. Sophie saw the crazed look in the man’s gaze and she knew he saw her too. She pushed her sisters down without seeming to move.
Edmond pointed his gun at her, at Dane, and at Michael. “You wouldn’t. It’s time for this to end. Who should I kill first, Dante.”
Michael stepped in front of Edmond, blocking her view. “Let the children get out of here, including your son.”
Sophie glanced down and saw Emily crunched over Abigail and tears pooling in Isabelle’s eyes. Right now she needed to protect them. She dropped to the ground and hugged her sisters.
If there was a way out of the stall, she’d have grabbed them and run. But her heart beat wildly. They were trapped and escape was an illusion that haunted her thoughts like a hopeless wish. If Michael lost, they were all dead now.
Dane stood at the edge of the stall without crouching, like he too would protect them even though the body of his mother was right beside him.
Edmond cried out, “He’s not my son. He never was. Perhaps I should start with him as his eyes have bothered me for fourteen years.”
Michael shouted “No!”
A gun went off. Sophie saw Dane flinch, but he continued to stand.
Then Dane took off and ran toward the front door to join the men.
No other sounds followed at first. The silence was deafening. She held Isi tight until she felt Isabelle struggle. She let her sister go, but motioned for silence.
Isabelle nodded as Sophie stood to look over the rail.
Michael and Edmond were both lying on the ground and Dane kicked the gun away. He then leaned over both of them with tears in his eyes.
Her heart pounded in her chest, pounded like a hammer to the wall when it beats. Her skin was electrified and she took off in a run toward Michael.
If Michael died, she’d be lost. She threw herself to her knees next to him and tried to feel for a pulse, a heartbeat, a breath while she screamed. “Michael!” He didn’t move but his chest released air. A tear came out of her. He was still alive. She searched his chest for signs of blood but saw none. The hammering inside her heart quieted to a dull thud while she shook his arm. “Michael. Are you all right?”
Emily called from behind her. “Sophie, is Michael okay?”
She turned and saw how white her sisters’ faces were. She glanced at Edmond whose chest was bleeding. Michael had stopped the crazed man. She then motioned for her sisters to join her while she nodded, “I think so.”
Michael coughed and whispered, “How is Dane?”
“He’s fine.” Sophie glanced at the teenager. Isabelle took his hand and he joined them.
Sophie shook Michael’s shoulder again and said louder, “Do you hear that Michael? Your son is alive. You’re free--finally.”
Again he coughed, but this time he sat up. She supported him, her hands on his back.
Abigail cheered.
Sophie’s face heated. Her skin felt tight and alive, like when butterflies are first born and leave the nest. Michael opened his eyes and stared at her. “I get to come home to you now, Sophie. If you’ll have me.”
“Thank God you’re okay.” She wrapped her arms around his neck.
Everyone she loved was alive. Like Velcro that found its match, she’d found her true home.
Chapter 21
Sophie’s eyes fluttered open as the morning light wafted through the room, and the prisms of the crystal chandelier made the light dance on the wall across from them. She sighed and turned into Michael, who slept soundly next to her. Even in his sleep, Michael’s warmth and strength sent a thrill through her.
His stretch made the bed shift, but she sat and watched the waves lap on shore. Michael’s hand massaged her back and she turned toward him. He winked at her with that sexy smile of his. “Sophie, I’m glad you came to Miami with me.”
“I couldn’t let the man I love get hurt.” She crossed her legs and looked down at him with his head still on the pillow.
He stretched and sat in front of her. He then took her hand and smiled. “I love you. And I need your help. I’m not sure how to talk to Dane. I’m at a loss.”
Outside the window, she heard her sisters laugh. They turned and saw all three of the girls heading toward the ocean with Bernadette. Dane followed behind them in a red pair of swim trunks that went to his knees. Sophie brushed Michael’s arm for his attention and said, “My sisters adopted him like a brother already. Give it time.”
He squeezed her knee. “It’s the one thing I now have. All my life I’ve been planning vengeance. If you weren’t here, I’d be totally lost.”
Her heart beamed like the sun outside and her skin became softer somehow. Loving Michael happened so fast, but she couldn’t imagine her life without him now. She sucked on her bottom lip as she debated with herself. She needed to tell him. She swallowed and said, “I’d like to talk about our engagement party.”
He moved a little to give her room. “We don’t have to get married right away, Sophie. You can do all the wedding planning or none. I won’t force you.”
She reached out and grabbed his hand. His eyes widened, but she scooted closer. “I want you involved Michael.”
“Involved?” His gaze narrowed. “What do you mean?”
She curled her fingers around his while she said, “I’d like for that party to be real, for our engagement to be real, for this ring to mean what you said, and for our wedding to be at the Spanish monastery.”
He kissed her forehead and his arms wrapped around her, pulling her close. “The venue only holds a hundred people for dinner.”
A laugh bubbled through her throat and came out louder than she thought. She hugged him, but said, “Then you’ll have to be selective with your half.”
“Sounds good.” This time he claimed her mouth with a kiss. Her lips tingled as if he’d branded her for life already.
However her stomach growled. Last night she’d not eaten enough, opting for a long shower before bed instead of snacks. She let him go, stood and grabbed a robe. “And for now, can we go spend more time back on the island? I kind of miss where we were totally alone.”
He tugged on blue pajama pants that tied in the front. “What about the children and school?”
Good question. She raised her eyebrow. “Can you handle adding a few tutors? We’ll have to pay well since they won’t get to go home much.”
This time he laughed, and the belly laugh of his made her insides go all mushy and soft. “Your sisters can all go to Harvard and it won’t hurt my bank account. Sophie, I just want you to be my wife.”
She walked to the door and smelled fresh bread that must have just finished baking. The entire beach-side mansion had that fresh dough smell. “Then let’s do it.” The left the bedroom for the kitchen.
Her sister Emily screamed. “Sophie!”
Her heart stopped. They were at the beach with Bernadette. Had something happened to Abigail or Isabelle? She ran to the door where he sisters rushed inside like a herd of wild horses and asked her sister, “What is it?”
Emily hugged the book she had to her chest, but shrugged, “We have visitors.”
Thankfully! Her heart had nearly exploded in her chest. Luckily Michael came right behind her and put his hand on her back before he opened the front door. Sophie kept her voice low, but said, “Next time speak in a normal tone…” Her sister’s eyes widened and a smi
le grew on her face. Sophie turned around and saw her dark haired cousin. She threw her hands open to hug her and said, “Oh, Kimberly!”
Kimberly hugged her back while Michael closed the front door. “You were coming to my house but instead you decided to help the FBI?”
Emily motioned she was leaving and then ran toward the beach.
Sophie stood back and then held her hand out for Michael to join her. Once he did, she said, “Actually I almost made it to your house but I ran into Michael’s island instead.”
Kimberly shook his hand and nodded, “Mr. Haniel, my husband said you lived a mile from us though I’ve never met you.”
“The ocean acts as a buffer from neighbors.” Michael smiled, but then glanced at Sophie as he said, “We’ll make an effort in the future. Sophie just told me she wants to head back to my island.”
Kimberly crossed her arms as if about to lecture them. “Yes, don’t be like my husband and not have a ship. The first winter in the castle was chilly without fires—but I’ve made some improvements. In such a private enclave, my cousin wouldn’t be stuck worrying about her testimony or bad guys.”
Michael hugged Sophie close enough she could hear his steady heartbeat. “She doesn’t have that worry anymore. We were just talking about our upcoming wedding. But first, would you both like coffee?”
“And something to eat.” Sophie added fast and let him go. “Thank you.”
He gave her that wink of his again and her skin jolted with desire. He then walked to the kitchen.
Sophie motioned for Kimberly to come to the living room and hoped the couches were comfortable—she’d never sat on them before now. She sank on the white leather and relaxed into the bonded leather like it fit her body smoothly.
Kimberly followed and took the seat next to her. “Sophie, I’m so happy for you, for you both! If you need anything, let me or Erica know. I know we’ll both want to help.”
Her cousins. Good. Sophie lowered her head and felt a warmness grow from her heart to her cheeks. She still had her mother with her, even a little, when she spoke to her cousins. “I’ve not talked to Erica in months. How is she?”
Kimberly laughed. “Super pregnant or she’d have been here. She read the newspaper article about you both and sent it to me. I flew out the second I could.”
Having family meant that she and her sisters belonged somewhere. Her mother would want her to stay in contact. She glanced up and remembered their many family picnics where their moms would talk on the bench while the rest of them ran around the park. Sophie swallowed. “Tell her I’ll call her tonight and invite her. The Miras lost a lot, but it’s good for all of us to still be a family.”
Kimberly pressed against Sophie’s trembling knee. “Your mom is missed, a lot. I’m glad you’re okay. I felt so bad when you didn’t show up. I thought something awful had happened.”
Michael returned carrying a tray of coffee, biscuits and somehow in the kitchen found a gray t-shirt. He joined her and scooted the coffee cups in front of her and her cousin while Sophie said, “Meeting Michael was the best.”
Again her sisters’ laughter from outside echoed in the house. Kimberly stood and looked down at both of them on the couch. “I’ll take a cup of coffee outside and say hello to Emily, Isabelle and Abigail. They are growing so fast.”
She let herself out the backdoor, toward the beach. Michael waited for a few seconds of silence and swallowed his coffee. “That was your cousin?”
“I had wondered why she hadn’t come looking for us. She gave me the impression the other day when we talked on the phone.”
“When did you call her last?”
“When we arrived at your beach house. We talked almost daily after my mother died until the day we sailed. She’s made an effort to be there for me when mom died and offered to help when no one else did.”
Michael handed her the basket of biscuits. Her stomach growled as she accepted. “Then she’s more than welcome in our home.”
She took the offered bread in her hand, but whispered as she scooted toward him. “I love you.”
He kissed her forehead again and her heart felt like it grew. “Good, because I love you too. You’re my gift from God.”
She shook her head when he let her go and met his gaze. “Don’t put me on a pedestal Michael. I just want us to live happily ever after.”
“Whatever you say, my sweet.” He laughed and put their coffees down. Then he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her.
He tasted better than any food she might eat, and he’d last longer. She planned on forever. His quest for vengeance and her need for protection were now over and they were free to just love. Everything was perfect.
A Frosted Game of Hearts
Hidden Gabriel
Hidden Raphael
Hidden Michael
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Erica Mira’s shoulders tightened. The tree branch spun on the road. She blinked. That wasn’t natural. The word mom brought her back. The snowstorm outside matched Erica’s heartbeat. “What happened?” she said into the phone.
“The stem cell therapy began today, and your mother is feeling weak from her chemotherapy.”
Erica’s car took far too long to trudge ahead, and the steering wheel locked a bit. Her mother wouldn’t want her to get stuck in middle-of-nowhere, Maine. However, Erica needed money to pay for her mother’s medical bills. Cancer sucked. “I should go. I’ll call her the second I find a hotel.”
“Excellent. Are you on time for your meeting?”
The car skidded. Her heart raced, and she clutched the wheel.
“Ms. Mira?”
Erica steadied the car but held her breath.
“Is everything okay, boss?”
Erica’s shoulders tightened. “This was a bad idea. I shouldn’t be driving in this storm.”
Adrenaline pumped through her veins. She increased the speed of her wipers and hoped that her vision would somehow improve. It didn’t. Then she opened the window to help visibility. The wind bit at her nose, and she rolled it up fast.
She shook her head and yawned. The road visibility grew worse every time she blinked. She couldn’t see beyond her headlights. She gripped the wheel tighter. “Where were we?”
“Ms. Mira, you’re breaking up. Are you okay?”
“I have to be.” Erica’s heart beat wildly, but she stayed on the road. “The investors wouldn’t have called me up to the backwoods of Maine to sign papers in the middle of winter if they weren’t going to support my bid for the factory.”
Her secretary shouted, “Hello?”
The wind hissed, and thunder cracked in the air. Goose bumps erupted on Erica’s skin. She had no choice but to keep going. “What did Mom’s doctor say to you?” Her knuckles turned white.
“I’ll call tomorrow morning. I can’t hear anything.”
Erica clicked the phone off. The bleakness of the snow-covered mountains was bad. Where was this hotel? Had the GPS lied? The empty, dark road held no solutions. Her heart raced. She tried to use reason to calm herself down. All she had in this world was her mother. Cancer could not break up her family, and neither would a winter storm. “I love you, Mom.”
The wind howled, and the traction of the car became lighter. Erica bit her lip; then the car spun.
She screamed and stepped on the gas.
The wheels squealed. The high pitch pierced her eardrums. Without another thought, she stepped on the brake.
Boom.
An airbag knocked her back. The car continued to spin. Her head hurt, but she clutched the steering wheel.
Tears formed in her eyes. I’m going to die.
The wind howled, but everything else was eerily calm.
She blinked. The car was mangled metal, and the hiss of the engine roared in her ears. She sucked in a breath. Would there be a fire? She screamed. Smoke came from the engine. She
had to get out. Now. No, wait.
Irrational reaction never solved a problem. She should back up the car. Her heartbeat thumped.
Mom, I will be there. Erica switched to reverse and tried to turn. The car hissed and smoke fed into the air.
Whoosh.
She needed to get out. Smoke forced her eyes to tear up. Erica struggled to get her seat belt off. The door handle fought back and didn’t work.
Her teeth chattered.
A tree had sheared the hood of her car, and the engine steamed.
She refused to die in an inferno as she pictured in her mind. She had only seconds to escape. Her hands shook, and she tried to push at the door to stand.
Every breath came choppy and harder. Was smoke now inside?
Her eyes misted. She shoved at the door. It didn’t budge.
Her hands trembled, and she closed her eyes. How would her sister, Kimberly, know to help Mom? Erica opened her eyes and tried the handle again. This time the door opened, and she took a deep breath.
Hiss.
A shiver ran down her spine, and she jumped out of the car.
The wind had tentacles of ice. Erica’s thin gloves weren’t much help. She gasped and ran her hands through her dark hair.
The storm howled so loudly in her ears.
She lifted her chin. Panic never helped anyone, and in this storm she’d need her wits.
Nine-one-one worked out here. The police or fire department would find her.
She grabbed her phone. No signal. Had she ruined it in the crash? She powered down the phone to give it a moment.
Alone, as usual. Erica put her hand over her heart, and she took a few deep breaths, peering through the gray, dark fog that had settled on the dead forest.
The storm would get far worse, and fast.
She zipped her thin plastic coat all the way. Erica refused to give in to dark thoughts, and concentrated instead on one good thing. She snapped her fingers. Her driving gloves weren’t that thick. At least she’d worn her jeans to drive. The people at the car rental place in Boston had warned her of a blizzard. She bit her lip.
Hidden Michael Page 13