Be What Love Is

by Malouff, Ellie

  Mrs. McHenry gulps hard, and with extreme restraint, says, “That is your mum’s story to tell.”

  Damn it. It would have been so much easier to have her spill the beans than get it out of my mom.

  I finally ask the sixty-four thousand dollar question. “Do you know who my birth father is?”

  Quickly, much too quickly, she replies, “It was none of my business, Miss Montgomery.”

  And that’s when I realize that she’s going to be a professional until the very end. Her loyalty to my family, even to my mom who she hasn’t seen or heard from in nearly twenty years, is rock solid.

  I nod, knowing that my opportunity is over. Reid discreetly asks for the check and slides his credit card to the waiter without even looking at it.

  “Well this has been lovely,” Mrs. McHenry says to break the ice, and we all stand up to go.

  “Yes, it’s always so good to see the two of you,” I say sincerely, respecting the couple more than I had before. I’m lucky to know them in my life. I get a little misty, wondering if this will be the last time I ever see them. Sensing this, Mrs. McHenry hugs me as the men stand by.

  “Good to see you too, sweet Cara. Don’t be a stranger.”

  As we walk out together, Reid takes my hand.

  “Drive safe,” Mr. McHenry advises casually.

  Reid stops dead in his tracks. “Pardon?”

  The McHenrys stop too, and we all look at him. I don’t understand his reaction.

  “What’s wrong?” I ask under my breath.

  He shakes his head and focuses on Mr. McHenry. “What did you say, Hamish?”

  “Drive safe,” he repeats, rolling his r’s a bit.

  Reid lets go of my hand and takes a step closer. What on Earth?

  “What is it, lad?” Mr. McHenry asks. Mrs. McHenry and I exchange concerned looks.

  “Did you both know? Did you know about the cancer?”

  “Reid!” I shout, shocked that he would bring it up.

  The couple glances at each other and then turn back to him. Mrs. McHenry is about to answer when her husband puts a hand on her shoulder, and she immediately stops.

  “Yes, we did,” he answers.

  “You knew that she was sick? Why didn’t you bloody tell me?”

  “It wasn’t our place to do so,” he says, much like his wife had done in the restaurant.

  “Don’t hide behind this confidentiality bollocks. You should have told me,” Reid argues.

  “Mr. Lewis!” Mrs. McHenry exclaims, but her husband once again puts his hand on her shoulder and she stops.

  “If they wanted ye to know, they would’ve told ye,” he says, slipping into his Scottish dialect.

  Reid’s hands ball into fists at his sides and a vein in his neck pulsates. I grab onto his arm, to keep him steady.

  “Did they do it?” he hisses out.

  “Oh my God, you are not asking them that,” I say to him, but it’s like he doesn’t even hear me.

  “Do what?” Mr. McHenry asks, genuinely bewildered.

  “Did they run into that tree on purpose?”

  His morbid theory is out there now and he can’t take it back. I hold onto him tighter, but it’s like I’m not even there. There is no one, but him and Mr. McHenry. I try to give them an apologetic look, but they don’t notice.

  Very subtly, Mr. McHenry shakes his head once. I’m not sure what he means. Was it, no they didn’t kill themselves, or no, I will not answer that question?

  “How do you know?” Reid asks.

  Mrs. McHenry has tears in her eyes as she stares at her husband.

  “Some things are just meant to be, willed or not, and there’s nothing ye can do about it once it’s done,” he answers cryptically.

  The men stare at one another, not backing down. Finally, very slowly, Mr. McHenry turns away, and the pair walks up the avenue into the darkness.

  Reid drops his head into his hands, and I stand by, more confused than ever.

  “Let’s go home,” I whisper, and he nods.

  We walk hand in hand to the car and drive home. We don’t talk about what happened with the McHenrys in the restaurant or in the street. None of our questions have been answered and I think we’re both growing tired of asking them. Mr. McHenry’s words rattle around my brain. Maybe we need to let it all settle, my father, the accident, all of it. Maybe we need to move on. What happened, happened and there’s nothing we can do about it now.

  Reid

  When we get home, I’m surprised to see Victoria’s luxury SUV parked outside the house.

  “Who’s here?” Cara asks.

  I don’t have to answer, because Victoria opens the car door and steps out, all legs and hair and smirk.

  Cara’s annoyance flares up on sight of her. “What is she doing here?”

  “Business,” I answer. “Always, business.”

  “Is this an expected visit?”

  “No.”

  We get out of the car and head in Victoria’s direction. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Cara’s hand reach for mine, but I don’t take hold of it like I usually do. I haven’t yet told Victoria that we’re together and I’d rather tell her first than have her see it with her own eyes.

  “Out to dinner?” she asks like it’s any of her business.

  “We were.” I take a few steps away from Cara and shove my hands into my pockets to keep myself from reaching out for her. My body has a mind of its own when it comes to this woman. “What brings you all the way out here?”

  I glance nervously at Cara, and she’s staring daggers into me. Needless to say, I’ll be in the doghouse by day’s end.

  “I came by to confer with you on the Collins Group deal, and I have a few papers for you to sign.”

  “Oh, is it finished?” Cara asks with a hopeful expression on her face.

  “Not by a long shot,” Victoria barks.

  “Right, come in, yeah?” I offer, and she nods.

  Cara falls far behind as I escort Victoria in. I hate every moment of this. I’m a bloody fool for not telling Victoria about my relationship yet. I turn back to Cara and give her what I hope is a meaningful look. One that says don’t worry about this, I’m completely yours, and you’re the only person on this earth that matters to me. I’m not sure if she got all that, but her eyes soften a bit.

  As we make our way to the kitchen, I offer Victoria a drink.

  “Just a taste, I have to get back to London,” she answers as she pulls out some folders from her onyx black leather satchel.

  “I’ll have a glass too,” Cara says to my surprise. In all the time we’ve been together under this roof she’s never tried the hard stuff. I grab a third glass and pour Victoria a small amount, and an even smaller one for Cara. She rolls her eyes at me in plain view, and I reply with an angry shake of my head. I don’t like this game we’re playing. Her eyebrows meet in the middle while her eyes narrow at me.

  Victoria is oblivious to our unspoken argument. She passes the documents and pen over to me, and I start to read through them.

  “Headed back to California soon?” Victoria asks Cara, and I pause. It’s the second time this subject has come up tonight, and while I’m cringing at Victoria’s awkward interaction with Cara, I’m very curious about what she’ll say the second time around.

  “Actually, I’m planning on staying a while,” Cara responds and downs her drink in one gulp. She makes a painful face like she’s just swallowed lava.

  I desperately want her to expand on that statement. We will be talking about this later.

  “Oh,” Victoria says and looks at me and back to Cara. “How odd. What on earth would you do here?”

  Me, I so badly want to answer her condescending question. Cara bites on her lip, holding back her own response. I shake my head quite quickly again, only for Cara to see and she gets the hint.

  “Oh look at that,” she says and pulls out her phone. “I have to take this, excuse me.”

  A laugh dares to burst out o
f me. It is completely obvious that Cara is faking. There’s no ring, no vibration, and the screen is still black. She winks at me, and much to my relief, high tails it out the kitchen.

  “Reid,” Victoria starts. “What on earth are you doing?”

  Okay, it’s time to confess. “Well, Cara and I. . .”

  “Yes, you’re obviously shagging. I’d have to be a fool not to understand that.”

  “Right, then, what do you mean?”

  “Why are you blowing this Collins Group deal?”

  “I’m not.”

  “You are. We need you in London. They are about to walk, Reid.”

  “No, they’re not.”

  “Yes, they are. I’ve talked to Collins myself now, three times. He’s been upfront about meeting with the partners at Jackson and Heap.”

  “That’s not the kind of investment house they’re looking for.”

  “You don’t even know what they’re looking for anymore. Did you know about their interests in diamonds?”

  “Diamonds? That’s ridiculous. We don’t handle that type of business. Trevor would never—”

  “Trevor is dead,” Victoria says so bluntly it’s like getting hit in the chest with a cricket bat.

  “I’m well aware.”

  “Are you?” she asks. “Because it’s like you’re waiting around for him to come back to work one day and take charge. You need to step up, or we’re not going to be able to expand the business. If we lose Collins, we’ll have to fund it ourselves, and that’s not a risk I want to take with you since your head is up some tart’s skirt out in the goddamn country.”

  “Oi,” I shout at her. “Do not say another word like that about Cara.”

  “Come off it Reid. You’re thinking with your willy while we stand to lose millions and millions of pounds,” she says and packs her satchel.

  “It’s not just sex. We love each other,” I tell her. “She’s the love of my life.”

  Victoria flinches, but only slightly. She’s too controlled to show me how she really feels.

  “I’m sorry if that hurts you. I know you see us as a smart match, but I refuse to hold back what Cara means to me.”

  “You’re making a big mistake,” she says coldly.

  I don’t respond to that, because even if it does turn out to be a mistake, it’s out of my hands now. Cara is it for me.

  “And you’re going to lose the business,” she adds.

  “Don’t count on it.”

  “If that’s the case, I expect to see you in London next week,” she says and leaves. I drop all pretense of manners and don’t show her out.

  Victoria has challenged me, that is certain. I refuse to lose the Collins Group deal. I can and will have it all, I just need to convince Cara to come to London with me. Speaking of, I wonder where my girl has wandered off to. It takes me a while to find her, but when I see that the master bathroom door is closed, I get a clue.

  “Cara, are you in here?” I ask from the other side.

  “Yeah, come on in,” she says.

  “Right,” I say, a little wearily. I’m not exactly sure what to expect when I open the door, but it’s not her all naked and sudsy in the tub.

  “You look surprised,” she says and gathers some bubbles against her chest. She’s shy, and I find that absolutely adorable and a little bit arousing. She can’t hide from me for long.

  “I am surprised.” I start stripping off my clothes.

  “What are you doing?” she asks and her cheeks turn a lovely shade of pink.

  “What does it look like?” I ask with a devilish smile.

  “Whoa, hold on one second. Is Victoria still here?”

  “Of course not,” I reply. “Scoot forward.”

  “Wait, what happened with her? Did you tell her about us?”

  I dip a foot into the warm water behind her back and nudge her forward.

  “Well?” she asks, not budging.

  “Let me in, and I’ll tell you all about it.”

  “Fine,” she murmurs and makes room for me. I slip in smoothly, and only a little bit of water goes over the edge onto the tile floor. She continues to lean forward and pulls her knees to her chest.

  “Christ, Cara, come here.” I gently pull her back against my chest and whisper into her ear, “Relax.”

  “Tell me,” she demands.

  “Yes, I told her,” I report as I wrap my arms around her belly.

  “And?”

  “And, what?” I ask before kissing her temple.

  “How did she react?”

  “Hmm, let’s not talk about it.” I kiss my way down her neck.

  My distraction works. She sinks back into me a little bit more and the tension in her shoulders releases. She gets so into it that I may have her just as I want her. My hands rub over her slick breasts, her nipples hardening beneath my touch, and down over her belly. She stops me abruptly, right before I get to where I really want to go.

  “No, I want to talk about it. How did she react?”

  I grumble my protest and rest my chin on her shoulder. “Well then, if you really must know, she didn’t cry or scream at me. She was cold and harsh.”

  “What did she say?”

  “She told me I was making a big mistake.”

  Cara attempts to lean forward, but I hold her in place. “Reid!”

  “Stop now. It doesn’t matter what she thinks or what she said. I told her how I feel about you, how we feel about each other.” I press my mouth against her ear. “I told her that you’re the love of my life.”

  “Really?” There’s a spark of something sweet in her voice.

  “Yes, really.”

  She settles down and nuzzles against me. “Well if there was ever a magic thing to say in a moment like this, you have executed it with the highest of marks. You’re like Hermione Granger.”

  “I don’t know who that is, but I’m better,” I say and nibble on her ear.

  She flips over so that we’re chest to chest and she takes my mouth with hers. It’s not a gentle kiss, our tongues connect right away, and I put everything I have into it. I grip her ass and hold her to me nice and tight as we make out like our lives depend on it.

  When our kissing slows down, she says, “Harry Potter, you doofus. And no one is as good as Hermione Granger. You’re a close second.”

  That makes me laugh, and I shake my head. “What am I going to do with you?”

  “Love me?”

  “Done.”

  She hesitates for a moment. “Did you really mean it?”

  “That you’re the love of my life?”

  She nods and slides down to rest on my chest.

  “Yes, I meant it,” I whisper and stroke her hair. “The question is, am I yours?”

  She smiles and searches for a way to express herself. Even if she answers with a simple yes, it would be enough. She finally gives me a quick nod.

  I chuckle. “My, my, Miss Montgomery. I don’t believe you’ve ever been so quiet.”

  She splashes some water on my face, and I laugh harder.

  “So you’re considering staying a little longer?” I dare to ask. “I wasn’t sure if you were just saying that to fuck with Victoria or if you really meant it.”

  “Maybe a little bit of both,” she admits.

  “You’re so bad.”

  “That woman drives me crazy. You’re lucky I didn’t mount you right there in the kitchen.”

  “I like you jealous,” I coo and squeeze her tighter.

  “Ugh, I don’t like me jealous.”

  “Well, we should talk about it, you know, what happens after we leave here and all that.”

  “I dread the thought of ever leaving.”

  I sit up a little bit. “I have to go to London,” I tell her. “I can’t stay away any longer.”

  “I get it,” she says a little sadly. Does she think I want to leave her behind? Silly girl.

  “Will you please come with me?”

  Her eyes widen. “
For how long?”

  “I’m not sure, but we have to go there soon.”

  She considers it for a bit and nods. “I want to be where you are.”

  Cara

  “CloudSoft Solutions, this is Julie.”

  I pull the phone back from my ear and make sure I didn’t dial Julie’s work number by accident. Nope, it’s definitely Julie Cell.

  “Hey Julie, did you get your lines mixed up?”

  “Hey, sorry. I’ve been working like crazy this morning, this is like my twelfth call already.”

  “Dear lord. Why? It’s a Saturday.”

  “I got promoted!” she says and squeals into the phone.

  “Oh my God! When? How?”

  “It was so crazy. This V.P. who works in the Ireland office was in town meeting with my boss. We’ve got a lot of overlap. Well, they both scheduled this meeting with me. I’m not going to lie, I was convinced they were firing me because they suggested we go out to lunch for it. I was thinking about Jerry McGuire the entire way there and wondered if I’d do a whole ‘who’s coming with me?’ bit, once we got back.”

  We both laugh at that as I picture her digging out a goldfish from a giant aquarium that I’m sure her office doesn’t have.

  “But it wasn’t that at all. They promoted me, and now I report to Aiden, the V.P. It’s unreal.”

  “That is the greatest news, Julie. I couldn’t be more happy for you. You super deserve it.”

  “Thank you.” She starts to tell me about the office she would get and delicately mentions the raise she would receive. “We’re really growing up, aren’t we?”

  “I suppose we are,” I say, reeling from the news. “You get to travel?”

  “Yes, as it turns out I will. I’ll get to go to Ireland since that’s where Aiden is based.”

  “That is excellent, Julie. I know traveling has always been your goal.”

  “Yep! So, hey, how are things there?”

  “Christ, I have so much to catch you up on.”

  “Do tell.”

  “Well, in a nutshell, my mom found out I’m in England. Reid and I fell in love, and I thought I found my dad. Oh, and I got a final interview with the Fitzwilliam Library.”

  The line goes silent.