Embrace Me
Authors: Rebecca Turley,Sally Goodwin,Elizabeth Simonton,Jo Matthews
REBECCA TURLEY
EMBRACE ME
Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach;
may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance.
Don't leave me for a second, my dearest,
-Pablo Neruda: Don't Go Far Off
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations and events are fictional, and any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © RebeccaTurley 2013
The right of Rebecca Turley to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, nor stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission from the author.
Cover Design Copright ©
Mayhem Cover Creations
2013
eBook Formatting by
Mayhem Cover Creations
2013
ISBN-13: 978-1490969664
ISBN-10: 1490969667
Dedication
This book is for my best friends—old and new. You all know who you are. I wouldn’t be the author I am today without any of you. Thank you all for your gift of friendship.
Table of Contents
Prologue
I fell onto the bed exhausted. Charlie and I had stayed up until the early hours, talking to my mother. My mother: Jennet Downing. How did I even begin to wrap my head around that? I wasn’t sure I had the strength to get changed, let alone face the fact I was the lost heir to the biggest fortune in the world.
“
It’s been quite a day,” Charlie smiled, running his fingers through my hair. “How are you feeling?”
“
Overwhelmed,” I admitted, taking a deep breath. “Just two days ago, I thought my life was over, and now…I have everything,” I beamed as tears began to sting my eyes.
“
Hey,” he soothed, pulling me into his arms. “No tears. You’re safe, Shan. The Field family can never hurt you again. I’m so sorry I took so long to work it all out. They were very cunning. I still can’t believe I found you in time.”
“
How
did
you find me? I only saw you two weeks ago.”
“
Lorna traced the doctor who delivered you. The day I met you in London, I was meeting our source to confirm where you were really born. I have to admit, I had already found out where you were living with Megan when I arrived the day before. I followed you back to your house when I saw you in Notting Hill. I had to see you and talk to you properly because I knew something wasn’t right. Lorna scolded me when I told her I’d argued with you, but I was hurt. I really thought you had used me again.” I looked down, away from the pain in his eyes, but Charlie lifted my chin back up. “I know why you did it, but I wish you would have told me. A death threat from William Field wouldn’t have kept me away from you, Shan. We would have worked something out.”
“
I had to keep you safe,” I mumbled, though it sounded more like a sob.
Charlie shook his head in disappointment before carrying on. “When we realised your whole birth certificate was a lie, I knew the Fields must have been up to something. I just had no idea how big it was. I tried to tell you that night at the charity event, but Will warned me off. If you hadn’t have interrupted us, I would have floored him right then. The things he said to me…that lying son of a bitch!” The fury in Charlie’s face told me not to ask what had been said.
“
I’m so sorry. Will made me kiss him. I…”
“
Sweetheart,” Charlie stopped my panic, “it’s okay. I got your letter when I returned home to New York. It had been sat there the entire time I had been in London. I was so annoyed with myself—I could have saved you there and then if I had of known.”
“
It doesn’t matter, you’re here now.”
Charlie smiled, kissing my knuckles before continuing. “Once we knew the Fields were blackmailing you, it began to make me think, and something my mum said to me months ago kept bugging me.”
“
What did she say?”
“
That you had the same eyes as Jennet Downing, which was strange considering how rare the colour is.”
“
That’s why you did the DNA test?” I giggled. “Just because we had the same eye colour? That’s ridiculous, Charlie!”
“
No, we did some research first,” he chuckled. His hand was slowly stroking my back and I had to hold in a whimper. I’d been starved of his touch for so long that my body was convulsing with need for him. “At first, Lorna and I didn’t even know Jennet had had a daughter until my mother confessed, but when she did, things started to click. The Fields have wanted a merger with Downing International for such a long time, and the more we spoke about it, the more it seemed possible. You were the right age and your eyes couldn’t have just been a coincidence, so my mother tricked Jennet into giving us a sample. We couldn’t see the harm. It was worth a try, even if it was a long shot. When the results came back I was dumbfounded, but it all made sense. My mum and I took the evidence to Jennet and she broke down.We immediately set about trying to find you, but you’d already been taken to that damn island!”
“
All this happened only four days ago?” I gasped at how easily it could have gone all wrong.
“
Your mother flew to China while I flew to New Zealand. We knew the Fields had two islands, so we each took one. I was the lucky one who got the right island.”
“
It could have all ended so badly. Charlie, seeing you on that beach walking towards me? I thought you were a dream.” I reached my hand out to touch his chest. “You still feel like a dream.”
“
I’m here, Shan.”
“
All these years…my life…it was all a lie.” Had Megan always known? Had Will? “Do you think they all always knew?”
“
We will find out what happened, Shan. Your mother is making that her mission.”
“
My mother, Jennet Downing,” I whimpered. “It still feels so strange.”
“
How do you think I feel? I’m in love with the long lost daughter of Jennet Downing. I sure like my love life complicated.”
“
You do know how to pick them—clearly you have a thing for billionaire’s daughters,” I giggled, leaning down to kiss his soft lips.
“
I only have a thing for you!” Charlie smoldered, nipping at my neck.
“
You could have had a much easier life,” I admitted, closing my eyes and becoming consumed by the feel of his lips against my neck.
“
There was never a choice once you told me you loved me. I knew it was a lie when you told me you never had. New York meant everything to you—just like it did to me.”
“
It was everything.
You
are everything!”
Charlie grinned triumphantly before kissing me passionately. “I could never give up
on you,” he breathed as our lips parted.
“
Even with what we are about to face?” I teased, nudging him playfully. “Our lives are about to get even more complicated than before.”
“
I’m not going anywhere, Sweetheart. I’m here to stay.”
“
You don’t know how happy I am to hear that.” I sighed, losing myself in him.
When thinking about what lay ahead of me, the one thing that kept me calm was knowing that Charlie would be there with me every step of the way.