Searching For Her Prince (11 page)

With bated breath, she saw Brent jump to the pontoon boat’s deck, teeter for a moment, then leap over the rail. She had never been so relieved, never been so grateful. But what had it cost him? What if he had torn his shoulder open again?

Waiting on the dock was the hardest thing she’d
ever done as the Jet Ski skipped over the water until it hit the shore then fell on its side. In the meantime, Brent piloted the boat back to the dock. As soon as she could, she caught the line and helped him tie it up, noting Jared’s and Lena’s expressions. Lena looked scared, but Jared looked defiant.

Brent pointed toward the dock. “Out,” he said gravely.

Jared hopped onto the dock first, and then Brent put his hands around Lena’s waist and carried her to Amira. “She turned her ankle. Thank goodness or they would have been across the lake before we could catch them.”

Jared turned on Brent then. “You shouldn’t have brought us back. We’re just going to run away again. You wait and see.”

“If I hadn’t caught you, where would you have gone? The lake is about three miles round. You wouldn’t have gotten very far. What would you have done for shelter tonight. And food?”

The ten-year-old produced four cookies from his pocket. “We had food.”

Brent shook his head and took Jared by the shoulders. “Running away is not going to solve anything.”

“It’ll keep us together,” he almost shouted, his voice trembling between anger and tears. “I don’t want them putting Lena somewhere where I can’t call her, where I can’t see her. We want to be together, Mr. Carpenter. Please.”

Amira’s heart went out to the two children, and she knew Brent’s did, too.

Crouching down in front of Jared, Brent studied the boy for a long time, then he looked at Lena. “I can’t
make you any promises, but I do know people in the system. Let me see what I can do.”

“You mean we’ll be together?” Jared asked, wariness in his tone.

“I’ll try to make that happen. Can you trust that I’ll do my best for you?”

Jared and Lena exchanged a look. “I guess we can’t stay at a motel without a credit card.”

The corner of Brent’s mouth turned up. “Not unless you have a bunch of cash.”

“Don’t have much, just five dollars from chores.” It seemed to take a very long time for Jared to decide what he was going to do. “All right. We’ll give you a chance.”

Brent extended his hand to the boy. “Shake on it?”

Jared put his hand into Brent’s, and Amira felt her throat constrict. The brother and sister had such hope in their eyes, such trust in Brent’s power to reunite them. What if she trusted Brent, too? What if she trusted what she felt and gave in to it?

After Brent called the dispatcher to let them know Jared and Lena had been found, he sat down with the brother and sister and Marilyn again, getting specific information from them so he could make a few calls.

Amira tended to Lena’s ankle, putting an ice pack on it and propping it on a stool. Although she kept close to Jared, Lena’s eyes were filled with a thank-you, and when it was time for Brent and Amira to go back to Shady Glenn, Lena waved to her. Amira felt as if she’d made a friend.

Thinking about everything that had happened, Amira was quiet on the drive back to Shady Glenn. When Brent pulled up in front of the house, he didn’t
cut the engine. “I’m going to go around the lake and see about that Jet Ski.”

“You’re not serious.”

“Of course I am.” He studied her carefully. “What’s the matter?”

“I was worried about you. I still am. You should let me check your shoulder.”

“I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you go in and make us some hot chocolate. I’ll make sure the ski didn’t damage anyone’s property and I’ll be right back. Promise.”

“You’ll be right back?”

“Fifteen minutes tops.”

She didn’t want to act like a meddling fussbudget.

“Okay. I’ll put something together for us for lunch.”

As Brent drove off, Amira went inside and fixed a tray of sandwiches, covered them and set them in the refrigerator. True to his word, he returned fifteen minutes later. When he took off his jacket, she noticed the nerve in his jaw working. That meant he was in pain.

“The gauze patches and tape are upstairs. Let’s go tend to your shoulder.”

“You have a one-track mind,” he said with patient amusement.

If he only knew what track her mind was on.

As they mounted the steps, she could feel his gaze on her. At the top of the stairs he asked, “Bathroom or my bedroom?”

“This will be easier if you’re sitting on the bed.” She remembered the last time she had done this and how she had left him afterward. She could see he was remembering, too.

As she’d done before, she stood between his legs to change the bandage. But this time something was different. This time she wasn’t denying everything she was feeling. This time she secured the last piece of tape and then looked into his eyes.

“You scared me to death on the dock. I was afraid…I was afraid something terrible would happen to you.”

He didn’t make light of what she’d felt. Rather he took her hands in his. “I didn’t know what was going to happen out there. I just knew I had to get on that boat and stop them before they hurt themselves.”

“You’re a hero,” she said, her admiration obvious.

“Oh, Amira…” He shook his head. “I’m not a hero. I just did what I had to do.” He lifted her fingers to his lips and kissed them one by one.

She never knew her fingertips were connected to her heart. She never knew her heart could feel so full or so sad at the same time. “We only have a few days left,” she murmured.

His green gaze was questioning as he raised his head. “I know. What would you like to do with those days?”

“It doesn’t matter…as long as I’m with you.”

Releasing her hands, he slid his arms around her and brought her closer. “I want you,” he said, his voice deep with need.

“I want you, too,” she whispered.

“Are you sure?” he asked, and she knew if she hesitated at all, he would restrain himself and pull away.

Remembering how she’d felt on that dock, thinking about everything she’d learned about him over the past week, how she was going to feel leaving him
when she returned to Penwyck, she said boldly, “I’m sure.”

Brent tugged her down onto his lap then and kissed her as if he’d never kissed her before and would never kiss her again. Parting her lips, he ravished her mouth with the inflamed desire of a man who had waited too long. When she moaned softly, overwhelmed by the sensuality of the kiss, she wanted to give him everything she was.

Breaking away, he took a deep breath. “I want to do this slowly, Amira. I want you to know the full pleasure of everything a man and a woman can do for each other.”

“We don’t have to go slow.” She had read books about what was going to happen, but her first time with Brent couldn’t be found in any book. “I trust you,” she said simply.

He kissed her again and eased her back onto the bed. “This is going to be good, Amira. I promise you that.”

She wasn’t exactly sure how he defined
good,
but as soon as he trailed kisses across her mouth, down her chin and throat into the vee of her sweater, she was trembling. While his mouth worked its magic, his hands slid under her sweater and pushed it up. His skin on hers was hot, taunting, so deliciously erotic that she couldn’t help but move restlessly so he would touch more.

“Easy,” he said to her, “let’s take this off.” With slow care he lifted her sweater over her head, admired her breasts in the lacy bra, and then he was unfastening it, touching her, putting his lips to her nipple.

She’d never felt anything so exquisite, and she cried his name.

His hand went to her jeans. “It’s going to get even better, sweetheart. I promise.”

He was about to unfasten her zipper when his hand stilled.

At first she was so caught up in what was happening between them she barely noticed. But then he shifted and sat up, and she felt bereft without him covering her. “What is it?”

“I heard something downstairs—”

“Is anybody home?” came a deep male voice at the foot of the stairs.

Amira plucked up her sweater and held it in front of her breasts. “Oh, my gosh. Is it Fritz?”

“No, it’s not Fritz. It’s my father. I’d better get down there before he comes up here.”

Sliding off the bed and pushing himself to his feet, Brent took a deep breath. Then he bent down to her, kissed her hard on the lips and assured her, “You’ll like Dad and he’ll like you. Tonight after he goes to bed, we’ll finish where we left off.”

As Brent went into the hall and called down to his dad, Amira couldn’t wait for tonight to come. She loved Brent Carpenter and she was going to show him exactly how much.

G
lancing outside the kitchen window, Amira saw Brent and his dad deep in conversation while Brent cooked the hamburgers on the outdoor grill. She liked his father very much. He’d immediately told her to call him Joe, and his hazel eyes had been friendly. She’d been embarrassed a little while ago when she’d descended the steps and her gaze had met Brent’s. But his smile had been as intimate as before. It told her he wanted to be with her as much as she wanted to be with him.

As she mixed an olive oil and lemon juice dressing for a pasta salad that Owen’s wife Jordan had taught her how to make, she thought about the night to come. She wanted to know Brent in every way, and she wanted him to know her. Maybe tonight she could tell him how she felt. Maybe tonight she could tell him she wanted to see him again after she returned to Penwyck. Maybe tonight they could talk about her moving to the United States permanently. It would be
a risk for her, but it would be worth it if Brent could come to love her. Maybe the idea was altogether foolhardy, but she was tired of living a protected existence.

When the phone rang, she thought about letting the machine pick it up, but then the Caller ID showed the number that Cole Everson had used.

The head of the Royal Intelligence Institute got straight to the point. “I have a picture, Amira. I’m going to fax it to you as soon as we finish here. I also have Cordello’s home address. Watching the post office box didn’t work. No one picked up the mail after I began surveillance. It was as if he knew we were watching. But we found a deed for a purchase of a house near De Kalb and that gave us his home address in the paperwork. I’ll also fax that information to you.”

“A house near De Kalb?” At first a frisson of foreboding skipped down her spine. But then she told herself she was being silly. Lots of inhabitants of Chicago must have houses in the state and maybe De Kalb was a popular area.

“With this information,” Cole went on, “you’ll know who you’re looking for and have a second place to look. But the queen doesn’t expect you to take on the role of a private investigator. If you still can’t corner the man after a few days, I’ll bring in a professional. As soon as we hang up, I’ll fax you what I have. Good luck, Amira.”

When Amira hung up the phone, she no longer gave a second thought to the dressing for the pasta salad or to the frozen vegetables on the counter. Rather she went to Brent’s study to wait for the faxes.

The aroma of hamburgers wafted into the fall air as Marcus stared at his father in astonishment. “Shane and I are adopted?”

Joseph Cordello had gone along with his son’s wishes to call him Brent when he’d arrived at Shady Glenn. But as soon as they stepped outside and had a bit of privacy, he wanted to know why. Marcus had filled him in, giving him the tale Amira had related, adding the rest of what she had told him about life on Penwyck. Then his father had revealed the secret he’d been keeping for twenty-three years.

Joseph’s eyes were anguished. “I never wanted you to find out like this. So suddenly.”

“Suddenly? Dad, I’m twenty-three years old!” Marcus was feeling more than shock now. Anger mixed with it. His world had just been rocked again by his father’s revelation.

Joseph Cordello took a deep breath but kept his gaze steady on his son’s. “When your mother and I divorced, we felt you were too young. We decided to wait until you and Shane were eighteen. But the time never seemed right. We wanted to tell you and Shane together, but the four of us were rarely in the same state…”

Although Marcus was keeping a tight rein on all of his emotions, his turmoil must have shown because his father stopped then and said, “You have every right to be angry. But we didn’t tell you because we love you both. In every way that matters, we
are
your parents.”

Unable to watch the pained look in his dad’s eyes, Marcus took a few steps away from the grill and looked toward the lake. “Who
are
our birth parents?”

His dad answered quickly. “According to our law
yer, they were a young couple who were in a terrible accident. They both perished. An aunt was babysitting you and Shane at the time.”

“Why didn’t the aunt take us?”

“She was elderly and knew she couldn’t handle bringing up twins. She also didn’t want to separate you. She wanted a good family to raise you.”

Marcus swung around and faced his father again. “Did you ever meet the aunt?”

“No. No, we didn’t. We were told traveling was difficult for her. Our lawyer and his wife transferred you to us.”

The full realization of everything his father had told him hit him. “Then Amira’s story
could
be true.”

Since his father had arrived and Marcus had had to leave Amira in his bed, he’d thought only of her and what they’d been about to do. As he’d introduced her to his father, he’d decided he couldn’t make love to her without telling her who he was. He’d decided to ask her to help him keep the world outside at bay with him until Monday.

Now he had to tell her the truth not only to restore real honesty to their relationship but because he might very well be one of the Penwyck heirs!

As he heard the back door open, he turned and saw Amira coming down the steps with her head bowed. It was crazy, but he always missed her when they were apart, even if it wasn’t for very long. In the midst of all that he’d learned, honesty between them became the priority. Deciding supper would have to wait until he revealed the truth to her, he became aware of the papers in her hand.

She raised her face to him, and he didn’t have to ask her what they were. He knew.

He’d decided to tell her the truth hoping nothing would change between them. That had been optimism at its worst. Her wounded expression tore at his heart and the look of betrayal in her eyes lanced his soul.

“Why did you do it?” she asked, her voice rising as she shook the papers at him. “Why did you tell me you were somebody else?”

He stepped closer to her, but she backed away and he stilled. “I didn’t intend for it to go this far. Let me explain.”

“Explain? There
are
no explanations. You’re Marcus Cordello! I poured my heart out to you. I told you how much I needed to see him and why. You sat there and listened, being sympathetic, learning how much it mattered to me and everyone at Penwyck. And still you didn’t say a word. You deceived me all this time, playing with my emotions, leading me on. I can’t believe I wasn’t intelligent enough to put it all together. I met you in the hotel where your offices are. Your secretary’s name is Barbra. How could I have let that pass?”

For the time being, he buried his feelings about his father’s revelation and concentrated on Amira. “You let it pass for the same reason I couldn’t tell you the truth. We were getting to know each other and nothing else mattered.”

“My mission mattered.”

He could see the tears glistening in her eyes as the strength of her emotions shook her voice. “Amira…”

“The first time we saw your doorman,” she went on, “you cut him off. He was going to call you by your real name. And that man who came here yesterday…I knew I’d seen him somewhere before. One of those days I was sitting outside your office, he came
out. You’ve played me for an utter fool. This afternoon I thought—” Her cheeks grew red, her lower lip trembled, and Marcus had never felt so low in his life.

“It’s not the way you think.”

“It’s
exactly
the way I think. You saw me as some shy little twit who didn’t know the first thing about men. You thought you could take advantage of me—”

Marcus knew he had no defense. But he
had
struggled with becoming involved with her because of who he was and where she was from, and the fact that she was shy and innocent. “I never took advantage of you.”

“What about this afternoon? If your father hadn’t arrived, you wouldn’t have stopped.”

Suddenly uncomfortable with having this discussion in front of his father, Marcus knew it was where they had to have it because Amira would never let him talk with her about this calmly inside. Still he had to give it a try. “Let’s go inside and discuss this.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

That’s the response he’d expected. “This afternoon, Amira, we were both in that bed. Neither one of us would have put a stop to it if my father hadn’t arrived. You might be shy sometimes and you
are
innocent, but you’re your own woman, too. You made the decision to be with me.”

Her gaze darted to his father and, as she realized they were discussing their most private matters in front of him, she looked thoroughly mortified.

Marcus wished he could put his arms around her, persuade her to believe that his father wouldn’t judge
anything. But he knew she wouldn’t let him get close to her. He knew she’d never let him touch her again.

Although her eyes glistened with unshed tears, she squared her shoulders. “I’m leaving here tonight. When I get back to the city, I’m taking the first flight out. Someone from Penwyck will be in touch with you. I hope you don’t play the same games with them that you played with me.” Then she turned and practically ran into the house.

Marcus didn’t think he had ever heard a more earth-shattering silence. As the door slammed, he started to go after her, but his father put a restraining hand on his shoulder. “I don’t think another confrontation is a good idea.”

“I can’t let her leave like this.”

“I think you’re going to have to. In the state she’s in, you set a foot near her, and she’s going to
walk
back to Chicago. I’ll offer her my driver. He’s at a motel in De Kalb. He can be here in half an hour.”

“I can’t let her leave,” Marcus said again.

“If you don’t let her leave, you might never get her back.
If
that’s what you want. I think you’d better be sure exactly what you want before you talk to her again.”

Marcus took a long look at Joseph Cordello, remembering the man wasn’t his biological father. Yet, hearing his advice, Marcus felt his anger at being kept in the dark for twenty-three years vanish. This man was his “real” father in every definition of the word. “All right. Offer her your driver.”

As Joseph Cordello went inside, Marcus felt as if the foundation of his life had cracked in two and nothing would ever be the same again.

The Jet Ski skimmed the surface of the lake, but Marcus got no pleasure from the speed. He’d felt turned inside out since Amira had left. Making repairs at Reunion House hadn’t helped. Taking long drives hadn’t helped. Assembling the jungle gym hadn’t helped. Running until he’d dropped hadn’t helped. Talking to his dad hadn’t helped. No matter what he did, he thought about her, about who she was, about who they could be together.

The day after Amira had left he’d tried to put her out of his mind by having a talk with Jared’s foster mother and dad and then the authorities. The family who had taken Jared in would also take Lena. They’d been unable to do that a year ago, but since then they’d moved to a larger house and Mr. Brinkman had gotten a promotion. The satisfaction in what he’d been able to do had come when Jared hugged him. Even then all he could think about was having children of his own with Amira as their mother.

He gave the Jet Ski more power, seeking to outrun the pain and the feeling of emptiness. But he couldn’t outrun it, and he knew he should stop trying.

When he returned to the dock, his father was standing there waiting for him. His dad had come along to Reunion House this morning to help him with the jungle gym. “You had a call,” Joseph said.

“Amira?” he asked, knowing that was improbable but hoping nonetheless.

His father shook his head. “Sorry, no. It was a Mrs. Dunlap, Cocoa’s owner. Apparently she called Barbra and Barbra gave her the number here. She phoned a veterinarian, who told her that you found Cocoa. Only her name isn’t Cocoa, it’s Brownie. I told her where you’d taken Brownie and how much the kids loved
her. She said her arthritis is getting worse and she can’t walk Brownie as much as she’d like. Brownie slipped her collar one day when they went for a walk. I think Mrs. Dunlap would like to visit Reunion House and see if the dog really has a good home. If she does, she’d like to visit now and then.”

“That would be a good solution for everyone,” Marcus said. “I’ll have Fritz drive her up here as soon as I get back to the city.”

“Are you going back tomorrow?”

Tomorrow was Sunday. He’d promised to have dinner with Marilyn and the kids before he left. “Fritz will arrive in the late afternoon, and we’ll start back then. What about you?”

“I’ll leave first thing in the morning.” He paused, then asked, “Are we all right, Marcus? Can you still think of me as your father?”

Having a few days to let it all sink in had helped. He realized his dad was the same man he’d always known, and he still felt admiration, respect and love for him. “We’re all right, Dad. I could never think of anyone else as my father.”

His dad capped Marcus’s shoulder, and there was moisture in his eyes. He cleared his throat. “Are you going to tell Shane?”

“I have to decide the best way to do that.”

“I’m surprised you haven’t received a call from Penwyck.”

“I don’t even know if Amira flew back yet. Maybe she stayed. Maybe she’ll be at my office bright and early Monday morning to meet me in an official capacity.” His heart lifted at the thought.

“Do you really think that’s likely?” His dad made him face the impracticality of that possibility.

In his mind’s eye he could see Amira waiting for him at Shady Glenn, holding their child in her arms. “No, it’s not likely.”

“You know, son, I was a fool where your mother was concerned. We had problems, and I thought I wanted more than she could give me. I made a terrible mistake that she could never forgive. But I also didn’t try very hard to win her forgiveness. My pride kept me from telling her that I still loved her. If Amira is the woman you want or need, don’t let her simply fly away.”

“She’ll never forgive me.”

“You don’t know that, do you?”