Embrace Me (4 page)

I met my mother for lunch at a restaurant near Central Park at the weekend. It was a good job I had gotten used to eating in high class restaurants when I was friends with Megan; the amount of cutlery you had to use was enough to give you a headache. On top of that, you also had to make sure you sat up straight and never put your elbows on the table.

“
Are you enjoying your new role at Headcom?” my mother asked, sipping her champagne. She was such a beautiful woman. It wasn’t just because she had the money to keep herself beautiful, either. She had natural beauty. I watched her toss her mid-length deep brown hair behind her shoulders. Her emerald eyes sparkled with excitement as she waited for my answer.

“
Yes, it is amazing,” I beamed.

“
I told you how wonderful you would be, Lizzie.” My mother had taken to calling me Lizzie, seeing as it was the name she had always remembered me by. Only my mother called me that, though, and it was nice to have something personal just between us.

“
I know, but it was such a big challenge.”

“
Darling, in a few years you will be running Downing International with me. Now
that
will be a challenge.”

I almost had to force a breath out. How would I ever be able to match up to my mother? “I doubt I will ever be as good as you.”

“
You will be superb. You are my daughter, after all.”

“
I know,” I smiled, sipping my white wine.

“
Did you and Charlie have fun at the charity ball on Friday night?”

I was sure I had gone red and that my mother would realise something was up by my late response. “Yes, it was good,” I finally replied.

“
Just good?” She looked sceptical.

“
I wasn’t feeling too well, so we didn’t stay long.”

“
Oh dear! Are you okay now, Darling?” my mother asked, very concerned.“Yeah, it was just a twenty-four hour bug, I think.”

“
How are you and Charlie?”

“
Really good, thank you.” I didn’t want to go overboard with just how wonderful it was. I still wasn’t comfortable talking to her about some aspects of my life.

“
Have you thought anymore about Texas?” She widened her eyes, waiting for my reaction.

“
I’m still thinking about it.”

“
It is only about your protection. When everything becomes public, you cannot imagine how daunting it will be for you.” I knew that, but the thought of not seeing Charlie for weeks at a time crushed me. “You are going to be bombarded by press, not to mention all the dangers you may face if you are not properly protected. Even Charlie knows your safety must come first.”

“
I just don’t understand why I have to go all the way to Texas.”

“
Well, I am sorry my ranch is too far away for you,” my mother laughed.

“
No, I’m sorry. That was rude of me.” I looked down at the pure white table cloth, ashamed at snapping at her. My mother was only thinking of my security and I really should have been giving her more respect.

“
Lizzie, it’s fine. I don’t want my own daughter so scared of me that she can’t say what she really thinks.” My mother reached for my hand over the table. “Just promise you will give it some serious thought. You have plenty of time. We won’t be going public for twelve months. I want to make sure everything is in place first.”

“
I promise,” I whispered, squeezing her hand gently.

“
Wonderful,” she beamed.

“
How was your meeting in Japan?” I asked in interest as I changed the subject. She was the most astounding business woman I had ever met.

“
It went remarkably well. The new prototypes are amazing. Technology really has come a long way.”

“
Do you think you will sponsor them?”

“
Well, my researchers are looking into it, but I would like to. I could see them really taking off. I know
I
would buy one.” My mother had a head for knowing what would sell in today’s main market.

“
So how long are you in New York for?”

“
Four days. Rachel and I have a meeting in Germany on Wednesday.”

“
Are you staying in your apartment?” She had an apartment in almost every city she visited. I had visited our family home in London twice since finding out my identity. I could tell my mother found it difficult going back to her childhood home, but I wasn’t strong enough to ask her why.

“
Yes, I really couldn’t face the Hilton this time. It still reminds me of that ghastly Field Family.”

I could feel myself quiver at just the sound of their name. Having five years of your life taken away from you because of a lie was difficult for me to come to terms with. To me, Megan had always been a wonderful friend. Learning that it was all a lie to trick me into marrying her older brother, Will, was unbelievable. At the time, it seemed so real. How could they have acted for so long?

Chapter Three

We went back to my mother’s apartment after lunch so we could talk a little more. I never got bored learning about my family; it was all still so new to me. I sat on her luxurious balcony, watching New York pass by below us. The entire apartment was impressive, I noticed as I gazed around.

“
Have you had much luck tracing the night of my birth?” I asked. Since we had found each other, my mother had made it her mission to find out what really happened the night I was born.

“
Well, thanks to Lorna’s detective work, we have a good lead. I am just angry that the doctor who delivered you passed away. What I would have given to talk to him…” She trailed off as she became lost in thought. I knew it was difficult for her to understand why her own father (my grandfather) would take away the
one
thing that mattered to her.

“
Do you think we will ever find out what really happened?”

“
I am certainly going to try. My father hid this secret far too well, so there must be a reason behind it.”

“
What was he like?” I asked. She looked surprised at my question. “He was my grandfather, after all.”

“
He doesn’t deserve you as a granddaughter.” My mother placed her hand on my cheek softly. “I will never forgive him for taking you away from me.”

“
What if he thought I was dead, too?”

“
I doubt that,” she glared. “He was so angry when he found out I was pregnant. He made me feel dirty and worthless.”

“
Was it because you were so young?”

“
That was part of it…but it was more to do with your father than anything.” She was watching my reactions carefully as she spoke. I had heard very little of my father since my mother and I had been reunited, and I had already gathered that he may not have known about me.

“
My father?” I asked, intrigued.

“
I know I haven’t told you much about him, but it is still a really painful subject for me.”

“
You don’t have to. I…”

“
No, Darling. You have a right to know,” my mother interrupted. “Your father and I grew up together. He was the son of my father’s dearest friend, and was like the son
my
father never had. We never intended on falling in love. We had been friends for so long, and I didn’t realise how I felt until he joined the army. The thought of him going away upset me so much. He was my best friend.” Tears filled my mother’s eyes as she spoke of her lost love. “He was a few years older than me, so I never dreamed he would feel the same way. It all happened on the night of my sixteenth birthday. My father had organised an amazing party with all my friends, and your father got jealous when some other boy asked me to dance.” My mother laughed to herself at the memory. “He kissed me that night after the argument we had, and we were inseparable from that moment on. We kept it a secret because of my father, but he found out in the end, anyway. We were forced apart until the night your father was due to go into the army. We never intended on going all the way…it just happened. I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to see him again, but I never regretted a single moment of our last night together. He died after six months of duty.” Tears were filling my eyes as she spoke. My parents had been in love when they made me. I was taken aback by how it made me feel to know I had been conceived out of love. “Your father was a wonderful man, Shannon. You really have only the best of both of us. Finding you again was like finding a small piece of him, too.” I hugged my mother to comfort both her and me.

“
What was his name?” I asked, still hugging her tightly.

“
Stephen Cooper,” she whispered. I could feel the pain in her voice as she spoke. “Love is a painful thing, Shannon. Never forget that. Powerful love is the only thing that can make you weak.”

I didn’t really understand what my mother was trying to say. I knew love made you weak. I had almost given up my whole life to save Charlie’s over a year ago because of it, but love was definitely not bad. It had given me
everything
. If fate, however, had dealt me a different hand—if I had lost Charlie permanently—I knew my idea of love would be entirely different, just as my mother’s was.

I was still reeling over her words when I returned home. Charlie was playing his guitar on our sofa as I walked in.

“
Did you have a nice lunch with your mother?” he asked as he looked up at me, obviously pleased that I was finally home.

“
Yeah,” I smiled, realising just how lucky we were…how things could have turned out so differently for us, and how grateful I was that Charlie never gave up on me. I strolled over to him, knelt on the floor by his feet, and kissed him powerfully on his lips. Charlie dropped his guitar, wrapping his arms securely around my waist as he pulled me closer towards him.

“
What was that for?” he whispered when our lips parted.

“
I just want you to know how much I love you,” I whispered back.

“
I know that, Sweetheart,” Charlie sighed, touching my face with one hand. “No one will ever separate us again. You know that, don’t you?” He pulled me onto his lap, kissing me in earnest when I agreed.

It was difficult to worry about anything when I was with Charlie. He made my life so complete. Sometimes it was as if I could drown in my feelings for him; nothing would ever mean more to me than he did.

I began to notice my confidence grow as the months drifted by. I attended major conferences around the world with my mother, making life changing decisions for the people who worked for us. She was ruthless in business, that was for sure. On our latest trip, I could hardly watch as we sold off half of our German based company. How would our staff find new jobs?

“
Shannon, you cannot think like that. This is business. We either lose the dead weight or we start to sink ourselves.” It was the first time my mother had ever really raised her voice at me, and I must have looked alarmed because she took my hand in hers. “I know this is all new to you, Darling, but you need to be prepared for what will be coming your way.”

“
I know. It’s just that so many people will lose their jobs.”

“
You cannot have a heart in business.”

“
I am starting to realise that,” I whispered under my breath, hoping my mother didn’t hear me.

“
Oh, I forgot. You will need to call Charlie and tell him we are extending our trip. I need to talk to my directors in Moscow.”

I wanted to complain, but I didn’t want to sound like a churlish child. “Okay, I will call him later.”

“
Is he still in London?” my mother questioned, sounding truly interested.

“
No, he’s home now.” I tried not to sigh as I spoke. I missed him so much and didn’t want to extend our trip.

“
I am very impressed with him, you know.”

“
You are?”

“
He’s made a real name for himself. He has quite a business head on him, too.” My mother smiled to herself. “I wonder if he would ever work for me.”

“
Only if you want a photographer,” I teased. Charlie would never give up his dream job, and I would never want him to.

“
It would be great to keep it in the family, though. I mean, there aren’t many of us.” I smiled, proud that Charlie was counted as family to my mother.

“
So, when do we fly to Moscow?”

“
We’ll leave as soon as Rachel gets back.” Just then, a knock came from the door. “Speak of the devil.”