31 Days of Autumn (44 page)

‘Thank you,
I’m so grateful.’ I tightened the belt around my wool jacket, grabbed a key,
and headed back out, thankful my hair was in a ponytail as it was whipped back
and forth in the gale. I headed down to the boathouse and stood in front of the
locked door, mentally preparing myself for a moment. I just wanted to spend
some time with Jenny and as I couldn’t, being in her home, surrounded by her
personal effects, would be the next best thing. I couldn’t put it off, her
parents, or even Dean, might want to clear the boathouse out and soon there’d
be nothing left of her but memories.

I unlocked
the door and slowly pushed it open, steeling myself for the effect it would
have on me. I gasped and covered my mouth with my hands as I saw it was empty.
Everything had gone except the furniture. There were none of her pictures or
ornaments, no books on the coffee table, the silver glitter bowl she’d always
kept filled with sweets for the children had gone. I ran to the wardrobe and
flung it open to find it empty, too. I headed back to the lounge and flopped
down onto the sofa, the pain in my chest expanding as I recalled all of the
times we’d sat on this sofa drinking a bottle of wine, comparing our last
favourite reads and laughing. It was like she’d really gone, like she’d been
totally erased from my life. The feeling was heart-breaking. I put my head in
my hands and cried again. I had no idea how many tears the human body could
produce, but surely I had to be at my life’s limit right now? When was it ever
going to stop? I suddenly felt like I’d been run over by the truck that hit my
parents. Everything was spilling out, spiralling out of control. I didn’t want
to fight this anger and pain anymore, I wanted rid of it. I wanted to be happy
Ellie again, and that was only possible when I had my loved ones around me. All
of them. Dan especially, but I’d pushed him away. The thought made me cry even
harder.

‘Ellie.’

I was hearing
things now, I could hear Dan’s voice saying my name. Was this what a breakdown
felt like? Pain clawing at your insides, aching loneliness and voices in your
head? I gasped as I felt myself being lifted up and Dan’s scent surrounded me.

‘Dan,’ I
whispered.

‘I’m here. I
just missed you at the airport, so I had Seb fly me up and got a taxi here. If
you think you can keep pushing me away and I won’t keep coming back, then you
don’t know me very well. I’m not going anywhere, no matter what you say. We’re
bound, you and I, bound together by fate, and nothing’s going to break that
bond.
Nothing.
If there’s anyone more stubborn than Ellie Baxter, it’s
Oliver Daniel Davenport,’ he stated, sitting back down with me on his lap,
holding me close.

‘I’m so
sorry,’ I sobbed, burying my face in his jacket and putting my arms around his
waist. ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m so angry and it’s easy to take
it out on you and I shouldn’t. I love you.’

‘I know,
baby. Just keep throwing whatever you want at me. I can’t promise not to get
pissed off, but I promise I’ll never leave. Someone reminded me earlier that when
a woman says she needs space, quite often it’s a cry for help, an admission
that really she needs you even more. I’ll be whatever you need me to be, Ellie.
If you need space I’ll give it to you, as long as I’m within shouting distance,
but that’s as far as I’m letting you run, do you hear me?’

‘Yes,’ I nodded, the biggest wave of relief suddenly
drowning me. Being home, being in his arms, just felt right. It was as if I’d
needed both things to reunite to allow me to let go, and suddenly I
wanted
to let go. I wanted to share it all with him. I’d shouldered some of his
burdens to help him in the past, I needed to let him do the same for me. I took
a deep breath and started at the beginning, at the moment Jenny said “Ollie”
and alerted me to the fact that we were in danger. It seemed fitting to start
with Jenny, as the story would end here, in her home, where my memories of her
would last a lifetime.

One year later
~ Monday 18
^th
October

Ellie

‘Why do I have to come with you,’ I protested, as
Dan ushered me downstairs and through to the garage, where Andy was waiting
with the limo door open. It was Eva’s birthday and I wanted to stay at home
with her until it was time to get her dressed and leave for the party.

‘Because I say so, is that not enough?’ Dan
asked, shooting me one of his domineering looks. The one that said he wasn’t in
the mood to argue. I sighed and accepted his hand as I lowered myself onto the
back seat and scooted over to let him sit beside me. It was bad enough I’d
pulled Oliver out of school for the day when Dan insisted we have the party on
Eva’s actual birthday, down here in London, rather than at home or his hotel
over the weekend. I had no idea what was so important that I’d had to get
dressed in advance and head to his office with him.

I let go of my annoyance as soon as he took my
hand. It had been a year since my abduction, a year since I'd nearly pushed him
away. I’d had lots of therapy, both alone and with him, and had come to realise
that nothing he did was powered by anything but the well-being of myself and
our children, however ill-advised at times. He’d accepted that he’d taken
things too far using his technology on Oliver and was too scared of losing me
and the children if he hid anything like that from me again, so he didn’t hold
back anymore. Our relationship had never been stronger. James had been a rock
over the first few difficult months, too and kept reminding me that a Phoenix
only grew out of the ashes. It was his way of letting me know that I’d come
back stronger after all of my trauma.

‘Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Davenport,’ Jessica
the receptionist smiled. I’d convinced Dan not to fire her after her
inadvertent part in last year’s events. He’d put her on a final warning though,
one breach of any rule and she was out.

‘Good morning, Jessica,’ I smiled, trying to
keep up with Dan as he nodded at her and strode on past, towards the elevators.
‘Slow down, you’re a man on a mission,’ I gasped, trying to catch my breath as
he hit the button for his office floor.

‘Why do you think I work out every day?’ Andy
chuckled.

‘I don’t want to be late, and you had me behind
schedule fussing around over your outfit,’ Dan retorted, running his eye over
my knee-length black leather skirt, emerald silk blouse, and highest black
heels. I’d wanted to look smart for Eva’s party, which we were having at The London
Domville, as our house here was too small. Dan had paid for suites for everyone
to stay there as well, which had led him to start looking for somewhere to take
over and remodel in London for his own chain.

‘Late for what?’ I asked. ‘You’re being very
vague.’

‘Because I know that when you find out what I
have planned, you’ll have something to say about it,’ he replied, giving me
another of his looks. I rolled my eyes and followed him as he tugged me out of
the lift onto the granite walkway.

‘I’ll be waiting for your call in the staff
room, Sir,’ Andy called.

‘Thanks,’ Dan replied as the doors closed
behind us.

‘Good morning, Sir, Mrs. Davenport, always a
pleasure.’

‘Morning, Stuart,’ we both chorused.

‘Mr. Austin is waiting for you in the
boardroom, Sir. He declined a tea or coffee, so has been provided with a jug of
sparkling water. I took the liberty of arranging a pot of coffee for the two of
you, but if you require anything else, just give me a call.’

‘Thanks, Stuart, coffee will be just fine,’ Dan
replied, patting him on the back as he tried to keep up with us on Dan’s
determined march. ‘Please make sure we’re not disturbed under any
circumstances, regardless of what time Robert leaves. I have some additional
business to attend to with Mrs. Davenport, so when I let you know we’re done,
you’re free to make your way over to The Domville. I won’t be too far behind
you.’

‘Certainly, Sir,’ he confirmed, virtually
running to beat Dan to the boardroom door, right next to Dan’s office. He
opened it and gestured for us to go through. Additional business? And why was I
here for a meeting with Robert?

‘Robert, so sorry to keep you waiting. My wife had
difficulty deciding which outfit to wear this morning,’ Dan announced, letting
go of my hand to shake Robert’s firmly in both of his.

‘Say no more, Sofia is the same. The price for
marrying such attractive and independent women.’ Robert turned to greet me with
a kiss on each cheek. ‘Ellie, you look incredible. Sofia has asked for your
number. She enjoyed your shopping trip in New York so much, she’d love to meet
you when she’s next in London.’

‘That would be lovely, Robert. I had a fabulous
time,’ I agreed. I wasn’t lying. Dan had taken me to New York recently where
I’d had a meeting with my publishers about my latest novel and he arranged a meeting
with Robert. While they spent all day locked in Robert’s office, hashing out
whatever business dealings they were working on, Sofia had taken me out
shopping and for cocktails and canapés.

‘Ellie, come and take a seat, we have a lot to
go through and I don’t want us to be late for Eva’s party,’ Dan ordered,
pulling out one of the plush executive leather chairs for me to sit on, to the
right of his at the head of the long oval table. I did as I was told, and
poured us both a coffee while he unbuttoned his suit jacket and took his seat,
Robert sitting to his left, opposite me. Was Dan ever going to tell me what I
was doing here?

‘Right, all of the legal paperwork has been
drawn up and I’ve checked each page personally,’ Robert announced. He pushed a
pile of papers, with red signature markers sticking out in various place,
towards Dan. ‘It would still be remiss of me to ask either of you to sign it
without reading it thoroughly. I can wait outside if you’d like some time
alone?’

‘Not necessary,’ Dan replied. ‘I’ll scan through
it now, Ellie will sign if I sign.’

‘I’m sorry,’ I interrupted, fast losing
patience. ‘Sign what? What am I doing here?’

‘What with the events surrounding Eva’s birth
and then everything that came after, I realised that I’d neglected to update my
will to include her, something Robert reminded me of a few months ago,’ Dan stated.
‘I also asked him to revise my will with regards to all Davenport holdings,
Ellie. I’m making you a shareholder with a seat on the board. In the event of
my death, you’ll get controlling interest of all of my business assets until
Oliver becomes twenty-five, at which point he will take over and some of the
shares will revert to Jonas and Eva. You’ll be left comfortably off with your
remaining portion, while ensuring that my company continues and all of the
children are taken care of as well.’

‘
Comfortably off
?’ I uttered, more than
shocked at his statement and gesture. ‘I’m comfortably off now, from my own
earnings. I don’t need controlling interest in your billion pound empire, Dan. “Comfortably
off” is an understatement, at best.’

‘Ellie, nearly losing you last year made me
consider what would have happened if I’d been taken. There’s no one I trust
more to ensure that my business remains intact for when Oliver is ready to take
over.’

‘I’m not qualified, Dan,’ I protested. This was
madness. ‘What do I know about what you do?’

‘You don’t need to know anything for the day-to-day
running of the companies. Stuart will be here as your advisor when important
decisions have to be made.’

‘Then give him the responsibility.’

‘Ellie, with the exception of Marv and Ian,
there’s no one in the company that I trust more than Stuart, but none of them
are blood related. It’s important to me that this business remains in the
Davenport family, and there’s no one I trust more to fight Oliver’s corner
until he’s old enough to do it himself than you. Please don’t argue with me.
I’ve made my decision.’

I looked over at Robert, not sure what I
expected him to do, but this had come out of the blue. Thinking about having
responsibility for all of Dan’s employees, not to mention his business assets,
was bad enough, but for that to happen meant Dan wouldn’t be with me anymore
and I didn’t want to even think about that possibility.

‘He hasn’t made this decision lightly, Ellie,
and he hasn’t built up his business to the level he has without being shrewd,’
Robert offered. ‘I’ve never seen him make a bad legal decision when it came to
his work.’

‘Ellie, this is simply a strategic business
move, that may not even happen. On Oliver’s twenty-fifth birthday, if I’m still
alive, he’ll get the second largest shareholding after me regardless, but no
one knows what the future holds. You know that better than most. This is just
me trying to protect my family again, only this time I’m being upfront. I’ve
taken advice and I’m asking your permission. This is important to me,’ Dan urged,
squeezing my hand.

‘Then show me where to sign,’ I replied. He
raised his eyebrows in surprise, obviously expecting more of a battle than I’d
put up. ‘You’ve explained your reasons, they’re to protect our family, so I
can’t argue with that. I agree, but so help me God if Stuart leaves, as there’ll
be nothing for Oliver to take over if I’m in charge with no guidance.’

‘Don’t be so hard on yourself,’ Dan replied,
kissing my cheek. ‘You’re far more intelligent and astute than you give
yourself credit for. Give me a few minutes to read these papers over, then we
can get them signed, ok?’

‘Ok,’ I agreed, sitting back and taking a large
gulp of much-needed caffeine. I thought the only stress I’d have today was
worrying if Eva’s pink and white turreted fairy princess cake, that I’d requested
The Domville bakers make, made it from their kitchen to the orangery intact.

I gave Robert my number for Sofia and kissed
him goodbye, then watched Dan shake his hand as he showed him to the door. I
heaved a sigh of relief as I checked my watch. We still had an hour and a half
before Eva’s party. I stood up and straightened my blouse, then looked up as
Dan turned the lock on the door.

‘What are you doing? We need to go.’

‘We have time,’ he replied, undoing his dark
grey suit jacket and reaching up to loosen his hot pink tie, chosen for him by
Eva early this morning. ‘You might have forgotten that a very long time ago, I
promised you that if you won the race up to the waterfall, we were going to
have sex on this very boardroom table.’

‘O, I remember,’ I smiled. ‘I thought
you’d
forgotten. You promised rope and a riding crop, but you cheated.’

‘I like to honour my word. I also promised a three-piece
suit,’ he replied, scanning his tailor made one with his hands. I felt my
tongue run over my lower lip automatically. He did look devastatingly handsome
wearing one. It hugged every hard muscular plane of his body to perfection.

‘Is that the riding crop in your trousers, or
are you just pleased to see me?’ I teased, as he leaned back on the door, his
eyes holding my gaze. They were smouldering. Seconds ago he was business-like
and professional, now he looked like a seriously hot male escort waiting for permission
to do his job.

‘That’s all Dan, Ellie,’ he smirked, reaching
down to grasp the erection tenting his suit trousers already. ‘I’m afraid
asking Stuart to retrieve the crop from my locked desk drawer is beyond even
his remit, but I did manage to tuck this into my waistcoat pocket before we
left the house this morning.’ His lips curved into a sinfully sexy smile as he
slowly tugged a long thin rope from inside his suit and my mouth went dry, all
moisture in my body converging between my thighs.

‘But … but … Eva,’ I uttered, completely torn.

‘She’s two, she hardly knows what’s going on,
and we’re going to be surrounded by people all afternoon before we return to
Scotland tonight. Who knows when we’ll have this chance again. We’ll be there
before anyone even notices we’re missing, Ellie,’ he stated firmly, advancing
on me as I swallowed hard.

‘You’re very bossy today.’

‘I’m very bossy today, what?’ he asked,
wrapping the rope around each of his hands and tugging it until it was taut,
letting me see he meant business.

‘Sir,’ I whispered, a pleasurable tingle
running down my spine.

‘Lift up your skirt and take off your knickers,
assuming you’re wearing any.’

‘Of course I’m wearing knickers. It’s Eva’s
birthday party at a six-star hotel, not some outing to one of your former dodgy
sex clubs,’ I retorted with a scowl, receiving an equally fierce one in return
that fired up my inner core. ‘Sir,’ I squeaked, quickly reaching down to hoist
my skirt up.

He cocked his head as he ran his gaze up my
bare legs, skimming over my scar, and resting on the apex of my thighs. I was
in matching black lace underwear today. I hadn’t expected sex here, but I knew
by now to always be prepared when it came to my hungry and demanding husband. Not
that his voracious appetite was a chore, by any means. I hooked my thumbs into
three delicate strings running over my hips and shimmied them down, breathing
hard, wondering if he’d brought a gag as well. I was liable to need one. I
stepped out of my delicate knickers, hooking them over my index finger and
holding them out as I looked at him for further instructions.