Her Mistletoe Wish (10 page)

‘Why?’ Flynn was starting to get a bad feeling in his stomach at what she was saying. ‘What name were you christened with?’

She forced calmness into her words as she spoke. ‘My name was…Regina Anne Catherine Elizabeth Fox-Wallington.’

‘Fox-Wallington?’ He whispered the surname with incredulity and disbelief.

‘I see you remember my family well.’

‘You’re
that
Regina? The young girl who was abused by her parents?’

She forced herself to keep her chin up, to keep looking into his eyes, seeing his own disbelief at what she was saying. ‘Yes,’ she confirmed. ‘I’m
that
Regina.’

‘O
H
, R
EG
.’ F
LYNN
shook his head, anguish in his voice. ‘I remember. It was in the papers, on the news. They’d been abusing you for years. Physically as well as emotionally.’

Strangely enough, now that she’d come this far, now that she’d confessed the secret of her real identity to Flynn, the pressure of the anxiety started to dissipate. She cleared her throat, amazed at how normal her voice sounded when she spoke. ‘For years my parents made sure their private physician looked after me, treating my wounds, isolating me when they took longer to heal than expected.’

‘What?’

‘Wealth corrupts. That doctor had no problem with being paid off and when the truth finally came out, he had the gall to state that he would often suggest they send me to another boarding school in order to save me from their wrath. I was nothing but a punching bag to my father and my mother would slap me around and then put her cigarettes out on me. The physician was struck off the register and is doing gaol time.’

‘Oh, Reg.’ Tears came into Flynn’s eyes as she recounted the events with little to no emotion. It was a
defence mechanism, he knew that, but, still, the traumas she must have endured. ‘How did you finally managed to bring it all to light?’

‘The last school they sent me to, when I was sixteen, was rife with bullies and, quite frankly, by then I’d had enough of being everyone’s punching bag. I’d tried to talk to my teachers at school, to counsellors, but no one would ever believe that the great and powerful Walter Fox-Wallington would ever hit his own child.

‘As I was treated by their private doctor, there were no medical records of my injuries, of my broken bones, of my extensive bruising—no
proof—so
why
would
anyone believe me? As far as the teachers and counsellors were concerned, I was a spoiled and wealthy brat who was clearly troubled and who loved to make up stories about her parents.

‘Besides, if they actually did find the courage to question my parents, which a few of them did, my father would pull his financial support from the school or slap a law suit on anyone who dared question his word.’ Reggie shrugged both her shoulders, Flynn’s hands rising and falling with the action. ‘You can do anything with money. At least, that was my father’s motto and one he used to spit at me every time he “donated” enormous sums of money in order to keep people quiet.’

‘But surely someone knew he was corrupt?’

‘I’m sure plenty of people did but blackmail, self-preservation and the power of wealth go a long way to buying silence. Besides, he’d simply smile brightly and tell people I was a delusional teenager, a spoiled brat with a grudge against her parents.’

‘So…how did you…escape that life?’ He was agog at what she was saying.

‘I ran away from boarding school. I stowed away on a goods train and ended up in Sydney. There, I found a drop-in centre and a solicitor, Elika, who wasn’t afraid to take the case on. Pro bono, of course.’

Flynn was still stunned as he stared down into her face. She’d been through so much and his heart ached for her. No wonder she hated people with money. She had good reason to. ‘I remember the story breaking.’ His words were soft. ‘I remember my father doing everything he could to distance himself from the Fox-Wallington fiasco, as he termed it. He also pulled any and all investments he had in your father’s companies.’

‘So he wasn’t as much concerned with what had happened but rather with protecting himself.’

Flynn shrugged. ‘Everything was business to him. Even my mother and myself, although my mother knew what sort of life she was signing up for when she married him.’

‘The wealthy have their own set of rules and heaven help anyone who dares to stand up to them or go against them.’

‘Ain’t that the truth.’ His words were filled with heartfelt honesty and as Reggie looked into his eyes she saw that perhaps, just perhaps, there was a possibility that Flynn really understood what it was she was trying to say.

‘So where are your parents now? I can’t remember what happened.’

‘They’re dead.’ The words were said with no emotion, no relief, no bitterness, no pain. ‘When my father realised he couldn’t buy off the solicitor, he and my mother left the country for Spain.’

Flynn rolled his eyes. ‘No extradition.’

‘Exactly. They lived there for almost two years, in perfect luxury, before dying in a boating accident.’ She frowned, her voice dropping just a little. ‘I wasn’t sad when I was told of their deaths. Instead, I demanded to see the bodies—just to make sure.’

‘You did? It wasn’t…traumatic?’

‘I’d just started medical school, so I’d seen my fair share of cadavers. Besides, I’m not meaning to sound callous but I needed to know if it was true. To help me come to terms with the horrific things they did to me, I needed to see their cold, dead bodies on that slab.’ She looked away from him. ‘I’m sorry if that sounds harsh but—’

‘I understand, Reg. Those people weren’t your parents, they were the monsters who had made your life a misery.’

Reggie jerked her head up in surprise. ‘Yes. Exactly.’

‘You had to be sure it was really over.’

‘And it was. I identified their bodies and with Elika’s help organised for their cremations. There was no funeral, no wake, no chance for people to “honour” those monsters.’

Flynn rubbed his hands along her shoulders, knowing he shouldn’t be at all surprised at the inner strength this woman possessed. He gazed down into her eyes. ‘You are incredible, Reg. So strong and always so happy and bubbly and yet you’ve been through so much pain. How did you cope?’

‘Well, for a start, I found some wonderful friends at medical school. Sunainah, Bergan and Mackenzie have all been through their own pain and anguish and somehow, although the four of us are incredibly different,
we bonded because we all understood what it was like to be a victim.’

‘And it’s a friendship that’s as strong and as true over twenty years later.’

‘Yes.’ She smiled, thinking of the way she and her friends had stuck together through thick and thin…and how they’d all managed to find the man of their dreams, that one special person they could always rely on, no matter what. The smile started to slide from her lips as she gazed up at Flynn. Was
he
her one special person? The one she could rely on, no matter what?

She’d thought so once before but he’d let her down. Was it possible she could take a chance again? Put her heart out there? Would Flynn hurt her again, especially now that he knew the truth about her past? He was looking at her as though she was the most wonderful, most special and most precious person in the world to him. Was that real?

He’d mentioned the attraction between them being still as strong…possibly stronger than before and he’d been right. When he put his arms around her, she felt as though she’d come home. When he kissed her, she felt as though her entire world was filled with sparkles and rainbows and pure happiness. When he gazed down into her eyes, as he was doing right now, her heart constricted and her breathing became shallow, wanting him to look at her that way always, to support her always, to love her always.

Could they try again?

‘Reg, you are special to me. I hope you believe that.’

‘I want to,’ she whispered.

‘Then do it.’ He cupped her face and smiled at her before dipping his head to brush his lips lightly across
hers. Reggie closed her eyes, wanting to absorb every sensation he was evoking within her, wanting to lose herself in the pleasure and happiness only Flynn could give her. They’d been so good together all those years ago. Perhaps now they could be better. She parted her lips to deepen the kiss but Flynn edged back. ‘Reggie?’

‘Mmm?’ she sighed, her eyes still closed.

‘There’s just one thing I need to know.’ There was a tentativeness in his tone and she immediately looked at him, worry piercing her.

‘What?’ She searched his beautiful blue eyes and instinctively realised what it was he was still confused about. ‘The money?’

‘Yes. Your father, from what I can recall, was worth a lot of money.’

‘He was. He left it all to my mother, expecting her to outlive him. She, however, hadn’t made a will and as their daughter I inherited it all.’

‘You did?’

‘I did.’

‘So…you’re wealthy?’

She shook her head. ‘No. I didn’t want a penny. I signed the entire fortune over to Elika, the solicitor who helped me, the one person who I knew was unlikely to be corrupted. Then I changed my name. My past was gone. Erased. I had a clean slate and I could start again.’

‘Wait.’ He eased back and held up one hand. ‘Let me get this straight. You gave the
entire
Fox-Wallington fortune away?’

‘Yes.’

‘But that would have been…billions.’

‘Wealth corrupts.’ She tried to edge away from him
but he immediately put both his hands on her shoulders again.

‘But what about medical school?’

‘What about it? I did what normal people do. I accepted government funding to pay my university fees, found a cheap place to live and worked all sorts of jobs in order to have enough money to eat.’

‘And this solicitor, Elika, what has she done with all that money?’

‘Ever heard of the Moffat Drop-in Centres?’

‘For teens and abused children?’

‘Yes, as well as children and teenagers living on the street, or those who are having a hard time. There’s a centre here in Maroochydore that Bergan and Richard do a lot of work with.’

‘That’s you?’

‘No. That’s Elika, the solicitor. Well, she’s more of a businesswoman nowadays and well into her sixties, but she’s still making a difference and the drop-in centres are just the tip of the iceberg. She works with various organisations both in Australia and overseas to help people in need.’

‘You just gave all that money away?’

‘Why wouldn’t I? As far as I was concerned, it was blood money and, besides, it had never brought me happiness. All I’ve ever wanted was to be normal. A normal girl, doing a normal job, living a normal life.’

‘Wow.’ He shook his head in wonderment.

‘What?’

‘You’re…so strong.’

‘It took me years to piece myself back together, to figure out who I wanted to be as an adult, and with the help of my friends I think I’ve done a pretty good job.’

‘Why didn’t you tell me any of this all those years ago?’

‘Because it’s also taken me years to learn who to trust. It’s not an easy thing for me to do and, for the record, I had planned to tell you everything the day after we became engaged, but—’

‘But I broke it off.’ He closed his eyes, unable to believe how ridiculously stupid he’d been back then. ‘And I turned out to be yet another wealthy person you couldn’t trust.’

‘That’s how I saw it.’

‘But, for the record, Reggie—and I’m not trying to defend my actions back then or justify my behaviour—I wasn’t corrupted by money. I was corrupted by guilt. I didn’t marry Violet because my father threatened to cut me off without a cent. I did it because my mother was dying and it was the one thing that would make her happy, to see her son happily settled.’

Reggie looked up into his eyes and for the first time since they’d been talking reached up and brushed her fingers across his cheek. ‘You loved your mother.’ It was a statement because she could see clearly in his eyes, hear it in his voice.

‘I did. Very much.’

‘You wanted to make her happy in her last days.’

‘Yes, but I let myself get pressured into doing something I should never have done. I resent that now.’

‘But you’re not that man anymore. I can tell. You’re stronger now. You’re more…you.’ She shook her head. ‘I’m not explaining that well.’

‘No. You’re right. I am different.’ He gave her a cute, lopsided smile. ‘Perhaps these six years apart haven’t been a total waste of time.’

‘Perhaps we both needed to do some more growing up.’

‘Exactly. I’ve found the courage to change, not because anyone’s told me to but because I needed to, for myself. I needed to find out who I was, without my parents, without Violet and without any other pressure.’

‘And have you?’

The smile on his lips increased as he shifted towards her, his arms coming about her waist to draw her near. ‘Yes. It took me a while to realise it, that I needed to change my life because I wasn’t happy.’

‘It can be the most difficult thing in the world to do, to take a stand and follow your heart, to do what you know is right.’

‘Yes.’ He smiled at her. ‘And now I need to do what I know is right, to follow my heart and kiss you once more, Reg.’

Reggie loved hearing those words from his mouth and as she sighed against him she couldn’t help but raise one teasing eyebrow. ‘Only once more?’

His grin widened as he settled her into his arms. ‘I like the way you’re thinking.’ And with that he lowered his head and claimed her mouth in a kiss filled with passion and promise. Exactly what those promises might be she had no idea, but for now she was more than happy just to go with the fact that she’d managed to work up the courage to tell Flynn about her past…and he hadn’t rejected her. He’d understood. He’d supported her. He’d accepted.

He was also doing the most wonderful and delectable things to her mouth, tantalising and teasing her senses. The love she knew had never died welled up in her heart, bursting forth with delight throughout her
entire body. She loved Flynn. She always had but she knew of old that to love someone didn’t necessarily mean there would be a happy ending.

Still, he knew just how to hold her, just how to kiss her, just how to drive her completely crazy with longing. He knew that rubbing small circles at the base of her spine caused tingles to explode within her. He knew that pressing sweet butterfly kisses along her cheek, towards her ear and then down to her neck made goose-bumps break out over her entire body.

He knew that whispering words of delight, telling her just how attractive he found her, how he was drawn to her, how he couldn’t get enough of her, all drove her almost to distraction.

Soon she was light-headed and swooning, leaning against him for support as her knees started to give way. Within another second Flynn had scooped her up into his arms and carried her to the lounge. He sat down, settling her in his lap, his arms shifting to hold her tightly, his mouth not leaving hers for an instant.