The Summit (34 page)

She looked up. “What is it, Dad?”

“I never loved your mother. I know that sounds like a terrible thing to say, but it's true. Kathleen was a fine woman and she deserved a whole lot better than me but the fact is, I was never in love with her. We were both a little reckless and while we were dating, Kathleen got pregnant. We got married because it was what our families wanted. I tried to be a good husband but something was missing right from the start. I was a young man then, as lusty as they come. For years I carried on, before and after your mother died.”

“You never cared about her feelings. You knew how much it hurt her, but you didn't stop.”

“I tried. I couldn't seem to help myself. Not until I met Myra. For the first time in my life, I fell in love. I always kind of played down my feelings for her when I was with you, but the truth is, I'm crazy about the woman—was right from the start. I love Myra and I've never cheated on her. I never will.”

Autumn stared at him, more than a little surprised.

“What I'm trying to say is when the right woman comes along, if a man loves her with all his heart—he would never do anything to hurt her. If Ben loves you that much, grab onto him and never let go.”

Her heart was pounding, thumping away inside her, beating with something she recognized as hope. Was it possible? Her father had changed, become a faithful husband. But Ben was younger. Could he be happy with just one woman? Could she trust him with her future? With her heart?

“You hear what I'm sayin', honey?”

Autumn blinked and a tear rolled down her cheek. “I hear you, Dad. But how will I know if he loves me enough?”

“You ask him. And when he answers, you look him straight in the eye.”

She nodded and managed a tentative smile. It seemed like a good idea. Her heart couldn't hurt any worse than it already did. “Okay, I'll ask him.”

Max reached over and patted her hand. “That's my girl. And don't you wait too long. A man in love don't have a lot of patience.”

Autumn chewed her lip. If she was going to do this, she had better do it soon. Ben had never been a patient man.

 

Ben sat behind the desk in his study. It was a weekend but he had work to do. They were closing the deal on A-1 Sports, doing a stock takeover that would end with him owning the controlling portion of the company.

Earlier, he had declared his intent to make an open tender offer for A-1 stock at above-market prices. The company was undervalued, he had discovered. There were several pieces of real estate A-1 owned that had gone way up in value but the increases weren't yet reflected in the books.

He had made a run on the company and succeeded in taking over the majority of the stock—putting an end to the threat A-1 posed once and for all.

And making himself a good bit of money in the process.

If he hadn't been in such a foul mood, Ben might have smiled. The deal was about to be completed and though it had required a considerable amount of work, at least it had helped keep his mind off Autumn.

Keeping busy had helped, but the waiting was driving him crazy.

Ben shoved to his feet. He was tired of staying away from her; he had waited long enough. He was going to talk to her, get things straight between them once and for all.

Grabbing his jacket off the back of a chair, he headed for the door just as the intercom sounded, signaling a visitor at the elevator in the parking garage. Wondering who it could be on a Saturday, he reached over and pushed the button. He was amazed to hear the sound of Autumn's voice.

“It's me…Autumn. I…um, I was hoping we could talk. If…if it's not a bad time.”

As if he wouldn't know the sound of her voice. As if there could be a bad time.

“I'll buzz you in.” He strode down the hall to the entry, then paced nervously as he waited for the elevator doors to slide open. Autumn walked into the room in a gauzy flowered skirt and mauve sweater, sexy yet sweetly feminine. His heart clenched so hard it hurt.

“Hi,” he said, suddenly at a loss for words.

“Hi.”

God, she looked good, her hair in shiny auburn curls around her face and wearing a hint of make-up, nothing at all like the determined woman she had been on the climb to the top of the mountain. The combination of soft femininity and hidden strength stirred his blood and made him ache with desire for her.

“Would you like something to drink?” he asked, trying to force his thoughts in a different direction and hoping she said yes because he could use a stiff drink himself.

When she nodded, he headed for the bar hidden behind the mahogany panels in the living room. “White wine?” he asked over his shoulder.

“Yes, that would be nice.”

He poured himself a Scotch on the rocks and took a sip, then brought the glass of wine over to where she stood. Their fingers brushed and the familiar electricity sparked between them. Autumn looked a little surprised.

“You didn't think the physical attraction would be there anymore?” His gaze ran over those soft, full lips, and he wanted to kiss them, sink into them. He remembered her tiny butterfly tattoo and thought how much he wanted to take her to bed.

“I don't know,” she said. “I guess I thought the attraction had probably—you know—faded.”

He took a sip of his drink. It seemed like forever since he had been inside her. “You thought it was over between us. You figured once we found Molly, we were finished. Is that about right?”

“Well, yes, I suppose I—”

“We aren't finished Autumn. Not unless that's the way you want it.”

She turned away, carried her wine glass toward the massive expanse of windows that overlooked the sea. “How is she? How's Molly doing?”

“She's doing great. She and Katie are nearly inseparable. A few of her memories are returning. Both Joanne and I are helping her remember whatever we can. And she's seeing a very good child psychologist. I think it's going to be easier than we imagined.”

“I hope so.” She sipped her wine.

“You said you wanted to talk.”

She turned toward him, her eyes big and uncertain. “I came to ask you if you meant what you said at O'Shaunessy's.”

He reached out and touched her cheek. “I meant every word.”

“You said you loved me. I need to know how much.”

In a heartbeat he knew what she was asking; he had come to know her so well. Would she be enough for him? Could he be satisfied with only one woman?

He had never cheated on Joanne. He wished he'd told her that. He took her wine glass, set it down on the table and caught both her hands.

“I love you so much every hour we're apart is killing me. So much I can't allow myself to think how much it's going to hurt if you won't marry me. You mean everything to me, Autumn. I want to share my life with you. I want to have kids with you. I desperately want you to be my wife.”

When she opened her mouth to speak, he held up his hand. “But I need to know something in return. Since you're here and asking me these questions, I'm going to assume you love me too. If you do, I need to know how much. I need to know if you love me enough to trust me, to know deep in your heart that I would never hurt you.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “I love you more than life, Ben McKenzie. When I saw you fall off that mountain, I thought I was going to die myself.”

“Can you trust me not to hurt you? To be the kind of husband you deserve?”

Something shifted in her expression, seemed to settle deep inside. Her posture slowly relaxed. “I trusted you with my life. I still do.”

Ben drew her into his arms, bent his head and very softly kissed her. “Marry me.”

Autumn looked up at him and the tears in her eyes slipped down her cheeks. “I'd love to marry you, Ben.” She went up on her toes and kissed him and then she smiled. “But do we have to wait for the honeymoon?”

Ben laughed in sheer relief. The desire he'd been fighting tore free. “Not on your life.”

He meant to carry her into the bedroom, make slow, passionate love to her. Instead, he took her there on the sofa in the living room, just shoved up her skirt, pulled down her sexy thong panties, opened his jeans and entered her with a single thrust.

“God, I missed you so much.”

Twining her arms around his neck, she opened herself a little wider, took him a little deeper. “I missed you, too. I love you so much, Ben.”

The words poured into him, released him in some way. He tried to hold back but he couldn't wait any longer, just kissed her deeply and began to move. He was so damned hot for her. It was always that way with Autumn. She met each of his movements, giving and taking, demanding all he had and more. She was his match in every way and as he drove into her, as they reached the crest together, he had never felt more certain of the future.

He was home at last. He had found his daughter and begun a new life. His soul had been resurrected when Autumn led him up the summit to Angel's Peak.

One year later

T
hey were moving. A penthouse was no place to raise a family, Ben said, and Autumn was part of his family now. The girls were with them every other weekend and several days a week after school so they needed a more suitable place to live. Charlie Evans had officially decided to sell his Bainbridge Island home and Ben had bought it. The place wasn't too far from Autumn's teaching job at Lewis and Clark or Ben's Pike Street office. It was roomy enough for the girls—and more children when they came.

The house was lovely. A big, sprawling ranch house, gorgeous, yet homey. Autumn had been working with a designer to insure it had a sophisticated but comfortable air, a masculine study for Ben and a sunny room, filled with Victorian antiques for her.

Katie and Mollie loved the house. They were darling girls, so sweet and loving, so dedicated to each other. Molly was seeing a child psychologist named Dr. Mince, who was helping her come to grips with the trauma she had suffered. She was behind in school, since Rachael believed that some of the subjects she should have been taught were a waste of time for a girl, but Ben had hired a tutor and Molly was catching up quickly.

Katie was spending a lot more time with her dad, which made her happy and brought them closer than they had ever been before. Autumn was teaching the girls to climb and Ben was teaching the whole family to kayak.

Added to all of that, Autumn's reccurring dreams had stopped completely. The Beecher brothers had pled guilty to the murder of Priscilla Vreeland and were serving life sentences without parole. Eli Beecher's trial had been briefer than expected. He had been found guilty of kidnapping, as well as a long string of other charges that would keep him in prison for most of his life. An interesting fact about the car had surfaced. One of Eli's cousins had owned the battered classic car, loaned it to Eli, then sold it to Riley Perkins, the insurance man, and bought himself a Harley. Robbie Hines had been correct.

Autumn smiled. No more ugly dreams—and Ben's incredible lovemaking—kept her sleeping like a baby.

The door opened and her handsome husband walked into the penthouse. Today was the last day they would spend there.

“You ready? Time to head for the boat. Katie and Molly are jumping up and down, anxious to leave.”

Autumn smiled at Ben. “I'm ready. I was just thinking how lucky I am.”

Ben walked over, wrapped his arms around her, drew her back against his chest and kissed the side of her neck. “I'm the lucky one. I've got my girls and I've got you. I'm the luckiest man on earth.”

Autumn smiled. Ben always made her feel treasured. Apparently, Max was right. When a man really loved a woman, he let her know it. She didn't have to worry about being enough for him. She
knew
that she was.

“You're right, we'd better get going.” Reluctantly, she left his arms. “Your girls have about as much patience as you do—which is practically none at all.”

“I waited for you to make up your mind about marrying me, didn't I? Believe me, that took a boatload of patience.”

Autumn just laughed. She took his hand and let him lead her out of the penthouse. Ben thought he was lucky—and truly he was. He had his daughter back home and he had Katie and both of his girls adored him. He had a wife who would walk over a bed of hot coals for him.

Still, when she looked at Ben and saw the love for her shining in those warm brown eyes, Autumn knew who the lucky person was.

 

She was so lucky. Molly said a thank-you prayer to God every day. She was with her real family again—her mom and Katie, her mom's new husband, John, and her dad's pretty wife, Autumn. She loved them all and they seemed to like her.

At first when she'd come to the fancy house where she was supposed to live, she had been so scared. She didn't know the lady in the elegant clothes named Joanne who said she was her mother, and barely remembered the man who claimed to be her father. At night, she would wake up crying, but her sister slept in the bed next to hers. Katie would hear her and climb into bed beside her and then she would be able to sleep.

Once her dad had heard her when she was staying in his apartment and he had come in and scooped her up onto his lap. He had settled her there and just held her and it didn't feel funny at all like it would have with Eli.

“You're my daughter and I love you,” he had said. “Nothing is ever going to change that. You don't ever have to be afraid again.”

She'd looked up at him and called him Dad for the very first time and he got a funny glitter in his eyes.

She loved all of her parents and she loved Katie. She didn't really remember her, but it didn't matter. They looked just alike and they liked the same things, even the same foods, like devil's food cake with thick chocolate frosting. Molly didn't much remember her mom and dad either, though when they told her stories about when she was a little girl and showed her pictures, she pretended sometimes that she did. It made them so happy and seeing them that way made her happy, too.

She didn't cry anymore—only when she dreamed about Eli, but then Autumn would be there in her dream to tell her everything was okay and remind her that she was safe. And the nightmare would go away.

And Sarah and the baby came over a lot. Sarah was living in a home for young girls that Autumn had found for her. She was studying to get her high school diploma and thinking she might even go to college. If she did, Dad had promised to pay for it.

Molly loved Sarah and the little blond, blue-eyed baby named Matthew Benjamin. But then she loved everything about her life since her dad had saved her that night on the mountain. She would never forget the way he had crashed through the door and seen her with Eli and beaten Eli to a pulp.

He had done it for her. God had heard her prayer and sent him to save her. Every once in a while when she looked at her dad, she thought of that night and felt this funny little tingle of love for him.

“Come on, Molly! Everyone is waiting!” It was Katie. They were going boating this afternoon. Both of them loved the water. They loved kayaking and swimming and now Autumn was teaching them to climb.

“I'm coming!” Grabbing her beach towel, she raced along the dock. Autumn and Katie were already aboard, but her dad was waiting to help her onto the deck.

“Time to get going, angel.” He called her that a lot. It was one of the few things she remembered from her childhood—her dad calling her
angel.
He held her hand until she was safely aboard, then smiled at her in that soft way he did, climbed aboard himself and made his way up to the wheel to steer the boat out into the harbor.

Molly looked up at him and waved. Katie giggled and Autumn smiled.

Molly felt so lucky. The luckiest girl in the world.