The Billionaire's Secrets (19 page)

Gaelan
felt himself go cold. “Where is she?”

“St. Agnes’s Hospital in St. John’s.
Chloe’s with her.”

“Chloe’s alright?”

“Yes, but she’s pretty upset.”

“I’ll fly out tonight. You get your sister to stay with you, okay?”

There was a pause
,
and
Gaelan
pictured Windy nodding into the receiver rather than answering.

“Try not to worry,” he said, knowing such words were useless
. A
fter telling her he would call her from the hospital, he shoved the phone back into his pocket.

“Come on, Marcus. You have to drive me to the airport. I
have to
fly
back
to
St. John’s
immediately
.”

Marcus was already on his feet, grabbing his coat from the hook beside the door.
Gaelan
put on his own long black coat
,
and the two of them were down the elevator and
to the car in minutes. “What happened,
Gaelan
?
”
Marcus asked as they almost ran.

“It’s
Sophia
,”
Gaelan
explained. “There’s been a car accident. I don’t know how bad it is, but Windy says
Sophia
is unconscious.”
Gaelan
was amazed by his own fear for the child. This was the second time in a week he
’d
been scared into recognising his feelings for someone. Only Chloe hadn’t been hurt, and
Sophia
was.
Maybe seriously.
Maybe even fatally.

As soon as got
to his jet at the airport
, he
dropp
ed
down into his seat, impatient for takeoff.
He
had
taken only his cell
with him,
but
not his briefcase
let alone a laptop
,
and he sat with his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his long black coat, willing them not to shake.

The
flight was a bad one as t
he plane rocked with turbulence
, but
Gaelan
was oblivious to it. He stared out the window without even registering the threat as the pilot brought the plane up through the black clouds. All he could think of was
Sophia
. He thought of the times she had wanted his attention and how he had walked away from her, refusing to be the father she needed. And she had no mother - not that Colleen had been much of a mother, but he certainly hadn’t won any awards as a father lately. Not since Colleen had told him...
He uttered a prayer that he might have a second chance.

The pilot came on over the intercom and announced the landing. It was two degrees Celsius in St. John’s and raining. The flight had taken less than two hours
,
but it had seemed forever to
Gaelan
. He ran out though the gate, grabbed the f
irst cab outside the terminal,
and ordered the driver to take him to St. Agnes’s.

* * *

Chloe was sitting next to the bed holding
Sophia
’s hand when
Gaelan
stormed breathlessly into the room.

Chloe jumped from her chair, anxious to relieve the look of fear on his face.
“She’s going to be okay,” she said in an urgent whisper. “She’s just sleeping now.”

“Thank God!
” he said with relief. He leaned over the sleeping girl and kissed her gently on the forehead, water dripping from his coat and hair onto the white sheets and the girl’s equally white face.

She stirred without opening her eyes. “Daddy?” she whispered.

“Yes, it’s me,
Sophia
. Everything is going to be okay.”

She nodded. “I’m going to go to sleep now, okay?”

“Yes, I’ll see you in the morning, honey.”

Chloe watched as he stroked
Sophia
’s hair for a moment, wondering how she could ever have thought that
Gaelan
Byrne did not love his daughter. It was
just
a shame it took a near tragedy to make him show it.

The doctor came into the room
,
and he and
Gaelan
spoke quietly next to
Sophia
’s bed. Everything was going to be okay.
Only a mild concussion.
Sophia
had been lucky.

Suddenly Chloe felt a wave of exhaustion wash over her. For a moment she wondered if she were going to
faint,
and she leaned back against the door for support. The last few hours had been horrific, and she could hardly remember the details of the crash. The sound of squealing
tires as the car swung around and the crunch of metal as it crashed into the guardrail. The much louder crash of the truck as it hit the rock cut head on. Somewhere in this hospital was the truck driver, miraculously alive with only minor injuries.

Chloe recalled the fear as she waited for the ambulance,
Sophia
unconscious in her arms. And where was Bowen? She remembered him talking to the police, recalled him there when the ambulance arrived, but then he was gone. She supposed he didn’t want to stick around and face his brother, but she couldn’t help thinking he had been cowardly, leaving her alone with
Sophia
.

She wondered what she should tell
Gaelan
. She could imagine his fury when he found out that she was with his brother. Not that the accident was Bowen’s fault, but she had a feeling that he would be angry with her for accepting the ride with him.

As she stood watching
Gaelan
and
Sophia
, she tried to remember the things Bowen had said about
Gaelan
.
Gaelan
had stolen his girlfriend
and
may have played a role in his wife’s death. Somehow now,
they sounded like sour grapes,
the paranoia of a jealous br
other. There had
been an investigation
after all
, and
Colleen’s
death had been ruled an accident.
Chloe
felt ashamed
for taking
Bowen’s side against
Gaelan
and wondered how she was going to tell
Gaelan
she had been with his brother - not to mention that his brother had been driving when the accident occurred.

Gaelan
turned and looked at her, his eyes s
till full of tenderness. “You
okay?” he asked gently.

She nodded but tears welled up in her eyes all the same. “I’m so sorry,” she murmured without elaborating all her reasons for being so.

He took her in his arms
,
and she rested her head against the softness of his shirt, his heart beating strongly against her cheek. “There’s nothing to be sorry for,” he murmured. “I’m just glad you’re both safe.” There was a catch in his voice.

She stood there in the circle of his arms trying to grasp all that was happening. She was safe,
Sophia
was safe, and
Gaelan
had showed her how much he loved his daughter. She was wrong to talk to Bowen - it was absurd to think
Gaelan
could have had something to do with his wife’s death. She had just been angry with him because he didn’t seem to care for
Sophia
. She had also been angry because he had left her at Widow's Cliff without saying goodbye. She had been lonely
,
and Bowen had seemed so sympathetic...

“You need a rest,”
Gaelan
said gently. “We’ll get a hotel room
nearby
. We can come back in the morning.”

Chloe nodded into his shirt and let him help her into her coat.

The nearby hotel was undergoing renovations in preparation
for the tourist season, and
with the e
xception of the honeymoon suite
the other available rooms were booked.
Gaelan
took the suite. Chloe felt herself blush, suddenly shy at the idea o
f being in the honeymoon suite
with
Gaelan
. But at the same time she felt the hot rush of excitement at the thought of being alone with him. She wondered at his motivation for taking her into his arms in the hospital.
Was it simply a show of concern,
a show of compassion for someone who had been through a difficult time? Or was it more?