An Unbreakable Bond (14 page)

Tristan nodded, he knew his father’s history from this point on.

Gramps stood up and looked out of the window. “I was never greatly interested in the oil business. I much preferred to reside in England and take up my duty as Lord and landowner. My younger brother had a thirst for business though and he looked after most of the oil stakes, but his two daughters were uninterested, making Preston next in line to be the heir of the company and the aristocratic title.” He paused and pursed his lips. “I conceded to it and allowed your father to be groomed to take over, but whilst in Texas he was introduced to your mother and, as you know, her father was a major leader in the oil franchise. Within weeks a business marriage was organised.”

Tristan leaned forward. “What happened to the woman he fell in love with here?”

Gramps shifted his weight from his weak leg. “He broke the news to the young lady he left behind by letter and she was devastated. That young lady was Annabelle’s mother, Rose.”

Tristan froze and his face drained of colour.

His grandfather read his mind. “Luckily, there were no illegitimate children conceived, although she did marry within months to Robert and Wade was born not long after you.”

Tristan felt relief mixed with anger. “So, are you saying that not telling me about my own child was a form of revenge against my father?”

Gramps sighed and turned away from the window to look at the stricken face of his grandson. “No, I am saying that if you had known about April you would have come back for her and she would be in Texas getting ready for the next business marriage, just as you have done.”

Tristan banged his fist down on the desk. “How can you presume to say what I would have done?”

“I know because you were young and impressionable and your father would have demanded it. He would have manipulated everything to have that child within reach.”

“So, I’m just a pawn in a game!” He wanted to over-throw the desk and beat his chest like a gorilla in fury.

Gramps slowly sat back down. “If Annabelle had asked me to tell you I would have done, but her request for silence allowed April to have a normal upbringing with a family filled with love and joy rather than power and cold hearted deals.”

“Is that what you think of me Gramps, a cold hearted ass?”

“No Tristan, I see a man in conflict. Your father is the cold hearted ass, you are the makings of your father, but you have something that he doesn’t have – you have a conscience.”

Pain shot through Tristan’s heart. He knew his Gramps was telling the truth. At twenty-two he would have followed his father’s orders and April would have been taken from Annabelle at any price, with or without her consent. By the time he reached twenty-six, experience had given him the tools of strength in order to handle his father, but that would have been too late for Annabelle and April. Sheer desperation filled him as he grasped the volume of the consequences. Without realising it, he would have handed her over on a plate to a destiny created by his emotionless father and destroyed April and her family in the process. A fierce possessive emotion lodged in his lungs, but now he was in a position to protect her and have something in his life that his father couldn’t own and exploit.

Gramps watched the battle surge within Tristan as his face flitted between rage and realisation. Losing Tristan had always been the risk and he knew that it was only a matter of time before he eventually found out about April. Every day he’d prayed for this day. He wasn’t getting any younger and April needed a father. Gramps sighed, Tristan was no longer a boy – he was a man with the devil on his back. Little did he know how much he needed Annabelle with her soft patient
ways.
Inwardly, she was strong and she would find that hole in his heart and fill it.

A long time passed in silence. Each man held in his own reflective world. The butler brought the photo albums and a maid brought in the tea. Both went untouched. Sadness had infused Tristan like a tidal wave. He’d missed so much time, yet he knew what his grandfather had done was right for April. Concern had deepened the wrinkles on his grandfather’s face. Finally, he reached out and took his frail hands in his own. “I have to put it right Gramps.”

The old man smiled weakly and visibly sagged with relief. “Yes my grandson, you do.”

****

Annabelle was running around like a headless chicken, flinging clothes into suitcases. Four days ago her life seemed pretty normal, now it was cruising out of control. After Tristan left she’d phoned her mother and it had taken her only five minutes to ramble off what she’d held back for ten years. She knew about her mother’s relationship with Tristan’s father, Preston and that is why she’d never told her the truth.

The shock led into a long silence down the phone. “Mum, are you still there?”

“Yes, I’m just a bit stunned.”

“So, can I come over and stay with you for a few days?” There was another prolonged silence.

“Well…I…No.”

“What do you mean no?” Annabelle’s voice had risen by a few decibels.

“It’s time you took responsibility and got honest with everyone. You’ve hid this from us for so long and now I know why Wade and Tristan didn’t stay in touch.” There was a note of irritation in her voice.

“Well, thanks for the help during my crisis,” Annabelle replied sarcastically.

Her mother wasn’t one for feeling guilty. “You’ve played with people’s lives Annabelle and you’ve been downright selfish keeping this from us and not letting Tristan get to know his own child.”

Annabelle gasped. Her mother had never spoken to her like this, and she hadn't finished.

“Do the right thing Annabelle – you owe ten years to April, Tristan and your brother!” The line went dead.

Unbelievable! Her gentle, patient mother had slammed the phone down on her. She called Daniel next, but he just laughed at the drama of it all and wanted a full account of all the juicy bits when she returned.

Finally, Katie came back with April, but she too wouldn’t help her.

“No, you cannot stay with me and hide. I followed your daft plan ten years ago and look what happened.”

“Please Katie, you’re all I’ve got left!”

Katie chuckled. “Ten years ago you would have given up everything to run off with Tristan, so what’s different now?”

“I don’t love him now and back then it was just a childhood crush.”

Katie raised her eyebrows and cocked her head. “Oh really, is that why you’ve never even looked at another man since?”

It was true she’d lived a nun-like existence since that night. No other man had been able to raise those feelings of desperate abandonment like Tristan had. She bit her lip. “What should I do?”

“You need to do what you should’ve done ten years ago.”

Worry flooded Annabelle’s face.

“Look, it took the two of you to make April and she needs him. I also think that you need him too.”

“How can you say that?”

“Because I know you.”
Katie sighed. “If you have any problems you can call me and I will get on the first flight over to Texas and rescue you.”

Everyone was pushing her to end the torment of the last ten years. The thought of what she had to do was overwhelming, but it had to be done. The fight went out of her and her shoulders sagged. “Okay, you win, but I just need a few days on my own first to talk to April about it all.”

“Where will you go?”

“To the beach house.”
Annabelle’s family had owned a beach house further up the coast for the last eight years and every summer they would holiday there.

“Good idea, but you’ll need to tell Tristan.”

Annabelle bit her lip.

“Annabelle?” Katie’s tone was a warning.

“Okay, okay, I’ll call him.” She hugged her best friend and Katie left.

At seven-thirty the next morning she pulled over not far from the beach house and made a call to Edingthorpe Hall. She nearly dropped the phone in shock when she heard Tristan’s voice. “Erm, Tristan it’s me.”

“Is everything okay?” Concern laced his voice.

“Yes, I’m just calling to say that I’m going away for a few days with April, so that I can explain everything to her.” She scrunched her face up in dread, waiting for his response.

Silence.

“Hello, Tristan,
are
you still there?”

“Where are you going?”

He sounded calm and gentle. She sighed in relief. “Just to a place I know and then we’ll talk when I return home,” she replied, feeling more confident about her decision.

“Annabelle, my terms were non-negotiable. I was to collect you both this morning. If you do this, I will find you.”

She shivered at the severity of the warning in his voice. “Please, I have to do this,” she whispered.

“Then I hope you can run far and fast.” Tristan slammed down the phone without waiting for her reply. Rage infused his gut. Defiance should have been her middle name. Leaving her with room to manoeuvre was a foolish thing to do. He should have bundled her into the car last night and taken her straight to Edingthorpe Hall.

Well, she may have escaped from him this once, but not a second time. Oh no, he was going to hunt her down and if he had to, he will throw her over his shoulder and cart her onto his jet and take her home with him. The thought of all the things that he was going to do to her for her disobedience made him smile. Breaking down every defiant, stubborn streak, until there was nothing left but her pliant luscious curves and her sweet sounds of ecstasy in his bed! Throwing on a light jacket, he picked up his car keys. Someone must know where she is.

Chapter 9

Annabelle and April spent the next few days at a leisurely pace. They swam in the sea on warmer days and toasted marshmallows over the fire in the cool evenings. It took her three days before she broached the subject of Tristan being her father, but April surprised her with her reaction.

“Yeah, I got a funny feeling when I looked at him. I like him and we have the same colour eyes. Does this mean that we’ll be seeing him again?”

Annabelle pulled her into her arms and shed a few tears in relief. They talked about how Annabelle had always told her that her father lived far away in America, but now she could explain the truth. She also told her that George was actually her Great Gramps and April was thrilled at this piece of news. Over the next few days they talked endlessly about it and April asked a lot of probing questions. Annabelle asked her how she felt about going to Texas and spending time with Tristan. April wanted to get to know him, but also felt a little scared. By the weekend Annabelle knew that she owed them both the time to get to know each other. To keep them apart any longer would be wrong.

On their last day they climbed the little hill from the beach for the final time and rounded the corner to the house. Outside, leaning against his car, was Tristan.

“Hi Annabelle.”

The shock at seeing him standing there stopped her in her tracks. The sheer power of him and the anger rolling off him caused fear to lick up her spine. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes, so she couldn’t fully decipher the look he was sending her way, but she could definitely feel the intensity of it. Dressed in black slacks and a black shirt, which was rolled up at the sleeves, he was gorgeous and intimidating all at the same time. “Tristan,” she faltered, but it was April who broke the ice as she moved towards him.

“Hi, mum’s told me everything about you. You’re my dad, but you didn’t know about me and George is my Great Gramps and we’re going to Texas and mum is sorry about everything.” Only the innocence of a child can gush out six days of deep talking in one sentence.

Tristan looked down into bright, intelligent eyes. The very sight of them both rounding the corner was nearly enough to bring him to his knees, but the words from this own daughter’s mouth rocked the crux of his foundations. Not sure what to do, he bent down and stuck out his hand. “I think we need a proper introduction, don’t you? So, hi April, I’m your dad and it’s wonderful to find out about you and I’m looking forward to getting to know you.”

April smiled in response, ignoring his hand she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him.

His breath hurled itself out of his body and his heart burst open with the force of his emotions. Lifting her up into his arms, he twirled her around as she laughed into his neck.

Annabelle watched them both and felt a deep surge of guilt. This moment was proof to her that keeping them apart had been a huge mistake. Wiping a tear from her eyes, she made a deal with herself to be friendly to him and make this trip a happy one for April to always look back on.

Putting April down Tristan faced Annabelle and caught her wiping away a tear. Sympathy was far from his mind right now. This last week had left him feeling raw. It was time to take back the control of his life. He assessed her with a cool stare. “Are you ready to go?”

“How did you know we were here?” she asked roughly.

He shrugged. “People talk.” It had taken him a day to locate her and he’d stayed in a nearby hotel whilst allowing her the time she needed to tell April. “Rose was very helpful.”