The Right Bride

Chapter Twenty-Nine


CAMERON SAT BACK in the limo listening to Shelly talk on her cell phone with some girlfriend of hers. He’d never get used to her itemizing and calculating the cost of everything they’d gotten for the wedding or ordered for the ceremony. In fact, she did it all the time with everything. She was obsessed with how expensive something was, and the more expensive, the better.

Things had changed since he watched Marti walk out the door of his penthouse two weeks ago. He’d made a concerted effort to get to know Shelly better and make her a part of his life. He’d even taken her to dinner at George’s. He knew it was just another stab in the back to Marti, but he couldn’t help it. He had to make things right with Shelly, which meant accepting her as part of his life.

He had to let Marti go. He thought he was doing a good job of changing things between them to more of a friendly acquaintance. He told himself the lie that they were only friends; every second of every day he spent thinking about her and the time they’d spent together making love.

He watched Shelly closely over the last two weeks. The more he accepted her, the more she settled down and took a real interest in Emma. Pleasant to be around, she remained appropriate at all his business dinners and at George’s. She never said anything snide or contrary to Marti. In fact, she ignored her unless absolutely necessary to speak to her.

Emma began to like Shelly. She chatted with her and they’d even sat and watched a movie together the other night.

While Shelly seemed to be doing better with Emma, she was a long way from being a mother to her. He felt like he’d lost two mothers for Emma, Caroline, and Marti.

He figured if things had improved this much in two weeks, over a lifetime things could change considerably. He’d accept her as a wife and companion and Emma would find a way to see her as a mother. Maybe just a friend.

He hadn’t made love to Shelly since Marti left the penthouse weeks ago. He told her he wanted to wait until after they were married. She’d thought it an old-fashioned idea, and at the same time accepted it saying she’d been having some cramping due to the pregnancy and her changing body and the doctor told her to take it easy.

He was concerned about the cramping and told her so. She said it was normal and not to worry, she’d take good care of his baby.

He’d pampered her ever since, making sure she stayed off her feet and rested. He asked her to quit her job, which she protested because she had expenses, so he’d paid off all her bills. Nothing was more important than her health and that of his baby. He’d do anything and everything to prevent a repeat of Caroline’s devastating fate.

They would move in together at the penthouse the night of the wedding ceremony. Elizabeth had agreed to keep Emma for the night and he’d had a new bed delivered to the house. Neither Emma nor Shelly said a word when the men arrived to deliver it. He’d simply said a new wife deserved a new bed. He’d even let Shelly go with him to pick out new sheets, pillows, and blankets. Nothing remained of his morning with Marti, except the perfectly clear details in his mind.

He rubbed the back of his neck. He was tired. He felt like he was working three jobs. Things at Merrick had become even more hectic, and he’d gotten a call from Fairchild Industries to work on a development deal on some property they owned. It was a great opportunity and would build community ties. A great project, one they requested he work personally on with Fairchild Industries. He’d been working to put together the proposal for the building and finances.

His mind veered back to Marti. He wondered if she’d be there tonight. Every time they went to see George, he wondered if this would be the day George said she was gone. He wondered if she left, would he ever see her again. What would he do when that day finally came?

Please, God, let her be there. I just want to look at her. I just want to be near her.

“Darling, did you hear me?”

“What? No. I was thinking about a land deal I’m putting together.” It was partly true.

“We’re almost there. What did George say he wanted to talk to us about?”

“He didn’t. He probably wants to give us a wedding gift or something. He’s getting worse each day and I’m sure he just wants to make sure he congratulates us on the wedding and the baby while he has the chance.”

George hadn’t been specific and Cameron wondered why he’d sounded so persistent about their coming tonight. He didn’t want to think about George and his failing health. “You went to the doctor’s today, didn’t you?”

“Yes, of course.”

“What did the doctor say?”

“Everything is fine. Normal. Nothing to report.”

She smiled for him and patted Emma’s knee beside her. Everything changed the day Marti left Cameron’s penthouse. He paid attention to her and talked to her more about his job and life. He included her in his business dinners and invited her to George’s with him. If he sometimes got a strange, almost sad look in his eyes, she ignored it and tried to make him smile. Emma broke through those solemn moments better than she did, and that was okay too. Things between them were good, settled, and the wedding plans were moving forward. Even Marti’s presence at George’s didn’t deter Cameron, or make him any less interested in her. She didn’t know what happened between the two of them. She didn’t care, so long as she had the ring on her finger and Cameron’s last name on her bank accounts.

Only one problem. She needed to figure out how to explain not being pregnant when, no matter what she did, Cameron refused to sleep with her before the wedding. Options limited, she’d have to fake a miscarriage. She’d make a show of how upset it made her that he’d only married her for the baby and now that it was gone he didn’t want her. A good guy, that truth would shame him into staying with her. She hated knowing the baby kept him with her, but she wanted the life she’d have with him and one day, given time to get to know her better, he’d want to stay with her.

“You never said: did they give you the baby’s due date? I’ll want to mark it on the calendar at work. I can take some vacation time at the end of the pregnancy and after the baby is born.”

“He said the baby will be here near the end of December. Won’t that be a lovely Christmas gift for us all? Right, Emma?”

“Sure,” she said absently.

No matter how hard she tried, the little bugger remained polite but distant. She played along, which suited Shelly fine. Marti might have found the key to gaining Emma’s devotion, but Shelly accepted she didn’t have the instinct or inclination to be anything more in Emma’s life than her father’s wife.

“I thought you said your doctor was a woman?”

“She is.”

“Why did you say, ‘he’, before?”

“Hormones. They shut off my brain. All the preparations for the wedding and the dinner engagements you have for business plus with George. It’s just so much.” She tried to sound exhausted as all pregnant women were in their first trimester. She wasn’t exhausted. She loved all the attention and dinner parties. She’d met people she’d never hoped to associate with, rich people.

“What is the due date? I want to know.”

“December twenty-seventh.” Actually, the date was her old boyfriend’s birthday and the first date to pop into her head. It would do.

Cameron turned skeptical. He knew a little bit about babies having had one already and gone through the process with Caroline. He’d read books and gone to her appointments both in the beginning of the pregnancy and in the end. He thought about the night he’d met and slept with Shelly and mentally went through the calendar he kept in his head. He calculated forty weeks’ gestation for the pregnancy. She was close, but something was off.

They arrived at George’s and the matter of the due date nagged at the back of his mind.

George waited for them in the dining room, looking wan and pale. Cameron took his seat after seating Shelly and Emma, immediately noticing the absence of a place setting for Marti. She hadn’t joined them or come to say hello.

She had to be there, somewhere. The Jag George told him he’d bought for her sat outside in the driveway. His heart raced at the thought of seeing her. Then again, maybe she left the car with George and sailed away on her ship. He wondered if he should ask about her. Thankfully, Emma saved him the trouble.

“Where’s Marti?”

“She’s upstairs. I asked her to allow us dinner together alone tonight. I want to talk to all of you in private.”

“Why? She wouldn’t tell anyone. She’s good at keeping secrets. She taught me how. The trick is not to tell.”

Everyone laughed at Emma’s serious tone.

Cameron wondered just what secrets Marti was keeping. When he thought about her and tried to picture her during the day and what she might be doing, he often drew a blank. He had no idea what she did for a living, if she went into an office, what she liked to do in her free time (except play with Emma), or anything else. The things he knew about her were from the time they had spent together. He figured she knew more about him than he knew about her. She’d asked him a hundred questions over the last weeks. Every time the conversation turned to her, she evaded answering anything personal. He barely knew more than a few facts. Her parents died in a car crash, her grandparents raised her, and to fulfill a promise to her grandmother, she’d sailed the world for a year.

He wished he knew everything about her. He wished they had no secrets.

He would have to settle for learning all of Shelly’s secrets, even if he didn’t really care what they were.

“Marti wouldn’t tell my secrets. I’ve told her a great many over the last week. It’s just, I want to give something to your dad and I haven’t told Marti about it yet.”

George took a sip of water. Tired, the shaking in his leg had become pronounced over the last day and a half. His legs had failed him. Soon the rest of his body would as well. The doctor had been feeding him medication like it was candy. He feared his days had turned to hours. He needed to settle things with Cameron.

“George, what do you want to give me? Something for the wedding, or the baby?”

Cameron didn’t like the way George looked tonight. His skin turned a sickly grey. He shook and trembled uncontrollably. His speech was slow and slurred. He understood him fine, but it wasn’t the same baritone voice he’d always heard.

“You know I think of Emma as my very own granddaughter and you as my son. I’ve raised you from afar. Your mother was a wonderful woman, and she would have been proud to see you grow to such a fine man and the president of a company like Merrick International. She’d have been proud of her granddaughter.”

“I regret she died the year before Emma was born. I would have liked her to see her grandchildren. She’d have been a devoted and loving grandmother.”

“Indeed she would have. This thing I want to give you is just a thing really, but in order to give it to you I require a promise in return. Well, a few actually, but you can still have the thing with just the one promise. You’re an honorable man, and if you give me your word, I’ll accept it and die knowing you’ll keep it.”

“Whatever the promise, it’s yours. You know I’d do anything for you, George. Without your generosity and mentoring all these years, I wouldn’t be half the man I am today. You’re the father I always wanted.”

George took that into his heart, let it heal old wounds. “Sometimes that’s all a person needs when they don’t have the parent they want, even if it is just for a short while.” He looked at Emma and back to Cameron. “I wish we could have many more years together, and I would see your children come into this world and grow up to be like Emma. A beautiful, smart, funny, and kind girl,” he said to Emma.

“Cameron, the promise I ask is this. The thing I’m going to give you will only be half yours. The other half will be given to someone else and you will own it together.

“The promise I request, you must never sell your half, not even to the person who owns the other half. You will own it together for the rest of your lives. Upon your death, your half will go to Emma, as she is your firstborn child. The other person will leave their half to their firstborn child. This will become the legacy I want to leave.”

“Okay, I agree. I promise you George, I’ll never sell it even to them. Have they agreed to this promise as well?”

“Not yet. I haven’t told them. If they don’t, I will leave the entire thing to you, and then Emma, and then her first child, etcetera.”

He smiled at Emma. “Agreed, Princess?”

“Yes, Knight. I will leave it to my child.”

“That’s my princess.”

“What is it, George, I’m dying to know.” Shelly found the whole promise and gift to be too intriguing to keep her mouth shut.

“Are you sure, Cameron? This is big. It’s very important to me you understand the promise must be kept. The item I’m giving to you will transfer to your ownership prior to your getting married. In fact, within days.”

“I understand what you’re saying.” He knew exactly what George was telling him. Ownership of whatever it was would occur before his marriage to Shelly. If they divorced, she’d have no claim to it.

“The thing I am giving to you, well half anyway, is this house and the property it sits on. The contents of the house will go to the person who owns the other half. Many things will be distributed to my children at that person’s discretion.”

“George, you’re giving me the house. Why? What about your children?”

“It’s my house and this is what I want. Emma should have a backyard to play in. It’s dark now, but I’ve had a playhouse and play yard set up in the back for her already.”

He took Emma’s hand. “You have swings and a slide. The playhouse was Marti’s idea. It’s a pirate ship with all kinds of toys. One day, if you have a brother or sister, you can play pirate with them. Marti made sure it had everything a little girl needed to play pretend.”

“Oh my gosh, Knight. My very own pirate ship, swings, and a slide. It’s all for me?”

“Yes, Princess. It’s all for you.”

“She’ll still be able to attend her school,” he said to Cameron. “When she’s bigger, a bus will pick her up and take her.

“The penthouse is nice, but I want you and your family to have a home. This is a home without a family. It’s time to fill it with love and laughter again. I want that family to be yours, Cameron.”

Cameron didn’t know what to say. “Will the other owner be one of your children?”

“No. The house is split into two sections, as you know. It’s large enough for two families. The east wing will be yours. You’ll have the master suite and two additional rooms, one of which will be Emma’s, of course.

“The west wing will be for the other owner. You’ll share the common space down here.”

“George, it’s too much. This house and the property are worth a fortune. Your children aren’t going to be happy about this.”

“It isn’t their house. It’s mine. They will be well taken care of after I’m dead. Don’t worry about them. They’re greedy monsters who only come to see if I’m dead and find out when they can collect.

“Unfortunately, they’ve been causing some problems for Marti. I regret she was put in this position, and I’m going to make things worse for her after my death.”

“What kind of problems are they causing Marti?” Cameron had given her enough pain and grief. She didn’t need George’s family harming her too.

“Stupid things really. They believe she’s influencing me. And, well, they think she’s going to inherit it all because she’s my mistress.”

“What’s a mistress?” Emma asked, searching all their faces.

Everyone ignored Emma’s question.

Cameron looked fit to kill at the thought of Marti being George’s mistress. She couldn’t be. He’d made it seem like she was, but it couldn’t be true. George was dying; he couldn’t possibly be sleeping with Marti.

“Cameron, you look like you swallowed a lemon. For God’s sake, boy, Walter is just trying to find an excuse to cause trouble and make sure the will goes in his favor. The Jag really annoyed him.”

“It was a lovely gift you gave Marti. I’m sure she deserved it.” Shelly was sure she had earned every penny the Jag cost. On her knees, no doubt. She wasn’t buying it Marti lived with the old man because they were old family friends. No way. Marti was in it for as much as she could get.

“It was a gift for someone who understands the value of being true to your word and not expecting something because of who you know, or who you were born to. She’s unique in a way that surprises me more each day.”

He smiled thinking of Marti. She’d been a true friend. He regretted things were going to get very difficult for her soon. He hoped his carefully laid plans would make everything work out in the end.

“Now, I think my next request will please Shelly. I know you are planning a small ceremony at the penthouse. I’d like you to have the ceremony here at your new home. I know it’s a lot to ask you to contact everyone and change the address, but it would really please me to know the wedding was held here.”

“Oh, George, what a lovely idea. Cameron, what do you think? We could let everyone know about the change in location without any trouble at all. It’s just a few phone calls. That’s all. The house and gardens are so lovely. We’ll start our marriage right here at our new home.”

Cameron didn’t care. He just wanted to give his children a family. “It’s fine with me. The location doesn’t matter. I think it’s a great idea.”

“Perfect,” said George.

“Now, for my second request. I’d like for all of you to move into the house the day after my death. I’ve already set up the movers and a few other small surprises. It will give you a few days to settle in before the wedding. I’d like your word, Cameron. The day after my death. It’s important. I don’t want the house to be empty after I’m gone.”

“But George, we’re talking about a week. You’ll still be here for the wedding.”

Cameron didn’t want to think of George dying before the wedding, or any time soon. He wanted to hope he’d make it longer.

His hope was for George and himself, because as long as George was alive, Marti was in his house. She wouldn’t go back on her promise to him. She wouldn’t.

George shook his head. He didn’t want to say any more about his death in front of Emma. She looked sad already, disappointed with Marti’s absence at dinner this evening.

“It’s what I want. Indulge an old man with a promise, Cameron, for my last request. This house will be yours and then Emma’s. I want to know you are here and the house isn’t empty for even a day.”

“I for one think it’s sentimental and wonderful. The house has meant so much to you and you want to know a real family is living here. Cameron, you can’t say no.”

Shelly couldn’t wait. She’d love to move into the big, castle-like mansion. She’d have it all tied up with a bow, her very own castle with her rich prince. What more could a girl ask for?

“Yes, you see. Even Shelly is excited. She can move in with you before the wedding. Not all the rooms are furnished in the east wing. I’m sure one of the rooms in the west wing will suit Shelly until after the ceremony.”

“Perfect,” she beamed. Whatever it took to solidify her place with Cameron.

So what if she had to stay in the guest room. In a matter of days, she’d be in the master suite with Cameron. The rest of her life would be spent living here with servants and she’d have luncheons and dinner parties. It was going to be grand.

“Emma, what do you think? Would you like to move in here? You were very small when we moved into the penthouse. It’s the only home you’ve ever known. This will mean a lot of changes for you.” Cameron wouldn’t make the promise without Emma’s consent.

“Will we get to go back and see Aunt Elizabeth and everyone else? I don’t want to move if I don’t get to see them.”

“Yes, honey. I’ll keep the penthouse, and we’ll stay there sometimes. You’ll see everyone as often as you like. I still work for Aunt Jenna and Aunt Elizabeth feeds me every day. We’ll still have them all in our lives. I promise you. You won’t lose them too.”

He meant in addition to her home, but what he really thought was she’d still have them after Marti was gone.

Her eyes reflected her understanding. She was already missing Marti.

“It’s settled. You’ll move in and be married here.”

“Agreed,” said Cameron. “So long as the other owner doesn’t object. This is going to be difficult to figure out until I know who the other owner is and if we’ll be able to live under the same roof. I need to know Emma and the baby will like this person and get along with them.”

“You have no worries there. I have a feeling it will all work out in the end. I know you very well, Cameron. I wouldn’t have arranged this if I thought it wasn’t good for you and Emma. Nothing is more important to me than the two of you. No offense, Shelly. They’ve been in my life a long time.”

“No problem, George. I know how special you are to them as well.” She did know, and the old man could leave her out of his good thoughts, so long as she got the house, the prince, and the wealth.

“So, as long as we’re agreed, there’s a surprise for Emma upstairs.”

“Really? For me?”

“Yes. Cameron, I have your promises to all we’ve discussed?”

“Yes.” Cameron couldn’t deny George after everything he’d done for him. He wouldn’t have the life he had now without him. He wouldn’t have met Marti without George. It appeared George was making sure his life from then on would be taken care of as well.

“Okay, since everyone is finished eating, Cameron, would you take Emma upstairs to Marti? She’s the one who put the surprise together for Emma. She’s been working on it for me for two days straight. The girl has barely slept.

“Anyway, if she isn’t in her room, knock on the other door. Emma knows which one. She spends every waking moment with me or in her rooms working.

“Cameron, you’ll want to see Emma’s surprise. It’s quite extraordinary. More than I hoped it would be, or asked of Marti.

“Shelly, if you don’t mind, I’d like to speak to you while they go up. It’ll only take a few minutes, a chance for us to get to know each other a little better.”

“I’d like that, George. You’ve been so generous. I’ll see Emma’s surprise in a little while.”

She would too. She wanted to know what the great Marti had been up to for two days, so George could surprise Emma. She bet whatever it was, it was expensive.