Born to be Wild
Page 15
The man wasn’t as tall as Reese but she knew in a heartbeat who he was. Reese’s father still had thick dark hair, though silver shone at his temples, and she had a sudden vivid image of what Reese would look like in thirty years.
The woman with him was gorgeous, her figure stunning, her hair a vibrant red. There were a few threads of silver in it, as well, or Celia never would have believed that this woman could be old enough to be Reese’s mother.
Mrs. Barone had tears in her eyes. “Reese,” she said, coming to the side of the bed. “Nick called us. I know we might not be welcome but…we wanted to see for ourselves that you’re all right.” She put out a hand, then tugged it back and held it against her waist. To Celia, it appeared that she desperately wanted to hug Reese, but was unsure of her reception.
“Thank you for coming. As you can see, I’m a little banged up but essentially okay.” Reese’s voice was neutral. A part of her wanted to kick him, but she recognized the insecurity hiding beneath his calm surface. He was afraid to be rejected again.
“Reese.” His father cleared his throat, his eyes steady as they rested on his son’s. “I owe you an apology for leaping to the wrong conclusion all those years ago. I’m sorry I left it so long. When you didn’t come home… I thought that you no longer wanted to be in contact with us and I couldn’t blame you.”
Reese was silent for a moment. The tension in the room was so thick, Celia understood for the first time what people meant when they said they could cut it with a knife. She had a ridiculous urge to get the small pocketknife from her purse and try it.
Finally, Reese said, “Thank you. I apologize, too, for losing my temper and staying away so long.” He turned then and took her hand. “Mother, Dad, this is Celia Papaleo.” Although there wasn’t exactly a note of challenge in his voice, she recognized that he was using her as a test.
Mrs. Barone immediately offered an outstretched hand to Celia across the bed. “It’s so nice to meet you at last, Celia. Please call us Carlo and Moira.” She gave the younger woman a warm, genuine smile. “Reese spoke of you often when he was younger. I know you’re very special to him.”
“As are you.” Celia went with instinct and leaned forward, embracing Moira Barone in a warm hug. “Thank you.”
“It is truly a pleasure, Celia,” Carlo Barone said. He came around the end of the bed to where she sat and kissed her formally on each cheek in a courtly manner.
She nodded, smiling at him as he stepped back.
“Celia has just agreed to marry me.” The announcement fell into the momentary silence.
His mother made a small sound of delight. “Congratulations!”
“Welcome to the family,” Carlo said to Celia. “Everyone is anxious to see Reese again. They’ll all be thrilled to hear this news.”
“Have you set a date?” asked Moira.
“Um, no,” Celia said. “We’re very newly engaged.”
“She just said yes before you walked in the door,” Reese said, grinning.
“So that’s what we interrupted,” Carlo said to his wife. “See, I told you we should have knocked!”
“We’re not planning on a long engagement.” Reese dragged the conversation back to the earlier topic. “In fact, if I have my way, we’ll be husband and wife right away.” He paused, giving his parents a conspiratorial grin. “How would you like to fly to Vegas and witness our wedding?”
“We’d love to,” his mother answered.
“He means today,” Celia informed them. She turned to Reese. “You really need to rest—”
“I really need to marry you. Today.” He caught her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “We’ve waited too long as it is.”
Carlo Barone was laughing. “You might as well stop arguing, Celia. Nobody wins an argument with a Barone man.”
“Ha.” Moira winked at Celia. “You just let him keep on thinking that for the next fifty years and you’ll do just fine together.”
Reese tugged on her hand, pulling her down to the edge of the bed. When she acceded, he immediately drew her to him for a kiss, and as she thought of how close she’d come to losing him, she sank against him with a quiet sigh. He’d told her he was born to be wild, but she’d had enough wild to last her a lifetime already.
A lifetime. She kissed him back fervently, forgetting all about their audience. She knew better than most how fragile happiness could be. If he wanted to get married today, she’d do it.
And then she wanted to meet his daughter—their daughter—and start living the rest of their lives together.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Anne Marie Winston for her contribution to the DYNASTIES: THE BARONES series.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-8283-8
BORN TO BE WILD
Copyright © 2003 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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