“Max expected you to return, and when you didn’t, he set out in his small private jet, flying to Seattle. He thought that he could reach there before you. The last thing we heard from him was he was trying to land his plane in a valley. The weather changed quickly. I warned him before he left, but you know how he is.”
My legs collapsed, and I found a chair. “What have I done? What have I done?” I said in a loud chant.
“Alex…Alex?”
“I’m coming there to you,” I said, my mind in a fog.
“No. I’m going to bring Maxim and his nanny to you. Max’s plane disappeared near Seattle. That was the last signal reported. We have a team of men stationed and ready to go. Just stay calm. I’ve done this before. I don’t want to lose my brother; he’s all I’ve got.”
“You have me and Maxim, Jonas. Bring Max back.” I couldn’t believe my newfound feelings for Jonas. I discovered that comforting Jonas made me feel better. I found empathy for him because the sound of his voice was like the lost child that Max had painted in my mind.
***
That afternoon I waited in anticipation of hearing from Jonas about Max. The knock on the door felt comforting, as if Max would walk through and hand me my son. Instead of Max it was Jonas, as handsome as ever. Holding his hand was Maxim. Maxim turned to look at Jonas. He gestured for him to go, and Maxim ran to me and held me around my legs. I bent to pick him up, and he fell into my arms.
“Mommy. I get to stay with you.”
“Yes you do.” As I turned to show Maxim a room full of toys that I’d bought for him, Crystal opened her door. She stood silent. And looked at Jonas, who did not miss that where-have-you-been-all-my-life look, and Jonas answered with an I-can’t-wait-to-fuck-you look.
I stood to the side and watched the fatal attraction, which took me by surprise. I said, “Crystal, this is Jonas. Jonas, this is Crystal. And this is Maxim. My Maxim.”
Maxim smiled at his introduction, but Jonas and Crystal just could not bring space between the two of them. Finally Jonas said, “You didn’t tell me that I would meet the woman who would be the mother of my children.”
“Oh God. Heaven forbid,” I mumbled.
Crystal shyly broke a smile and held her hand out to shake Jonas’s hand. “I’m pleased to meet you.” Jonas reached for her hand and kissed the back of it instead.
“Jonas, please let Crystal go to work; she’s going to be late.” He turned and walked her to the door. I heard him tell her not to go anywhere because he had to search for his brother, and he would be back and hoped she would be waiting.
I took Maxim inside the dining area to play with the elaborate train set Max had sent before he decided that he should have sole custody of Maxim. Jonas stood staring at the door as if in a trance. “Jonas, what are your plans?”
“I plan to marry Crystal.”
“Jonas. No. I’m speaking of Max,” I yelled.
He jerked out of his trance.
“I have this team and we are going to hike near the last signal. It’s hilly country with dense forest. It’s cold out there. I don’t want to alarm you, but Max left without a warm coat. It was as if he had lost his mind. I’ve never seen him out of control. He didn’t think; he just rushed to that small jet and took off.”
“Tell me you’re going to find Max.”
“I’m going to find him and bring him home. His son needs a father. I understand that more than ever. Well, we don’t want Maxim turning out like me.” A small smile broke across his face.
“There’s nothing wrong with you, Jonas,” I lied.
“Speaking of that, when I get back, talk to Crystal for me.”
“You will have to do that yourself.”
“I know I’ve been a nuisance, but I mean well. I just spent too much time on the streets and in Afghanistan. It makes for a lot of crazy shit.”
“I know what you are talking about, Jonas.”
“You couldn’t have. I ran away from home all my life. It seems that I am still running away.”
“I feel the same way. I was one of those urchins you see running around the streets of Seattle with nowhere to sleep at night, all because I didn’t want anyone to tell me what to do.” Jonas sat stunned, listening as I poured my heart out to a fellow lost child.
The sound in Jonas’s voice had reminded me of the first time I realized that I was on my own on the streets of Seattle.
“It was a cold, rainy day when I decided that I couldn’t stay with my parents. They were exasperated with my behavior. I argued with my mother and took advantage of my father. When they finally revealed that I had been adopted, I packed my things and stole away in the middle of the night. I had decided and convinced myself that I could find my birth parents.
“Climbing through the window with my backpack, my iPod, a can of tuna and crackers, and the ignorance of a child, I left the comforts of home.
“I felt deceived that they would wait until I was a teen to tell me. I knew that something was wrong. I just didn’t fit into that family. My father said that I would get over my rebellious ways, but I got worse, and my attitude toward them became unpleasant for everyone. My shouting at my mother, telling her that I hated her, was too much for my father, and he began to pull away from me.
“Leaving home was something I had planned for a long time, but this time, I vowed I would never go back. They searched for me, but I didn’t want to be found. One cold night I ended up in a shelter. I heard on the street that the sponsor of the shelter would provide financial support to any girl who would agree to finish high school and go to college.
“I ended up in Brooklyn because I got a scholarship to Brooklyn College with an apartment and my clothes and food paid for until I graduated. All this help from an unknown woman. When I graduated, I had college loans because my last year, I lost my scholarship and had to pay, and I found out that my sponsor had died. It was then I met Max.”
When the word “Max” slipped from my lips, Jonas’s phone rang. He talked for a few minutes, and then he stood and I followed him to the door. He turned. “My team is ready. I have to go, Alex. Say good-bye to Maxim for me. His governess will be here shortly. I’m bringing my brother back. Please don’t worry, Alex.”
Jonas saw the strain in my red, swollen eyes. “I’ll contact you the minute we reach our base,” Jonas said to help me relax. He hugged me as we stood on the porch, and then he stepped down the brick stairs. After walking to his Jeep, he entered, looking back at me for comfort, then he pulled away out of sight. I didn’t want to let him go because he might be the only connection I had to my handsome, sexy, intolerable, demanding Mr. Black—a man who I couldn’t fathom losing.
I didn’t know if I could handle the loss of the only man I had both loved and hated.
Some might say, You are young; you’ll get over him in time. There was no way I would get over a man like him.
Chapter 6
Nervously I tapped my pen on the glass-and-chrome desk. I couldn’t get my right leg to stop shaking while I waited for a call from Jonas. Sitting at my desk all day and not eating, barely reading the bank statements, I looked up from the papers, standing before me was Charles.
“What can I do to make you smile, Alex?”
“I’m OK.”
“No, you’re not. If I know anything about Max, he’ll come out of this all right.”
“You don’t understand. His small jet crashed somewhere in the Pacific forest near a mountain range.”
“You can’t do anything here but sit and worry. I think you should go home.”
“No, I can’t do that. I have a lot of work to complete.”
“Looking at your desk, it will take you all night. Go home, and Marianne will have someone take care of everything.”
“I really don’t want to. People are beginning to talk.”
“Why should you care about what they’re saying? This is my company, and if I choose to give a job to someone I’m interested in, it’s no one’s business but
mine.” Charles reached for my hand, and I stood. He led me around to meet his eyes. “I will have someone take you home. I don’t want you driving around Seattle in your condition.”
My phone rang. It was the call I had been waiting for all day. “I have to take this, Charles.”
Charles turned and walked to the door. He glanced at me with his steel-blue eyes and gave a smile to light up my sad heart. “Jonas, did you find him?”
“We are at our base camp now, and it’s getting dark. We will get an early start tomorrow morning when it’s light. I wanted to go now,” he said with an urgent sounding voice, “because we are minutes from the plane, but the men suggested that it was very dangerous at night.”
“What are those ominous sounds, Jonas?”
“What you hear are wolves in a distance, and a bear.”
“Oh God, Jonas.”
“Tomorrow we can reach the site where the plane crashed. And if the weather is in our favor, I’ll have Blackstone’s helicopter and plane up searching the area.” He added, “If Max is not in the wreckage, and if I know my brother, he’s not waiting around for someone to rescue him.”
“You said that he would be fine, Jonas.”
“I know, but can’t you see that there are no certainties? If it is at all possible, I will bring him home or his body.”
“I can’t handle this talk. I’m going.”
I wiped the tears from my eyes because I swore that I would not cry anymore. I would handle things. I wasn’t doing that well. Deciding not to stay and complete my work, I stood up to leave, and I saw Charles walk through the door. “Come with me to dinner. I’m not taking no for an answer.” He looked at my face. “When your boss ask you out it is a good move to take him up on his invitation.”
“Loss is a hell of a thing,” he said, cradling me in both his arms. I leaned against his chest and was taken in by his strong arms and chest. I was just a girl again looking for solace in the arms of an older man. But this older man was by no way a father figure. His salt-and-pepper hair hid the youth and vigor of a thirty-something man who was eager to fall in love. Leaning on his chest, I heard his wild, erratic heartbeat, and I stepped away from him.
“You have found out my secret. I can’t be near you without behaving like a schoolboy. I apologize. I should have controlled that by now, but there are some things only time can change. And since I still have a desire for the fairer sex, especially you, you should expect me to act that way when I’m around you.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“Don’t say anything. Have dinner with me.”
“I can only stay an hour. My son is waiting for me.”
“That is enough time to forget.” There is not enough time in the world to make me forget Max.
“I want to assure you that you are safe with me and that my intentions are honorable. If I take you from Max, and that is my intention, you will come of your own will and you will tell me one day that you love me.”
I could not open my mouth. I could not move. I was stunned by his directness and a little flattered as well.
“Well, Mr. St. John, I see that you have made big plans for me.” I looped my bag over my shoulder, and Charles opened the door. I headed for the elevators, but he stopped and led me by the arm to a set of elevators I didn’t know existed.
“We are going to take this one.”
“Where are we going?”
“To my office. The view is to die for, and the service is outstanding. You need a distraction, and I can provide that.”
We reached his office-slash-penthouse floor in a matter of seconds. Charles went through the double doors and into a large office area. Facing the skyline of Seattle with the Pacific Ocean clearly in view, I put my hand to my mouth to hold back the sound of amazement. I walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows and leaned forward, looking out. I had missed that view. I had missed being pampered. I thought that I could go back to living as I had before, but I was fooling myself.
I wanted to be surrounded by luxury. I wanted a man to wine and dine me and take me to places I had never been. I wanted it all without knowing that I did have it all.
“Where can I freshen up?”
“There is a bath and shower for guests to your right. If you find that you need to sleep after dinner, then you are welcome to stay.”
“I think I will need only a place to wash my hands.” My eyes glanced at Charles. Walking to the bathroom, I closed the door and looked around in amazement. As much money as Max had, he was not as decadent as Charles. The bathroom was a mini apartment. The large step-down tub in the center of the floor was like a swimming pool and sauna. There were glass doors everywhere. I was afraid to open one for fear of what lurked behind it.
Wanting to leave Charles’s secrets to Charles, I washed my hands and quickly left the bathroom. When I reached the room, an oval table had been set with a fancy white tablecloth. “I hear you love Chinese food and seafood. Well, you can have the best of both worlds.” A waiter stood by, and at Charles’s wave, the waiter, dressed in a white jacket, black pants, and white gloves, removed the cover over the tray of food and unearthed the delightful dishes.
“I’m impressed.”
“Just for you, my dear.” Charles reached for my hand and kissed it. How special was that?
Charles pulled out the chair, and I sat down. The waiter opened a bottle of white wine and poured us a drink. Charles held his glass out and stated, “To the beginning of a beautiful relationship.” Our glasses met with a ping. And then I heard my smartphone. “I have to take this, Charles.”
I sat on the large sofa facing the skyline of Seattle. The lights calmed me. When I answered the phone, my heart beat at an alarming rate, but I gazed into the lights and found my footing.
“What is going on, Jonas?”
“Some of my men packed night goggles, so we headed out in the dark. We reached the airplane, and as I thought, the fuselage is destroyed but the cockpit is attached and somewhat together. But Max is not in it.”
“What does that mean, Jonas?” Jonas heard desperation running rampant in my voice.
“Calm down. It means that his body is not there,” he said before pausing. “But there is a great deal of blood. He could be anywhere. The blood means that he could be severely hurt, or it could be superficial. Max is a bleeder. If he got a scratch he would bleed profusely. I don’t know.”
Jonas’s voice sound calm, as if he had it all under control. He tried to hide behind his experience as a soldier, but I knew the voice of panic. The more calm he seemed the more he became aware of the dangers Max faced.
“Jonas, bring him home. Bring him home.”
“Don’t worry, Alex, I’ll find him. He’s a Blackstone. We thrive on adversity. Look at me.”
I felt somewhat better, but not by much.
“Alex, my team is setting out now. We have to reach him before the temperature drops, and with the blood and all…well, I don’t want to alarm you.”
“I know about wolves.” It was ironic that I thought of wolves. I remembered thinking that if Max was a wolf, as Blake had stated, he would be the alpha wolf. I convinced myself, even if I didn’t believe it, that he would be OK. He will be OK. I turned my phone off and walked slowly back to the table.
“I guess you won’t be eating much tonight,” Charles said, sitting quietly until I placed my phone in my purse.
“On the contrary, I need to eat something,” I admitted. I tried to relax. But nevertheless, my mind was on Max, and Charles knew.
His glance traveled across to me, and I looked in his eyes. “Is there anything I can do?” he asked quietly.
“I don’t think so.” I lowered my head.
“I have all kinds of resources. I’ll send a helicopter out.”
“Max has airplanes and a helicopter out, and his men are searching for him. What can more planes do?”
“If I remember, he only has a personal helicopter. What he needs is the kind that has a heat-
seeking device, the kind we sent the soldiers in Afghanistan.” My eyes raised and met Charles’s gaze.
“Whatever you can do, I’ll be forever grateful to you, Charles.”
He held my hand, and I presented him a warm smile as a thank-you. After dinner, I said that I had to go home, and he offered to drop me at home but I declined. I kissed his cheek, and a glow settled on his face. He looked ten years younger. He could have rivaled Max for my affection if anyone could. I saw the handsome face that I hadn’t seen before. Maybe it was his generosity to me, overlooking my love for another man, and that he was willing to find the man that I love, which endeared him to me.
***
The next day I sat at my desk and a call came in from Jonas. “We have him, Alex. He’s alive, but barely.”
“Where is he? Is he going to live?”
“He had climbed a tree before he went unconscious. If it hadn’t been for an army helicopter, we would have missed him. We were camped below him the entire time. A helicopter showed up, and the pilot announced that Max was in the tree hanging on to a branch.
“A soldier lowered a cable and was able to fasten it around his shoulders and pull him into the helicopter, and it took off to the nearest hospital. He’s in Northwest Memorial hospital outside of Seattle. He’s good, Alex; he’s going to make it.”
“I need to get there.”
“I’ll have a plane…”
“No plane. I’m going to drive. It’s quicker.” I hung up the phone and called Charles.
“Charles…”
“Yes, I know, Alex.”
“I let Marianne know that I’m leaving to be with Max. Is that OK with you?”
“Of course. Take as long as you like.”
“Thanks, Charles.”
“Alex, come back to me.”
I didn’t know what to say. I owed Charles for Max’s life.
“I have to go.”
“How are you getting there?”
“I’m driving. It’s faster than taking a plane and I don’t think there is an airport for miles.”
“Not in that car of yours,” he said with a mixture of laughter and concern. “Take my BMW. I never use it anyway, and it has GPS.” I hesitated, and he could hear my breath hitch over the phone. “I’m not taking no. I would drive you there, but you would refuse, so I’m offering my car. There is heavy rain, and I don’t want you tooling around in that old car.”
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