George nods. “I’ve also thought about that, and with your blessing, I’d like to help you.”
My heart wants to explode from his generosity. “Oh, my, god, are you serious? I'd love your help. I have no idea where to start or what the hell to do.” I shake my head.
He takes one of my hands and one of Court’s, in his. “Whatever I can do, I will. Also, your father asked me to call his lawyer in Australia and have him come to Ireland to see you. It’s all arranged. His plane arrives tonight, and he’ll be brought to the house tomorrow morning. Your dad didn’t want either of you to worry about the future because he has taken care of things. Just wait and see.” He grins.
Shock hits me. The last thing I’d have thought to ask about was my father’s will. “I hadn’t even thought about his will. Thanks for being on top of things. I don’t know what the hell I would have done if it wasn’t for the two of you.”
Carol leans in. “You’re our family, and we will always look out for you,” she says before kissing my cheek. She then pulls away and does the same to Courtney.
My gaze shifts between George and Carol. “So, how about we forget about all of this morbid shit and drink up?” I suggest.
The next morning, my father’s lawyer comes to the house, bright and early. Courtney and I take our seats in the library and wait for him to greet us. We aren’t waiting long when George enters the room, followed by a stranger who must be the lawyer. He’s not bad looking, maybe mid-thirties, and he seems to be in shape.
He comes to a halt in front of us. “Hello, girls. I’m David Bunton, I’ve been your father’s lawyer since your parents divorced.”
I reach over and shake his hand. “It’s good to meet you, Mr. Bunton,”
He has a bright smile. “Please, it’s David.” He then extends his hand to Courtney.
I watch as he takes a seat behind the desk and begins to sift through the mountain of paperwork in front of him. “Now, everything was finalized not too long after your father received his diagnosis. Patrick’s house in New South Wales will be transferred into both your names.” He then shifts his focus to me. “This inheritance also includes the one hundred and ninety acres he owns, surrounding the home,” he adds.
There must be some mistake, I knew about the house, but dad never once mentioned that he owned the acreage surrounding it. “Um, are you sure about all of this? Because growing up, we didn’t have a lot,” I ask. Why wouldn’t dad have told me about this? Didn’t he trust me? Did he think I would have run to Rose and expose him?
He glances down at his paperwork. “Yes, I’m very sure. Your father, was excellent when it came to savings and investments.”
I lean back in my chair. “Wow,” is all I can say. I’ve always known dad was fantastic with money and that it was my mother who was shit with it, but this is a whole other level.
David continues to look over the papers in front of him. “Now, there’s also the matter of the money. Your father has instructed me to divide all monies in half so you receive one-million-two-hundred-thousand-dollars each.”
I didn’t hear that right. I know I didn’t because my father’s most expensive vehicle was a VW Bug. And I don’t mean the expensive, mint condition VW Bugs, I mean the rust-ridden ones, the ones that take a lot of restoration to be even able to drive it up the driveway.
My hand fly's up to stop him because I require an explanation. “Where the hell did this money come from?”
Just then, I feel two hands rest on my shoulders. “Calm down and stop stressing, give him a minute, and he’ll explain everything to you.” My Dad, who else? My stomach eases from his touch. Now that I know he's here with me, and that he did survive the cremation, pardon the pun, makes me want to both laugh and cry with relief.
“The money is mainly from your father’s life insurance,” David goes on to explain. “He upped the amount further when he realized how much time he had left.”
Being the moron I am, I didn’t consider that the majority of the money would have come from life insurance. “Everything is beginning to make sense.”
David takes out another piece of paper and looks up at us. “Now girls, it’s up to you to decide what you would like to do with the property, but if you decide to sell, I would advise you do it within the next twelve months. If you don’t, the government will charge a death tax, on the estate.”
There’s no chance in hell I'd sell my portion of the property. It’s so beautiful and quiet out there in the middle of nowhere. “I can only speak for myself, but I won’t be selling my share of the property.”
“I won’t be either,” Courtney whispers. My eyes close from the overwhelming feeling of relief as I smile and reach out to take her hand in mine. I love the fact that we’re in this together.
David continues reading the will, telling us what we've inherited. I’m surprised when the meeting ends after only forty minutes. Honestly, I thought there would have been a lot more to go over, legally.
When the lawyer leaves the room, I turn to face Court. “So, that’s it, done and dusted.”
“I guess so.” She sighs.
The tears in her eyes break my heart, so I pull her into the living room and close the doors behind us. Courtney slowly takes a seat on the sofa, and I drop in the spot beside her. I need to help her heal, and more importantly, I need her to be able to see our father. Courtney’s carrying around a lot of regrets. No matter how hard I try to tell her that none of it is her fault, she shuts me out and wallows. “Court, are you capable of keeping an open mind, at the moment, or are you still hurting and distracted?” I pat her on the shoulder.
“I think I can, why?” She still seems reluctant, but I press ahead.
My eyes close for just a moment, and I take a deep breath, unsure of whether I should go on or not. I want to make her feel better, but at the same time, I don’t want her thinking I’ve gone bat shit crazy. “I’ve spoken to dad since his passing. He’s been to see me on a few occasions.” I watch her carefully while waiting for a response.
Her eyes grow wide. “Holy shit, what do you mean? Was it just his voice or can you see him? Can you feel him? Is he here now? When was he with you last?” she asks in a breathless panic.
I take her hands in mine. “I can see him, and to me, he’s solid. I can feel him.” That's when I see him approach us from the corner of the room. “He’s just as he was before cancer took its toll on his body.”
Courtney’s head drops. “I miss the way he was before the illness. Before he left mum.” I see her back move with her sobs, so I take her in my arms.
Dad kneels before us. “Cassie, can you tell her that everything will be okay? I’ve been desperately trying to get through to see her, but it feels as if there’s a wall in my way. It’s like she’s mentally blocking me from coming through,” he explains.
Courtney lifts her head; she's searching my features for something. “What is it?” Court asks. “Is he here right now?”
I nod, cautiously. “Yes, he wants you to know that everything’s okay and will continue to be okay. He also wants you to know that he's been trying to come through to you, but something is stopping him. He thinks you might have your guard up. Maybe if you start working on opening your mind, he may just be able to come to you too,” I try my best to sound hopeful. I need Courtney to be able to make contact with him. She needs some form of closure before the guilt she’s carrying eats her alive.
She nods, but she seems hesitant. “Okay, I will try, but I’m scared.”
I smile, trying to give her some reassurance. “That could be the thing blocking him from coming through to you. Keep working on it, Hun, and you never know, you may be able to see him soon.”
“I will. I promise.”
The rest of the day is spent mingling with the family until I begin to feel stressed and tired in the late afternoon. My subconscious mind is still worrying about what the future holds. Feeling the need for space, I go up to the bedroom, and I lie down on the bed. I’m only th
ere fifteen minutes before I see the light from the hallway paint the room and then it’s gone again.
I smile warmly when I see Tristan’s beautiful face hovering over the bed. “Hey, sweetheart. I was just checking up on you. Is everything okay?” I reach out, take his hand in mine and pull him down onto the bed next to me.
While resting my head on his chest, I tell him everything that has me concerned. “I think it all just hit me when I was downstairs. I have to book flights home so I can get all of the paperwork and legalities out of the way when it comes to Dad’s will. Then I have to start the process of taking my mother to court so I can fight for custody of Courtney. But then there’s you to consider. I can’t believe we’ve put this conversation off for so long. I don’t know what you want to do. It can’t just be all about me. You’re in this, too. We need to discuss where we’ll live. Hell, then there is the whole Courtney factor. I haven’t even asked you what you think when it comes to taking her in. You should be able to weigh in on that too.” My brain begins to throb, my temples feel as if they may explode from the pressure.
He chuckles, and my head moves with his chest. “You don’t have to worry about me, in all of this. I'm more than happy to follow you anywhere. As long as I’m with you, Cass, I’m a happy man. And when it comes to Courtney, I would never make you choose. I don’t care if she lives with us for the rest of our lives, baby girl. Your family is my family.” He lifts my hand and kisses the back of it.
My head raises so I can see him. “You should have at least some input into where we’ll be living and where we’ll start our own family. That’s important to me.” It is. I need him to be comfortable, or this won’t work.
Suddenly, he grabs hold of my hips and pulls me so I’m lying on top of him. One of his hands moves the back of my neck, and he uses it to lower my lips onto his, brushing his tongue along the length of mine. Every part of me is now on fire. His tongue works my mouth as I take hold of his shoulders and when I do, he flips us until he’s on top of me. I hope to hell he'll continue to love me the way he does now, for the rest of our lives. When he pulls back to look at me, I ask in a whisper, “What was that for?”
He reaches up and moves my hair back behind my ear. “When you said to me ‘where we should start our family,' I grew excited about our future, and all I could feel was my love for you.”
My stomach flutters. “I hope you’re not tired because I want you to slam into me, over and over again until I can’t walk.” My brow raises in question.
The side of his mouth tugs upwards, and he pushes against me. Shit, I can feel him through his jeans, he’s pressing against the perfect spot, and a moan escapes. When it does, he all-out smiles. “I'll make sure you can’t walk for a week.”
Chapter Thirteen
A week later, we say our goodbyes to the family. We decided it’s time to go back to Australia and begin our new journey, together. Never, not for one moment did I want to be parted from Tristan, but the longer we put things off, the uglier they could become when it comes to taking my mother to court. She could say I had kidnapped her. I wouldn’t put it past her, not for a moment.
Tristan had driven us to the airport to see us off, and as our bags are taken on board, I’m left standing with him, and I wrap my arms around his waist. “I am going to miss you so damn much,” I tell him while trying to not sob like a spoiled child who didn’t get the candy they wanted.
He holds me tight in his arms. “I know, and I’ll be over the second Uni’s finished. I promise.” He then brushes his lips across my forehead.
My head raises, and I press my lips to his. “I can’t wait. I’ll call you when we land.”
“Okay, baby girl. I’m so sorry I can’t leave with you now.” I can see the disappointment in his eyes, but I won’t be the reason he doesn’t finish University.
“You need to finish your course. I'll see you in a couple of weeks.” All of a sudden, his lips crash onto mine, and we’re full-on making out in the middle of the landing strip. It’s the kind of kiss that should be reserved for behind the bedroom door, but that isn’t an option, so the world can either watch or avert their eyes. It’s their choice to make.
Moments later he pulls back, his eyes on mine. “Yes, you will. Now get on that plane before I take you back home and have my way with you. Again.”
We didn’t get one moment’s sleep, last night. We wanted to make the most of the time we had left together. We wanted to make every moment count. I’m exhausted but relieved because I’ll be able to get some sleep on the plane. “I love you, Tristan.”
“I love you, too, Cass. Just remember, our love, our life, our forever.”
After reluctantly prying myself away from Tristan, I board George’s jet and take the seat closest to Courtney. I close in on her and lean my shoulder against hers. “How are you feeling about going home?” I ask.
She takes her head out of the girlie magazine she’s reading to look at me. “Nervous more than anything else. I keep thinking that Mum’s going to show up at Dad’s house to take me away.”
I shake my head as I adjust my seatbelt. “I won’t let that happen. And besides, she doesn’t have Dad’s address. It would be hard for her to find, as it has an unlisted number, and not to mention the house is in the middle of nowhere,” I assure her. I know my mother was never given the address because she bitched to me about it on countless occasions.
Courtney drops the magazine into her lap, and lets go of a long breath that sounds a lot like relief. “Good, but what do we do now, you know, when it comes to the whole custody thing?”
Bending down, I take my e-reader out of my handbag and get comfortable. “George has set up a meeting with a lawyer in Sydney. George told me he specializes in family law, and he can help us win custody. He also assured me he'd talk to him on our behalf, and explain the situation, so we have a good head start on Rose. The thing in our favor is that George is getting us the best lawyer money can buy, and Mum will only be able to get a court-appointed one because she won’t be able to afford a good one.”
Courtney looks less guarded now. “Oh, good. I need to stay with you. I can’t go back to that woman.” She turns in her seat to face me. “What about you and Tristan? Have you decided where you're going to live once you’re married?”
I can hear the engines vamp up. Soon enough, we’ll be up in the air, destination, home. “We talked, but all he said was he’d be happy wherever I’m happy. I don’t want to be the one to make that decision. I want him to at least have some input. It’s his life too.” I shrug. “What about you, where would you like to live? Ireland or Australia?”
She shrugs. “I’m with Tristan on this one. I honestly don’t care where we live. Both countries are amazing, and I’ll be happy anywhere mum isn’t.”
“I guess it’s a discussion we can leave until Tristan joins us back home. There’s no sense in stressing about it now.” More than anything, I want Tristan to be there when we have that talk.
Instead of dwelling on the what-if, I turn on my e-reader and begin enjoying a book.
We ended up sleeping for most of the flight. When we arrive back in Australia, we discover that Tristan, bless him, had arranged for a car to pick us up at the airport and drive us out to Dad’s house. Thank god, he did, too. I never even thought about how we were going to get back to the house.
As we pull into the driveway, I’m surprised to see that my BMW X3 is already sitting under the carport waiting for me, and it's resting beside my VL Commodore. “Oh my god, Cass. Is that the car George and Dad bought for you?”
I beam with pride. “It sure is.”
“It’s gorgeous,” I swear I can see dribble in the corner of her mouth.
I nod in agreement. “I know. I can’t wait to drive her again; she’s the smoothest ride I’ve ever been in.” The car comes to a stop and the driver, Henry, helps us unload our bags. “Thank you so much. I’ll be sure to call you again if we ever need a ride to the airport. Do you have a business c
ard I can hold on to?”
The old man pulls a card out of his inner jacket pocket and hands it to me. “All my numbers are there. If you need a ride, just a note, I do require twenty-four hours’ notice, ma’am.” He smiles.
“Fantastic. Well, thank you again, and have a safe trip home, Henry.” I hold my hand out, he takes it and accepts my gesture.
“Thank you, Miss.” Henry then climbs into the car and drives away.
When I walk into the house, I find Courtney looking over the photos on the mantle above the fireplace. “So, which bedroom would you like to claim as yours?” I ask her.
She turns to face me, panic across her face. “I don’t want Dad’s room.” She shakes her head and hugs herself. “I don’t think I could handle being in there, just yet.”
I walk towards her and place my hands on her shoulders. “It’s not a problem. The spare room is just up the hallway and to your right.” I rub her arms in a show of support. I don’t want Courtney doing anything she doesn’t feel comfortable with. This her house, too. I need her to feel at ease here. “It isn’t fully completed yet, but we can find a contractor, first thing Monday morning.”
“Thanks, Cassie.” Courtney makes her way down the hall to her new bedroom, and as she does, I decide to take my bags into dad’s bedroom. When I switch the light on, I take a look around and when I see that it’s precisely the way he left it when we boarded our flight to Cairo, I begin to sob, silently. With my eyes closed tight, I try to regain my composure, and eventually, I do.
All the handcrafted furniture that took him so long to make, sits alone in the room, and it hits me that he isn’t here. I knew that coming back to this house would be hard to cope with, but I was hoping I’d prove myself wrong. Nope, not a goddamn chance. Not two minutes later, I take a deep breath and pull myself together for Courtney’s sake, and I leave the bedroom.
The Beginning Page 23
