“Where are you?” he demanded.
His concerned tone set her heart to pounding madly. “I’m at the beach house. Where are you?”
“At your family’s farm. I’m helping your father repair the tractor. Apparently the starter has been giving him trouble.”
“Why are you there?”
“Because this is where you said you were coming.” Blake spoke to someone in the background before returning to their conversation. “What are you doing at the beach house?”
“I thought you’d be here and I came back to tell you that I’m sorry I left the way I did. I want you, Drew and me to be a family if you still want me.”
“I chased after you all the way to Iowa.” Blake’s deep voice took on a somber note. “Of course I want you. If we were in the same state, I’d show you just how much.”
Helpless laughter seized Bella. “We have terrible timing, don’t we?”
“I think both of us have been afraid to acknowledge what we really want for fear of being hurt.”
Bella was impressed by his insight. “I’m not afraid anymore. That’s what I came here to tell you. For so long I’ve been running from what I wanted most—a family. I thought it would be a burden, not a joy.”
“The way I proposed to you was so wrong. I should never have let you believe I was only thinking of Drew. The truth is I could have found any number of women who would have made Drew a good mother. Not one of them would have been the wife for me. Only you. It was awfully convenient that you were Drew’s biological mom because it gave me a way to make us a family without having to admit that I was the one who couldn’t live without you.”
Tears wound their way down Bella’s cheeks. “Damn you, Blake. Why do you have to be so far away?”
“Whatever impulse you’re feeling, hang on to it. I’ll be there in six hours to pick you up and bring you back.”
“You don’t need to do that. I can fly commercial.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll call you en route to tell you what time we’re going to land.”
“Please hurry,” Bella murmured, too overcome by emotion to be able to speak louder than a whisper. “I’ve really missed you.”
“Elephant shoes,” Blake said in return. “See you in a few hours.”
Bella stared at the now silent phone. “He loves me.” She looked up and realized Mrs. Farnes was returning from the kitchen, a cup of hot tea in her hand. “He loves me,” she repeated, still stunned by the realization.
“Of course he does,” said the housekeeper with a broad smile. “That’s been obvious for a long time.”
*
As soon as the Gulfstream touched down and rolled to a halt at East Hampton Airport, Blake was on his feet and waiting at the door for his crew to lower the stairs. With the way cleared, he rushed down, eyes scanning the hangar for Bella. She stood off to one side, her suitcase at her feet, blue eyes seeming larger than ever in her pale face.
Her uncertainty touched him. She wanted so badly to make others happy that most times she forgot about her own needs. He would spend the rest of his life making sure she lacked for nothing.
Half a dozen long strides brought him within reach. He snatched her off her feet and swung her in a wide circle. Her laugh bounced off the walls of the hangar as she clutched at his shoulders. As soon as he set her down, his mouth captured hers in a long, hungry kiss that disclosed his feelings for her.
“I missed you,” he said at long last, framing her face with his hands while he refreshed his memories of her features.
“I missed you, too.” She gave him a shy smile. “And I can’t wait to see Drew.”
“It’s going to be a couple hours until that happens. I left him with your family.”
“You left him?” She looked horrified. “Do you realize my dad will probably take him for a ride on the tractor? Or one of my brothers might think it’s a great idea to introduce him to the calves. Or the girls will make him play tea party. There’s no telling what could happen.”
Blake gave her an odd look. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. I thought you and I could use a few hours to ourselves.” He picked up her suitcase and wrapped his arm around her waist. “By the way, your mother figured out Drew is your son.”
Bella stumbled, but Blake’s arm kept her stable and she quickly recovered. “How?”
“Apparently he looks just like Ben did when he was a baby.”
“That’s impossible. Drew takes after you.”
“Not according to your family. And I’ve seen the pictures. They’re right. He has the McAndrews chin and nose.”