Page 49 of Bound by Their Christmas Baby

‘So I can only presume it caused her to do whatever she could to blot out the pain.’

‘Gabe…’ Abby’s heart was swelling with sympathy and sorrow for both his mother and him—then and now. ‘That’s awful.’

Gabe’s nod was a sharp dismissal. ‘He was a bastard, as I said.’

‘But he must have had a change of heart,’ Abby said thoughtfully. ‘To leave you the castle…’

‘Leave it to me?’ Gabe let out a harsh laugh. ‘He was in his nineties when I bought it from him. His finances had been draining for years. The castle was all he had left.’

Something like pure hatred flashed in his face. ‘I took it from him for her, you know. I wanted my father to die knowing that I was living here.’

‘Oh, Gabe…’ She squeezed her eyes shut. ‘I’m so sorry.’

‘Why? I did what I needed. I made him pay. I avenged her life and death, her abuse at my father’s hands. I only wish his wife had lived to learn about me.’

A shiver ran down Abby’s spine; Gabe’s hatred and animosity were formidable. She couldn’t imagine being on the receiving end of that degree of rage. It made his anger with her, her intention to deceive him, pale in comparison.

‘Did he know she’d died? That you were left alone out there?’

‘Yes.’

Abby’s eyes swept shut. The rejection was awful and astounding.

‘So you see why it is very important to me that Raf grows up knowing his parents love and want him; why I want him to see that I live to protect him, to protect you both. I never wish him to have a reason to doubt that.’ His frown deepened. ‘You must also understand that if I had known about him sooner I would have done everything I could to spare you the pain and financial burden you carried. I would have made sure you were comfortable and cared for, that you had all you needed. I would never allow a woman to experience what my mother did.’

Abby nodded, but it was impossible to take any comfort from his words. He wanted to do right by her but not because of who she was, nor because of the connection she was convinced they shared. No, this was all because of what had happened to his mother. T

he concern she’d allowed herself to see, to hope might be a sign of burgeoning feelings specifically for her, was simply a commitment to a duty he knew his father had neglected.

Tears sparkled on her lashes and she blinked them away hurriedly, but not fast enough to escape the notice of Gabe.

‘It was a long time ago,’ he said softly, misunderstanding the reason for her emotional response. ‘Getting upset won’t change what happened then.’

She nodded, dashing at her cheeks with fingertips that weren’t quite steady.

‘You met Noah through foster care?’

‘Yes. I’d been in the system a long time by then,’ he said, the conversation obviously one he wasn’t overly thrilled to be having. ‘The day he arrived at the same house was a turning point for me. And for him.’ He shifted in his seat. ‘Eat something, Abigail. You are too slim.’

She frowned. Was she? She had always been petite—her ballerina build partly genetics as well as from diet and exercise. But since having Raf she’d been stretched emotionally and financially. ‘I don’t always get time to eat,’ she admitted.

‘You’ve been busy. Raising a child on your own must have been difficult.’

Gabe reached for some serving spoons and began to heap various portions onto her plate. She watched with a frown. ‘You could say that.’

‘And the pregnancy?’

She blinked. ‘Hard. I was sick often.’

He shook his head. ‘I should have been there.’

‘You couldn’t have done anything to stop me from being ill,’ she pointed out, her heart thumping hard in her chest.

‘I tried to tell you,’ she said, though they’d discussed it before. ‘About Raf. I wanted you to be involved.’

His eyes locked onto hers and something strong and fierce surged between them, an electrical current that flooded her body with sensations. ‘I know that.’ He compressed his lips into a grim line. ‘And it’s just as well. I can’t think how I might have reacted if you’d chosen to conceal my child from me. I think that is something I would never have been able to overlook.’

She swallowed. ‘You’d probably feel a little like I did when I was dragged out of your office in Rome,’ she said tartly.

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