Page 53 of An Heir Made In Hawaii (Hot Winter Escapes)

He took his mother into Bled. They walked along Cesta Svobode, peeking into the various shops, pausing to grab lunch at a café alongside the lake.

“Oh, that castle,” Helen said as the waiter brought him the check. “It looks so beautiful. Have you had a chance to tour it yet?”

“Once. The view is incredible.”

“Do you have time to take your mother up there?”

He’d rather do anything but revisit the place where he’d first made himself vulnerable to Anika. Where their almost kiss had rekindled the passion that had been smoldering since Kauai and reawakened the desire she had stirred in him.

But he would have to get used to being in Bled, seeing the sites that he had experienced with Anika and not letting it ruin his day. He would also have to get used to the possibility of seeing Anika herself with their son or daughter, especially if she stayed here after the sale.

They drove up the winding road. Helen chatted on about the various things going on in London, his father’s latest developments with the hotels that he managed, some of her old friends and everything that their children had accomplished.

“Linda’s son recently got married,” she said as they pulled up to the castle.

“Armand?” he said with some surprise. “I never would have figured him for the type to get married.”

“Neither would I,” Helen said with a laugh. “But he’s very happy. It’s amazing what finding the right person can do to change how you might think about your future.”

He slanted a glance at her. Had his father told her about Anika? Had they somehow found out about the baby? With the way that she was looking around at the scenery, her face serene, he doubted it. He’d always known that his mother had wanted grandchildren, had hoped that he might find a woman he could settle down with. If she had any inkling of what had been going on, she would have said something by now.

They toured the castle, coming out to stand on the same parapet where he had poured out his heart to Anika. He moved to the wall, his hand settling on the cold stone, his fingers scraping against the roughness. From this vantage point, he could see the inn perched on the edge of the lake.

“Is that it?” Helen asked as she came up to his side. “The property you just bought?”

He nodded once. Hard to believe that at one time buying the inn had been so important. Now the victory felt hollow.

“All right. Enough with the playacting.”

He turned, surprised by the firmness in her voice.

“What?”

“I don’t know. You tell me. Something’s been bothering you since I arrived. You’ve never been one to mope, but it seems like you’ve just lost your best friend.”

Nearly, he thought to himself. Anika had been everything he had ever wanted in a woman: kind, supportive, feisty, strong.

“I have lost someone,” he finally said. “Someone that I care very deeply about.”

His mother’s eyes turned sad. She laid a gentle hand on his arm.

“Would you like to tell me what happened?”

He looked down at where her hand rested on his arm.

“It’s not a happy story. I made a lot of mistakes. Too many,” he murmured as he turned his gaze back to the inn.

“Not all stories are happy,” Helen finally replied. “I’ve come to realize that over the years. That doesn’t mean that they can’t lead to joy later on.”

He took a deep breath.

And then he told her everything. He told her about Anika, his quest to buy the inn. About his numerous run-ins with the spunky owner in the past year, culminating in their encounter in Hawaii, although he left out the more intimate parts. He started to tell her about Anika surprising him at the hotel and that his mother would have a grandchild before the first leaves of autumn fell. But something held him back. He didn’t want that kind of news to be shared during such a dark confession.

Instead, he told her about how he and Anika had argued. How he’d hurt her.

“Did she want you to leave?”

Nicholas paused.

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