Page 62 of Fairy Tale Marriage

“I didn’t. There were things I wanted to say I’d rather Shayne not overhear.”

“So you dragged me all the way to San Francisco? That sister of yours must have incredible hearing.”

A cool smile touched Beaumont's mouth. “There might have been one other reason I chose this place. Come. As long as we're here, we might as well take a look around.”

Chaz struggled to hang onto his temper. Rafe had a regrettable tendency to take charge. Well, he’d let the man run things this time. Since he had the bit between his teeth, it would be tough to stop him. But it would only continue until Chaz had what he’d come for. Then their “brotherly” relationship would screech to a halt and they could go back to a more natural mutual antagonism.

After wandering through the museum for a good fifteen minutes, Rafe paused near a huge mosaic. Reaching into his suit jacket, he removed a packet of papers and stared down at them with a dark frown.

“Would you mind telling me why you wish to give her these? Is it to drive us apart?”

Chaz took instant umbrage. “Hell, no! Just what kind of man do you think I am?”

“My apologies. But if it isn’t to drive a wedge between the two of us, then why? Why after all these years?”

“Because she needs to know I did try and find her. That I didn’t just give up on her.”

“Ah. Isee. That means she’s told you about her aunt.”

Chaz nodded. “She told me.”

“Did she also tell you about her accident, that she was on her way to the Anniversary Ball—to you—when she crashed?”

Even though he already knew what had happened, hearing it stated so baldly filled Chaz with a helpless rage. He hadn't been there to protect her. Maybe if he'd tried harder to find her, the accident could have been prevented. “I know about the car wreck and the scars it left behind.”

“And did she also tell you she bought a ticket to the next Cinderella Ball, the one four years ago?”

Chaz didn’t even try to conceal his astonishment. “I went to that ball. She wasn’t there.”

“That’s because I took her ticket and attended in her place. Ella and I were married that night.”

Chaz balled his hands into fists. “So you kept her from me again.”

“It was wrong of me. Iknow that.” Rafe lifted silvery-gray eyes, eyes filled with regret. “But consider this. If events had transpired differently, you wouldn’t have Sarita.”

“That’s the only thing that keeps me from knocking your teeth down your throat.”

Rafe wandered further down the corridor. “Then perhaps it isn’t too late to recapture the love you once shared with my sister.”

“It is too late,” Chaz stated coldly. “Far too late.”

“Are you sure that’s not your pride talking?”

Damn the man! “I have no pride where Shayne’s concerned. Otherwise, Iwouldn’t be standing here having this conversation. Nor would I give her those papers.”

Rafe shook his head. “No, my friend. There’s something more. Something you haven’t told me. What is it?”

“You really want your pound of flesh, don’t you?” Chaz gritted his teeth. “Fine. You’d have figured it out, eventually. Ineed what you’re holding, Beaumont. If I don’t give it to her, she’ll leave me.”

To his fury, Rafe actually chuckled. That did it! Brother-in-law or no, this time Chaz planned to beat the living tar out of the man. Before he could do more than cock his fist, Rafe paused in front of the mosaic and inclined his head towardit.

“It took her eight years to complete this.”

Chaz glanced at the piece and then took a second look, then a third, stunned by what he saw. His arm sagged to his side. It washim!

He stepped back so he could fully appreciate the scope of the piece. In the mosaic, he was climbing a trellis, just as he had all those years ago when he’d first met Shayne, half of him in shadow and half in light. His hand, the one caught in the light, reached toward a woman’s hand. Shayne’s hand. And in the background, the darkness gave way to a rainbow of color. He’d never seen a more beautiful piece of artwork. Never.

He peered at the title and it impacted like a blow to the gut, as did the name below it. The Coming of a Forever Love by Shayne Beaumont.

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