Conflict of Interest (The McClouds of Mississippi) (27 page)

“It must have been written just before he left for the vacation in which he had his fatal accident. He said he was sorry that he and I had never been able to resolve our differences. He had just finished reading my latest book, and he thought he should tell me that he had read and enjoyed all of them. He thought I would be very successful as a writer, especially if I would take his advice about a few things he saw as weaknesses in my style.”

She winced. “At least he was trying to reach out to you.”

“He was trying to take charge of my writing career, since he finally realized I was going to make a go of it. As far as he was concerned, he had given me enough time to get over being mad at him for betraying Mom, and it was time for him to get involved in my life again.”

“How did that make you feel?”

He shrugged. “Annoyed that he never understood exactly how much he hurt the family with his actions. Incredulous that he thought we all just needed a little time to get over it and accept what he’d done. And…”

“And?” she urged when he paused as if in search of words.

“Maybe a little pleased that he read the books,” he admitted finally. “I never knew whether he’d read them or not. I guess it shouldn’t matter to me that he did, but…”

“But he was your father, and it does matter, no matter how many times he let you down,” she concluded. “Trust me, I understand.”

“I guess you do.” He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her against him. “No one has ever understood me better than you do. No one ever will.”

She laid her head on her husband’s shoulder. “I love you, Gideon.”

“I love you, too.”

It was getting easier for him to say it, she thought in satisfaction, lifting her mouth to his.

It would get even easier with a lifetime of practice.

ISBN: 978-1-4592-3692-9

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Copyright © 2003 by Gina Wilkins

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Silhouette Books, 300 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017 U.S.A.

All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.