A Father At Last Read Online Free Page A

this time. Six years and nine months ago, way back in the past, he’d been prepared to accept that she simply didn’t want him. After their night together, he’d tried—God, how he’d tried—to contact her, to find her. But it was clear she hadn’t wanted to hear from him, or see him, again.

    Okay, he’d been man enough to accept that, even though it hurt like hell. He’d even been content to follow his mother’s counsel and leave well alone when he’d found an address for her three years ago. Making a pest of himself with a woman wasn’t Ben Carter’s style.

    But seeing her today, touching her, kissing her, tasting her, changed everything.

    He suppressed a groan and flicked through the channels, looking for something half-pie decent to take his mind off her, then gave up. In a few minutes, he’d make himself something to eat, and then he had to go out again. But first, there was a phone call to make.

    He punched in a number on his mobile phone.

    “Any progress, bud?” asked the person he’d called.

    “Yeah, plenty,” said Ben. “I’ll deliver the goods, no worries. But I want more time.”

    There was silence on the other end of the phone, then, “You’ve got that extra time, mate, but watch yourself out there.”

    He put the phone down, picked up his Steinlager and let himself think of Kelly again.

    She was strong and proud and every bit as attractive as when he’d seen her last.
    Maybe more so. That golden‐red hair was still a curly, tangled temptation, her face still lively, intelligent and likely to turn the head of any male under the age of eighty.

    He thought of those lowlifes he was with at court today, commenting and sniggering at her, and anger surged through his veins in a hot tide.

    He picked up his beer, drank deeply—and resisted the temptation to bang the bottle down hard on the coffee table. Anger—any emotion—had no place in his life right now.
    Anger displaced reason. Anger was unproductive. Anger was dangerous. As were other emotions. Like attraction to a woman.

    He dropped his head into his hands. Who the hell am I kidding?

    He could still feel Kelly’s mouth under his, soft but eager—no, more than eager—
    hungry, starving hungry. And if she was starving, he was ravenous. Courting Kelly right now was crazy, he knew that. But he wouldn’t let her go this time—couldn’t.

    Julie Mac

    Chapter 2

    Long Bay was aptly named, Ben thought, just a little sourly, as he came to the northern end of the kilometre‐long stretch of golden sand on Auckland’s North Shore.

    Walking along the beach, sussing out every group of young mums and little kids on the sand or in the water was downright embarrassing—even if he was wearing a cap pulled low on his head and face‐hiding sunglasses.

    Trouble was, so were most of the young mums. At five thirty in the afternoon, the sun was still fierce. He’d thought Kelly, if she were here with her little boy and his friends, would be easy to spot with that mane of fiery hair. But if she’d tied it up and stuck a hat on top, and wore big sunglasses, it wasn’t going to be easy.

    He headed for the grassy reserve behind the long strip of sand. There were picnic tables here, big stands of old pine trees for shade, and space for kids to kick a ball or fly a kite. He’d walk back down to the southern end, and if he didn’t see her, he’d call it quits.

    He spotted a group of three young women, sitting at a picnic table under the trees, watching a bunch of little boys kicking a soccer ball around on the grass, between them and the beach. Then one of the mothers laughed, loud and uninhibited.

    Kelly!

    She was sitting on the far side of the table. Sure enough, her hair, loose around her shoulders and glinting in the sun, was a dead giveaway, even with the wide‐brimmed cowboy‐style sunhat she’d put on top.

    Then he heard the little boy on the seaward side of the grassy strip call, “Hey, Dylan, kick it to me!”

    Ben’s