Loe raamatut: «The Cattaneos' Christmas Miracles»

CHAPTER ONE

HE SHOULD NEVER have opened that letter.

His insides curled uncomfortably as he took the final few steps up to the veranda around the luxury chalet. Even though it was the beginning of November it seemed the Mont Coeur ski resort in Switzerland had moved into full Christmas mode. Maybe it was the cold weather and snow that made the whole population think it was normal to have Christmas trees up at the beginning of November. But as his car had woven its way through the resort it had seemed that every business and shop in Mont Coeur was fully on board for the festive season.

Everywhere he looked there were garlands, twinkling lights and piped music.

On any other day he’d think the whole place was picture perfect—like a scene on one of those Christmas cards. But today wasn’t like any other day.

His parents’ luxury chalet seemed to be a leader in the festive decorations. Through the glass-panelled doors he could see the Christmas tree decorated in reds and gold as a focal point in the spacious living area; boughs of holly had been wound around the banisters and across the mantelpiece, where a fire was roaring beneath. And above him, against night sky, gold twinkling fairy lights adorned the outside of the chalet. The quintessential idyllic Christmas scene.

This should be different. This should be so different.

He should be coming here today to meet the parents who had given him up for adoption thirty-eight years ago. He should be coming here to learn more about the people who’d said they’d thought about him every day since. Instead, he was here at the insistence of a family lawyer he didn’t know and a sister, Noemi, whom he’d never met, for the reading of his parents’ will.

The warmth and the family feel of the chalet felt totally alien to him. He’d never experienced this lifestyle. He’d never experienced the true joy of a happy, family Christmas. And he couldn’t shake the guilty feeling that if he hadn’t been found, hadn’t answered their letter, then his parents would never have died in a helicopter crash on their way to meet him.

Now he was here at their request for the will reading—and to meet his two siblings.

Everything about this felt awkward and wrong.

His stomach churned again as he knocked on the glass door. Maybe no one was home? Maybe his siblings had changed their minds? It would be so much easier to turn on his heel, go back and find the alternative luxury chalet his PA had booked for him.

There was a flicker behind the glass. A woman rushed towards him. She was tall and slim with a short brown angled bob. Behind her, walking much more warily, was a tall, muscular man. Even from here Leo could see the creases along his brow.

The woman flung the door open. ‘Leo?’

Her brown eyes were hopeful. He could see her hands twitching at her sides. She was barely able to contain herself.

‘Yes,’ he replied hoarsely. It was all it took.

She let out a squeal and flung her arms around his neck. ‘Oh, Leo, I’m so glad to finally meet you.’

He stood frozen to the spot, not sure of whether he should lift his arms to hug this woman back. After what seemed like the longest time she finally pulled back, wiping a tear from her eye. ‘I’m Noemi. You know that, don’t you?’ She wiped away another tear and gestured to the man behind her. ‘And this is Sebastian, your brother.’

It had to be the most awkward meeting in history. Animosity was rolling off Sebastian in waves. He didn’t even step forward, just gave the barest nod of his head.

Leo steadied himself for a second. This was his brother and sister. When he’d been growing up he’d always wished he was part of a large family. He would have loved to have had a brother and sister. But his adoptive parents had already decided one child was too much. He was never quite sure why they’d adopted him as they’d shown so little interest in him.

All he wanted to do right now was turn and walk out the door. It made him feel pathetic. He was a businessman, a CEO. He spent his life in difficult business dealings. This should be nothing to him. But everything about this was unravelling a whole pile of emotions that he’d never acknowledged.

It was obvious that everyone in Mont Coeur was rich, even by his standards, his brother and sister included. Maybe they were worried he was here for money? Money that he didn’t need or want.

Noemi grabbed his hand. ‘Come in, Leo, come in. I want to hear all about you. I want to know how you are.’ She bit her bottom lip as a few more tears escaped. Was his sister always this tearful? He wasn’t big on emotion at the best of times and he was already feeling the overload.

Her hands were warm against his chilly skin and she pulled him inside. She drew him straight into the heart of the house, between the Christmas tree and the fireplace. ‘Give me your jacket,’ she said enthusiastically, tugging his dark wool coat from his shoulders.

Sebastian had barely moved. The muscles around the bottom of his neck were tense. He glanced at Leo as he shrugged his way out of his coat. His words were stiff. ‘My wife, Maria, and son, Frankie, hoped to be here but...’ his voice tailed as if he were trying to decide what to say ‘...they’ve been unavoidably delayed.’

Something in his gut told Leo that Sebastian hadn’t been exactly truthful when he’d spoken. He looked like a coil about to burst from into a spring. Either his wife and son didn’t want to meet the ‘new’ brother, or Sebastian was hiding something else completely. Leo had done enough business dealings to know when someone was being economical with the truth.

Noemi patted the sofa next to her. ‘Please, sit. Giovanni will be here soon, but I want a chance to chat first.’

Giovanni. The family lawyer who’d persuaded him to attend the reading of the will. Giovanni, who right now he wanted to email and tell him that he’d changed his mind.

He sat down on the sofa and was almost swallowed up by it. Leo wanted to laugh out loud, because that’s how he was feeling in general about the visit here.

His eyes caught sight of family pictures on the wall. There was a whole array, obviously taken over years, starting with a young smiling couple with a baby and toddler, going up to four adults all standing with their arms around each other. Love was plainly visible in every picture.

Something gripped in his chest. The family that he should have had. The family he should have been part of.

It was like a million little caterpillars creeping up his spine. He actually thought he might be sick.

He wanted to go over and grab the photos, hold them up to his nose and study his parents. He wanted to see the last thirty-eight years. What they’d been like, how they’d grown, how they’d aged. All things he’d been cheated out of.

He pushed himself up from the impossible sofa. ‘This was a mistake...’

‘What? No.’ Noemi looked instantly stricken.

Something twisted in his chest. He really couldn’t handle this. He wasn’t equipped to deal with this. He’d spent a lifetime devoid of any love. Forming relationships wasn’t his forte. The last woman he’d dated had described him as ‘cold’ and ‘hard’—two things he couldn’t really deny.

Getting that initial letter from his parents had been like a bolt out of the blue. It had taken him two weeks to reply. When he had, he’d been hit by the overload that was his mother, who’d emailed every day, making plans to visit.

Getting the call from Noemi—the sister he’d never met—to tell him that their parents had been killed in a helicopter crash while on their way to visit him in New York had almost taken the air from his lungs.

He so wasn’t ready for any of the emotions attached to having a family. Guilt. Expectation. Judgement.

He’d wanted to see them. Curiosity had made him fly to Switzerland to stand in the same room as his brother and sister and talk to them in the flesh. But now he’d done it.

He had to get out of here. He had to get some air.

A hand came down firmly on his arm. ‘Don’t go.’

Sebastian. His brother.

He could see Sebastian was struggling with this too. ‘Not yet.’ It was almost like he couldn’t quite get the words out.

Sebastian shook his head. ‘You just got here.’ He wasn’t really meeting Leo’s gaze. ‘Take a breath. Take a moment.’

Leo looked to his left. Noemi’s chin was trembling. He couldn’t watch her cry again.

Leo couldn’t work out if Sebastian was doing this for him or for his sister. Their sister. Noemi was their sister. Not just Sebastian’s.

Brain overload. This wasn’t him. Nothing about this was him. All of his life he’d been cool, calm and collected. Those three words were synonymous with how most of his work colleagues described him.

He pulled his arm away from Sebastian’s. He turned to face him. ‘I know I was asked to listen to the reading of the will. But now I’m here, I can see this isn’t appropriate. I don’t want anything from you both. I don’t need anything. I’m not here to take what you think is actually yours.’

A flicker of anger flashed across Sebastian’s eyes. But before he had a chance to respond there was another voice.

‘Ah, Leo, I see you made it. Perfect timing.’

Leo turned to face the figure standing at the now open door. ‘Giovanni Paliotta,’ said the grey-haired, designer-suited man as he closed the door behind him and walked over with his hand outstretched. He tilted his head to the side as he got closer. ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you. You’re so like your father.’

It was like a kick in the guts.

Giovanni didn’t seem to notice, and waved his hand towards a large table in the corner of the room. ‘Shall we sit?’

Noemi looked at the table, then glanced around the rest of the room, as if she were trying to find another place to sit, but Sebastian moved behind her, putting his arm at her waist and leading her over.

Leo’s gaze flickered. Twelve chairs. Enough for a large family gathering. Was this the table that his mother and father had traditionally sat around at Christmastime? Was this the table that his mother and father had intended for him to sit around with his brother and sister?

Leo had never wanted to bolt from a place so much in his life. He steadied his breathing.

Giovanni settled in one of the chairs and spread his papers in front of him.

Sebastian and Noemi sat down with only a glance at each other. Leo took a few seconds then dragged out one of the heavy chairs too.

Giovanni waited until everyone was settled then gave them all a nod.

‘We all know why we are here.’ He nodded again in particular to Leo. ‘I was your parents’ lawyer for the last thirty years, and I loved them, and miss them, and everything I do today is in accordance with their wishes.’

There was an edge of anxiety in Giovanni’s voice that Leo picked up on. He cast his eyes over his brother and sister again as he shifted in his seat.

Giovanni started reading from the paper in front of him. ‘This is the last will and testament of Salvo and Nicole Cattaneo. Salvo and Nicole were the sole owners of Cattaneo Jewels, currently valued at around seventy billion euros.’

Leo blinked. He knew the jewellery line was famous and international, but he hadn’t realised his parents’ fortune rivalled even his own.

Giovanni kept talking, ‘It was the wish of Salvo and Nicole that in the event of their death, the business should remain with the family.’ Giovanni pressed his lips together for a second, looking decidedly nervous. ‘As such, the controlling stake in Cattaneo Jewels will pass to Leo Baxter, their eldest biological child.’

‘What?’ Sebastian’s chair landed on the floor as he stood up and thumped his hands on the table.

Noemi’s mouth opened, then closed again.

Giovanni cleared his throat, refusing to fix on Sebastian’s red face.

‘No,’ said Leo, shaking his head. ‘I have no interest in the family business. I don’t even know anything about jewels.’ He stood up too. All he wanted was to get out of there.

‘I’ve trained for this my whole life,’ raged Sebastian. ‘Who is he to inherit the business over me?’

‘Your brother,’ snapped Giovanni. For the briefest second Leo realised why Salvo and Nicole had worked with this lawyer for thirty years.

Giovanni held up his hands. ‘Sit down, both of you.’

Leo met his brother’s angry gaze. He got it. He did. And he had absolutely no interest in this business, but his brother’s reaction annoyed him. It didn’t matter that he partially understood it. He couldn’t hide his flare of anger. Sebastian had got to spend a lifetime with his parents—Leo hadn’t even got to meet them.

Giovanni gave a shake of his head and Leo settled back into his chair, staring pointedly at Sebastian until he did the same.

Giovanni continued slowly. ‘There are conditions attached.’

‘What conditions?’ Leo couldn’t help it. He’d been in business too long to get caught out.

‘Leo must hold the controlling stake in the business for a minimum of six months. The shares can’t be sold, or transferred, to any alternative controlling company or family member.’

‘What happens if he does?’ Noemi’s voice was shaky.

Giovanni looked at all three of them. ‘Any attempt to violate the terms of the will mean that the company shall cease trading and will be liquidated with its assets distributed amongst the other existing four hundred shareholders.’

‘What?’ Sebastian’s voice sounded wheezy. His eyes were wide.

Leo sat frozen in his chair. He was a businessman. He had a head for business. He knew exactly what this was.

‘This is blackmail,’ he said coldly.

‘No,’ said Noemi quietly.

‘Manipulation, then.’

She turned to face him and gave a slow nod. ‘You could be right.’

‘But why?’ Leo leaned across the table towards Giovanni. ‘Why on earth would—’ he couldn’t even bring himself to say the words ‘parents’—‘Salvo and Nicole do this?’

Giovanni sighed and leaned back in his chair.

‘Did this just happen?’ interjected Sebastian angrily. ‘Did they just do this because they found Leo?’

Leo drummed his fingers on the table. He couldn’t get his head around this at all. ‘Were they sick?’

Giovanni started.

Leo’s brain was struggling to make any sense of this at all. He asked again, ‘Were they sick?’ He shook his head. ‘This doesn’t make any sense. I don’t imagine for a second that they could have predicted the accident they were in, so the only other thing I can think of was that they were sick. They were trying to find a way that we...’ he paused for a second at that word ‘...would all have to work together. Nothing else makes sense.’

Sebastian looked pale. His eyes found Noemi. ‘We would have known. They would have told us.’

She gave a bewildered shrug. ‘They didn’t tell us about Leo until a month ago. And only then because I found his letter.’

Giovanni cleared his throat. ‘Their will has always said this.’

‘What?’ This time it was three voices in unison.

Giovanni gave a slow shake of his head. ‘They always believed they would find Leo. Initially, the will just named him as “the eldest biological child”. They never stopped searching. Even if they died before they found him, they still wanted him to know he was always part of the family, and to give him the opportunity to know the family business.’ Giovanni took a deep breath. ‘They believed in family. You know that.’ He shook his head. ‘They changed the will to include his name as soon as they found him. But the truth is he was always included. In their eyes, he was always part of the family—whether they knew his new name or not.’

Noemi blinked and looked between Leo and Sebastian. ‘This isn’t about the business,’ she said quietly.

Leo could tell Sebastian was still angry. There was a tiny tic in his jaw. But he met his sister’s gaze and gave her the slightest nod. ‘I know that.’ It was the most conciliatory thing he’d said since Leo had got there.

Leo felt blindsided and he hated that. Every business meeting, every potential deal, he always went in prepared. He would know the background, the finances, the personalities and their quirks before he even set foot in the room.

But here? For the first time since he’d been a child he felt totally out of his depth.

It felt as if the room was closing in around him, suffocating him with the heat from the fire, the love from the pictures on the wall, and that horrible feeling of emptiness inside.

Sebastian’s voice was tight. ‘Mamma and Papà spent their lives growing this family business. It’s gone from a few tiny shops in Italy to a billion-euro company with worldwide acclaim. You might know business, Leo, but you don’t know this business. And I’m damned if I’m going to let their pride and joy fall apart around you for the next six months because you don’t know what you’re doing.’

He’d had enough. Leo had reached breaking point. He pulled back every emotion that he’d been struggling to keep in check. Business. Sebastian was talking business to him and no one was better at business than him.

‘I might not know anything about the jewellery business, Sebastian, but one business is the same as another. Don’t make any mistake, I don’t want to do this, and I’m not interested in doing this. I don’t need your mamma and papà’s business, and I certainly don’t need their money. I could walk away right now quite happily, but where would that leave you?’

He let the words hang in the air. Noemi’s face was pale as she stood up and reached out and took Leo’s hand, stumbling. Leo caught her elbow but Sebastian was at her side in an instant. ‘Are you okay?’ He slid his arm around her waist, helping to prop her up. It was like she was caught between two brothers.

She gave a shake of her head as she steadied herself for a few seconds, one hand still holding Leo’s. ‘Just a bit dizzy.’ She pressed her other hand against her stomach as she took some slow breaths and the colour in her cheeks started to return.

When she lifted her chin, her eyes were filled with tears. ‘Don’t do this. Don’t be like this.’ Her head went from one brother to the other. ‘I hate this too. But Mamma and Papà want us to work together. They want us to be a family.’ She turned to face Giovanni. ‘You’ve read the will, but I think we should have a little time to consider what it all means.’ She let go of Leo’s hand and reached for his shoulders, turning him to face her. ‘Leo, I want to know you. I want to know my brother. I’ve already missed out on so much of your life, I don’t want to miss out on any more. I’m not asking you to be my best friend. But family is important to me—now, more than ever.’ She squeezed his shoulders. ‘Why don’t you both take a bit of time? This is a lot, I know that—for all of us. We all need to think—to process—and...’ she glanced at Sebastian again ‘...probably to cool off. How about we agree to meet again later?’

Her eyes were pleading as she looked between the two men. Giovanni nodded. ‘Sounds reasonable. Nothing will happen quickly in terms of the will. It will take around six to eight weeks for things to be legally tied up back in Italy, and I can string things out as long as you all need.’

‘Fine.’ Sebastian’s answer was short.

‘We can meet again around Christmastime?’ Noemi said, her voice breaking with distress. ‘Back here?’ She pressed her lips together. ‘It’s what Mamma and Papà always wanted.’

There was an edge to her words. A hint of desperation. It brought it home to him again. She’d just lost her parents. They all had.

He moved from her grasp and collected his coat. The swell of emotion in the room too much for him. He gave the briefest of nods. ‘I’ll get back to you both,’ he said as he walked swiftly towards the glass doors and out into the dark night.

He hadn’t even bothered to fasten his coat again and the Swiss Alpine air bit around him. He could barely register the cold, his body was so flushed with heat.

New York. That’s where Leo wanted to be right now. That was where he called home. He’d left Indiana and his adoptive parents behind a long time ago.

As he tramped along the snow-covered path he quickly realised he had no idea where he was going. The car from the airport had dropped his luggage at the luxury chalet booked by his PA. Trouble was, he didn’t know where that was. He pulled out his phone to search on a map. Around him people were crowding out of bars and hotels. It only took a few glances to realise that the Mont Coeur ski resort was filled with the rich, the very rich and the very, very rich.

He knew how ironic that thought was. He was in that category—as was his newfound family. But Leo didn’t usually willingly mix in these circles. He’d always been picky about who he surrounded himself with, preferring people with their feet firmly on the ground to those who worried about climbing the social ladder.

He could go into a bar—find somewhere to have a drink. But he wasn’t really in the mood for a drink. Distraction maybe—but not a drink.

He checked out the map on his phone and headed down another street, this one a little quieter and leading away from the main thoroughfare.

He probably should have hired a car or tried to find a taxi, as he realised the road towards his luxury chalet was mainly uphill. But the truth was he didn’t really mind. It gave him a little time to think about what had just happened.

Several things burned in his mind. Giovanni had said the will had always included him. That made him feel...odd. His adoptive parents had always maintained that his real parents couldn’t wait to be rid of him. The harsh words had felt as if they’d burned their way into his soul, wounding him in a way he’d never spoken about. He’d spent years resenting both his real and his adoptive parents, feeling as if he wasn’t really wanted anywhere. Finding out now that was all untrue was more unsettling than he could have ever imagined.

He let out a long, slow breath, sending warm air out into the icy night, clouding around him.

Leo reached the end of the street and looked up from the map on his phone. His chalet should be off to the right, but to his left he saw Mont Coeur’s practice slopes. Even though it was nine o’clock at night, there were still a few people getting in that last run.

They were illuminated with bright white lights, reflecting off the glossy snow, smoothed down hard by the constant traffic on the slopes. In most other ski resorts, the slopes were high above the actual towns. Mont Coeur was different. It was built halfway up the mountain, almost right in the middle of the slopes, which made them much more accessible.