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‘No, that’s much too expensive,’ Hannah kept saying, until suddenly Grant was there, brushing aside her protests, choosing a lemon-yellow suit, a royal blue cashmere shirtwaister, and a pink silk coat-dress.
‘Try them all,’ he said. Hannah started to protest, but that touch of steel was in his voice again and in his eyes, as well, and she turned on her heel and marched into the dressing-room.
‘Madame is fortunate to have such a handsome and generous fiancé,’ the saleswoman murmured.
Hannah smiled politely. Yes. Grant was handsome. And generous. And he never took ‘no’ for an answer. He would always get what he wanted, despite what he’d said a little while ago. Hadn’t he proved that with her from the beginning?
‘Madame looks lovely,’ the sales clerk purred. ‘Shall we step outside and show your fiancé this outfit?’
Hannah let herself be led out of the dressing-room. Was she really ready for this? She’d all but handed herself over to Grant for the next three years—and three years was a long time. A very long time.
‘… three. Yes, I think so, don’t you, darling?’
She blinked and looked up. Grant and the saleswoman were both smiling.
‘Don’t I what?’ Hannah asked.
Grant’s smile broadened. ‘I said, three’s a lucky number, don’t you think?’
She stared at him. ‘Grant——’
‘It is, absolutely. We’ll take all three.’ He flashed Hannah a dazzling smile. ‘That way, you can surprise me when I see you coming down the aisle next Thursday.’
When they were alone again in a taxi, she turned quickly to him. ‘What aisle?’ she said in an angry whisper. ‘Surely you haven’t made arrangements for a church wedding?’
Grant shook his head. ‘No.’ His mouth twisted. ‘I thought that might be going a little far.’
‘Well, I’m glad to hear—’
‘Marilyn suggested we hold the ceremony in their summer place, about an hour south of here.’ He frowned when she didn’t respond. ‘Hannah? Is there a problem?’
Her fingers brushed across the florentined gold of her engagement-ring, tugged restlessly at the glowing emerald. Yes, oh, yes, there was. What was she letting herself in for? Marriage was a mistake in the best of circumstances—she knew that better than anyone. But to enter into one this way, knowing it was temporary and without meaning…
Well, not exactly without meaning. They would have a child, if things worked out. But the marriage itself would never be real. They were living a falsehood, deluding everybody and even playing at deluding each other.
‘Is there?’
She looked at Grant. His voice had gone flat; she knew that he sensed her hesitation.
‘I—I’m not sure,’ she murmured. ‘Maybe—maybe things are moving too quickly. I need time.’
‘Time for what?’ His tone was chill.
‘Well…just, you know. Time.’ She turned the engagement-ring on her finger, around and around.
‘Perhaps you’ll feel more comfortable when you see the contract.’
She looked at him. ‘You mean you’ve drawn it up already?’
Grant nodded. ‘Yes.’
A wave of dizziness swept through her and she suddenly felt as if she were standing at the edge of a precipice.
‘When?’
A little smile curved quickly across his mouth. ‘Sunday. I had some time on my hands, so…’ He shrugged. ‘It’s at the office.’
They reached the building in the middle of the lunch hour, which meant that it was quiet and the offices empty. Hannah thought the receptionist gave her a funny smile as Grant hurried her past, but there was no time to dwell on that. Within minutes she was seated in his office, not on the straight-backed chair where she’d sat so many times during the past five months but on one of the leather couches. Grant sat opposite her, watching as she tried to read through the legal document he’d stuffed into her hands.
‘Whereas Hannah Lewis and Grant MacLean have agreed to enter into a state of legal matrimony…’
She read on and on, until the dry words ran together in a blur, and then she looked up at him.
‘It’s longer than I expected.’
He frowned. ‘It’s a contract, Hannah. I’ve tried to cover all the contingencies. What do you think? Have I left anything out? Do the provisions satisfy you?’
Hannah’s brow furrowed as she bent over the contract again. What could she think? She had studied the basics of law, but he was the lawyer, not she. There were phrases here she didn’t fully understand, clauses and terms that were far too complex for her.
‘Basically,’ Grant said, ‘the contract spells out what we’ve already agreed on verbally. We’ll give ourselves three years to conceive——’
‘Three years? Three years was how long we said we’d stay together, after our baby is born.’
‘Of course. And we’ll give ourselves the same amount of time to get you pregnant.’
A flush rose the length of Hannah’s body and travelled swiftly to her cheeks.
‘Must you say it that way?’ she said stiffly.
Grant’s brows lifted. ‘Why? Does the word offend you?’
‘It just sounds so—so personal.’
His voice was suddenly rough. ‘Don’t worry, Hannah, there’s nothing personal about this. I’m aware of your reservations.’
She nodded. ‘I know you are. I just…’
‘Do you want to have your own attorney look it over?’
She almost laughed. ‘I haven’t got an attorney. Besides, I’m not questioning the document. I’m sure you’ve done it properly. It’s just——’
‘Then sign it.’ She looked up. His voice was soft as silk; he was smiling and holding a pen out to her.
The breath whooshed from her lungs, and she tossed the contract on the table between the couches and rose to her feet. ‘Grant,’ she said in an urgent tone, ‘I’ve been thinking. Maybe—maybe we ought to—to back off a little. Think things through again.’
‘No.’
She spun around and looked at him. He had got to his feet, too, and was standing with his arms akimbo, the expression on his face so hawk-like and implacable that a shiver of apprehension swept over her.
She swallowed drily. ‘There’s no rush, after all.’ ‘We made a deal, Hannah. You can’t renege now.’
‘I’m not trying to.’
‘Then why do you want to delay our wedding?’
Our wedding. Our wedding. But it wasn’t a wedding, it was a sham. It wa
s a charade.
‘I need time,’ she said desperately. ‘Please, Grant, surely——’
The telephone rang. They both stared at it, and then Grant snatched it up and barked an angry ‘hello’. Hannah turned swiftly for the door, pulled it open, and fairly flew into the safety of the outer office.
This was never going to work. Never. It was impossible. It was—
‘Hannah?’ She looked up. Sally had appeared in the doorway, and the instant she saw her face she knew what would come next. ‘Oh, Hannah,’ Sally said, tears glistening in her eyes, ‘how exciting!’
‘Sally.’ Hannah took a step forward. ‘Before you say anything, I want to tell you that—that——’
‘I didn’t believe it, at first, when Mr Longworth told me.’ She dashed into the room, grabbed Hannah, and hugged her. ‘Oh, my gosh, what a ring!’ she said, dancing back a step. ‘I’m so happy for you!’
‘Sally. Wait. I’m not—we’re not—nothing’s really been——’
‘Mr Longworth said it would be all right if we closed down for the rest of the afternoon.’ Sally grinned. ‘None of us would get any work down anyway, considering.’
Hannah felt behind her for the edge of her desk, took a step back, then leaned against it.
‘You and Mean Mac…’ Sally slapped her hands to her mouth. ‘Sorry,’ she said with a little laugh, ‘that just slipped out. When did it happen?’
Hannah waved her hand in the air. ‘I—I don’t know, exactly. It just—it just did.’
Sally nodded. ‘I always knew he had to have a heart.’ Her eyes widened. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, Hannah. It’s just that——’
‘It’s just that you’re surprised.’ Hannah nodded. ‘I know.’ She gave the other girl a shaky smile. ‘Me, too.’
‘Yeah, I’ll bet. We’re all so happy for you. We didn’t have time to plan a party. A real one, I mean. But——’
‘Oh, that’s all right,’ Hannah said quickly. She hesitated. ‘Actually—actually, nothing’s definite yet.’ Sally’s smile became a puzzled frown, and Hannah hurried on. ‘The thing is, Grant and I haven’t actually——’
‘What my fiancée’s trying to say,’ Grant said as he stepped from his office and walked towards the women, ‘is that we haven’t quite agreed on the date.’ He put his arm around Hannah and smiled down at her. ‘I thought next Thursday, but she’s afraid that won’t give her enough time to get ready. Isn’t that right, darling?’ Hannah looked up at him, at those ice-grey eyes that were flashing a warning. He drew her closer into the hard warmth of his body. ‘And I’ve been assuring her that there’s not all that much to do. We’ve already given notice to her landlord, and I was just on the phone with that little girl from Estates and Trusts——’
