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‘Nice bikini,’ he growled as he drew back to look at her. The ring of his mobile phone interrupted them. ‘Damn!’ He frowned. ‘That might be important—I’m expecting to close a deal this weekend.’
‘You’d better answer the call, then.’ Cat smiled at him and broke away to carry on where he had left off making the salad.
She half listened as he talked in Greek to whoever was at the other end of the line. The conversation was about donating money for the building of a new orphanage. She remembered she had heard him talking about this before and had doubted her translation. But now it seemed she had been right the first time and Nicholas was involved with the charity in a big way.
He had to be a nice person to do something like that—a person who cared about people, about children, not just about the business of making money.
He finished the call and then went over to stand behind her as she rinsed some leaves under the cold water in the sink. He slipped one hand around her waist and kissed the side of her neck. She felt like melting against him.
It was nice being with him like this. It felt as if they were a real couple.
‘I like having you here in my house.’
‘Do you?’
‘Yes, and you are good in the kitchen—you look like you really know what you are doing with that colander.’
‘You’re just getting your own back now for my earlier remark.’ She laughed.
He kissed the side of her neck again. ‘But I’m serious when I tell you that I like having you here.’
‘You just like having me.’ She tried to sound flippant but his hand was resting on the flatness of her stomach, stirring up all kinds of emotions inside her.
She allowed herself to daydream for a moment that she had told him about the baby and that he was delighted and excited and that they were going to prepare for the child together and that they would be a family.
She did want this baby. The realization was suddenly very strong. The emotional response to the tender way Nicholas was holding her, his hand resting almost protectively over her stomach, made her eyes blur with tears.
But she also wanted Nicholas. Throughout her relationship with him she had been wary—had feared putting her trust in him because ultimately her experience had taught her that men only let you down. But perhaps she hadn’t given Nicholas a fair chance. Maybe she should have allowed her feelings full rein, because she had fallen in love with him. As hard as she tried to fight it, the truth was indisputable—she was head over heels about him. It was why she hadn’t been able to finish with him; it was why she was standing here crying.
She blinked away the tears fiercely. Feeling emotional wasn’t going to help. Maybe she should tell him about the baby and see what he said.
His mobile phone started to ring again.
‘Sorry about this.’ He pulled away from her.
‘That’s OK,’ she said lightly. ‘I had to leave without my phone this morning as I couldn’t find it. Maybe it’s a good thing.’
‘Yes, they are a distraction.’ He took the call and then moved out of the room to talk to whoever it was.
Cat laid the table outside on the terrace and then sat down to wait. The minutes ticked away and she helped herself to a few lusciously juicy black olives and poured herself a glass of iced water as she tried to work out exactly how to word her news. Nicholas, I’ve got something to tell you … No, maybe more direct. Nicholas, I’m pregnant and I’m keeping the baby. If you don’t want to be involved, then that’s fine … I can manage on my own.
She probably could manage on her own—somehow. But she didn’t want to. And it wasn’t the fact that money would be tight—it was far more than that. It was the emotional pull of her feelings for Nicholas. She longed for the intimacy they had shared today, standing in that kitchen. They had just been a few snatched moments within a web of moments but they had clarified something. She didn’t want to be an island any more—she didn’t want not to trust him. Life could be so much better than that.
What was taking Nicholas so long? Impatiently she scraped her chair back from the table and went to look for him. She could hear his voice; as usual, he was talking in his native tongue and the deep, attractive tone resonated down the hallway.
‘Whether or not I use the inheritance money, I will still be funding the orphanage.’
The words made Cat’s confident footsteps falter. Why was Nicholas talking about inheritance money? He couldn’t possibly be talking about her inheritance money, could he? Confusion raced within her.
‘I just want us to be clear about that,’ Nicholas continued crisply. ‘Time is of the essence now. I need everything in place before the end of the month.’
It was her birthday soon and Nicholas’s words held the hallmarks of something her father and half-brother would say. Suddenly it was as if the cold from the tiled floor was striking through her, hitting her heart, draining all the warmth and life from her body. Did Nicholas know her family? Was he working in conjunction with them to get her inheritance? It wouldn’t be the first time her brother had tried such an idea.
But why would a billionaire like Nicholas be interested in a scam like that? He didn’t need money—it didn’t make sense.
She must have got this wrong; there must be another explanation. Maybe her Greek was rustier than she had thought. Cat started to walk forward again and, as she rounded the corner, she could see Nicholas sitting behind a desk in a book-lined room. ‘No, Demetrius, I’m going to play it safe, so I still want you to email the prenuptial agreement to me.’ He smiled at her as she approached and just continued with his conversation. Obviously he presumed that she couldn’t understand Greek.
‘And as I said before, I want to marry her as soon as possible—preferably before the end of the month.’
