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A tiny frown marred her eyebrows. ‘I...who’s the artist?’
Ramon hid his sizeable bolt of shock. ‘I’m guessing that would be me,’ he supplied lazily, both irritated and saddened by Luis’s meddling. He looked at his lawyer. ‘Correct?’
Her head snapped in his direction, her breath stopping. ‘You...why?’ she asked for a second time in the space of three minutes.
‘Because according to my brother, you adore my work. I believe his paraphrased words after a visit to one of my galleries were, “She rhapsodised over your sculptures for a solid hour and needed to be dragged out of the gallery. I think the poor girl deserves a couple of her own.” I never thought he’d actually put the thought to deed in his will.’
Her face reddened, her eyes sliding away from his. ‘I didn’t... Luis liked to exaggerate. I wasn’t that taken...’
‘Does that mean you’re about to refuse this gift, too?’ he enquired, the turbulence inside him curiously emerging in a soft whisper.
Her gaze returned to his. Her lips parted. Ramon found himself holding his breath, unsure whether he wished her to accept or refuse.
‘You would still do it? Despite...everything?’ Her voice was equally soft, but tinged with bewilderment, not the rage burning beneath his skin.
He allowed himself a twisted smile. ‘I loved my brother. I believe in honouring his wishes. The question is, do you?’
Her bewilderment intensified, her tongue sneaking out to lick her lower lip. ‘Of course, but, Ramon...’
He actively despised the hot little tug to his groin as he followed the action. ‘Is that all of it?’ he snapped at his lawyers.
They got the hint, straightened their ties and shuffled papers. ‘Yes, that’s Miss Langston’s part of the meeting concluded. When it’s decided what to do with the inheritance, we will be on hand to carry out your wishes.’ His chief lawyer switched to Spanish, handing over the papers Ramon had requested with a puzzled expression.
Ramon ignored his concerns. Almost overnight, he’d had everything that meant a damn taken from him. His parents and Luis’s loss was unavoidable. The steps Suki had taken were deliberate. He would not be swayed from the path he’d chosen.
The moment the lawyers left he returned his gaze to her.
Watched her gather herself with a deep breath, her eyes fixed on the painting on the far wall of his study. A little colour had returned to her cheeks and she seemed better composed. She was nowhere as vibrant as she’d been the last time they were together, but she didn’t look deathly pale any more.
Which he chose to see as an advantage. For what was to come she would need all her strength. Or perhaps she would acquiesce simply to get her hands on the money she purportedly didn’t want. He knew different. She was in severe dire straits financially.
Rising, he rounded his desk. Her head immediately swung to him, her expression growing wary as she tracked his slow stride. Hitching his thigh on the corner of his desk, he sat down.
Silently, he watched her. Waited.
Her tongue darted out to worry her lower lip again. ‘Ramon, I think I need to explain a few things—’
‘Explanation is necessary when there’s a misunderstanding, an omission of facts, or outright lying. There is no such misunderstanding or omission here. You got pregnant with my child and chose to keep that fact to yourself. Then took specific steps to get rid of it. Have I misunderstood or omitted anything?’
She flinched then slowly her gaze narrowed, the fire returning to her eyes. ‘No, you haven’t. But you’re also forgetting one thing.’
‘And what’s that?’ he asked.
‘That it was my body and ultimately my decision. Not yours.’
The truth in that statement was inescapable. And while the civilised part of him accepted it, the part steeped in deep mourning and inextinguishable anger couldn’t swallow it in that moment. ‘So I didn’t matter at all in this scenario?’ he breathed.
Her hand flew to her forehead, rubbing restively over her smooth skin. ‘I didn’t say that. The trouble is that you seem to think I took the decision lightly, when it was the last thing I did.’
‘How would I know? I wasn’t there.’
Her hand dropped, her delicate jaw clenching. ‘I know! And you can berate me about that all you want. But I can’t change the past. I’m... I’m trying to put it behind me.’
That terrible vice around his heart squeezed tighter. ‘Well, I’m not ready to put it behind me. And no, you can’t change the past. But you can change the future. And you will.’
Her breath expelled in a little rush of apprehension. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘It means it’s time to discuss the next item on the agenda.’
