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He nods, looking miserable. “It is. The night you made that offhanded comment at the party, the idea took hold. I knew if I could get you pregnant, you’d have to stay with me. I deliberately didn’t use protection whenever you were too…excited to notice.” His shoulders droop. “I had no idea that I would give you a baby that wouldn’t live.”
I reach out automatically, but draw my hand back. “I hope you aren’t blaming yourself for the miscarriage. We’ll never know why he didn’t live, but it could have been a genetic mistake contributed by either one of us, or my body might have failed him.”
He swallows but doesn’t reply.
Once more, I look down at the papers. “I really don’t want ten percent of your company, Jayson.”
He snorts. “I guess it’s a good thing I gave you one hundred percent then.”
I blink, scanning the pages more thoroughly. “What? This is crazy.”
A harsh laugh explodes from him. “That’s what the attorneys said—especially when I insisted they draw up all the necessary paperwork within hours.”
“Why are you doing this?”
Jayson seems defeated, and the lack of spark in his gaze is alarming. “It’s all I can think of to prove to you that I want you as my wife because I love you, not because of that damned company.”
I jerk in surprise. “What did you say?”
He sighs. “I want you to stay with me, but only because you want to. I love you, Harper. I tried trapping you and forcing you to stay, thinking having you even under duress was better than a life without you.” Jayson’s lips press together. “I still think that, but I have no right to keep you. I have behaved like an idiot, a boor, and the only way I can make up for it is to offer you your freedom.” He leans forward, bringing his hand near mine. “With the caveat that I want you to stay, with all my heart.”
I can’t believe what he’s saying. “How can you love me? I’m not the kind of woman who should be your wife.” My calm façade slips, making my voice crack. “And there’s Maia. If you love me, how can you still be with her?”
Jayson swears. “For an intelligent woman, you can be an idiot sometimes, agape mou.”
I gasp, but he continues before I can think of something to say to that.
“I am not with Maia. I haven’t been in years, and I don’t want to be now. She’s done everything in her power to make you think we’re together, because she wants you out of the picture.” He laughs harshly. “The idiot actually thinks I could ever love someone else if you left me.”
I bite my lip, wanting to believe him, but unable to let my defenses down to trust. “What has she done?”
“She sent you those emails, for one.” He lifts a finger, as though counting off her deeds. “Speaking of, perhaps you noticed there wasn’t one reply from me in the pile? I ignored her. I should have responded bluntly, telling her I do not want her, but I didn’t know how to deal with it.” He shrugs. “You have had me so tangled inside that I couldn’t think logically about anything.”
“What else?”
“She tricked my assistant into giving her information about us, including about the miscarriage. He thought she was a friend of the family in Greece. Marco thought it was sweet that she called to discreetly check on us, because she didn’t want to intrude at such a private time.” Jayson rolls his eyes.
A sinking feeling hits my stomach, and I force myself to ask, “When we got married, was Satyros Corporation in trouble, capital-wise?”
Jayson frowns. “No. There were some financial difficulties years before I ever had anything to do with the company, but Dmitri had straightened it all out by the time he died.” His brows knit together. “Why?”
“I really am an idiot.” I close my eyes, unable to bear to look at him. How could I have believed Maia without even asking Jayson?
“What? Why?”
Haltingly, I relay the conversation I had with Maia. “She had all the paperwork pertaining to the stocks.” I run a hand through my hair. “She just sounded so believable.”
He curses again, but this time his anger seems to be directed at Maia. “She is a scheming, conniving piece of work, Harper. Only one thing motivates Maia, and that is self-interest. I was too young to realize it when we were engaged, but maturity brings perspective and wisdom. At least some of the time. I got over her a long time ago, even before I married you. I would not take her back under any circumstances.”
I can’t doubt the sincerity in his tone, or the genuine emotion in his eyes. I’m numb with shock at my own stupidity. Why had I been so quick to believe Maia, having already figured out what kind of woman she was?
The answer takes my breath away as it comes to me. I’d been so quick to believe Maia because I couldn’t understand why Jayson wanted to continue to be married to me. It seemed beyond belief that he would want me. In her disbelief, I managed to find all sorts of signs and clues pointing to his ulterior motives. Still, I do have reason not to trust him….
“Why didn’t you tell me about my father’s stock, and that I had inherited it?”
Jayson pauses, seeming to be looking for an answer. Finally, he says, “I would like to say it was something incredibly romantic—like my need to have you as my wife at all costs—that kept me from telling you. The truth is I didn’t love you when we got married. I barely knew you. As for the stock, I really didn’t think about it until we were about to be married. Sophie was so excited about the marriage and living with both of us. I was afraid of the setback to her recovery if you changed your mind.”
I nod, knowing he’s right about that. After telling Sophie of the forthcoming marriage, along with the white lie of leading her to believe we’d been dating for a while
