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CHAPTER SEVEN
JUDEBREATHEDINslow and deep to calm himself.
Calvin Hetherington had to be dealt with first. No way should he profit from the morally unforgivable arrangement he had set up! That poor baby, Jude reflected with deep repugnance that a father could place such little value on his own flesh and blood. As for Tansy, she suffered from tunnel vision where her sister was concerned. She had not even paused to consider that Jude might not be as corrupt as her stepfather, had not even contemplated telling Jude the truth until the die had been cast. And now he had to sort the mess out and he needed the details to accomplish that feat. Digging out his phone, he contacted his top-notch Greek lawyer, Dmitri, and made him aware of the situation, gritting his teeth when the older man came close to questioning his judgement in entering such a marriage without having taken due consideration and care.
Jude already knew that he had been reckless. It was an Alexandris trait, but it was the first time ever that he had committed that sin. Maddeningly, he had only become reckless after he had first laid eyes on Tansy and she’d turned him down, he acknowledged grimly. He had wanted her the instant he’d seen her, the light glimmering over her long streaky hair, those luminous green eyes wary and anxious, the pulse beating out her nerves at the base of her elegant white throat. And Tansy had spoken the truth when she had accused him of being accustomed to buying anything he wanted, and he had bought himself a wife with no more forethought than a man buying a product off a shelf. That was a sobering truth. What right did he have now to complain about the complications Tansy had brought with her? Dmitri had warned him that it was even possible that, after he contacted the British legal team to check the facts, he would have to start paperwork to safeguard the baby by applying to have Posy made a ward of the court.
While Jude ruminated about what complications might lie ahead and sank entirely naturally into problem-solving mode, Tansy was being a lot less productive. In the spacious shower she let the pent-up tears stream down her face under the cover of the water. Posy was safe now, wasn’t she? That was the all-important bottom line, wasn’t it? Only she hadn’t been quite truthful with Jude when she had acted as though her sister had been her only motivation. She hadn’t intended to play the martyr, but she had been even less keen to admit that she found him incredibly attractive and had been intrigued and fascinated by him from the outset. Ought she to admit that? Why should she expose herself to that extent?
A knock sounded on the bathroom door while she was splashing cold water on her face in an effort to chase the puffiness of tears from her eyes. ‘Yes?’ she called loudly.
‘Dinner in ten minutes,’ Jude told her.
Tansy swallowed hard and waited a few moments before dashing back to the bedroom in a towel. A single case sat there, and she dug into it, rustling through the neatly packed garments to extract a long cotton skirt and a light strappy top. She dressed in haste, combing out her wet hair, scrutinising her wan face with critical eyes, rubbing her cheeks for some colour and then scolding herself for even caring about her appearance around Jude. After all, he was on another level of gorgeous and always would be and she was never going to catch up. Had Jude not needed a wife he could sign up on a temporary basis, he would never have considered someone as ordinary as she was for the role.
As she reached the foot of the stairs, a small, older Greek woman stepped into view and greeted her and moved forward to open a door and show her the way. Smiling politely, striving to conceal her nervous tension, Tansy stepped out onto a terrace and looked in wonder at all the fairy lights strung up above the table and the tea lights burning everywhere, illuminating the walled courtyard and the box-edged beds of herbs planted within its boundaries that sweetly scented the air. Jude leapt up from his seat, his visible discomfiture at the celebratory bridal setting almost making Tansy laugh.
‘Oh, how pretty the table looks!’ she exclaimed for her companion’s benefit, because someone had gone to a lot of trouble stringing up those lights and setting out all those little candles.
Jude spoke in rapid Greek to her companion and the woman beamed happily at Tansy. As she vanished back indoors, Jude lounged back against the low wall edging the terrace, his long powerful legs splayed in tailored chinos. Tansy blinked, freshly assaulted by his vibrant sexuality, mortifying heat blossoming low in her body at the recollection of just how intimate their connection had been only an hour earlier.
‘We have to discuss your arrangement with your stepfather,’ Jude informed her, sending her thoughts crashing back to practical issues again. ‘Did he somehow grant you legal custody of Posy?’
Tansy’s face dropped in dismay at that direct and precise question and she shook her head. ‘He assured me beforehand that he would, but that turned out to be a lie and we got married so fast I didn’t pick up on it until it was too late. He told me that the only way I could have legal custody of my sister was by adopting her and, of course, that would mean that you had to be part of the application as well.’
Jude looked unsurprised by her explanation. ‘His deception was calculated. He won’t want to surrender custody of his daughter while he thinks he could still use her as a blackmail tool.’
Her smooth brow indented. ‘How?’
Jude sprang upright and reached for the bottle of champagne awaiting their attention, unsealing it with a pop and filling the glasses. ‘Hetherington could demand that you return his daughter to him…or that you compensate him accordingly. As my wife, you have access to a great deal of money.’
‘I wouldn’t let him do that!’ Tansy protested heatedly.
‘You’ve already demonstrated that there isn’t much you wouldn’t sacrifice in order to keep your sister with you,’ Jude reminded her sardonically. ‘Including your virginity.’
In the act of tossing back the bubbling champagne, Tansy almost choked on it while the heat of embarrassment enveloped her entire body. ‘I’ve already told you…it wasn’t like that. But I assure you that I have no plans to hand over any more of your money to Calvin. That would be like stealing from you.’
‘Then it will be good news for you to hear that Calvin has yet to receive a penny of what you describe as my money,’ Jude retorted crisply. ‘But that sum was yours to do with as you wish. It became yours the day you married me.’
‘As I told you, I’ve already transferred that money to Calvin,’ Tansy muttered uncomfortably.
‘You tried to but, ultimately, the transaction was blocked.’
‘Blocked?’she echoed in dismay.
‘Our bank accounts are heavily protected from fraud. Such a large transfer as emptying your new bank account was flagged and would have been run by me before it was allowed to proceed. Now it’s permanently blocked. Hetherington is not going to get that money.’
‘But then I bet he’ll demand Posy back!’ Tansy gasped. ‘I agreed to give him that money.’
‘Just as he agreed to give you legal custody of your sister, which he didn’t,’ Jude reminded her drily. ‘He’s not getting that money, Tansy. Fathers aren’t allowed to sell their children in today’s world. Furthermore, any money changing hands between you and your stepfather would invalidate any adoption proceedings in the future as it would be illegal. No, we will deal with your stepfather together and only through the proper legal channels.’
‘But that’ll put Posy staying with us at risk and I couldn’t b-bear to lose her!’ Tansy framed with a stifled sob of sudden fear half under her breath.
‘We won’t lose her,’ Jude swore. ‘I won’t allow that to happen. That’s the least of what I owe you.’
‘You don’t owe me anything, Jude. I brought Posy into this marriage without your knowledge. You’re not responsible for what happens to her—’
‘You’re my wife. She’s your blood relative. She’s entitled to my protection. I also have an engrained loathing for greedy, dishonest operators like your stepfather and no child deserves a parent that heartless.’ Jude yanked out a chair and gently nudged her towards it. ‘Sit down. Our housekeeper, Olympia, is about to serve our meal, moli mou.’
