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‘But then I resigned.’ Could she sound any more desperate?
‘Until this morning I was confident I could get you to change your mind and stay.’
She blinked. She thought he’d forgotten or simply didn’t care that she’d resigned. But how had he planned to change her mind? ‘Because you’re good at convincing women to do whatever you want them to?’
‘I’ve never treated you in that way.’
Yes. Didn’t she know it.
‘And I certainly wasn’t going to take advantage of you at the time,’ he said.
‘Because I was tipsy and you were my boss.’
‘Yes,’ he growled impatiently.
‘Is there any situation in which you would take advantage of me?’
Somehow the shocking question slid out. There was a silence. And mortification. All over again.
‘Ineverwant to take advantage of you,’ he said.
Of course it was the right answer. So why did that teeny tiny part of her feel crushed?
‘I would far prefer to have you as my equal, Darcie. Where one of us doesn’t take advantage of the other.’
‘We’renevergoing to be equals, Elias.’ He had too much power. ‘We’re too different—our backgrounds, education, everything.’
‘I disagree. I think we could be equal in curiosity, integrity and loyalty and we could even be equal in this marriage. If it goes ahead, I wouldn’t want you breaking your vows to me and I won’t break mine to you.’
‘You’ll survive a sexless life?’
Something flickered in his face. ‘It’s only one year, is it not?’ He stepped closer. ‘If this happens then this lingering power imbalance between us has to be gone. As my wife, you’re notrequiredto do anything. Certainly not sleep with me. Though—’ Laughter suddenly flashed in his eyes. ‘You might actually have to dine with me on occasion. And engage with my clients in a capacity that straddles the business and the personal.’
She gazed up at him, knowing she should say yes, yet something still held her back. ‘You don’t really need me for any of that. It’s still not much of a win for you.’
‘Perhaps it’s the most simple win of all. The intangible, altruistic satisfaction of doing something for someone else.’
Her heart thudded hard then. ‘For Lily.’
‘Right,’ he nodded. ‘For Lily.’
That’s when she got lost in his eyes, trying to understand the man she’d thought she knew.
His lips compressed and he glanced at the clock on the wall. ‘We don’t have much longer, Darcie. You need to decide.’
But her brain was oddly sluggish. She’d seen Zara try the ‘love’ route and it had ended in disaster. Playing on old loyalties and emotions—like what she’d tried with Shaun—hadn’t worked either. A cool businesslike contract? Maybe that was the answer.
She’d known all her life that people couldn’t be trusted. Ultimately—always—they left. Both her parents had left her. Zara had left her. Shaun had just left her. Elias would, too, eventually. But he wasn’t promising forever. He wasn’t promising any kind of frills. He was being up-front about the facts. This wasn’t just a fake marriage; it was a short-term one. And she knew Elias. He was ruthless but he was also fair. Shehadseen him follow through on deal after deal. She’d seen him have high expectations of people’s performance but he’d also rewarded those who deserved it. Including her. Maybe she could trust him to maintain his side of this bargain.
She understood that he would be absent a lot. But if she were successful at getting her placement, Darcie would be Lily’s primary caregiver, and one person could make all the difference in another’s life. You could have a big family and feel nothing but lonely and isolated. Or worse. Sometimes you needed justoneperson. Lily needed her.
She searched Elias’s face. She had no idea what kind of family he’d come from or even whether he was in touch with any of them. Did he have siblings? Where were his parents? In almost three years there’d been no reference to them at all. What would they think of this? But if he wasn’t concerned, then she shouldn’t be either, right?
And if there was no emotion between them, maybe there’d be no real expectations that neither of them could live up to.
‘Well?’ he prompted, his customary curtness restored.
It was enough to solidify her thinking. This was her last chance. He wasn’t going to repeat it, or wait for her to think about it long. She knew how he operated. Once he made an offer, the clock started ticking. Accept quickly or miss out forever.
