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He sat straighter and the brief glimpse she’d had of a younger, more vulnerable Jack disappeared, replaced by his trademark assurance. Yet with the benefit of her new knowledge, Bess realised her husband was neither the uber confident businessman she’d known nor the lonely little boy he’d just revealed. He was a complex mix of both and much more besides.
How had she ever thought there was no more to him than the workaholic determined to achieve his goals? A sexy, confident man, a charismatic leader with a plan for everything, even her? Why had she never queried his absolute dedication to success, his need to control his world?
Why had she never guessed that behind the confidence was someone determined to make the world a safer place for himself and, she realised now, her as well?
Pain seared and she hunched over, ashamed. Jack might have avoided sharing his past but how hard had she tried to discover more? She’d built him up into a mix of fairy tale prince, the epitome of every fantasy, and uncaring villain who used her for his own ends.
‘I’m sorry,’ she croaked.
His eyes widened, the flesh taut across his features.
‘Don’t judge me on them, Bess. I’m not my fa—’
‘Of course you’re not like your father.’
Her voice was so husky she had to clear her throat. He must have thought she was apologising because she intended to wash her hands of him. Was it coincidence that he’d used the more intimate form of her name? It reinforced her feeling that his words came from the heart. They weren’t carefully planned.
‘I meant I’m sorry about the past. About how I let you down too.’
That’s what she’d done, though at the time it had felt like her only option.
She’d known he’d find it tough, facing the gossip after she left. With this new knowledge she feared her actions had been a repeat of his past hurts. Maybe she could have handled things differently.
‘I shouldn’t have left you so abruptly.’ Even if talking through their problems mightn’t have resolved anything, she’d owed him that much.
Jack’s expression froze, but those dark blue eyes were bright with something she couldn’t name. It made her wish things were simple between them. That there was no shared past, only the possibility of a future. But she couldn’t say that. Her thoughts were a tumbled mess and her emotions all over the place. It was one thing to wish everything was right between them but life was rarely so easy. Their future and their baby’s future deserved careful deliberation.
But there was one thing of which she was sure. ‘Whatever happens, Jack, you’ll make a wonderful dad.’
That caught him by surprise. For a second he was so still it looked like he didn’t breathe. Then his eyes crinkled at the corners, his mouth curling up in a smile so warm, so rare, that it was like discovering treasure.
‘Thank you, Elisabeth. I already know you’ll be a great mother.’
Then he knew more than she did. She wanted the best for her child and she had a fine example in her own mother yet she couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t quite ready for motherhood.
‘Excuse me madam, sir.’ She looked up to see the waiter, concern etched on his brow. ‘Can I bring something else?’
She looked at her barely touched plate, the food now cold.
‘The food was superb.’ Jack smiled at the waiter. ‘I’m afraid we got distracted.’
It was like Jack to reassure the staff who would be concerned to see almost full plates return to the kitchen. The parents he’d described had been completely self-absorbed. Jack was nothing like that. For all his formidable focus and urge to succeed, he always noticed and responded to other people, regardless of their job or social status.
It was something she’d always admired. Something she’d like their child to learn from him.
He had a right to be involved in raising their child. The question was, would it be as a part-time parent, or as a full-time father and husband?
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
THEYWEREWALKINGout through the luxurious hotel when a splash of colour caught Bess’s eye. The window of the exclusive boutique held just one item, a dress of deep aquamarine with a single swirling line of amber curling from shoulder to hem.
It reminded her of the crystal Caribbean waters and dazzling sunsets during the week they’d spent together.
‘You’d look stunning in that.’
Jack’s voice was husky, and the unmistakable current of physical awareness stopped her in her tracks. Her heart quickened. Her flesh tightened, the fine hairs on her arms standing up as she read more than admiration in the blue fire of his gaze. Passion simmered there. Desire.
It spoke to the woman she’d tried so hard to bury. The one who couldn’t stop wanting her husband.
