thought, growing angry despite the inner voice that warned her to keep quiet. 'But it isn't that, is it?'
'No, it isn't,' she came back sharply. 'I want nothing from you but my freedom.'
With sparking green eyes she saw Nash looking at her thoughtfully as he registered her swift denial that it was his money she was after. 'There was a doubt in my mind it was money you wanted,' he let her into his thoughts. 'That's why I agreed to see you. It occurred to me you would have made your play long before this had a gold-lined settlement been what you were after.'
'I've just told you,' Perry stormed, getting to her feet in her agitation, 'I want nothing from you.'
Nash pushed his chair away and stood towering over her, tall, broad-shouldered and dark in his immaculate suit, his grey eyes hard, giving her face the closest scrutiny she had ever had to endure. Then when her agitation was threatening to get out of hand, he said calmly:
'I believe you. I believe you want nothing from me but one thing.'
Sorely needing to swallow again as grey eyes pinned, refused to let her look away, she was stunned when without fuss he brought out what his intelligence had told him; the reason she had written to him instead of getting on with it as was her right.
'The only thing you want from me Perry, am I not right, is a quiet divorce?'
Shaken, she stared at him. Then as it came to her that she had been the biggest sort of fool to just write her note and expect Nash to agree without question, hope rose that even not knowing the reason he might yet do as she asked. True, he had let it be known he was married, but surely it still wasn't impossible for a man like him to arrange a quiet divorce?
'Oh, all right,' she said, dragging her eyes away from his hypnotic hold at last. 'You've guessed accurately, of course.' Her mouth firmed at having to confess her lie. 'I apologise for not being straight, But—but it's important to me that we're divorced without it getting into the papers.'
'Why?' he asked shortly. And never, she thought, had any one man made her swing from wanting to be pleasant, on the surface at any rate, to sudden infuriated anger.
'Because—because—oh, if you must know,' she said, angry that he wanted it all when he could so easily have said, 'Certainly, leave it to me', 'I want to marry someone else.'
She knew from the way his brows rose that he hadn't been expecting that. And it did nothing for her anger that it clearly hadn't dawned on him that some man somewhere might find her attractive enough to fall in love with.
'It's urgent,' she added, revealing all the cards in her hand in one go, ready then to tell him everything if only he would agree. 'Please, Nash,' she said, ready to beg as she visualised her next date with Trevor and her no further forward, still tied with no chance of getting free without his mother reading it in large print in every newspaper. 'I have to be free as soon as possible.'
Already hating herself for so far having forgotten her pride, be ready to beg, she felt her anger go wildly out of control that Nash appeared to look insolently down his nose at her before bringing out the accusation:
'You're pregnant.'
And that was the final frustration in her dealings with him and getting nowhere, that he could so insolently stand there and try to besmirch her character. It was more than she could take. Blistering fury broke at what his clear-thinking brain had summed up; that for the sake of her unborn child it was urgent that she was free of him and married to the child's father without delay, and her hand went whipping through the air. It was the crack that echoed back, notwithstanding the fierce way she was hauled into his arms, that made her realise she had hit him.
'You...' he ground out.
But whatever offering he was about to abuse her with, it never got uttered. For enraged grey eyes met furious green eyes, and suddenly the first natural smile she had ever seen on Nash was breaking.
'Was that slap
'No, it isn't,' she came back sharply. 'I want nothing from you but my freedom.'
With sparking green eyes she saw Nash looking at her thoughtfully as he registered her swift denial that it was his money she was after. 'There was a doubt in my mind it was money you wanted,' he let her into his thoughts. 'That's why I agreed to see you. It occurred to me you would have made your play long before this had a gold-lined settlement been what you were after.'
'I've just told you,' Perry stormed, getting to her feet in her agitation, 'I want nothing from you.'
Nash pushed his chair away and stood towering over her, tall, broad-shouldered and dark in his immaculate suit, his grey eyes hard, giving her face the closest scrutiny she had ever had to endure. Then when her agitation was threatening to get out of hand, he said calmly:
'I believe you. I believe you want nothing from me but one thing.'
Sorely needing to swallow again as grey eyes pinned, refused to let her look away, she was stunned when without fuss he brought out what his intelligence had told him; the reason she had written to him instead of getting on with it as was her right.
'The only thing you want from me Perry, am I not right, is a quiet divorce?'
Shaken, she stared at him. Then as it came to her that she had been the biggest sort of fool to just write her note and expect Nash to agree without question, hope rose that even not knowing the reason he might yet do as she asked. True, he had let it be known he was married, but surely it still wasn't impossible for a man like him to arrange a quiet divorce?
'Oh, all right,' she said, dragging her eyes away from his hypnotic hold at last. 'You've guessed accurately, of course.' Her mouth firmed at having to confess her lie. 'I apologise for not being straight, But—but it's important to me that we're divorced without it getting into the papers.'
'Why?' he asked shortly. And never, she thought, had any one man made her swing from wanting to be pleasant, on the surface at any rate, to sudden infuriated anger.
'Because—because—oh, if you must know,' she said, angry that he wanted it all when he could so easily have said, 'Certainly, leave it to me', 'I want to marry someone else.'
She knew from the way his brows rose that he hadn't been expecting that. And it did nothing for her anger that it clearly hadn't dawned on him that some man somewhere might find her attractive enough to fall in love with.
'It's urgent,' she added, revealing all the cards in her hand in one go, ready then to tell him everything if only he would agree. 'Please, Nash,' she said, ready to beg as she visualised her next date with Trevor and her no further forward, still tied with no chance of getting free without his mother reading it in large print in every newspaper. 'I have to be free as soon as possible.'
Already hating herself for so far having forgotten her pride, be ready to beg, she felt her anger go wildly out of control that Nash appeared to look insolently down his nose at her before bringing out the accusation:
'You're pregnant.'
And that was the final frustration in her dealings with him and getting nowhere, that he could so insolently stand there and try to besmirch her character. It was more than she could take. Blistering fury broke at what his clear-thinking brain had summed up; that for the sake of her unborn child it was urgent that she was free of him and married to the child's father without delay, and her hand went whipping through the air. It was the crack that echoed back, notwithstanding the fierce way she was hauled into his arms, that made her realise she had hit him.
'You...' he ground out.
But whatever offering he was about to abuse her with, it never got uttered. For enraged grey eyes met furious green eyes, and suddenly the first natural smile she had ever seen on Nash was breaking.
'Was that slap
Similar Books
