Read Online When Only Diamonds Will Do by Lindsay Armstrong - Free Book Online
Authors: Lindsay Armstrong
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his car and speeding towards Saldanha for the next momentous encounter—breaking the news to her parents.
She’d insisted on doing things this way, although now she was beginning to regret the decision. Beginning to regret not taking his offer to break the news himself.
‘What can
you
say?’ she’d taunted. ‘In exchange for your daughter I’ll get you out of hock?’
‘No,’ he’d replied. ‘I could say that an intense attraction has sprung up between us and—’
She’d turned on him. ‘Believe me, it’s died an instant death!’
He’d watched her impassively for a long moment then he’d shot her last hopes down in flames. ‘Kim, I don’t know about you but the alternative for your parents would be disastrous. Both Balthazar and Saldanha would go into receivership. This way, my offer for them will clear the debts, your father’ll have a place on the Balthazar board in an advisory capacity and
you
will get to play lady of the manor at Saldanha.’ His eyes had mocked her.
She’d gone white. ‘If you think insulting me is going to help, you’re wrong. Why can’t Mum and Dad stay on at Saldanha?’
‘It would never work.’
‘I don’t think they’ve got anywhere else to go,’ she’d objected. Then she’d bitten her lip and said painfully, ‘They may be able to clear their debts if they sell to you but I don’t think there’ll be anything left over.’ She’d pressed her hands into fists at the thought of the absolute mess she’d found her parents’ personal finances to be in; at the thought of them honourably solvent rather than bankrupted, but only just, only a hair’s breadth from being out on the street.
He’d noticed the gesture. ‘Your brother,’ he’d suggested.
Kim had shaken her head. ‘Damien has no more resources than I have.’
She’d taken a deep breath then and risked saying, ‘I don’t think you’re rating me highly enough, Reith, to be honest.’
‘Oh?’ He’d raised an eyebrow.
‘No. As a wife, especially for a billionaire, I’ll be superb.’
They’d stared at each other and it became a prickly-tense, heart-stopping moment.
‘Do you mean in bed?’ he’d queried at last, with a significant scan up and down her figure that effectively stripped her naked but not in a humorous way at all.
‘Now, that,’ she’d said, inwardly threatening to shoot herself if she blushed but in fact she was way too angry to blush, ‘might depend on you so I’ll suspend judgement until it happens…
if
it happens. What I meant was that I would run your homes beautifully, I’d handle the entertaining a billionaire might find appropriate withease, I’d look the part and—’ she’d paused ‘—I’m good with kids.’
Reith had said slowly, ‘I’ve got an apartment in Bunbury; I’ll lease it to your parents rent-free and I’ll set up an allowance for them—for as long as you stay with me, Kim.’
She’d drawn a breath. ‘You drive a hard bargain.’
‘You’re not exactly playing softball yourself,’ he’d said derisively.
She’d opened her mouth to protest that it was no such thing but said instead, ‘Why shouldn’t it be a game two can play?’
‘Indeed. Why not?’ he’d responded with a flash of humour that had infuriated her. She hadn’t been mollified when he’d added, ‘But you certainly deserve full marks for standing behind your nearest and dearest, Kim Theron.’
Now, as the miles got chewed up, as the roads became country ones and they got closer, she became less and less certain she was doing this the right way round. Less certain that she shouldn’t have warned her parents first …
‘Stop,’ she said suddenly. ‘Please stop. I feel sick.’
He pulled up on the side of the road. There was a fairly broad grassy verge, then a fence and a line of bushes beyond, indicating a water course of some kind.
Kim swallowed frantically several times, then pushed her door open precipitously and stumbled out, and there followed a
She’d insisted on doing things this way, although now she was beginning to regret the decision. Beginning to regret not taking his offer to break the news himself.
‘What can
you
say?’ she’d taunted. ‘In exchange for your daughter I’ll get you out of hock?’
‘No,’ he’d replied. ‘I could say that an intense attraction has sprung up between us and—’
She’d turned on him. ‘Believe me, it’s died an instant death!’
He’d watched her impassively for a long moment then he’d shot her last hopes down in flames. ‘Kim, I don’t know about you but the alternative for your parents would be disastrous. Both Balthazar and Saldanha would go into receivership. This way, my offer for them will clear the debts, your father’ll have a place on the Balthazar board in an advisory capacity and
you
will get to play lady of the manor at Saldanha.’ His eyes had mocked her.
She’d gone white. ‘If you think insulting me is going to help, you’re wrong. Why can’t Mum and Dad stay on at Saldanha?’
‘It would never work.’
‘I don’t think they’ve got anywhere else to go,’ she’d objected. Then she’d bitten her lip and said painfully, ‘They may be able to clear their debts if they sell to you but I don’t think there’ll be anything left over.’ She’d pressed her hands into fists at the thought of the absolute mess she’d found her parents’ personal finances to be in; at the thought of them honourably solvent rather than bankrupted, but only just, only a hair’s breadth from being out on the street.
He’d noticed the gesture. ‘Your brother,’ he’d suggested.
Kim had shaken her head. ‘Damien has no more resources than I have.’
She’d taken a deep breath then and risked saying, ‘I don’t think you’re rating me highly enough, Reith, to be honest.’
‘Oh?’ He’d raised an eyebrow.
‘No. As a wife, especially for a billionaire, I’ll be superb.’
They’d stared at each other and it became a prickly-tense, heart-stopping moment.
‘Do you mean in bed?’ he’d queried at last, with a significant scan up and down her figure that effectively stripped her naked but not in a humorous way at all.
‘Now, that,’ she’d said, inwardly threatening to shoot herself if she blushed but in fact she was way too angry to blush, ‘might depend on you so I’ll suspend judgement until it happens…
if
it happens. What I meant was that I would run your homes beautifully, I’d handle the entertaining a billionaire might find appropriate withease, I’d look the part and—’ she’d paused ‘—I’m good with kids.’
Reith had said slowly, ‘I’ve got an apartment in Bunbury; I’ll lease it to your parents rent-free and I’ll set up an allowance for them—for as long as you stay with me, Kim.’
She’d drawn a breath. ‘You drive a hard bargain.’
‘You’re not exactly playing softball yourself,’ he’d said derisively.
She’d opened her mouth to protest that it was no such thing but said instead, ‘Why shouldn’t it be a game two can play?’
‘Indeed. Why not?’ he’d responded with a flash of humour that had infuriated her. She hadn’t been mollified when he’d added, ‘But you certainly deserve full marks for standing behind your nearest and dearest, Kim Theron.’
Now, as the miles got chewed up, as the roads became country ones and they got closer, she became less and less certain she was doing this the right way round. Less certain that she shouldn’t have warned her parents first …
‘Stop,’ she said suddenly. ‘Please stop. I feel sick.’
He pulled up on the side of the road. There was a fairly broad grassy verge, then a fence and a line of bushes beyond, indicating a water course of some kind.
Kim swallowed frantically several times, then pushed her door open precipitously and stumbled out, and there followed a
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