Rumours: The Secret Billionaires. Дженнифер Хейворд

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СКАЧАТЬ at him and turned to walk away. Then she stopped. What good would that do? Surely it was better to sort it all out now.

      ‘Why would they do that, when such a lovely, happy photo of the three of us has been published?’

      Shock slipped over her like icy water. He’d known. This was just what he’d wanted.

      * * *

      Calmly Antonio opened the magazine, making a show of looking at the image, thankful that his PA had thought to warn him about it. Obviously, speculation over the demise of his first marriage was still rife. He placed it on the table, the happy shot staring out at him, and he watched as Sadie looked at it, questions racing over her face—the same questions he’d asked himself. Who had taken it? When? How?

      She moved back, away from him, anger and hurt glittering in her eyes.

      ‘I’m sorry,’ he said and walked across the terrace to her, his steps firm and decisive. Sadie tensed as he drew nearer. ‘I have no idea who took it or why.’

      He watched as Sadie turned to pace across the terrace. She folded her arms and stood with her back to him, looking out over the city. Waves of hurt and betrayal radiated from her, but he couldn’t do anything about it. He couldn’t tell her how he’d thought about her even after he’d married Eloisa. His family had emotionally blackmailed him into marrying her, the marriage based purely on his mother’s need for Eloisa to be the daughter she’d never had, as well as the considerable financial gain of their union. He couldn’t soothe Sadie’s pain because the promise he’d made to Eloisa bound him. He was a man of honour and he would keep his word.

      ‘I’m sorry, Sadie.’ His voice sounded harsh and insincere even to his ears. Sadie turned as he drew nearer. He saw her shoulders stiffen and he stopped.

      ‘He’s just a child, Antonio.’ She turned to look at him, protective passion filling her voice, and he couldn’t help but recall another time when her words had been full of passion. A time when it had all been for him. He wanted that again. How the hell Sebastien had known he still wanted her, after all this time, he didn’t know, but he’d been right—as usual.

      ‘And if I had known, I would have stopped it. You can be sure of that.’ He meant it and not just out of a need to protect his son. He had no wish to see Sadie so upset.

      What he couldn’t tell her was that his first marriage was the root cause of the press interest. He couldn’t say a word to her because of the promise he’d made to his ex-wife, who had willingly sacrificed her single status by marrying him. Very soon her real motives had become clear, and that had set him free, but now he could make the marriage he needed to keep his son and heir in his life. All he needed to do was find the woman who’d allowed him to be truly himself, even if it had been for only a weekend four years ago, but she was buried beneath so much hurt and, like him, she had her defences raised higher than ever.

      ‘It all seems very convenient to me. Are you using us as a way of explaining why such a dynastic marriage failed within months instead of shouldering the blame after your playboy behaviour, or are you backing it up by claiming him as your son?’

      * * *

      Antonio looked at the angry jut of her chin and the glitter of contempt and disappointment in her eyes. Guilt raced through him, but he couldn’t help wondering if such anger was born out of the attraction they had both been almost powerless to resist four years ago and felt again now. Did the fact that she knew of all the women he’d dated in a bid to draw attention from Eloisa mean something?

      He stepped closer to her. ‘I didn’t know you were carrying my child, Sadie. You believe that, don’t you?’

      ‘I had thought that after our weekend together you would have at least seen me, heard what I had to say, even if you didn’t want a child.’ Hurt sounded in her voice—hurt he’d caused.

      He closed the distance between them and took her hand in his. ‘I wish I had got the letter and messages.’

      Her raggedly drawn-in breath gave him the strength to continue, to reignite the passion they’d shared. She had been the only woman who’d made him feel, made him want more, and now she was the mother of his child. He gently caressed her face, but she pulled away.

      ‘So do I.’ Hurt cascaded from her like a river in flood plunging over the rocks of a waterfall.

      ‘I know that you saw my mother.’

      ‘She turned me away, Antonio. An illegitimate child would only sully their ancestry.’

      ‘You told her about Leo? That you were carrying my child?’ He knew what he was hearing was true and recalled what she’d almost told him when she’d believed he was Toni Adessi. He’d never have believed his mother could be so vile that she would deny the existence of her own grandchild.

      ‘About two seconds before the door was slammed in my face.’ She lifted her chin indignantly and looked at him, daring him not to believe her. ‘I wrote one more letter after that.’

      Anger bubbled inside him. How different his, and Eloisa’s, life could have been if he’d been told of Sadie’s visit. Fate had dealt him a blow with such a disastrous marriage, but it had also brought Sadie back into his life and that wasn’t so bad after all. Not now he knew he had a son.

       CHAPTER SIX

      SADIE’S HEART FLUTTERED with nerves. Today she would marry the man she’d once loved.

      Doubts careered around in her mind, the truth of how it was actually going to be colliding with what she’d always dreamt of. It wasn’t about the white dress and veil, or the fun of having all her friends there to witness the occasion. For her, the idea of marriage had never been about that. It had always been about love and now she was marrying a man she was in danger of falling for all over again, a man who’d coldly informed her love didn’t exist.

      Sadie looked down at the skirt of the white knee-length dress she’d selected for her wedding, her fingers tracing the pattern of navy blue embroidery. It didn’t really matter how or where she got married, or even what she wore, but the wedding she’d always dreamt of would be to a man who loved her—unconditionally. A man she loved with all her heart. This was so very different.

      She had loved Antonio once, before he’d shown his true colours, but it was painfully clear that not only had he not loved her, but he never would. This marriage was a deal for his child. A bargain struck after a deceitful two weeks pretending to be someone he wasn’t. Someone he never really could be, not when he had such a ruthless disregard for anyone else.

      ‘Are we going to see Antonio?’ Leo’s question dragged her back into the here and now as the car Antonio had arranged to take them to the town hall for the civil ceremony negotiated the busy streets of Rome.

      ‘Yes, Leo, we are.’ She hadn’t explained anything to him yet and certainly hadn’t told him she was about to get married to Antonio. She’d taken extra care over her appearance, but, as was to be expected, Leo hadn’t noticed. Guilt made saying anything else impossible for the moment. She was doing this for him, yet being cooped up in an apartment more in keeping with Antonio’s family roots wasn’t good for Leo.

      Maybe Antonio would allow her to find a small apartment, one more suited for bringing up a child. No СКАЧАТЬ