Lover By Deception. PENNY JORDAN

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      She smiled sweetly before saying, very, very gently, ‘However, surely the fact that you were being offered such an exceptionally high rate of interest on your investment must have alerted you to the fact that something might not be quite...genuine...?’

      Ward could scarcely believe his ears. Was she actually daring to tell him that it was his own fault he had been cheated; that he had been guilty of either a lack of intelligent caution or an excess of simple greed?

      Her head barely touched his shoulder. She was as fine-boned as a little bird and he guessed that he could have spanned her waist with both his hands and picked her up off the ground without straining his breath, and yet she stood there and had the audacity to challenge him!

      Reluctantly Ward acknowledged that she had guts. Certainly more than her partner. By heaven, though, she was cool and calm—both virtues that he admired.

      Abruptly he pulled himself back from the dangerous brink he was teetering on, reminding himself of just what she had done.

      ‘I’m sure it would have,’ he agreed grimly. ‘I pride myself on being able to spot a phoney a mile off. As it happens it isn’t me the pair of you gulled—but then, of course, you know that already.

      ‘Does the name Ritchie Lewis mean anything to you?’ he shot at Anna.

      ‘No...I’ve never heard of him before,’ Anna told him honestly, starting to frown as she questioned, ‘But if you didn’t invest money with Julian then what are you doing here?’

      ‘Ritchie is my half-brother,’ he told her impatiently, demanding bitingly, ‘Have you any idea just what you’ve done? Ritchie should be studying, not worrying about the loss of five thousand pounds. No, of course you haven’t,’ he told her scornfully. ‘I’ll bet you’ve never strayed out of your cosseted, comfortable little world. Of course you don’t know what it is to suffer pain, disappointment—’

      ‘You’re making judgements about me without knowing the first thing about me,’ Anna interrupted him swiftly, her gentle expression suddenly replaced by one of pride and anger.

      ‘Oh, but I do know the first thing about you. I know that you’re a liar and a cheat,’ Ward returned softly.

      Anna gave a sharp gasp.

      ‘Well... nothing to say?’ Ward demanded.

      ‘I...I don’t intend to say anything until... until I’ve spoken to my legal advisors,’ Anna fibbed, suddenly gaining inspiration from a recent television series she had been watching.

      ‘Your legal advisors? They’re no doubt as guilty of sharp practice as you and your precious partner,’ Ward told her bluntly. ‘Well, let me tell you here and now, there’s no way I’m going to let him or you get away with this. You owe my half-brother five thousand pounds and I intend to make sure you pay it back.’

      ‘You do?’ Anna was impressed. Dee would love to meet this man, she knew. Here at last was someone who was prepared to stand up to Julian; to pursue him, Anna was certain, to the furthermost corners of the earth with relentless determination.

      Even so, there was something about his attitude towards her that had got her hackles rising in a way she could never remember anyone else doing.

      ‘Er...what you have to say is extremely interesting, Mr...er...’

      ‘Hunter,’ Ward supplied briefly. ‘Her—Ward Hunter.’

      Ward Hunter. Well, at least now she had his name. She could pass it on to Dee along with the information he had given her and then she could leave him and Dee to pursue Julian Cox together.

      Suddenly Anna had a brainwave.

      ‘You say you want me to repay your half-brother’s money. I’m afraid I don’t have five thousand pounds here at home with me. Could you call back, say, tomorrow...?’

      Ward stared at her. Now what was she up to? One minute she was claiming she knew nothing about the money, the next she was accusing him of deserving to be cheated, and now here she was calmly and coolly announcing that she would repay him. She was even more dangerous than Ward had first suspected.

      ‘Why should I believe you? You could pull the same disappearing stunt as your partner.’

      ‘Leave the country, you mean.’ Anna looked down at where Missie was lying on the conservatory floor. ‘No. I couldn’t do that,’ she said simply and ridiculously.

      Ward found that he believed her. She might be quite happy to cheat his brother and goodness knew how many others, but he had seen the love in her eyes when she looked at her dog. She wasn’t going to abandon her.

      ‘I could, of course, give you a cheque now,’ Anna suggested sweetly. The look he gave her in return almost made her want to laugh.

      ‘Which your bank would, no doubt, refuse to honour,’ he told her, shaking his head. ‘No, I don’t think so. I want the cash...’

      ‘Then you will just have to wait until tomorrow,’ Anna told him firmly.

      ‘Very well, then,’ Ward agreed. ‘I’ll be here at nine sharp.’

      ‘Nine? But the bank doesn’t open until ten,’ Anna protested.

      ‘Exactly,’ Ward responded smoothly. ‘I can hardly allow you to take the risk of travelling there and back alone with such a large sum of money. I shall come with you.’

      ‘Come with me...?’ Anna’s outrage momentarily overwhelmed her. ‘Perhaps you’d like to stay the night and keep me chained to your side,’ she said acidly, only to flush bright red as she saw the look in his eyes.

      Ward was as startled by the bright pink glow of her cheeks as Anna was. It would have been much more in character for her to have deliberately flirted with him, to have flaunted her sexuality and drawn his attention to it rather than to betray such embarrassment. It was just another one of her tricks, of course, and one she had no doubt used to good effect in the past on the more vulnerable members of his sex. He could well imagine how easily a man might feel tempted to rush to protect and cherish her. She was so tiny, so fragile... and yet, at the same time, so determinedly and so ridiculously feisty.

      Angrily he turned away from her, warning her as he did so, ‘Don’t even think of not being here because I promise you, wherever you go I shall find you.’

      He had just started to walk back to his car when Missie suddenly darted out from behind Anna and ran after him, whining pathetically.

      Immediately he stopped, turned round and dropped down to fuss the little dog. From his kneeling position he looked up at Anna and growled, ‘Poor little thing. She deserves better—someone worthy of her loyalty and her trust, someone who knows what those things mean and values them, respects them.’

      And then, before Anna could say a word, he got to his feet and strode towards his car.

      Of all the nerve! What an arrogant, insensitive blockhead of a man, Anna fumed once he had gone. Nursing Missie on her lap and chiding her for her treachery, she told the dog severely, ‘Well, I certainly feel sorry for his wife.’

      His wife. Heavens, but it must take СКАЧАТЬ