Husband for a Year. Rebecca Winters

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СКАЧАТЬ in the spotlight so much since our marriage, he and I are going on a trip around the world which could last six months.”

      Again the four people in the room stared at her in stunned disbelief.

      “He explained about the trip in letters he sent to you,” she continued. “You’ll receive them in the mail tomorrow.” She cleared her throat. “If I had carried out his plans to the letter, I would be in Paris right now enjoying the first stop of my long holiday. But as you can see, I chose not to go because—”

      “Enough!” Now it was her father who shoved himself away from the table and jumped to his feet. As he threw down his napkin, it caused his wineglass to topple. “A marriage in name only—I’ve never heard such rubbish in all my life! How dare Gabe do this to you! How dare he!”

      She’d never seen him so angry. “Dad—please sit down. I’m not through.”

      “What’s wrong with our son?” Gabe’s mother sounded on the verge of hysteria as she cried to her husband, pulling on his arm.

      Stefanie’s mother shook her head in despair. “I can’t believe this has happened. I simply can’t believe it! Stefanie—aside from his despicable actions, whatever possessed you to say yes to such a cold-blooded proposition? Heavens, darling, you could have married any man you wanted!”

      A tight band constricted Stefanie’s breathing. “I didn’t want any man, Mom. I wanted Gabe. When I was an adolescent, I developed a painful crush that never went away. After ten years of loving him, I would have married him for any reason,” her voice throbbed.

      “Fool that I am, I’d convinced myself that once we lived together, he would tear up that wretched contract and make our marriage real. But I learned that you can’t force someone to fall in love with you. Since we’d made a contract, I didn’t dare try to dissuade him from his plans.”

      “What plans?” The senator’s rage was starting to escalate out of control.

      “I have no idea,” she answered honestly. “He’ll have to be the one to reveal them—when he’s ready.”

      A ruddy color stained his cheeks. “Where is my son?”

      “I don’t know yet, but I’m working on it.”

      “You mean he’s really gone?” Gabe’s father still couldn’t comprehend it. For that matter, neither could Stefanie.

      “Yes. But I—I hired a P.I. to follow him.”

      “Thank God you had that much sense!” came the senator’s furious outburst.

      Her father shook his head. “The idea of his marrying you to provide a smokescreen for secret activities is preposterous! What kind of a man would use a woman like that? Especially when she’s my precious daughter!”

      Before everything exploded in her face, Stefanie needed to get this over with. “Don’t blame Gabe. I’m the one who said yes to his proposition. Think for a minute—

      “He could have been selfish and disappeared right in the middle of the reelection campaign. It would have caused you untold grief and pain. But he didn’t do that. Instead he planned everything to ensure his actions would prevent any scandal.

      “Don’t you see? No matter how hurt all of you are, no matter how this may look to you, Gabe’s the most honorable man I’ve ever known in my life.”

      “Honorable?” her father blurted. “He took advantage of your vulnerability and broke your heart!”

      “But he doesn’t know that, Dad.”

      “What do you mean?”

      “I—I never told him how I felt, not when I realized he wasn’t in love with me. Behind closed doors we lived totally separate lives. He believed I was happy with our arrangement.”

      Her mother shook her head. “How could he be so blind?”

      “Because I never disabused him of the assumption he made about my wanting a husband who would end up in the Oval Office! Mom—he has no idea he’s the only man I’ll ever love. That’s why I’m not taking the world tour he planned for me.

      “As soon as I find out his destination, then I’ll act on that knowledge and go after him with a proposition of my own!”

      The senator shot out of his chair. He stopped pacing the floor long enough to blurt, “This is your fault, Stefanie. You should have told me the truth about your marriage months ago so I could have prevented this tragedy from happening. Whatever you have to do, I want him home by the end of the week where he belongs!”

      “You don’t want him back as much as I do,” she said, standing her ground. “But it’s not going to be easy. Gabe’s no longer my husband. When he said goodbye this morning, he meant it to be forever. He trusted me…

      “What I’m about to do could backfire in ways I don’t even want to contemplate. In fact the thought of facing him terrifies me. But it’s a risk I have to take—” She struggled for breath. “B-because life isn’t worth living without him.”

      The senator stood there with his jaw clenched. For the first time since she’d known him, he was powerless to do anything.

      But he wouldn’t stay helpless for long. As she knew only too well, his tentacles reached many places. When he wanted something, he was virtually unstoppable. More than ever she understood why Gabe would have reached a total impasse with his father a long time ago. A shiver ran down her spine.

      “I’m going to need everyone’s help,” she continued. “For the time being you’ll have to pretend to go along with Gabe’s and my story about our trip. Will you do that for us?”

      Her father’s eyes had grown bleak. “If you’re determined about this, it doesn’t look like we have any other choice.”

      “Thank you, Dad. I promise to stay in touch with all of you. Now if you’ll excuse me—”

      “No, Stefanie!” Her mother knocked over her chair getting up from the table. “You can’t leave yet, darling!”

      “I have to go, Mom. The limo is waiting. I told the P.I. to phone me at nine. I want to be home when the call comes through. It may take several days, even longer, before I know exactly where Gabe went. Then I can make my plans. In the meantime, I’m counting on you to pretend everything’s fine. That’s what Gabe wanted.”

      The senator pinned her with a withering gaze, the kind he used for intimidating people he didn’t like. He didn’t like her anymore. In placing her loyalty to Gabe above his father, she’d dropped from favor.

      It was very sad because there were qualities about him she’d grown to love by virtue of his being her father-in-law. He’d also done a great deal of humanitarian good in the world.

      “I’m expecting you to bring my son to his senses, Stefanie.” Though he didn’t add the words “or else,” his warning was unmistakable.

      Gabe’s father was afraid. So was she…

      Blowing everyone a kiss, she hurried through the club and out the front СКАЧАТЬ