How long had she been sitting there lost in her own thoughts?
‘Sorry.’
‘Where were you just then?’
If you don’t want to feel left behind, you need to move forward with your life, her inner voice nagged. This man isn’t likely to go blurting anything to the tabloids. Just tell him where you were. It’s not your darkest secret.
She decided to take the plunge. ‘I was thinking about my brother. He’s planning to marry.’
‘You weren’t looking particularly happy. Do I take it you don’t like his future wife?’
‘Oh no. It’s nothing like that. I think she’s great and I’m really happy for them both.’
‘I sense a ‘but’.’ When she remained silent he said, ‘No but?’
She frowned. ‘I’m not even sure I’ve worked it out myself yet.’
‘Sometimes thinking aloud helps.’
Crazily, she thought thinking aloud with this man might work. Again the complete switch in her attitude towards him hit her. He was proving to be exactly the way people had described him. He was warm and generous and forgiving. Hadn’t his offer to facilitate Extend find another property for the respite centre been proof he had a very caring side? And he’d cared about Crystal’s welfare.
Her gaze met the serious blue depths of his—met and connected on some deep level she didn’t recognise or understand. ‘I’d have to start at the beginning.’
‘We have at least until midnight,’ he observed with a matter-of-fact wave of his hand.
For a second her top teeth worried at her lower lip in indecision. ‘Whatever I tell you tonight remains confidential?’
‘Absolutely. I’m sure it works both ways.’
Yes, it did. Both of them were high-profile people and neither of them welcomed intrusion in their personal lives. Continuing her leap of faith she confided, ‘My brother is confined to a wheelchair with no movement of his legs.’
A flicker of surprise registered in his eyes as he leaned forward. ‘That must be tough. Was he in an accident or was it a congenital disability?’
She let out a pent-up breath. ‘He was in an accident when he was a kid.’
‘Is that why you’ve become involved with the Extend Foundation?’
‘I founded Extend.’ There. She’d admitted it.
‘I had no idea.’
‘Very few people know, which is the way I like to keep it.’
His frown was thoughtful. ‘You don’t think the foundation would’ve attracted a lot more support right from its inception if people knew you were the one who started it?’
‘Probably, but then the press would’ve dug into my involvement more. It may have come to light that Ryan—who has recently become the managing director by the way—is my brother. He didn’t want to be in the glare of the spotlight because he was related to me. It’s always been important to him that he’s his own person.’
‘You’ve now come out and announced your patronage of the foundation.’
‘Yes, because I’ve been involved in fundraising for several different charities over the years now, and it won’t look so odd that I’m suddenly adopting one more heavily.’
He was quiet as he leaned back in his chair again and seemed to consider all she’d said.
‘My real name is Sarah Smith.’ Now she’d started with the confessions it seemed difficult to stop, even though she had no idea why she was telling him all this. ‘I took the name Bryant as my modelling name to keep my connection to Ryan private.’
Nick smiled. ‘Well, you couldn’t get a much more common name than Smith!’
Sarah laughed. ‘Exactly. I don’t mind being Sarah Smith legally at all! It makes it so much harder for the media to trace where I live.’
‘Hang on.’ He clapped the heel of his palm against his forehead. ‘I’ve just connected the dots. Your brother is the former Paralympian.’
‘One and the same.’
‘I really admire him.’ He picked up his wine glass almost absently then replaced it without taking a sip. ‘I’ve been wondering at your need to have kept your private life so private.’
‘Now you know. While Ryan’s had a lot of media attention through his sport, that’s something highlighting his achievements. He doesn’t want media attention because of my fame.’
‘I certainly won’t divulge the information to anyone.’ This time he did sip at his wine. ‘What about your parents?’
A shaft of pain speared through her chest. ‘My parents passed away.’
‘I’m sorry. You said they were marine biologists but when you used the past tense I assumed they must’ve retired.’
‘They died in an accident when I was five. My grandmother looked after both Ryan and I until she became ill and passed away. I was fourteen by then and Ryan was thirteen. There were no other relatives and I was deemed too young to advocate for Ryan on my own—even though I had been looking after both Ryan and Gran since she fell ill when I was eleven.’
He let out a shocked breath of air, his brows drawn together as she relayed her history.
‘Social services put us into care.’
‘You went to foster families?’
‘We ended up in an orphanage, although because of the negative stigma of that word they called it a group home,’ she said with some disgust. ‘People who wanted to adopt came to look at the younger kids. There were a couple who saw me and decided they might adopt me, but Gran had insisted Ryan and I stay together, and nobody wanted to take on a boy in a wheelchair. They only saw both of us for our external appearances. The couples didn’t even try to get to know me, they just saw me and wanted me because I looked nice. They didn’t bother trying to get to know Ryan either. They took one look at him and decided they weren’t interested.’
‘You were only fourteen?’
‘Yes. I’d just turned fourteen. Ryan’s a year younger than I am.’
He let out a low whistle and shook his head. ‘That must’ve been so hard on both of you. It’s such a hard age and to have something so traumatic happen to you …’ He broke eye contact from her and appeared to be deep in thought.
‘Obviously it’s not something I broadcast,’ she rushed. ‘Ryan has never spoken about it to the press either.’
‘I understand the need to protect those you’re closest to from the intrusion of the public spotlight.’
‘Anyway, the reason I told you all that was because for a long time it was just Ryan and me.’ She gritted her teeth together before she admitted, ‘I left school and got a job with Rose as a nanny for her children. She promised she’d launch my modelling career when I was older, but I was impatient. I was seduced by the promise of a modelling contract and that’s how I ended up on the yacht.’
‘They promised the potent lure of fame and fortune.’
‘I wasn’t interested in the fame but I wanted to save enough money to get Ryan out of the home. Once Rose got me my first contract, everything happened really quickly. I was awarded such huge contracts I was able to buy an apartment, have him come and live with me and pay for a qualified helper to be there if he needed support and to ensure all his needs were met. I was even able to afford for him to go through university.’ She couldn’t keep the note of pride from her voice as she said, ‘He’s confined to a wheelchair but he’s very bright, very witty and he means the world to me.’ Unexpectedly, her eyes filled with tears. ‘I’m sorry. I’m just so humbled by him and all he’s achieved despite his disability.’
‘Don’t be sorry. You love your brother and you’re proud of him. I think that’s great and I’d love to meet him.’
She busied herself getting a handkerchief out of her bag and began dabbing at her eyes. ‘He said to thank you for putting him in contact with someone to help find a country estate.’
‘I’m happy to help.’
Nick was such a good person it made her feel even worse about how awfully she’d behaved and her tear ducts started working overtime. ‘I’m so sorry. It’s be
en a bit of an emotional evening.’
‘Ah.’ He nodded in sudden realisation. ‘I think I understand. You expected Ryan to live with you for the rest of your life but tonight you’ve found out he’s moving in a new direction.’
Clutching at the handkerchief she stilled her action, amazed he’d understood so quickly. ‘Yes.’
‘You said you were happy for him but what you didn’t say is that you’re also feeling lost now.’
She stared at him. ‘I can’t believe you’ve picked up on my feelings so easily—especially when they’re kind of tangled up and I’m finding it hard to decipher them myself.’ She shook her head. ‘Ryan only told me just before I left home tonight that he’s planning on proposing to Helen so I haven’t had any time to process it properly. Helen, by the way, has been acting as his helper and is the nicest person you could ever hope to meet.’
He raised his eyebrows in question. ‘You think Helen reciprocates his feelings?’
‘Oh, absolutely.’ She smiled because she had no problem believing that. ‘As soon as Ryan spoke about it, I realised it’d been right in front of me the entire time and I hadn’t seen it.’
‘How often are you home?’
‘Fair point. Once every four to six weeks for a few days to a week. But I use Skype everyday I’m away so Ryan and I can keep in contact.’
There was a little silence between them as both of them had a drink. Sarah was a little shell-shocked at how she’d opened up to Nick—especially given that last night she’d been glaring daggers at him. Never in a million years would she have thought that twenty-four hours later she’d be sitting across a table from him, having a drink and opening up about the most important things in her life.
It felt like she’d known him for years.
It felt like he was a friend.
His blue gaze caught hers and his lips quirked with a hint of amusement. ‘I’m thinking back to you wanting a dog but not knowing you wanted a dog.’
A short, dismissive laugh burst from her as she picked up on his line of thinking. ‘Oh no. Now you’re going to tell me my subconscious has decided I want a dog and I want to settle down because that’s what Ryan’s planning to do.’
‘See!’ He moved his hands expressively in front of him. ‘You also have an amateur qualification in psychology!’
They were smiling at each other when Raphael arrived at their table. ‘I hope now is a good moment to bring you your entrees?’
‘Timed to perfection,’ Nick said.
The aroma of the food was delicious. The champagne had definitely relaxed her and Sarah was thoroughly enjoying the company of this exceedingly handsome and perceptive man who sat opposite her.
Ryan’s words replayed again in her mind. Give Nick a chance.
The man she’d loathed and even feared when she’d got out of bed this morning was all too easy to like. But he hadn’t given any indication that he was remotely attracted to her, so her awareness of him was most likely one sided.
It’d been embarrassing enough to have to admit the reason for her poor behaviour. It would be doubly embarrassing and he’d think her completely unstable if he sensed that far from hating him now, she not only found she liked him but was actually attracted to him.
You keep your new feelings hidden away to yourself, Sarah.
‘How is it?’ Nick asked when Sarah had finished her first mouthful of her entree.
‘Delicious. How about yours?’
‘See for yourself.’ He speared one of his prawns onto his fork and held it out to her. ‘Go ahead. Try it.’
The act of parting her lips as he forked the prawn into her mouth seemed shockingly intimate—particularly the way his attention was focused on her mouth and he seemed to register every movement as she chewed and moved the bite-sized piece around her mouth.
A fire ignited deep within her.
Don’t be silly. You’re projecting your feelings onto him.
Despite having just swallowed, her voice was a little scratchy when she finally pronounced, ‘Yum!’
Oh, gosh. If she wasn’t careful she’d give herself away.
‘The food is sensational, but I have to say I’m enjoying your company even more.’ He sounded surprised by his admission and she could hardly blame him.
‘Who’d have thought?’ She laughed. ‘It’s no wonder you’re surprised after our previous encounters, but I’m glad you’re enjoying the evening. You’re making it easy for me to relax and enjoy being here too.’
The rich tone of your voice washes over me and it’s so soothing I could listen to you talk all night. That is, I could if my attention didn’t get snagged every now and then on the way nature has carved your lips so well and if I could stop thinking about how they might feel against my own.
‘I’m glad.’
Their gazes locked and Sarah forgot to breathe. Feeling the heat of awareness begin to prickle across her chest, she wished like crazy that she’d remembered to keep her jacket on. Trying madly to divert his attention from the tell-tale heat reaction, she sought desperately for something to say. ‘Apart from your work for NOCO, tell me about what you do.’
There. That sounded rational enough.
‘I own a development and construction company with Max Bennett and Luca Borghetti.’ His explanation gave her the opportunity to pick up her champagne flute and take a long sip, keeping her arm and her glass right in front of her to try to hide what must be an obvious flush on her chest. ‘We also buy up other companies and try to turn them around and make them profitable. I have a lot of varied commercial interests.’
‘Rose mentioned your parents own the Davenport-Henderson bank. Both Rose and Crystal told me you turned your back on your family’s wealth to strike out on your own.’
‘It’s true.’ He leaned back in his seat.
‘That’s very admirable.’
‘Not really,’ he denied. ‘I was a rebellious teenager. My father and I clashed quite a bit because he wanted me to follow the family line, attend university and get degrees in commerce-law, a masters degree in finance and then follow him into banking.’
‘Did you have your heart set on a different career path or were you just opposing your father?’
‘I wanted to do anything but banking.’
‘How did you end up being a builder?’
‘I fell in love.’
‘With building?’
‘No—’ he laughed, ‘—not with building. Although I found I enjoyed physical labouring and there was an enormous satisfaction in construction.’ He looked away from her for a moment and there was a wistfulness in his eyes when he told her, ‘I fell in love with my high school sweetheart.’
‘Oh.’ She had to swallow before she could confirm, ‘Crystal said you’d been married to her sister.’
He nodded.
Sarah got the impression he still loved his wife very much.
What had happened to her?
Had they divorced or had she passed away?
She bit back the questions that begged to be answered and waited for him to expand on the story.
‘We were teenagers. Mandy was the daughter of one of the gardeners who worked at my parents’ country estate.’ He took another bite of his entree before he continued. ‘We went to different schools—I was at one of the best money could buy, while she went to the local school. We only saw each other during holidays but she understood me like nobody else did.’
Lucky Mandy to have won his heart. ‘What happened?’
‘My father didn’t approve of the relationship. He was fairly rigid in his thinking back then.’
‘The gardener’s daughter wasn’t good enough for you?’
‘Nothing so snobby. Dad’s never been into class distinction.’ He put his glass on the table and straightened in his chair. ‘He thought my relationship with Mandy would mess up his plans for my future. It turned out he was right. Completely without his blessing, we married when we were eighteen and moved to London. I was dete
rmined to make it on my own. I used a small portion of my trust fund to put myself through night school and I did a building course.’
‘Sir, Madam. I’ll clear your plates, if I may?’
‘Yes, thank you. We really enjoyed our entrees.’ Sarah had been so engrossed in Nick’s story she hadn’t even noticed the waiter until he’d spoken.
When the waiter left, Nick continued. ‘It was on the building site that I met Max and Luca. We ended up doing our building courses together and eventually forming a company once we’d finished our certification. We had big plans.’ His words were accompanied by a grand gesture with his hand. ‘We had very little practical experience but each of us had a burning ambition to make it big. We worked hard, hired people who knew more than we did, and we put everything we had into learning from them.’
‘From what Rose told me, you succeeded.’
‘We did. Luca came to London from Italy. He was hungry for success and wanted to distance himself from his father who was wealthy and powerful but had shady connections. Max … Well, Max came from a very loving but far less wealthy background and he’d fallen in love with an heiress. He was trying to become wealthy not only to prove that he wasn’t chasing her fortune, but also that he could be just as financially successful as her family.’
‘Gosh. I can’t imagine being in the same room with three such driven men.’ It was impressive enough sitting across the table from one of the trio. En masse they must be a force to be reckoned with.
Nick laughed. ‘It’s always been a dynamic combination. We fire off each other, inspire each other and always have each other’s backs even though we are relentless in our ribbing of each other.’
‘It must be incredible to have that level of closeness.’ It wasn’t a bond she’d ever experienced except with her brother. Again, she thought how alone she’d be once Ryan and Helen moved out.
‘It’s good to have found friends I can trust absolutely implicitly. We’ve all called on each other time and again over the years when we’ve been in need of support—even to the point where one can ask the others to step up and represent him at business meetings that are actually companies owned individually rather than owned by the three of us.’
Seduced by the Billionaire Page 11