by Maya Banks
She relaxed against him, refusing to spoil their first moments home with senseless, petty arguments.
Home. The word struck her in the chest, and even as she thought it, she shook her head in mute denial. She had no home.
“Is there something wrong?” he asked as they stopped at the door.
Embarrassed over her emotional display, she uttered a low denial.
He opened the door, and they stepped into the expansive foyer. Beyond was an elegant double staircase curving toward the top where a hallway connected the two sides of the house.
“Come into the living room, and I’ll see to your things.”
She allowed him to lead her to a comfortable leather couch that afforded a view of the patio through triple French doors. It would be a perfect breakfast spot, she thought with longing. The morning sun would shine perfectly on the garden table.
What would it be like to have a home like this? Filled with laughter and children. And then it occurred to her that it was entirely possible that part of that dream would come true.
She looked down at the gentle mound covered by her thin shirt and slowly smoothed her hand over it. The baby kicked, and Jewel smiled.
She wanted to give her daughter all the things she’d never had, the things she longed for. Love, acceptance. A stable home.
Would Piers provide those things? Everything but love. Could Jewel love her baby enough to compensate for a father who didn’t want her or her mother?
Damn if she hadn’t done what she’d sworn never to do.
Piers traipsed inside the living room, hauling her two suitcases with him.
“I’ll take these upstairs, and then I’ll be down to make us some lunch. Is there anything you need in the meantime?”
Unnerved by his consideration, she shook her head. “I’m fine.”
“Good, then I’ll be right back.”
She heard him rattle up the stairs, and she returned her perusal moodily to the outside. No longer content to look from afar, she got up and walked to the glass doors. She pressed her hand to the panes as she gazed over the magnificently rendered gardens.
It was extremely beautiful, but it almost looked sterile, as if no one ever touched it, or even breathed on it for that matter. It seemed…artificial. Not a living, breathing entity. Not like the ocean. It was always alive, rolling, sometimes peaceful and serene and at other times angry and forbidding.
A hand slipped over her shoulder, and she jumped. As she turned, she saw that Piers stood behind her, his expression mild and unthreatening.
“Sorry if I startled you. I called from across the room, but you didn’t hear me obviously.”
She offered a half smile, suddenly nervous in his presence.
“It’s beautiful isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is,” she agreed. “I prefer the ocean, though. It’s more…untamed.”
“You find these gardens tame?”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“I suppose I can see your point. Would you like to eat now? I had something dropped by before we arrived. It will only take a few minutes to warm everything up.”
She turned sideways to face him. “Could we eat outside? It’s a beautiful day.”
“If you wish. Why don’t you go on outside. I’ll bring out the food in a moment.”
His footsteps retreated across the wooden floors. When he was gone, she slipped out of the French doors and onto the stone patio.
The coolness caused her to shiver, but it was a beautiful day, one of the few where nothing marred the blue sky, and she didn’t want to waste it by returning indoors.
She settled into one of the chairs to wait for Piers. It seemed odd to have this arrogant man waiting on her. He was clearly used to having the tables turned and being served.
The doors opened, and Piers elbowed his way out carrying two trays. He was a man of continuing surprises. He’d shown up at the hospital in time for her release, wearing a pair of faded jeans and a casual polo shirt, a far cry from the expensive designer clothing she knew he usually wore. He looked almost approachable. No less desirable, but definitely less threatening. In a more cynical moment, she wondered if he’d done it on purpose to lull her into a false sense of security.
He set a tray in front of her then placed his own across the table before taking a seat. She picked up her fork but made the mistake of looking over at him before she began to eat. He was staring intently at her, his food untouched.
“We have a lot to talk about, Jewel. After you eat, I plan to have the conversation we should have had a long time ago.”
He sounded ominous, and a prickle of unease swept over her. What was left for them to discuss? He’d demanded she marry him, and she’d agreed. He’d demanded she move in with him, and she’d agreed. Quite frankly her acquiescence was starting to irritate the hell out of her.
They ate in silence, though she knew he watched her. The heat of his stare blazed over her skin, but she refused to acknowledge his perusal. He already had enough power over her.
When she’d finished, she put her fork down, and still refusing to look at him, she turned her gaze back to the gardens.
“Ignoring me won’t help.”
Finally she turned, sure she must look guilty. Now she felt childish for being so obvious, but the man made her nervous.
“We need to clear the air on a few matters. Mainly your firing.”
She stiffened and clenched her fingers into small fists. “I’d just as soon not discuss it. No good can come of it, and I am supposed to keep my stress level down.”
“I never intended to have you fired, Jewel. It was a despicable thing to have happened to you, and I accept full blame.”
“Well who the hell else’s fault would it be?” she demanded.
“It wasn’t what I intended,” he said again.
“Whether you intended it or not, it’s what happened. Mighty coincidental that I got the sack as soon as you found out who I was, wouldn’t you say?”
Piers blew out his breath, and his gaze narrowed. “You aren’t going to make this easy, are you?”
She leaned back, this time giving him the full intensity of her stare. “Why should it be easy for you? It wasn’t easy for me. I had no money left, no job. I came here because it was the only place I had to stay, and waitressing was the only quick job I could land. Then I started getting sick.” She stopped and shook her head. She wasn’t going to get into it with him.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.”
He looked and sounded sincere. Enough so that her next question slipped out before she could think better of it.
“If I wasn’t supposed to be fired, how exactly did I end up sacked and escorted out of the hotel?”
Piers winced and dragged a hand through his hair. “As I said, it’s completely my fault. I told my human resources manager to reassign you, or promote you or even to pay you for the term of your contract but I’m afraid the first words out of my mouth were to get rid of you. The rest, unfortunately, he didn’t hear because the connection was severed. By the time I returned to the hotel and discovered the misunderstanding, you were gone. I had no luck tracing your whereabouts. In fact, I’d given up ever hearing from you again until you called.”
She stared at him in disbelief. First, she couldn’t believe he’d actually admitted his wrongdoing. Second, she couldn’t fathom him looking for her afterward. It sounded suspiciously like he genuinely regretted what had happened.
“I don’t get it,” she said with genuine confusion. “Why couldn’t we have just been adults about it? Why was it so important to you to get rid of me? I realize it wasn’t an ideal situation, but it was an honest mistake. Neither of us knew who the other was or God knows I wouldn’t have gone to bed with you that night.”
“Then I guess it’s a good thing you didn’t know who I was,” he said softly.
She looked down at her belly. “Yes, I don’t regret it now at all.”
“Did you then?”
He didn�
�t look offended, only genuinely curious. He’d been honest with her so far, so she couldn’t be anything other than completely honest with him.
“No. I didn’t regret our night together.”
He seemed satisfied with her answer. “To answer your question, it wasn’t personal. What I mean is that it’s not as if it was something you did. I have a strict policy about allowing anyone to work closely with me who has had any sort of a personal relationship with me. It’s a necessary rule, unfortunately.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You say that as if you were once burned.”
“In a manner of speaking. My brother’s personal assistant was enamored with him, but she was also selling company secrets and framed my sister-in-law.”
“Sounds like a soap opera,” Jewel muttered.
He chuckled. “It seemed like one at the time.”
“You could have simply told me. You owed me that much given the fact we had spent the night together,” she said, pinning him with the force of her gaze. “If you’d been up front with me, none of this would have happened. There would have been no misunderstanding.”
“You’re right. I’m afraid the shock of finding out who you were made my judgment particularly bad. I’m sorry.”
His quietly spoken apology softened some of her anger. If she was honest, she still held resentment for the easy way he’d summarily dismissed her from his life. Not that she’d expected undying love and commitment, but hadn’t the night meant something? Even enough to rate a personal dismissal instead of the job being handed off to a stooge?
Still, if this marriage was to be anything short of difficult and laced with animosity, she knew he had to let go of some of that resentment. Be the bigger person and all that jazz. Funny how taking the high road was never particularly fun.
“I accept your apology.”
Surprise flickered in his dark eyes. “Do you really, I wonder?”
“I didn’t say you were my best friend,” she said dryly. “Merely that I’d accepted your apology. It seems the thing to do in light of our impending nuptials.”
Amusement replaced the surprise. “I have a feeling we’re going to get along just fine together, yineka mou.” His gaze dropped to her stomach. “That is if you’re telling me the truth.”
For a moment, pain shadowed his eyes, and she wondered what sort of hell occurred in his past that would make him so distrustful. It went beyond mistrust. He didn’t want to be the father of her child. He wanted her to be a liar and a deceiver. It was as if he knew how to handle those. But a woman telling him the truth? That was the aberration.
She must be insane to walk into this type of situation. There was every way for her to lose and no way to win.
“It does me little good to tell you that you’re the father when you’re determined not to believe me,” she said evenly. “We’ll have the paternity tests done and then you’ll know.”
“Yes. Indeed we’ll know,” he said softly.
“If you’ll excuse me, I need to go dig out my laptop,” she said as she rose from her seat. “I need to send an e-mail.”
“And I have arrangements to make for our wedding.”
She nodded because if she tried to say anything, she’d choke. Not looking back at him, she hurried to the doors and went inside. Piers hadn’t told her which bedroom was hers, but she’d find it easily enough.
She hit the stairs, and after going into three rooms on the upper level, she found her bags lying on the bed.
She unpacked her clothing first and put everything away before settling back onto the bed with her laptop. She checked her e-mail, but didn’t see anything from Kirk. Not that she expected to. Sometimes they went months with no communication depending on his assignment and whether she was in a place she could e-mail him. Still, she felt like she owed him an explanation, and so she spilled the entire sordid tale in an e-mail that took her half an hour to compose.
When she was done, she was worn out and feeling more than a little foolish. There was no advice Kirk could offer, but she felt better for unloading some of her worries. He’d know better than anyone her fears of marriage and commitment.
Leaving her laptop open, she leaned back on the soft pillows to stare up at the ceiling. Contemplating her future had never been quite so terrifying as it was now.
Piers walked up the stairs toward Jewel’s room. She’d been sequestered for two hours now. Surely that was enough time to have completed her personal business.
He stopped at her door and knocked softly, but he heard no answer from within. Concerned, he pushed open the door and stepped inside.
Jewel was curled on her side, her head buried in the down pillows. Sound asleep. She looked exhausted.
Her laptop was precariously close to the edge of the bed, and he hurried over to retrieve it before it fell. When he placed it on the dresser, the screen came back up and he saw that a new e-mail message was highlighted by the cursor. It was from someone named Kirk.
With a frown, he scrolled down the preview screen to read the short message.
Jewel,
I’m on my way home. Don’t do anything until I get there. Okay? Just hang tight. I’ll be there as soon as I can hop a flight.
Kirk
Piers stiffened. Hell would freeze over before he’d allow this man to interfere in his and Jewel’s relationship. She’d agreed to marry him, and marry him she would. He didn’t question why it was suddenly so important that the wedding take place, but he’d be damned if he let another man call the shots.
With no hesitation, he clicked on the delete button and then followed it to the trash bin to permanently delete it from her computer. Afterward, he pulled her e-mail back up and then replaced the laptop on her bed, making sure it was far enough from the edge so that it wouldn’t topple over.
For a long moment, he stood by her bed and stared down at her sleeping face. Drawn to the pensive expression, even in rest, he touched a few strands of her blond hair, smoothing them from her cheek.
What demons existed in her life? She didn’t trust him. Not that he blamed her, but it went beyond anger or a sense of betrayal. She wore shadows like most women wore makeup. Somewhere, some way, someone had hurt her badly. They had that in common.
As much as he’d like to swear never to hurt her and to protect her from those who would, he knew that if she’d lied to him about the child, that he’d crush her without a second thought.
Eight
J ewel studied the unsmiling face of the man she’d chosen to represent her interests and wondered if any lawyer had a sense of humor or if they were all cold, calculating sharks.
But then she supposed when it came to her future and that of her child, she wanted the biggest, baddest shark in the ocean.
“The agreement is pretty straightforward, Miss Henley. It is in essence a prenuptial agreement which states that Mr. Anetakis’s assets remain his in the event of a divorce and that yours remain yours.”
Jewel snorted in amusement. What assets? She didn’t have a damn thing, and Piers knew it.
“What else?” she asked impatiently. With a man like Piers, nothing could be as simple as it appeared. There were strings, hidden provisions. She just had to find them. “I want a complete explanation, line by line.”
“Very well.”
He shoved his glasses on and picked up the sheaf of papers as he took his seat again.
“Mr. Anetakis will provide a settlement for you regardless of the paternity of the child you carry. If DNA testing proves the child his, then he will retain custody of the child in the event of a divorce.”
Her mouth fell open. “What?” She made a grab for the paper her lawyer held, scanning the document until she found the clause he referred to.
“He’s out of his damn mind. There is no way in hell I’ll sign anything that gives up custody of my child.”
“I can strike the clause, but it’s possible he won’t agree.”
She leaned forward, her breath hissing through her t
eeth. “I don’t give a damn what he agrees to. I won’t sign it unless this so-called clause is removed in its entirety.”
Furious, she stood and snatched the paper back as the lawyer reached for it. “Never mind. I’ll see to it myself.”
She stormed out of the lawyer’s office into the waiting room where Piers sat. He was sitting on the far side, his laptop open and his cell phone to his ear. When he looked up and saw her, he slowly closed the laptop.
“Is there a problem?”
“You bet there is,” she said behind gritted teeth.
She thrust the offending piece of paper at him, pointing to the custody clause.
“If you think I’m signing anything that gives away custody of my child, you’re an idiot. Over my dead body will I ever be separated from my child. As far as I’m concerned, you can take this…this prenuptial agreement and stick it where the sun doesn’t shine.”
He raised one dark eyebrow and stared back at her in silence.
“You don’t seriously think that I would give up custody of my child, do you? If indeed it turns out I am the father.”
She threw up her hands in exasperation. “You just don’t miss a chance to take your potshots at me. I’m well aware of the fact that you don’t believe this child is yours. Believe me, I get it. Reminding me at every opportunity just serves to further piss me off. And haven’t you ever heard of a thing called joint custody? You know, that thing called compromise, where the parents consider what’s best for the child and agree to give her equal time with her parents?”
“If the child is mine, I don’t intend to see her on a part-time basis, nor do I intend I should have to work around your schedule. I can certainly provide more for her than you can. I’m sure she’d be much better off with me.”
She curled her fingers into a tight fist, crumpling the document as rage surged through her veins like acid.
“You sanctimonious bastard. Where do you get off suggesting that my child would be better off with you? Because you have more money? Well big whoop. Money can’t buy love, or security. It can’t buy smiles or happiness. All the things a child needs most. Quite frankly, the fact that you think she would be so much better off with you tells me you don’t have the first clue about children or love. How could you? I doubt you’ve ever loved anyone in your life.”
Her chest heaved, and the paper was now a crumpled, soggy scrap in her hand. She started to hurl it at his feet, but he quickly rose and gripped her wrist, preventing her action. His eyes smoldered with rage, the first sign of real emotion she’d seen in him.
“You assume far too much,” he said icily.
She wrenched her hand free and took a step backward. “I won’t sign it, Piers. As far as I’m concerned this marriage doesn’t need to take place. There is no amount of desperation that would make me sign away my rights to my child.”
He studied her for a long moment, his face as immovable as stone. “All right,” he finally said. “I’ll have my lawyer strike the clause. I’ll call him now and he can courier over a new agreement.”
“I’d wait,” she said stiffly. “I’m not finished with my stipulations yet. I’ll let you know when we’re done.”
She turned and stalked back into the lawyer’s office, only to find him standing in the doorway, amusement carved on his face when she’d sworn he couldn’t possibly have a sense of humor.
“What are you looking at?” she growled.
He sobered, although his eyes still had a suspicious gleam. “Shall we get on to your additions to the agreement?”
Three hours later, the final contract had been couriered from Piers’s lawyer’s office, and she and Piers read over and signed it together.
Jewel had insisted on an ironclad agreement that stated they would share custody of their child but that she was the primary custodian. She could tell Piers wasn’t entirely happy with the wording, but she’d been resolute in her refusal to sign anything less.
“Clearly you’ve never learned the art of negotiation,” Piers said dryly as they left the lawyer’s office.