The second the key was turned, she pulled the door open aggressively.
d.a.m.n! d.a.m.n! Dropping her hand away from the door, she clenched it into a fist at her side. She would not appreciate that broad expanse of naked male flesh. Her body would not react to him in a s.e.xual way. That was all over between them. His powerful male physique would not be her Achilles" heel.
Get your things and get out." Each of her words was clipped.
No." The word was strong and adamant, but his tension and uncertainty were palpable. You need to give me a chance to put things into perspective."
Whose perspective? Yours?"
Rigby did offer to recommend me for the role of Managing Director of the company, but only because he was worried that you were intent on a.s.suming the role more out of duty than out of desire."
When, Logan? When did he make this offer?"
Yesterday afternoon as we toured the winery." He tunnelled his fingers through his hair.
You put that idea into his head."
No."
I don"t believe you." She crossed her arms across her chest. I"d only just finished telling you about my own doubts. You took them and ran off to Rigby to suit your own purposes."
He grasped her shoulders. I did nothing of the sort. It was your grandfather who had reservations about you in that role. It wasn"t that he didn"t think you were capable of it, it was just that he thought you should have more out of life than safeguarding the future of the company he"d built up."
Enter Logan, knight-in-shining-armour, ready to charge in on his white steed and save the damsel in distress." She pulled away from his touch. How n.o.ble of you to offer to step in and save the day."
Every line of his body was tense. I told him I didn"t want the position. I told him to speak to you and find out what you wanted."
But by then, you"d already convinced him you"d be the better person for the job, right?" G.o.d, she"d been so stupid and left herself so vulnerable.
No." Logan looked like he wanted to smash the h.e.l.l out of something or someone. Please listen to me, Sophie."
She walked away from him, sat down on a chair and looked at her watch. Five minutes, tops, then you"re out of here and there"ll be no coming back."
He didn"t waste a second. He made the offer for me to become MD on Sat.u.r.day afternoon. It was the first time he"d mentioned it and I refused."
Sat.u.r.day? Logan must be lying. Felix said the will had been changed on Friday night.
I also turned down Rigby"s offer to allow me to buy his company shares once we were married."
Why would you turn his offer down when you"d already started buying shares? Did Grandfather know about that?"
Logan sat down on the chair adjacent to hers. A fleeting shadow appeared in his expression and she saw him swallow. Clinically detached, safe now in her block of ice, she noted his body"s guilty reaction.
He did." His shoulders rounded. Buying those shares was a huge mistake. I admit that I couldn"t see beyond my need to marry you. My initial thought was to buy the shares up and if necessary to mount a take-over bid for Carlisle Mining so that I"d put you in a position where you"d agree to become my wife rather than losing your grandfather"s company."
Her eyes widened in horror. You thought you"d blackmail me into marriage?"
It was a rash, stupid idea and I realised it almost as soon as I"d put the decision into motion." He raised both of his hands to cover his face momentarily. I"m more sorry than I can express, Sophie. I was going to talk to you about all of this."
When?"
This morning. I"d already decided to gift the shares I had bought to you as a wedding present. I was going to tell you about the offer Rigby had made, but then I got the phone call about Charlotte."
How convenient. You married me first!" The words tasted bitter on her tongue.
I had no idea he had our wedding ceremony planned, and I had no knowledge that he"d changed his will until Felix just announced that. In fact, we don"t even know yet whether what Felix has told us really is the truth."
Sophie looked at him and felt...nothing. Even anger had deserted her. Now she just felt hollow.
I"m telling you the truth." His tone implored her to believe him.
She expelled a breath of disbelief. I don"t believe you. You"re a successful businessman, Logan. You always know exactly what you"re doing."
In business, maybe, but obviously not in my personal life."
Huh!" She gritted her teeth together so tight her jaw started to hurt.
I changed my mind about the take-over bid. I wanted you to marry me because you wanted to, not because you"d been forced into it."
Of course you did. Was that part of your agreement with my grandfather as well?" she asked in a venomous tone. Was there a little clause written in to make sure there was no undue force applied, or was it a gentleman"s agreement over a gla.s.s of cognac and a cigar?"
Sophie. Please, I -"
Forget that idea. You"re really no gentleman are you?"
d.a.m.n it, Sophie! How many times do I need to tell you I"m sorry?" He shook his head and frowned. You were refusing to marry me. I not only needed to be married -"
That"s no excuse," she said bitterly. I was equally as desperate to make my grandfather happy, but I would never have contemplated blackmail to get my way."
He stood up and took a step toward her.
No." She jumped up from her chair as well and retreated a step, but wouldn"t give an inch on their verbal showdown. You keep harking back to your desperation to marry because of Charlotte, but now I realise that was all a smokescreen. What you wanted all along was Carlisle Mining!"
That"s not true."
Of course it is. If you just wanted a wife to win your court case, you could"ve paid anyone to play that role. It was so easy to con me with those lines about friendship, respect and pa.s.sion."
The troubled light in his eyes deepened, as did the furrow between his eyebrows. Sophie, I didn"t lie to you. I meant every word I said."
Save it, Logan."
He moved toward her again, and this time he placed his hands over hers. She kept them still, willing herself to feel no spark of attraction, but she resisted when he urged her body closer.
The last twenty-four hours have been a rollercoaster ride, Sophie. I can understand it if you need time to get things sorted in your own mind, but don"t allow Felix to poison what we have."
What we have?" She wrenched away entirely from his touch. We have a marriage based on the mutual need to deceive others, and on your thirst for acquisition of another company. Nothing more."
That"s not all we have and you know it!"
What more did we have, Logan? Trust? Oh, well, that one"s been blown out of the water."
Sophie -"
Respect? Gee, I guess not, because I certainly don"t respect someone who"d resort to blackmail to get his way." He opened his mouth again, but there was no way she was listening to anything he had to say. Friendship? Hm. No. Friends can trust and respect each other. Ah...I guess that leaves pa.s.sion, and I have that for you in spades. I"m pa.s.sionate about you getting out and staying out of my life!"
His lips thinned but he obviously realised it was futile to argue with her in the mood she was in. Good, because she had no intention of listening to any more of his lies.
We had a deal, Logan. You upheld your end to a point, and my grandfather died happy. I"m going to do the honourable thing for Charlotte"s sake and uphold my end." She moved so the chair was between them. Provided we don"t have to be anywhere near each other, I"ll carry on the charade of being your wife. You can present your marriage certificate to the court as you apply for custody of Charlotte. The day after you get custody, I"m filing for a divorce and I"m going to make d.a.m.n sure you don"t benefit from Grandfather"s will. G.o.d help you if you"ve conned me about your feelings for Charlotte. If I get any hint that you"re failing to provide for her in any of her needs, I"ll come for you and I"ll go for the jugular, because I genuinely care about her plight." She put her hands on her hips. Now, get out!"
The look he gave her was a.s.sessing. I"ll get my things and give you s.p.a.ce tonight. Get some sleep, Sophie. Things will be clearer in the morning."
Don"t you dare patronise me, you arrogant son-of-a-b.i.t.c.h. Things are clear right now."
Without saying another word, he walked past her, grabbed the few items he"d unpacked and threw them into his overnight bag.
Think on this, Sophie, before you throw it all away. I never wanted Carlisle Mining. You said yourself that I could easily have bought a wife. The fact is, I started out needing but not wanting a wife, and I ended up both needing and wanting you. Only you."
It was only when he"d walked out the door that a tiny emotion flickered to life in the vacuum that used to contain her heart. Annoyed, she tried to put a name to it. Hopelessness? A sense of loss? No. Whatever it was, she wouldn"t give into it. She was Rigby Carlisle"s granddaughter, and he"d bred her tougher than that.
Chapter 21.
Just over a week later, Sophie pushed her foot down on the accelerator of her red Jaguar convertible as she headed back to Sydney. In the s.p.a.ce of a couple of weeks her life had been turned upside down.
Gripping the steering wheel harder, she tried to push away the heaviness that threatened to push down so hard on her chest it would stop her breathing. Every morning, waking alone, she mourned the loss of Logan as her lover. Awakening in Logan"s arms, snuggling into him, and making love with him had been the perfect start to each day when she hadn"t known his true colours.
It was impossible to banish his face from her mind. His swarthy, piratical good looks still heated her blood even though she knew she"d been completely set up. The deep blue of his eyes had alternatively challenged her, flirted with her and mirrored his desire and admiration for her. How easily she"d been conned!
I can"t believe you broke up with him! What were you thinking?" Sue"s words and horrified tone rang in Sophie"s ears. G.o.d, Sophie. He was the best thing that ever happened to you. Look at how happy you"ve been!"
Sue had heard the headline news of Rigby"s death and had phoned Sophie the morning after she"d sent Logan away. Upon hearing that her marriage to Logan had lasted less than twenty-four hours, and the reason for their breakup, Sue had called her all types of a fool. Her friend had urged her not to trust any of Felix"s allegations, yet Logan had been buying up shares in the company. Logan hadn"t denied that Grandfather had offered him the company on the proviso that he married Sophie. When the will had finally been read the day after Grandfather had died, all Felix"s accusations had proven correct.
Are you sure this is so cut and dried? Sue had asked. Sounds to me like you didn"t give the guy a good chance to explain himself. Why not get together face to face with him, and hear him out?"
Sounded reasonable, but Sophie wasn"t in any mood to be reasonable. She was still too wounded. He skewers my heart with a bayonet and you want me to go back on the battlefield for a second stabbing? I don"t think so," she"d said. Having done the unthinkable and fallen in love with Logan, his had betrayal cut her up to the bone.
Now Sophie came up on a slower vehicle, checked her mirrors and indicated to move into the right lane. There was another car coming up on her right, but she had plenty of room to overtake the car ahead. Depressing her foot on the accelerator, the car shot forward with a burst of speed and she pa.s.sed the vehicle.
That"s what she needed to do in life. Accelerate. Move forward. She shouldn"t be thinking about her friend"s reaction, and she certainly shouldn"t be dwelling on her split from Logan, but leaving behind her lover was proving more difficult than she would ever have imagined.
Whoa. She had to stop this a.n.a.lysis and self-pity. Bring back the Ice Princess. The problem was that Logan had melted the Ice Princess away.
Sophie would be Managing Director of Carlisle Mining, despite Rigby"s letter to each board member. She"d already approached most of the members and let them know that she would challenge Logan, should he still have the barefaced cheek to apply for the position. Their reactions had been wary, because Rigby"s wishes still held a lot of sway with the old guard. She"d at least managed to delay the board from meeting for a fortnight out of respect for Rigby. By then, Charlotte"s custody case would be over, and she would"ve filed for divorce and could expose the duplicity Logan had practised. Hopefully the board would forgive her for her stupidity in her private life and be able to see that her business knowledge and practice was worthy of her becoming MD.
She"d already met with lawyers last week to take steps against Rigby"s shares being sold to Logan. If Logan thought he"d ever had a fight on his hands before in business, he hadn"t seen anything. She"d fight with everything at her disposal to become MD and keep the company. It was what she"d told herself she wanted ever since she"d been a little girl. She would hold on to the conviction that it would be enough.
Liar! You know d.a.m.ned well now that it will never be enough.
It would have to be, as there was nothing else for her. A firm believer that life was what you made of it, she"d find happiness in knowing she was looking out for her employees and shareholders, and doing a good job. Logan was an opportunist and he wouldn"t get a chance to reap the benefits of his marriage to her.
How he"d managed to con Rigby was still something she was trying to figure out, because her grandfather had always been so astute. Still, Logan had known he didn"t have long to live and had obviously managed to persuade him that Sophie didn"t truly want to be MD. When Daphne was more composed, Sophie would speak to her and try to fathom what had happened, but at the moment, Daphne was still too fragile to raise the subject with.
Mostly through the daylight hours, Sophie had no time to dwell on the personal h.e.l.l she felt from Logan"s betrayal. Getting through Rigby"s funeral, supporting Daphne, reporting Felix"s fraud to the authorities, and contacting lawyers and board members had occupied her time completely.
As stressful as it had been, she was thankful to have the strong tide and swirl of those other issues to keep her buoyant. Without them it would be too easy to drown in self-pity and despair. As it was, the nights were long and torturous, and she wanted to avoid sleep completely because that state only left her vulnerable to Logan"s visits. She"d directed the security team Rigby had in place to keep Logan away from her, but he still haunted her dreams. No security team was effective in evicting him from her mind the second she closed her eyes.
As she reached the corporate offices, she avoided a group of reporters who were gathered outside the entrance to the Carlisle building"s staff car park.
The Carlisle family had been headline news all week. News of her marriage and Rigby"s death had been followed by bulletins regarding Felix"s arrest. Media speculation was intense that Felix"s betrayal of his grandfather"s trust had pushed Rigby over the edge. Then there was the scandal that Logan had not been present at Rigby"s funeral, and that it had been Jake and Amanda Formosa who had flanked her and Daphne.
Thankfully the press didn"t know that Logan had turned up to escort her to the funeral but had been denied access by the security men, who were now a visible presence around the estate. Sophie had been spared from seeing him on a day that rated as one of the worst in her life. Before Felix"s revelations, Logan"s presence would"ve been such a comfort to her. The absence of her husband" was a bitter reminder of her stupidity. All her future dealings with Logan would be handled by her lawyers, and her security team wouldn"t let him anywhere near her, so thankfully she"d never again have to deal directly with the low-life b.a.s.t.a.r.d who"d penetrated her defences and infiltrated himself deep into her heart.
Each day, she struggled to piece her shattered heart back together. Thankfully, n.o.body could see her inner pain. Unlike a broken arm, a broken heart was something she could hide from the world. Sophie a.s.sured herself that she"d get over Logan in time. She"d been hurt before and she"d survived. Never again, however, would she give her heart away.
Once she was safely in her office, Sophie sank gratefully into the chair behind her desk and closed her eyes. Her top priority was to instil some confidence into the staff that she was actually in charge, and capable of steering the Carlisle Mining ship through the turbulent waters without running aground.
Opening her eyelids, her gaze strayed to the coffee table and she recalled the impromptu Thai meal Logan had brought.
Even based on a lie, hadn"t the time they"d shared been worth it?
She jumped up from her chair, angry at the insidious thought. The question plagued her and she berated herself for being a weakling for even thinking it. No! She would not keep remembering the wonderful sensations of lovemaking and the closeness shared as they"d talked together through the nights. She wouldn"t miss it because he"d just been playing her. It hadn"t been true.
The intercom on her desk buzzed. Sophie, it"s Daphne on line three," her PA told her.
Poor Daphne. The older woman was feeling the loss of Rigby every bit as much as Sophie, if not more so. Rigby"s will had stipulated that the t.i.tle deeds for Carlisle Estate in the Hunter Valley be transferred into Daphne"s name for the duration of her life, only reverting to Sophie upon Daphne"s death, but Daphne had refused the estate and the income it derived. The woman who had been Rigby"s love said she didn"t want to be the focus of media attention, and that it would be too painful for her to live on the estate without him.
Over the weekend Sophie had accepted her decision, and instead had insisted she choose any of Rigby"s other properties to call home. Daphne wouldn"t accept the deeds, but finally agreed to live in an apartment in Sydney"s eastern suburbs rent-free. Sophie had also ensured that Daphne accepted the amount that Rigby had bequeathed so that Daphne could live very comfortably.
Hi Daphne," Sophie said as she took the call.
h.e.l.lo Sophie, dear." Daphne came right to the point. Can you get away from the office? We need to talk straight away."
Her diary was still free today as today was Charlotte"s custody hearing, and she hadn"t been sure whether she"d be called to testify. I"m free. Are you well?"
Yes, but I do need to see you away from the office. I"ll meet you at that little Italian restaurant that Rigby loved so much."
Oh jeez. Why did it have to be the same restaurant Logan had taken her to?
Okay." Sophie was a little unsure about the meeting, wondering what they needed to speak about so urgently. Can you tell me what this is all about?"
Daphne hesitated before she replied, Not over the telephone. Can you be there in ten minutes?"