‘My father has some properties that could be sold and the proceeds put towards repayment.’ Eager to put that point across, Selena partially evaded his gaze as she became aware of the force of his scrutiny. Not for the first time she wondered why he made her feel so uncomfortable. Her throat was tight, her muscles clenched tensely. Was it fear?‘If any of those properties were purchased with stolen funds and your father is found guilty in court, those assets could be seized and sold to provide compensation.’ Alejandro countered That smooth assurance sliced through Selena’s hopes like a blade and she felt the full force of her own ignorance. ‘I wasn’t aware of that.’His agile intellect was already engaged in wondering what favour she had intended to ask in return for the repayment of the stolen funds. In spite of what he had said to her, he was aware that the courts were often reluctant to seize and sell private assets, particularly where there was a wife involved. It would not be th
Selena surveyed him with as much unrestrained amazement as she would have shown a zebra that suddenly appeared out of nowhere to walk across the office. She had always had a problem seeing herself as a sexual being. The passes that came her way were usually pretty half-hearted because she was much better at being sympathetic and sensible than sexy. That a guy of such immense wealth and supposed sophistication should target her as if she were a provocative Manikin struck her as unbelievable.‘Is this some kind of a joke?’ she asked tensely. ‘I don’t do jokes.’Selena studied him, poised there so straight and tall in his sharply tailored black designer business suit. He was devastatingly handsome but she crushed that thought as soon as it entered her mind. ‘But are you really suggesting that if I sleep with you you might reconsider prosecuting my father?’‘Yes.’ Alejandro made that confirmation.Selena was stunned by that unhesitating agreement. ‘But that’s morally wrong.’‘We’re consen
Joshua Lynch slowly shook his distinguished head. ‘I’ll have nothing left, not even my independence.’‘The valuations aren’t what you hoped? Even for the city apartment?’ Selena questioned anxiously.‘I would say that the figures are anything but generous.’Selena frowned. ‘Of course property prices have fallen in some areas. How did the Candy Manor and nursery fare in the valuation stakes?’‘The estate is listed and protected by law,’ Joshua reminded her. ‘That keeps its value low because there are too many rules preventing more profitable types of development. The nursery is a small enterprise. You’ve worked wonders there but...’‘It’s hardly big business,’ Selena filled in heavily.‘Even so, if selling up protects me from having to make a court appearance, how can I possibly complain?’ her father asked her in a more upbeat tone. ‘As for what you told me about you and the owner of Miller, that’s made all this even more amazing.’Amazing? It seemed an odd choice of word. Selena colou
Selena drove slowly back to the nursery in the van. There was nothing more that she could do for her father at present, she thought unhappily. He was going to have to deal with the fact that his life was never going to be the same again, but that would take time. Her brow was pounding out her tension. Reasoning was a challenge when she felt as though the shock of recent events had set up a barrier between her and her wits. She was still struggling to accept that, in the space of ten days, her whole life had fallen down round her like a house of cards and with it the future that she had taken for granted. The village where she had lived from birth would no longer be her home. She would be barred from the gardens where she had grown up and happily worked whenever she had a moment free. The business she had laboured so hard to build would pass on to a stranger and might not even survive. After all, the profit margins at the nursery were low and, with Joy on maternity leave, she was worki
Alejandro said nothing. With difficulty she silenced the self-protective words on her tongue. His uninterest was blatant but she reminded herself that she owed it to the Candy Manor to check out his intentions in advance of the takeover. She let Bruno out of the storeroom. The little dog headed for Alejandro, hovered in unsuccessful hope of an acknowledgement, and then raced out in a delighted fury of barking to investigate the strangers outside. The parking area out front was, at first glance, packed with cars and men.‘Who are all these people?’ Selena frowned. ‘Security.’Selena was tempted to make a rude comment, relating to his undoubted need to take such precautions. His brilliant tawny scrutiny met hers. ‘Much better not,’ he said softly. ‘It’s never a good idea to put me in a bad mood.’Momentarily she shut her eyes, disconcerted by the speed with which he had read her and almost equally shaken by her ongoing need to fight with him. On the other hand the idea of giving way to
Legs feeling shaky, Selena thanked heaven for her pet’s timely intervention and moved away. Putting Bruno back onto his four stubby legs, Selena straightened with reluctance. She was seriously ashamed of her own behaviour and not enough of a hypocrite to tell off her pet. Not when she was convinced that Bruno had saved her from losing her virginity. She did not believe that Alejandro Perez would have called a decent halt. He did what he liked when he liked. He had hauled her into his arms like a Viking on the rampage. He was violently oversexed. Those daunting truths had sunk in on her. Her mouth felt hot and swollen and she was afraid to look at him. ‘The gardens are a wasteland beyond the wall. There’s really not anything more to show you.’‘The ancestral mansion?’A few minutes later she came to a halt a hundred yards from the large shell of the Regency house where her mother had been born. Its ruinous state had embittered Miranda Gomez, who had never got over the conviction that l
Selena breathed in very deep and reminded herself that it was two years since Bruno had starved himself to skin and bone while she was on holiday. The following year, Bryan had helped her to get the little dog a pet passport so that he could travel with his mistress. But now it was very much to be hoped that he had got over such excessive reliance on her for his sense of security. She could feel her eyes prickling at the prospect of life without Bruno and would have died sooner than betray her weakness. Alejandro Perez would be fed up with her within the space of a week, she told herself comfortingly. She would bore him to death.‘Do I have any say about anything?’ she enquired flatly.Alejandro thought hard about that. If he had had a chain attached to her ankle, he would have been set on removing links to restrict her freedom even more. It was an unfamiliar attitude to a male accustomed to easy conquest and it annoyed him. ‘Your accommodation?’he askedSelena went for that assurance
Four days later, Selena was in London. The morning after her arrival, she was met at her hotel by an elegant lady in her thirties. A senior coordinator in Alejandro Perez’s employ, it had been Lorraine Cage who liaised with Selena on the phone and orchestrated all the arrangements to be made on her behalf.‘It’s my job to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to city life. You have a full programme of appointments today,’ Lorraine said with a polished smile that displayed her perfect white teeth to advantage. ‘First on the agenda, I’ve organised a viewing of the property Mr Perez has selected for you.’A smooth transition? Selena could have wept at that useful little cover-all phrase that took no account of the drastic upheaval in her once tranquil daily existence. Only now that her contentment had been wrenched from her did she appreciate just how happy she had been pottering about with plants. The same day that Alejandro had visited, her father had signed over all the property h