Latin Lovers: Seductive Frenchman

Chapter Eight

Nearly Four Months Later

JANE shouldered her way through the door of her one-bedroom ground-floor flat, shutting out the noise of the traffic and wailing sirens. She was soaked. Autumn was here with a vengeance. She dropped the bags of shopping and kicked off her shoes with relief, taking off her layers and leaving them to drip dry in the bathroom. She ran a quick hot bath and afterwards wrapped herself in her dressing gown, feeling a little better. She would have to be more careful. She sat gratefully on her sofa, placing a hand on her belly. She still couldn’t believe she was pregnant. But she was.

She remembered the shock of that day when, after weeks of relentless nausea on her return from France and then no sign of her period, dread had settled in her heart. Finally, one day after work, she had worked up the nerve to buy an over the counter test. A positive result. Confirmed by the doctor.

She hadn’t told anyone yet. Not even her mother. Even now she was barely able to contain her heartbreak. It was far, far worse than she had imagined. She had fobbed Lisa off when asked about the holiday, being vague, and Lisa thankfully had responded with her usual exasperated roll of the eyes, before launching into the latest adventure of her own love-life.

Her hand moved abstractedly over her belly. She had never contemplated not keeping the baby. That wasn’t an option. She sighed heavily as the object of her every waking and sleeping thought intruded.

Xavier.

She knew she couldn’t live a lie, couldn’t have the baby and not have the truth known. She had to let him know. But how to tell him? How to get in touch with him? How to be prepared in case he got heavy-handed and demanded … what? Jane remembered him telling her that he was last in his line. No doubt an heir figured somewhere in his future. Just not with someone like her.

But would he demand she hand over the baby? She felt a sliver of fear. She didn’t think he would be capable, but then he was so powerful. An heir to his fortune was important, necessary for the survival of the island …

She would have to be strong and not let him bully her. She doubted he’d want to be saddled with a small baby anyway. It would seriously cramp his lifestyle.

She grimaced. She’d gone from a world where Xavier had never existed to one in which, since she’d come home, every paper she opened seemed to have a picture of him. In New York, Paris, Milan … In each place a new fortune being made, a new woman on his arm. Each time like a knife in her heart.

She got up wearily and went through the motions of cooking dinner, eating it and tasting nothing. Afterwards she went into the bathroom and saw the pool of water on the floor under her dripping clothes. She went to get the Sunday papers she was about to throw away, opening them out on the floor to soak up the water.

For a second she didn’t even notice that she’d stopped breathing, then shook her head as if to clear it. The photo and the words didn’t disappear. It was the business section. His face stared at her starkly from the page under a headline:

FRENCH BILLIONAIRE IN UK TO SAVE AILING

HOTEL CHAIN

Xavier Salgado-Lézille, the French entrepreneur, owner of Lézille island and the exclusive hotel chain of the same name, is in London this week in negotiations to save the once luxurious chain of Lancaster hotels …

In recent times they have deteriorated …

Has his own offices in the City …

Other companies interested in his expertise …

Why do we have to look abroad to be saved …?

The words swam up at her from the page. She sank down oblivious to the wet floor. Checked the date. Yesterday. That meant he was here this week. Incredibly.

She read it again. He had offices in the City. She went to her phone book and checked with nerveless fingers. Sure enough, there it was, the address and phone number. Why hadn’t she thought of that before? She checked the clock. It was still business hours. Just.

Before she could think or lose her nerve she dialled the number from the book. A crisp voice answered. She asked to be put through to Xavier’s personal secretary.

‘Hello, Molly Parker here.’

‘Hello … are you Mr Salgado-Lézille’s personal secretary?’

‘Yes, I am. May I ask who is calling please?’

‘It’s … my name is Jane Vaughan. Could you tell him please that I’d like to make an appointment to see him?’

Her heart was beating so hard and fast she was surprised the other woman couldn’t hear it. Her hands felt slippery with sweat.

His assistant sounded suspicious. ‘Very well—please hold for a moment.’

After a couple of agonising minutes she came back on the line. ‘Mr Salgado will see you at ten-thirty tomorrow morning. He’s very busy, you know—’

‘I’m well aware of that. I won’t take up much of his time, thank you.’

Jane put down the phone with a shaking hand. Automatically she placed a hand on her belly and sank into the sofa. The phone rang again, shrill in the room. She jumped violently, picking it up warily, as if it would bite her.

‘Oh, Mum it’s you … No, I wasn’t expecting anyone else—don’t be silly.’

In the course of the conversation Jane decided it was time to break the news. Now that she was going to see Xavier and tell him. After all, she was beginning to show.

Her mother was disappointed that Jane was going to have the baby on her own, knowing all too well how hard it had been for her after Jane’s father died, and she was worried because she and Arthur were going to be leaving England, but Jane made sure to reassure her on that score. The last thing she wanted was to be responsible for Arthur not being able to take his new bride away to their new life. He had grown up in South Africa, and after the honeymoon he had persuaded her mother to emigrate to the warmer climes of Cape Town.

Jane knew her mother was stubborn and that Arthur would do whatever she wanted. They were due to leave in three weeks, and Jane was determined that they go. She hoped she had done the right thing in telling her.

As if the telephone wires were buzzing, the phone rang again shortly after. It was Lisa. She decided to tell her too, feeling a little more weight lift off her shoulders. She refused to say who the father was, only that she was going to see him the next day and that, no, he wouldn’t be a part of her life.

After the initial screech Lisa was for once stunned into silence. Jane managed to see the humour and appreciate this uncustomary role-reversal. It was nice to have the support of a friend, but she declined her offer to come with her. She had to face Xavier alone.

The following morning in the cab, Jane tried to quell the mammoth butterflies in her stomach. She felt nauseous, and knew it wasn’t morning sickness. She hadn’t had that in a few weeks now. The thought of seeing Xavier again had her blood running cold through her veins. Then hot. How would he look in this climate? Somehow less? As if! She knew all too well that he would stand out like an exotic hothouse flower.

Luckily, after an intensely busy period with work, the teacher she had been subbing for had returned from sick leave, and Jane as yet hadn’t been placed anywhere else. She couldn’t contemplate it right now.

The cab drew up under an ominously grey sky outside a huge gleaming building.

Salgado-Lézille Enterprises.

After she got out she fought the urge to turn around, step right back into the cab and tell the driver to go back to her flat. Instead she put one foot in front of the other.

Inside the building there was a hushed reverence more in keeping with a cathedral. No doubt because the boss was in attendance, she thought darkly.

At the reception desk she gave her name and got a security tag. Then she was directed to the top floor. The lift was entirely glass, and she could see the ground floor slip away. The panic rose again.

After agonisingly long seconds it came to a stop and the door swished open with a little ping. She stepped into a luxuriously carpeted hall. A pretty girl behind a desk took her name again, and told her where she could wait on a comfortable couch just outside some huge imposing oak doors. Jane had dressed down, in jeans, sneakers and a sweater. She didn’t want him to think she was coming here for anything else. And she was protective of her small telltale bump.

The door opened and her heart jumped into her mouth. It revealed a matronly woman with a neat grey bob. She emerged, holding out a hand.

‘Hello, dear, you must be Jane. I’m Molly, Mr Salgado’s UK assistant. Please come through.’

Jane stuttered a few words and followed her into an office where Molly took her coat and stopped outside another set of doors. It was like Fort Knox. She rapped lightly on the door, and opened it before turning to let Jane pass through. She felt a hysterical moment of wanting to bury her head in this woman’s chest and have her tell her it would all be OK. But she didn’t.

When she walked in she couldn’t see Xavier at first, the office was so big. She felt at a serious disadvantage. The door clicked shut behind her.

Then she saw him. Standing with hands in his pockets in an exquisite suit before a huge window that took in the whole of London, or so it seemed. His tall dark shape was silhouetted against the skyline. Master of all he surveyed.

The blood rushed to her head and there was a roaring in her ears. He was saying something, coming towards her. She could feel herself swaying for an interminable moment, but just before she fell strong arms came around her and then she was half-sitting, half-lying on some sort of chaise longue. Xavier was crouching down beside her, holding a glass with some dark liquid.

‘Here—take a sip of this. You’re whiter than a ghost.’

In such close proximity every cell jumped to zinging life. So much for hoping that any attraction might have diminished. It was still there, like a plug going back into a socket. The energy running between them was palpable.

She moved to sit up. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t know what happened …’

‘When was the last time you ate?’

‘What?’

‘Food—you know, we use it to stay alive. You look as though you haven’t eaten a square meal in weeks.’

Jane stifled a defensive retort. She knew she’d lost weight since she’d got home, but she just hadn’t had time … and the doctor had reassured her that it was quite a normal phenomenon to actually lose weight when first becoming pregnant.

‘I’m fine … it’s isn’t any concern of yours what I eat or don’t eat.’

He left the untouched glass on a table beside her and stepped away. ‘Of course not … To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?’

Jane stood, not liking the way he was towering over her, and was relieved that the dizziness had dissipated somewhat.

‘I’ve come to tell you something.’

His gaze slanted down at her, no trace of warmth on his face.

‘Ah … could it be that you’re having second thoughts about my offer? Back in the cold, grey reality of England you’re realising what an opportunity you passed up?’

She looked at him blankly for a second before exploding, nerves making her reaction stronger. ‘Unbelievable … how arrogant is that? You know, I never thought you had such an inflated sense of self, but obviously I was wrong.’

‘Well, then, why are you here?’ he sneered. ‘Hardly to catch up on old times, eh? As I seem recall you were only too eager to see the back of me that morning … couldn’t even wait to say goodbye.’

Her head started to pound. This wasn’t going to plan. First almost fainting, and now he thought she wanted to be his mistress after all.

‘No … I mean yes. Look, I really do have something to tell you, and it’s not easy …’ She looked at him beseechingly.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him sit down behind his desk. Space. She sat down on the other side, her hands held tight together in her lap.

‘The fact is … I know I said that I thought it was OK, but I was wrong … the truth is …’

‘Yes?’ he bit out impatiently.

She squared her chin and looked at him unflinchingly. ‘I’m pregnant.’

The words dropped into a deafening silence. He didn’t react. His face was like a mask, Jane had a moment of clarity when she knew that was why he was so successful at business—a perfect poker face. He got up and went to stand at the window with his back to her.

‘Xavier …’

‘I heard you,’ he said, in a curiously flat voice. Then he turned around abruptly, green eyes pinning her to the spot.

‘It’s mine?’ A slight inflection made it a question.

She stood angrily, her whole frame quivering. ‘Well, of course it’s yours … how dare you imply that you might not be the father? I haven’t had time to do anything since I got home much less find a new lover and try to get pregnant in the gleeful anticipation of tracking you down and trying to pass the baby off as yours.’

He ran an impatient hand through his hair, and for the first time she noticed lines on his face that she didn’t remember. He looked tired.

‘Look, I’m sorry … it’s just a bit much to take in. How much … when are you due?’

‘In March.’

‘It must have been that first time.’

‘Yes.’ Jane felt a blush ascending from her chest all the way up to her face. Couldn’t stop the torrent of images that were all too frequent, haunting her imagination. She tried to avoid his focus. She started babbling. ‘Ah … look, I just wanted to let you know. The last thing I want is for you to feel that you have to be responsible for anything … I don’t expect anything from you at all. I’m going to bring the baby up myself. Of course you can come and see him … or her … whenever you want. Why don’t I let you get used to the idea?’

She placed a card on the table. ‘That’s my address and number.’

She was practically at the door before he seemed to break himself out of his stupor. ‘Jane, wait … we need to talk about this.’

Just then the door opened, and Molly appeared with some men behind her.

‘Not now, Molly, please.’

Even Jane balked at the barely leashed anger in his voice, but Molly seemed to have weathered worse, and stood her ground.

‘Mr Salgado, it’s the men from Tokyo … remember, they only have one hour in London before they have to fly to New York? You yourself specifically requested this meeting.’

Jane took full advantage of the opportunity and fled before he could stop her, grabbing her coat, mumbling a goodbye to Molly.

Xavier tried to keep his mind on the meeting after Jane left but, the truth was that he was blown away. Everything was distilled down to her and the fact that she was pregnant. He still felt remnants of the pure elation that had surged through him when he had seen her again. Then the concern that had ripped through him when she had gone so white and almost collapsed. The feel of her slender body in his arms … his inappropriate response.

Alone again in his office, he held her card in his hand. The truth was that he had been in possession of her address for a couple of months now. It hadn’t been hard to trace her. He wasn’t sure if he’d really planned on getting in touch with her. But one thing was for certain: he hadn’t been able to get her out of his head. Oh, he had tried. With various women. But when it had come to it, he just couldn’t. Her face, the smell of her body … the way she had responded to his touch … would flash into his head and render him more or less impotent.

Him … impotent!

He obviously just hadn’t had enough of her—needed to get her out of his system once and for all. When he’d heard she had phoned he had thought it was because she’d realised the same thing. But it wasn’t.

Pregnant. The word fell heavily into his head. It brought up images, memories … A dark emotion threatened to rise up. His fists clenched. He wouldn’t think about that now. Things were complicated. However, he knew what he wanted with a fierceness that surprised him. He didn’t want to look too closely at his reasoning yet, or why it was so strong, he just knew it was the only solution. And he knew exactly how to get to her to comply, whether she wanted to or not. Uncomfortably he was aware that it was more than likely not. And he didn’t like how that felt.

That evening Jane tried to relax. It was impossible. Her whole body felt as though it had received an injection of some vital life force energy. When she had got back to the flat she’d changed into tracksuit bottoms and an old baggy sweatshirt.

Xavier was in the country, and as long as he was she couldn’t rest easy. She hoped that he would just leave her alone. Let her get on with things.

The doorbell rang.

It couldn’t be … could it? She went towards the door, her hands balled into fists, opening it warily.

‘Dominic.’ She breathed a sigh of relief, but also felt a stab of disappointment. Lisa’s brother stood on the doorstep. She hadn’t seen him since she’d got back, had avoided his persistent calls.

‘Come in … what are you doing here?’ She ushered him into the sitting room.

He was shy, as usual, not really able to meet her eye. ‘Look, I won’t beat around the bush … Lisa told me about your … being pregnant.’

A blush stained his freckled cheeks, and Jane’s heart went out to him, but she didn’t interrupt.

‘The thing is, Jane … well, you know how I feel about you.

I came to say that I’m here if you need someone to lean on. That is, if you’d have me, I’d marry you.’

A lump came into her throat. ‘Oh, Dominic … that’s so sweet. I’m very flattered that you would offer to marry me, but the truth is—’

The doorbell rang again. Jane muttered an apology and went to open it.

Xavier.

Standing on the doorstep, crowding the small doorway.

The breath was driven from her lungs and her body reacted spectacularly, a million miles away from what her head was trying to impose on it. She felt a tremor start in her legs.

She had completely forgotten about Dominic until she heard him behind her. ‘Janey, love, are you all right? Do you know this man?’

She came out of her reverie.

‘Yes.’