Page 10 of Prognosis Irreconcilable Differences

Nathan lips flattened into a grim line. ‘Vince would resign. It’d cause a big scandal. A newly floated company might not survive the backlash. Vince is Trent Fertility’s greatest asset for legitimacy in this new frontier we’re embarking on.’

‘Aren’t you its greatest asset?’

Nathan returned her gaze, feeling curiously flattered. ‘Not this time. This is a whole new ballgame and I need him.’

She turned her attention to the murky contents of her coffee mug, formulating the question she didn’t want to hear the answer to. ‘And I fit in to this how?’

‘Cover. If we reconcile, she’ll back off.’

Jacqui shrugged. ‘You don’t need a wife for cover. Get a girlfriend.’

Nathan shook his head. ‘Tried that. Hasn’t worked.’

‘So what makes you think she’ll respect the sanctity of marriage? It seems she has no problem cheating on her own husband — why would bagging someone else’s be a no-go for her?’

He shrugged. ‘I don’t pretend to know what goes on inside the head of a twenty-two-year-old girl who’s been spoilt rotten all her life. All I know is that happily married men are a no-no for her. I suppose even princesses have some moral codes.’

Jacqui suppressed a laugh at the distaste in his voice. Poor Nate. Things were obviously on top of him. Fending off a determined female and chasing the almighty dollar even higher into the stratosphere had obviously run his immune system into the ground.

‘So why now? So close to the float? Why not take evasive action months ago?’

Nate ran a hand through his hair and placed his coffee mug against the throb that had started in his temple at thinking about it again. ‘I underestimated her determination. I came home Friday evening and walked into my bedroom to find Abigail naked on my bed. Vince was in the other room.’

‘Oh, no.’ Jacqui laughed, covering her hand with her mouth to stifle further merriment. ‘That’s awful.’ She pictured the scenario and bit her cheek to stop herself laughing again. It wasn’t funny, she knew, but she’d have loved to be a fly on the wall.

Nathan pierced her with a steely glare. ‘It’s not funny, Jacqui.’

Jacqui nodded, muffling her mouth. ‘No.’ She shook her head vigorously. ‘I know.’

But it was obvious to Nathan it was still tickling her fancy. She was sitting with her arms folded, a hand clamped across her delectable mouth, her body practically shaking with suppressed laughter, her curls vibrating around her face.

‘So, after I got rid of Vince, I told her you and I were reconciling. She’s invited us to dinner at their place on Monday night.’

It was Nathan’s turn to smile as he laid his trump card on the table. Jacqui stilled, her hand dropping from her face, a gasp escaping from her mouth. ‘You told her what?’

‘She’s dying to meet you.’

‘But...But...’Nathan chuckled and Jacqui fixed him with a glare. ‘This isn’t funny, Nathan.’

‘No,’ he said with mock contrition. ‘I know.’

But still, he meant it. This was no joke. She could tell he was absolutely serious. She shook her head. ‘No.’

‘It won’t be for long. The float’s in a month, then maybe a couple of weeks after that. Just enough to convince Abigail that we’re happily reconciled.’

Jacqueline pushed her chair back and started collecting their dishes. She had to do something — anything to get out from under his compelling gaze. She needed to think. She couldn’t process information when he was looking at her as if they hadn’t been apart for a decade. She reached for his plate.

‘Jacqui.’ He put a stilling hand over hers.

She dropped the plate and it rattled against the wood. ‘I can’t just pick up and leave, Nate, even if I wanted to. Which I don’t. I have a life here. Work.’

‘I’ve arranged for someone to cover your practice.’

She blinked, his arrogance sucking her breath away. Of course he had. Why let a little thing like her objections get in the way of another billion or two?

‘We’re done, Nate. We were done a long time ago — maybe even from the start. We always had different dreams, and no good can come from pretending otherwise.’

She pushed away from the table, turning her back on him, stalking into the kitchen, dropping the crockery into the sink. She pushed the plug into its hole and flicked the taps on, concentrating on the gushing water and not on the man who had come to her house with the most ridiculous suggestion she’d ever heard.

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