It was hard.
And determined.
She tried to ignore an uneasy feeling, but her heart jumped in her throat when not long after he suggested they leave. He didn’t mention to the others she was staying with him. Not that it was anyone’s business, and certainly Damien would never find the need to explain such a thing to anyone. Not even to his friends.
He didn’t speak on the way home, either, but the tension increased within the confines of the car. Would he try to get her in bed? It certainly wouldn’t worry him if he did, of that she was certain.
As soon as they stepped inside his apartment, the door to the spare bedroom appeared to be far too close for her liking. She darted a look at him beneath her lashes and saw a muscle ticking in his jaw. Her stomach tied itself in knots.
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to seduce you,” he mocked, striding over to the bar.
Her brows rose. “You’re not?”
“Not yet anyway.” He poured himself a small amount of scotch.
She moistened her lips, all at once certain there was something else going on here. “How…generous of you.”
There was a moment’s pause, then, “I’ve decided to wait until our marriage.”
Frustration clawed through her. “Damien, will you please stop—”
“Tomorrow.”
The air whooshed out of her lungs. “Wh-what?”
He took a swallow of his drink. “We’re getting married tomorrow, Gabrielle, like it or not.”
She gasped. “Look, I told you—”
“Keiran just lost a three-million-dollar contract.”
Her head reeled back. “Say that again.”
“That phone call I took was from James. Keiran lost a deal your father had been working on for the past year.” He paused as he slammed the glass down on top of the bar. “Now. Don’t you think it’s time we got married?”
Five
T he next afternoon Gabrielle married Damien in a simple ceremony held in his apartment, and Damien signed over eleven percent of Kane Property and Finance Group shares to her.
The only “family” Damien wanted to invite were his two best friends and their wives, and his attorney. No one else knew. Everything had to be kept secret so that Keiran wouldn’t get wind of the marriage and do something underhanded to prevent it, if indeed there was anything he could do about it.
As for her parents, Damien suggested it was best not to tell them about the wedding until afterward. The excitement might not be good for her father, and her mother might let something slip to Keiran, especially since Damien had said later that Caroline had no idea about the shares.
Still, it had been hard for Gabrielle to visit her parents earlier that morning and act as if nothing momentous was about to happen. Thankfully, her father had been sleeping and her mother had asked Gabrielle to sit with him while she went home to shower and change. It had been a blessed relief not to have to put on a brave face. Nor was Gabrielle sure she wouldn’t have begged her mother to stop her from doing a crazy thing like getting married two days after returning home.
And it was a crazy thing to do, she kept thinking when Kia and Danielle arrived carrying a gorgeous white sheath of a dress with a miniveil, and a posy of glorious miniature yellow roses. Suitably horrified at the speed Damien had arranged everything, they gave him a scolding about rushing the bride off her feet, yet they all knew why.
Thank goodness she didn’t have to play the blushing bride in front of everyone, Gabrielle told herself while she was dressing, with Kia and Danielle sympathizing over her predicament in the background. Brant and Flynn’s attitude was that Damien was doing the right thing, which made all three women smile wryly at each other in a moment of bonding.
Of course, once the ceremony was over and she stood next to the ladies beside a table covered with scrumptious food, she was on autopilot as she sipped at her champagne. The men had gone out on the balcony on the pretext of admiring the panoramic ocean view, but were deep in discussion instead.
“You know something, Gabrielle,” Kia said. “Damien reminds me so much of Brant and Flynn. Handsome. Gorgeous. And wonderful husbands once you get past the wall of detachment that’s inherent in men like them.”
Sudden despair wrapped around Gabrielle’s heart. She was sure Damien would be just like her father. And she would turn out just like her mother.
“Good heavens, your hands are shaking,” Kia exclaimed in a sympathetic tone. She squeezed Gabrielle’s arm. “Honey, we understand. Danielle and I felt the same way about our guys when we first met them.”
Danielle nodded in agreement. “That’s right. And one day we’ll tell you all about it, but not now. It would take too long to explain why Flynn thought I was after his money,” she said with rueful smile. “But I do want to say one thing—trust that it will work out for the two of you.”
Gabrielle appreciated their kindness, but there was so much that they didn’t realize. For one thing these women didn’t know about her and Damien’s past affair. Nor about her miscarriage—the one Damien didn’t know about, either.
Just then she looked up and saw the three men coming back inside the apartment through the sliding glass doors. Damien looked magnificent in a dark suit and white shirt and was grinning at something one of the others had said. It was a striking smile that curled her toes and sent her heart thudding against her ribs.
And then he saw her staring at him and he paused briefly, before his mouth tilted in a sardonic grin. “I hope you ladies aren’t plying my new bride with alcohol,” he said, walking toward them.
Kia gave a light laugh. “Of course we are.”
“I have something much better.” He nodded at the waiter, who proceeded to hand out fresh glasses of champagne.
Despite his relaxed air, those piercing eyes studied her thoughtfully for a moment, giving nothing away. And then she saw a hint of satisfaction lurking at the back of them, and fear rippled through her. Fear, not of Damien himself, but of where all this was leading. He may not have planned to marry her when he’d brought her back from Sydney, but he certainly intended to profit from all this…in more ways than one.
He held up his glass. “A toast. To my new wife.”
From somewhere deep inside her, she managed to raise her own glass and smile right back at him. “And here’s to my old husband.”