She

by HC Warner

  Peter frowned, his irritation obvious. ‘Right,’ he said curtly, before turning to Jo. ‘Looks like it’s just you and me drinking this then, darling.’

  Jo giggled girlishly. ‘You say that like it’s a bad thing!’ She held up her glass and took a huge slug of champagne. Once again, I had to resist the urge to roll my eyes. Or slap her.

  The afternoon slipped by pleasantly enough. I had to hand it to Jo, she was an excellent cook and a very generous host. ‘Gosh, not more food!’ I groaned, as she brought out a huge cheese board and placed it on the table.

  Ben helped himself to some biscuits and cut several large pieces of cheese. ‘That’s Mum all over, never knowingly under-catered!’ He grinned, before stuffing a whole biscuit into his mouth. ‘Aren’t you having any?’ he added, spraying crumbs as he did so.

  I rubbed my flat stomach. ‘No, thank you. I’m stuffed! I don’t know where you put it all, Ben.’

  ‘He’s always been able to eat what he likes and never put on weight, just like his dad,’ Jo chipped in.

  I turned towards Peter, who met my eye almost defiantly. ‘That’s right. He’s got good genes.’

  ‘He certainly has,’ I replied, eliciting another look from Peter.

  I decided I needed to work a bit harder at charming everyone. So for the next hour, I asked lots of questions, listened to the rather long-winded answers and gazed dutifully and adoringly at Ben as much as possible.

  ‘So what about you, then, Bella?’ Jo asked, when there was a lull in the conversation. ‘What do you do?’

  I shrugged nonchalantly. ‘Oh, nothing too exciting. I’m a PA for an executive at Norton Banking.’

  Jo wagged her finger. ‘Now don’t go putting yourself down, Bella, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with being a PA.’

  I could feel my hackles rising. I hadn’t said there was. But I gave what I hoped passed for a grateful smile.

  Jo frowned. ‘I’m surprised that you’ve never met Peter before. You sometimes deal with Norton, don’t you, darling?’

  Peter shot me a look before shrugging. ‘Sometimes, yes.’

  I decided to have some fun. ‘Actually,’ I began, deliberately stringing out the word. ‘I think that maybe we have met before …’

  Everyone turned towards Peter, who pursed his lips, as if in contemplation. ‘No,’ he said firmly. ‘Pretty sure we’ve never met …’

  ‘You do look familiar, though.’ I shook my head as if unable to figure it all out.

  Jo gazed from me to Peter, perplexed. ‘Well, I suppose Ben does look like Peter, so maybe that’s why you think he seems familiar?’

  ‘Maybe,’ I agreed, although I maintained my frown.

  Peter drained his glass and helped himself and Jo to a refill. ‘Anyway, you were saying about your job?’ He was pointedly changing the subject back to me.

  ‘Oh, it’s fine,’ I said, giving a dismissive wave of my hand. ‘It’s just that it’s not quite as exciting as Ben’s job.’

  Jo smiled at Ben fondly. ‘He’s done very well,’ she agreed. ‘And it’s to his credit that he seems to have kept doing well, even when things were a bit …’ She reddened, suddenly aware that she was about to put her foot in it. ‘Tricky,’ she finished lamely.

  ‘I am here, you know!’ Ben waved theatrically. ‘Hello!’

  Jo laughed shrilly, clearly glad of the diversion from her faux pas. ‘Sorry, darling. But you know what I’m like, I can’t help bragging about how brilliant you are.’

  ‘Fair enough,’ Ben gave a resigned shrug, and we all laughed, loudly.

  After a while I needed to use the bathroom. Jo saw me starting to get up and leaped to her feet. ‘I’ll show you where it is,’ she offered eagerly.

  ‘No,’ Peter said, in a voice that brooked no argument. ‘I’ll show her.’

  ‘Oh, OK then …’ Jo sat back down, looking a little nonplussed.

  I followed Peter out of the blazing sun into the coolness of the house, watching his straight back as he strode ahead. I could tell just by his upright posture what the expression on his face would be. He didn’t turn around until we were in the hallway, at the door to the downstairs cloakroom. Although I was expecting it, the look he gave me still made me recoil. He gripped my arm tightly and hissed through gritted teeth. ‘What the hell are you playing at?’

  I blinked deliberately slowly, buying myself some time. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’ I pulled my arm from his grasp and rubbed it pointedly, whilst throwing him my most innocent gaze.

  ‘You might think it’s funny but it’s not. This is not a game and you have no right to involve my family.’ A sheen of sweat had broken out on his forehead and his skin was flushed.

  I looked up at him, so pompous in his outrage and felt a wave of fury sweep through me. ‘And you have no right to cast me aside like a piece of rubbish that’s served its purpose and act as if I never existed.’

  A look of genuine fear glimmered in Peter’s eyes. ‘Look,’ he began, running his hand through his hair distractedly. ‘Don’t do this. Don’t hurt the people I love most in the world.’

  ‘I think you’ll find it’s not me that did the dirty on them. Seems like a funny way to treat the people you purport to love.’

  Peter’s face creased with pain, and for a moment I thought he might cry. It was a satisfying sight. ‘I’m not proud of it. Of what happened. But don’t take it out on Ben. He’s had a really hard time of it and you can have your pick of men – find someone else.’

  ‘No.’ I felt a sudden urge to hit him. How dare he tell me what to do. ‘I don’t want anyone else. I want him.’

  Peter shook his head. ‘No, Bella, you don’t. You want me.’ He paused to swallow. ‘But that’s not going to happen. It’s over.’ A pulse throbbed in his cheek and he fixed me with his gaze imploringly. ‘Tell Ben it’s over and leave us alone.’

  I could feel a smile tugging at the corners of my mouth but managed to clamp my lips together to stop it. ‘Well, you see, that’s not going to be possible, I’m afraid.’

  The look of fear reappeared. ‘What do you mean?’ he hissed. Aggression had been replaced by a tentative whisper.

  ‘I’m pregnant.’ I didn’t even try to hide the triumphant note in my voice. Let him squirm for once.

  He visibly reeled. ‘You … you can’t be.’ I could see his mind whirring back through the weeks, trying to calculate. Again, the irony of someone who was so gifted at maths being unable to count a few short weeks made me want to laugh.

  ‘Yes. I can be. And I am.’

  Peter exhaled loudly and put his hands on his hips. ‘Well, it’s not mine.’

  ‘Actually, it is.’

  It was almost funny, the way the colour drained instantly from his handsome, smug, tanned face. He stumbled slightly and I wondered if he might faint but he seemed to recover his composure quickly. ‘No,’ he said, his voice reedy at first. He cleared his throat. ‘No,’ he repeated, more clearly this time. ‘I don’t even believe that you’re pregnant. But if you are, then it is someone else’s.’

  I flashed him my widest smile, enjoying his discomfort. ‘I think you’ll find that it’s most definitely yours. I’ll do a DNA test to prove it.’

  Peter looked away and rubbed his hand over his face. ‘How much?’ he said at last.

  I raised my eyebrows theatrically. ‘Peter! I’m shocked. I hope you’re not suggesting that I get rid of …’

  ‘Of course I’m fucking suggesting that!’ he spat, and this time the tears of panic were brimming in his dark brown eyes that had gazed at me with undisguised lust so many times in the past. ‘Look …’ He took a deep breath to try to calm himself down. ‘I will pay whatever you need to, uh, deal with it. And then I will pay you whatever it takes to make you go away and leave us alone. Just tell me how much you want.’

  I shook my head sadly. How could he have got me so wrong? ‘Oh no, Peter, I’m afraid I’m not some little problem that you can make disappear by throwing cash a
t it. But I am going to make you pay for dumping me the way you did. And the fact is, no matter how much money you have, you will never be able to afford what it’s going to cost you.’

  Peter’s face creased with anguish. He made as if to reach out towards me but seemed to think better of it and withdrew his hand. ‘Please, Bella, don’t do this. Don’t hurt Ben.’

  I locked eyes with him and held his gaze for a couple of seconds. ‘I’m not hurting him. He’s very happy with me. And let’s face it, he would never have got anyone in my league normally, so he wins, too.’

  Peter hesitated. ‘But, when he finds out that you’re pregnant with my child, he’ll …’

  ‘He won’t find out,’ I cut him off. ‘I’m going to let him think the baby is his.’

  ‘You’re not going to tell him the truth?’ Peter narrowed his eyes slightly.

  ‘No. I’m not going to tell anyone.’

  Peter’s mouth dropped open and he exhaled with relief. ‘But, I don’t understand …’ he began. ‘I thought you said you were going to make me pay?’

  ‘I am. I’ll be a part of your family from now on and every time you look at your baby you’ll know that you and I will be linked for ever. So rather than casting me aside like you wanted to, you will have to be so nice to me that it will make you choke. You will have to coo over this baby and pretend to be thrilled for me and Ben. Because if you don’t, I’ll tell Jo and Ben the truth.’

  I watched each word land like a knockout punch, as the gravity and awfulness of his situation dawned. ‘You’re blackmailing me,’ he said at last, with a weary resignation.

  I nodded. ‘Yes, Peter. I am. But I’m not after money. I just want revenge. So you play nicely and I’ll play nicely too. There’s absolutely no reason why there should be any unpleasantness.’

  Peter gave a dry laugh. ‘No unpleasantness? The very sight of you is as much unpleasantness as anyone can take in a lifetime.’

  The words stung but I just shook my head calmly. ‘No, Peter. That’s not the way to behave. You need to learn to fuss and fawn over me as much as you do that bloody perfect daughter of yours. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it soon enough.’

  Pure hate shone from Peter’s eyes but he nodded slowly. ‘Right. Well, I’d better go back outside before they wonder what’s going on.’

  I laughed. ‘Yes, God forbid they think there’s something “going on”! You run along now like a good boy.’

  He fixed me with one last look before turning on his heel and making his way back out onto the terrace.

  All the way home I kept smiling to myself at Peter’s shocked reaction. He was always so sure of himself and cocky that it was a truly delicious sensation to see him so wrong-footed and upset. I could actually feel him shaking as he kissed me goodbye.

  So now that I had put my plan into action, I needed to tell Ben the good news.

  ‘Pull over here!’

  ‘What?’ Ben turned towards me with a look of surprise. ‘Are you OK?’

  ‘Pull over!’ I repeated.

  Ben frowned but immediately indicated and pulled into a small layby overlooking the rolling patchwork fields of the Suffolk countryside and the sparkling river beyond. He turned off the engine and looked over at me expectantly. ‘What’s up?’

  I adopted my most nervous and wide-eyed expression, before taking a deep, calming breath. ‘I’m pregnant.’ I was pleased with the slight break in my voice as I spoke.

  Ben gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles turned white. ‘Pregnant?’

  Irritation quivered in my chest and I turned away quickly, not wanting him to see it.

  Ben gulped slightly. ‘Are you sure?’

  I closed my eyes briefly, trying to control the surge of temper I could feel growing within me. He wasn’t a bad person, but he was so irritatingly stupid sometimes. ‘Yes.’ The word came out in a sigh.

  There was a long silence before Ben exhaled loudly. ‘How long?’

  I was suddenly a bit concerned that he might not be quite as easy to dupe as I had expected. So I bit my lip, which was quivering slightly and gazed up at him with what I hoped was a scared expression. ‘I think about eight weeks. But I won’t know for sure until the scan.’ I needed to keep things vague in case he started to question the dates.

  But he just nodded. ‘Wow.’

  I reached out to put my hand on his thigh and gave him an uncertain smile. ‘Are you happy about it?’

  ‘Of course.’ His answer came satisfyingly quickly. He tilted his head so that he could see my face, his expression one of love and concern. ‘What about you?’

  I smiled again. ‘I’m happy. Just … It’s a bit of a shock, that’s all.’

  Ben nodded his understanding but there was a faint clouding in his eyes and I could see that he was wrestling with his emotions. After a long, long silence, he started the car again and pulled back onto the road.

  We didn’t talk much on the journey home to London but every now and again I could feel Ben looking at me sideways. A tiny part of me felt sorry for him. But at the same time, there was no way he would ever have pulled someone in my league if he had just been any old Joe Bloggs, so I was doing him a favour really. And he would love being a dad. I was fairly sure that it wouldn’t make any difference that he wasn’t the biological father. What he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.

  Later, as we lay in bed together, me with my head resting on his chest, it occurred to me that everything would be a lot more plausible if we were married. I formulated a plan to get him to propose, before deciding that we didn’t have time for that. He’d been with Charlotte for twelve years and still hadn’t got around to it. I would have to take the initiative myself.

  ‘Ben?’ I said, into the darkness.

  ‘Hmmm?’

  ‘I’d like to get married. Before the baby comes.’

  I felt his body tense and wondered if I should have been a little more tentative. But I couldn’t be doing with any more hanging around.

  ‘Right,’ he said.

  It wasn’t a great response but it would have to do. I sighed happily, as I felt sleep start to envelop me. It had been an altogether very satisfying day.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The next couple of months passed in what I could even describe as a fairly pleasurable way. Ben was much more pliable than his dad and I quickly realized that I could be as demanding as I wanted and he wouldn’t resist. Yes, he had a lot less charisma than Peter, but he actually wasn’t bad company. And he had fallen for me so completely that it was hard not to enjoy being the centre of someone’s world.

  Until now, I had always been ‘the other woman’ and it was a strangely enjoyable experience to be the number one priority for once. Ben couldn’t do enough for me and he didn’t try to conceal how much he loved me. It made me like him more than I expected to. I had thought I would have to tolerate him just long enough to make Peter’s life a complete misery, before dumping him and living off the money I would make both Peter and Ben pay to support the same child.

  But on our wedding day, seeing the look of complete and utter devotion in Ben’s eyes, as I walked down the aisle towards him, made me think that maybe I could tolerate him a little longer than I thought. I certainly didn’t love him the way I had loved his father, but I did like him.

  I was glad to get the wedding out of the way. The whole day was a strain, as I could feel Peter’s eyes watching me nervously, scared of what I might do. The worst part came when the registrar asked if anyone knew of any lawful impediment to the marriage and I heard Peter loudly clearing his throat. For a moment, fear gripped me that he might be about to blurt out the whole story to the assembled congregation but when I glanced back at him, he gave me an almost imperceptible nod and I nearly fainted with relief.

  I wished that Peter didn’t have so much influence over me but the truth was that I was only behaving the way I was because I was so hurt. I had really loved him and he had just used me and cast me aside, as
if I was nothing more than a cheap fling.

  From the first moment I met him, I thought he was different from all the others. I had enough experience of married men to know that they never, ever left their wives but we had such a connection that I always felt with Peter that maybe he would.

  My boss, Marcus, with whom I had also had a relationship, had a meeting with Peter and asked me to keep him entertained while he finished up a phone-call that was over-running.

  I walked out into the lobby and saw a man standing with his back to me, as he gazed out of the floor-to-ceiling windows at the London skyline. Even from behind, I could tell that he was attractive by his height, his lean physique and his confident posture. But as he turned and our eyes locked, there was a moment when my knees actually went weak with lust. His cropped, grey hair showed off his velvety brown eyes and square jawline. His dark grey suit was bespoke and his hand-made white shirt was just fitted enough to see his tanned, taut stomach beneath.

  He smiled, causing another tremor of excitement to render me temporarily speechless. No man had ever had such a powerful physical effect on me. ‘Hi,’ I managed at last. ‘You must be Mr Gordon?’ I extended a hand, aware that it was trembling.

  Peter’s eyes danced with amusement. He took my outstretched hand, but held my gaze. ‘Peter,’ he said, in a slightly husky voice that perfectly matched the sexiness of his appearance. ‘Call me Peter.’

  I never got flustered with men. I always maintained an air of slight aloofness that seemed to attract them all the more. But I was definitely flustered with Peter. I could feel an unfamiliar heat in my cheeks and my voice quivered as I replied, ‘Nice to meet you, Peter. I’m Bella. Marcus will only be a few minutes. Is there anything I can get you?’

  Peter smiled again and raised his eyebrows. ‘Now there’s an offer …’

  I rolled my eyes, trying to regain some semblance of control over the butterflies in my stomach. He was clearly as attracted to me as I was to him and I knew without any doubt that he would be asking me out. ‘OK, well let me know if you change your mind,’ I told him, before returning to my office, knowing he was watching and thanking my lucky stars that I had worn the tight black pencil skirt and five-inch stilettos that showed off my bum and legs to perfection.