The Millionaire's Redemption (13 page)

“Cappuccino?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“A black coffee and a cappuccino,” he told the woman at the coffee bar. “We’ll be sitting down, thanks. Oh, um, a piece of carrot cake too, please.” He handed over a twenty-dollar note.

“What a lovely bambina you have.”

“Yes, I think so.” The woman must think Lilly belonged to him, and he couldn’t be bothered setting her straight. For an instant, the thought popped into his head that he wished she was his, but he quickly crushed such a ridiculous notion.

Holly slid into a bench style seat on one side of the table while he sat opposite.

“What happened at Glen Fern?” he asked abruptly, watching what little color she still had in her face ebb away.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Why?”

“
F
orget about it.” She rubbed her forehead. “I don’t want to think about that place ever again.”

“Yeah, not nice getting a knock back.”

“I don’t know what you mean?”

“No?” He didn’t press the point,
but
nodded his thanks when the woman brought over their order. “Keep the change.”

His eyes narrowed as he watched Holly wolf down the cake, yet she sipped the coffee, taking dainty little mouthfuls.

“You haven’t forgotten our deal,” he said brusquely.

“Deal?”

“Yes, the price for my help. I want everything crystal clear between us. I don’t want any reneging on the deal, regrets or recriminations later.” He sounded like a real jerk, but this arrangement was the only way he could think of to get her out of his system once and for all. A few days living in close proximity would show her up in her true colors so he wouldn’t ever see her through rose tinted glasses again.

“I agreed to sleep with you, and I will. You didn’t need to put conditions on your help.” She lowered her voice. “You only had to ask me, and I would have said yes.”

Her whispered admission surprised him, pleased him, but the pain of what had happened with Owen still burned in his chest, fierce, all consuming.

“
As
long as we understand each other,” he said with cold finality. “No strings, Holly. I’m not in to long-term relationships.”

She clenched her hand around the coffee cup. “I understand. What happens to me afterwards?”

“Afterwards?” He frowned.

“I mean, when you move on to another woman.” The thought was killing. “What happens to us?” She held her breath, waiting for him to say – what? That he wanted her to stay? Wanted them to be a family? How stupid could a person get? I’m not in to long-term relationships. The words were crystal clear. Did she want him to put them in writing?

“You’ll be adequately compensated.”

He made her feel cheap, insignificant. “That’s all right
,
then
.
”
S
he lower
ed
her head so he would
n
o
t see the bitter hurt and disillusionment in her eyes. Justin had turned out to be a predator, too. “We both know where we stand now.”

“Yes.” His eyes narrowed. “If you’ve finished your coffee we might as well go.” He drained his cup and stood up, and she did the same. Having thrown herself on his mercy she had to accept the consequences.

On pain of death, he must never find out how betrayed she felt. They had an agreement, strictly business. Instead of using money to pay for services rendered, she would use her body. She would call it a bartering system. It sounded better that way. Like any mother fighting for her child’s survival, no sacrifice would be too great, no cross too heavy to bear. She bit back on a bitter laugh. What had she expected from a ruthless, multi-millionaire?  Compassion and generosity hadn’t let Justin climb to the dizzying heights he occupied today.

Without speaking
,
they
traipsed
out of the coffee bar. He wore a gray pinstriped suit she idly noticed. The top two buttons on his pale gray shirt were undone, his burgundy silk tie loosened. He had obviously come straight from work.

“I hope I didn’t take you away from anything important,” she said stiffly.

“Nothing that can’t wait until tomorrow.”

He led the way to a white Mercedes, unlocked the trunk and dumped the pink bag inside. Holly unstrapped Lilly and lifted her out of the stroller so he could fold it up.

She was surprised when Lilly tried to grab hold of him. He made no move to take her, but favored her with one of his devastating smiles.

“Hello, little missie.” He flicked Lilly under the chin with a slender, tanned finger. The baby grabbed hold of it and hung on until he disentangled his hand.

“She likes you, Justin.”

“I don’t know why. I’m not a particularly nice person.”  He was an utter bastard. He should have helped Holly without putting conditions on it, would have, if she hadn’t offered herself to Owen. That hurt. It felt like battery acid corroding his insides.

“You’ll have to sit in the back with her I don’t have any child safety restraints.”

As he held the door open, he noticed the grass stains on the knees of her jeans.

“What does Lilly normally sleep in?” he asked abruptly.

“She’s been sharing a bed with me.”

“That will have to stop now. I’ve got a double bed in my spare room, but...”

“She might fall out of bed,” Holly interrupted him. “She needs a cot.”

“All right, we’ll go shopping later. There’s a large department store in my apartment building. It’s open until nine o’clock. You can get everything she needs; you’ve only got that one bag so you’ll need things too.”

“You don’t have to spend your money on me. I don’t matter,
as
long as Lilly has what she needs.”

“What’s with you?” he snapped. “Why do you keep putting yourself down all the time? Of course you matter.”

“Who to?” she asked bitterly.

He nearly said me. “Lilly, hell, I don’t know. There must be someone.”

“There’s not. No one has ever cared about me expect Robbie.”

How pathetic. He felt even worse about what he expected from her now. His own life hadn’t been any bed of roses, but hers must have been real ugly.

As the Mercedes purred into life, she said. “I like your car. I’ve never driven in a Mercedes before.”

He gave a careless shrug. “It’s okay, I guess.”

“I thought you might have driven a Rolls Royce.”

He snorted. “I’m not into that. I’ve never flaunted my wealth.”

No, he wasn’t the type. He was reserved, secretive even, probably why he was so successful. He took people by surprise, waited until they were at their most vulnerable before going for the jugular. Bitter disappointment surged through her.

Chapter Nine

Justin drove into the rear of a multistoried, ultra modern, apartment tower. It looked to be built from some kind of smooth, shiny black stone. Marble for all she knew. The windows were of tinted glass. He slid a magnetic card into a slot, and a set of iron gates soundlessly swung open to let the car pass through. They drove down a ramp, to the private car park.

“The lower floors of the building contain offices and retail areas. There’s a department store. You’d never have to leave the place if you didn’t want to.”

That suited her, the less time she spent in public the safer she felt.

He carried the still folded- up stroller and the pink bag, while she held Lilly. They entered a private elevator from the car park. Once again, he inserted his card and the door slid open. The building was high tech, but its wealthy tenants would expect nothing less.

They alighted on the fiftieth floor. “I’ve got the penthouse suite,” he informed her. It wasn’t boasting, merely a statement of fact.

“Do you rent the place?” It must cost him a fortune.

“No, I own the building,” he answered nonchalantly.

“The whole building?” she squeaked in surprise.

“Yes, well my company does.”

Thick, dove gray carpet covered the floor. The walls and ceiling were of white marble tinged with pink.

He swiped his card to gain entry to the apartment. What an eye opener. She had never seen anything like it. Super expensive it went without saying. White marble walls flecked with gold. Ornate white-painted metal ceilings with concealed lighting. It was a lifeless, expensive mausoleum that left her feeling cold and frightened.

The carpet in the lounge room was oyster gray, the furniture ultra modern, all shiny silver and glass. She put down Lilly, who immediately toddled over to a black leather couch and tried to climb up on it.

“She’s walking now?”

“Yes, she’s just started, not too steady yet.” Lilly’s little legs gave out, and she promptly sat down on her bottom.

“The kitchen is through here. Do you cook?” He quirked one eyebrow.

“Yes, I enjoy cooking.”

“You can cook for me if you want. We
can
be one happy little family.” There was a slight sneer in his voice, a viscous twist to his mouth.

She ignored his sarcasm. “Have you been living here long?” She followed him out to a gleaming kitchen of stainless steel and glass. It looked as if it had never been used.

“A few months. I travel a lot. Why?”

She glanced around. “I just wondered. It looks sort of unlived in. I mean you don’t seem to have any personal possessions lying around.”

He shrugged. “There are three bedrooms, but I’ve got all my computer systems set up in one of them. Don’t let Lilly go in there, for God’s sake.”

“I don’t think this is going to work. This isn’t a place for children.” She gnawed her bottom lip in agitation.

“I never meant it to be.
M
ake sure she doesn’t touch anything. You can do that surely?”

“Of course I’ll watch her, but you’ll have to keep the rooms you don’t want her in closed off, and don’t put anything down low where she can reach it. She’s only a baby, she doesn’t understand.”

She felt worse with every passing minute. Her head ached and her nerves were shredded. Now her hand started to throb as well.

“Here, sit down,” he said brusquely leading her over to an armchair. “You look terrible. Would you like something to eat or a cup of tea?”

“Tea would be nice.”

Squatting down beside her, he picked up her hand and turned it over. A large splinter was embedded deep within the soft flesh of her palm.

“You might need a doctor to take this out.” He made a careful inspection of the injury, his touch gentle, and his skin warm against hers. She felt an overwhelming desire to bring his hand up to cradle her face.

“I can get it out with a needle. Luckily it’s my left hand. Do you have a first aid kit?”

“Yes, I’ll get it. No, you don’t.” Lilly had draped herself across his knee, and he lifted her away. “Your mother needs to have her hand attended to.

“Mumma, mumma.” She turned her attention to her mother, and Holly picked her up. Straightaway Lilly started searching for the breast.

“You’re not still breast feeding her?” Shock edged his voice.

“She has solids as well.”

“Can’t you give her milk in a bottle or something?”

“She won’t take it. Anyway, breast milk is best.”

Giving a snort of annoyance, he stood up and left the room. Lilly kept grabbing at
her breast so Holly decided to feed her. To hell with him. His reaction proved to be typically male. He thought of breasts only in a sexual context. She was prepared to cater to his every whim as part of their deal, but Lilly would always come first.

He returned with a black leather box with a red cross painted on the lid. He had removed his jacket and tie and rolled his shirtsleeves up to the elbows. His eyes darkened to a deep, slate
gray
as he sat next to them, watching Lilly intently. There was no way she could tell what went on in his head. After she finished one side, Lilly lost interest in the breast. She wanted what Justin held in his hand.

“You can’t have it,” he said, moving it away from the chubby baby fingers. Lilly started to grizzle but stopped when he handed her a bunch of keys.

“My medical skills are minimal, but I’ll do my best.”  He gently swabbed the area around the splinter with an antiseptic-soaked piece of cotton wool.

His face was so close she could see the fine lines around his eyes and the start of his five o’clock shadow. She closed her eyes, inhaling his special male scent and feeling the warmth of his body. If only things could be different between them.

He would think she shut her eyes because she didn’t want to watch what he did. If only he knew. She wanted to savor his nearness, to imagine what it would be like to have him love her like Robbie had.

“Ouch,” she yelped when the needle dug into her palm.