The Sins of Sebastian Rey-Defoe

He pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes, wondering if he could feel any more of a total bastard.

‘What? What have I said now?’

He shook his head.

‘So what now? You’re the one who said he was good at thinking on his feet.’

The slow dangerous smile that split his lean face did not lessen the tension that drew the skin taut across his high cheekbones. ‘I am thinking, but you are distracting me.’

She followed the direction of his gaze and pulled the quilt up over her breasts, before angling a hot-cheeked look of accusation at his face. ‘You’re thinking about sex at a time like this?’

‘I can multitask,’ he promised her. ‘How does this work for you? We cut the honeymoon a bit short and go straight back to Mandeville, at least until we know for sure one way or the other. We’ll need to consult with an obstetrician. There are probably a few things you should and shouldn’t be doing.’

‘Stop it. I am not some sort of...incubator!’ A short while ago she had been a desirable woman he had wanted to make love to; now she was what...a mother?

A mother... A shiver of reaction worked its way through Mari’s body as the words echoed in her head.

At least now she knew the answer to one of the questions she had been asking herself on and off virtually all her life. While she still didn’t know what made any mother abandon her child, she did know that she never could.

Facing the slim possibility there might be a baby, Mari knew that nothing in the world would make her give it up. She knew, but what about Seb? Would he ask her to? Would he assume she’d have a termination?

‘Don’t be ridiculous! Look, I didn’t plan on having a family now either, but—'

She wanted to cry, but instead she tuned him out. It was ironic really; she had guarded her heart so well all those years, and the first time she let down her guard... God, she had terrible taste in men. At least she hadn’t fallen for him.

You keep on telling yourself that, Mari.

‘What happens if I am pregnant? What, as a matter of interest, is your grand plan? I’m sure you’ve got one.’

‘Isn’t it obvious?’

She tensed. ‘Not to me.’

‘We stay married.’ He angled a searching look at her face. ‘You look surprised. What did you think I was going to say?’

She shook her head. ‘What about love?’

‘We are not talking song titles here, Mari. We are talking about giving our child, should there be one, a secure upbringing.’

‘There might not be a child,’ she reminded him. The addition was for her own benefit. ‘Probably won’t be.’

He nodded and looked at her. ‘But until we know for sure... Mandeville?’

Reluctantly she nodded.

CHAPTER TEN

THE MOMENT THE private jet landed, Mari’s phone began to ping. She fished it out and saw there were a dozen missed calls and twice that many texts, all from her brother.

She scrolled through a couple and found they were all much the same.

Where the hell are you? Come and rescue me, I think I’m dying, the doctors are quacks.

Her finger was poised above Dial when she paused.

Seb was a lying monster, but the law of averages dictated that even lying monsters were right sometimes. He had predicted that Mark would react this way, and she was conditioned to respond as she always did.

Was it time to break the cycle, not just for her but for Mark?

Very slowly she closed the phone and dropped it back into her bag. She knew that Seb was watching her but she refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she had followed his advice.

They had hardly said a word since they left Spain. Once or twice Seb had tried to initiate a conversation, but she had cut him off.

On the way across to the waiting limo she stopped and looked up at him. Despite everything her insides quivered. He looked so incredible.

‘I’m sorry I’ve been sulking.’ Actually she had been punishing him for not being in love with her, which, when you thought about it, was pretty pointless. She should be grateful he wasn’t pretending.

Seb tilted back his head and dug his hands into the pockets of his well-cut trousers, a smile chasing like a shadow across his sombre features.

‘Had you? I hadn’t noticed. I’m probably overreacting,’ he admitted in return, ‘but if we’d stayed in Spain my grandmother would have given us no privacy.’ Which had been part of the reason he had chosen to take her there.

The idea that his grandmother’s presence would have made it easier to keep her at arm’s length, keep his hands off her, seemed frankly laughable now. He could see now that he’d been in denial about the strength of his attraction to her. Logically, taking her to his bed should have diminished that hunger, but if anything it had grown during the short time they had been together.