Roarke's Kingdom

“No!” Jennifer’s eyes flashed. “That’s not how it was.”

Alexandra smiled thinly. “Really? Because that’s certainly how it appears.”

“But it wasn’t!”

“Does he know? Does Roarke know that you had a baby and sold her?”

“I didn’t sell her!”

“I asked you a question. Does Roarke know?”

Jennifer bowed her head. “No,” she whispered.

“And, of course, he still believes he’s Susanna’s father.”

Jennifer’s head came up. “I believed it,” she said sharply, “until tonight.”

Alexandra nodded. “Excellent.”

“What do you mean, excellent?”

“I mean,” the Campbell woman said as she rose to her feet, “nothing has changed. Nothing at all.” Her voice took on strength. “You have one hour to get off this island.”

“I’m leaving. But so are you. I’m not going to let you hurt Roarke and Susanna any more.”

The blonde laughed. “I’m not going anywhere. And you can’t do a damned thing about it.”

Jennifer lifted her chin in defiance. “Can’t I?”

“What are you going to do? Run upstairs and tell Roarke this ridiculous story you’ve invented?”

“I’m going to tell him the truth, if that’s what it takes to keep you from hurting him again.”

“Well, go on,” Alexandra waved her hand toward the door. “Go on, tell him your story.” Let him see you for what you really are, Jennifer—a slut who dropped a baby the way a bitch drops a litter.”

“It wasn’t like that.”

“Wasn’t it? You had a child and you sold it to the highest bidder.”

“That’s a lie. I never took any money for my baby.”

Alexandra’s eyes flashed coldly. “Fifty thousand dollars, that’s what I paid for Susanna. Try and convince my husband that you didn’t see a penny of it.”

Jennifer felt a chill of apprehension, but it was too late to back down.

“I’ll tell Roarke the truth anyway.”

“Or maybe you came here to blackmail him. That sounds about right. You came to demand money for not dragging him into court to try to get back your baby.”

“No!” Jennifer clenched her fists. “That’s not true!”

“Although, actually, I prefer a different scenario. You came to get money out of him and then you thought of something better, something that would pay off in a much bigger way. Get him to want you. To fall in love with you—”

“He’d never believe that!”

“Well then, go on. Tell him.” Alexandra stepped forward. “Just remember that I’ll be here to make certain you tell him the entire story.” A smile flickered across her face. “Besides, no matter which story he believes, how do you think your precious lover will react when he knows that the child he adores isn’t his?”

“She is his in every way that counts. He loves Susanna!”