He’d wanted her out of his company and out of his life as fast as possible.
And it was only now that he was asking himself why.
He glanced backwards to the woman lying asleep on the bed, his gaze resting on her golden hair, spread in soft waves across both pillows, and suddenly he knew the reason why. He’d needed to get rid of her because she’d been a threat to his emotional well-being.
For the first time in his life he’d cared about a woman.
For the first time in his life he’d given a woman the power to hurt him. The same way that his mother had hurt his father.
For the first time in his life, he’d been in love.
Zander closed his eyes, accepting the truth.
Love was the reason he’d married her. That elusive reason that he’d never been able to identify. And love was the reason that he’d never sought a divorce.
It had been love that had fuelled his unreasonable jealousy that night he’d found her with Farrer. And it had been self-protection that had driven him to fire her without even giving her a fair hearing.
It was no wonder she’d fought him when he’d ordered her to work for him again. Her last experience of working for him must have left her so traumatised that she could hardly be blamed for not wishing to repeat the experience.
And he’d bullied her into doing it anyway, using the gratitude and love she felt for Farrer as a tool to get his own way.
Facing the fact that there was no way she would have chosen to be here if he hadn’t forced the issue, he gritted his teeth and acknowledged that he was about to face the biggest challenge of his life. Persuading her that a divorce was not a good idea.
* * *
They had breakfast on the terrace, overlooking the private swimming pool.
It was utterly peaceful, the vines providing shade from the warmth of the sun.
Zander seemed unusually tense but, after a few questioning looks in his direction, Lauranne decided that it must be the strain of the forthcoming meeting. She knew just how badly he wanted the island.
She nibbled a roll and looked at him, her cheeks heating as she remembered just how affectionate he’d been the night before. But that didn’t mean anything, she reminded herself hastily. Zander was a skilled lover and he knew exactly how to make a woman feel good.
He was still looking at her, inscrutable as ever. ‘Why are you still working with Tom?’
Surprised by the question, she gave a little shrug. ‘We built the business together.’ She looked at him warily, reluctant to even mention Tom’s name in his presence. ‘It’s never occurred to me to leave. Obviously I didn’t have any money, so he provided all the finance—’
‘Ah, yes—money.’ Zander leaned back in his chair. ‘Why did you marry me, Lauranne?’
The question came out of nowhere and she looked at him in appalled silence, wondering whether her feelings had shown on her face. Had he guessed just how much she loved him?
Summoning up a casual smile, she shrugged, refusing to reveal her own vulnerability in the face of his cool detachment.
‘As you said, great sex and a credit card without a limit. What more could a girl want?’
His eyes narrowed. ‘What more, indeed?’ He paused, his expression thoughtful, and when he spoke again his voice was soft. ‘Except you never actually used my credit card, did you? You never spent a single penny of my money, Lauranne.’
‘I didn’t have time,’ she said lightly and he gave a wry smile.
‘Most of the women I know could work their way through a small fortune in less time that it takes to put up your hair.’
‘I’m not most women.’
‘You think you need to tell me that?’ He gave her a speculative look and she shifted uncomfortably, wondering where this conversation was leading.
‘Look, we both know the marriage was a mistake and obviously when this is all over we’ll—’
‘Why was it a mistake?’