Nathan told her what he was worth.
‘Good heavens!’ she gasped. ‘Money like that can cause a lot of problems.’
‘Sasha, darling, can we please face that problem when we come to it? The first thing is to get married. Let’s concentrate only on that.’
She gradually relaxed. It was really rather marvellous thinking of how very much Nathan wanted them to be together and stay together. It added a special glow to their lovemaking, a deeper appreciation of his love and need for her. She smiled to herself as she remembered Nathan scorning love, saying it caused havoc and created chaos. He certainly thought it worth having now. Not pie-in-the-sky at all.
It was the real deep-down love this time. Sasha could feel it in her soul. Perhaps the passion would not stay as white-hot as it was now, but it was not a madness that would cool after eighteen months. It was bonded in with mutual values, mutual beliefs, mutual feelings, mutual instincts. Sasha knew the caring and sharing and the continual building of both would always be ongoing for her and Nathan, the ready support of each other, the wanting that couldn’t even begin to envisage wanting anyone else.
He was her man.
She was his woman.
As they lay languorously together, feeling the sweet bliss of utter contentment in the fulfilment of every desire, Sasha’s thoughts drifted over all Nathan’s radical arrangements. She hoped nothing would go wrong between now and Wednesday.
‘Where are we being married?’ she asked.
‘Central Register Office. It’s near St Mary’s Cathedral.’
Sasha thought of Hester and her aborted marriage to Seagrave Dunworthy. A church wedding didn’t guarantee anything. Neither did all the flowers and finery that went with it. That wasn’t the important part at all. Not to Sasha. The Central Register Office was fine by her.
‘I must tell my parents,’ she said, more as a reminder to herself than as a remark to Nathan.
‘No!’ he yelled like a scalded cat. The next instant he had her flat on her back and was leaning over her in urgent command. ‘You mustn’t tell anyone. Not a soul. Not even Marion. It was bad enough that I had to go to your parents concerning the details of the marriage application.’
‘How did you know where they live?’
‘Umm... I suppose I looked it up in the telephone directory.’
Sasha knew that was wrong. Her parents had an unlisted number. She wondered w
hat Nathan was being evasive about, then shrugged off the thought. It was irrelevant.
‘Why mustn’t anyone be told? Surely family can know. It’s not as if...’
‘Sasha, people talk. Can’t help themselves. Then other people talk to other people, and word gets around. Imagine this scenario. You’re standing there as the bride. I’m standing beside you as the groom. And the question is posed...is there any impediment to stop this man and woman from marrying?’
Her mind instantly flew to Hester and Seagrave.
‘The last thing we need,’ Nathan said vehemently, ‘is Urszula Budna’s brother turning up and waving a legal contract that I’m in breach of. Can you even begin to comprehend what a disaster that would be, and how the past repeats itself?’
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE past did not repeat itself.
At ten o’clock on Wednesday morning, Sasha and Nathan were married in the Central Register Office. It did not have the grandeur of St Mary’s Cathedral. A bishop did not officiate. But no one turned up to stop the marriage.
Owing to the secrecy that was maintained, Sasha was unable to wear a wedding-dress. However, she had spent part of Tuesday doing Christmas shopping. The present she bought for herself was a very expensive white silk suit. Sasha found it very easy to convince herself that her wedding-day was better than any Christmas Day she could ever have. It was perfectly reasonable, therefore, to open and wear her Christmas gift to herself on this more appropriate occasion.
Nathan, of course, looked as handsome as ever. In keeping with decorum, he wore a conservative but very smart grey suit.
The ceremony was brief. Efficient but effective, Sasha thought. Nevertheless, it had an unexpected and dazzling highlight. Nathan not only slid a wedding-ring on to the third finger of her left hand. He accompanied it with another ring featuring a fabulous pink Argyle diamond. It choked Sasha up for several moments. She looked at Nathan with swimming eyes. He assisted her in regaining her composure by kissing her until a surge of heat dried the tears.
Tyler and Joshua performed their role as witnesses with perfect aplomb, making it look as though it was an everyday event in their lives. They expressed congratulations, shook Nathan’s hand warmly, kissed Sasha on both cheeks, and generally conducted themselves as though they were thoroughly delighted with the successful completion of phase one of the plan. They strolled outside to await the arrival of the next bride. At precisely eleven o’clock, a white Mercedes with government plates on it pulled up at the curb.
Out stepped a man who frowned at Sasha.
‘The brother,’ Nathan murmured.