‘I own this company,’ he advanced carelessly, frowning again. ‘And as for that hairstyle—’
‘You own this company?’
‘I came here merely to take you to lunch. I was intercepted in the foyer. Someone recognised me and total panic reigned because I have never been here before.’ His wide mouth twisted and suddenly he pulled her forward and released the clasp imprisoning her hair before she could even guess his intention.
Filled with consternation and confused by everything he had said and done since his descent, Sarah made a pointless grab at the descending tangle of silver-blonde strands. ‘Have you gone crazy?’ she gasped.
‘I refuse to be seen out in public with a woman who resembles a prison wardress.’
‘You sexist pig!’ Sarah spluttered. ‘In one breath you tell me you’ve sacked me, and in the next you tell me you’re taking me to lunch. I wouldn’t eat with you if I was starving!’
‘Don’t tempt me...’ he murmured drily.
‘And you’re wasting your time sacking me. I was leaving anyway and I already have another job—’
‘And it is so difficult to think of you saying anything with flowers that anyone in their right mind would want to hear,’ he slotted in silkily. He was forging a passage through the foyer, leaving her simply to bob in his wake.
‘How did you know I’m going to work for Gina?’
‘She told me.’
‘When?’ A swing door almost hit her in the face as he strode through it. Fuming, Sarah stopped dead centre of the pavement. ‘Your manners are atrocious!’
He paused, flashing her a vibrantly amused smile that quite transformed his usually grim features. On the brink of moving on, she stilled and stared, an odd tightening sensation making its presence felt in the pit of her stomach. Her mouth ran dry. For the very first time, it occurred to her that Gina was right. He was extravagantly handsome.
‘You called me sexist. Only a sexist would open doors for a woman.’
Sarah slid with the stiffness of a clockwork doll into the rear of the opulent limousine. What did he want this time? Maybe he was planning to give her a pair of concrete boots and toss her in the Thames. A very real sense of unease assailed her. Alex Terzakis kept on overturning her every expectation. He was totally unpredictable. Although she prided herself on being a reasonable judge of character, she had to admit that she had not a clue what went on inside his head but she suspected that a lot of it would be complex, cunning and free of all conscience.
‘Would you like a drink?’
Hastily she shook her head.
‘Not even to celebrate your triumph?’ he drawled, his accent thickening noticeably over the syllables of that final word, his strong dark face clenching.
She studied him suspiciously. ‘What triumph?’
‘I will pay the price,’ he delivered harshly, scanning her with flat dark eyes.
‘W-what price?’ she began and then fell silent, her throat closing over as she stared at him wide-eyed and stunned.
‘I will marry you.’
CHAPTER FOUR
WHATEVER Sarah might have expected it had not been that. Not in her wildest dreams had she imagined that Alex Terzakis might accept her provocative and facetious demand and actually agree to marry her. Astounded by his capitulation and conscious of his hard scrutiny, she concentrated fiercely on keeping her face bland and uninformative. But her heart was pounding crazily in her eardrums and shock was reverberating through her in waves. She had demanded the most outrageous price she could think of...and he was prepared to give it to her. Why? Why? she wanted to know. Why was Nicky so important to the Terzakis family? Presumably he had to be the first grandchild and he was male, but surely Damon and his precious wife would quickly produce children of their own? Why would Alex agree to a forced marriage with a woman he despised when the most that sacrifice could gain would be his adoption of Nicky?
She chose her words carefully, determined to reveal nothing of her thoughts. ‘It would appear that Nicky is worth his weight in gold.’
‘Dios...’ Alex ground out and her head spun back to him.
She clashed with black ice eyes and a chilly hand closed over her heart, sudden fear clenching her muscles. It was instinctive but she was powerless to translate the sensation into any form of suspicion. Her own fear was simply there, thickening the atmosphere.
‘To you, I meant,’ she extended tightly. ‘You can hardly blame me for expressing my surprise. Callie was four months pregnant when she was evicted from your brother’s apartment in Oxford—’
‘Cristos...do you think I would have made that instruction had I believed your claim that she was pregnant?’ With one lean hand, he made a slashing movement of frustration. His dark features were pale and set.
So the eviction had been his idea and not Damon’s. Once more, Callie had been proved correct in her assumptions. Sarah stared at Alex Terzakis with unashamed loathing.