Husband By Request

“So, did she take your money and your advice?”

“No. She told me she had too much pride. Furthermore, that Theo would never forgive me if he found out I had helped her. After telling me she was sorry she’d bothered me and would find a way to handle her own problems, she hung up.”

“Until the next time?” Dominique couldn’t help murmuring.

He nodded. “She didn’t phone me for a few days. Then one afternoon, in the middle of an important meeting, I got a frantic phone call from her. She said she needed to see me right away, that it was a matter of life and death.”

Dominique’s eyes closed tightly. She struggled not to interrupt him.

“I excused myself long enough to go out in the hall, where I could be alone and hear her out. That’s when she broke down and told me she’d been raped earlier in the day by an unknown assailant.”

“Raped—”

A grimace darkened his features. “It took place in the garage where she’d parked to go to an early morning dentist appointment. When she came out after her checkup, a man dragged her into a corner and assaulted her.”

A shudder shook Dominique’s body. If it was true, she couldn’t imagine anything more terrifying.

“When she had recovered enough to get back in her car, she drove to Acropolis Hospital to report it and be examined. They said they would call her husband to come and get her, but she begged them not to.”

“Instead she called you?” Dominique whispered.

“Yes. We both know why. She was already frightened of Theo. She didn’t know how he would react. Frankly, neither did I. But I was in the middle of a business merger and couldn’t talk to her right then. So I made arrangements for her to be let into my flat. I told her to wait for me until I showed up. On my way over there later, I realized there was only one answer to her problem. She needed to get out of her marriage. Unfortunately she didn’t have a brother or a father to turn to.”

Dominique stared up at her husband. “She didn’t need either because she’d always had you.”

“I didn’t mind. She was like another sister. If the same thing had happened to Maris I would have moved heaven and earth to protect her from further harm.”

“I understand, darling.”

He took a labored breath. “When I got there, she was in bed, sobbing.

“Though the hospital had given her a sedative to calm her down, she was still terrified from her ordeal. We talked for a long time. She feared Theo would blame her for getting raped and go into a rage, so she wanted it kept absolutely quiet.

“During that conversation she made me swear I wouldn’t tell you, because she knew you and Theo were friends. If you’d found out about the rape, you might have said something to him that could jeopardize her plans to leave him.

“I knew you would never betray her if you were asked to keep her secret,” Andreas assured her. “But sometimes it’s hard not to give information away in other ways. In your case, your eyes are a barometer of your emotions. If Theo had detected undue concern for Olympia in any way, it might have been enough to set him off. As it was, you and I were having problems communicating. Therefore I thought it best to keep Olympia’s rape to myself.

“While we were discussing the best way for her to approach him for a divorce, he burst in the bedroom. To this day I don’t know how he managed to get in the flat, but his presence confirmed everything she’d told me about his being out of control.”

Too restless to sit, Dominique got to her feet. She hugged her arms to her body.

“Did the rape come up at the trial?”

“No.”

She wheeled around. “What?”

“Olympia was terrified Theo’s attorney would use it to work against her. Possibly paint her as a promiscuous woman. Though her character isn’t

anything like that, I was inclined to agree it should be kept secret.”

Dominique’s body bristled with anger and pain. “So you had to remain silent and take the brunt of Theo’s false adultery accusations during the trial?”

“It was all right. I could handle it because I knew the truth.” His dark gaze swerved to hers. “As long as I had you at my side, nothing else mattered.”

“But you didn’t have me!” she protested. “I ran out of the courthouse and deserted you.” Her breathing had grown shallow. “If I’d known the truth, I would never have left you!”

“Dominique—”