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When he opened his eyes and his gaze pierced her soul, it was with a look of rejection, and panic.
‘No.’ He glared at her. ‘This cannot be happening.’
Hannah curved a hand around her stomach, trying to be generous, to remember he was shocked, that she’d had time to adjust to this news and he was being presented with it all now.
‘Really?’ She arched a brow, her obvious pregnant state contradicting that.
He swore in his native tongue and moved towards a bar in the corner, pulling out two bottles of mineral water. He stalked towards her and held one out and she took it without thinking, her fingers curving over the top.
But, oh, she was so close to him now, and the last five months disappeared, everything disappeared, except this wave of intense recognition and need, that same spark of hunger that had incinerated her on New Year’s Eve.
Her breath escaped her on a hiss; she stood frozen to the spot, her eyes glued to his, her face tilted upwards, her body on alert for his nearness. It was an instant, visceral, physical reaction and it shook her to the core.
But even before her eyes, Leonidas’s surprise was giving way to comprehension. His jaw tightened and he nodded slowly, releasing the water bottle into her grip and stepping away from her, turning to stare at the ocean.
‘How do you feel?’
She was surprised by the question—she hadn’t expected it, this rapid assimilation of information, acceptance and then a hint of civility.
‘I’m mostly okay.’ She nodded, opening the bottle and taking a sip gratefully. ‘I’m quite tired but otherwise fine.’
He didn’t react. ‘Do you know what gender it is?’
Hannah nodded again, but he wasn’t looking. ‘Yes.’ She reached into her handbag, her fingers fumbling a little as she lifted out an ultrasound picture. ‘Here.’
At that word, he turned slowly, his expression grim, his gaze lowering to the flimsy black and white photograph. He made no effort to take it.
‘It’s a girl,’ she said quietly.
He still didn’t reach for the picture, but his eyes swept shut as though he were steeling himself against this, as though it wasn’t what he wanted. Hurt scored her being. But before she could fire that accusation at him, he was shooting another question at her.
‘When did you find out?’
She swallowed in an attempt to bring moisture back to her dry throat. ‘A while ago,’ she admitted.
‘When?’
A hint of guilt flared in her gut but she reminded herself she’d done nothing wrong.
‘I’ve known for a few weeks.’
He stared at her, long and hard, for several moments. ‘You didn’t think I deserved to know when you did?’
She shook her head once, from one side to the other. ‘You didn’t think I deserved more than to wake up to a crummy note?’
He froze, completely still, and the sound of the glamorous party outside the room thumped and crashed. Hannah didn’t move. She glared at him, waiting for his answer.
It came swiftly, his brow furrowing. ‘So this was payback? Retaliation of some kind?’
She shook her head. ‘What? No. It was nothing like that.’ She sucked in a breath, not wanting to be dragged off topic. ‘I just wanted a chance to get used to this before I had to deal with you.’
‘And you are now used to it?’ he demanded, heat in the question.
She let out a small laugh, but it was a sound completely without humour. ‘I’m not sure I’ll ever adjust.’
‘I don’t want anything from you, Leonidas,’ she said firmly, not registering the way something like admiration sparked in his eyes. ‘I had no idea who you were that night, nor that you’re worth a squillion dollars. I have no interest in asking you for any kind of support payment or whatever.’ She shuddered in rejection of the very idea.
‘I mean it. This isn’t my way of asking you to support me in any way. I don’t want that.’
