Читать книгу Men of Power - Кэрол Мортимер, Кэрол Мортимер - Страница 19

‘WHAT are you doing here, Dominick?’ Kenzie stared at him in amazement the next morning when she answered the doorbell of the apartment she rented while working in New York, and found him standing outside in the hallway. ‘More to the point,’ she added with a frown, ‘how did you know where I was staying?’

Dominick looked less than his sartorially elegant self this morning, she thought, taking in his appearance. His dark hair was brushed back carelessly, his face was unshaven, and the shirt and jeans he wore looked as if he might have slept in them. If he had slept at all; the dark shadows beneath his eyes cast doubts upon that assumption.

He shrugged his broad shoulders. ‘I asked Caroline—’

‘And she just told you my New York address, did she?’ Kenzie snapped sarcastically.

He smiled slightly. ‘Along with a few words of abuse, yes!’

That wasn’t too difficult to imagine considering the ridiculous accusation Caroline had made to Kenzie in the powder room the evening before about Dominick still being enthralled with her!

‘What do you want, Dominick?’ she queried guardedly, aware that Jerome was due to arrive any minute—probably to finish the argument they had begun once all the other guests had gone the evening before.

Dominick hadn’t come back downstairs to the party the previous evening, and Kenzie could only conclude that was because he had had no wish to see her again after learning of her pregnancy.

Considering her own state of bemusement, Kenzie had just felt thankful that she didn’t have to face him again, making sure she ate some food before renewing her role as the Carlton Cosmetics face, cheerfully brushing off the other guests’ curiosity about her earlier collapse with the explanation that she ‘must be getting a cold’. It was a lame excuse, but it was the best she had been able to come up with at the time!

Although Jerome had had plenty to say about it once all the guests had left…

Her mouth tightened as she remembered the argument that had ensued.

‘Dominick?’ she prompted sharply.

He shrugged, not really sure what he was doing here, except that he had wanted to see how Kenzie was this morning. After she had spoken to Carlton last night…‘I had a breakfast meeting, so I thought I would call to see how you are…?’

‘I’m fine,’ Kenzie answered warily, still eyeing his appearance with knit brows.

Dominick’s mouth twisted wryly as he easily guessed the reason for that, but he hadn’t been too concerned with impressing the person he had met for breakfast, hence his casual appearance.

He grimaced. ‘I was also curious to know how Carlton took your news—Kenzie? You haven’t told him yet, have you?’ he realized slowly as she suddenly avoided meeting his gaze.

She sighed. ‘Not yet, no,’ she confirmed quietly. ‘It wasn’t exactly the right time last night,’ she defended.

Dominick continued to stare at her. ‘And what would you consider the right time to inform a man he’s going to be a father?’ He winced inwardly, thinking how just saying the words out loud felt as if he were beating himself with a stick!

Maybe if he kept saying it he would finally come to believe it was true!

He had spent a sleepless night pacing up and down his hotel suite trying to decide what to do next. One thing he was certain of was that he had to do something, and he knew that he couldn’t just walk away from Kenzie without telling her how he felt. He owed her that much, at least.

She looked beautiful this morning, with her face bare of make-up, and her long hair pulled back in a pony-tail, wearing a bright pink tee shirt and faded figure-hugging jeans.

‘Can I come in?’ he prompted at her lack of reply. ‘I could use a cup of coffee.’

Kenzie didn’t want to invite him in; she didn’t see the point of doing that. They had nothing left to say to each other.

Besides, Jerome was due to arrive at any moment, and the last thing she needed was for the two men to meet at her apartment. She was as unsure of Dominick’s mood this morning as she had been last night, but one thing she was certain of was if the two men met Dominick was sure to challenge the other man over Kenzie’s pregnancy.

And Jerome knew he couldn’t be the father of her baby!

‘There isn’t any point in your coming in, Dominick,’ she told him firmly, making no effort to relax her grip on the door as she kept him standing outside her apartment. ‘I’m—going out later, anyway,’ she added dismissively, not lying about that. She was flying back to England later on today…

‘To talk to Carlton?’ he probed.

She sighed her impatience. ‘Again, that isn’t any of your business, Dominick—’

‘I’m making it my business,’ he told her determinedly, easily pushing his way past her, into the apartment. ‘You may not like it, Kenzie, but the fact is, you’re still my wife, and—’

‘If that’s all that’s bothering you, then sign the damn divorce papers and let’s finish this once and for all!’ she came back angrily, aware of the minutes ticking away.

If Dominick did challenge the other man over her pregnancy, then there was no way it wouldn’t come out that Jerome couldn’t possibly be the father of her baby!

Leaving only Dominick as a possible candidate…the man who had made it only too plain last night that he considered any child, his or anyone else’s, as a ‘responsibility’.

‘And so leaving you free to marry Carlton!’ Dominick snarled.

‘This conversation is becoming extremely tiresome, Dominick.’ She sighed impatiently.

‘Don’t you think he’ll ask you?’ Dominick felt goaded into challenging.

‘Perhaps it doesn’t really matter whether he asks me or not!’

Kenzie snapped back.

‘And what the hell does that mean?’ Dominick frowned darkly.

She shrugged. ‘I’m rich, I’m independent, and having a baby on my own at this stage in my life really isn’t going to be that much of a problem for me!’

No, Dominick had already worked that much out for himself during those hours of pacing his hotel suite the night before.

No doubt her family, her extremely loving close-knit family, would form ranks about her too.

‘Look, Kenzie—’ he ran an agitated hand through the dark thickness of his already tousled hair ‘—I didn’t come here to argue with you—’

‘No? Then what did you come here for?’ she snapped. ‘Because hard as I try, Dominick, I really can’t see what any of this has to do with you!’ She glared at him, twin wings of colour in her cheeks.

God, she was so beautiful it almost brought him to his knees, Dominick realized, feeling a deep ache within his body.

She looked even more slender today, emphasizing the fragility he had sensed in her last night, and without any make-up and her hair pulled back she appeared to be incredibly vulnerable.

He couldn’t bear the thought of her trying to bring a child up on her own. Even if that child wasn’t his.

‘I came—’ He broke off, swallowing hard. ‘I came because I just can’t stay away from you!’ he finally managed to get out, knowing by the confusion on Kenzie’s face that she was as puzzled by the admission as he had been at about three o’clock this morning when he had acknowledged the painful fact to himself.

He really had been a fool five and a half months ago when he had let Kenzie walk away from him. And he didn’t care if she was pregnant with Carlton’s baby—he would be a fool all over again if he just let her go out of his life a second time!

Kenzie shook her head. ‘I don’t understand you, Dominick…’

‘No,’ he accepted ruefully, ‘I don’t suppose you do. I’ve been having a little trouble understanding myself lately. But—’ he drew in a ragged breath before continuing ‘—Kenzie, if things don’t work out between you and Carlton I want you to know—’ The strident ringing of the doorbell interrupted him.

‘That will be Jerome,’ Kenzie told him hurriedly, feeling more confused than ever this morning by Dominick’s lack of anger and derision. ‘Dominick—’

‘I’m not leaving, Kenzie,’ he told her firmly. ‘If you would prefer to talk to Carlton in private, then I’ll go through to the kitchen or something, but I—I haven’t finished talking to you myself yet. I’m not leaving,’ he repeated decisively, the stubborn look on his face telling her that he meant what he said.

Dominick was different today, she realized, frowning as she had a sudden insight into what that difference was.

That ‘ice man’ that had been such a part of their argument five and a half months ago wasn’t there…

The cold implacability of five weeks ago wasn’t there…

Quite what that meant she wasn’t sure, but surely it did mean something?

And what did he want her to know if things didn’t work out between Jerome and herself…?

‘Jerome isn’t going to like your being here.’ She sighed, knowing that didn’t bother her unduly; Jerome had been less than his charming self last night as he had berated her for disappearing with Dominick in the way that she had—as if she had had any choice in the matter!—and she could only expect more of the same from him this morning.

‘I don’t give a—’ Dominick broke off, drawing in a deeply controlling breath before continuing, ‘Jerome Carlton’s likes or dislikes are of absolutely no interest to me,’ he dismissed derisively.

‘You’re the one that’s important, Kenzie,’ he added intently. ‘You, and what you really want.’

He had reasoned last night that the Kenzie he knew couldn’t have made love with him at Bedforth Manor in the way that she had if she was in love with another man. But did that mean that she had been in love with him then?

Kenzie continued to look at him for several searching seconds, giving an impatient groan as the doorbell shrilled out for a second time. ‘Okay, Dominick, stay,’ she accepted as she moved towards the door. ‘But—oh, never mind!’ she dismissed as she gave up on the idea of requesting that there not be any more arguments.

Dominick and Jerome argued every time they met, so why should today be any different?

‘Kenzie!’

‘Yes?’ She turned back wearily, her eyes widening as Dominick strode forcefully across the room, his hands gentle as they moved up to cradle each side of her face as he looked down at her intently.

‘Do you want to marry Carlton?’ he asked huskily.

Kenzie closed her eyes to avoid the intensity of his gaze, knowing that she had misled him last night when she had told Dominick the baby she carried wasn’t his.

‘Kenzie, please!’ he encouraged gruffly. ‘Baby or not, do you want to marry Carlton?’

‘Baby or not’…?

What did Dominick mean?

‘Kenzie, for God’s sake open your eyes and look at me!’ he encouraged emotionally.

She raised her lids at last, looking deep into his eyes, searching, seeing—seeing—

What did she see…?

Something she didn’t recognize. Something she had thought she would never see in Dominick’s eyes. Something that made her breath catch in her throat.

‘No,’ she breathed shakily. ‘No, I don’t want to marry Jerome,’ she admitted softly.

Dominick continued to examine her for several long seconds, just touching her like this making his hands tremble. ‘Good,’ he finally murmured. ‘Because there is another alternative to marrying Carlton or bringing the baby up on your own.’

‘There is…?’ She frowned in confusion, still staring at him.

Dominick gave a rueful smile. ‘It may not be one you want to take, but—I want you to know it’s there nonetheless.’ He drew in a ragged breath before continuing. ‘You could stay married to me.’

Her eyes widened. ‘But—’

‘I should go and let Carlton in before he breaks the door down,’ he encouraged, releasing her from his grip as Jerome thundered on the door again.

Kenzie was stunned, moving to answer the door as if in a daze, not absolutely sure what Dominick was saying to her, or why he was saying it.

Just as she wasn’t certain what emotion she had seen in Dominick’s eyes a few minutes ago, only knowing what her first instinct had been.

Love.

Bright.

Shining.

Intense.

Love…?