She sighed. “Yes?”
“Are you pregnant?”
Her eyes rounded with incredulity. She hadn’t thought, had never even considered…
“No!” she shouted.
“Then there should be no problem.” He gazed at her intently, for she looked alarmed. “Your ‘no’ was a bit hasty perhaps?”
“Perhaps,” she admitted miserably. “It’s just too soon to tell.”
“So it’s possible?”
“Yes!” she snapped. “It’s possible.”
Considering her reaction, Marcus said reluctantly, “I suppose we should postpone doing anything until you are sure.”
“Must we?”
He shrugged. “We could always invent a husband for you if it becomes necessary. But since you already have one, and since you’re reasonably certain you won’t ever see him again, anyway, I don’t see why we need invent a lie. Do you?”
“No, I suppose not. I’ll just have to wait and see.”
After Sharisse left, Marcus sat back, drumming his fingers on his desk. Both his daughters were married. He had given neither of them away. All his careful planning had come to nothing. Was this a dream? He shook his head.
One daughter was happy. Edward could be talked around. And the other daughter? Well, she had been evasive about her feelings for this man Holt, but it hadn’t passed his notice how quickly she had come to his defense. And she had glowed when describing him. Did she love the fellow perhaps without knowing it? Was she only hurt by his rejection?
The rejection rankled Marcus. Who the hell did Lucas Holt think he was? He had a good mind to—no, he ought to leave well enough alone. Still, something Sharisse had said intrigued him. Holt was like him. That was the only thing wrong with young Joel. He was capable enough, but he lacked backbone.
Stubborn, arrogant, she had called Holt. A man cut from the same mold as himself. Marcus smiled for the first time that day. He knew he ought to leave the situation alone. But on the other hand…
Thirty-five
Sharisse lay back on her bed and closed her eyes. She had just spent two incredibly long hours being fussed over by Jenny. Her skin still tingled from the hard scrubbing she had received in Jenny’s vain effort to remove her new skin color. Jenny had done nothing but cluck andtskover the unfashionable dark tan, but it wasn’t going to come off with a brush.
Charley had settled right in after sniffing every corner of the room. He had taken up his old favorite position in the center of the bed, watching the bustle around him, yawning every once in a while. He knew he was home.
When Sharisse joined him after Jenny finally left her in peace, Charley curled up against her side. He started purring even before she began stroking him. At least one of them was content with the end of their journey.
His mistress continued stroking Charley, preoccupied. A baby. Was it possible? Of course it was. Her monthly times were always far apart, so that wouldn’t tell her much. She had been with a man, a virile, passionate man. She had let him love her, and that was all it took.
Did she want Lucas’s child? A boy to grow up like his father—strong, handsome, arrogant. Or a girl. What would his daughter look like? She knew she shouldn’t be thinking about it yet, it was too soon. But she couldn’t help herself. Now that the shock had passed, she was filled with a strange kind of wonder. To have created something from that wonderful passion she had shared with Lucas was magical. She did want his baby, just as much as she still wanted him. The despicable man. She still ached for him. Yet he had probably already forgotten her.
“Oh, Rissy!” Stephanie burst into the room without warning, scattering Sharisse’s thoughts. “Father just informed me he has sent an invitation to Joel for dinner tonight. It’s to officially welcome him into the family. I don’t know how you did it! I’m so grateful. I just knew you wouldn’t let me down.”
Sharisse sat up slowly, her eyes trained on her sister. “I didn’t do it for you, Stephanie. I did it for me.”
“But—”
“Father still wanted me to marry Joel. Of course that was out of the question.”
“Well, of course. It wouldn’t be right after Joel and I—well, you know,” Stephanie whispered.
“No, I don’t know.”
Stephanie blushed. “We didn’t come directly home after the wedding. There was an inn we went to, and…”
“For heaven’s sake, why didn’t you tell Father that?” Sharisse snapped.
