Irresistible Greeks: Defiance and Desire. Кэрол Мортимер

that mean he had been lying to her, after all, when he’d denied any personal involvement with Angela?

      Gemini eyed the other woman guardedly. ‘What about him?’

      Angela gave an inelegant snort. ‘I told you not to try and play the little innocent with me.’ She looked daggers at Gemini. ‘And to think Miles always believed you were such a sweet little thing too.’

      ‘Whatever problem you think you have with me, you will leave my father out of this,’ Gemini said, her hands clenched so tightly at her sides that her nails were digging painfully into her palms.

      ‘Will I?’ the older woman challenged derisively as she perched one slender hip against the side of the desk. ‘I wonder what Miles would have thought about your having thrown yourself at a man like Drakon Lyonedes.’

      ‘I did not throw myself at him!’ Gemini protested.

      ‘Liar!’ Angela straightened abruptly, her eyes once again glittering. ‘I always knew you didn’t like me, Gemini—and, believe me, the feeling is completely reciprocated. As far as I’m concerned you’ve always been far too much of a reminder of the perfect first wife that Miles so obviously adored.’

      ‘How could you possibly have been jealous of a dead woman?’ Gemini gasped.

      ‘I was never jealous of Rosemary!’ Angela glared furiously.

      ‘It sounds distinctly like jealousy to me,’ she retorted.

      ‘And what would you know about it, little rich girl?’ the other woman demanded. ‘You lived in a mansion all your life, doted on by rich and indulgent parents, you owned your own pony, attended private schools, and holidayed in exotic places all over the world several times a year. What would you know about growing up on the twelfth floor of a tenement building in a family of six who had nothing to look forward to but the next dole cheque?’

      ‘I—That was you?’

      ‘Oh, yes,’ Angela sneered. ‘Until I reached sixteen and was old enough to break my ties with my family in order to reinvent myself and use the one asset I have—my body and the way that I look. Of course I had to put up with the pawing of a succession of wealthy old men, but it was all worth it when I finally persuaded the wealthiest one into marrying me.’

      Gemini went deathly white at these revelations. ‘You told my father that your father had gambled away your family fortune before committing suicide—’

      ‘And he did gamble—probably still does. What little money the government gave us always went to the bookies or on another bottle of whisky to throw down his throat,’ Angela said harshly. ‘He rarely, if ever, gave my mother enough money to actually feed any of us.’

      ‘You told my father that both your parents were dead.’

      ‘I lied,’ Angela admitted. ‘I’ve never been back, but as far as I’m aware both my parents are still alive—and no doubt living in exactly the same squalor as always.’

      Gemini could perhaps understand what had driven Angela into seducing Miles into marriage now that she knew the truth of the other woman’s background—obviously any wealthy man would have done. Could understand and even sympathise with her. What she couldn’t accept was the unhappiness that selfishness had caused her disillusioned father before he died…

      She took a deep breath. ‘I’m sorry if that truly is how you were forced to live as a child—’

      ‘Oh, it’s all true,’ Angela assured her. ‘And you can keep your sympathy for someone who might actually appreciate it. After all, I came out the winner in the end, didn’t I?’

      Oh, yes, Angela had certainly triumphed. Spectacularly, in fact, with regard to Gemini’s father.

      ‘I suppose Drakon Lyonedes was to be your second, even wealthier husband?’

      ‘Why not?’ Angela demanded aggressively.

      Gemini gave a pained frown. ‘Don’t you have enough money now, having sold off everything my father left you?’

      ‘I’ll never have enough money,’ the older woman said with hard determination.

      ‘And never care who you have to trample over in order to get it, apparently,’ Gemini said dully.

      ‘That’s rich, coming from you!’ Angela jeered. ‘You’re still so desperate to own Bartholomew House that you would even stoop to trying to seduce Drakon yourself to get it!’

      Gemini felt ill. In fact she thought she might actually be sick if she had to stand and listen to this woman for too much longer. ‘Considering your claim that you’re involved with Drakon, I’m surprised you believe he could be seduced—by me or any other woman.’

      ‘I believe I said you had tried to seduce him,’ Angela scoffed. ‘I’m sure you very quickly learnt that a man like Drakon requires a woman who’s a little more adventurous and experienced than a mere baby like you!’

      Just thinking of Drakon and Angela together intimately, after the passionate way he had kissed her in the lift four days ago, brought on another wave of nausea. She swallowed hard. ‘I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave after all.’

      ‘I’m not going anywhere until I’ve made it perfectly clear to you that Bartholomew House—and Drakon—will never be yours!’ Angela announced.

      Gemini gave a slow and disbelieving shake of her head. ‘What on earth could a man like Drakon possibly see in someone like you?’

      Those blue eyes flashed angrily. ‘Oh, climb down off your alabaster pedestal, Gemini. If you haven’t realised it yet, your own pathetic attempt to seduce Drakon makes you exactly like me!’

      Gemini closed her eyes and gave a shudder of distaste. ‘God, I hope not.’

      ‘Offends your naive little sensibilities, does it?’ Angela taunted.

      ‘Everything about you offends my sensibilities,’ Gemini shot back.

      ‘Why, you little—’

      ‘I think not,’ interrupted a dangerously soft voice that Gemini instantly recognised.

      She opened wide, startled eyes in time to see Drakon take hold of the arm that Angela had raised with the intention of slapping Gemini on the face.

      The older woman’s face twisted into an ugly mask of hatred as she turned to see who her assailant was. The change that came over Angela’s expression then was even more sickening than all that had gone before it. Her eyes softened to a sultry blue as she looked up at Drakon. Her painted red lips curved into an inviting smile, the anger leaving her body as she leant into him.

      ‘Oh, dear, Drakon, I’m afraid you’ve been caught in the middle of a rather silly argument between two even sillier women,’ she murmured throatily.

      Gemini felt nausea rise up inside her, and knew she was actually going to be ill after witnessing this sickeningly kittenish display. She only had time to gasp ‘Excuse me!’ before she brushed past Drakon, heading for the stairs and the privacy of the bathroom in her apartment above the shop.

       CHAPTER SEVEN

      DRAKON took one look at Gemini collapsed on the floor beside the toilet in the bathroom of her apartment, her face a deathly clammy white after obviously having been violently ill, before striding over to the sink and dampening a flannel with cold water. He went down on his knees beside her to begin bathing her face.

      Gemini pushed the flannel away, her eyes a deep and pained sea-green. ‘What are you doing?’

      He raised dark brows as he sat back on his heels. ‘I believe I am endeavouring to make you feel better.’