.

frowningly. ‘My condition?’

      Nick drew in a harsh breath, looking at her as if he would dearly like to put his hands around her throat and strangle her. ‘Hebe, unless I’m very much mistaken—and Lord knows I hope I am!’ he muttered grimly, ‘the fact that you fainted a short time ago for no reason—’

      ‘I had just seen a portrait of the mother I’ve never known!’ she defended incredulously.

      Nick shook his head, so tense Hebe almost felt as if she could reach out and touch it. ‘The fact that you fainted, coupled with your earlier dizziness and your nausea just now, when I started cooking the eggs, all point to one conclusion as far as I can see.’

      Hebe blinked, her hand on the side of the sink as she slowly stood up to face him. ‘They do…?’

      The glittering gaze moved down the length of her body, coming to rest on her stomach. ‘You’re pregnant, Hebe,’ he bit out abruptly. ‘About six weeks, I would say!’ he added with barely suppressed fury.

      Pregnant!

      But she couldn’t be!

      Could she…?

      CHAPTER FOUR

      HE had completely forgotten, Nick realised self-disgustedly, the fourth reason that women at least sometimes fainted.

      Sally, when she’d been expecting Luke, had fainted several times during the early months of her pregnancy. She had woken up feeling sick every morning for the first three months, too—usually making a miraculous recovery once she had actually been sick, and so able to enjoy the rest of the day.

      Hebe Johnson, Nick was pretty sure, was pregnant with his baby.

      ‘I assumed you were on the Pill, for God’s sake!’ he muttered impatiently. But assumption, he knew, was the mother of all—

      ‘What?’ Hebe returned vaguely, appearing to be completely dazed, her face once again deathly pale, her eyes huge luminous golden globes.

      ‘Look, let’s get out of this bathroom, at least,’ he suggested impatiently, sure that it couldn’t be helping her nausea to still be in the room where she had actually been sick. Taking a firm hold of her arm, he led her through to his bedroom when she made no effort to move herself. He sat her firmly down in the bedroom chair. ‘Now,’ he muttered sharply. ‘I asked if you’re on the Pill?’

      She blinked up at him, really looking as if she were in shock this time. ‘Why would I be?’ she finally answered distractedly.

      ‘For God’s sake, pull yourself together, Hebe,’ he snapped, and he moved away impatiently, sure that his looming over her couldn’t be helping the situation.

      Although if she really was pregnant he couldn’t see that there was any help for either of them!

      ‘It’s quite simple, Hebe. Were you, or were you not using any contraception when we went to bed together six weeks ago?’ He bit the words out as succinctly as he could in the circumstances, knowing that one of them, at least, had to try and make sense of all this.

      Even if he didn’t feel very sensible!

      He had needed to be with someone that night six weeks ago—had needed to lose himself in her, to blot out the painful memories and then move on. But if Hebe really was pregnant from that night then moving on wasn’t an option. For either of them…

      Hebe drew in a deep breath, at last managing to fight down the panic his announcement had caused. Of course she wasn’t pregnant. No matter what people said, all those dire warnings parents gave to pubescent offspring about it ‘only taking once’, she could not be pregnant from that single night she had spent in Nick’s arms.

      But it hadn’t just been ‘once’, a little voice inside her head reminded her. She and Nick had made love three times that night. Not once.

      She was not pregnant!

      It was ridiculous to even suggest that she was.

      She straightened in the chair, determined to take some control of this situation. ‘No, I wasn’t. But that doesn’t mean—’

      ‘Why weren’t you?’ Nick rounded on her impatiently. ‘You’re what? Twenty-five, twenty-six years old—?’

      ‘Twenty-six,’ she confirmed, her own impatience rising to meet his as she glared at him. ‘But I’m not in a relationship. And I certainly don’t take contraceptive pills just on the off-chance I might meet a man I want to go to bed with!’

      ‘But that’s exactly what you did!’ he came back exasperatedly.

      She paled even more. ‘But it wasn’t planned—’

      ‘Wasn’t it?’ he challenged coldly. ‘I seem to remember it was you who bumped into me that evening…’

      Hebe became very still, her breathing shallow as she stared at him, her blood seeming to have turned to ice in her veins. ‘And just what is that supposed to mean?’ she prompted slowly.

      He shook his head. ‘You wouldn’t be the first woman to set this sort of trap for a man. What were you hoping for, Hebe? That I would pay you off—’

      ‘How dare you?’ she finally managed to gasp disbelievingly.

      He couldn’t really think—believe—He did, she acknowledged dazedly as she saw the glittering anger in his eyes.

      ‘Give it up, Hebe,’ he bit out disgustedly. ‘The outraged virgin act doesn’t suit you at all!’

      No, she hadn’t been a virgin when they went to bed together. She had had one previous relationship before Nick. But that had been five years ago, with a fellow student at university and the experience had not been repeated until that impetuous night with Nick. Nor since, either!

      She really had been totally besotted with him, had found his attention flattering, his obvious desire for her to spend the night with him too tempting to resist.

      She looked at him coldly. ‘Why are you turning all this round on me? I didn’t notice you using any protection that night either!’ she challenged.

      He eyed her scornfully. He knew she had a point, but he was in no mood to admit that right now. ‘Because no one told me I needed to!’

      ‘Because I didn’t even think about getting pregnant!’ she snapped, standing up impatiently. ‘And I’m not! This conversation is acedemic,’ she dismissed. ‘I’m not pregnant. I’ve obviously just eaten something that’s disagreed with me—’

      ‘You haven’t eaten anything at all since yesterday,’ Nick reminded her impatiently.

      Well, that was true. But it still didn’t mean—She could not be pregnant!

      ‘There’s one quick and easy way to settle all this,’ Nick decided brusquely, marching out of the bedroom.

      Hebe quickly followed him, wondering what he was going to do. He was in the kitchen, putting his jacket back on when she got found him. ‘Where are you going?’ She frowned her confusion; she was the one who was leaving, not him!

      He gave her a scathing glance. ‘To a chemist. To buy a pregnancy test. I don’t see any point in continuing our present conversation until we know one way or the other whether you actually are pregnant,’ he added grimly, picking up what appeared to be his car keys.

      Hebe gave a firm shake of her head. ‘I won’t be here when you get back.’

      Nick halted in the doorway, his face set into grimly determined lines as he turned back to her. ‘You had damn well better be,’ he warned angrily.

      Hebe’s chin rose challengingly. ‘Aren’t you afraid of what else I might “pry” into while you’re gone?’ she taunted.

      Nick gave a humourless