Second Best Wife Read online

  'That's what I want to do,' he said thickly, and started kissing her again.

  Julia parted her lips, her heartbeats quickening. But even as she began to deepen the kiss, he drew back, his body stiff with tension.

  'No, Julia,' he said quickly. 'Don't touch me.'

  'Why not? Oh, Roy, come into the flat and kiss me properly. It's not every night a girl gets engaged.'

  'If I come in with you, I may not be able to leave.'

  'I might not ask you to,' she whispered.

  'No,' he said firmly. 'I respect you too much. I want us to wait till we're married. Otherwise I'd feel it was wrong.'

  'That's usually a woman's line,' Julia smiled, accepting his reluctance and reminding herself that Roy hated to show his emotions, and must find his life quite different from the ordered existence of three months ago. Still, he had asked her to marry him, so he must be ready for change. Or was he hoping to change her?

  Remembering his remarks about her appearance, she felt a vague sense of apprehension. Did he really find her auburn hair too colourful and her figure too perfect? It seemed so ludicrous she could not believe he had meant it seriously. It was definitely jealousy that had made him say it; once they were married, he would learn that despite her looks, she was loyal and faithful.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Adam Lester drew the car into the kerb and switched off the engine. But he did not immediately get out. Instead, he rested his hands on the wheel and stared at the windscreen. It was a fortnight since he had seen Erica, and then it had only been a brief glimpse at her husband's funeral, where they had had no chance to talk. That same day, an important case had unexpectedly sent him halfway across the world to Aden, keeping him there until last night, when he had returned home too late and too tired to do anything except climb into bed.

  While away, he had rung Erica several times, and on each occasion had become more convinced something was wrong. But she had been evasive when he had asked her, and he was too wise to insist, accepting that she would not disclose anything until they saw each other. He wondered if it was connected with Kenneth Dukes' will, and whether he had finally shown resentment of her infidelity. Yet somehow Adam doubted it. Kenneth Dukes had stopped being a husband in the true sense of the word long before he himself had come on the scene, and had made it plain he did not mind how many affairs his young wife had, as long as she remained discreet. Surely he had not gone back on his word and shown his displeasure by leaving everything to his children? But what matter if he had? Adam shrugged. Erica would want for nothing once she became his wife. Still, women were strange creatures, and Erica strangest of all. She might not like being punished from the grave.

  Slipping the ignition key into his pocket, Adam walked up the flight of marble steps into the spacious foyer of a luxurious apartment house. The Dukes had moved here a few years ago, when Kenneth started to spend more time at his home in Maidenhead, leaving Erica the run of the penthouse, which had suited her admirably.

  When Adam stepped out of the private elevator directly into the penthouse lobby and saw Erica coming towards him, his heart beat as fast as a schoolboy's on a first date. It was not that she was particularly good-looking—he had seen women far more beautiful—but none seemed to have her special blend of fire and ice; a mixture he found exhilarating. Her milk-white skin contrasted with her full red mouth; her pale blonde hair was a foil for passionate dark eyes, while her slender, almost too thin body was redeemed from boyishness by high, full breasts.

  She was very much a creature of contradiction; not only physically, but mentally too: one moment aloof, the next, clinging; one moment commanding, the next submissive. At the moment she appeared cool and controlled, though she kissed Adam warmly and rested for an instant in his arms, before leading the way into the living-room which overlooked a wide, flower-filled terrace.

  'You don't look a bit tired after your trip,' she commoving to the drinks tray and returning to hand him a whisky and soda.

  'Sheik Achmad believes in early nights,' he smiled, 'and the social life in Aden isn't exactly to my taste.' 'I'm glad to hear it.' 'Don't tell me you're jealous?'

  'I've never been jealous of any man.' Dark eyes glowed mischievously. 'I suppose you think that's conceited?' 'Realistic, rather!'

  Erica chuckled, then stopped, convincing Adam that something was worrying her.

  'Tell me what's wrong,' he said softly. 'I guessed there was trouble when I spoke to you on the telephone. Is it something to do with Kenneth?'

  'I'm afraid so.' She perched on the arm of a settee, her full-skirted dress of black chiffon floating gracefully around her. 'Kenneth was a very clever man, you know. That was one of the reasons why I married him. His being a millionaire was only part of his attraction.'

  'You needn't sell Kenneth to me,' Adam said dryly. 'He was a client of mine long before he married you. And all this talk of cleverness… What are you leading up to? Has he cut you out of his will?'

  'The exact opposite. I would have been able to cope with that. But he's done something far shrewder. After extremely generous bequests to his children, he's left everything to me—on condition that I don't remarry for four years.'

  Adam was too well trained a lawyer to show his astonishment. 'I suppose it would be naive of me to enquire whether the will is valid?'

  'One hundred per cent valid,' she rejoined. 'I stand no chance of contesting it.' She jumped up and glided across the room, her delicate white hands clasped together. 'It would have been better if he'd left me nothing. I'd have been upset and angry, but I'd have got over it.'

  'I should damn well think so,' Adam said forcefully. 'As my wife you won't be short of anything.'

  'But to leave me most of his estate and then tie it up in this way,' she went on, speaking as though she had not heard him. 'That's where he's been so Machiavellian.'

  'I grant you it's a neat trick, but there's no need to get het-up about it. You won't be exactly poor, married to me.'

  'But three million pounds!' Erica muttered. 'I can't just turn it down.'

  Adam sipped his whisky and tried to hide the deep anger that Kenneth's action had aroused. The man was clever all right. Machiavellian was exactly the word to describe the way he had managed to use his death to come between Erica and himself.

  'Why is Kenneth's money so important to you?' he asked quietly. 'I'm not in his league financially, but I'm perfectly able to keep you in the fashion you want.' 'I know that. But three million is a great deal to walk away from. Think what we could do with it.' 'We?'

  'Of course. Once we're married, whatever I have will be yours. We only have to wait four years, and then we'll be able to buy a country house, and an apartment in New York—look how many times you go there on business. Why, you could even give up law if you wish and concentrate on the stock market. I'm sure you could double our assets if you did.'

  'I've no intention of giving up law, nor will I wait four years to marry you.' Adam set down his glass with a bang, his resolve to keep his temper forgotten. 'This past year has been bad enough, without four more like it.'

  'But it wouldn't be the same. We had to be discreet for obvious reasons, but with Kenneth dead, we can live together openly. It wouldn't matter.'

  'It would to me.'

  Erica looked startled. 'Do you mean that? In these emancipated days?'

  'Damn right I do! I'm not merely a lawyer by profession—I believe in upholding it too. Marriage may be regarded as outmoded in some circles, but in my opinion it's a fundamental bulwark against declining ethical standards.'

  'Only moral ones, surely?' Erica questioned.

  'No, ethical ones too. Man's attitude to marriage is also part of his social structure—and the social structure is linked with the ethical and moral one.' Aware of sounding hectoring, Adam softened his voice. 'I want more than a casual relationship with you, Erica. I want a lasting foundation to my life. Living together may be fine for youngsters and showbiz people, but it's not for me.'

&n
bsp; 'It wouldn't be a permanent thing, darling,' Erica pleaded. 'Only until I've complied with Kenneth's crazy rule. Once the four years are up, we can be married. A ring on my finger and a legal bit of paper won't make me feel more your wife than I already do. Please be reasonable about it. It would be madness to turn our back on all that money.'

  'What you're really saying is that you want the best of both worlds.' Adam moved away from Erica, knowing it was imperative for him not to be swayed by the potent physical power she had over him. 'I won't let Kenneth rule our lives for the next four years. I love you and I want to marry you now. There's also the matter of children. I'm thirty-five and I have no intention of waiting till I'm forty before I become a father.'

  'We don't have to wait,' she said.

  Adam marvelled that Erica, who had always been so careful to keep her good name and social standing intact, should have no such worries when it came to having his illegitimate children. But then wasn't three million pounds a strong incentive to alter one's attitudes? Except that it wasn't altering his own. He frowned, not liking where his thoughts were taking him, yet too intelligent to ignore them.

  'No,' he said slowly. 'I want my children born in wedlock.'

  'You seem to set more value on your unborn children than you do on loving me!'

  'That's a foolish comment,' he retorted. 'If anyone should question the meaning of the word "love", it should be me. Tell me, Erica, how much is my love worth to you? Not three million pounds, that's for sure, if you're willing to forgo marriage because of it.'

  'Forgo?' Erica echoed, her eyes dilating. 'When did I say I wouldn't marry you? All I'm asking is that we delay it.'

  'I don't want to delay it.' Roughly he stepped forward and pulled her tightly against him, his desire surging at the feel of her slender body. 'Doesn't it mean anything that I desperately want you for my wife? That I want to proclaim to the world that we're together?'

  'We can still do that,' she whispered. 'To all intents and purposes, I'll still be your wife. Be reasonable, darling.'

  'Reasonable? Damn it! I'll feel like a kept man. Everyone will know you've put your greed for Kenneth's money before your desire to be my wife.'

  'I wish you wouldn't talk in such a melodramatic and old-fashioned way,' Erica cried, pushing him away from her. 'What you're asking me to do isn't the suggestion of a man who loves me, but of a selfish egotist who can't bear to wait until he's made me into his possession. Think of the position from my point of view. If I'm willing to live with you openly, doesn't it show I trust you?'

  'Oh, sure,' he replied. 'But it also shows I take second place to your late husband's money.'

  Bright colour flushed Erica's pale skin. Instantly it spoiled the patrician fineness of her features, making her look hard and ugly. But as the colour faded, the delicacy returned to her face and her dark glowing eyes filled with tears.

  'I didn't realise you could be so cruel, Adam. You talk as though I don't love you, when all I want is to increase our security.'

  'My security is strong enough not to require another man's fortune,' Adam said harshly as he strode to the door. He was halfway through it when Erica ran across and barred his way.

  'You can't go!' she cried. 'We love each other.'

  'I love you,' he corrected. 'But you love money.'

  'I'm being realistic,' she repeated. 'But you're being chauvinist, as well as proud.'

  'I won't deny either accusation,' he said. 'But I happen to want a wife and a mother for my children.' He gently pushed her out of his way and crossed the hall to the elevator.

  'I'll be waiting for you,' Erica called. 'You're the only man I want, and I won't settle for anyone else.'

  Adam did not answer, but her words echoed in his ears as he went down to the main floor and out to his car.

  The whole of the next week Adam buried himself in his work, determined not to call Erica. If he did, it would only lead to his agreeing to her terms, and he knew that if he succumbed in a moment of weakness, he would live to regret it. Yet his need of her increased until it was an ache in his heart and a surging throb in his loins that no work could dispel. His resolve to stay away from her was weakening, and he searched desperately for a prop to give him strength.

  Fortuitously, at the beginning of the following week he received a call from a colleague attached to the International Court at the Hague, which necessitated his having to fly to Holland to help settle a difficult case. He was in a calmer frame of mind by the time he returned to London at the end of the week, and was as determined as ever to remain true to the principles which had parted him from the woman he loved.

  He was sitting at his desk, wondering what to do with himself during the weekend—any more work and he would become mentally stale—when the private line on his bedside table rang. Instinct told him it was Erica, and he experienced a swift urge not to take the call, afraid that if he heard her voice, it would weaken his resolve.

  And it did. Her husky tones brought back memories of the passionate hours they had shared, and when she tearfully said she wanted to see him, he was so overcome by her unusual breakdown of control that he instantly agreed.

  'I'll call for you at eight-thirty,' he said. 'I'll book a table somewhere quiet.'

  'Why not dine with me here?' she suggested.

  'I'd prefer not,' he lied, knowing that if he did, they would end up in the bedroom.

  'Very well, then.' There was a purr in her voice which told him that she knew why he had refused. 'I'll wait for you downstairs, Adam—far be it from me to tempt you.' Erica was waiting in the lobby when his car drew up at the kerb. As soon as she saw him she came gracefully down the steps. She had taken special care with her appearance, he noticed, and was wearing one of his favourite dresses: a silvery grey silk that made her hair seem mot ash than blonde, and gave her the appearance of a silver reed. Except that there was nothing reedlike in her unbending will. He had always known that once she took a stance she would stand by it, and he had been pleased that, despite her fragile appearance, she was a woman of strength. But that was before she had used her strength against him—as she was doing now.

  Yet he was strong too, and he had no intention of giving in to her demands and living with her. What the hell did she take him for? A callow youth happy to wag along behind her like a puppy dog, waiting till she had complied with her late husband's wishes and could inherit all his money? No, it was not on. If she loved him she would marry him at once. He had a beautiful home in London, adequately staffed and more than enough money in the bank. He also had a brilliant career and an even more brilliant future. But this didn't seem to be enough for Erica. She wanted gilt on the gingerbread. He smiled sourly. Perhaps it was more accurate to say she wanted gold on it.

  He took her to dine at Les Ambassadeurs, instead of one of their usual frequented quieter places in Soho. But then they no longer had to be discreet about their relationship.

  'Have you missed me?' she asked, raising her glass of wine and staring at him across the rim of it.

  'Do you need to be told?'

  'A woman always likes to be told.'

  'I missed you every moment of every day, and I still want to marry you—as soon as possible.'

  A shadow crossed her lovely face. 'I was hoping you'd changed your mind,' she said beguilingly. 'We shouldn't waste these four years, Adam.'

  'That's how I see it too. Which is why I want to marry you.'

  'You're still being old-fashioned,' she said petulantly.

  'And you're still being mercenary.'

  Her mouth narrowed, making him conscious that half of its fullness came from the skilful application of lipstick.

  'That's a beastly thing to say to me!' she cried.

  'But the truth. I meant every word I said the last time we met, and though I've missed you like hell, I haven't changed my mind.'

  'Nor have I. So where does that leave us?'

  'It leaves you looking forward to a big bank account.

  As for
me…'

  'Yes?' she asked. 'And where does it leave you?' 'On the lookout for another woman.' He saw the disbelief in her eyes and it spurred him to say angrily: 'I mean it, Erica. If you intend waiting for Kenneth's money, then I'll marry someone else.' 'Just like that!'

  'Just like that.' He glanced around the room, the tilt of his dark head arrogant, then acknowledged the greeting of a man and woman at a table some few yards from theirs. Erica's eyes followed his and she stiffened.

  'You can't be thinking of Angela,' she said angrily. 'She likes horses more than men.'

  'She's never given me that impression,' Adam replied. 'But no, I wasn't thinking of Angela.'

  'Who else, then? For the last year you haven't looked at anyone other than me.'

  'And I'll be happy not to look at anyone else if you marry me, but if you don't…'

  'I want to go home,' Erica said abruptly. 'And I don't want to see you again until you've come to your senses. Your attitude to Kenneth's money is unrealistic and I've no intention of arguing with you any more. There's only one thing I have to say, and that is that no matter what you believe, you'll never be able to forget me easily.'

  'I never said it would be easy,' Adam replied, escorting her out of the restaurant. 'But I intend to make a life for myself either with or without you.'

  Erica did not answer, nor did she speak again until he went round to open the car door for her outside her apartment block.

  'So this is goodbye,' she whispered, her brilliant dark eyes lustred with tears. 'So it would seem.'

  'Even though I love you and want to be yours?' Her slender hand caressed his cheek. 'Think of me when you're lying alone in bed at night, Adam. Remember my touch and the feel of my body.'

  'You hit below the belt, don't you?' 'I want you, and I'm trying to make you realise how much you want me.'

  'Oh, I realise it all right, but I'm going to fight it.' 'It's a battle you'll lose, Adam, but I promise I'll make the defeat very wonderful for you.'

  Without looking back she went into the foyer, and Adam returned to the car and drove away, accepting that the next few weeks of his life were going to be the hardest he had ever faced.