Suspicion by Christiane Heggan Read Free Book Online Page A

alone.
      "Don’t mind my mother," Megan told Eric after a particularly chilly first meeting. "She tends to be overprotective at times. She’ll come around."
      She never had. When, a month after meeting Megan, Eric had asked her to marry him, Abigail had immediately summoned him to her office.
      "For reasons I can’t possibly fathom," she told him,
      her sharp blue eyes piercing through him like a laser, "my daughter has fallen in love with you and wants to marry you. I, on the other hand, am very much opposed to this marriage."
      Ignoring the trickle of sweat that was running down his chest, Eric held her formidable gaze. "I assure you that-"
      "I’ve had you investigated, Eric." Her voice snapped at him like a whip. "It seems that when you told Megan about your fourteen-year marriage to Kate Logan, you conveniently forgot to mention that you cheated on her. Repeatedly."
      Although the "repeatedly" part was something Kate hadn’t been able to prove, it seemed pointless to deny it now. Obviously, the woman had done her homework.
      "My wife and I had problems I’d rather not go into at the moment, Mrs. Hollbrook," Eric replied, trying hard to keep his voice from shaking. "Still, my behavior was inexcusable and not something I’m particularly proud of. That’s why I didn’t tell Megan." He paused as he tried to read the woman’s face. When he couldn’t, he asked, "Did you tell her?"
      "Of course I told her. What would be the point of conducting an investigation if not to open my daughter’s eyes? I regret to say, however, that it didn’t do any good. She’s naive enough to believe that adulterers can be reformed."
      Eric held back a sigh of relief. He should have known he could count on Megan. "I can’t speak for others, but in my case. Megan is right. I’m a new man, Mrs. Hollbrook."
      Abigail didn’t seem to have heard him. "Why do you want to marry my daughter, Eric? From what I hear, your
      tastes in women lean more toward…the exotic, well endowed type, shall we say?"
      The accuracy of her statement astounded him. How far down had that witch dug anyway? Refusing to let her intimidate him, he summoned every ounce of passion he could muster. "That may have been true at one time, but not anymore. As I said, I’m a new man. And I love Megan. It’s that simple."
      "Are you sure it isn’t her money you love?"
      "Money is of no importance to me."
      The smile on Abigail’s lips was chilling. "In that case, you have no objection to signing a prenuptial agreement, do you?"
      He could have named half a dozen objections, starting with how damn humiliating the request was. Who the hell did that broad think she was? Megan was a grown woman. She didn’t need her mother’s permission to get married. Hell, she didn’t even need her approval. They could elope to Las Vegas tomorrow if they wanted to and there wasn’t a damn thing old Abigail could do about it.
      But as much as he would have loved to tell her that, he kept his mouth shut. Megan might be of age, but she loved her mother and would never intentionally hurt her.
      He met the steely, condescending gaze without flinching. "None whatsoever."
      "Good." Her hands clasped in front of her, Abigail leaned across her massive antique desk. "But don’t think for one moment that giving up my daughter’s fortune gives you the right to do to her what you did to your ex-wife. If you hurt her or embarrass this family in any way, I’ll make you regret it until the day you die. Do I make myself clear?"
      Eric swallowed. "Perfectly." Sensing he should say something a little more substantial, he added, "I’ll spend
      the rest of my life making your daughter happy, Mrs. Hollbrook. You have my word on that."
      The following six months were a whirlwind of activities-wedding preparations, parties, magazine interviews and, of course, the signing of the prenuptial agreement, which was an event in