LITMIR.BIZ

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mean?’

      ‘It means he believes we are already married.’

      Imogen’s brows rose to her hairline. ‘I hope you relieved him of that erroneous view,’ she said primly.

      When he sighed she knew that he hadn’t. ‘As I said, Bakaan is a conservative nation.’

      ‘You lied to him. That’s why he bowed at my feet.’

      ‘I didn’t lie. He assumed we were married.’

      ‘And you let him believe it.’

      Nadir’s eyes flashed his frustration. ‘It was better than the alternative.’

      ‘What? That I was your mistress and had your baby out of wedlock?’

      A muscle ticked in his jaw. ‘You might not care how Nadeena is perceived in the future, but I do.’

      ‘Of course I care. You’re just twisting my words to suit yourself but as soon as I see that man again I’m going to correct him.’

      ‘No, you won’t. I won’t have Nadeena’s name smeared because you can’t see reason.’

      ‘I can’t see reason?’ So much for her hope that he would use the time on the plane to reconsider his proposition.

      He stopped directly in front of her. ‘And, to all intents and purposes, we are married.’

      Imogen coughed out a protest. ‘We most certainly are not.’

      ‘Signing a piece of paper isn’t going to make it any more real, Imogen. You’re going to have to get over whatever reservations you have and get used to it. But we can talk about this later, hmm? It is not a conversation we should be having in front of our daughter.’

      ‘She doesn’t understand,’ Imogen snapped, fuming because she knew he was right and she should have thought of the same thing herself. Because, although Nadeena couldn’t understand their words, she was soaking up the heightened emotions in the room and that wasn’t good.

      Sweeping past Nadir, she gasped as she entered a beautifully appointed bedroom with vast ceilings and long ornate keyhole-shaped windows lined with pale floaty curtains. Deep pink fabric was draped over the elaborate king-sized bed but, other than that, the furnishings wouldn’t have been out of place in any five-star hotel. A freshly made up cot stood beside the bed.

      ‘I thought you might like to keep Nadeena close.’

      She hadn’t expected him to show her that level of thoughtfulness.

      ‘Thank you,’ she said stiltedly, rubbing her arms against the chill in the air. ‘Is it usually so cold?’

      ‘Always.’

      Startled by the gravity of his tone, Imogen stared across at him. His hands were shoved into his pockets and the hard planes of his face seemed even more austere, the grimness of his expression making her think he was talking about more than just the air temperature.

      ‘I’ll have the thermostat adjusted. Get some sleep. You look tired.’

      Excellent. She looked exactly how she felt.

      ‘I have organised clothing and baby-related items for you which should be through the dressing room. If there’s anything the staff has missed just let me know.’

      ‘How could you arrange this so quickly?’

      ‘Bakaan might be somewhat of a backwater compared to the Western world, but it does have retail outlets. And Dubai is an hour away by plane. Anything we didn’t have they would have.’

      ‘It seems you’ve thought of everything.’

      His eyes were shuttered as he looked at her. ‘Let’s hope so.’

      * * *

      With a brief glance at Nadeena, who was wide awake and taking in her new surroundings with open curiosity, Nadir left and closed the door softly behind him.

      So civilised, she thought, feeling anything but civilised herself.

      ‘Okay, baby girl. What now?’

      Deciding to check out the items Nadir had supplied in the dressing room, she was shocked when she saw just how much he had bought.

      She lay Nadeena on her tummy on the floor, watching as she slowly pulled herself towards a row of shoe boxes. Curious herself, Imogen lifted the lid on the first box and gasped at the sight of an exquisite pair of designer shoes nestled amongst the tissue paper. They were her size and she wondered how he had known and then she remembered the day he had taken her shopping in Paris. Did he still remember? Probably not. Probably, it had just been a good guess. He did know women, after all.

      Not wanting to dwell on that disagreeable topic, she next checked the clothing hanging on the rack. Most of them were Western, with a few traditional-looking dresses amongst them.

      There were more clothes on the hangers than in her own wardrobe and she felt uneasy at why he would have supplied so many. Not that she’d wear them. But she would need to change Nadeena and she couldn’t suppress her delight at each of the baby outfits his staff had provided. Gorgeous soft cottons and silks, the like of which she hadn’t been able to afford herself.

      ‘All this for one day,’ she said to Nadeena. ‘The man has clearly never had to work to a realistic budget in his life.’

      Nadeena answered with a litany of ga-ga noises and upended a box of shoes. Saving the shoes and confiscating the tissue paper, Imogen let her have the empty box, which she immediately started banging on the floor.

      Feeling suddenly weary and lost, she changed Nadeena into a soft cotton sleeping suit and fed her. Then she laid her in the cot and grimaced when she saw how wired she was. Sleep looked like a long time coming. Deciding it would be a waste of energy to try to sing her to sleep, she rang Minh instead.

      ‘I was beginning to get worried when I didn’t hear from you after your brief text. How are you? How’s our darling girl?’ he asked.

      ‘Nadeena is fine.’ She’d particularly enjoyed Nadir’s private jet. ‘And I feel like I’ve been put through a spin dryer ten times. He wants to see her,’ she added softly.

      She heard Minh settle into his leather sofa and wished she was there with him with a nice bottle of red between them and a rom com on the TV.

      ‘I’ve already guessed he’s the father or you wouldn’t be in Bakaan so you know, he does have a right to see her,’ he said.

      ‘I know that.’ Imogen watched Nadeena stuff the ear of a soft teddy bear into her mouth and chew. ‘At least logically I know that.’ Emotionally, she wasn’t ready to concede the parenting of Nadeena to anyone else but herself and a couple of trusted friends. ‘I just never thought he’d be interested in her.’

      ‘Well, he clearly is. And maybe that’s a good thing.’

      Imogen pulled a face. ‘I don’t see how.’

      ‘He’s a very powerful man. He can provide for her, you know.’ Minh’s voice grew soft down the end of the phone. ‘And no doubt for you as well.’

      ‘I don’t want his money.’

      ‘I know that. But you could use someone to take care of you.’

      That had been her mother’s mistake. It wouldn’t be hers. ‘And what about love?’ She picked Nadeena up when she saw her yawn and laid her head on her shoulder.

      ‘Are we talking about for Nadeena or for you?’

      ‘Nadeena. The way he looked at me today...’ She felt heaviness inside her chest and it was hard to get the words out. ‘Believe me, there’s no love lost between us.’ And she would never want Nadir’s love for herself again. She’d got over that unrealistic desire a long time ago.

      ‘Try to look on the bright side,’

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