'You are carrying my child and hence as far as I am concerned, that makes it far from being over between us', Bryan said looking deeply into her green eyes.
Sharon froze beneath his hands. 'You... you know! How did you know? How?' He had been playing games with her and she hated him for that.
'Your cousin came to see me this afternoon', Bryan revealed evenly.
'Gabriel?' She found it almost impossible to believe. 'Why should he tell you?'
Bryan released her abruptly, as though he couldn't bear to touch her any longer, turning away and wishing for a liquor. ' He thought that I had a right to know. I agreed with him. God knows I would have waited forever for you to tell me'.
'He had no right to tell you! Sharon muttered, burning with the betrayal. She couldn't think of a single reason why Gabriel should go behind her back to Bryan. It was the last thing she would have suspected. He didn't even like Bryan.
'Rights?' Bryan laughed but there was no amusement in the sound. 'You dare to talk if rights?'
Something in his voice cut her to ribbons and she turned on him. 'I want you to go right now. I am tired and I...' The silence trailed off as he moved towards her silent and menacing.
She watched the rise and fall of his deep chest as though hypnotized backing away against the wall.
His voice was quiet yet deadly, as he said, 'When your cousin brother came to see me this afternoon, my first thought was that it was some kind of trick. There has never been any love lost between us...'.
'He was only looking out for me', Sharon cut in her voice shaking. 'There have been times when I needed protection against you'.
Bryan smiled. 'Oh, I'll agree with that. You've always played a dirty game, Sharon, you even had me fooled for a while'.
Sharon paled, her eyes burning feverishly, 'You bastard. She whispered terribly hurt. He could have invented the double standard, she thought bitterly, longing to hit him, to wipe the smile from his dark lean face, to pierce that thick skin, to get through to him somehow.
She saw his mouth tautening into a cruel line. Perhaps she had hit her target afterall, she thought with fearful satisfaction.
'I thought maybe you had put him up to it', Bryan continued as though she had not spoken. 'It certainly wouldn't have surprised me'.
'Why would I do that?' she asked a grily, smarting from his insults,his low opinion of her.
'I don't know, I couldn't figure it out. I realise now, of course that you had no damn intention of telling me'. There was a roughness in his voice that had she not known better, she might have interpreted as pain.
'It's not your problem', she said tiredly, worn out with fighting.
'Dont be ridiculous ', He took her arm,pulling her round, his hand tilting up her face, forcing her to meet his eyes. 'It's my child's.
His casual touch burned her,igniting fires beneath her skin.'And oh, what would be your advice? Are you going to suggest that I get rid of it?' She heard the hiss of his indrawn breath. 'Damn you', he said harshly, controlling his anger with obvious difficulty.
Their eyes met, hers defiant and fearful, his black with anger. The whole room seemed to pulse with electric tension.
'You really think that?' he demanded, expressionlessly.
'Why not? I'm sure this isn't the first time you've had to deal with this... this inconvenient situation's. The thought hurt. The thought of him with someone else hurt like hell and she closed her eyes in case he could read what she was thinking.
Bryan let her go, his expression unrevealing. He stared at her down turned face for a moment, then said coolly.
'You have two choices, Sharon. Either you hand the child over to me when it is born or you marry me right now'.
It was a bombshell. A totally unexpected bombshell.
Suddenly, they weren't fighting anymore. Bryan was hard and cold and single minded. He was giving her two options and that was all. He was leaving her no room for manoeuvre. Her eyes flew open, the green depths, brilliant with shock. 'Marry you?' she whispered in horror.
'That's what I said'. There was mockery in his cool voice.
'You must be joking', she started to laugh, on the verge of hysteria, totally unaware of how insulting she was being. 'You don't want to marry me any more than I want to marry you'.
Bryan smiled. 'If I were you, I'd think very carefully before refusing.
'Why? Because you are the Lord of the Manor or God himself or one should start jubilations because you have asked her to marry you?' She still hadn't fully taken it in.
'Because I want that child'. He didn't bother to hide his grim determination and Sharon suddenly felt her heart pounding with fear. She knew how ruthless he could be. He would go to any length to get what he wanted. She had seen that for himself. This had been the reason she had not wanted him to know of Deborah but right now, she didn't know if her secret was still safe and prayed that Deborah should continue sleeping until he was gone but she was becoming anxious.
'I haven't said that I'm going to have the baby'. She said wildly, knowing that he was trying to back her into a corner and she finding a way to get off and planning another flight till the baby was born while having him think that she didn't keep the baby.
Bryan's eyes narrowed contemptuously on her face. 'Is that why you sent your cousin round to see me? Is it money you want? Money for an abortion?'
'No, No. You know that's not true' Her bravado dissolved beneath the cruelty if his words.
'Why did you say it then, to make me suffer?'
Sharon's eyes widened. 'How could I make you suffer? You can't even pretend that you care'.
Bryan was silent for a moment, watching her carefully. 'What if I do?' There was a deep timbre in his voice that was almost her undoing. She didn't understand what he meant.
'It... it was a mistake', she said tautly, close to tears. 'We both knew that and I won't let you trap me. I can have the baby without you. You needn't be involved at all. Gabriel should never have told you --- I can manage in my own'.
'Perhaps you can't, Bryan said coolly. 'But you won't. My child won't be born a bastard like some people I know are. You forget that I am very well acqyainted with that aspect of -- shall we say--- family life?'
Sharon swallowed on the blockage of unshed tears in her throat. She had forgotten. He had told him what a friend of his, a very close friend suffered and how it had affected his life. Now, Sharon understood the depth of his feelings. Perhaps, the friend had longed for the father he never knew and Bryan had felt drawn to his misery.
There's nothing you can do about it', she said, her anger gone.