To Have A Husband. Кэрол Мортимер
placed his own cup and saucer back down on the coffee-table before meeting the younger man’s accusing gaze with a frown. ‘What sort of information?’ he pushed hardly.
‘Political, what else?’ Quinn snapped harshly. ‘When this man first approached Corinne with the information he had concerning her past, she believed it had to be the end of her relationship with David, that the last thing he needed to forward his political career was a wife who was going to bring disgrace to his name.’ His mouth twisted contemptuously. ‘But that isn’t what this particular man has in mind at all…’ he added grimly.
‘Go on,’ Rome prompted softly.
Harrie wished he would too. It wasn’t too difficult to guess what Corinne Westley’s ‘mistake’ might have been—a young widow, devastated by the premature death of her husband; she’d been prime material for a relationship she hoped might help to ease some of her pain. And, in this case, it sounded as if the partner in that relationship had probably been a married man…
As Rome said, it happened, especially when someone was that vulnerable. And also extremely beautiful.
But that was still no excuse for what seemed to be happening to Corinne Westley now…
Quinn sighed heavily. ‘This man believes, as do most of us in the City, that David will eventually become Prime Minister. The price for this reporter’s silence is any inside information Corinne can give him on political issues—hoping to make them political scandals!’
After what Quinn McBride had already intimated, this wasn’t too difficult to guess. And in view of his closeness to his sister, it was no wonder he was angry about it.
Rome looked just as angry. ‘The man’s name?’ he bit out in that flat, emotionless tone that showed just how angry he really was.
‘I have your guarantee that nothing we have said so far will go any further than this room?’ the other man prompted again cautiously.
The guarantee was unnecessary, Harrie knew that; Rome could be determined, even ruthless if the occasion warranted it, but he had never done an underhand thing in his life. And he couldn’t abide the characteristic in others. Harrie had no doubt that the reporter’s days of working on any newspaper Rome owned, and possibly any others either, were numbered!
She also felt that perhaps Quinn McBride was right, and her presence at this meeting wasn’t needed…
‘Rome?’ she quietly demanded his attention for a moment. ‘Perhaps it would be better, after all, if I left you and Mr McBride to finish this conversation in private?’
‘You’ll stay put,’ he rasped harshly, causing Harrie to look at him with puzzlement for his vehemence. ‘The man’s name?’ he prompted Quinn again.
Harrie turned to look at the other man too, knowing there was no point in reasoning with Rome on her own behalf when he was in this mood; ‘Rome’s inflexible mood’, she’d always called it. And it meant literally what it sounded like; generally the most affable and charming of men, Rome was implacable in this mood.
‘Richard Heaton,’ Quinn told him with distaste.
Harrie’s breath caught in her throat, the look she gave Rome now one of silent accusation. Because she could tell by the now calm expression on his face that he wasn’t in the least surprised by the name the other man had just given him—because he had already known it!
What else did he know…?
From the fact that he had told her this morning he wanted her presence at this meeting, and the way he’d told her to stay put a few minutes ago, Harrie had the feeling that he ‘knew’ quite a lot more than he had so far revealed to her.
Most important of all, she was sure that Rome knew of her own relationship with Richard Heaton…
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