get on with finding someone to love, someone who is worthy of that love and could give him the family he needed and children to spoil. She couldn’t be that woman. She’d known that from the beginning but, at the time, she’d never have known how hard it would be to walk away from him. And she had never in her wildest dreams have thought that he would start to care for her.
Knowing that her stomach wouldn’t get better until she finished what she needed to do, she stood up from the toilet, grabbing the counter to steady her suddenly wobbly stance. Showering quickly, she stepped out with her hair in a towel and a large robe covering almost every square inch of her skin. She saw him standing against the bed, already showered from one of the other bathrooms and looking more handsome than any man had a right to look.
When he saw her in the mirror, he turned and faced her, his eyes showing his concern. “Would you like to talk about last night?” he asked softly.
Helen almost burst into tears at his gentle tone. Instead, she shook her head, hating the way it made her feel. She gripped the side of the dresser that contained her underwear and held on until the dizziness passed. It had been a hard night and all she wanted to do was get this confrontation over with so she could start the healing process.
Taking a deep breath, she said, “I guess it’s inevitable, isn’t it?” assuming he was talking about their breakup.
Dimitri thought she was talking about their discussion of the previous night so he instantly agreed. He always thought it was better to get things out in the open rather than leaving problems to fester. “Yes. So what about my family made you so uncontrollably sad?” he demanded.
Helen cringed at his words. “It’s difficult to explain.”
“Then start at the beginning,” he advised, crossing his arms over his chest. His pose was relaxed, but Helen knew better. He was trying to hide his concern and she loved him even more for it. He had every right to be angry. She’d behaved like a lunatic last night, crying like an unruly child, and he only wanted an explanation.
Helen took a deep breath and started the lies that would tear her away from the only man she would ever love. “I realized last night that you and I have different ideas on what our relationship means,” she finally got out, not looking at him.
There was a long, tense silence behind her before he said, “I guess that might be easy to understand. I’m looking to marry you, Helen. How different is that from what you have in mind?”
Helen’s legs almost gave out on her at his words because she knew that her love for him was too deep. He deserved someone whole and she had to get out so he could find her. “That’s not what I’m looking for,” she lied painfully, her words breaking.
After a long, tension filled moment, he said, “What exactly are you looking for?”
Helen braced herself, turning away and taking the towel off her head, tossing it to the bed in what she hoped was a casual manner. “Dimitri, let’s face it, the sex is great. But I think it would be better if we stopped seeing each other.”
Dimitri swore under his breath. “I don’t believe you Helen. You’re not that type.”
Helen laughed harshly but the effort almost sent her back to the bathroom as the queasiness increased. It was difficult to appear casual but she’d have to do it. For him. “I’ve been living with you for the past two months. How can you tell me that I’m not that type, when that’s exactly what I am?”
“What are you saying?”
She took a deep breath. “Dimitri, you taught me about sex. That’s what we have
together. That’s all it can be,” she said and forced her face to smile.
“This is different,” he said. “It’s not about just the sex and you can’t convince me that’s all you’re feeling. And don’t try and convince me that’s all I’ve been interested in. I’ve known that I’ve wanted to marry you ever since our first meeting in London.”
Helen swung around and glared at him. “That’s a lie! You didn’t even notice me as a woman,” she said, her lower lip trembling as she desperately wished that his words were true.
He raised an eyebrow as his stance changed from angry to aggressive. “You think so?