The Russian's Furious Fiancee Page 0,13
you are.”
Eva couldn’t believe that he could be so confident. Did he know something she didn’t? Could he have something on her father that could force her into a marriage? She fiddled with her fork, and contemplated the man sitting casually across from her. “No. I’m not marrying anyone like you. I need someone who will love me for who I am and will do what he can to make me happy. You’re not the kind of man who would take my concerns to heart.”
He shrugged that complaint aside. “You will have a large allowance so you can do whatever it is that makes you happy. All I will demand is that you are a venerable hostess for my business needs and you raise our children with care and concern for their upbringing.”
A horrified burst of laughter escaped and she looked at him across the table. “How would someone like you know how to have children, much less raise them?”
He looked up and Eva was caught in the intensity of his amber gaze. “I’m very good at the process of making children although I’ve only been experimenting with the procedure so far. I expect you’ll be pregnant within the first year of our marriage so if there is something you’d like to accomplish before then, you’ll need to get it out of the way.”
She actually had trouble breathing as she pictured him ‘experimenting with the procedure’. For one, stomach churning, crazy moment, her mind pictured him in bed with her and she felt her whole body react with heat and restlessness. She quickly crushed the thought and focused only on the negative part of his comment. “First year? You don’t fool around, do you?”
He once again looked up and winked at her. “I’m very good at that too.”
She blushed and looked away. “Children require two parents. It doesn’t sound like you are expecting to be a very active participant.”
“I’ll be extremely active in the process of creating the children.”
She shook her head and glanced back at him. “And after that, you’ll be making your next billion?”
“I’ll be attending to my business interests, yes. Raising of the children is the wife’s domain.”
Eva gave up on picking at her meal and put her fork down, leaning back against her chair. “See? We could never make it together. We disagree on every subject that’s been brought up so far.”
“Then choose a subject that we’ll both agree upon,” he countered with patronizing logic.
She shook her head and leaned back, dismissing the idea as impossible. “I don’t think one exists.”
“You’re simply not trying hard enough. And why would the father become involved in the raising of children?”
“Because I know what it’s like to have an absent father. And I won’t bring children into this world unless I know that child will be loved by both the mother and father, with equal partnership in the marriage and parenting decisions.”
“Where have you heard such drivel?”
She sat forward again, becoming irritated that he was being so obtuse about parenting. “It isn’t drivel. It’s common sense. Children need both a mother and a father’s influence. There are numerous studies that will explain the issues.”
“I’ll hire someone to be a male role model.”
“Not good enough.”
He leaned back in his chair and watched her for a long moment, amused by her horror. “How about a compromise?”
She immediately shook her head, stabbing at her chicken in an effort to get rid of some of her outrage. “I don’t compromise on children.”
“How about if we agree that I’ll be home for some dinners but you’ll have the primary influence on the children. Although I maintain veto on anything I disagree with.”
She stood up and rolled her eyes. “No deal. Listen, I’m sure there’s a woman out there who would jump at the chance to be Ms. Kelopatros with all your billions at her disposal to do whatever she wants and raise your children with proxy attention. That’s just not what I want. Thank you for lunch,” she said politely and turned on her heel to walk away.
Damon watched her, wondering why his body was reacting to a woman with that kind of hostility. But there was no denying it. He wanted her. And he would have her. He contemplated strategy as he watched her walk out of the restaurant, his hands itching to feel her skin, to hold her lush body and feel her moving underneath him as he found all those places that would make her lose that cool control she showed