Web of Deception - By Nina Blake Page 0,35
hadn’t had the chance to think about it. There was still time time for that.
Security must surely be a consideration for Kate, though she’d never stated it directly. That was one thing he could give her. She wouldn’t want for anything and he’d make sure she was well taken care of for the rest of her life.
She wanted all those things and saw marriage as the first step to achieving her goals.
But there were other paths she could take which would lead to the same end. There were other ways which would fulfill her, satisfy her. She just had to open her mind to it, consider other options.
Why was she so set on marriage? Perhaps there was more to her past than she’d let on.
Kate’s eyes were closed as she slid lower into the tub, glass still in hand.
“You’ll drown if you slide down any lower,” Daniel said.
As she sat up higher, he glimpsed a flash of dusky nipple, until she adjusted her position so she was covered by water and the bubbles.
She smiled. “Perhaps I was a little too relaxed.”
“I’m glad I have that effect on you.” He slid beside her so their thighs were touching. Putting his glass down, he stretched one arm around her. “I get the feeling sometimes that you’re on your guard.”
“You know the old saying. Once bitten, twice shy.”
“We’ve all been “bitten”. We’ve all had experiences, some not so pleasant, that have shaped us.”
“That’s it, I guess. I’ve made mistakes and I don’t want to make the same ones again.”
“What happened? Before Mark, I mean.”
“I told you about Craig Deal, the ad guy, and how shallow that relationship was.” She looked down. “There was another man after him. A bigger mistake.”
“Kate, everyone makes mistakes.”
“Not like this. This was a complete sham. I just didn’t know it at the time.”
“What made it so bad?”
“He was ten years older than me and much more worldly. I thought he was sophisticated but that’s not how I’d describe him now. He was cunning and clever in ways I could never be and I think he’d had years of practice at it. I wasn’t looking out for it. I’d never met such an accomplished liar. Never suspected someone could be that two-faced.”
“What did he lie about?”
Kate sipped her champagne. “Everything that was important. Now that I look back on it, I should have picked up on the clues. He only gave me his mobile and work numbers, not his home phone. We always went to my place, never his. He said he was renovating. Oldest story in the book.”
The penny dropped.
But Daniel knew Kate well enough to know she would never fool around with a married man or break up someone else’s marriage. She had far too much integrity for that. There wasn’t a nasty bone in her body.
“He was married,” Daniel said.
She nodded. “And everyone else seemed to know about it except me.”
“So how did you find out?”
“We were having drinks with some people from his work. I overheard him say something to a mate about Sharon and I asked a woman from his office who she was. She said it was his wife and looked at me like I was an idiot, like it was really obvious. But it wasn’t to me. I was in shock.”
“And what did he say?”
She shrugged. “Not much. He acted like it was no big deal. Told me I was overreacting.”
Daniel raised his eyebrows. “He expected you to put up with that?”
“Yes. He said if his wife didn’t care, there was no reason I should. Apparently they had an open relationship but the fact is, he hadn’t been open with me about any of it until I confronted him. He knew I wouldn’t have had a bar of him if I’d known he was married. I’ve got standards and I think he found that funny. Thought it was a game. He used me.”
What kind of man would do that? All men wanted sex. There was nothing new in that. But if that was what he’d wanted there were other ways of getting it. Other women, for a start. Because Kate was too kind a person to treat so badly.
A curl of anger unfurled in Daniel’s stomach. Did that man know how much his selfishness had affected her? Would he even care?
Daniel cared.
Though it was in her past, this had obviously shaped her personality and her ideas and the woman she had become.
Kate put her champagne glass to her lips, then lowered it.