The Tycoon's Blackmailed Mistress

She leveled him a look. “Don’t let me keep you,” she said, but cursed her husky voice and refused to allow the tip of her tongue to moisten her suddenly dry lips.

He cupped her chin with his warm fingers, holding her head still, as if he wanted to wet her lips for her. “You won’t,” he said huskily, his eyes intent on her mouth.

His head began to lower. She lifted her face up to him…ready…ready to become his.

And then he moved imperceptibly closer, and the movement broke through the fog of desire that seemed to swirl around them.

His? Dear God, what was she thinking? She never wanted to belong to another man again.

And definitely not Flynn Donovan.

She pulled her head back. “There is no way I’m going away with you,” she murmured, shaken at how close she’d come to kissing him.

Something flickered far back in those dark eyes before they flashed a now-familiar display of arrogance. “Is that so?” To prove his point, he lifted some strands of her hair from her cheek and tugged her toward him.

She held her head still, refusing to wince at the slight pain, unwilling to let him force her into submission. She wasn’t going to become his plaything. She couldn’t, despite the desire coursing through her.

“Do you think you could leave now?” she said coolly, determined not to let him see his effect on her. “I’m expecting a…” She paused deliberately. “Friend.”

He let her strands of hair drop back into place and drawled mockingly, “You have no…friend.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Perhaps I’ve been checking up on you?” He smiled in satisfaction when she jumped. “But that’s not how I know. A man just knows these things. You tremble when I touch you….” He touched her cheek. “See.”

She jerked her head away. “With revulsion.”

He gave a hard laugh. “That’s a new one. No woman has ever told me that before.”

“Then you’d better get used to it.”

“Why? Do you expect I’ll touch you a lot?” he mocked but his voice had a raw edge. His eyes raked over her. “No, you had better get used to the trembling. I intend to make you…tremble…often.”

She inwardly trembled now. “Stop playing games.”

“Oh, but the games have only just begun,” he said silkily. “You owe me money and I will collect.”

“Wh-what? Now?”

He seemed to take inventory of each feature on her face. “No. I’d rather wait and savor you in my own time, at my own pace.”

She felt as if her breath was cut off. “I’m not a delicacy to be enjoyed.”

“Really? I think you’d be very good in small bites.”

She snorted. “I would give you food poisoning.”

“Aah, but I’d enjoy myself first.” A sardonic gleam of amusement entered his eyes. “Just like you. Spend now, pay later. That’s your motto, isn’t it?” Without warning, one brow lifted with cynicism. “I wonder how many other people you’ve tried to cheat?”

She went rigid. She’d never tried to cheat anyone in her life. She’d always considered herself dependable and loyal. Even with Robert, she’d stayed with him because she’d believed in her marriage vows.

Of course, she hadn’t known Robert had taken his vows less than seriously in return.

“Nothing to say?”

These allegations had gone on long enough. She had to make him see sense. Yesterday she’d been shocked by his accusations and hadn’t really believed he intended to make her his lover.

But now…today…with him coming here…with his jet ready for Tahiti…she couldn’t let this sham go on.

Yet, dare she tell him? Would it make him even angrier with her when he knew he couldn’t have her? Why he couldn’t have her? Would he get spiteful, the way Robert used to when he didn’t get his own way?

She drew herself up without actually getting off the stool. “Mr. Donovan—”

“Flynn.”

“Flynn,” she said, conceding just this once. “I’m sorry, but there is no way I can share your bed.”

“You can’t, eh? And why would that be?” Thankfully he moved back to lean against the sink, but the sheer insolence in his stance made her heart dip. It was obvious he thought she was just being difficult for the sake of it.

Still, she had to try. She slipped off the stool, automatically arching her spine, her silky top a river of orange as it flowed into place over her white slacks. Her back was aching a little lower down but she hoped that was to be expected.

Then she heard him suck in a breath. “My God! Are you pregnant?”

Danielle straightened, shocked that he’d guessed the truth even though she wasn’t showing. And suddenly she was aware that her actions had spoken louder than words. Perhaps that wasn’t a bad thing. Hopefully for him to see that she was going to be a mother would be more effective than all the words in the world.

He raised his eyes to her face and there was a terrible pain in them that tugged at her heartstrings. She wasn’t sure why, but her hands went to her stomach, protectively. “Um…that’s what I wanted to tell you.”

He stood there for a long moment. Staring…And then he pushed himself upright and away from the sink, his body rigid, his mouth curling with contempt. “Now I see what this is all about,” he rasped. “No wonder you wouldn’t fall into bed with me. You wanted more, just like your husband said you did with him.”

She blinked. “More?”

“A marriage license to be exact.”

Shock ran through her. “You’re crazy,” she managed to say, if a little unsteadily. She wouldn’t be thinking about marriage again. Not for a long time.

“You’ve gone through one husband’s money—” the words hit her like bullets “—and now you’re trying to tie yourself to another. What better way to get sympathy than to play the grieving but pregnant widow without a penny to her name? Poor, beautiful Danielle,” he sniped at her in a harsh voice. “Most men would give up their freedom to possess you, and being pregnant makes you even more attractive to some. There’s something dignified about having a wife with child.” His angry gaze swept over her. “Is it even your husband’s baby?”

She felt sick with the horror of it all. “I resent you asking, but, yes, it’s my husband’s baby.” His mocking words echoed in her mind. “Or should I say my late husband’s baby.”

“Did he know?”

It wasn’t any of Flynn’s business but she inclined her head anyway. Robert had been ecstatic, for which she was grateful, no matter what she was finding out about him now. She hadn’t wanted a child until things had improved between them, but somehow she must have missed taking her contraceptive pill one time and she’d fallen pregnant.

Naturally she’d been fearful at first, not because the child would go unloved, but because Monica and Robert loved in a smothering way. But she knew she was strong enough to keep that in check and she had even begun to welcome her pregnancy. Her baby would bring some happiness back into their lives.

And it still would, she told herself, feeling Flynn’s eyes burning into her.

Ignoring the pain of insult, she raised her chin. “Mr. Donovan, let me make one thing clear to you. I have no intention of looking for a surrogate father for my baby.” She paused for effect. “And even if I was, I’d never pick someone like you. My baby deserves more than someone with a checkbook for a heart.”

He walked toward her, his dark eyes without a glimmer of kindness. “Don’t presume to know me, lady. If that was my child growing in your belly you wouldn’t have a choice.” With those words, he stormed past her and out of the apartment.

Eyes misting over, Danielle just stood there as the door slammed behind him, a terrible ache in her breast, her thoughts in turmoil. Never in a million years would she have believed all this could be happening to her.

Yesterday morning she hadn’t even met Flynn Donovan. She’d assumed his letter about the money was a mistake. Now she’d been accused not only of cheating on her husband and abusing his money, but of being a calculating schemer who wanted nothing but a rich man to play father to her child. It was clear he had far from a high opinion of her.

Well, she didn’t have one of him, either. He may be one of the richest men in Australia but as far as she was concerned he could keep his money and his private jet and…and…

She swiped at her tears. What did it matter now, anyway? The way Flynn had stormed out of here left her in no doubt he wouldn’t be back. No, he’d be putting the debt collectors onto her now. They’d be hounding her like a pack of dogs after a bone.

She took a shaky breath. He needn’t bother. She’d find a way to pay the money back. How could she enjoy her independence knowing that her late husband had “stolen” the money, not just from Flynn but from Donovan Enterprises, as well?

And she had too much to lose if she didn’t.

Oh, God. Suddenly it hit her that the debt collectors would go talk to Monica. And if the older woman became aware of the loan, she would use it to get custody of the baby. Oh, dear God, she would. Danielle was never more certain of anything in her life. Her mother-in-law wanted…no, needed someone to replace her son…and who better than Robert’s unborn child?

And if Flynn Donovan believed she’d defaulted on the money, then Monica would, too, and could make a case for Danielle being an unfit mother, and probably with Flynn’s help. After all, how did she prove that it hadn’t been her signature? Her mother-in-law only needed a sympathetic judge…or a corrupt one.

Danielle’s heart squeezed so tightly with pain it felt as if it had wedged under her rib cage. She couldn’t take the risk of losing her child, no matter how slender.

Three

Life rarely took Flynn by surprise anymore, but when it did, he didn’t like it one bit. Danielle Ford was pregnant. Hell! He didn’t want to get involved with a pregnant woman. Anything could happen to a woman when she was pregnant.

It had happened to his mother.

He could still remember his mother’s voice calling to him where he’d been playing in the backyard under the mango tree with his friends Brant and Damien…. The same mango tree that still stood a few suburbs away from here. He’d come inside the house and found her on the floor, covered in blood.

“The baby’s coming,” she’d said, her face screwed up in pain. “Go get Auntie Rose.”

More terrified than he’d ever been in his five-year-old life, he’d run next door with his friends as fast as his little legs had allowed. After that it had been a whirl of people running and sirens screaming. And all the while, he’d stood in the background, watching his mother’s life slipping away…away from him.

He hated thinking about it, and as always he shut his mind off and pushed aside the past. He had to concentrate on the here and now, and that no longer included Danielle Ford. She could forget about the money she owed him. Forget about it and go find some other poor sucker to con with those “come-to-bed” eyes and that “give-me-your-money” mouth. As far as he was concerned, Danielle Ford no longer existed.

It was just a pity that spending the following weekend in Sydney at his apartment overlooking the million-dollar view of the Harbor Bridge and Opera House wouldn’t be enjoyable. Something was missing.

Or someone.

Dammit, he’d never let a woman get under his skin before. Not like this. He’d had women friends who’d tried every trick in the book to get him to marry them, but Danielle Ford had chosen a different way of getting his attention. Unfortunately for her it had the opposite effect to what she’d wanted. The one thing he wouldn’t let himself do was get involved with a pregnant woman.

Not that pregnant women weren’t beautiful. He’d seen some stunners in his time and thankfully none had been his responsibility, but he’d decided years ago he’d never put any woman’s life at risk with a pregnancy.

So why couldn’t he get this one woman out of his mind, especially since he hadn’t taken her to his bed?

Or perhaps it was because of that?

Yet she was only one woman. There were plenty of others to choose from. But those women would only have been a poor substitute for a sexy sorceress…a witch…but a cheat, he reminded himself.

He had to stop thinking about a certain long-legged, blue-eyed blonde stripped naked and in bed….

His bed…

He wasn’t surprised the following week after returning from a business lunch with the Lord Mayor when his personal assistant followed him into his office, an angry look on her middle-aged face. Connie rarely lost her cool. It was one of the things he appreciated about her. She kept calm under the most trying of circumstances.

Usually.

“This was delivered downstairs at reception,” she said tightly, slapping an envelope down on the desk in front of him. “It’s for you.”

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing, not sure what it was about. “And?”

A disapproving motherly look puckered her lips. “It’s from Mrs. Ford.”

“Danielle?” he said, tensing, and caught the suddenly watchful look in his assistant’s eyes at his slip of the tongue.

“Yes.”

He wondered what Danielle was up to now, even as mild surprise at Connie’s reaction filled him. “You didn’t like her?”

A soft look filled her eyes. “Of course I liked her, Flynn. She’s lovely. So well-mannered.” Then her expression tightened again as she shot him daggers. “You had better read the letter, that’s all I’m saying.”

Hiding his wariness, he merely inclined his head. “Thank you, Connie. Just leave it there.”

She looked as if she was going to say more, but then obviously knowing how far not to push him, she left the room, closing the door behind her.

For a moment Flynn just sat there, marshaling his thoughts. He stared at the open white envelope. His name had been written on it in a soft style that bespoke of femininity and charm. The uppercase initials of F and D fashioned with little curls tugged on something inside him, as if it were an echo of her voice wanting him.

God, he could still hear the throaty sound of her voice back in her kitchen when he’d been administering to her injuries.

Didn’t this woman know when to give up?

Never one to shirk anything unpleasant, he seized the envelope and pulled out the folded piece of paper inside. He began to read.

Dear Mr. Donovan,

Please find enclosed a check for one hundred dollars as first payment on the outstanding loan of two hundred thousand dollars that my late husband and I owe your company. I apologize if this is unacceptable, however due to my pregnancy I am unable to take a second job at this stage. Please take this as official notice that I will repay the loan as soon as I can.

Yours sincerely,

Danielle Ford.

Flynn threw the letter on his desk, his lips twisting at the word sincerely. No wonder Connie had been upset with him. Danielle’s words might have been businesslike in tone but it made him sound like an ogre who was insisting on his money, come hell or high water.

Obviously this was the way she worked. And now the pregnancy angle had added a whole new avenue to her manipulation skills. She’d certainly hit the jackpot with that one.

As for her “supposed” job, it was probably some sort of volunteer work she did once a month at the hospital. Something that made her look respectable without getting her pretty little hands dirty, he decided, tearing up the check and dropping the pieces in the wastepaper basket.

No doubt once he ignored this, they wouldn’t be hearing from her again. Her little ploy for sympathy would soon die a natural death once she realized he wasn’t about to come running with a magic wand in one hand and an unlimited checkbook in the other.

Then the same thing happened the following week. A check arrived, but without a letter this time.

“Another check,” Connie said tightly, slapping the envelope down in front of him, as if everything were his fault. She smacked another piece of paper on top of it and blurted, “And here’s my resignation.”

His head snapped up. “Your what?” He didn’t wait for her to answer. “What the—Why?”

She straightened her slim shoulders, color coming into her cheeks. “I’m afraid I can’t work for you anymore, Flynn. Not like this.”

He exhaled an impatient sigh and leaned back in his chair. This was Danielle Ford’s fault. Damn her. And damn Danielle’s flashing blue eyes, those enticing lips above the intimate underside of a chin that more often than not was raised in the air at him.

“So you’re going to throw away five years of working for me because some…” he hesitated to say lady “…woman owes me money?”

“Yes.”

From his experience he knew females were often unpredictable, but he’d never actually thought of Connie that way. She’d been his right-hand man, always on top of things, never one to pull these kinds of tricks.

“She’s not worth it, you know.”

Connie met his gaze levelly. “I think she is. She’s a real lady, Flynn. Classy. She deserves better than this.”

No, Danielle was just good at fooling people, though he had to admit that not many people fooled Connie. And that just went to prove that his assistant wasn’t infallible.

“She owes me a great deal of money,” he pointed out.

Connie continued to stand her ground. “I’m sure she had her reasons.”

His mouth thinned with derision. “That means she spent a great deal of money, or hadn’t you thought of that?”

“I don’t care. A pregnant woman shouldn’t have to worry about getting a second job to pay the bills.”

“Then maybe she shouldn’t have borrowed the money in the first place.”

Her expression was resolute. “That may be so, but she’s genuinely trying to pay the money back now.” A wave of concern crossed her face. “Look, her husband is dead, she’s pregnant and she has a debt that is obviously weighing heavily on her. It could affect her health.”

“No,” he growled. He wasn’t going to have that on his shoulders.

Connie hesitated for a second, then a determined look filled her eyes. “Flynn, I never told you this before but I was pregnant once.”

His brows met in a frown. They’d never discussed her private life. She worked long hours at times and had never complained, so he assumed she lived alone.

“You never mentioned being married.”

“I wasn’t.” Her eyes didn’t waver from his. “I hope that doesn’t change how you think of me.”

“That’s a fool thing to say,” he said brusquely. “Of course it doesn’t make a bloody difference.”

Her features relaxed with slight relief. “Thank you,” she murmured, but there was inner pain flickering at the back of her eyes. “Let me tell you a little about my baby. I lost him before he was born. You see, I’d been in poor health for some years, I had no family and the man I loved had left town before he even knew I was pregnant. I thought I was too proud to accept charity, but when you lose your baby…” her voice grew slightly shaky “…when that baby no longer warms your womb and you have nothing in your arms to hold…” She took another breath. “Accepting charity suddenly looks the better option.”

The world briefly shifted out of focus as memories of his mother rose to the surface again.

Then he looked at his PA. To think Connie had gone through a similar thing…

His mouth firmed with purpose. “Put your resignation away, Connie. I’ll go see her.”

Of course, he couldn’t just drop everything right there and then, but a few hours later after moving a mountain of paperwork, he eventually left to go see Danielle, the loan contract tucked inside his jacket. He knew he was playing right into her hands by coming to see her, but how to tell his PA that? The first check and accompanying letter had been a brilliant idea, but the second check was sheer stubbornness. It was obvious Danielle was determined to get his attention.

And he was equally determined not to give it. Not in the way she wanted, anyway.

Still, she wouldn’t be complaining too loudly once he’d finished talking. He was about to officially cancel the loan, thereby letting her walk away with two hundred thousand of his dollars. Not a bad day’s work for some.

However the first thing he saw when he turned his sports Mercedes into her street was the reckless idiot in a red sedan who cut across the road and slammed on his brakes in front of her building.

Flynn swore as he pulled up behind the car and turned off the engine.

Bloody hell! Danielle was in that car. In the passenger seat. He’d recognize her profile anywhere.

And then he saw the young thug in the driver’s seat next to her, his tattooed arm leaning out the window. Fear for her safety chilled his blood. The young man looked as if he’d just got out of prison, and the vehicle as if it had been driven by one too many drunks. The trunk of the car had a huge scratch down the middle and the back left-hand side had a dent in it the size of Kakadu National Park. There was a For Sale sign on its back window.

He swore again. Why on earth would she get into a car with such a man? She didn’t belong there. It made his skin crawl just to see her sitting inside it.

And why buy that piece of garbage? She lived in a lavish penthouse apartment for God’s sake, with a mesmerizing view of the marina and the vast Timor Sea beyond that. A view that even the most jaded would appreciate.

And then he figured out what she was really up to. She’d known he’d come here this afternoon and had somehow planned this, waiting in the afternoon heat and humidity, wanting him to feel sorry for her over the car and her condition. She’d probably counted on charming her way into his life. His nostrils flared with fury. She had about as much chance of that as of it snowing here in Darwin.

He was about to start the engine and go back to the office when he remembered his promise to Connie. If he went back now without speaking to Danielle, the older woman would hand in her notice. And then it would take too much time and trouble to find anyone half as efficient, let alone that he’d darn well miss her around the office.

Just then Danielle opened the car door and started to get out of the vehicle. Against his will, his pulse shifted upward when he glimpsed a pair of slim ankles encased in pretty white sandals more suited to getting out of a Mercedes than a run-down wreck. But it was the other car door being flung open and the jerky way the driver got out of the car that suddenly drew his attention.

Something was going on here.

Something not right.

Instinct told him this wasn’t part of Danielle’s plan.

Danielle had just been for the ride of her life. Not only was her stomach still trying to catch up from where “Turbo” had left it back there on a lonely stretch of the Stuart Highway, but her heart was still in her mouth. Living up to his name, he’d scared her half to death by crossing the other side of the road then coming to a screaming stop in front of her building.

Holding on to her stomach, she took a breath and opened the car door. Nothing would make her buy this car now, no matter how cheap. Her dear mother had always said you got what you paid for, and Danielle wasn’t about to use some of her precious savings just to drive her baby around in a bomb like this one. She’d rather catch the bus into the city center the way she did now, where she worked three days a week helping Angie in the boutique. Of course, once she had the baby she’d need to stop at the day-care center before and after work.

“I’m sorry, but this really isn’t what I’m looking for.” She pushed herself off the passenger seat, wanting to get out of the car and away from this man who was making her uneasy.

He hopped out of the driver’s side and looked at her over the roof of the car as she got to her feet. “I could probably take a couple of hundred off the price,” he said, desperation growing in his tone.

She didn’t want to think what he needed the money for. There was something about him that didn’t sit well now. Heavens, she’d been a fool to get in the car with him, no matter that Angie said he was a friend of a friend.