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It had not been a romantic declaration of love, but it had made her heart turn over She could have told him there and then that she was in love, but she waited until Paul told her first Fro she had let him set the pace, even when she was consumed with the need to know he loved her Paul was the sort of man, she knew instinctively, who needed to be in control of everything in his life, and Cathy loved hiive him what he needed, whatever the cost to her
He had proposed before he went back to England and she hadn’t even stopped to think about it before accepting Her father had known she was seeing him, but he hadn’t had any idea it was serious and when she told hi Paul he had been stunned
‘ButCathyhe’s not er than me!’ he had protested
It was an argument she had expected She had her answer ready ‘He’s forty-eight – but so what? I’ap’
It had taken a while to talk her father round, but he had always been sensible enough to knohen she was serious And there were coood reat deal of power in his own country He not only owned an important national newspaper, but was a major shareholder in a television company, and her father could see he would be a very useful son-in-law, although he wouldan American
Telling Steve had been far harder She didn’t like re his face, what he had said She had realized she would hurt his had been far ed than hers That much she had always known It had made her uneasy at times: she felt love should be equal between lovers and ached to know a deeper intimacy than she had ever felt with Steve In a way she knew him too well, he was more like a brother than a lover She was fond of him rather than in love with him
She hadn’t suspected that he would be so unforgiving She had not seen or spoken to him since That had hurt her, because he had been her friend long before he became her lover and she missed him She still did
But it had been just oneshe had had to lose for Paul She had walked away from her country, her family, her friends – and all the sacrifices had been worth it She didn’t regret a thing She would do it all over again
Their wedding had been the social event of the year on the Eastern Seaboard; everyone as anyone had been there Cathy had refused to have her dress hted her grandfather by wearing the dress her grandmother had been married in, which had been put away in layers of tissue for seventy years Cathy had loved to see it when her grand to air in the sunshine for a day She always irance of the pot-pourri of rose petals and lavender in little handrandth, with a sweetheart neckline, a tight, tiny waist and a skirt with a long train at the back, the dress had been hand-stitched in Paris in the Twenties Ivory satin which was softly fading into cream, covered in drifts of real Chantilly lace, it had fitted her like a glove, as if it had been made for her, so she randrandfather had looked at her with tears in his eyes and said, ‘If only she could have been here to see you!’
‘She can see rand presence all that day while she wore the dress, like soh a dream, a dream she still inhabited
She clung to Paul’s driving body, groaning in wild orgas his deep ht, consumed with pleasure; I knew, from the first time I saw him, that ere meant to be one flesh
While Lilli Janacek gave the hospital reception the docu that Sophie Narodni hadwith her case, a short, energetic man with the hooked nose and profile of an Aztec, and perfect white teeth which he displayed in cheerful smiles all the time
‘Very lucky, very lucky girl Yes, you can see her, why not?’ He returned Steve’s grin of relief ‘Good news, huh? Pity the other woman was not so lucky’
He had lost Steve ‘Other wo at him
‘Your friend, Miss Narodni, trying to save herself, clutched at the woman next to her, fell sideways and hit the platforot some bad bruises and aher in here tonight, for observation in