The Greek's Forgotten Wife (Boarding School #1) (12 page)

“Were you able to reach my wife?” Damon demanded as he strode through the hallway from one conference room to the next, furious that his directors hadn’t kept things under control during his absence.  This crisis never should have happened and people were going to be fired because of their incompetence.  He had been out of office for only a few days and several problems had blown up.  He was putting out fires left and right and all he wanted to do was find Sasha and hold her in his arms. Just five minutes with her would make everything all better, he thought. 

“She called a few minutes ago.  She asked if you had time for lunch and I shifted all of your meetings around so that you had plenty of time with her this afternoon.”

“Good,” he snapped, unable to offer the ever-efficient woman any additional comments since he still had to stop the insanity in his business world.  He stopped in the doorway, giving her additional instructions on things that needed to happen today, including getting four of his vice presidents into his office this afternoon so that he could interview them for promotions.  He’d thought he had the right people in place to deal with anything that came up in all of his companies but the past two days proved that two of the men were unable to handle their roles as directors of his companies.  That would be fixed by tonight!

“Oh, and where did you make reservations for lunch today?” he asked.

Mellie was busy writing down the list of instructions he’d just dictated to her so she didn’t look up when she said, “I offered to make reservations at one of the nicer restaurants but your wife said that she wanted to be alone.”

Damon’s chest swelled with pride.  Sasha was pregnant!  She wanted to be alone to tell him that they were going to have a baby!  Damn, he was thrilled with the news.  Just the thought of her slender figure growing larger with his son made his heart slam into his rib cage.  She would be even more beautiful, he thought. 

“Make sure to order something in for lunch,” he told Mellie who instantly nodded her head.  “Something nice.”

Mellie looked up, sensing something different in her boss’ voice.  She smiled for the first time in more than two days.  “Yes sir,” she said and turned around when Damon stepped into the meeting. 

“Hello Ms. Galanos!” Mellie smiled as soon as Sasha stepped off of the private elevator that was reserved for Damon’s use.  “Goodness, that dress looks fabulous on you!”

Sasha smoothed down the rose-colored dress.  The color softened her complexion and highlighted her dark hair.  She felt very glamourous today, especially with the matching shoes that a personal shopper had recommended.  “Thank you,” Sasha replied, feeling slightly better.  At least her devastation at Damon’s betrayal didn’t show on the outside.  She might be breaking apart on the inside, but she had tried hard to look good. 

It was a sort of ‘eat your heart out’ type of effort. 

“Is he finished with his morning meetings?” she asked, leaving her hands on her legs so that Damon’s assistant couldn’t see the trembling.  She wore extra makeup so that her crying bout earlier today wasn’t evident.  She didn’t want anyone to know that she was hurt.  This was a personal issue, definitely not for public consumption.  It was bad enough that he’d cheated on her and didn’t care that his affair had made it into the news. 

Sasha was determined to leave this building feeling empowered, stronger and no longer a fool.  Crying was for fools.  Betrayal was for fools!

Mellie’s smile widened because she could sense something special was happening.  “Sure is!  He’s waiting for you and I’ve kept everyone else off of his schedule so that you could have lunch with him.  I know you said that you wanted some private time with him so I had one of the restaurants send over a meal.  It’s already in his office on the coffee table.”

Sasha smiled even though she knew that she’d never be able to eat anything.  “That sounds wonderful.  It was very thoughtful of you, Mellie.”

“It was actually at Mr. Galanos’ suggestion,” she said, turning back to her computer so Mellie missed the surprise in Sasha’s eyes. 

She walked into Damon’s office and stopped, taking in his serious expression as he reviewed some documents.  The man really was brilliant.  And she would always thank him for the lessons he’d given to her about investing.  No one was better, she thought. 

And no one was worse.  She should have known that a man as powerful and handsome as Damon could never be faithful to one woman.  She didn’t think of herself as an ugly duckling, but she wasn’t the sophisticated, beautiful kind of woman who had decorated his arm over the years. 

She stood there for a long moment, taking in his strong features, his hard jawline and the incredibly broad shoulders that she loved to hold onto at night.  His arms around her were the perfect way to fall asleep and his body produced enough heat to keep her warm all night long. 

Did he look tired?  She studied his eyes for a moment, noticing for the first time that the lines around his eyes were a bit deeper than usual.  Was that significant?  Or had he just not slept very well?

Sasha banished that thought because she didn’t want to know why he hadn’t slept well.  That horrible blond woman popped into her mind and Sasha’s hands fisted as she tried to keep the tears at bay. 

She sighed and the noise caught his attention.  Immediately, he dropped the document onto his desk, his eyes roaming down her figure.  “Nice dress,” he said as he stood up and came around to greet her. 

Sasha closed the door and stepped over to the sitting area, not giving him a chance to kiss her.  She didn’t want him touching her, too furious with the picture in the newspaper this morning.  That picture along with the accompanying article were in her purse and she sat down before her legs gave out on her. 

Damon was startled when she put furniture between them.  Over the past few weeks, she’d been just as eager to be in his arms as he was to hold her. 

“What’s wrong?” he asked, sitting down across from her.  “Are you okay?  Are you eating enough?”

Her face looked pale but he had his suspicions about what was going on.  Ever since Mellie had told him that Sasha had called and asked for a private meeting with him, he’d been eager to see her, hoping that…His eyes moved down to her stomach but, if she were pregnant, it would be too early in the pregnancy for her to show. 

Something else was wrong, he thought.  She was sad!  His eyes narrowed as he focused on her lovely eyes.  She’d been crying!  She’d tried to hide it with makeup, but he could tell. 

“What’s going on, Sasha?” he asked, seeing the tension in her slender figure. 

Sasha clasped her hands together nervously.  Now that she was sitting here, she wasn’t sure how to say it. 

Just get it over with, she told herself. 

Damon came around the coffee table and sat down next to her.  “Are you pregnant?” he asked before she could say a word.  He took her hand in his, thinking that she was just nervous about her impending motherhood.  But he would make this better for her somehow.  He would show her that there was nothing to be nervous about.  Although, how he was going to do that, he had no idea but he was thrilled at the possibility.  He’d just try and infuse her with some of his eagerness, help her through the first stages which were probably the hardest.  At least from what he’d heard. 

Sasha glanced up at him, startled with that question.  “Pregnant?” she replied. 

Damon chuckled.  “That’s what this is all about, isn’t it?  You’re here to tell me that we were successful?”

Sasha’s hand covered her stomach, her eyes startled.  “No!”  She shook her head.  “I mean, I don’t know.”  Was she pregnant?  She had no idea and the thought hadn’t even occurred to her. 

She glanced down and rubbed her forehead.  “No.  That’s not what this conversation is about.”

Damon was concerned now.  If this wasn’t a conversation about getting pregnant, then what was bothering her?  Everything had been fine two days ago, before he’d left for his meeting with Charles.  What could be bothering her?  “Talk to me, love.”  He pulled the basket of food closer and started unloading everything. 

She stared at him, her mind trying to come up with the best way to broach the subject.  It was hard though.  The man acted as if nothing was wrong, as if her heart wasn’t breaking with every moment that she was in his company.  How could he be so casual?  How could he act like he hadn’t just left another woman’s bed and come home to his wife?  Well, in reality, he hadn’t come home to her.  He’d come straight to his office.  She wasn’t important enough to come home to, apparently.  That realization gave her strength, gave her the perspective she needed to just blurt out what she was here to discuss. 

“I want a divorce,” she said and stood up, moving away from him.  She couldn’t look at him, but she felt his startled silence.  She opened her purse and tossed the paper down onto the coffee table, ignoring the food.  “I won’t endure being a fool any longer, Damon.  I told you from the beginning that I wouldn’t tolerate infidelity.”

Damon ignored the paper, not sure what she was saying.  “Wait a minute, you’re not here to tell me that you’re pregnant?” he demanded.  “And you want a divorce?”

He stood up and towered over her, his hands fisting on his hips.  “What exactly is going on Sasha?”

Sasha squared her shoulders, turning around to face him.  She wouldn’t be a coward about this.  He’d cheated on her and she wasn’t going to take it!  Pointing at the picture, she said, “You’ve been with her since we were married!  Probably even before then but that was none of my business so I can’t condemn you for anything that happened before we knew each other.  But I won’t deal with her between us now.  Not after…” she stopped and closed her mouth, only to open it again when he continued to look confused, which infuriated her.  “And you’re still with her!  She was with you over the past two days, Damon!  She was with you when you wouldn’t allow me to even come with you.  That woman was by your side and you left me in order to go to her!”

Damon’s eyes narrowed.  “Who the hell are we talking about, Sasha!”

“Scarlett whatever her name is!” she almost yelled at him.  She lifted the paper up and pointed her rose-colored nail at the woman pictured on Damon’s arm.  “She’s here!  You’re here!  You’re both looking at each other like you’re in love with each other!  You’re coming out of a hotel!  I won’t have it, Damon!  I won’t go through that again!”  Her voice broke on the last words and the tears that had been threatening ever since she stepped off of the elevator broke through.  “I…”

She shook her head and angrily wiped at the tears.  “Darn you!  I…” she clamped her mouth shut.  “Just leave me alone!  I’m getting a divorce and there’s nothing you can do about it!”  Without another word, she rushed out of Damon’s office, ignoring the stunned expression on his handsome features. 

Mellie looked up when Sasha rushed by her desk but Sasha continued on, not stopping as she normally would to say hello or goodbye.  This time, Sasha just hurried out, pressing the call button for Damon’s private elevator.  She glance briefly back at Mellie but was startled when she heard Damon’s laughter. 

A moment later, Damon himself appeared in his office door – still laughing.  In fact, he was holding his stomach because he was laughing so hard.

Sasha couldn’t believe the man!  She was hurt, aching with the pain of leaving him because of his betrayal and he was laughing? 

She clamped her teeth together to keep herself from saying something.  Like telling the man was an ass he was!  But she didn’t use that kind of language.  Okay, so she thought it, but she didn’t speak it.  It was undignified and she was not going to lower herself to that level.

He walked towards her and Sasha pressed the call button several more times, trying in vain to get it to come faster. 

“It isn’t going to come, love,” he said as he took her hand despite her efforts to avoid his grasp and his less-than-successful attempts to smother his amusement. 

Sasha’s hands fisted at her sides and she wanted so desperately to slap him.  “Don’t touch me!” she snapped.  “You don’t ever get to touch me again!”

Sasha ignored Mellie who was now staring at the two of them with her mouth hanging open, not sure what to say.  Normally, Mellie was a lion protecting Damon’s domain but what was she supposed to do when her stern and terrifying boss was laughing while his wife tried to slap his hands away?

Damon wasn’t going to relent.  “The elevator only comes when I allow it to move, Sasha.  So give in and accept that you’re going to have to talk to me,” he chuckled.  His lovely wife might not be pregnant, but her anger and jealousy was just as welcome.  Possibly even better because it revealed what he’d been hoping might happen.  She was in love with him!  The woman who had been trying to get away from him was in love with him and he was thrilled.  Because, while he was visiting Charles, he’d come to the exact same conclusion on his side.  In fact, he’d been furious that he hadn’t realized it before because he’d needed her during those two days.  If he hadn’t been such an idiot, he would have packed her up and brought her with him.  Just a smile from Sasha could make things better. 

“Come back into my office, Sasha,” he finally got out.  His eyes were still laughing at her but he was trying to suppress his amusement now. 

She was so hurt, so humiliated!  She’d asked for a divorce, given him proof of his infidelity and he’d started laughing at her!  The man was a heartless bastard!  She just wished she’d realized that weeks ago and never given him the opportunity to talk her into trying to make their marriage work!