If she was worried that he might react negatively to her request, then she shouldn’t have.

‘Fair enough,’ he said with one of his now-familiar shrugs.

‘You agree?’

‘Absolutely. Money matters are best not left up to chance. I’ll have Rich line up a meeting with his legal team at the bank. They can organise a pre-nup which stipulates the terms I outlined.’

Mike’s mentioning the word bank brought a gasp to her lips. ‘Oh, Lord, I forgot.’

‘Forgot what?’

‘I promised to do a job for my parents today at their bank. They’re having some money problems,’ she added, then wished she hadn’t. ‘It clean went out of my mind.’

‘So where is their bank? I can drive you there after we’re finished.’

‘Would you? It’s not in the city. It’s in Parramatta.’

‘No trouble. It won’t take for ever to do the marriage licence bit. Not if we get moving.’

Natalie was rather relieved to get moving, till Mike climbed up into his black vehicle next to her and shut the door after him. Once again, the enclosed space combined with Mike’s overwhelming maleness quickened her breathing, making her regret the foolishness of asking him to drive her to Parramatta.

Whatever had possessed her?

Silly question. The answer was sitting right next to her with all his disturbing machismo.

Natalie drew in a deep breath, then let it out slowly, telling herself it wasn’t a crime to look, even to lust. Men did it all the time. The crime would be to let Mike know how he affected her.

She was very glad now that she’d dressed sensibly today. She would have despised herself if she’d tried to make herself into a femme fatale.

As it turned out, fate—and Friday afternoon—let her off the hook where any trip to Parramatta was concerned. Parking problems plus long queues meant it was four by the time they’d secured Mike’s birth certificate, and then their marriage licence.

‘It’s too late to go to Parramatta now,’ she said as they left the registry office.

‘Is this problem of your parents’ urgent?’ Mike asked. ‘Can it wait till Monday?’

‘It’ll have to, I suppose,’ she replied, not happy with herself for having forgotten to fulfil her promise.

‘What is the problem, exactly?’ Mike asked as they walked together back towards the parking station.

Natalie bit her bottom lip. She knew it had been a mistake to mention that. The last thing she wanted was for Mike to know why she was marrying him. Telling him some sob story about her doing it for a noble cause would sound so lame now. And so Hollywood.

Far better Mike continue to think she wanted his money for herself. No way did she want his pity. Pity was the last thing she wanted from him, she thought with perverse amusement.