At the same time, she had to come up with some plausible explanation. Mike was no fool.

‘Dad’s got behind with the mortgage a bit. But if they refinance their loan at the current rate—which is much lower than when they took it out—they should be able to manage better.’

‘You sound like you know what you’re talking about. Are you an accountant?’

‘Not certified. But I have a business degree.’

‘I thought you said you were a secretary.’

‘I was a personal assistant, not a secretary.’

Mike suddenly took hold of her arm and pulled her to a halt. ‘Rich’s bank refinances loans. He’ll help you out if I ask him to. He owes me a favour.’

‘How’s that?’

‘He owns shares in Stoneware.’

‘Ah-h-h.’

‘So now you know my secret,’ he said with a wry smile. ‘I’m not just marrying you to get Helsinger’s money for myself. I have other, less selfish motives.’

‘We all have more than one motive for what we do,’ she replied, thinking of her parents again.

‘That sounded deep. So what are your other motives for marrying me?’

‘Oh, no, you’re not going to do that to me again.’

‘Do what?’

‘Make me reveal all my personal secrets, then tell me absolutely nothing about yourself. We both know the main reason why this marriage is going to happen. The bottom line is money. That’s all you have to know, Mike Stone.’

His dark eyes actually twinkled at her, making his face look softer for a moment. ‘Fair enough. Look, Rich’s bank is just around the corner from here. Come on. He’ll still be in his office, being the workaholic that he is.’

Natalie found herself being propelled back along the pavement at considerable speed, giving her a glimpse of Mike’s physical strength.

‘But we can’t just barge in there!’ she protested breathlessly as they dodged people going the other way.

‘Besides, isn’t his bank a merchant bank? They wouldn’t handle home mortgages.’

‘He’ll do it for me.’

‘But—’

‘For pity’s sake, woman, let me help you out here. Or does letting a man help you out go against your women’s lib creed?’

That silenced her. Because she’d never thought of herself as a women’s libber. And she didn’t like the tag one bit.

‘That’s better,’ he muttered as he ushered her silent self into a solid grey-stone building that looked old enough to have been built by convicts.

Inside, however, the décor of the foyer was spacious and plush, exuding the sort of rich yet sombre atmosphere Natalie associated with Swiss banks.