BooksBarbecue
Back Deadly Revenge
Chapters (60)
  1. CRITICAL ACCLAIM FOR LEIGH RUSSELL
  2. Glossary of acronyms
  3. Prologue
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. 47
  51. 48
  52. 49
  53. 50
  54. 51
  55. 52
  56. 53
  57. 54
  58. 55
  59. 56
  60. Acknowledgements

‘Don’t say that! Now, just tell me what’s going on.’

‘Bev came to see me,’ he replied.

Geraldine felt as though she had been kicked in the stomach, hearing the name on Ian’s lips. She had been doing her best to believe that his strange behaviour had nothing to do with his ex-wife.

‘So?’ she said. ‘What does she have to do with us? Do you want to give your marriage another shot? Is that it?’ she asked, no longer attempting to hide the bitterness in her voice. ‘Do you still love her? Because if you do then please let’s stop this farce and we –’

‘No,’ he interrupted her again. ‘I don’t love her. And I honestly don’t know that I ever really did, not in the way that I love you. It was a youthful infatuation that went on for too long, and in the meantime we grew apart as we grew up. It’s different with you.’

‘What’s the problem then? If she refuses to go along with a divorce, we can live with that, can’t we, until –’

Ian interrupted her brusquely. ‘She says the baby’s mine.’

For the first time, Geraldine was shocked. ‘What?’

‘She’s left the man she’s been living with, the man she told me was the father of her child, and now she swears blind the baby’s mine. He’s three months old!’ The expression in his eyes softened, despite the set line of his jaw. ‘So it seems I’m a father. She wants to come home with the baby and be a family. A family with me and her and the baby. Geraldine, I still feel the same way about you, but you must see this changes everything.’

Geraldine nodded. Ian had been offered something she might never be able to give him: a son. A wild thought crossed her mind that she could lie and tell him she was expecting a baby herself. She could even try and fall pregnant. But she knew it was too late. Even if she could conceive straight away, Bev’s baby was already born and he wasn’t going to disappear.

‘What do you want me to do?’ she whispered. ‘What do you want to do?’

Ian shook his head. ‘I don’t know,’ he admitted. ‘I just don’t know. I never thought about having a child. It was never even a consideration. But now he’s here and I’m a father, and it’s all so overwhelming.’