‘He hasn’t sent it anywhere. My security team confiscated his camera.’
‘But how—’
‘They confiscated his camera less than fifteen seconds after he took the offending photograph,’ Rio confessed in a raw tone, telling himself firmly that he’d do exactly the same thing again in the same circumstances. ‘That’s how I know for a fact that he didn’t send it anywhere. Antonio was outside the door of the Penthouse. He apprehended the guy before he’d taken two steps.’
A heavy silence descended on the room. Evie stared at him, digesting the enormity of his confession and Rio felt the tension inside himself double.
‘You’re saying—’ she swallowed hard ‘—you’re telling me—oh, my God.’ She sank down hard on the nearest sofa, her breathing rapid. ‘There was never a risk that the photograph would be published. You told me…you let me think…’ She lifted her head to look at him and her eyes were huge and shocked. ‘How could you do that?’
‘Because it was necessary. It was the right thing to do.’
‘The right thing?’ She lifted her hands to her face and then let them drop again, clearly struggling to find the words to express herself. ‘I was almost out of my mind with worry! My grandfather is eighty-six years old and I thought…I thought…’ Her face was contorted with pain. ‘I thought it would crucify him to see that photo. I was so worried—’
‘Which is why I assured you that they wouldn’t use the pictures.’
‘But you didn’t tell me why you were so sure!’ She stood up, shock giving way to anger. ‘You arranged the photographer! You were in league with creepy Carlos!’
‘No—’ Rio interrupted her hastily ‘—that isn’t true. It was a set-up.’ He raked his fingers through his hair, wondering how, of all the difficult negotiations he’d ever made, this one seemed the most challenging. ‘But I admit that I turned it to my advantage. I had no choice.’
‘You did have a choice. There is always a choice. You could have told me the truth.’
‘I didn’t know if you were involved or not.’
‘I told you I wasn’t.’
He decided not to waste time pointing out that plenty of her sex lied for a living. In the short time he’d known her, he’d started to realise that Evie didn’t seem to think the same way as other women. ‘By the time I realised that you were telling the truth, we were already deeply involved in the pretence. I was afraid you’d walk out on me.’
‘So you used me. Is that what you’re trying to tell me?’
Unable to find an alternative take on the situation, Rio felt sweat prickle his brow. ‘Yes.’
‘But you…’ She jabbed her fingers into her hair, an expression of shocked disbelief on her face. ‘But we had sex—what was your justification for that? Were there cameras in the room?’
‘You initiated the sex.’
She gave a painful laugh. ‘Well, that’s you off the hook, then.’ Her eyes were glazed with tears. ‘You warned me you were ruthless and you told me that I’d find it easy to dump you—well, you were right. I’m dumping you. We now have the shortest engagement on record.’
‘I accept that I was wrong not to tell you,’ Rio breathed, ‘but don’t walk out.’
‘Why? Because you haven’t closed your precious deal yet? What is wrong with you? You don’t need more money but you’re so desperate to win you’re willing to do whatever it takes.’ A toss of her head sent her hair flaming down her back and she stalked back into the bedroom without glancing in his direction, flinging words over her shoulder like missiles. ‘There are some things in life that are more important than money, Rio. People’s feelings are more important. Integrity. Honesty. And if you don’t know what any of those words mean then use some of that money of yours to buy a dictionary.’
Rio searched his brain for slick words that would extricate him from this hole, but found none. His instinct was to leave her alone, but his legs had different ideas and, moments later, he found himself standing in the doorway of the bedroom, watching her.
‘I understood that you were worried, which is why I constantly reassured you that the photograph would not be published. You should have trusted me.’
‘Trusted you!’ She turned on him, her eyes flashing. ‘Why would I trust you? You’re impossibly arrogant. You think you’re right about everything. How was I to know that in this case the reason you knew the photograph wouldn’t be published was because you had it in your possession all the time? I don’t believe this is happening—’ Her breathing was shallow and rapid. ‘You were so angry with Carlos. I thought you were going to finish him off—but why would he have arranged that photograph?’
‘Because Carlos is the brother of a woman I once had a relationship with,’ Rio said savagely. ‘It was a difficult relationship. She wanted more—’
‘Then she was looking in the wrong place, wasn’t she?’ Her tone acid, Evie scraped her make-up from the top of the dressing table into her bag. ‘Didn’t she read the newspapers? Didn’t she know that you don’t do “more”?’
Telling himself that her anger was only to be expected, Rio ploughed ahead. ‘She wanted me to marry her.?
?
‘She wanted to spend the rest of her life with you? Clearly she was deranged.’
Knowing that he deserved that, Rio took it on the chin. ‘She stopped taking contraception.’