Stormy the Way Read Online Free PDF

watching her through half-closed eyes.
    'I believe he will be wealthy one day,' she admitted stiffly. 'I assure you I'm not marrying him for his money,' she added in a voice decidedly tart.
    'He has told you about his wealth, then?' Easing himself further back in his chair, Leon crossed one leg over the other, languidly. He had deliberately ignored her added comment and this caused her blood to boil, for she had expected him to deny harbouring any such suspicion that she was marrying Paul for his money. Such a response was incumbent on him, if only for the sake of courtesy. Yet he had allowed it to slide without comment, and this was surely tantamount to implying that he did in fact believe she was interested only in his brother's wealth. And for one wild uncontrolled second she opened her mouth to blurt out the truth - to tell him she was not engaged to Paul, and never would be, but by a tremendous effort she managed to control the impulse. Paul's chances would be ruined altogether if Leon was put in possession of the knowledge of his brother's duplicity. And as for herself - Tara actually shuddered inwardly at the vision of Leon's wrath being directed at her, which inevitably it must be were he to learn that she had lent herself to such a scheme. No, there could be no going back now, she decided rather dismally, already wishing with all her heart that she had given the matter more thought before embarking on this deception with such blithe unconcern.
    'Paul mentioned that he was soon to inherit a large fortune.' Tara managed to look into her companion's eyes as she made this reply to his query. She saw his brows lift a fraction, noted the faint flicker at the corner of one eye.
    'Soon?' he mildly repeated.

    Another mistake. She chided herself for this.
    'He said he hoped to come into his inheritance when he is twenty-one.'
    'Hopes don't always materialize,' he observed coolly. 'I have full control of his money and, should I decide he is not sufficiently mature to care for that money, then I shall have no hesitation in withholding it for another five years. Did Paul tell you this?'
    She nodded, drawing a deep breath. If only she had known she was to be put through an ordeal such as this!
    'Yes, he did tell me.' Paul, she remembered, had been confident that his brother would approve of Tara simply because she was mature, and level-headed into the bargain. Well, this maturity appeared to have had little or no effect on Leon - or if it had, then it was without doubt an adverse effect.
    'You don't mind being poor for five years?' he queried after a moment.
    Owing to her impatience Tara frowned heavily - a most unthinking gesture and one she instantly regretted on noting the swift perceptive widening of those black eyes.
    'We're not thinking of marrying until Paul finishes his studies,' she reminded him, 'and that will not be for another two years.'
    'I see. Well, perhaps I shall release Paul's money on his marriage,' he informed her quietly, eyes alert and glinting at the sudden start she gave.
    'Not until then!' She stared, aghast at making yet a third mistake. 'It won't matter,' she added speciously, and far too casually for her deception to work. 'We shan't need money until we're married.'

    'Of course you won't,' with gentle satire. 'Paul has his allowance, which in my opinion is more than adequate, and you will naturally carry on working.'
    More than adequate! Tara fumed inwardly at this deliberate lie. The boy was practically a pauper. She wondered what Leon would say were he to be told that Paul had been so short of money that he had been driven to answering her advertisement. That would be a crushing blow to his pride, she thought, wishing fervently that she had been in a position to deliver that blow. The man needed a good set-down. He deserved to be thoroughly humiliated. These musings did no good, though, and Tara dwelt on what Leon had said about withholding the inheritance until Paul's marriage. If Leon should