The Prince marriage to the Gold Digger

chapter 5. nicknamed a Gold Digger

Years of experience had taught her how to hide my pain behind a proud , aloof mask, and she used that mask now , revealing nothing of my thoughts and feelings as she faced him.

"I'm sorry, your majesty , but you seem to have misjudged the situation," she said distantly. "I didn't come here to accept a bribe."

"Nor am I offering you a bribe, Mrs Stanton," he said, his eyes gleaming. "I'm offering to buy your stock."

"The shares aren't for sale your majesty ." she said

"Of course they are," he refuted me silkily. "I'm willing to pay more than market value in order to get these stock out of your hands. Because you're a woman, I 've given you certain allowance, but there's a limit to my good nature, Mrs Stanton, and I'd advise you not to try to puch the price any higher. You could find yourself completely out in the cold. "

she stood and put her hands behind her back so he couldn't see her nails were digging into her palms.

"I'm not interested at any price; I don't even want to hear your offer. The shares aren't for sale, now or at any other time, and especially not to you . Good day , your majesty "

But this man was no tame secretary and he did not intend to let her leave until he had finished with his business. He move with a lithe stride to stop her and she found her path blocked by a very soild set of shoulder.

"Ah, no, Mrs Stanton," he murmured softly. "I can't let you leave now, with nothing settled between us. I've left my island and flown all the way to England for the express of meeting you and putting an end to your asinine notions. Which are wreaking havoc with this company. Did you think that I'd be put off by your high- and- mighty airs?"

"I don't know about my high -and -might airs, but your king- of -the-mountain complex is getting on my nerves," she attacked, her voice sarcastic. " I own those shares," and I voted them as I think I should. The Dryden takeover was understand and stank to the heavens and I voted against it . I would do it again if the issue arose. But a lot of other people voted against it as well . Or am I only the first of the group to be brought into line?"

"Sit down, Mrs Stanton," he said grimly, " and I will attempt to explain to you the basic of finance and expansion. "

"I don't wish to sit down........."

"I said sit!" He rasped , and abruptly his voice was harsh with menace. Automatically she sat down then despise herself for not facing him and refusing to be intimidated.

"I am not one of your flunkies," she flared, but did not get up. she had the nasty feeling that he would push her down if she tried to leave

"I am aware of that, Mrs Stanton; believe me, if you were one of my employees, you would have learned long ago how to behave yourself," he retorted with heavy irony.

"I consider myself quiet well-behaved!:

He smiled grimly. "We behaved? Or merely cunning and manipulative? I don't imagine it was very difficult to seduce an old man and get him to marry you, and you were smart enough to select a man who would die shortly. That set you up very nicely, didn't it?"

she almost cried aloud with the shock of his words; only her years of training in self-control kept her still and silent, but she looked away from him. she could not let him see her eyes or he would realize how deeply vulnerable she was.

He smiled at my silence. "Did you think that I didn't know your history, Mrs Stanton? I assure you , I know quiet a lot about you. Your marriage to Robert Stanton was quite a scandal to everyone who knew and admired the man. But until I saw you i never quiet understand just how you managed to trap him into marriage. It's all very clear now ; any man, even an old one, would jump at the chance to have your lovely body in his bed, at his convenience."

she quiveverd at the insult and he noticed the movement that rippled over my skin.

"Is the memory less than pleasing?" He inquired softly. "Did you find the payment more than you'd expected?"

she struggled for the composure to lift her head , and after a moment she found it.

"I'm sure my private life is no concern of yours. she heard myself say coolly and lelt a brief flare of pride that she had managed that so well.

He black eyes narrowed as he looked down at her and he opened his mouth and say more, but the phone rang and he swore under his breath in Greek, then stepped away from her to lift the phone to his ear.

He said something in harsh, rapid Greek, then paused. His eyes slid toward her.

"I have an urgent call from France, Mrs Stanton. I'll only be a moment. "

He punched a button on the phone and spoke a greeting, his language changing effortlessly to fluent French. She watched him for a moment, still dazed with her inner pain , then she realized that he was occupied and she seized her chance. Without a word, she got to her feet and walked out.

she managed to control herself until she was home again, but once she was safely enclosed by her own walls, she sat down on the sofa and began to sob softly. Was it never to end, the nasty comments and unanimous condemnation of my marriage to Robert? Why was it automatically assumed that she was little more than a p********e? Why was she always called gold digger and everyone looked down on her? For five years she had borne the pain and never let it be known how it knifed into her inside, but now she felt as though she had no defenses left. Dear God, if only Robert hasn't died!

Even after two years, she could not get used to not sharing amusing thought with him. He had never doubted her love, no matter what had been said about our marriage, and she had always felt the marmth of his support. Yes , he had given her financial security, and he had taught her how to care for the money he willed to her.

But he had given her so much than that! The material things he had bestowed on her were small in comparison to his other gifts: love, security, self- respect, self-confidence. He had encouraged her development as a woman of high intelligence; he had taught her of his world of stock and bonds, to trust her own instinct when she was in doubt.

Yet, for his marriage to her, he had been laughed at and mocked, and she had been scorned.

When a gentleman of seventy-two marries to a gorgeous young lady of nineteen , gossip can credit to only two things: greed on her part, and effort to revive faded appetites on his.

It hadn't been that way at all, Robin was the only man she had ever loved, and she had loved him deeply, but thire relationship had been that of father and daughter, or grandfather to granddaughter, then of husband to wife.

Before their marriage, Robert had even speculate on the advantage of adopting her, but in the end he'd decided that there would be fewer legal difficulties if he married her. He wanted her to have the security she'd always lacked, having grown up in an orphanage and been forced into hiding herself behind a prickly wall of sullen passivity. Robert was determined that never again would she have to fight for food or privacy or clothing; she would have the best, and the best way to secure that way of life for her, was to take me as his wife.

The scandal their marriage had caused had rocked London society; vicious items concerning her had appeared in the gossip column and many head lines, and she had been shocked and horrified to read several account. she and Robert knew the truth of the marriage, and Robert was the only person on earth whom she loved, the only person who had ever cared for her. their gently love endured, and she had remained a virgin throughout their marriage, not that Robert had ever given any indication that he wished the situation to be different.

she was his only family, the daughter of his heart if not his flesh, and he schooled her and guide her and went about settling his financial affairs so they could never be wrested out of her control. And he trusted her implicitly.

she was an orphan who had grown up with a shortage of any type of love; He was an old man whose lost his first wife and two sons in a fatal plane clash years back and who now found himself without family in his last years. He took in the wary young girl and gave her every comfort, every security and had guide her maturity and her quick mind with all the loving indulgence of a father.

While Robert had been alive, their scarcity of friends had not really bothered her , though she had suffered under the cuts she had received. There were a few real friends, like Charles, Sallie and they had been sufficient. But now Robert was gone and she lived alone, the poisonous barbs she still received festered in her maind, making her ache and lie awake at night. Most women refused to speak to her and acted as if she was fair game, and the fact that she kept quietly to herself was evidently not enough to change anyone's opinion of her. Thinking about it now, she acknowledged that, outside of Charles and Sallie, she has no friends. Even Joel sallie's husband was a bit stiff with her, and she knew that he disapproved.

It wasn't until the shadow of early evening had darkened the room that she roused from she dejected seat on the sofa and went slowly upstairs to stand under the shower. she felt deadened, and stayed under the needlelike spray for a long time, untill the hot water began to go, then got out, deried off, and dressed in a pair of faded old jeans and a shirt. She brushed her hair out and let it loose on my shoulder, as it usually was when she was at home. Only then she was going out did she feel the need for the more several hairstyle, to give her an older look, and she would not be going anywhere tonight. Like an animal, she wanted only to find a dark corner and lick her wounds.

When her went into the kitchen, she found Samantha moving about restlessly in her basket; as shewatched , frowning, the dog gave a sharp little whine of pain and lay down. she went over and stroked the silky black head.

"So, it looks like tonight is the night, my girl! Not before time, either. And if I remember correctly, it was on a Saturday that you ran away from me and got yourself in this fix, so I suppose it's poetic justice,"

Samantha didn't care about philosophy.,though she lick the gentle hand that stroked her. Then she laid her head down and began that sharp whining again

she stayed in the kitchen with the dog, and as time wore on and on puppies were born, she began to get worried, for Samantha appeared to be in distress. Was something wrong? she had no idea what king of four-legged Romeo Samantha had met; was it possible that she had mated with a larger breed and now the puppies were too big to be born? Certainly the little black dog was very swollen.

she rang over to sallie's side of the house, but the phone rang endlessly and she hung up. my neighbour were out. she took the phone directory and began looking for the vet's number. she didn't know if Samantha could be moved while she was in labor, she found the number and reached for my phone, which rang just as she touched it. she gave a startled cry and leaped back, she looked, it was the unknown number and wondered who it mate be by this hour of night and answer it

"Mrs Stanton,"

"This is Prince Williams Hilton,"

Of course it was, she thought distractedly. Who else had such deep voice?

"What do you want?" she demanded.

"We have unfinished business....... he began

"It will just have to stay unfinished; she broke in . "My dog is having puppies and I can't talk to you . Good bye, Mr.... your majesty ."

she end the call and dial the vet number but the line keep cutting, she checked the vet's number again, began dialing, half an hour later she was weeping in frustration. she could not get her vet, or any other, on the phone, probably because it was Saturday night, and she was sure that Samantha was going to die. The dog was yelping in agony now, squirming and shuddering with the force of her contraction.