Convenience

Part 33

Beatrice decided to adopt a practical approach before her despondency resulted in tears. She might appear strong and resilient on the outside, but on the inside still lurked that twenty-two year old who had accepted the fact that her husband was seeing other women. The years of unlabelled heartache surfaced with a vengeance.

Beatrice licked her lower lip, exhaled slowly and then raised her eyes to meet his. Time for courage. Again. "If you want me to sign a document stating I want nothing from you, ask your solicitors to draft it. I'll sign." She stated with quietly blunt force. "I am not interested in your money or you."

Everyone was interested in his money. Most of the women he dated were in his social circle, and they expected money to be no object. Ok, he accepted that his wife might not be interested in him, but no sane woman would turn down access to millions.

"People will think I forced you to accept nothing." David said flatly, and shook his head as he pointed out with more than a hint of disparagement, "Hardly the kind of impression I'd want to create if I am looking for a new wife."

She nearly laughed. Or cried. He was telling his current wife what kind of impression he wanted to leave with his prospective wife! Arrogant!

There was silence. Neither moved. Neither spoke for several long seconds.

Beatrice knew she took the hit hard. For how a man, who was her husband on paper, could stand and tell her blithely that he was concerned about her influencing his quest for a new wife, was not something she had ever considered.

She sighed. Maybe she was just overly sensitive! But it hurt. Knowing that he thought so little of her, cared so little for her feelings that he could talk about a replacement as if he was discussing buying a new car, cut deep. Of course it wasn't as if they mattered to each other, but still, a bit of empathy and acknowledgement wouldn't have gone amiss.

He banked a frown as he noticed her eyes dim. She looked downhearted, again. But she hid it quickly. Again. What had he said to cause that sudden slump into misery? She hadn't looked that upset when he'd told her he wanted a divorce. Yet in the last few seconds something he'd said had clearly upset her equilibrium. She'd hidden it quickly, but something he'd said had cut deep.

"I'm offering you stability." David said more quietly.

"What do you want in return from me Mr Cardoso?" She turned exasperated eyes on him. It was obvious he had a plan in mind. He was clearly thinking about a different course of action. Beatrice was sure she was not going to like his plan.

David thought about it for a few seconds. Things were getting out of hand. For some disconcerting reason, he realised he didn't want this woman to suddenly disappear from his life. Despite the fact he'd all but ignored her for the last five years, something deep within him was telling him to stop and take stock. Time to re think this situation.

Better late than never. But suddenly he knew that it was time to get to know his wife.

"What will it take to put an end to this sham?" Beatrice said quietly.

He needed to buy some time with her. His eye trained on hers, his gaze thoughtful and pensive as he thought about his next course of action. So much hinged on the next few moments. None of his business decisions felt as crucial as this.

Beatrice said nothing. She watched and waited for him to speak.

"Come to Auckland." David said firmly.

She blinked. It was as if her dreams were coming true. Not that she expected anything from him. But he was asking her to come to Auckland. Back. To Auckland.

David studied her. "We'll discuss matters with our solicitors present." He stated flatly, once again feeling as if he had finally secured control of the situation.

That Beatrice huffed. When was he going to understand, she did not want to involve lawyers! She knew it would cost her more than she could afford! At least if he simply told her what he wanted financially, she would know how much remained. She would use that to start again. With lawyers and a drawn out battle to divide up their assets, she was bound to find herself dealing with unexpected bills. Things could spiral out of control.

"There's nothing to discuss." Beatrice sighed. David was tempted to growl. Perfect, now she was going to be extra stubborn. He could see it in her eyes. Beatrice huffed again, "You know my position."

"Yes. And you know mine." He countered.

Beatrice wondered when the situation had got away from her. For now he was clearly in the driving seat. Time to wrest that control back. Her eyes flashed up to meet his as she stated on an exasperated huff, "I do not want your money!"

"That's too bad." He countered smoothly. Finally he was in charge!