been a matter of time when he would have got around to it.
But, if they were expecting a child, how could he possibly agree to a divorce now? He had been stalling over the divorce, making things as difficult for her as possible, not just because of what he stood to lose financially, although, as financial controller of a large corporation, he could not discount it. It was the sense of defeat he hated. He had failed to keep his marriage on track. He had failed to give her a child, the child they both desperately wanted. Their marriage had died and he hadn't been able to stop it. He had a list of excuses, which were all valid in their own way: the death of his father, the added responsibility that had put on his shoulders and then the fertility problems he and Maya had encountered. All had conspired against him to bring him to this impasse. Maya was on one side, wanting what she could get before she got out of his life for good, and he was on the other, wondering if there was anything he could have done differently.
The first thing he had to do was retract his appallingly cruel accusation. What was he thinking, accusing her of such behaviour when she had never shown any sign of it in the past? For the whole time they were married she had been faithful, even in the face of the scurrilous rumours that from time to time circulated around him when he travelled. It was the one thing he admired about her, the way her moral code was so unlike those of many of her peers. He had been her first lover and he had never forgotten how precious that moment had been for them both.
He cleared his throat, feeling like a schoolboy instead of a thirty-six-year-old man in charge of a billion euro corporation. 'Maya,' he began, 'I don't know how to say this but I want-'
The flash of her grey eyes cut him off mid-sentence. 'I am not consenting to a paternity test. Not until after the birth, if there is one. It's too risky.'
Giorgio felt another dagger point of guilt slice at his gut. 'I am not asking for a paternity test.'
'Y…you're not?' Her wary look wounded him all over again.
'No,' he said. 'If you say the child is mine, then it is mine. The timing is spot on, in any case. And I didn't use any protection. It has to be my child.'
She turned away in disgust. 'So what you're really saying is if there was any doubt over the time frame you would be marching me off to some laboratory for a test.' She threw him a contemptuous look over her shoulder. 'God, you're such a heartless bastard, Giorgio.'
Giorgio took that direct hit because he knew he deserved it. Over the last six months of their bitter separation he had started to see a side to Maya he had not realised she had possessed. She was a lot feistier than he had accounted for previously. She had always seemed so demure, so acquiescent, and yet over the time of their drawn-out estrangement he had seen her toughen up and fight back in a way that he found strangely arousing.
'It was a shock to find the test like that,' he said. 'You know I don't like surprises. I didn't have the time to think it through.'
He pushed his hair back from his forehead, reminding himself he needed to get it cut. Maya used to do it for him once. When had she stopped? He couldn't quite remember. He used to love the feel of her fingers running through his hair as she snipped away at it. She had chatted to him as she went about her task, giggling at his dry asides until the haircut inevitably turned into something else entirely.
But that was back in the early days…
She turned around to face him but her stance was defensive. Her arms were across her middle but he couldn't stop his eyes dropping to her still flat belly. The thought of his seed growing there, their combined cells rapidly dividing, the promise of new life so fragile and yet so hopeful, he felt a tight ache in his chest. Please let this one survive, he prayed to the God he had neglected and ignored for most of his adult life. He wanted to reach out
But, if they were expecting a child, how could he possibly agree to a divorce now? He had been stalling over the divorce, making things as difficult for her as possible, not just because of what he stood to lose financially, although, as financial controller of a large corporation, he could not discount it. It was the sense of defeat he hated. He had failed to keep his marriage on track. He had failed to give her a child, the child they both desperately wanted. Their marriage had died and he hadn't been able to stop it. He had a list of excuses, which were all valid in their own way: the death of his father, the added responsibility that had put on his shoulders and then the fertility problems he and Maya had encountered. All had conspired against him to bring him to this impasse. Maya was on one side, wanting what she could get before she got out of his life for good, and he was on the other, wondering if there was anything he could have done differently.
The first thing he had to do was retract his appallingly cruel accusation. What was he thinking, accusing her of such behaviour when she had never shown any sign of it in the past? For the whole time they were married she had been faithful, even in the face of the scurrilous rumours that from time to time circulated around him when he travelled. It was the one thing he admired about her, the way her moral code was so unlike those of many of her peers. He had been her first lover and he had never forgotten how precious that moment had been for them both.
He cleared his throat, feeling like a schoolboy instead of a thirty-six-year-old man in charge of a billion euro corporation. 'Maya,' he began, 'I don't know how to say this but I want-'
The flash of her grey eyes cut him off mid-sentence. 'I am not consenting to a paternity test. Not until after the birth, if there is one. It's too risky.'
Giorgio felt another dagger point of guilt slice at his gut. 'I am not asking for a paternity test.'
'Y…you're not?' Her wary look wounded him all over again.
'No,' he said. 'If you say the child is mine, then it is mine. The timing is spot on, in any case. And I didn't use any protection. It has to be my child.'
She turned away in disgust. 'So what you're really saying is if there was any doubt over the time frame you would be marching me off to some laboratory for a test.' She threw him a contemptuous look over her shoulder. 'God, you're such a heartless bastard, Giorgio.'
Giorgio took that direct hit because he knew he deserved it. Over the last six months of their bitter separation he had started to see a side to Maya he had not realised she had possessed. She was a lot feistier than he had accounted for previously. She had always seemed so demure, so acquiescent, and yet over the time of their drawn-out estrangement he had seen her toughen up and fight back in a way that he found strangely arousing.
'It was a shock to find the test like that,' he said. 'You know I don't like surprises. I didn't have the time to think it through.'
He pushed his hair back from his forehead, reminding himself he needed to get it cut. Maya used to do it for him once. When had she stopped? He couldn't quite remember. He used to love the feel of her fingers running through his hair as she snipped away at it. She had chatted to him as she went about her task, giggling at his dry asides until the haircut inevitably turned into something else entirely.
But that was back in the early days…
She turned around to face him but her stance was defensive. Her arms were across her middle but he couldn't stop his eyes dropping to her still flat belly. The thought of his seed growing there, their combined cells rapidly dividing, the promise of new life so fragile and yet so hopeful, he felt a tight ache in his chest. Please let this one survive, he prayed to the God he had neglected and ignored for most of his adult life. He wanted to reach out
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