The Blackmail Baby by Natalie Rivers Page B

genuine commitment from you,’ he said, already pushing her into a decision she wasn’t ready to make. ‘An absolute assurance to pledge yourself to this marriage and the family we will have together.’
    Chloe blinked in surprise, almost unable to believe what she was hearing. But deep down sheknew Lorenzo was serious—that he was making her a genuine proposition. It fitted completely with everything he had ever said since their terrible argument at the palazzo when the truth about his feelings had come out.
    There was so much to think about. In her heart she longed to remain Lorenzo’s wife—but at what cost? And at what cost to Emma and their future children? Both she and Lorenzo had grown up in broken homes and she knew first-hand how devastating that could be. But would a loveless marriage be better than that—even if the parents stayed together?
    Chloe did not know the answer. And she would not give in to emotional blackmail. She couldn’t let Lorenzo strong-arm her into a decision that would affect the rest of her life.
    ‘I need your answer,’ he pressed, looming over her.
    ‘Well, you can’t have it,’ she replied, with a voice that sounded calmer than she felt. Then she turned and headed back to the house.
    Lorenzo thrust his hands into his pockets and watched Chloe walking away, feeling the muscles across his shoulders pull even tighter.
    He wanted Chloe to remain his wife. Just how much he wanted it shocked him.

CHAPTER FIVE
    ‘T AKE as much time as you need,’ Mrs Guest said as she ushered Chloe out into the garden. ‘It’s a lovely afternoon and a bit of fresh air might make you feel more like yourself. Emma will be fine with me—she’s a pleasure to look after.’
    ‘Thank you.’ Chloe smiled reassuringly at the housekeeper. She knew that she’d worried the older lady by getting so upset earlier in the day. ‘I really am feeling better now. I just need a little bit of time alone, and I’d like to have a look around the garden. It truly is lovely.’
    ‘I’ll be here if you need anything,’ Mrs Guest said.
    The sunshine was warm as Chloe walked away from the house across the main lawn. She’d taken another shower, but when she came to get dressed again she just hadn’t had the energy to be creative, so she’d simply slipped her old jeans back on with a fresh T-shirt.
    Her main reason for accepting Mrs Guest’s kind offer to watch Emma was that she desperately needed time alone to think. Lorenzo had given her an ultimatum: she must decide whether to stay married to him and make a true commitment to their future together—or leave him, and be left all alone with Emma.
    He had been right when he’d said that Chloe was not in an ideal situation to bring up a baby on her own, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t do it. At least she had the type of office skills that were always in demand—and as long as she could earn sufficient money to pay the rent by the end of the month, she would have somewhere to live.
    Millions of women brought up children in far less favourable circumstances—with no proper training to get a job and with no one to help out in emergencies. Gladys had been a wonderful neighbour to Liz, and Chloe knew she could count on her if she had no choice.
    But should she be so quick to abandon her marriage to Lorenzo?
    The flash of joy that had lightened her soul when he appeared at the churchyard the previous day had told her that her feelings still ran deep. And being held in his arms earlier had felt so right.
    Now that her emotions were no longer running wild, and she had taken a moment to calm down, she knew for certain that she still loved him. Love wasn’tsomething she could just switch on or off. It was an unfathomable, undeniable truth that filled her body and soul.
    Before Liz died, Chloe had made her a promise—that she wouldn’t hide herself away from life and lock up her heart because she had been hurt. But she didn’t know how that promise fitted into