The idea that there was "nothing" between them wasughable. "Nothing" involvedte-night stargazing, all-night hospital vigils, and constant secret meetings? If that was "nothing," then what did that make every mistress in the world?


    Seeing the mocking smile on her face, Lionel''s handsome features hardened into a mask of fury. As she tried to get up, he pushed her back down, trapping her beneath him. He loomed over her, his body a heavy, suffocating presence.


    "Are you doing all this because you''re in a hurry to divorce me and marry Yves?" he growled.


    Hannah''s smile widened. She had no idea why he would think that. Was it because he was a cheater, so he assumed everyone else was too?


    Her silence was all the confirmation he needed. "Yves is not as simple as you think," he warned. "He''s using you."


    "And that''s better than you?" Hannah shot back. "Don''t pretend you didn''t know your mother was behind my kidnapping! I gave you a chance to tell me the truth."


    "You and your mother-one of you kidnaps me, the other stands by and does nothing. Are you two so simple? Do you have no ulterior motives?"


    She shoved him off her and stood up, her eyes devoid of all emotion. Lionel stumbled back, a look of disbelief on his face.


    "Who told you that?"


    Hannah grabbed her bag, her voice dripping with contempt. "Does it matter? The point is, you hid it from me. If I hadn''t found out, would you have ever told me? You, of all people, have no right to judge me, Lionel."


    She walked past him, pausing at the door. "I''m moving out. If you follow me again, I''ll move into thepany dorms. You wouldn''t want our rtionship to be public, would you?"


    With that, she left, the door


    mming shut behind her. From the very beginning, their marriage had been a secret, hidden from the


    wordEven now, nothing he met


    changed. She knew he wouldn''t risk exposing their rtionship at such a crítical juncture.


    The door closed with a definitive click, leaving him alone in the suffocating silence. He sank onto the sofa, his mind racing. It had to beves Yves was the one


    told her.


    In the lobby, Hannah ran right into Quennel.


    ho had


    "Hannah? What a coincidence," he said, a broad smile on his face. "Are you here


    on business or for a vacation?"


    "Business. What about you, Quennel?" Hannah was surprised. It seemed


    everyone was in Ryth these days.


    "Business,” he replied, his eyebrows raised. "Have you eaten?"


    Hannah nodded.


    "I haven''t. And I don''t know this area at all. If you''re not busy, would you mind showing me around?"


    She was about to refuse when a


    Rolls-Royce pulled up in front of them Quennel opened the back


    doorhis smile charming.


    ar


    insistent. "Please don''t say no."


    Hannah hesitated, then got in. There was something about Quennel''s warmth that


    made him hard to refuse. Besides, he was family.


    On her rmendation, they went to a quiet cocktail lounge. After a few drinks,


    Hannah noticed Quennel seemed to have something on his mind.