Irresistible Forces - Brenda Jackson [68]
She brought him into focus. He was sitting on the edge of the bed holding something in his hand. She blinked to bring him into focus again and saw it was the business card his grandfather had given her. She inhaled sharply, much preferring to have waited before having this conversation with him, but it seemed that that wouldn’t be the case.
“Taylor?”
He had turned and was looking at her intensely. In other words, he was frowning. She slowly pulled up in bed, mindful of the fact that like him, she was stark naked.
“Your grandfather gave it to me.”
The look he gave her was one as if he’d been slapped and then he said harshly, “That’s impossible because I don’t have a grandfather.”
She rolled her eyes. “At least not one you want to claim. You should have told me about him, Dominic. I had a right to know.”
He stood and stared down at her. “The only rights you have regarding me are the ones I give you, Taylor, and an association with Franco Saxon isn’t one of them. The man means nothing to me.”
She glared at Dominic. “He might not mean anything to you, but he is my child’s great-grandfather.”
“No, he is not!”
“Yes, he is,” she said, struggling to keep her voice calm. “Don’t you think it’s time for you to forgive him and move on?”
Dominic looked livid. He reached out and gripped her wrist and brought her closer to him. “No. And I don’t want him to be a part of my child’s life.”
“And I intend for him to be a part of it, Dominic. I made him a promise.”
He let go of her hand. “How much did he offer, Taylor?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I know the man. For years he’s been trying to win me over with his money, with offers of business deals, the naming of me as his heir, ownership of his shipping company…so I’m sure he offered you something. What was it?” he demanded.
Taylor didn’t like the sound of Dominic’s raised voice, nor of his insinuations. “Are you saying that you believe I made a promise to your grandfather because of some money deal?”
“Didn’t you? Are you saying he didn’t agree to acknowledge our unborn child as his heir if you went along with him?”
His words made Taylor furious. “It wasn’t like that at all, Dominic. Franco is a man who loves you and who already loves his great-grandchild. He merely wants to be a part of our baby’s life and I can see no reason why he should not.”
“Well, I do and I won’t have it.”
She leaned forward and placed her hands on her naked hips. “I don’t care what you won’t have so get over it. I will not break my promise to him.”
“And what about your loyalty to me?”
Taylor figured that now was not the time to tell Dominic that not only did he have her loyalty but that he also had her love, but that this was one issue she could not, would not agree with him on. “I am loyal to you, Dominic, however, I will not deny my child the right to know its great-grandparent.”
The room got quiet, and the tension surrounding them was almost unbearable. Then Dominic spoke as he began picking up his clothes off the floor. “Then it seems we have nothing more to discuss, Taylor.”
He turned his back on her and went into the bathroom and closed the door. He reappeared in the room a short while later fully dressed. He came over to the bed, stood over her and glared down at her. His face was tight, his features still intense. “I’m leaving.”
“Fine, and once you realize just how unfair you’re being, please call me.”
He face darkened. “I will call occasionally for no other reason than to check on my child. Otherwise, Taylor, our association is over.”
Taylor fought back the tears in her eyes. “If that’s the way you want things, Dominic, then that’s the way they will be.”
He stared down at her for a few more minutes and then without saying anything else, he turned and walked out of her condo.
It was later that day before Taylor was able to get out of bed, and only then because she knew she needed to eat something. She had to take care of the life growing inside her—the life Dominic had placed there.
As she began moving around her apartment, she couldn’t put out of her