‘You heard me.’ A small smile tugged the corners of her mouth.
‘Accept my generosity,’ Gabriel said, holding onto her softening and feeling something tug deep inside him. ‘There is nothing self-serving about it. The job will be a big one. I am merely compensating you in a manner I judge fit.’ He gave her a crooked smile. ‘Please.’#p#分页标题#e#
‘You should at least give me a probationary period,’ Laura offered. ‘You may not approve of the way I handle things...’
‘Why not?’ He raised his eyebrows in lazy amusement. ‘Are you planning on going down a few illegal routes? A spot of bribery or blackmail? Sleeping with a few contacts to generate business?’
‘Of course not!’ Laura flushed, I would never dream of doing anything of the sort!’
‘You mean the bribery and blackmail or the sleeping with contacts...?’
‘Both! All! You know what I mean.’
‘Then I see no reason why you should be on any probationary period, but...’ he shrugged ‘...if it makes you happy then we can agree on a three-month probation.’
‘During which you would expect me to achieve ...what? Precisely?’
‘Why don’t we discuss that later? In the meanwhile, we might just as well get Phillip back in so that we can finish here. I take it your little argument over pay is sorted...’
‘I suppose so,’ Laura said limply.
The remainder of the meeting, which lasted a full two and a half hours with only the odd snatched break for some coffee and biscuits, moved at a dizzying speed. Sums of money were thrown around that made her gasp. Guided by Phillip, she signed on the various dotted lines he indicated, barely aware of the various contracts she was reading. By the time she and Gabriel were shown out of the office, Laura felt as though she were unsteadily coming off a roller-coaster ride.
The fish, Gabriel thought as he followed her out onto the pavement, was on the hook. All he had to do now was enjoy the unparalleled experience of reeling it in. And reel it in he would. With every signature, he had been grimly aware of the fortuitous sequence of events that had brought him to this point. He now owned the house that had once been barred from the likes of him, and in a manner of speaking, whether it was politically correct or not to even think it, he owned the woman who had once casually and cruelly turned him away. Or perhaps he didn’t own her, he thought with brutal honesty. But he would.
‘Are you heading back down to London now?’ Laura asked, breaking into his thoughts. ‘I suppose it’s been difficult for you to find the time to keep coming up here.’
He noticed that she was heading towards her car, the old relic of a Land Rover her father used to drive, and which she had presumably been obliged to continue using because of her straitened financial circumstances.
‘That car will have to go,’ he said abruptly.
Laura stopped in her tracks and looked at him with her mouth open, I beg your pardon?’
‘The car. It will have to go.’
‘What do you mean the car will have to go? That car works perfectly well. Well-ish, anyway. And in case you hadn’t noticed, I don’t have a replacement waiting in the wings. Besides, it’s very sturdy, which is what I need living where I do.’ Laura began walking towards it, trying hard not to notice the rust spreading along the bottom of the driver’s door.
‘It won’t do.’ Gabriel swept his eyes over the denim-blue vehicle with an expression of disdain.
‘Is this part of your continuing plan to strip me of everything?’ Laura flared up at him angrily.
The accusation was so close to the truth that Gabriel had the decency to blush, but he stood his ground, his mouth thinning in determination. ‘It is no such thing. I simply feel that your driving around in that heap of crumbling metal is not exactly going to give any prospective clients the right impression of a business on the road to recovery.’#p#分页标题#e#
They stared at one another until Laura helplessly lowered her eyes, I can’t just go out and buy another car,’ she protested stubbornly.
‘Why not?’
‘Because...’
‘Our business here has not been completed. We are about to pay a little visit to the local bank where I will set up a substantial account for you from which you will withdraw whatever money is necessary to cover costs. Your salary will be transferred directly into the bank account you now possess.’ He looked at the mutinous set of her mouth and shook his head. ‘There is no point in trying to fight me every inch of the way,’ he informed her softly. ‘You will never win.’