page28 (1/2)

‘Tension, emotion…’

‘That I’ve failed to get under control,’ Rashad pronounced, his beautifulwith dissatisfaction

‘But you don’t need to control it, not with me With me, you don’t have to put up a front, you don’t have to impress’ Polly wrapped a possessive ar down soothingly over his ribcage ‘I want you to be yourself’

‘Be careful what you wish for’ Rashad turned his tousled dark head away from her ‘Ferah chose to die sooner than remain with me,’ he said flatly, no emotion whatsoever in the statement

Coe of topic, Polly tensed ‘Chose?’ she queried with a frown

‘A feeeks before she was bitten by the snake she took an overdose Fortunately she was found in tied for her to have treath When she was bitten she concealed the bite until it was too late for the antidote to work,’ Rashad revealed ‘She died inme free…’

Polly was appalled, belatedly grasping why any memory of Ferah was liable to upset hiht that that was a dreadfully cruel andto have said to him in such circumstances but common sense made her bite her lip rather than speak in insensitive haste ‘Setting you free?’ she whispered instead

‘Free to ive me a child as she could not,’ Rashad extended curtly ‘She knew her father had been trying to persuade me to divorce her and take another wife and that I had refused—’

‘Her own father illing to do that to her?’ Polly pressed in disgust

‘All a with an heir in tow as a safer bet than one with a barren wife,’ Rashad advanced bitterly ‘Ferah kne he felt because he told her that it was her duty to let o She was already depressed All she ever wanted was to be amade to feel like a burden as as tooperson’

‘I’ inadequate because he had told her a much more unhappy story than she had expected and for the first time she understood that Rashad had been as e as he had been by the traues and injuries inflicted on him by his dysfunctional childhood The sheer extent of the losses he had endured turned her stoeously naïve

‘I should’ve given her more support It’s rave simplicity

‘It wasn’t your fault!’ Polly argued veheot her professional help What more could you have done? By the sound of it, her own fa to help her recover!’

Rashad stretched out with a heavy sigh ‘It’s in the past and can’t be changed, aziz Let us leave it there’

But although Polly sealed her lips on further comment she couldn’t leave it there because she felt ashamed that she had come over all jealous and possessive