In the backseat of the limo, Georgia could feel the tension between them. Austin didn't look at her, and she didn't much want to see the look in his eyes either. He intentionally kept his distance and she stared out the window, looking, but not really seeing anything.

At length, Austin asked, "Why do I get the feeling I've been used?"

His tone was accusing and she instantly became defensive. "Because you have been."

"How long have you known who I am?"

"Does it matter?"

"I suppose not." He turned his face away too.

"If my parents had not been there, we would have had a lovely evening and you would never have known."

"I suppose not…not unless you decided to be honest with me."

She turned to face him. "Is my crime so very unforgivable?"

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He couldn't hide his anger as he turned to her. "You might have told me the truth."

"I thought about it, but how was I to know if you favored them? I was afraid you might say something and keep them from showing up. You have no idea how long it has taken me to find them in public together."

"Why did you want them in public together?"

Her resentment was evident in her voice when she answered. "I wanted to scream at them - to shame them in a place where everyone could hear me. I have dreamed of doing it for years."

He tried to soften his voice, but he wasn't very successful. "I suppose I can understand that."

"I didn't truly think they would be there, but I could not pass up the opportunity. You had an invitation and I needed one."

Austin opened the bar and poured himself a drink without offering her one. "Well, at least you have accomplished what you set out to do."

"Have I? Neither of them looked shamed. Mathew was furious and Laura was shocked."

He snidely said, "Perhaps I should have shouted when I introduced you."

She sighed, looked out the window again and let the cold silence between them linger for a long while. Yet, she had a question she wanted answered, "Do you believe Laura truly didn't know how to find me?"

"It explains why she didn't tell her father. Nick would have exploded and ruined any chance she had of getting Mathew to tell her."

"I believed her too. May I have my birth certificate?"

He opened his jacket, pulled out the certificate, and handed it to her.

"Thank you." Georgia unfolded it, glanced down the page, folded it back up, and laid her hand in her lap. She couldn't think of anything to say that would ease the awful tension between them, so she changed the subject. "I don't care about the inheritance."




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