Chapter 56

He came around and helped her out of the car and cupped his hand under her elbow as they walked up the flight of concrete steps to his apartment.

Once they reached the top, Richard unlocked the door. Shoving it open, he turned to Isabella and without a word calmly lifted her into his arms.

Taken by surprise, she let out a small cry of alarm. "Richard ," she pleaded, "put me down. I’m too heavy."

"Let me assure you, Isabella Jones , you weigh next to nothing." With that he ceremoniously carried her over the threshold, gently depositing her in the leather recliner.

Isabella smiled at him, a little breathlessly, although he’d been the one to do all the work. This man was full of surprises. All week she’d been convinced she was marrying a monster, but Richard had gone out of his way to prove otherwise. Perhaps this marriage had a chance to survive, after all.

Richard turned on the television and reached for the evening paper and, after a few minutes, Isabella excused herself and began unpa