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Reunited By The Greek's Vows
Andie Brock
A marriage on paper only… …until long-hidden desires reignite! Kate O’Connor’s stunned when ex-fiancé, self-made billionaire Nikos Nikoladis, storms back into her life with a shocking demand: to complete their previously abandoned trip down the aisle! He’ll gain the wife he requires to secure his goddaughter’s adoption, and save Kate’s ailing company. In desperation, she agrees. But on an opulent honeymoon across Europe, these heated adversaries don’t anticipate their still-smoldering flame to explode into irresistible passion…
A marriage on paper only...
...until long-hidden desires reignite!
Kate O’Connor is stunned when her ex-fiancé, self-made billionaire Nikos Nikoladis, storms back into her life with a shocking demand: to complete their previously abandoned trip down the aisle! He’ll gain the wife he requires to secure his goddaughter’s adoption and save Kate’s ailing company. In desperation, she agrees. But on an opulent honeymoon across Europe, these heated adversaries don’t anticipate their still-smoldering flame to explode into irresistible passion...
Discover this passionate reunion romance
ANDIE BROCK started inventing imaginary friends at around the age of four, and is still doing it today—only now the sparkly fairies have made way for spirited heroines and sexy heroes. Thankfully she now has some real friends, as well as a husband and three children—plus a grumpy but lovable cat. Andie lives in Bristol, and when she’s not actually writing she might well be plotting her next passionate romance story.
Also by Andie Brock (#u7ad43fd0-1783-52eb-bd58-3d952ad18fcd)
The Last Heir of Monterrato
The Sheikh’s Wedding Contract
The Shock Cassano Baby
Bound by His Desert Diamond
The Greek’s Pleasurable Revenge
Vieri’s Convenient Vows
Kidnapped for Her Secret Son
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk).
Reunited by the Greek’s Vows
Andie Brock
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-08786-5
REUNITED BY THE GREEK’S VOWS
В© 2019 Andie Brock
Published in Great Britain 2019
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
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For Hil. With much love.
Contents
Cover (#uc17d1c3f-49dc-5016-af02-1b400fb1812f)
Back Cover Text (#u42319959-ff1a-53a0-b0f6-18f71223031e)
About the Author (#ucc62c47c-95c5-50b4-9ea3-07c2be5c5c61)
Booklist (#uaa86d813-b902-5260-85e4-fa838365c000)
Title Page (#ubf05e5e8-782f-5450-8a01-b03fc40eca97)
Copyright (#uc2e370cc-5ce4-52c2-9169-6d5a1faf3a00)
Dedication (#uac3c55a4-e098-5f0a-ab9f-e53df116ccbd)
CHAPTER ONE (#u7ccb7da0-10ed-5331-8d8e-0f8127dcdc72)
CHAPTER TWO (#u8d3872a1-1194-549b-bb27-b50eeaf01475)
CHAPTER THREE (#u6e71fc92-18f7-5d2c-a104-4204aefbf470)
CHAPTER FOUR (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
EPILOGUE (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ONE (#u7ad43fd0-1783-52eb-bd58-3d952ad18fcd)
KATE FROZE, THE bottle of champagne foaming in her hand. Oh, please no! Not him—not here! She screwed up her eyes, praying that when she opened them again he would have miraculously vanished. But, no. He was still there, and the shock of his presence was ringing in her ears, blotting out everyone else in the room.
Watching as if in slow motion horror, Kate saw him lean back to address the overly attentive waitress. Broodingly handsome, all sculpted features and olive skin, his broad shoulders and towering height were carried with that familiar, athletic grace. Nikos Nikoladis. Her first love. Her ex-fiancГ©. The man who had broken her heart.
�Hey, honey, careful with that champagne.’ A diner at Kate’s table reached out to steady her hand. �If you knew what it cost you might treat it with a bit more respect.’
As the other men snickered in agreement Kate forced herself to apologise, holding a rictus grin that threatened to break her jaw as she refilled their glasses. She didn’t know exactly what it cost, but she did know it was a vastly over-inflated price, designed to feed their self-importance rather than please their palates. The enormous egos and choking testosterone of the herd of fat-cat businessmen here tonight made it hard to breathe.
But that was why she was here. Why she had signed up to this agency specialising in corporate hospitality. Why she had wriggled into a short black skirt that barely covered her butt and the horrible faux leather waistcoat now pulling tight across her bust. Because if there was the slightest chance that she might be able to persuade one of these arrogant jerks to invest in her ailing family business then she was going to take it. And if that meant she had to play waitress at this godawful event, flirt a little with these people, massage their massive egos, then so be it. As long as they knew that was the only thing she’d be massaging.
Because desperate times called for desperate measures. And, boy, was Kate desperate. And that had been even before the mortifying reappearance of her ex-fiancГ©.
Lowering her head, she let a curtain of blonde hair fall across her face, then took another peek in his direction, refusing to acknowledge the quickening of her heart. Engrossed in conversation with the CEO of a major corporation on his left, Nikos didn’t appear to have spotted her. That, at least, was some consolation. And he wasn’t seated at one of her designated tables in this vast hotel dining room, for which she was supremely grateful.
With a bit of luck she might be able keep her back to him and avoid being seen. Her new hairstyle would help her—the tumbling blonde curls were very different from the sleek mane of chestnut hair belonging to the Kate he had once known.
Refusing to panic, Kate squashed down her instinct to turn tail and run. Much as she wanted to tell the agency what they could do with their sleazy job, its degrading outfit and its horrible, predatory guests, the fact was that even if trying to persuade one of them to invest in Kandy Kate was a ludicrously naГЇve idea, this was still well-paid work with the potential for healthy tips and she needed the money.
There were over three hundred diners here tonight, and at least thirty waitresses. As long as she kept her wits about her she should be able to avoid Nikos. She would avoid him. Because coming face to face with him when she was dressed like a backstreet hooker was one humiliation she could firmly do without.
What was he even doing here? She shot him another surreptitious glance from beneath heavy lashes. She would never have put Nikos down as the sort of man who would attend this type of do—even if it was a charity event. But then she would never have thought he was the kind of guy to rip her life apart the way he had. To be capable of such abject cruelty. She had no idea who Nikos really was at all.
What she did know was that she had totally lost her heart to this man. To the gorgeous Greek Adonis who had waited on her table that warm summer’s evening in Crete three long years ago. The handsome, charming, captivating stranger who had walked along the beach with her, taking her hand, kissing her under the stars, turning her upside down and inside out there and then with a crazy sort of love that she’d thought only existed in stories.
That summer had been the most wonderful time of her life. And the hurt that had followed more excruciating than she would ever have imagined possible.
So why was she surprised that he would frequent this sort of event? He was certainly wealthy enough. In fact, he could probably buy out most of these guys and scarcely make a dent in his multi-billion-dollar fortune.
Kate had watched his meteoric rise to enormous wealth from afar. The carefree, laid-back guy she’d fallen in love with, who hadn’t had two cents to rub together when she’d met him, had become a billionaire businessman almost overnight. In the blink of a red-rimmed eye.
Whereas, of course, her fortunes had done the reverse. Her family’s well-established confectionery business, Kandy Kate, had been crippled by a series of bad decisions since her father had died. But Kate was absolutely determined that was going to change. She was going to save Kandy Kate if it was the last thing she did. Because it was her father’s legacy, named in her honour. It had meant everything to him. And for that reason it meant everything to her.
�Hey, baby, I’m dying of thirst over here!’
More raucous laughter around the table snapped Kate back to the job she was supposed to be doing.
�Get that pretty little ass of yours around here and refill my glass.’
�Yes, sir, of course.’ Silently seething, Kate cautiously sidled around the table, keeping her back to Nikos as best she could.
�Whassup, honey? You scared of me?’ The man stretched out his arm, snaking it around Kate’s waist to pull her closer. ’Cos you know, there ain’t no need for that. I’m nice as pie. You ask anyone.’ More drunken hee-hawing. �Why don’t you come sit on my lap and I’ll show you just how nice I can be?’
Taking a step back, Kate gripped the neck of the champagne bottle tightly enough to throttle it. It was a poor substitute for what she would have liked to throttle, but it would have to do.
�I’m not paid to sit down.’ She feigned a light-hearted remark through gritted teeth.
�No? Well, I’m sure we could make it worth your while. Whaddya you say, guys?’
The man lurched forward, knocking Kate off balance so that she stumbled, falling towards him. She tried to right herself, to pull away, but he was too strong for her and before she knew it he had tugged her firmly down onto his lap, spreading his legs to accommodate her, his alcohol-soaked breath belching into her face. And when he adjusted his position, pressing her down onto his crotch, she genuinely thought she was going to be sick.
No job was worth this. No amount of money would compensate for being treated like a piece of meat.
For God’s sake Kate, she told herself, dragging in a breath, have a bit of self-respect.
But she mustn’t make a scene. The last thing she wanted to do was draw attention to herself—not with Nikos across the other side of the room. Extricating herself as carefully as possible, her stomach roiling as her movement only served to arouse her captor more, she put the champagne bottle down on the table and started to lever herself away from him.
�Oh, no, you don’t.’ He pulled her back down, his foul breath in her ear. �I’m just startin’ to enjoy myself. You can probably tell...’
* * *
From the other side of the glittering dining room, Nikos narrowed his eyes, turning in his chair to get a better look. Something about that young woman was very familiar, making him stare long and hard. Making his pulse beat faster too, if he would but admit it. It couldn’t be...could it?
He’d watched as she moved around her table, filling the glasses of rowdy guests who had already had way too much. With her back to him, and quite some distance away, he didn’t have much to go on—and the mane of blonde curls was telling him he must be mistaken. But as he’d watched she had raised a hand to touch her earlobe, tugging on it gently in an unconscious display of vulnerability the way he had seen her do a hundred times before.
And then Nikos had known without a shadow of doubt.
It was her.
Kate O’Connor.
He’d sat back in his chair, waiting for his heart-rate to steady. Of all the gin joints... It almost felt as if he’d conjured her up from his mind. Because Kate O’Connor had been very much on his mind lately. Hadn’t he had just flown five thousand miles to see her? The prospect of ambushing her in her office the following morning had brought him a twisted sort of pleasure that had made the journey almost enjoyable.
And now here she was, right in front of him, a vision in tart’s clothing. Never would he have expected to find Kate in a place like this, looking like that. He wouldn’t be here himself if he hadn’t been talked into it by a business associate who had insisted they would talk shop over dinner. One look at the place and he’d almost turned around there and then. But something had made him stay. It must have been a sixth sense.
Unable to tear his gaze way, Nikos had watched on as one guy had slid an arm around Kate’s waist, pulling her closer. He’d felt his hands ball into fists. Steady, now. This was none of his business. Maybe it was all part of the service.
He had waited for some sense of satisfaction to kick in, for a feeling of gratification at seeing what Kate had been reduced to to warm his dry bones. But, strangely, there was none to be had. Nikos could find no consolation in her downfall.
He wanted to. Badly. He wanted to enjoy every minute of this degrading spectacle—to revel in it and to feel it thawing the very core of him. A core that had hardened like stone in the years since their bitter break-up.
But now, as he watched her sliding onto some creep’s lap, the emotion rising in his gullet had nothing to do with comfort or consolation. It was pure rage—so bitter and acrid that it burnt his throat with its vicious bile.
Because Kate O’Connor was his. Or at least she soon would be.
Downing the last of his whisky in one burning gulp, Nikos forced himself to calm down. His every instinct was screaming at him to cross the room, haul Kate off the lap of that revolting sleazeball, fling her over his shoulder and carry her out of this place.
His body positively twitched with the effort of stopping himself. But stop himself he would. Because Nikos was cleverer than that. He was here to claim his ex-fiancée and finally she would do his bidding. She just didn’t know it yet. But right now, it was time to leave.
* * *
Back in her tiny apartment, Kate sprawled down on the bed, burying her face in the covers. That had been one of the most humiliating nights of her life—and lately she’d had a few.
Pulling herself upright, she shifted along the bed and swung her legs over the end, leaning forward to prop her elbows on the top of the dresser. This place was so small that during her first week there she’d had to battle against claustrophobic panic attacks in the middle of the night.
But that had long since passed and she had become used to it. Her spacious penthouse condominium at the top of KK Towers—her family home before it had all gone so badly wrong—was now not much more than a distant memory.
She peered at herself in the mirror, wincing at the sight that met her eyes. She hardly recognised the heavily made-up blonde who stared back at her—which was all to the good. Because that person wasn’t her. She was just a means to an end. An end that couldn’t come fast enough for Kate.
Raising her hand, she grasped a fistful of hair and lifted up the blonde wig, tossing it to one side. She shook her head, running her fingers through her short dark hair before regarding herself again. Better. She had worn this style for over a year now, her decision to crop her long chestnut hair having been an attempt to present a more businesslike, serious persona.
The business might still bear her name, but Kate was no longer the happy, rosy-cheeked kid who had promoted the brand throughout her childhood—whose chestnut plaits and gap-toothed smile had helped to sell several million candy bars and made Kate instantly recognisable.
Now Kate was all grown up. And as head of the Kandy Kate empire it fell to her to stop the rot and save the company. To keep production running. Which meant generating the cash flow needed to pay their suppliers. And looking after the staff—some of whom had been with the company right from the start, who were more like family.
They were loyal employees, who had stood by Kandy Kate through bad times and even worse times, taking a salary cut, sometimes no salary at all, because they had loved her dad. Because they had faith that Kate would get the company back on track...see them right.
And Kate was absolutely determined she wasn’t going to let them down. Somehow she was going to save Kandy Kate—even if she didn’t have a clue how she was going to do it.
Peeling off the hateful false eyelashes, she blinked with relief, then set about scrubbing away her heavy make-up before heading for the shower. She felt soiled, unclean, and the pummelling hot water was doing nothing to remove the scent of the evening that seemed to have crept under her skin, into her pores. But at least she had managed to stick it out until the end, so that would mean she’d get paid.
And, more importantly, she had avoided being recognised by Nikos. That alone made her awful disguise worthwhile.
After finally managing to extricate herself from that creep’s lap, she had shot a panicked glance in Nikos’s direction, sick with dread that he might have witnessed the humiliating scene. But to her immense relief he had gone—vanished. A quick, hopeful glance around her revealed no sign of him, and when his seat had still been empty twenty minutes later Kate had finally let herself breathe.
She had got away with it. Because if Nikos had recognised her he wouldn’t have been able to resist storming over, nailing her with those piercing ebony eyes and watching her squirm with embarrassment. Gloating over how the mighty had fallen.
Because fall she had—from a great height. After Kate’s father had died she and her mother had been left in joint control of Kandy Kate, and between them they had brought the business to its knees. The combination of Fiona O’Connor’s erratic decisions and Kate’s naivety had rapidly turned the thriving, much-loved brand—a household name—into a company on the brink of bankruptcy.
Too late Kate had realised that her mother wasn’t mentally strong enough to have taken on such a weighty responsibility. But by then the Kandy Kate name had already been dragged through the mud—no longer associated with traditional values and a wholesome image but rocked by indiscreet comments from the new boss.
Convinced she knew best, Fiona had waltzed into the office on her first day like an impending storm, immediately making ridiculous demands and crazy decisions. The board had tried to overrule her, but Fiona would have none of it, convinced that they were just being obstructive because they didn’t like her. It had got so bad that anyone who’d tried to stand up to her had been fired on the spot, with senior executives told to clear their desks there and then.
As the carnage had continued Kate had begged her mother to step down, to leave the running of the company to her—for the sake of Fiona’s mental health as well as for the business. But as it had turned out leaving Kandy Kate in her hands had been even worse. Failing to keep a check on the new finance director—appointed by Fiona after the previous one had walked out in protest—Kate had signed papers without looking at them properly and delegated power to him, completely unaware of his fraudulent intentions.
Gullibility, lack of experience, and the fact that Kate had been way out of her depth had cost the company dear. Within months the con man had syphoned off vast quantities of money, leaving Kandy Kate in a more desperate state than ever.
Nearly three years had passed since then, and Kate had wised up considerably. But despite her best efforts—despite selling off just about every asset that Kandy Kate had had left, working all the hours that God sent, begging, borrowing and pleading with banks, investors, and anyone else who might be prepared to pour some serious capital into the business—Kate had got nowhere.
The sad fact was that Kate’s eponymous business was still in a dire state. And, short of a miracle, there was nothing she could do to repair it.
The press, of course, were lapping it up. Fiona O’Connor had always been good tabloid fodder, with her expensive tastes and her erratic outbursts. But, as the face of Kandy Kate, Kate herself was the real prize. Hounded by the press all her life, she never knew when she was going to be snapped by a lone pap, hoping to make a few dollars out of her—though why anyone should be remotely interested in seeing her buying a few groceries in the local deli or snatching a coffee on her way to work she had no idea.
Events like the Executives’ Club, however, were a different matter. Which was why Kate made sure she concealed her identity with a false name, a blonde wig and more make-up than a three-year-old at a clown convention.
Getting into bed, she pulled the covers under her chin.
Maybe it was time to give up. This morning she’d discovered there had been a surge in the price of Kandy Kate’s shares, and that meant only one thing. Someone was planning a hostile takeover. Which was all she needed.
Kate had hoped she might be able to glean some information as to who might be behind the takeover from some of guests at the Executives’ Club. Obviously she’d had to make sure she didn’t reveal who she was, but successful businessmen loved to brag and champagne loosened their tongues. Unfortunately it also loosened their hands, and Kate had found them far more interested in stroking her butt or staring down her cleavage than giving her the lowdown on the latest gossip from the trading floor.
Closing her eyes, Kate willed herself to go to sleep. She was dog-tired...physically and emotionally drained. But sleep refused to come. Instead, Nikos’s powerful image filled her vision, crowding her mind, snapping her eyes open again.
The acute shock of seeing him tonight still held her body in a rigid grip. The three years since she had last seen him had vanished like vapour the second she had set eyes on him again. One glance at that handsome face and the memories of their break-up had come flooding back: the fight, the things they had said...horrible, hateful, brutal words...all recalled with vivid clarity. She felt as if time had simply distilled the pain, making it even more potent as it sank its vicious claws into her once again.
When Nikos had left her, Kate’s whole world had collapsed. Her hopes and dreams had crumbled before her eyes—built, as it turned out, on nothing more substantial than the shifting sands of blind optimism and unguarded love. She had fallen into a place so deep, so dark, that she had feared she would never see the light again.
But somehow she had clawed her way back up. Somehow she had survived.
As she stared up at the peeling paintwork of the ceiling Kate conceded that their relationship had been doomed from the start. The cracks had always been there—just ignored in the first wild rush of all-consuming passion. A time when anything had seemed possible.
She hadn’t been totally blameless. By choosing to play down her family’s wealth and lavish lifestyle she had been guilty of deceiving Nikos. It had been a selfish act, but the relief of being free from the shackles of Kandy Kate that had dominated her whole life had been so wonderful, so liberating, she had lied by omission just to try and keep it that way for as long as possible.
Just for a while she had wanted to be Kate O’Connor—a regular kind of girl from an ordinary background, who happened to have been fortunate enough to fall in love with the most wonderful guy in the world.
But the flipside had meant she’d failed to mention Nikos to her parents. Far less the fact that she had rushed headlong into an engagement with him. That she intended to marry the remarkable Greek man as soon as possible.
Because Kate had known full well the ruckus it would cause. She knew her mother would hit the roof and insist that the engagement was broken off immediately—that there was no way she was going to allow her daughter to marry some penniless Greek bum. And then her poor father would be dragged into it, torn between the two women in his life the way he always was, doing his best to keep the peace.
Kate had decided that she was going to keep the engagement a secret for as long as she could. But when news had arrived that her father had been taken seriously ill her little secret had suddenly begun to grow, to take on a life of its own.
As she’d rushed to make plans to return to New York Nikos had assumed he would be going with her. But Kate hadn’t been able to let that happen. Her parents hadn’t even known of his existence—she couldn’t arrive back home with him by her side, knowing the way her mother would react and risking damaging her father’s fragile health still further.
So she had insisted Nikos stayed behind in Crete. She could still remember the look of hurt on his face when she’d told him. Standing there in the Greek sunshine, so tall and proud, his dark brows pulling together in surprise, his features had set like stone.
It had all but broken her heart, but Kate had stood firm, slinging her rucksack over her shoulder and turning away when all she’d wanted to do was to fall into his arms and stay there for ever.
If she had come clean there and then, confessed everything, would things have turned out differently?
Kate had gone over that moment in her head a thousand times. But the fact was she hadn’t. And as Nikos’s hurt had quickly turned to a carefully controlled anger, a cold cloud of animosity had descended over them as they’d said their goodbyes.
Nikos’s dry peck on her cheek had only accentuated the widening rift between them.
Her father had died two weeks later. And in the melee of trying to organise everything—taking care of her mother, who had always suffered from fragile mental health, as well as coping with her own crippling grief—suddenly Nikos had arrived. Unannounced. Uninvited. And even though her heart had leapt at the sight of him—even though he had been the person Kate had wanted to see more than anyone else in the world, needed more than anyone else in the world—she had panicked.
Hadn’t she expressly told him not to come? His arrival was going to cause nothing but trouble. And that trouble had started almost immediately.
Within minutes her guilty secret had been exposed. Dropping his bag, Nikos had looked around the luxurious apartment with a puzzled expression on his face before pulling her into a stiff hug.
With immaculate timing Fiona O’Connor had walked in at that precise moment, demanding to know who this person was. And as Nikos had stepped forward to offer his condolences, and to introduce himself as Kate’s fiancé, she had let out a little scream, her hand fluttering to her throat.
Kate had had no choice but to try and do whatever she could to mitigate the damage, to calm Fiona down. Even though that had meant pushing Nikos away.
And then, on that last evening—the evening of her father’s funeral—her whole shaky world had finally collapsed.
When she’d been at her lowest ebb Nikos had turned on her, slashing through her battered defences, inflicting the sort of crippling pain from which there was no recovery...
Turning on her side, Kate curled herself into a ball as the memory of how Nikos had looked tonight imprinted itself on her brain. Gone had been the laid-back guy she had once known, casually dressed in faded jeans slung low on his hips or board shorts frayed at the hems by the sun and the sea. Gone the mass of wind-blown dark curls. Now his hair was tamed, styled, carefully groomed like the rest of him. Now he wore a dinner suit with the easy confidence of a wealthy man, giving off an air of urbane arrogance that told the world he had made it, that life was his for the taking.
Feeling a stab of pain, she buried her head in her pillow. Not for the first time she conceded that Nikos was the one man who had the wealth and the contacts to save her precious business. But there was no way she would ask him. She might only have a shred of pride left, but she was damned if she was going to give that shred to him. No, hell would freeze over before she ever went crawling to him.
CHAPTER TWO (#u7ad43fd0-1783-52eb-bd58-3d952ad18fcd)
NIKOS GAZED UP at KK Towers, an imposing glass-fronted building in Midtown Manhattan. He had been surprised to discover that the Kandy Kate headquarters were still located here. From what he’d heard, all the offices and apartments had been leased off, even if the premises still retained the KK name.
Christened by Bernie O’Connor, it had been a glittering symbol of the power and success of the Kandy Kate empire, with its offices sprawling over several floors and the stunning penthouse apartment home to his adored family.
He had never met Bernie, but he had obviously been an astute businessman—something that Nikos respected highly. To have made such a success of the Kandy Kate business in what had to be a very competitive market took intelligence and guts.
It was a shame he hadn’t applied those same principles to his private life. From what Nikos could see, Bernie had made completely the wrong choice of wife.
Fiona O’Connor was an arrogant snob—that much had been obvious from the start. Her rudeness Nikos might have accepted. After all, when they had met Fiona had been recently bereaved...he would have made allowances. He could even have excused her blatant hostility, given the circumstances. Particularly in light of the fact that Kate had conveniently forgotten to tell her mother of his existence. But the way she had looked at him with such abject horror—as if he was worse than nothing—that had got under his skin.
And then there was Kate...
Nikos held his jaw firm as he marched through the revolving doors into a light-filled vestibule. What right did he have to criticise Bernie O’Connor about his choice of partner when he had made the same mistake—with bells on? He too had fallen for totally the wrong woman.
The �Kate effect’ had hit Nikos like a tornado. His golden rule of never getting emotionally involved with any woman had been smashed just like that. With a rush of wild exhilaration he had taken Kate’s hand and jumped off the edge of the cliff, self-preservation blown to the wind. Totally consumed by that all-powerful, all-consuming thing called love, he’d had no choice but to obey the fierce command of his heart.
She had been beautiful, funny, clever...like no woman he had ever met before. The summer they had spent together in his home town of Agia Loukia, had been so special, so wonderful, that Nikos had assumed their joy would last for ever. And when Kate had accepted his proposal of marriage he had thought their future set, their happiness complete.
But too late Nikos had realised that when you jumped off a cliff, at some point you had to come back down to earth. And the crash landing he and Kate had made had been spectacularly horrendous.
Discovering that Kate had never told her parents about him—never even mentioned him—had been the first punch in the gut. No wonder she hadn’t wanted him to accompany her to New York when her father had been taken ill. No wonder she hadn’t wanted him at Bernie’s funeral.
His first niggling thoughts that she might actually be ashamed of him had soon solidified into rock-hard certainty as Kate had continued to treat him with cold distance...holding him at arm’s length, pushing him away. Gone had been the warm and loving woman he had fallen in love with in Crete, to be replaced by someone he’d barely recognised—someone who had hardly been able to bring herself to look at him.
Their final showdown had had an air of inevitability about it. But even so it had been far harder, far more painful than Nikos could ever have imagined. Discovering what Kate really thought of him, and the pitifully low opinion she had of him, had felt like a stab to the heart. It still did.
But now it was time to expunge that memory. Now the tables had turned. Now Nikos intended to exact his revenge.
The concierge behind the gleaming wooden desk indicated the elevator for Kandy Kate’s headquarters. Not the sleek, burnished gold affair at the end of the lobby, but a much smaller one, with an old-fashioned metal grid that you had to pull across manually. There was a moment’s hesitation after Nikos pressed the button, and then the elevator slowly ground its way down to what felt like the bowels of the earth.
He had decided not to announce his arrival. He preferred to take his chances rather than give Kate the opportunity to disappear or prepare pretty lies. In his experience an element of surprise always worked in his favour.
The Kandy Kate office was at the end of a long corridor, its name stuck on the middle panel of a half-glazed door. After a single sharp knock Nikos walked straight in.
The room was small, gloomy and empty. There was no natural light, and a fluorescent strip bulb cast a depressingly cold glow over a cluttered desk, a couple of wooden chairs. A rustling noise to the left alerted him to another, smaller room, not much more than a cupboard. Someone of indeterminate age and sex was in there, squatting on the floor in front of an open filing cabinet drawer.
�Hi!’ Nikos raised his voice as the person obviously hadn’t heard him. �I’m looking for Kate O’Connor.’
He saw the figure go rigid. As it slowly moved to stand Nikos felt the breath catch in his throat. Of course. She still hadn’t turned around, but as she pulled out the buds in her ears, cutting short the tinny buzz of music from the phone she retrieved from her pocket, it was obvious. The shape of the back of her head, the long sweep of her neck...
Once again it had taken him a couple of seconds to recognise her, but if this was another disguise she was going to have to try a lot harder.
He advanced further into the room, positioning himself in the doorway of the glorified cupboard. �I see I have found her.’
�Nikos!’
His name was a dry accusation on her tongue. As she finally turned to face him Nikos caught the alarm in her wide green eyes, saw the way her face had drained of colour. He heard the snatch of her indrawn breath. It was all suitably gratifying.
Nikos blatantly stared at her, ignoring the normal rules of decorum. They were way past that.
She was dressed entirely in black, her face free from make-up, her dark hair cropped short, cut into the nape of her neck so that it exposed her ears. With an unwanted kick of lust Nikos found himself wondering how that hair would feel beneath his fingertips. She looked elegant, fragile, beautiful. Certainly nothing like the woman he had seen last night. A pair of plain silver earrings dangling from her lobes were the only hint of adornment.
She looked away, avoiding his gaze. Nikos could see her desperately working to regain her composure, to pull a mask of indifference into place. He held the silence.
�What do you want?’ Her voice sounded faint. �Why are you here?’
�That’s not much of a greeting, Kate.’ Now his taunting animosity had kicked in. �Not much of a welcome after all these years.’
�You’ll get no welcome from me.’ Her head swung back, her words falling like shards of glass.
�No. Of course I won’t. How foolish of me.’
With a mocking stare, he stepped out of the doorway back into the office. After a moment’s hesitation he strode over to a chair, picking up the pile of papers from the seat and holding them in his hand as he waited for Kate to squeeze in the other side of the desk.
�All right if I sit down?’
He waved the papers at her and Kate snatched them back. Nikos seated himself, stretching out his legs and crossing them at the ankles before linking his hands behind his head and leaning back in a classic display of dominance.
�So, tell me, Kate—how have you been?’ He let his eyes drift over her face, watching the way the colour flooded back.
Kate gave him a fierce glare. �I’m sure you haven’t come here to ask after my well-being. I repeat, Nikos, what do you want?’
�A cup of coffee would be nice, since you’re asking.’
�What do you mean by walking in here uninvited?’ Her breath sounded dry in her throat.
�I make a habit of turning up uninvited.’ Nikos gave her a pleasant smile. �You should know that by now.’ He watched as his barb sank in. �Now, how about that coffee? Black, one sugar for me. But I expect you remember that.’
Kate hesitated, looking as if she’d rather boil her head in oil than make him a cup of coffee. But then, obviously deciding it wasn’t worth the battle, she laid the papers down on the desk and moved over to a coffee maker in the corner of the room, her shoulders hitched up around her ears. As she removed the jug from the hotplate Nikos could see the way her hand tremored.
Good. He was glad of the effect he was having on her. It wasn’t much consolation after the way she had treated him, but it was a start. And it all increased his sense of power.
As Kate passed the mug to him he deliberately let his hand touch hers, acknowledging the frisson between them with a quirk of dark brows before Kate jerked her hand away.
Yes, he was enjoying this.
�So, are these now the sole premises of the Kandy Kate empire?’ He briefly glanced around him, his tone light and casual, but no less cutting for that.
�They are.’
Kate moved back behind the desk, reluctantly sitting down and folding her arms across her chest. She wore a black ribbed jumper with a scoop neck, the sleeves pushed up, and Nikos could see she had lost weight. But the clingy material still accentuated her shape nicely. She looked sober, chic...sexy.
�This office is perfectly adequate.’
�I’m sure it is.’ Nikos gave a small nod of agreement. �With the state of the Kandy Kate empire at the moment I imagine you could run it from a phone booth. After all, how much room do you need to go bankrupt?’
�Kandy Kate is not going bankrupt!’ Kate was on her feet in a second, green eyes flashing.
�No?’ Nikos tempered her fire with infuriating calm. �Well, that’s not what I’ve heard.’
�Well, you’ve heard wrong.’
She tossed her head, turning away from him, her face in profile. Nikos stared at the straight line of her nose, the fine sweep of her jaw. Why had he never noticed her jawline before? He’d thought he was all too familiar with every inch of Kate’s body.
During the weeks they had spent together he had made it his mission to explore every delicious inch of her with his fingers, his lips, his tongue. Making love to Kate had been the most erotic experience of his life—a shared wonder that neither of them had been able to get enough of, as if they had both been taken over by an insatiable craving.
On reflection, he hadn’t made love to her, he had made love with her. A symphony of sexual pleasures that had ruined him for any other woman.
And he cursed her for it.
He had cursed her when he’d arrived back in Crete after being all but banished from her home. When the very thought of her name had been enough to solidify his blood. He had cursed her during the intervening years when, no matter how attractive a woman might be, how charming and how available, they’d all seemed about as sexy as a block of wood to Nikos after the intense earthly pleasures he had shared with Kate O’Connor. Even drinking himself into oblivion hadn’t helped—just made his self-disgust second only to the disgust he’d felt for his ex-fiancée.
And he still cursed her now.
Nikos hadn’t realised just how much until he’d gazed at her haughty profile and realised that time, far from diminishing his desire for Kate, had merely held it in cold storage, frozen, ready to be thawed by one fiery glance from those dark green eyes.
He took a mouthful of coffee, slamming the brakes on thoughts which were taking him in very unwanted directions—directions that had nothing to do with his carefully calculated plans. He needed to focus on what he was here to do.
�So, Kandy Kate’s not in trouble then?’ The venom in his voice was held just under the surface. �The reports that your sales have plummeted, your suppliers are threatening legal action, your staff are not getting paid...’ he leant forward, idly picking up a sheaf of papers, scanning a few lines before letting them drop �...all totally untrue?’
�Yes.’ Kate pointedly straightened the papers, then held them to her chest. �Well, wildly exaggerated anyway.’ She refused to meet his eye.
�Is that right?’ Nikos continued. �So the fact that your share prices plummeted means nothing either? Your shareholders are perfectly happy to have received no dividends in the past twelve months and to have seen their investments dwindle to a pittance?’
�As a matter of fact...’ she jutted out her chin �...share prices have increased considerably recently. Confidence in the brand is growing.’
�Really?’ Nikos queried amiably. �Or is it that someone is about to make a hostile takeover?’
Kate bit down on her lip, the nip against her soft pink pout stirring Nikos somewhere deep and low.
�Well, either way it’s none of your concern. In fact I would like you to leave. Immediately.’
She moved the few steps to the door to usher him out but Nikos was too quick for her, barring her way with his broad shoulders and towering height.
�Well, that’s just where you’re wrong. It is my concern. Or at least it very soon will be.’
�What do you mean by that?’ Kate stopped stock-still.
�I’m sure you can work it out for yourself, Kate.’ Nikos smiled at her. �You’re a bright girl.’
�You...?’ Her hand flew to tug at her earlobe. �You mean it’s you who has been buying up the shares?’
He rested his arm against the doorjamb. He wasn’t going to reply. He would make her squirm while his silence spoke for him.
�But why? Why would you do such a thing?’
�Because I think Kandy Kate is an interesting proposition.’ He casually slid his hand down the doorframe and into the pocket of his trousers. �Handled correctly, I’m confident it will prove to be a good investment.’
�“A good investment”?’ Kate challenged. �I don’t believe you. Why would you think that?’
Nikos gave a short laugh. �No wonder your business is in such dire straits if you have so little faith in it.’
�I have plenty of faith in Kandy Kate, thank you very much. It’s you I have no faith in.’
�Ah, yes, of course.’ His eyes gleamed darkly. �I almost forgot.’
�Well, I haven’t.’
He could see that Kate was slowly clawing her way to safer ground. He would let her rest there for a while before bringing her straight back down.
�And there was me thinking you’d be grateful to find an investor. Even one such as myself.’
�You are not an investor,’ Kate flew at him. �You have gone behind my back and purchased Kandy Kate shares at a rock-bottom price with the intention of taking over the company. You said it yourself—this is a hostile takeover.’
�It doesn’t have to be hostile.’ Lowering his voice, Nikos fixed her with a glittering stare, reaching forward to take hold of her chin when she tried to turn her face away. �In fact, if we put our minds to it, I suspect we could make it very friendly indeed.’
�In your dreams, Nikos.’ Kate jerked her head away from his light grip. �If you think I could ever be friendly with you again, in any capacity, then you are very much mistaken.’
Nikos watched as she tucked herself behind the safety of her desk, giving her a moment before he spoke again. �Well, we’ll see about that, won’t we?’ He sat back down opposite her. �And, since you’ve brought up the matter of dreams, then, yes, I admit it—you have featured in mine quite largely.’ He flexed his fingers to inspect his manicured nails. �All those long, lonely nights in an empty bed, with nothing but memories to keep me company...what’s a man to do...?’ He looked up, spearing Kate with his gaze, registering the deep flush that had stained her cheeks, tinging the rim of her neat ears. �Maybe it has been the same for you?’
�Get out!’ On her feet again, Kate pointed to the door, her extended arm visibly shaking.
�No.’ Nikos matched her stance, his voice a harsh command, all traces of teasing flirtation banished. �I am not going anywhere, Kate. Not until you have heard what I have to say.’
�And what, exactly, do you think gives you the right to tell me what to do?’
Nikos would have liked to tell her. He could think of plenty of reasons why she should do exactly as he said. Kate O’Connor owed him—and in time he looked forward to making her see that. But not yet. If you were trying to land a wriggling fish it was best to turn the reel nice and slow.
He drew in a steadying breath. �Let’s just say it will be to your advantage.’
�I very much doubt it.’ With a scoff, Kate sat back down, folding her arms tightly across her chest. �Just say whatever it is you have to say, then get out.’
Nikos arranged his body on the chair, deliberately taking his time. Steepling his fingers, he raised his eyes to find hers. �You may or may not know, but since we last met my fortunes have changed somewhat. I am now an extremely wealthy man.’
�So?’ Kate glared at him. �If you’ve just come here to brag about how rich you are, Nikos, then save your breath. I’m not interested.’
Nikos paused, taking a second to mentally erase her contemptuous remark. It was either that or teach her a lesson. And he knew exactly how he’d like to do that.
�Luckily for you, I am prepared to invest some of that fortune to save your business.’
�And, unluckily for you, I wouldn’t accept you as an investor if you were the last man on earth.’ Her answer came back with the speed of a bullet.
�Really, Kate?’ She was starting to wind him up now. �Are you sure about that?’
�I said so, didn’t I?’
�So what sort of man would you take investment from, I wonder?’ Nikos narrowed his eyes, pretending to consider. �The sort of man who might be persuaded to overlook the dire state of the business in return for other, more personal favours?’
�What are you insinuating?’ Choking with outrage, Kate was on her feet again. �How dare you?’
Her hand flew out to slap his face but Nikos intercepted it with ease, standing up and holding it against his chest so Kate was forced to lean her body across the desk.
�Tut-tut.’ He eyeballed her. �Violence is not the answer, Kate—you should know that.’
�Then take back what you just said!’
Her furious breath swelled her ribcage, pressing her breasts against the fine fabric of her sweater, accentuating the cleavage that Nikos found his eyes drawn to against their will.
�How dare you insinuate such a thing?’
�Because I saw you last night, Kate.’
He felt her hand go limp beneath his grasp, slipping away as shock rendered her silent.
She pulled back, dragging in a breath. �You saw me?’ Her skin visibly paled beneath the cruel strip light.
�Uh-huh.’
�Well, whatever it was you thought you saw, you were wrong. It was just a waitressing job—that’s all.’
�A waitressing job that entailed squirming on the lap of that bloated banker? Assuming that you weren’t doing it for your own sexual gratification, I can only conclude you were doing it for other, more practical reasons. I liked the blonde wig, by the way. Very classy.’
�I don’t have to explain myself to you.’ Kate valiantly fought to regain her dignity. �If it gives you some sort of perverted pleasure to imagine that I would have sex with a stranger for money, then go ahead—be my guest. Frankly, your opinion of me is of no interest. You can think whatever you damn well like.’
�It doesn’t give me pleasure, Kate. Quite the reverse.’
Slowly she scanned his face, and Nikos felt his facial muscles pull taut beneath the scrutiny of that dark green gaze.
�Why, Nikos? Why does it bother you? Why would you care what I do?’
She was taunting him. Nikos cursed inwardly. His voice had been too raw, had betrayed too much emotion, exposing feelings he had fully intended to keep concealed. Far from reeling her in slowly, he was in danger of letting her off the hook.
�After all, we mean nothing to one another any more.’ Kate pressed harder. �We are free to see whoever we want, to do whatever we want.’
�And this is what you want, is it?’ Anger fired through him. �To be free to sell your body to the highest bidder? To anyone who’s prepared to sling some money your way so you can prop up your pathetically failing business for a bit longer?’
He saw her swallow, her throat moving in the long column of her neck. But she kept her head held high.
�And what if it is? What’s it to you?’
Nikos clamped down on his jaw, fighting to contain the hot sweep of masculine rage that threatened to consume him. He would not let her get to him.
Circling the desk, he stood before her, his shoulders back, his breathing heavy. Capturing her eyes, he made sure there was no way she could escape the cruel intensity of his gaze. �To have a fiancée of mine behaving in such a blatantly wanton manner brings shame to my door. I will not allow it.’
�Aren’t you forgetting something?’ Kate blinked rapidly against his stare, but still she stayed defiant. �I am not your fiancée any more. I haven’t been for the past three years.’
�And that’s why I am here. To put that right.’
�What?’ Confusion spread across her lovely face.
�We are going to get engaged again, Kate. And this time we are going to see it through. This time we are going to be married.’
CHAPTER THREE (#u7ad43fd0-1783-52eb-bd58-3d952ad18fcd)
MARRIED? KATE STARED at him in open-mouthed astonishment. No, she couldn’t have heard right. Her brain was obviously still reeling from the discovery that Nikos had seen her at the Executives’ Club last night. Still burning from his hugely insulting accusation.
Going to slap his face had been stupid—an instinctive reaction she now regretted. But like a cornered animal she had fought back, when she should have been trying her hardest to show Nikos she didn’t care what he thought of her. Even if she’d been dying inside.
But now, with his dark eyes boring into her, studying her face with brooding concentration, it was clear that Nikos was indeed waiting for an answer, forcing Kate to accept that she really had heard right. Though technically, of course, it hadn’t even been a question—just a forceful statement of fact.
Well, he couldn’t make her to do anything. He had no power over her, no matter how much those hypnotic eyes and that arrogantly held posture said otherwise.
�Married!’ She tried for a contemptuous laugh, but it came out more as a strangled cry. �Are you crazy?’
�No, not crazy.’ His voice was perfectly calm. �Far from it.’
�Then why would you suggest such a ludicrous idea?’ Hers was bordering on hysterical.
�Because circumstances mean that I am currently in need of a wife, and I think you would be the ideal candidate.’
Kate gazed at him in stunned disbelief.
What circumstances? And why her? And why was her heart thumping so wildly it hurt?
�Well, you can think again.’ She battled against the heady power of his stare. Against everything he had ever meant to her and everything he still did. �I have no idea why you think that I would even consider marrying you.’
�Then let me enlighten you.’ Nikos raised his hand, selecting his little finger to emphasis his first point. �Your company is in such dire financial straits that you would do anything to save it. Something you demonstrated last night only too clearly.’ His top lip curled with distaste. �You have no other investors, nowhere else to turn, and without my help this is the end of the road for Kandy Kate. You are an intelligent woman and you know this is your last chance. Because if you don’t agree to my terms I will be taking over Kandy Kate anyway, and once it’s under my control who knows what I will do with it?’
With all his fingers pulled back, one by one, he looked at his raised hand, then back again to Kate.
�Is that enough to be going on with?’
�So this is blackmail?’ Kate’s voice faltered with horror. �If I don’t agree to marry you you will ruin my family business—is that what you’re saying?’
�Your family business is already ruined, Kate. The sooner you wise up to that, the better. Any investor—myself included—would simply strip the company of any remaining assets, then sell out to one of the major corporations. Obviously they would ditch the name, close the factories, merge what’s left of the business with their own brands.’
�No!’ She let out a yelp of anguish. �I won’t let that happen.’
�I thought as much.’ Nikos fixed her with a steady gaze. �Then it looks as if I am your only option.’
Kate bit down hard on her lip. Everything about his harshly determined face—the firm line of his mouth, the dark glitter in his eyes—spelled out the fact that he meant what he said. Nikos Nikoladis had both the power to save Kandy Kate and to ruin it.
Pulling her gaze away, she drew in a much-needed breath. She looked around her at the tiny cluttered office, with its low ceiling and peeling paintwork. It felt as if her life had shrunk...closed in on her. As if she was in a tunnel with no sign of light at the end. And the tunnel was now blocked by the menacing presence of her ex-lover.
�So what are these circumstances?’ Kate tried to get the fog of her mind to clear. �Why do you need a wife?’
It sounded even more stupid when she said it out loud. Even more archaic.
�I will explain.’ Nikos glanced around her office in much the same way as she had. �But not here. This place depresses me.’
Welcome to my world.
It depressed Kate as well—not that she would admit it to him.
She watched as he strode towards the door, stepping back to usher her through.
�Come on.’ He gestured impatiently. �I’ll find us somewhere that serves a decent cup of coffee.’
* * *
Nikos’s choice of venue was an old-fashioned Greek diner, tucked away up a nearby side street. Seating them in one of the booths, he ordered them both coffee without bothering to ask Kate what she wanted.
In the banquette seat opposite him, Kate had to wait for the waitress to bring their order before she could start her interrogation.
�So, what’s this all about?’
She plunged right in, anxious to get this ordeal over with as quickly as possible. The sooner Nikos told her what he wanted from her, the sooner she could inform him that it wasn’t going to happen and he could disappear from her life again.
Nikos took a sip of coffee, slowly replacing the cup to its saucer. �You remember Philippos?’
The question was as direct as it was surprising.
�Yes, of course.’ Kate replied quickly. �Your friend in Agia Loukia.’
�He died.’ His voice was cold, unemotional. �Two months ago.’
�Oh!’ Kate’s hand went to her chest. �I’m very sorry to hear that.’
Nikos shrugged as if her sympathy was of no consequence.
�What happened?’
�An accidental overdose.’ Nikos continued matter-of-factly. �He was self-medicating while the balance of his mind was disturbed.’
�I’m so sorry,’ Kate repeated, recalling the awkward young man Nikos had introduced her to during that summer in Crete, describing the reluctant individual as his �genius new business partner’.
Kate remembered how Philippos hadn’t been able to meet her eye, instead flashing a panicked look at Nikos because he might have to interact with this alien female creature.
�I know what good friends you were,’ she said.
�He was a good friend of mine, certainly, but I’m not sure the same could be said of my friendship with him.’ Nikos looked away.
Kate stared at his profile in surprise.
�Anyway...’ He turned his head back, the shutters coming down to conceal that chink of vulnerability. �Philippos has a younger sister—Sofia.’
�Yes, I remember.’ Kate thought back. �She would be how old now? Fourteen? Fifteen?’
�She’s fifteen.’
�This must be so terribly sad for her. Didn’t you say that their parents died in a road accident some time ago?’
Nikos nodded.
�So she’s all alone in the world. Poor Sofia.’
�One thing she is not is poor. When she comes of age she will inherit Philippos’s largely untouched fortune.’
�I didn’t mean that sort of poor. I meant—’
�I know what you meant.’ Bluntly interrupting her, Nikos folded his arms across his chest. �But because of her wealth Sofia needs protecting. There are people out there already making moves to try and get their hands on her money.’
�She must be grieving so badly I don’t suppose she cares about that now.’
�She might not care, but I do.’ His shoulders stiffened. �Which is why I have applied to the courts to become her legal guardian.’
�Her guardian?’ Kate couldn’t hide her astonishment. She had already seen Nikos undergo one transformation, from laid-back lover to hotshot businessman. But this was not a role she would ever have put him down for. �But what do you know about raising a teenage girl?
�That is none of your concern.’ Nikos brutally cut her short. �The important thing is I will be able to protect her fortune, invest it wisely for her, until she is old enough to know what she wants to do with it.’
Kate looked down, tracing the grains of sugar on the tabletop with her finger as she imagined how Sofia must be feeling. She had never met the teenager, the summer she had been in Agia Loukia—Sofia had been away on some sort of exchange scheme if Kate remembered correctly. But even so her heart went out to her.
Kate’s own family was far from perfect, but at least she still had a mother. Did Sofia really have no one to care for her?
�Surely the most important thing is to find her a secure home?’ She faced Nikos again. �Somewhere that she feels safe...loved. Where all her emotional needs will be met.’
�Then I will do that too.’ Fierce determination lit Niko’s eyes. �But let me make one thing clear, Kate: I am not here to seek your opinion on child welfare. Your role in this is quite straightforward.’
He pushed his coffee cup decisively to one side.
�It is a condition of the courts that in order to become Sofia’s guardian I have to prove I am in a stable relationship—preferably married.’
He paused, gauging the way the penny was dropping. And drop it did—clattering through Kate like a cold weight.
�What I need now is an agreement from you that you will be my wife.’
Kate blinked, reminding herself to breathe. This was the second time Nikos had proposed to her, but the circumstances couldn’t be more different. The first time had been such a tender, joyful experience. They had been so much in love, and Kate had been convinced their happiness would last for ever. How wrong she had been.
And now this. A cold, calculated business deal, delivered by a man with no emotion. No heart. Kate closed her eyes against the pain that suddenly lanced through her. Pain she had told herself she no longer felt. She had been wrong about that too.
She opened her eyes again to see Nikos staring at her, waiting for an answer. From the firm set of his jaw she could see how important this was to him, and the cold, steely determination in his eyes left no room for doubt.
But no... No! The whole idea was sheer madness. She needed to end this now.
�My answer is no, Nikos.’ She shook her head for emphasis, desperately trying to ignore the thud of her heart. She could see Nikos’s features hardening as she spoke. �I can’t do it. It wouldn’t be right.’
�And to see Sofia delivered into the hands of a distant relative—a great-uncle whom she has never met, who has only come crawling out of the woodwork now because of Sofia’s fortune, who doesn’t give a damn about her or Philippos for that matter—that would be right, would it?’
Nikos’s reply was hot and harsh, and anger flared his nostrils. The strength of his conviction was unmistakable, and his tautly held frame, the fierce glare in his eyes, were all saying one thing. He was serious about this. Deadly serious.
�But there must be someone else who could act as her guardian. Some other relative—or a family friend, maybe?’ Kate raised her brows hopefully.
�There is no one else. I am the only person to have Sofia’s best interests at heart. I know this is what Philippos would have wanted.’
�But he didn’t name you as her guardian in his will?’
�There is no will. Philippos never made one.’
This didn’t surprise Kate. She hadn’t known him well, but Philippos had struck her as the kind of guy who struggled with the practicalities of life. His brilliant mind had been able to conjure up amazing new ways to revolutionise the software industry, but somehow his shoelaces would always come undone.
�Why me?’ She pulled nervously at her earlobe again. From the storm of questions still buzzing around her head it was the first one to form on her lips. �Why do you want me to marry you when no doubt there is a host of beautiful, eligible women who would be only too happy to be your bride.’
�I’m flattered you think me such a catch.’ Nikos gave her a complacent smile. �But the fact is it’s you that I want.’
A surge of ridiculous optimism bloomed inside Kate, appearing from nowhere and spreading hot and fast to every part of her body. Was it possible that Nikos still had feelings for her? That he might want to try and make amends? To win her back?
She slammed the brakes on her ridiculously wayward thoughts. It was terrifying the way Nikos could make her feel...the power he still had over her.
�But why?’ She repeated the question, fighting to keep herself grounded.
�Because I know how desperate you are.’
Ha! If Kate had needed a shot of realism there it was, delivered with unerring accuracy, straight to the heart. She felt herself crumple inside, that foolish hope creeping back to wherever it had come from. How had she even let that happen? Had she not learned her lesson? Had the intervening years taught her nothing?
She sat up straighter, steeling herself to meet his gaze. �I may be desperate.’ Somehow she managed to hold her voice steady. �But I’m not that desperate.’
�No?’ His reply was immediate. �Are you sure about that, Kate?’
�Quite sure.’
Silence fell between them, punctuated only by the sound of Nikos’s fingers drumming lightly on the table.
�Look, just consider the facts.’
Kate could hear the effort it was taking him to make himself sound reasonable.
�You need money. I need a wife. You would be foolish to make any decision until you’ve heard my proposal.’
�Not as foolish as I would be to consider getting involved with you again. In any capacity.’ The painful memories were a useful tool to stop her bravado from slipping. �My decision is made, Nikos.’
�Well, it’s the wrong one!’
Nikos’s paper-thin patience was ripped apart. A tell-tale muscle ticked in his cheek as he drew in a sharp breath, clenching his hands on the table before him.
�Think about it, Kate.’ He’d reined in his temper, but his knuckles were pulled white. �This arrangement will suit us both. You agree to be my wife until the court rule in my favour and I get legal custody of Sofia. In return I will save Kandy Kate. I will provide whatever funds are necessary to pay off your creditors, get the business thriving again. We are talking about pretty much a blank cheque here, Kate. Imagine what you could do with that...’
Kate imagined. A large injection of money was exactly what Kandy Kate needed. Once the business was stable again she was confident she would be able make a success of it. It was like being in the bottom of a pit—she just needed a boost to get out, then she could run.
�And, of course, you will have the benefit of my business knowledge and my contacts—many of whom are extremely influential. There is no reason why you shouldn’t massively expand Kandy Kate...grow the business as big as you want.’ Nikos pressed on relentlessly.
Kate closed her ears. She mustn’t let herself be seduced by this daydream.
�No, Nikos—’
She started to speak but just then the waitress reappeared to refill their cups, so she paused, watching the way the young woman hovered around Nikos’s side as if she couldn’t quite bring herself to leave. When Nikos looked up to thank her, a pretty flush spread to her cheeks.
�Then do it for Sofia.’ When the waitress finally moved away Nikos jumped in, cutting Kate off before she could speak. �Think about her.’
�I... I am thinking about Sofia.’ Kate’s heart twisted. �I genuinely feel very sorry for her.’
�Then do something about it—feeling sorry is not enough.’ The full glare of his attention was on her now. �Marry me and you will help secure her future. Walk away and that greedy, manipulative uncle of hers may well be granted legal guardianship.’
�I don’t know...’ Kate took in a panicked breath. �I mean, just supposing we were to marry, and the courts did award you guardianship of Sofia, what then?’
�Then we divorce. Sofia will be legally protected, and you will have resurrected your business. It’s the obvious solution.’
Kate swallowed. Nikos made it sound so practical, so easy. Perhaps it was. She didn’t doubt that if she turned him down Nikos would find someone else to do his bidding. That small interaction with the waitress had proved the power he had over women. If she didn’t do this someone else would benefit from the money she needed so desperately to save Kandy Kate.
�But what about Sofia? Won’t she be expecting us to be a proper married couple? How will she feel if we divorce as soon as she’s legally your care?’
�You will leave Sofia to me.’ Nikos’s tone left no room for discussion. �Your role is to help me secure guardianship. Nothing more.’
A heavy silence fell between them, and the hiss of the coffee machine, the babble of voices in the diner, faded away into the background as Kate found herself staring into the mesmerising deep brown eyes of this all-powerful man.
�So what do you say...?’ His voice had lowered, become dark, seductive, compelling.
Taking in a gasp of air, Kate forced herself to break his gaze, looking around her for some sort of respite from the intense focus that was making it so impossible to think straight. But her brain was blocked by the man in front of her, by what he was offering her—the dream of being able save Kandy Kate was hanging there, tantalisingly within reach.
When Nikos reached for her hand, lying on the table between them, his touch jolted through her like an electric shock, whipping her gaze back to his face. Once again she was caught.
�Do we have a deal?’
And from somewhere deep inside her, a hidden part that should never even have had a voice, she heard words bubbling up inside her. Before she knew it they were on her lips, spoken.
�Okay.’ She held her breath. �I’ll do it.’
* * *
Nikos exhaled with satisfaction. And not a little relief. He’d got her. The minor triumph felt good.
For all his outward confidence, and his brusque, businesslike assertiveness that Kate would accept his offer as the only sensible course of action—snatch his hand off, in fact—deep down he’d been none too sure how she’d react.
Kate O’Connor was a law unto herself, and after the way they had parted anything could have happened. But he’d done it. Now he just had to close the deal.
He leant back in the booth, his arms behind his head as he surveyed the space where Kate had sat before excusing herself to go to the bathroom. She hadn’t been able to get out fast enough, sliding across the seat and straightening those long legs before disappearing into the depths of the diner behind him. If she was regretting her decision, trying to think her way out of it, it was too late. She had already sealed her fate.
Nikos took another mouthful of coffee. The reason why he had been so insistent that Kate and only Kate must be the woman he would take for his wife he preferred not to examine in too much depth. All he knew was that as soon as his lawyers had told him his case for guardianship would be considerably strengthened if he was married Kate’s name had come into his head. And once there it had refused to shift.
He’d spent so long trying to erase her from his mind, trying to rid himself of her memory, rueing the day he had ever met her, it had almost become an obsession. But he was forced to admit that where Kate was concerned obsession came all too easily. His mistake had been confusing it for love.
Infatuation had been there from the start. Coming across her that evening, seated at one of the rickety tables on the beach outside his father’s taverna, Nikos had been instantly smitten. With her long dark hair and gorgeous eyes, the dazzling smile she had given him when she had taken the menu out of his hands had arrowed straight to his heart—or his groin...or both. Making it his mission to find out everything about her, he had quickly discovered that she was on a solo three-month tour of Europe and that her first stop had been Athens, where someone had recommended this �wonderful little place’ in Crete and here she was.
What she had failed to mention was that she was part of an extremely wealthy American confectionery dynasty that actually bore her name.
Captivated by her exotic American beauty, her New York accent, her enthusiastic and infectious love of all things Cretan, Nikos had been guilty of seriously neglecting the other diners that night—until he had been pulled back into line by his father, Marios, fiery chef and owner of the modest establishment, who had stood on the terrace with his hands on his hips, demanding that Nikos stopped flirting with the customers and did some �goddamn work’.
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