Chapter 5 #2
He scrubbed his hand over his face and forced himself to his rooms. The door leading to his balcony was open and a cool breeze flowed in. He dropped his briefcase on one of the chairs in the sitting area.
As soon as he stepped out onto the balcony he knew that he wasn’t alone.
“Good evening, Ava.”
She turned from the railing. She wore a long, flowing skirt that shifted around her legs with the breeze and a thin summer sweater that hugged the curves of her breasts. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
“Why?” he asked, trying to fight the urge to scoop her up in his arms and carry her into his bedroom.
“I wanted to talk to you.”
“Can it wait until morning?” he asked.
“It could if I thought I’d see you at breakfast.”
He’d been out of the house before dawn every morning since they’d arrived on Mykonos. “My schedule is demanding.”
“I know,” she said. “That’s why I’m here.”
“What’s up?”
“It’s about Theo and your father.”
“Is he too sharp with Theo?”
“No, nothing like that.”
“Then what?”
“He’s just so Greek. He’s trying to make Theo into a miniature version of him. I don’t like it, but he won’t listen to me.”
Christos could well imagine what Ari was teaching his grandson. “Being a Theakis is an important part of Theo’s upbringing. Patera is probably just trying to catch him up on everything he’s missed in the last few years.”
She shook her head. “It’s more than that. Every time Theo does something now, he asks me if he’s living up to the Theakis name. He’s four, Christos. He should be playing, having fun and enjoying life, not worrying about keeping up your family image.”
“It will be your family, too, in a few weeks.”
“I can understand that, but he’s still just a little boy.”
“I’ll talk to my father and tell him to back off.”
“No. I don’t want you to do that.”
“What do you want then?” he asked.
“Some advice on how I can deal with your father. He keeps telling me that I’m not Greek so I can’t understand, and his secretary won’t give me any time on his calendar.”
She sounded so upset and so earnest that he wanted to fix this for her. But he knew the old man wasn’t going to soften in his attitude toward Ava. Even if she’d been a Greek woman, he’d treat her the same way.
“It’s just his way. Don’t let it bother you.”
“I can’t help it. All day long he watches me and everything I do. Then when Theo’s out of the room he tells me all the things I’m doing wrong.”
Christos walked over to her and pulled her into his arms. She nestled against him as though she belonged there.
And for the first time that day, he felt a measure of peace.
This was what he’d been missing during the long hours at the Theakis Shipping office.
And he knew this was a false promise. Ava wasn’t waiting here for him.
She’d been waiting for advice. He should drop his arms and move away…
except he was wound so tight from wanting her that he’d take whatever he could get.
“That’s his way. Just tell him to mind his own business.”
She pulled back and glanced up at him. “That might work for you. You get to leave this house.”
“Is that what this is all about?”
She shrugged and drew back. “I’m not sure what my life is going to be like as your wife.”
“Taking care of Theo and socializing with me in the evenings.”
“Oh. I’m just…”
“What, Ava?”
“I don’t know. I feel so isolated from everything. I don’t want to crowd Theo, but there’s no one else here who likes me.”
“I like you,” he said.
“Really?” she asked.
“Yes, really.”
He had the feeling he was getting closer to whatever was upsetting her.
“I…I don’t have anyone I can ask to be my attendants in the wedding.
I’d like to invite Laurette to be my maid of honor, but she can’t afford to fly from Florida.
And that still leaves three openings…I know you have three groomsmen, right?
Antonio, and then Tristan and Guillermo? ”
“I’ll arrange it all. I like Laurette and you should have your friends with you. Is there anyone else we should bring over from the States?”
She shook her head.
“Don’t worry. I’ll have Guillermo and Tristan each draft a woman to bring down the aisle.”
“That’s not the point,” she said.
“What is the point?”
“I’m…not sure I can live here.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “We’re to be married in less than two weeks.”
“I know. That’s why I’m bringing this up now. This last week has given me a glimpse of what my life will be. I need something more to do.”
He understood what she meant; even he didn’t really like living in the Theakis compound, but certain concessions had to be made.
He ran through the job openings they had at Theakis and couldn’t think of one thing that was suitable for the mother of the Theakis heir to fill.
But then he remembered that Nikki had served on their family’s foundation board.
“I’ve got a few ideas that I’ll investigate tomorrow.”
“Do you have time for that?”
“No, but I’ll make time for you. I want you to be happy here.”
Ava knew she needed to leave Christos alone to let him have some rest. He was working very hard; she saw the signs of stress in his eyes and in the way he carried himself. “This probably isn’t the best time for you to marry me.”
“Is that what this is all about, Ava? You want to back out of the wedding?”
“No,” she said. “I definitely don’t want that. I just don’t like seeing you so tense all the time.”
He quirked one eyebrow at her. “Why don’t we go back into my bedroom and you can help me relax?”
“Sex with you was never relaxing,” she said, trying to play off the desire she had to do just that.
“Was it relaxing with my brother?” he asked, with a bit of bite to his words.
She blanched. She’d forgotten he still believed she’d slept with his brother. Stavros had promised her he’d make everything right when she’d signed that agreement years ago, but he never had.
“I told you I never slept with Stavros,” she said.
“So you said.” He was so Greek at the moment. The fire and passion in him burned beneath that arrogance.
“Christos, you still don’t believe me?” She should let this go, but he’d asked her to marry him. How were they going to have a life together if he didn’t trust her?
“I don’t want to talk about it. I’m not interested in the other lovers you’ve had.”
“There haven’t been any other lovers,” she said. Only you. There’d only ever been Christos for her.
She walked over to him and stopped when barely an inch of space separated them. She put her hands on his shoulders and went up on her tiptoes so that she could stare into his obsidian eyes.
“I’m not going to marry you until we resolve this issue.”
He shook his head. “Then you may return to the States.”
“Christos, stop being impossible. How can I prove to you that Stavros and I were never intimate?”
“You can’t,” he said.
She turned away so he wouldn’t see the tears burning in her eyes. “We have to have trust between us. If we had the DNA test done on Theo…would that convince you that I’m not lying?”
“Ava…you would do that? I thought you wanted me to trust your word on Theo.”
“I do. But I can’t see how we’re ever going to live together as man and wife if I don’t prove myself to you.”
“You don’t have to prove yourself. I’m a jealous man, you know that, right?”
“Yes. But I’ve never done anything to make you jealous,” she said.
“Just seeing you walk into a room and be noticed by another man makes me jealous,” he said, putting his hands on her shoulders.
“I only see you,” she admitted, tipping her head back on his shoulder.
“Moro mou,” he said drawing her back into his arms.
Ava stopped thinking the minute her lips touched Christos’s. The cool breeze stirred her hair and she burrowed closer to his warmth.
She’d told herself she was here only because of her contentious relationship with his father, no other reason. But as his lips moved over hers, she knew she was a liar.
She was here with Christos because she wanted the man and he’d…he’d been gone too often since they’d arrived in Mykonos. And she’d had second thoughts. Fears that their life together would be like this, this distance always between them. But here was the fire she remembered.
It was hard not to fall for Christos.
He took a halfstep back from her and watched her through half-lidded eyes. He held her wrists loosely in his hands, his gaze moving over her, making her hyper-aware of him and at the same time of her body.
She didn’t need to protect herself from the past tonight. She was here with Christos. The man she’d been thinking about too much of the time lately. And damned if she wasn’t going to enjoy him.
“Come,” he said, drawing her toward the shadowed bedroom.
He was confident, sure of himself, and with plenty of cause. He lowered his head and she held her breath. Brushing his lips over her cheek, he held her close but with that tenderness no one had shown toward her before him.
His long fingers caressed her neck, slow sweeps up and down, until she shivered in his arms. She needed more from him. She grabbed his shoulders and brought her mouth to his.
He sighed her name and took over the kiss. Sliding his arms down her back, he edged her toward the bed. It hit the back of her legs and she sat down. He followed her, never breaking their kiss.
His tongue moved easily with hers, tempting her further, tasting her deeper and making her long for him. Her skin felt too tight. Her breasts were heavy, craving his touch. Between her legs she was moistening for him, ready for him.
Squirming, she shifted around until she was on his lap, her legs straddling him. She lifted her head to look down at him. His skin was flushed, his lips wet from their kisses. She flexed her fingers against his shoulders. He really was solid muscle.
“Do you remember what we used to do?” he asked.
She wanted to laugh at his playfulness. She’d never forgotten the wicked, sexy games they’d often played together. “Mmm, I’m not sure, it’s still a little foggy.”
“What can I do to remind you?”
She reached for the bedside table and turned on the lamp. In the soft glow of the light she saw that Christos was turned on.
“Could you…take your shirt off?” she said. She’d been longing to touch his chest since the night he’d lifted her onto her kitchen counter and stepped between her legs.
“Do you think it will help?” he asked, pulling off his tie and tossing it on the comforter of his king-sized bed.
“Definitely,” she said.
He reached between them, the backs of his fingers brushing her breasts as he unbuttoned his shirt. She shook from the brief contact and bit her lip to keep from asking for more.
The fabric parted to reveal the tanned skin below. That small gold medallion still hung around his neck. She touched the gold charm. “This I remember.”
“Good, I’m glad to know it’s coming back to you.”
She leaned down and pressed her lips to his chest. He tasted of some male essence that was uniquely Christos. And she hadn’t realized how hungry she’d been for him until this moment. She’d been ignoring the fact that she was still a woman and not just Theo’s mother for too long.
With Christos, she wanted to revel in her femininity again. She slid her lips over his warm skin. He tunneled his fingers into her hair, directing her head toward his nipple. She knew that he liked to feel the edge of her teeth against that sensitive skin.
To tease them both she let him only have the soft brush of her tongue. “Is this what you want?”
“Ava…”
She made a wondering sound against him, drawing his hard nipple into her mouth. She held him between her teeth and sucked on him. He groaned her name, his hips surging up between her legs.
He was hot and hard and she was ready for him. Maybe because it had been a long time since she’d made love…and of course, her last time had been with him.
Gently, he pulled her head away from his body and lifted her over him. He pushed the sweater she wore out of his way. She had no bra on and the air in the room combined with the heat of his gaze made her nipples bead.
He ran his finger down the center of her body, over her sternum and between her ribs, lingering on her belly button and then stopping at the waistband of her skirt.
He slowly traced the same path upward again. This time his fingers feathered under the full globes of her breasts, coming very close to touching her nipples. A shaft of desire pierced Ava, shaking her.
She needed more. She wanted more. Her heart beat so swiftly and loudly she was sure he could hear it. She scraped her fingernails lightly down his chest. He groaned, the sound rumbling from his chest. He leaned back and braced himself on his elbows.
His muscles jumped under her touch. She circled his nipple then scraped her nail down the center line of his body, following the fine dusting of hair that narrowed and disappeared into the waistband of his pants.
His stomach was rock-hard and rippled when he sat up. He pulled her closer, until the tips of her breasts brushed his chest.
“Ava.” He said her name like a prayer, holding her against him.
His hard sex nudged her center and she shifted on him, trying to find a better contact. It was impossible with the layers of cloth between them.
He kissed his way down her neck and bit lightly at the base. She shuddered, clutching at his shoulders, grinding her body harder against him.
His big hands cupped her buttocks and urged her to ride him faster. Guiding her motions against him, he bent his head and his tongue stroked her nipple. Then he suckled her.
Everything in her body clenched. She clutched at Christos’s shoulders, rubbing harder and faster against his erection as her climax washed over her. She collapsed against his chest. He held her close.
Ava hugged him to her and closed her eyes, reminding herself that this was just sex. He’d walked away from this once before, leaving her shattered and broken. But, right now, with his strong arms around her, it felt as though she’d found her home.