AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mick nodded and then paused. “So, what are you really doing here? You can’t tell me you’re not checking up on me.”
Hank smiled. “We brought our wives to Santorini for a week while making sure everything possible is being done to get this project back on track. It’s not personal, son.”
“As long as it’s not because of something Loren said, I don’t mind at all,” Mick admitted. “In fact, I could use a little advice—arson isn’t something I dealt with on any other project.”
“That’s what we’re here for,” Hank said.
They talked for an hour before Pat and Hank stood, preparing to leave.
“We’ll catch a cab,” Pat said, waving a dismissive hand when Mick offered to drive them. “We arrived last night, checked into a hotel and decided to take care of business first thing this morning. Now we’re going to take the ladies to the beach. We’ll check in tomorrow—and have my nephew give me a call. We’ll be at Vedema.” Vedema was an exclusive resort on the island.
“Yes, sir. I’ll keep you informed.” Mick closed the door and then leaned against it as he let out a deep sigh. “Damn, that was a surprise.”
“Fucking Loren,” Raegan muttered. “Does he even realize he’s shooting himself in the foot?”
“Guys like that never do.” Mick looked up as Lena came in.
“Is everything okay?” she asked. “I tried to keep Mihalis quiet.”
“Everything’s good,” Mick nodded.
“I told you it would be fine,” Raegan said. “I need this job too much to let you fail!”
They all snickered.
10
Mick had never been unsure of himself around women, but Lena made him feel like an inexperienced teenager again. No matter how many times he approached her, or how comfortable they were in a professional setting, he lost his nerve every time he tried to ask her to go out with him. Most of the time, he wound up bringing up work or some other random topic that didn’t get him anywhere. So today he’d dug deep to find a figurative set of balls and asked her to go to dinner with him. He’d framed it as a working dinner, but the result was the same: they were out of the house, alone and in a place where they could talk. If nothing else, he would encourage her to tell him the real reason she’d broken up with him, or he’d probably die trying.
“How’s your grandmother?” Mick asked after they’d ordered.
Lena smiled. “She’s great, the usual bundle of energy.”
“I get tired just watching her,” Mick laughed. “She was a hoot at the wedding.”
“She’s always like that. I hope I have half her energy when I’m her age.”
“The two of you were always close, weren’t you?”
She nodded. “Very. When you and I were dating, she made me promise I’d bring her to the U.S. to live with us if we got married.”
“Why?” he asked, chuckling.
“She’s fascinated with the U.S. and has always wanted to live there. I don’t know if she’d actually move, but she’s talked about it as long as I can remember.”
“I wouldn’t have minded.” His eyes met hers. “We just would’ve had to soundproof our bedroom.”
She swallowed, a flush creeping up her neck. “Mick.”
“What?” He didn’t break his gaze. “We had a fantastic sex life.”
“That was, uh, a long time ago.” She couldn’t seem to look away even though she was obviously embarrassed.
“Feels like yesterday to me.” He gave her what he hoped was an innocent smile.
The waiter brought a bottle of wine and poured them each a glass. Lena took a sip and smiled back. “Those were good times.”
“We had a lot of good times.”
