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The sun was getting low in the sky, a brilliant kaleidoscope of orange, yellow and red, overlapping the clouds like an impressionist painting on steroids. This was Lena’s favorite thing about Santorini—the sunsets. They were beautiful in Athens too, but the ones here in Oia were special. The town was built into the side of a mountain, with the well-known blue and white buildings that graced postcards all over the world. She never tired of the view and experiencing it here with Mick would have been lovely if she hadn’t been so choked up.
She’d been surprised when he took her hand but the intimacy between them was strangely familiar. How many times had they held hands in college? More than she could count, and after nearly four years apart, it still felt right. Dammit, why did he have the power to make her feel this way after so many years? Especially now that everything was out in the open.
“I love San Francisco,” Mick said after a moment, “but I have to say there’s something magical about Greece. This is stunning.”
“The sunsets here in Oia are one of the top things to see in Greece and probably the most beautiful thing in Santorini.”
He stopped walking and stared down into her face. “The most beautiful thing in Santorini is you.”
Her heart skipped a beat and she valiantly tried to stop more tears from escaping but it was no use. Every time he looked at her she wanted to cry.
“Don’t cry, baby.” He brushed her tears away with his thumbs. “Everything is going to be okay.”
Baby. He hadn’t called her baby in a long time and it sounded so good. Damn, she needed him to hold her.
“Mick, we have so much to talk about.”
“Let’s just watch the sunset, okay?” He wrapped his hand around hers and she merely nodded.
They walked towards a ledge overlooking the water and the sun got lower and lower in the sky. Mick sank onto a rock with Lena beside him, their hands still linked between them. He seemed to be deep in thought so she didn’t say anything, basking in his warmth and the sudden closeness between them. She’d never imagined he would be so emotional when he found out what his mother had done. It had never occurred to her he would forgive her for hiding his son; she’d been positive he would hate her forever.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked as the last sliver of the sun settled into the horizon.
“About the baby?”
“About my mother.”
“She said no one in their circles would accept me and there wouldn’t be a place for you at the firm… how could I do that to you?”
“You never cashed the check.”
She snorted. “In spite of what your mother may think, my family has money. Maybe not as much as yours, but enough to send three kids to Ivy League schools in the U.S. and support all of us comfortably.”
“I know.” He shook his head. “I’m so…” He stopped and shrugged. “There are no words for what I’m feeling right now.”
“I know.” She used her free hand to stroke his arm. “I didn’t want to destroy your relationship with your family, your career, your future… I didn’t know what to do, Mick, so Sophia and I dreamed up a crazy plan.”
“A bad one.”
She sighed. “I was young, scared, and hormonal.”
“I know.”
“What are you going to do?” she asked after a while.
“I’m going to have a long talk with my father’s partners, for one thing.”
“What about Mihalis?”
“I’m going to get custody.”
“You—what?” She looked up, startled. “What does that mean?”
“It means, he’s my son and I plan to play a part in his life.”
“He’s our son.”
A vein in his neck pulsed. “I know that, I just meant…” He took a breath. “You need to tell me exactly what you and Sophia did.”
