Page 10 of The Cozakis Bride

Disturbingly, just as they had discussed many years before, it was a traditional Greek wedding ceremony. Nik's godfather played a leading part in the rites, their wedding rings were blessed and then exchanged, and Nik held her hand through­out. Orange blossom crowns were placed solemnly on their heads. They drank from the same goblet of wine. Then they traversed the bible table three times in order to symbolise their promise to preserve their marriage for ever. By the end of it all Olympia was feeling like a real bride and very con­fused by the sensation.

Emerging from the church into the spring sunshine, and smiling widely for the waiting cameras, she said impulsively, I wasn't expecting anything like that...it was a beautiful ceremony.'

'Celebrating one's cultural heritage is fashionable these days,' Nik countered dryly. 'Also a good way to personalise the corporate image.'

Olympia stiffened, no longer in any danger of forgetting the fact that their marriage had more in common with a busi­ness merger than a personal event.

'But I believe I'll stop short of the flying of a flag on the roof tonight and having it lowered once I've enjoyed my bride,' Nik completed with dulcet cool.

Her cheeks burning, she turned outraged sea-jade eyes on him. 'You will not enjoy me!'

Joining her in the limousine, Nik dealt her a slumberous look of amusement.

'I mean that,' Olympia warned him, staring rigidly out of the tinted windows as the car pulled out onto the road.

A lean hand closed over hers. She yanked her fingers free again. The next moment Nik closed his strong hands round her waist and simply lifted her across the back seat into his strong arms. 'You were saying, Olympia?'

'Let go of me!' she gasped in sincere shock, colliding with smouldering amber-gold eyes as he brought her down on his long hard thighs with shocking ease.

'When I'm ready.' Nik curved long fingers to her chin, bringing her so close she was gazing right into his stunning eyes. 'What beautiful skin you have...'

Her heart thudded against her ribs, her pulses leaping. 'Are we on the way to a reception?'

‘Thank you for reminding me...' Dropping his hand to reach for the car phone, without releasing her from the hold of the powerful arm which still enclosed her waist, Nik stabbed a single button with his thumb and spoke with the chauffeur in Greek.

Then he turned his attention back to Olympia.

'Please let me sit on the seat,' she said, in an acidic tone which would have sent a weaker man into cringing retreat.

'You're going to have to work on that sour attitude, Olympia,' Nik censured in husky reproach. 'I don't like it.'

She breathed in very deep. 'Do you think I give a damn what you like?'

Engaged in pointedly surveying die provocative rise and fall of her full breasts above the lace-edged bodice, Nik slowly lifted his spiky black lashes again, to rest his gaze on her flushed and furious face. 'I'll train you free of charge... after all, I expect to enjoy the results. Now, where were we?' be enquired lazily, his breath fanning her cheek, that dark deep drawl sending tiny little vibrations down her taut spine. There was a soft snap as something whirred shut. 'What was that?' she muttered, already finding it difficult to con­centrate. The atmosphere closed round her again, her throat catching, an extraordinary awareness of her own body taking hold of her.

'Just ensuring our privacy.' His tone was mesmeric as he framed her face with long fingers, letting a thumb intrude between her moistly parted lips. 'You have a very lush mouth, Olympia...'

Focusing helplessly on his golden eyes, a snaking little quiver assailed her. Heat curled low in the pit of her belly, making her push her thighs together to minimise the sudden ache. All her senses were centred on him with fierce inten­sity. As she recalled the taste and the feel of that wide, sen­sual mouth, she trembled, raised an involuntary hand and let her fingers slowly slide into his luxuriant black hair, drawing him closer, wanting, needing...

He let the tip of his tongue trace the tremulous fullness of her lower lip and she let her heavy head fall back, exposing her throat, jerking with a low gasp of tormented pleasure as he pressed his mouth hotly to the tiny pulse flickering wildly above her collarbone. The urgency inside her was building at an insane rate. She wanted his mouth so badly, and then he let his long fingers expertly explore the curve of her breast through the fitted bodice of her gown and trace the prominent bud of a straining nipple. She moaned out loud, pressing her hand to the back of his, struggling to get air back into her lungs, feeling as if she was on fire. Nik withdrew his hand and leant back. 'Making love in cars really does get you going fast...' he conceded lazily. 'Or maybe it's me you're hot for this time... What do you think?'

As that insolent assessment penetrated, Olympia jerked her head up so fast she wrenched her neck, her passion-glazed eyes stricken. For a soundless beat of time Nik studied her with measuring eyes of gold. 'Challenge me and I'm ruth­less.'

Olympia dragged herself from him and over to die far cor­ner of the seat, her abandoned body both throbbing and trem­bling. Perspiration beaded her short upper lip. She was dev­astated by the power he had over her, devastated by the essential weakness which lay within her. Never one to deny reality, she knew that the fact she had made no attempt to stop him touching her had been as good as encouragement And that fact filled her with shame.

In the charged silence, Nik loosed a roughened laugh. 'A demonstration that hurt me too, but I'm not planning to con­summate our deal in the back seat of a limo.'

Sending the shutters that blanked out the glass division between driver and passenger whirring back, Nik communi­cated with die chauffeur again. He had toyed with the idea of making love to her, Olympia realised in quivering shock 'Our deal', not our marriage. Not making love either, she adjusted sickly. Having sex would be a better description. And how could she have responded to him as she had? That insane craving for Nik Cozakis knew neither conscience nor pride. It was an overwhelming hunger which had left her pathetically weak in his eyes. And he had just dared to use that weakness to demonstrate how empty her words of defi­ance could be.

When they arrived at the hotel where their reception was to be held, Olympia was in line for further unpleasant sur­prises.

In a room set aside for the purpose, Spyros Manoulis awaited their arrival in the company of two lawyers. The dialogue was all in Greek. While Olympia looked on, feeling very uncomfortable, Nik and her grandfather put their sig­natures to several documents.

he older man took her aside before he left the room and murmured ruefully, 'I want you to know that this was not my choice, Olympia.'

A tide of colour burned her cheeks. She felt intensely hu­miliated. So even Spyros knew that his granddaughter was to be stripped of any possibility of being personally enriched by her marriage! Mortified by the older man's awareness of that revealing fact, she returned to the table and hurriedly scrawled her signature on the single sheet of paper set out for her. Having assumed that signing away her own rights of inheritance would be a complex matter when so large a busi­ness enterprise was involved, she was surprised but relieved that only one document appeared to be required.

But then what did any of it matter? It was foolish of her to be so sensitive, Olympia told herself irritably. She wanted nothing from her grandfather, nothing from Nik either. Nor did she plan to be her husband's beneficiary for one day longer than she could help. How long would it be before Nik tired of their pretence and agreed to a divorce? It wasn't that uncommon for marriages to break up in the very first year, she reasoned, eager to see a light at the end of what promised to be a long dark tunnel. After all, she hated Nik Cozakis, and even in the short term keeping up the charade of being his wife would be a considerable challenge.

Although her grandfather had forewarned her, when Olym­pia and Nik welcomed their guests she was embarrassed by the chilly reserve of Nik's patrician parents, Achilles and Alexandra Cozakis. They might have attended their son's wedding, but only, it seemed, in preference to publicising their d

isapproval by staying home.

At first glance she didn't recognise Nik's kid brother, Per­icles. At twenty years of age, Peri Cozakis now towered over her. The younger man grinned, brown eyes sparkling with amusement, and only then did a sense of familiarity tug at her.

'Peri... ?' she gasped.

'Catch you later...' he teased, well-satisfied by her double take and passing on.

'I wouldn't have known your brother,' she confided to Nik.

'Well, he doesn't know you either, except as the good-natured girl who let him slaughter her at basketball.. .so leave his illusions intact,' Nik responded very dryly.

Olympia paled. Dear heaven, she thought in growing dis­may and discomfiture, was what had supposedly happened in that wretched car park ten long years ago never out of Nik's thoughts for longer than ten seconds? They had been married for little more than an hour and already he had twice made references to that night.

Registering that Nick was speaking to another guest, she lifted her head again, only to freeze. Katerina Pallas stood before her, her hand already extended in greeting but her dark eyes carefully veiled. 'Olympia...'

As she surveyed her one-time best friend, Olympia's own hand simply dropped back to her side again without making contact. The memory of their broken friendship still pained her, and she had never had a friend that close again; betrayed so cruelly, and deeply hurt, she had lost faith in her own sex.

'Perhaps we could talk later...' Katerina suggested with an uncertain smile before she hurriedly moved on.

'How dare you?' Nik growled quietly, sending a wave of startled colour into Olympia's cheeks. 'How dare you insult a member of my family?'

Shaken out of her self-absorption by his reaction, Olympia frowned.

Nik dealt her a derisive look. 'I don't care how embarrassed you feel being faced with Katerina again, you will take care to greet her with the respect and civility she deserves!'

'No.'

What do you mean...no?' Nik stared down at her in blunt disbelief.

'I'm not embarrassed and social niceties won't force me into insincerity for Katerina's benefit,' Olympia asserted tautly. 'So keep her away form me. She's just one big fake, and I wouldn't set out to be rude but I do have a temper!'

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