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‘You can phone the agency if you want. It’s all been arranged. The other family changed their minds. They’ve gone somewhere else on holiday.’
‘What?’ Vanessa was still stupefied.
‘I offered them a five-star holiday in the Mediterranean if they’d agree to let me have their let for the fortnight.’
‘You did what?’
‘I offered them a five-star—’
‘But why?’
She could feel herself leaning against the doorjamb. The space around her seemed to be coming and going. And everything in the entire universe was focussing on the man standing on her doorstep.
He was looking at her. There was something different about him, but she couldn’t tell what. All she could tell was that there was a pain around her heart, a tearing, biting pain.
‘Why?’ she said again, faintly.
‘I wanted to be near you,’ he said.
His eyes were resting on her. They were dark, and grey, and they were looking at her from a place they had never looked at her from before. The pain got worse.
‘This was the only way I could think to do it. The only way you couldn’t throw me out again.’
Her eyes flashed.
‘You don’t seriously think I’m going to let you move in upstairs, do you?’
‘I won’t be a nuisance to you,’ he said quietly. ‘I’ll look after myself—’
‘Aren’t Taki and Stelios going to do that, then?’ she jibed.
‘They’re on holiday. I can survive without them. I know you don’t think I can. But I can. I can survive without anyone, Vanessa. Anyone—except for one person. One person that I find, after all, that I cannot survive without. Not for a day, Vanessa. Not for a lifetime.’
His eyes were holding hers, streaming into hers. She felt the faintness grow, drumming at her from very far away, but coming closer, louder. There were clouds rolling towards her, muffling everything.
She felt her fingers slipping from the doorjamb. The weight of her body was tipping forward, the drumming in her ears was drowning through her…
‘Vanessa!’
He caught her as she slumped, taking her weight against him even though he staggered slightly as he did so. Tossing his suitcase inside the hallway, he propelled her inside, then with all his strength he lifted her and carried her into the living room, coming down onto the sofa with her still in his arms.
‘Vanessa! Oh, God, Vanessa!’
He scooped her torso against him, Greek bursting from him in his agitation.
She came to with a low moan and tried to straighten, pushing back her tangled hair with one hand.
‘Don’t try and move! Just rest. Wait. Don’t move.’
She didn’t move. She just stayed where she was, her shoulders carried by his arms, her hip on his lap, her distended abdomen pressed against him. His body was warm, and hard, and so very, very familiar. It was his scent, his hands on her, his touch.
‘Markos…’
Her voice was very faint, very tired.
‘Markos.’
She turned her face into him and his arms tightened around her. The pain was tearing and biting, slaying her.
