Page 105 of Never Too Late to Date

Panos greeted her next, kissing her on both cheeks, as did her son. Christian was duly introduced to Lydia, who gave him a broad smile. Suzie waited to see what would happen when he got to Giannis, but a swift handshake went off without incident before they were all encouraged to sit down in the shade.

It was Lydia who held out her arms in front of her this time.

‘Please, eat!’

The men helped themselves without further prompting, and soon Christian’s plate was piled high with portions of everything on offer.

‘Efharistó, Lydia. This looks gorgeous. I’m absolutely starving. I didn’t have a chance to eat anything in the hotel or stop on the way. Kalí órexi, everyone.’

He caught Suzie’s eye as she helped herself to coffee, and the ghost of a wink forced her to look away. He’d always been a great liar too. White lies, mostly, but the ease with which they tripped off his tongue scared her a little.

‘Mama, are you not eating?’

Giannis’s voice was full of concern. She must make this as easy as possible for her son. She reached over and took an apple-filled pastry.

‘Of course. Just waking myself up with coffee first.’

Eating took away the need for much talking for the next ten minutes, which she was sure had been a clever move on Lydia’s part to help them all relax. Christian appeared as dedicated to the art of food appreciation as any Greek as he made his way through the mountain on his plate.

When everyone had finally pushed back their plates with a satisfied sigh and thanked the chef, Panos stood up and smiled at Christian.

‘Can I take you on a tour of the farm? I understand from Suzie that this is something you’re interested in.’

Christian leapt to his feet.

‘Very much so. I have an organic cheese farm back in England, on the coast, the setting much like here.’

‘Páme! Let’s go.’

The two men left together happily, and Lydia started to clear the plates.

‘Can I help you with that?’

Suzie got to her feet, but Lydia waved her away and pointed at Giannis, sitting quietly staring into his coffee.

‘No, it’s fine. Why don’t you pour yourselves another coffee and have a nice little chat.’

More coffee was the answer to many a problem for the Greeks. The whole thing had obviously been choreographed between Lydia and Panos, but Suzie didn’t mind too much. She’d been looking for a chance to talk to her son one on one, so she did as she was told and settled down opposite her first-born.

‘How are you, Gianni mou?’

Her son forced a smile.

‘I’m fine, Mama, if a little weirded out by the last couple of weeks.’

‘I understand.’

‘With respect. I don’t think you can, really. For me, the news about Christian is a complete upending of everything I thought I knew. Baba is not my birth father, and although I’ve always felt more Greek than British, it turns out I’m not Greek at all, not one little part of me.’

‘That’s not true. You will always be Greek. It’s more a state of mind than a piece of paper.’

‘Easy for you to say.’

Giannis’s voice held more than a trace of irritation, but he needed to get it all out there, and she’d just have to suck it up.

‘It states that Panos is your father on your birth certificate. That will never change.’

Legal documents had always held more sway with him than with the rest of the family. But she had to take his concerns seriously.