AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Confused, bewildered, she got back in bed with an aching heart and pulled the covers over her shoulders, not knowing what to think. Ten more days would fly by, then no more Stavros. Maybe it was just as well. Just leave Greece before she got in too far over her head. But that was a joke.
She turned on her stomach and buried her wet face in the pillow.
The next thing she knew, it was morning. Crying herself to sleep had been one way of bringing on oblivion. But she’d awakened with the same pain, knowing her time with Stavros was growing shorter by the minute. She checked her watch. It was ten after nine.
One look in the bathroom mirror and she did what she could to repair the damage before getting dressed. After brushing her hair, she slipped into white denims and a short-sleeved powder blue T-shirt. She’d just finished tying her white sneakers when Stavros rapped on her bedroom door.
“Andrea? Are you up?”
Ridiculous how the sound of his voice thrilled her. She reached for her purse and opened the door to the exciting man dressed in a black polo and jeans. Anything she might have said got blocked in her throat because of the way he was looking at her.
“You look beautiful.”
Heart attack. He was the one who was beautiful in that male way. “I don’t think you’re awake yet, but thank you.”
His eyes narrowed on her mouth. “I’ve been wide awake for quite a while waiting for you. If you think I’m paying lip service, then take another look in the mirror. The color of your top has enhanced the blue of your eyes.”
She got this suffocating feeling in her chest. “I can smell coffee.”
“I’m good at coffee and toast. It’s waiting for us out on the patio.”
“Admit you’re afraid I’m going to have another hunger attack. I’ve had several embarrassing moments in my life because of my stomach.”
A chuckle followed her through the hallway and alcove to the patio, where they were treated to another glorious day of sunshine. He’d prepared eggs and fruit too. A feast. When they sat down to eat, she decided there wasn’t anything he couldn’t do.
Andrea ate a second helping of eggs. “You’re such a great cook, I’d hire you to be mine if I could afford you.”
“Let’s talk about that after we go for a Jeep ride. I want to show you something.”
She’d only been teasing, but his unexpected remark sounded serious and sent a curious shiver down her spine. “I’m ready to leave whenever you are.” But first she got up and took their dishes to the kitchen.
“Leave them. I spoke to Raisa. She’ll be in later.”
“It will only take a minute.”
“But I can’t wait that long.”
She flicked him a glance, thinking he was being playful, but the hard set of his jaw wiped away that notion. Without saying anything to him, she went back to the patio for her purse, then followed him out the rear entrance of the house to his Jeep.
He’d left the bedroll and blankets in the backseat. The sight of them brought back haunting memories of that first night with him. With that inscrutable expression on his face, Andrea couldn’t tell if he was remembering or not. Aware of her accelerated pulse, she climbed in the front seat and attached the lap belt.
* * *
Stavros’s near sleepless night had put him in a dark place. The idea that Andrea would be leaving Greece in two months had changed the timing on the playing field. He drove them out to the main road, heading in the opposite direction from the quarry.
“Where are we going?”
The breeze teased her hair. Each golden strand caught the light. “To the other side of my property.”
“You mean we’re still on it?”
“The villa and the swath of woods on your right are mine. Beyond them lies my future.”
She shifted in her seat toward him. “That sounded cryptic.”
He studied her profile. “Do you remember us talking about ou
r dreams?”
