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‘It’s not just me. It’s my parents, my friends, and now it’s you.’
‘Me?’
‘It’s anyone who knows me, who is embarrassed by this—’
‘I’m not embarrassed.’ He moved closer, pressing his lips to her forehead, so angry that she could feel any of these things. ‘I don’t give a—I don’t care what he says about you. I know you, the real you. And anyone else who does will see this for what it is.’
He felt her sharp intake of breath.
‘His stories will lose currency. At some point the media will move on, and his fifteen seconds of fame will be at an end. Or he’ll be married and divorced from someone else he’s trying to exploit.’ He shrugged, staying close to her. ‘All you can control is how you respond to his behaviour. Come away with me. Forget him.’ And then he kissed her, to show her how easy this could be, and how right it felt. He told himself this was the best, smartest option, that she was his wife, and it was his duty to help her, even as he felt something shift between them, something he couldn’t explain.
Perhaps she felt it too, because she pulled away warily. ‘This doesn’t change anything,’ she said, curling her fingers in his shirt. ‘Our marriage isn’t real, Alex.’
‘I know that.’ His voice emerged clipped and cold now, as if pushing away the tenderness he’d just shown, in a moment of weakness. ‘We both know the deal.’
‘Do we?’ She scanned his face. ‘Because the last thing I want is to get involved with anyone. Emotionally, I mean.’ Pink darkened her cheeks. ‘I can’t give you more than this,’ she whispered. ‘I won’t.’
‘Then it’s just as well I’m not asking for more,’ he said simply, honestly, even when a stitch formed in his side. ‘Neither of us wants a relationship.’
She bit down on her lip. ‘How do we make sure we remember that?’
‘By not falling in love,’ he said, as though it were the simplest thing in the world.
‘That’s why I want to limit our time together...’
‘Let me make you this promise, agape,’ he said, wanting to assuage her concerns. ‘It doesn’t matter how much time we spend together, or how often we sleep together. I will not fall in love with you, and I will make sure you don’t fall in love with me. I don’t want a real marriage,’ he said darkly. ‘I just want to enjoy what works between us. Trust me.’
Three hours later, on the beach of Epíneio, it was impossible to question his logic. All her problems still existed, but they felt so far away, and here, on this stunning island floating in the middle of the Aegean, she could breathe. ‘Perhaps there’s something to be said for running away after all,’ she said with a half-smile for the man who’d rolled up his sleeves and waded into the madness of her life, to hell with the consequences.
‘Definitely.’ He drew her closer, one arm around her shoulders, holding her against his side in a gesture of friendship and support. At least, that was what it was supposed to be, but the second they connected, heat exploded inside her, and her body softened against him, wordlessly inviting him closer, conveying her need for him. It was a need he could stir so easily! She knew better than to try tamping down on her desire, but she held her resolution close to her heart: when they were back in Athens, she’d reinstate the rules they’d agree to. This was an aberration. A moment out of time, exempt from their agreement, because Jonathan had been such a monumental jerk. Yes, they were cheating, but it was justified.
Convinced enough to let go of her control, just a little, she tilted her face to his, and when he kissed her she smiled against his mouth, feeling, for a moment, as though everything was exactly as it was supposed to be. For the first time in years, she relaxed—in the midst of the storm that was her life, here in this haven, with Alexandros at her side, she was happier than she’d been in a long time.
He waited until she was asleep before leaving the bed, moving to the door of the room and hesitating a moment, studying her from guarded eyes, weighing up what he intended to do before he slipped from the room completely.
Alex was not a man to second-guess his instincts, and ever since yesterday morning he’d known one thing for certain: he could not sit by and allow Tessa to be her ex-husband’s punching bag.
Though he thought of Epíneio as his haven from the frenetic pace of his real life, he wasn’t able to escape it completely, and the office here reflected that. It was a state-of-the-art space, with two side-by-side computer screens, and all the technology he required to be able to function at his level without interruption.
He stepped inside with determination, moving towards his desk and flicking the computers to life as he reached for his phone and dialled his office, only one person in mind that he could trust with this. ‘Get me Berringer,’ he said, without preamble.
‘Yes, sir, of course.’ His assistant put him through immediately, despite the lateness of the hour, and Berringer answered on the third ring. In the background there was the clinking of glasses, the sound of laughter.
‘You’re busy?’ he prompted.
‘I have friends for dinner, it’s not important,’ Berringer said.
Alex pushed back in his chair. He didn’t like to eat into his staff’s private lives, and yet he paid well above the average.
‘I have time, sir. What is it?’ There was the clicking of a door, and then the noise dulled.
‘This won’t take long.’ Alex pushed aside his qualms about the timing of his call. He had to know this matter was dealt with. ‘I need you to do something for me. Delegate, if necessary, but it must be handled.’
He proceeded to outline the list he’d come up with: threaten the television network with a lawsuit for slander, threaten Jonathan’s lawyer with the same, regardless of the fact he was in the Celebrity Housemates complex and sequestered from communication, and include a promise for more detailed litigation if Jonathan didn’t submit to a retroactive confidentiality clause. Alex had no idea if it would work. God knew he had the teeth to pursue Jonathan through all the courts in Europe, but did Theresa have the stomach for that?
He suspected not.
The last thing she wanted was more drama and attention on her private life, and if there was a big legal bust-up it would lead to that. So he had to hope the threats would be sufficient. And if they weren’t? Would he go against her wishes and use his deep pockets to simply make this problem go away?
