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But she couldn’t...because she was afraid of the answer. She knew, even if Damen didn’t want to admit it, that he had only asked her back and married her out of guilt. Damen might be cruel and ruthless, but he had always been honorable. His honor and pride would have demanded him to atone for his treatment of her by giving Mairi her greatest wish – to marry a Greek billionaire.
And he had done that...even though he was starting to fall for Alina.
Damen’s fingers continued to tap on the screen.
Mairi’s teeth sank harder into her lower lip. She had to stop the tide of questions that came to her tongue, knowing she wouldn’t be able to afford to hear the truth. If she did, she would have no choice but to leave Damen...and she wasn’t ready for that yet.
Tomorrow, Mairi thought numbly. Tomorrow, she’d flirt with Drake again. Tomorrow, she’d do anything to make Damen jealous just so he would forget Alina. Tomorrow, she’d try to think of a way to help Damen with his financial problems. Maybe if she did, he’d feel even guiltier – enough not to call Alina ever again.
Her weakness shamed her, but her love for Damen was greater.
Be strong, Mairi.
Be strong so you can stay by Damen’s side a little longer.
Chapter 11
She said: To wed a Greek billionaire, you must exercise control over exploiting his One True Weakness when you feel hurt.
He said: What is it with you and Lord of the Rings...my precious?
She said: And that’s it.
He said: That’s what?
She said: Your weakness. Me. Your precious.
He said: (Pause) Ah, matakia mou. You turn me on when you get cocky like that.
MAIRI KNEW THE EXACT moment Damen received one of those “calls”. It had been two months since they had tried to gatecrash Nelson Athanas’ birthday party and by now, she was an expert at figuring out when Damen was really talking to a business associate or friend and when Damen was...not.
Right now was one of those times he was not.
Even though he stood right next to her, looking immaculately polished in an all-white golf tee and pants, his arm around her waist, Mairi knew that he really wasn’t there. Right now, his whole world was centered on the phone vibrating insistently inside his pants’ pocket.
If I were Damen’s mistress, I wouldn’t be so selfish that I’d call him while he’s at a very important function. A hysterical laugh tried to bubble out of her. The thought would have made Mairi feel infinitely better if only she didn’t know how pathetic she was being. She was his wife, for heaven’s sake, and yet here she was, mentally competing with another woman.
“Mrs. Leventis, how about a picture?” A fresh-faced photographer came to her with a hopeful look on his face. He was one of the many, with the media coming in droves to attend the launch of the golf tournament, an annual fundraiser held by Mykolas Sallis, the Greek billionaire her friend Velvet married after a controversial whirlwind romance.
Held at Athens’ most prestigious country club, the event always commanded a huge turnout, and this year was no different. It provided Mykolas with the perfect opportunity to announce his intention to put up a joint venture with Damen, a red herring meant to have all eyes on Mykolas while Damen worked behind the scenes with his enemies’ enemies.
So far, the distraction was a huge success. If only, Mairi thought, she could be just as successful in distracting Damen from Alina Kokinos.
Her gaze returned to her husband, who was now reaching for his phone. In the act of telling the photographer to wait so she could call Damen to her side, Mairi instead gestured towards Drake. The other man stood a few feet away from her, his good looks and quietly commanding presence having caused quite a stir among the event’s female guests.
Catching sight of Mairi’s look, Drake swiftly made his way to her. “What is it?”
Mairi pointed to Drake. “How about taking a photo of me and the bodyguard instead?”
The photographer’s eyes widened. “The b-bodyguard?”
From the corner of her eye, Mairi saw Damen answer his call. She flashed the photographer a wider smile. “Yup.”
Absently looking up when his wife walked away from him, Damen cursed silently at the sight of Mairi about to strike a pose beside Drake Morrison for a picture. The other man’s all-black outfit complemented Mairi’s all-white collared shirt and short pleated skirt. They looked damn good together, and the thought had his lips clamping in a thin line.
To him, Mairi was easily the most beautiful girl in the room. Damen could not be any prouder of the fact that she belonged to him. Unfortunately, his wife seemed to have a tendency of forgetting the same fact.
Not taking his gaze off Mairi and doing his best not to bristle at Drake’s proximity to her, Damen muttered, “I need to go. I’ll call you later. This is really not a good time at all.”
