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I leaned forward and caught Lei's hand between my thighs. His fingertips rested just above my clit, but he was unable to move his hand.
"Do you want me to give you reasons for this decision?" I asked.
"Audrey, you should really be careful with your words." This was definitely the wrong time for Alexander to interject. Not only did my eyes fall on him, but Lei's as well.
Where should I start?
"And you might want to watch what you say to Audrey," Lei warned so abruptly that it made me gasp. So far he had stayed out of everything, but as soon as my ex-fiancé told me to keep my mouth shut, he rushed to my defense. I bit my lip and looked at Lei, not ignoring the sudden feeling of warmth in my chest as I usually did.
Even if I could speak for myself– which had been different a few months ago– it meant a lot to me that, thanks to him, I didn't have to do so by default.
"What qualifies you to interfere?" Alexander impaled Lei with his gaze. And then the penny dropped. "Oh my god. He's fucking you, isn't he? He's the new guy. The one who stole you from me."
"I wouldn't call it stealing when you did practically nothing to keep me," I replied.
He jumped up. "Because you're a disgusting whore. The bastard has one foot in the grave. And you're getting involved with him!"
Perplexed, I opened my mouth, but all that came out was a hearty laugh. "Lei is ten years older than me. And there's more life in him than in you, thank you for asking."
The only reason for not getting up instantly was Lei's hand between my legs. He was drawing barely noticeable circles with his little finger. A kind of occupational therapy? For me? For him? I had no idea, but it kept me focused on what was important.
"Is that true?" my father interjected into the conversation. And he didn't mean the fact that Alexander had just called me a whore. He was asking if Lei was really dating me.
I rolled my eyes. "It's true, okay? After you kicked me out, I moved in with him. One thing led to another and..." With my hand, I made a gesture that was supposed to mean that it had led us all here now.
I deliberately left part of the truth under the table.
"Nonsense! You dated him before our engagement ended. He persuaded you..."
Lei interrupted him. "Don't worry, I have no need to persuade anyone. And none of what happened between her and me happened when she was with you."
I almost smiled at how cleverly he left out what happened before and after.
"Do you want me to keep explaining?" I looked past Lei to my father, who was still looking at his best friend in shock. He wouldn't be able to digest that Lei was flirting with his daughter so easily, I didn't need psychic abilities to know that.
He shook his head. "No. But I want you to go. That you both go. I have no idea what happened between you and Alexander, and to be honest, I don't want to know."
I nonchalantly released Lei's hand from between my legs. He slid it into mine so deftly that I wondered if a hole would open up beneath us. He was on his feet, but not without another glance at my father.
"And you let him call your daughter a whore?"
All eyes were on Matthew at once. His answer would determine my future relationship with this family.
The fine hairs on my arms stood up as my father straightened. "She's fucking you. I can see where he's coming from."
His words were a punch in the gut I wasn't expecting. I knitted my eyebrows together, trying to process what he had just said. Lei, however, was much quicker, turning away before I had come to the conclusion that there was no going back. That this family's relationship would not recover.
I automatically clenched my jaw before nodding knowingly. "All right. Thank you for a wonderful lunch. But you can take us off the guest list for future events. We don't want to spoil the company with our hetaeric energies."
The walk out and to the car passed in such a blur that I could only remember how tightly Lei's hand had clasped mine. Even when I sat in the passenger seat and blinked a few times, I still couldn't fully comprehend the last few minutes.
Finally, I laughed. With a shake of my head, but I laughed.
"Hetaera?" Lei finally asked with a grin. "High-ranking Greek prostitute with an education?"
"Should I have called us both common whores? You're a whore because you had no relationships, and I'm one because I dared to have another man by my side and do what I wanted. We are terrible, Lei. So bad. The scum of the island. How will we ever survive? Our sex life could be our social death!" Snorting, I leaned forward before straightening up and looking at him more seriously. "I'm sorry you just lost a friend."
"Your family abandoned you and you apologize to me?"
