I stuffed a few things in the beach bag I had bought in Athens at one of the tourist traps, against Adrian’s advice. I knew it was cheesy, and I didn’t care. I needed a beach bag, and it was cute.
“Ready?”
“I am,” I announced, putting on my dark sunglasses.
She groaned. “You look like a tourist with that bag.”
I grinned. “Perfect, because I am.”
Once we had found a patch of sand to lay out our towels, we both stretched out on our backs. It was warm, and I wasn’t convinced I was going to be getting a tan in the waning sun, but it felt good to lay on the beach, listening to the sounds of people playing and frolicking on the beach around us.
“How was your trip?” she asked.
“It was awesome!” I exclaimed.
“You guys must have had a lot of, uh, business meetings,” she said.
I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to say or admit to. “Adrian allowed me to do a little sightseeing.”
“I see. Did Adrian do this sightseeing with you?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm,” she said, turning her head to look at me.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
She was still grinning. “Nothing. I’m glad the two of you had a good time. He works a lot. I think a few days away was good for him. He was in a really good mood at work today. He told me he told you to take the day off.”
“Yes, he didn’t think there was a lot I could get done in the few hours I’d be there,” I said, backing up the story.
She turned away, both of us quiet as we relaxed on the beach. “You know you can talk to me, right?” she asked in a quiet voice.
I did want to talk to someone. I couldn’t talk to my dad, but I also didn’t want to talk to my immediate boss about her boss and me sleeping together.
“I have a friend, and she’s found herself in a bit of a weird relationship with her boss,” I started. “She isn’t sure what it means or if she should even talk about it.”
“Is this friend an American?” she asked.
“Yes,” I quickly answered.
“I think Americans and Greek people have a different outlook on things like that. We’re not so uptight. Greek women are strong. We don’t feel like we have to prove ourselves or try to be better than the men we work with.”
I shook my head. “What does that mean?”
“I mean, if your friend and her boss have a relationship, I don’t think it is so bad.”
“Really?” I pressed. “What do you think the other people in the office will think about that?”
She scoffed. “Who cares? It isn’t their business. I think if your friend and her boss enjoy being with each other, that’s what matters. Obviously, I don’t think your friend will want to flaunt her relationship. I’m sure the boss is an attractive man, and some of the women might be a little jealous, and we know how women can be.”
“Jealous? Do you think this has happened before? I mean, do you think her boss does this often?” I was a little horrified to think of Adrian making his way through all the new women in his employment.
“No, definitely not,” she quickly replied.
I turned to look at her. We were speaking in hypotheticals, so technically she wouldn’t be able to be sure of that. I was pretty sure my little hypothetical game had failed. She knew damn well I was talking about me and Adrian. I wasn’t going to admit it, but at least I knew she was giving me her inside advice.
“What if the boss is just using her because he knows the relationship will never go anywhere?” I asked softly.
“I think your friend will probably know the difference between a man looking for a piece of ass and a man that is genuinely interested.”
My mouth dropped open. “Cassia!” I exclaimed.
She giggled. “You know what I mean. When you pick up a guy at the club or on the beach, you kind of expect it to be a one and done. Maybe you hook up a couple more times, but then that’s that. There are no promises of anything, and it’s just sex. There’s a difference. Please tell me you’ve had that experience?”
I shook my head. “Not really, no. I lived a sheltered life, and I lived with my dad. I couldn’t exactly bring a man home. I’m not a virgin, but I was a little more restrained than any of my friends.”
“Ah, I understand now,” she whispered.
“Understand what?”
“Does your friend like her boss?” she asked.
“Of course!”
“I mean, does she like him in a way that she wants to see him again?”
I nodded. “I think so, but she doesn’t know if it can ever go anywhere. She doesn’t know if she should ask or even try. She’s worried about getting laughed at for being naïve enough to think there could ever be something between a plain American and a wealthy, uh, her boss.” I didn’t want to reveal too much.
The whole conversation seemed a little ridiculous. We both knew I was talking about Adrian, but I couldn’t say it. I felt like the naïve woman I had just described.
“These are questions your friend should talk about with her boss,” she replied. “I bet her boss is a good guy who would be willing to talk about these very important matters.”
“What if he doesn’t want to talk to her outside of the office?”
She made a choking sound. “Then, you—I mean she—makes him talk. Your friend needs to be strong.”
“I know. I agree.”
“Good. I think you should tell your friend she should follow her heart. If your friend feels a connection to her boss, she should pursue it, not let the working relationship interfere with what is in her heart. Life is too short to let a good man get away. Love is up to fate. You never want to mess with fate. If this is meant to be, it will be.” She turned to look at me again and pushed up her sunglasses.
I raised mine as well. “But is it wrong?” I whispered.
“Wrong? How could it be wrong?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I mean, they’re two different people. They come from very different backgrounds. How does someone know when it’s right? When it’s fate, like you said?”
“I think only the person in that relationship can know,” she said with a smile. “Everyone else is on the outside, looking in. It’s only the boss and your friend who know what’s happening between them.”
“I suppose.”
“Bella, what are your plans?”
“My plans?” I asked.
“When your internship is over, what do you plan to do?”
I inhaled, turning to look up at the sky. “I don’t know. Go home?”
“What were your plans before you got here?” she pressed.
I grinned. “My dream was I was going to get here and blow all of you away with my skills. You were all going to be so impressed, you were going to insist I open an office in Seattle and run it. I was going to have my dream job and get to be close to home.”
She burst into laughter. “Wow, think much of yourself?”
“Hey, you asked.” I giggled.
“Okay, now that we’ve got that established, what are your plans now? If you could have your dream come true, what would that look like? Do you still want to go home and open an office?”
I grimaced because I didn’t know, and that worried me. I always knew what I wanted. I always had a goal to work toward. I was always on the road to somewhere, and that road had faded before my very eyes. I didn’t know what I wanted to do.
“I don’t know.”
“Your internship is over soon,” she said. “Will you go home? Do you think there might be a reason to stay?”
I hesitated. “I honestly don’t know.”
She smiled. “Then I suggest you have a conversation with someone. I think you might have a reason to stay for a little while longer.”
The thought of staying made my heart hurt. I couldn’t leave my dad alone for months or longer. If I did stay in Greece much longer, I was going to have a hard time leaving Adria
n. I wasn’t sure if I could handle that. I didn’t want to fall for Adrian and then have to leave.
Who was I kidding? I had already fallen.
“Let’s get a drink,” she said, sitting up. “I have a feeling you might need one.”
“Yes, I could. Maybe more than one.”
“Follow your heart,” she advised. “My mom always told me to follow my heart, even when my head was telling me something different.”
“That’s the problem. My heart is kind of split. I have a foot in two different worlds. I didn’t expect to come here and like it. I expected to come here, do my work, get something really cool to put on my resume, and then go home. It’s not so cut and dry anymore. And what’s worse, I know my dad would want me to stay. He’s already encouraging me to apply for a permanent job. I know he’s trying to be encouraging and support me, but I don’t think he actually wants me to do it.”
“Of course not. It’s a parent’s job to push their children out of the nest. They know that we have to spread our wings and fly, and we can’t do that under their close supervision. They hate to see us go, but they know they have to push us away.”
“You seem to be talking from a place of personal experience.”
She nodded. “I am. You’ve told me a little about your dad, and I have a feeling he would be happy for you if you chose to stay. You really never know what might happen. Don’t you think you owe it to yourself to at least follow this new path and see where it may lead?”
I groaned, putting my head back and looking up at the sky. “You’re not making this easy.”
“Nothing worth having is supposed to be easy,” she said, grinning. “It has to be hard in order to make sure you weigh all the options. If it was easy, you wouldn’t give it much thought. You need to think this over very carefully before you make a decision. This is a big deal.”
I rolled my eyes. “Gee, you think?”
She burst into laughter. “Let’s get you that drink.”
I remembered my plans for tomorrow. “I can’t stay out late. I have to get up early. I have a busy day tomorrow.”
“Really?” she asked with a teasing tone. “How odd. I thought I was your only friend in the city. Well, me and one other person. I know we don’t have plans, so I guess that means your busy day must be with a certain other someone?”
“Stop. I am admitting nothing.”
“You don’t have to. I’m happy for you and the someone. You can’t ignore the chemistry. When it’s hot, it’s hot.” She winked.
“Oh, it’s hot,” I said, unable to keep myself from making one little naughty comment.
She squealed. “You vixen!”
Chapter 27
Adrian
I’d stayed late, long after everyone had gone home for the night. I had overheard the conversations, people talking about their plans for the weekend and telling one another they would see each other on Monday. Even Rand had plans. I was going home, alone.
Since meeting Bella, I realized I was alone. It had never been an issue for me until now. I had the pleasure of spending time with a woman who I felt compatible with. I had felt adored and appreciated, and truth be told, I was a little addicted to the feeling. I liked the touches and kisses throughout the day.
I especially liked what happened when we were alone in our room at night and once in the middle of the day. I smiled.
“Fuck it,” I grumbled, reaching for my phone.
Got plans? I sent the text to Bella.
She answered a few seconds later. Nope. Just got back from the beach.
I was tempted to ask her if she’d worn a bikini and if it was still on. I loved looking at her body.
Hungry?
For? she replied.
I chuckled, loving her cheeky comeback.
Dinner. Food. And maybe some dessert.
I wasn’t great at flirting—I knew it—but it didn’t stop me from trying.
Sounds good. I’ll be waiting.
See you in thirty minutes.
I shut everything down and headed out the door. I had plans. That was a rarity for me. As I walked to the elevator, I pulled up the app for one of my favorite Chinese restaurants and quickly ordered plenty of food to be picked up in twenty minutes.
I didn’t bother calling a car, choosing to hail a cab instead. It was much faster, and I was in a hurry. I was having withdrawals after being away from her for less than eight hours.
With the food in hand, I had the cab take me to the hotel. I found myself speed-walking to the elevators, anxious to see her. The smell of the Chinese food in the bag I was carrying reminded me I had skipped lunch and was very hungry.
I knocked and waited. When she opened the door, I literally lost my breath. She was so damn gorgeous, even wearing a pair of leggings and a baggy T-shirt. She was beautiful.
“Hi,” she said, standing back and letting me walk in.
“Hi. I hope you’re hungry,” I said with a laugh. “I may have gotten a little carried away when I ordered.”
“I’m very hungry, and that smells delicious,” she said. “We can eat at the little table in here or out on the patio.”
“The patio sounds good to me,” I said, reminded of the last time I’d been on a patio with her and how that had worked out. “I want the fresh air.”
We dished up, each of us taking generous helpings from each carton before settling in on the patio chairs.
“How was work?” she asked.
“Fine. I don’t think they missed me at all while I was gone.” I smirked.
“You have the best team in the business,” she said. “I would hope they could keep things afloat while you were gone. You deserve some time off. You and my dad are a lot alike, you know?”
“We are? How so?” I was genuinely curious.
“You are both dedicated to your work. You’re both convinced the world will fall off its axis if you take a few days off. You both have a real dedication to the job, to your people, and I find that admirable. I’ve heard a girl tends to be drawn to guys who have a lot of her father’s traits. I guess it’s true.” She laughed.
“Tell me more about your dad,” I said, wanting to learn more about the woman that was capturing my heart.
She smiled, her eyes lighting up. “He’s a great guy. I don’t feel like words are enough. My dad grew up poor. Like really, really poor. He dropped out of school to get a full-time job to help support his family. He always says he wasn’t cut out for school, but that’s wrong. He’s so smart, and most of it is self-taught. He always sacrifices for everyone else. He doesn’t make a big deal out of it. He just does it, and when you try and thank him, he shrugs it off. He is always sacrificing for others. Everyone loves him.”
“What kind of sacrifices?” I asked out of curiosity.
“Oh, gosh. I could go on forever. He is the kind of guy who will give his last dollar to the guy on the street asking for help for his family, even when we had nothing to spare. I remember when I was little, and we came out of the grocery store with our bags. There was a young woman with two little kids with her, holding up a meager sign asking for help. My dad stopped, rummaged through our groceries, and put together a bag for her and the kids. The little boy was terrified. Apparently, she’d escaped a horrible abuse situation with nothing but her kids and the clothes on their backs. Not only did my dad give them our food, which we really couldn’t afford to spare, but he insisted she load up in our car, and he drove her thirty miles into the city where there was a women’s shelter. I think I was probably six or seven at the time. From that moment on, I knew he was a superhero.” Her eyes beamed with pride.
I nodded my head. “No shit. He sounds like he should be up for sainthood.”
She giggled. “If I had my way, he would be. He wasn’t big on religion, but he did give me the standard stories to live by. He told me I always had to give. Even if I didn’t think I had it to give, do it anyways because no matter how little I had, someone else had less.”
“Holy shit, I feel so inadequate,” I said, shaking my head with disgust at my opulent lifestyle when guys like her dad were giving all they had when they had so little.
“Don’t feel inadequate,” she said. “My dad is kind of different than the rest, and that’s why he’s special. If everyone was like him, he wouldn’t be so special.”
I shook my head. “Still, he sounds amazing. I’d like to meet him one day.”
She scoffed. “I don’t know if my dad would ever get on a plane. You’d have to go to him.”
“You never know. It could happen.”
“It would be worth your trouble to meet him. I don’t want to brag, but my dad is frickin’ amazing. He’s my everything. I’ve already decided he’s never going to get sick or die. He’s going to be around until I die.”
I laughed. “You sound pretty certain about that.”
“I am.”
“Well, I envy you,” I said. “I have to prepare you for tomorrow. My family is nothing like that. You’re not going to want to anoint any of them. They will make you rethink everything you think you know about me.”
“Stop,” she said, laughing. “You’re exaggerating.”
I shook my head. “I’m not. Not in the least. My family is loud and boisterous, and they all just say whatever pops into their heads. They have no filters. I don’t think they try to be intentionally rude, but it just happens.”
“I’ll be okay. I’ve dealt with people all my life, and I can handle rude. I’m not a wilting flower.”
She looked so sweet and innocent. I knew my mother would eat her alive if she got it in her head she didn’t like Bella for one reason or another. I couldn’t imagine what fault my mother would find, but I knew my mom well enough to know she could see fault in just about anything, and she didn’t hide what she thought. Her opinions tended to be loudly expressed.
I shook my head. “If someone says or does something that makes you uncomfortable, tell me. I won’t tolerate them mistreating you.”
She reached across the table and touched my hand. “Adrian, I think you’re worrying about nothing. I see you and I can’t imagine you were spawned from monsters. Your mom loves you and wants what’s best for you. I get that and I appreciate that. I’ll be on my best behavior. If she gives me any shit, I’ll be quiet and demure and walk away. I don’t want to cause any problems for you. I’ve dealt with people looking at me with the side eye for most of my life—trust me, it’s nothing new.”
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