“I’ll talk to Nico,” she said. “See if I can convince him to meet with you.”
She nodded. “Thank you. It would mean the world to me.”
Marianna had no idea what this was going to do to the fragile bond she and Nico had formed in the last few weeks, but she would face it head-on. There was no way she wanted any more secrets between them.
Chapter Fourteen
Nico stood in his bedroom, staring out at the view. Marianna had gone out that morning to explore Corfu Town on her own. He’d wanted the driver to accompany her, but when he’d suggested it she told him she was perfectly capable of walking around a populated area on her own. Despite wanting to push the issue, he didn’t. From everything he knew of her life in Australia, her brothers had limited her freedom.
He wouldn’t do the same.
But last night had left him more fearful than ever. Fearful of the way he was starting to feel about Marianna, about their future. Fearful that if he lost her it would hurt deeply. After he’d walked out of Kosta and Alethea’s house a decade ago, he’d vowed never to let anyone get close to him again. And he’d achieved that by keeping his distance, not only emotionally. Physically, too.
Dion had joked he was like “the beast” in that childhood tale, locked away in a castle, snarling at anyone who dared disturb him. Maybe Dion was right, but Marianna had breached that barrier. She’d wriggled into his life with her earnestness and innocent outlook on life. She was his direct opposite—optimistic, kind, open. And last night he’d slept with her bundled up in his arms, intertwined in a way that would have given him hives not a month ago.
He was changing.
The porcelain cat stared back at him. Today, he’d found it sitting inside a coffee cup protected by a small piece of paper with her signature looping cursive.
Dear Nico, a cat deserves to live free and explore the vast corners of its world. I challenge you: let me stay here. Sincerely, Gáta.
Of course, stubbornness had made him put the cat back in its rightful place. But he’d smiled the whole time. He enjoyed the game of cat and mouse—no pun intended. Enjoyed that they had something uniquely theirs in such a small amount of time.
There was a soft rap at the door. “Nico?”
“Come in.”
Lydia poked her head into the room. “There’s a man at the front door, and he’s looking for Marianna.”
“Who is he?” Nico sprang up, all his senses tingling. And not the good kind of tingling.
“Julian Edwards.” She shrugged. “That’s all he would say. I told him she wasn’t here, but he won’t leave.”
“I’ll deal with it.”
The name was unfamiliar, and Marianna hadn’t mentioned any visitors. A man stood in the entryway of Nico’s house. He was fair-skinned, blond. Given the dark rings under his eyes and the tired droop of his mouth, Nico guessed he’d travelled a long way to get here.
“You must be Nico Gallinas,” the man said without smiling. “Where’s Marianna?”
Definitely Australian. “And you are?”
He hesitated a moment, pushing his fingers through his rumpled hair. “Julian Edwards.”
“I’m aware of your name,” he said smoothly. “I’m more interested in your relationship to my wife.”
Something unpleasant flashed across Julian’s face. “And that’s your business because…?”
“You’re in my house.”
“Her house.”
So this was how he wanted to play it? A pissing contest? “My name is on the title, ergo it’s my house. And if you’re a guest in my house, you can answer my questions or you can leave. Your choice.”
After a tense pause, he said, “I’m Marianna’s best friend.”
Julian…Jules. The person who’d sent the package. Nico swallowed his surprise. He’d expected Jules to be a woman. “And why are you here?”
“To see her.”
Nico ground his back teeth together. “Obviously.”
Julian’s body language oozed resentment. His arms folded tight over his chest, and there was a slight hunch to his shoulders. Coupled with the set jaw, narrowed gaze, and wide-legged stance, Julian looked like he was prepared for a fight.
“She’s not home,” Nico said. “She went out a few hours ago to go shopping.”
“That’s a relief. I was worried you wouldn’t even know where she was.”
“Excuse me?” Nico blinked. Who the fuck did this guy think he was?
“She’s been keeping me abreast of her situation here. How you’ve been ignoring her and acting like she doesn’t exist.” He snorted. “Hardly seems like an appropriate way to treat the future mother of your child.”
She’d said that about him? The comment stabbed Nico in the gut. He’d been trying to give her space in the first two weeks, allow her to settle into her new life. But that had changed since their “honeymoon.”
“We’ve been adjusting to this new situation,” he said tightly. “Not that I need to explain myself to you.”
“Why are you doing this?” Julian asked with a despairing shake of his head. “She could have a good life in Australia. She has a big family, people who truly care about her. And instead you’re keeping her here, away from everything and everyone she loves. You’re killing any chance she has of a good life.”
Nico’s heart hammered so hard in his chest he was worried it might punch through his ribcage. Ordinarily, he’d send someone packing for speaking to him in such a way. But if Julian really was Marianna’s best friend, then it would cause a rift between them, and he didn’t want that.
“She chose to come here,” Nico replied, doing his best to hang on to the last threads of his composure. “In fact, she was the one who suggested we get married and live like a family.”
Julian’s face twitched. Was he not aware of that fact? “She doesn’t love you.”
That’s when the motivation became clear. There wasn’t any mention of the child, of the stability and opportunities Nico would provide. It was all about Marianna. Julian was in love with her.
For some reason, this only made Nico angrier. Julian had obviously come a long way to have this discussion. Was he going to try and lure Marianna away? Was he going to convince her to leave Nico and go back to Australia with him?
“And you think she loves you?” Nico asked.
Julian’s cheeks were scarlet now. He dropped his hands down by his sides and clenched his fists. He wouldn’t want to take a swing unless he was happy to be on the receiving end as well. Nico had been in enough schoolyard fights in his time to know how to throw a punch. And judging by Julian’s smooth, callous-free hands and slight frame, he wouldn’t be much of an opponent.
“I know she does.” Julian stayed rooted to the spot. “She’s been confiding in me ever since she got here, but she’s too scared you’re going to come after the baby.”
“What kind of father would I be if I wasn’t prepared to fight for my child?”
“Is it your child? You have proof of that?”
His blood ran cold. Hadn’t Dion asked him the same question up front when he’d believed Marianna. And if the kid pops out to be some blond-haired blue-eyed little bundle of joy?
He still believed her…didn’t he?
“Why would she be here if it wasn’t?” Nico said.
“Interesting answer.” Julian took a step forward, a mean smirk crossing his lips. “I’d have thought someone like you would demand a DNA test.”
Someone like you.
The phrase was like a flashing cape to a bull, and it made him want to throw things. Because he’d heard that very same thing the last time his life had turned to shit. I don’t want my daughter to be with someone like you.
Pauper.
Orphan.
Nobody.
Nico was about to rain hellfire down on this asshole who dared insult him in his own home, but the slam of a car door outside the house stopped him. A second later, the tinkling sound of Marianna’s voice got loude
r. She was practicing Greek vocabulary. Hearing his language falling from her lips, with some damn good pronunciation as well, made his chest tighten. But a seed of doubt had been planted by Julian’s words, and he couldn’t shake it.
The front door opened, and Nico’s driver motioned for her to enter ahead of him. “Very good, Mrs. Gallinas. Your studies are coming along well.”
“Efharistó polí,” she replied, smiling, but the smile morphed into shock when she saw Julian. “Jules!”
The giant smile that followed was like a blade slashing across Nico’s heart, and the cuts only got worse when she flung herself into his arms. They stood there for a moment, wrapped in one another while Nico burned bright with jealousy and frustration. But nobody would see it. He’d make sure of that.
“Oh my god, I had no idea you were coming to visit.” She shook her head and cupped his face. “I can’t believe it. You came all this way to see me!”
“I would have flown to Mars to see you, Marianna.” Julian’s eyes flicked to Nico for a brief second. “I’m staying in town.”
“Nonsense,” she said. “You should stay here. We have plenty of space. Right, Nico?”
“Of course,” he replied, deciding to nip the issue in the bud. Having Julian in the house would mean he could keep an eye on him. “Any friend of Marianna’s is welcome in our house.”
Julian’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t contradict Nico’s words. At least now, if he tried to claim Nico had been unwelcoming it wouldn’t be supported by anything.
“I’ll have Lydia set up a room,” Nico added. “Our driver can take you to the hotel to get your things and help you cancel your reservation. In the meantime, Marianna and I will organize somewhere for us to all have dinner.”
At least now, he had control over the situation again. Nico had enough experience in business negotiations to know that getting the upper hand early was critical. This way Marianna would stay with him while Julian sorted out his things, so he could talk to her alone. Everything would be fine so long as he and Marianna were on the same page.
But despite his desire to be logical and calm, his gut told him that something about this situation wasn’t quite right.
…
Marianna decided to hold off talking to Nico about Alethea until the following day. There was already a strange feeling in the house with Jules’s surprise arrival, which resulted in a tension between the two men that Marianna couldn’t quite figure out.
Rather than potentially pouring kerosene on a fire, Marianna had kept her mouth shut. But after an awkward meal with them both, they’d all come back to the house and gone to bed. Nico had tried to kiss her, but she’d developed a very real headache from the strain of the meal and feigned fatigue. The look of worry on his face had made her feel like crap, but she needed space to think, and if there was one thing she knew, Nico was a master at obliterating her ability to concentrate.
Jules’s presence was a spanner in the delicate gear-system she and Nico had established. It was like being reminded of all she’d left behind, of her family and her work and her old dreams. Everything she’d sacrificed for her baby.
The following morning, Marianna stood in the kitchen after she’d hidden the porcelain cat in the refrigerator along with another funny little note.
A small knock startled her. Jules stood at the entrance, looking no more rested than he had last night. “I was told I’d find you here.”
“And here I am.” She wrapped her arms around herself protectively.
He came into the room and leaned against the cabinet next to her, reaching out to tug on the end of her ponytail. The action made Marianna smile. She had years of memories with him. Years of wondering if he might try to kiss her one day, if he might have any of those niggling curiosities about what it might be like to cross over the threshold of friendship into something more. But he never had. Neither of them had ever made a move.
“Are you happy?” he asked.
The question startled her. She and Jules had talked about many things over the years, but relationships were never really a topic of conversation. Neither of them were terribly experienced in that area. “Why are you asking me that?”
“Wouldn’t I be a terrible friend if I didn’t ask that?”
“I think I’m happy.” She knotted her hands in front of her.
“You don’t sound confident.”
Didn’t she? It was a tough question. Her being in Corfu and living with Nico was not the life she’d planned for herself. If she was being truly honest, perhaps it wasn’t the life she’d wanted. But their situation was what it was, and it could be a hell of a lot worse.
“It only proves I was right to come here.” He reached for her hand. “You deserve better than this, Mari. You deserve better than thinking you might be happy instead of knowing you are happy. I get why you’re doing this, but don’t you see how you’re trapping yourself? Marriage isn’t supposed to be between strangers.”
“People get married for all kinds of reasons,” she pointed out.
“Is that what you wanted?”
“No.” She shook her head. “But I didn’t plan on getting pregnant, either, and now that it’s happened I…I’m excited to meet my baby.”
“And what are you going to be teaching your child about love by marrying someone you don’t even know?” Jules closed his eyes. “I know I should have put this in an email, but I’ve been going crazy without you. We haven’t spent more than a week apart since we were seven. I miss you.”
Marianna blinked, the sudden prickle of tears taking her by surprise. “I miss you, too.”
“You don’t have to do this.” He looked at her imploringly. His light eyes were ones she’d dreamed of as a teenager, but she never admitted her feelings to him. The risk of losing him had always been too high a price to pay. Their friendship had always come before her desire, and eventually friendship became the only thing she’d wanted from him. “You can get the wedding annulled and come home with me.”
With him or with him?
“I will do whatever I can to help you raise the baby,” he said. “You can move in with me. I’ll be a father to him or her.”
“And how is that any different than what I’m doing now?” she asked, shaking her head. “At least here, Nico can be involved. You can’t claim staying here is selling myself short and then propose the very same arrangement.”
“It’s not the same,” Jules said.
“Yes, it’s exactly the same.”
“Marianna…” He swore under his breath. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she said. The words were automatic. They always had been. Jules was practically family. “You know that.”
“Then let’s end this charade now.” He squeezed her hand. “I thought I could handle you being here…doing this. But I can’t. It hurts too much not having you home where you belong.”
“You know why I’m here.”
“We don’t need his money. We can take care of the baby without him.”
“Do you have any idea how much it costs to raise a child? You do computer repairs, and I’m a broke Ph.D. student…was a broke student. We’d never be able to raise a kid like that.”
“I don’t care, we’ll make it work.” He pulled her closer and threaded his hands into her hair, pulling her face close to his. “When I say I love you, I don’t mean like friends,” he whispered.
Shock poured through her system. Jules had never made a move on her, never hinted that he might be attracted to her. They were childhood friends who’d managed to stick together though their paths in life had diverged early on. He’d stood by her side at her mother’s funeral, cheered her on at every one of her graduation ceremonies, sat at the hospital with her that time she’d broken her wrist.
He was entangled in every memory. Threaded through her whole life.
“We’re good together, Mari. Even without money we’ll be able to give your baby a wonderful life. A real life. I’ll prove it to you.�
�� He raked a hand through his hair. “Fuck. I should have told you this sooner. But I spent years being terrified that you didn’t feel the same and that I’d ruin the friendship if I said anything.”
“Me too.” She swallowed against the lump in her throat.
“So you loved me as more than a friend?”
“I did.” She nodded numbly. But it wasn’t the case now, and while she might not have a label for how she felt about Nico, her affection for him had grown into something real. She’d seen him in a new light, learned who he was underneath the harsh exterior. It might not be love now, but in the future…? Who could say? “But not anymore. I’m staying here. With Nico.”
All Marianna knew was that she wasn’t ready to walk away from her husband. He’d shown her that a life with him could be something more than separate bedrooms and hiding around corners. They could be something more.
Chapter Fifteen
Nico stormed into his office and snatched one of the crystal glasses from his sideboard, rearing his hand back to hurl the damn thing across the room. It would have been satisfying to see it explode into a million shimmering, impossible-to-put-back-together pieces. But instead he sucked in a breath and lowered his arm.
A stiff drink would serve him better than a broken glass. After all, what else could a man do but drink after finding out his wife loved another man?
He pulled the stopper off a decanter filled with scotch and poured a generous three or four fingers into the glass. Then he brought the drink to his lips and took a long swallow. In some ways he would have preferred a shitty scotch, something cheap and nasty to give him the burn he craved.
Fuck.
He slumped into his desk chair. He’d known Julian was trouble the second he’d laid eyes on him. But Nico hadn’t suspected Marianna might be playing him. Not since before the wedding, anyway. He’d bought into her “I want us to be a real family” speech hook, line, and sinker.
Last night should have thrown up a red flag. When they’d returned from dinner, he’d been desperate to taste her. She’d worn this pink dress that made her curves look amazing, and he’d wanted nothing more than to bury his face between her legs. But she’d shut him down, saying she didn’t feel well. Of course he’d respected that. But it hadn’t occurred to him that her pulling away was nothing to do with her being tired, and everything to do with her being in love with someone else.
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