‘Can you expect support from your ex?’
‘No way. I...er... I’m not sure I’ll even tell him. He’s married again, has a new life. We’re not in touch.’
He frowned. ‘Doesn’t he have a right to know he’s going to be a father?’
‘I’m not sure that he does,’ she said, tight-lipped. Alex could read the don’t go there signals flashing from her eyes. But the little she gave away made him believe she had reason to be wary of the ex. The guy sounded like a jerk.
‘So you’ll be going back to Sydney to nothing?’
‘That’s not quite true. My parents have a large house. Even if simply out of duty I’m sure they’ll find room for me and the baby until I get on my feet again. Though to tell you the truth, I’m not looking forward to telling them my news.’
‘Your parents don’t know you’re pregnant?’
‘No one does but you, and my doctor in Nidri, of course.’ She looked up at him, her eyes huge. ‘I’ve been disappointed so many times. I’m waiting until I’m further down the track before I tell anyone. Just in case.’
Pain shadowed her eyes and he realised how desperately she wanted this pregnancy, how vulnerable it made her and how alone she seemed in the world. He felt angry her parents sounded so distant, that they wouldn’t want to help her at such a time. As for the ex, Alex’s fists clenched beside him. Again that fierce desire to protect her swept over him. He couldn’t bear to think of her struggling on her own. Life could be tough for a lone parent. He knew that from the juggling some of his single-mother staff had had to do to keep an income coming in. How would Dell manage?
This was not his baby. Not his business. But she was his business. He had brought her to Greece and she had proved herself tuned to the same wavelength as he was when it came to the business. The plans for the hotel would not be moving along so quickly or so efficiently without her help. He’d have to find a way to give her a substantial bonus before she left his employment. Otherwise, he didn’t know how he could help her.
But there was one way he could help her now. He took her hand in his. ‘Come on, let’s get up to the top. But I’m going to make sure you don’t stumble again. You’re stuck with my chivalry.’
This time she smiled and didn’t pull away. He folded her much smaller hand in his; the answering pressure made him feel inordinately pleased. When they reached a smoother part of the path he didn’t let go of her hand.
* * *
With each step forward up the hill Dell silently chanted a what if? inside her head. What if Alex was holding her hand because he wanted to, not just out of consideration of her pregnant condition? What if they were a genuine couple, linking hands as they always did when they walked together out on a date? What if she were pregnant to a man like him—she couldn’t go so far as to fantasise she was actually pregnant to him. Then there was the biggest what if of them all, one she scarcely dared breathe for fear of jinxing herself: what if she weren’t pregnant and she were free to explore her attraction to Alex, to flirt a little, let him know how she felt, act upon it? What if he felt the same?
He kept hold of her hand as they reached the top and at last the Parthenon towered above her. The ground was rough, broken stone and marble caused by ongoing repairs and the tramping of thousands—possibly millions—of feet across the ancient land over the centuries. She had to be careful she didn’t go over on her ankle.
‘Wow, just wow,’ she breathed as she gazed up the iconic structure, which no photo or painting could do justice. Built around 432 BC as a temple to worship the Goddess Athena, it had been scarred by attacks and battle over the centuries. Yet its remaining pillars and sculptures still stood overlooking Athens, an imposing edifice to an ancient civilisation.
‘You’re so lucky to have this as your heritage,’ she said with awe.
‘It’s the world’s heritage,’ he said, his voice edged with pride.
Dell had long realised how important his Greekness was to Alex. Would he ever go back to Australia? Would she ever see him again after she went back?
For a long time she stood gazing in wonder at the magnificence of the ancient building with its massive columns and pediments achingly beautiful against a clear blue sky. It made it poignant that she was sharing it with Alex—boss, friend, man she longed to be so more than that if things were different.
She looked up at him, so tall and broad-shouldered, handsome in light linen trousers and white shirt, his dark hair longer now than when she’d first seen him at Bay Breeze, curling around his temples. Her heart seemed to flip over. ‘Thank you, Alex. I’ll never forget this moment, here with you in the land of your ancestors.’
He looked back down at her for a long moment. She could tell by the deepened intensity of his dark eyes that he was going to kiss her and a tremor of anticipation rippled through her. At that moment, it was what she wanted more than anything in the world. She swayed towards him, not breaking the connection of their eyes, her lips parting in expectation of his mouth on hers. And then he was kissing her.
His mouth was firm and warm, a gentle respectful touch asking a question that she answered by tilting her head to better kiss him back. Bliss. This was one small dream that was coming true. Dell realised she had closed her eyes and she opened them again, not wanting to miss anything of this—touch, taste, his scent, the sight of his face. She found his eyes intent on hers and she smiled. He smiled back and then kissed her again. They exchanged a series of short, sweet kisses that escalated with a subtle sensuality that left her breathless.
She was dimly aware that they were still standing with the Parthenon behind them, in one of the most public arenas in Athens. But when he pulled her closer into a longer, more intense embrace she forgot where she was. All she was aware of was Alex—the feel of his arms holding her close, her arms twined around his neck, his mouth, his tongue, the fierce strength of his body. Every kiss she’d ever had faded into insignificance. This. Alex.
‘Bravo!’ Good-natured catcalls and cheering broke into the bliss and she realised they had an audience. She doubted anyone knew who Alex was, but there were a lot of smartphones around. Everyone was a potential paparazzo these days.
She broke away from the kiss although she couldn’t keep the smile from her voice. ‘That was probably not a good idea,’ she murmured. On one level she meant kissing in public. On another, she meant shifting their relationship to something more personal wasn’t either. If, indeed, that was what this had signalled.
‘Yes, it wasn’t,’ he said with rather too much vehemence. The shutters came down over his eyes again, leaving them black and unreadable. He took an abrupt step back and tripped on the uneven ground. Dell had to catch his arm and hold him steady. But she didn’t care about his less than romantic reaction. This day could end right now and she would be happy. Alex had kissed her and she would treasure the moment for ever. No matter what might or might not follow.
‘Thank you,’ he said. Then, his voice hoarse, ‘Thank you for rescuing me.’
‘All I did was help you keep your balance,’ she said.
‘You’ve done that all right,’ he said and she realised they were speaking at a deeper level. ‘But you’ve done so much more.’ He reached down to trace a line from her cheekbone to the edge of her mouth. His touch sent a shiver of pleasure through her. ‘I didn’t think I could be attracted to another woman after...after Mia. But you’ve proved me wrong.’
‘Was...was kissing me some kind of experiment?’ She tried to mask the hurt in her voice with a light-hearted tone.
His face darkened. ‘No. How could you think that? You looked so lovely, so warm and vibrant with laughter in your eyes, I simply couldn’t resist you.’
Warmth flooded through her heart, only to chill at his next words. ‘Even though I know I should not have done so. Dell, I—’
Her spirits plummeted
to somewhere around her shoes. She put a hand up to halt him. ‘Please, we still have an audience.’
He glared at the people watching them and they hastily dispersed.
Dell looked around her. ‘It’s getting hot. Can we find somewhere with some shade?’
Shade was in short supply on the Acropolis. But they managed to find a patch as they headed across to the Temple of Diana. Dell forced a laugh as they seated themselves on one of the large chunks of marble lying around the site. ‘Is this marble a part of the Parthenon and an archaeological treasure, or destined to be used in the restoration? I can’t believe there’s so much marble scattered around the place.’
‘The latter I suspect,’ Alex said, obviously not interested in talking about marble, perhaps aware she was using it as a stalling tactic. He spoke bluntly. ‘Dell, I meant what I said before. I find you very attractive in every way but you’re pregnant to another man and that puts you out of bounds.’
‘I... I see,’ she said, thinking back to her list of what ifs. She took a deep steadying breath against a twisting stab of disappointment. ‘I appreciate your honesty, understand where you’re coming from. A lot of men would probably feel the same way, I imagine. That doesn’t stop me from being delighted I’m pregnant.’ Her eyes dropped, so did her voice. ‘What it does make me feel is regret...regret that maybe we didn’t meet at a different time or place.’ She looked up at him again. ‘For the record, I find you very attractive. I... I like you too, which is a surprise as I used to loathe you.’
His laugh was broken and rough. ‘I can’t imagine how I could ever have considered you an enemy,’ he said.
He went to kiss her again but Dell put her finger across his lips to stop him. ‘No. That last kiss—that first kiss was perfect. Let’s not override it with a kiss of regret and...what might have been.’
She took his hand in hers. ‘But please, hold my hand for the rest of the day, because I couldn’t bear it if you didn’t.’
‘As you wish, although I would kiss you with no regret.’ He folded her hand into his much bigger one.
She took a deep breath to keep her voice steady. ‘When we get back to Kosmimo, I suggest we pretend this never happened. That we agree you’re my boss and I’m your assistant. We go back to the status quo, as it can never be anything more than that between us. I... I couldn’t bear working with you, sharing the pavilion with you, if it was any other way.’ If ever there was a time for her fluffy-chick face, this was it.
But when in defiance of her feeble ban he lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss into the sensitive centre of her palm, she did not object. She could not let a betraying quiver in her voice let him guess she was crying deep down inside her heart.
CHAPTER TWELVE
TRUE TO HER WORD, Dell didn’t refer again to their trip to the Acropolis. Alex wasn’t sure if he was surprised or relieved at the way she had totally wiped from their agenda their kiss in front of the columns of the Parthenon.
During the week they’d been back, she deftly changed the subject if anything regarding that day threatened to sneak into the conversation. He had even looked on her Dell Dishes blog to see what she had posted about her trip to Athens.
She wrote about her climb of the Acropolis and shared food images from the Athens restaurants where they had eaten together. But without a mention of him. ‘My companion,’ she referred to when describing her climb. Her neuter-general companion was what he had been relegated to. Common sense told him that was perfectly appropriate. He should appreciate her discretion. It was insane to feel excluded. Not when he was the one who had called the shots.
At the office she was bright, efficient and as totally professional as she should be. As if she had never murmured her pleasure at his kiss with a sweet little hitch to her voice.
It was he who felt unsatisfied. Grumpy. Frustrated. Because just that taste of her lips had awakened a hunger for her. A need. If he could take her to bed and make love to her before she showed any further signs of pregnancy, pretend she wasn’t expecting another man’s baby, he would. Only he knew it would be the wrong thing to do. For him, for her. Because he liked her enough not to want to hurt her. And sex without commitment, whether she was pregnant or not, was not something that Dell would welcome. He sensed that, knew that.
Yet how ironic that the further she got into her pregnancy, the more she bloomed and the more beautiful she appeared. He had heard the word blooming used to describe expectant women but had never had an idea what it meant. She was still barely showing but she was curvier in the right places, her hair appeared thicker and glossier, her skin glowed and her eyes seemed a brighter shade of green.
On occasion her complexion was greener too. But her morning sickness seemed to be easing. Soon she might be able to handle the daily crossing between Nidri and Kosmima and go back to stay in Aunt Penelope’s villa. But she didn’t mention it and neither did he.
Alex liked having her in the pavilion, even though she studiously avoided any potential moments of intimacy. Even though it was frustrating knowing she was in the bedroom next to him—each of them all alone in those super-sized beds. Because her presence—her light, quick footsteps on the marble floor, snatches of her voice as she hummed a Greek song his aunt had taught her as she moved around the kitchen—was comforting.
He realised for the first time in a long time he didn’t feel lonely. The nightmares about Mia in the clutches of the gunman had abated. Thanks to Dell. He dreaded how empty the rooms would seem when she went back to Australia to have her baby.
He felt like humming himself—although he never did anything so unmanly—as he checked the latest reports from the architects and designers. They were well on track; in fact some of the rooms in the hotel were already just about ready for occupancy. It was pleasing.
Dell had still been in the pavilion earlier this morning as he had headed over to the main building and their shared office. He hadn’t enquired about her estimated time to start work. It was likely she wasn’t well. Not that she’d let her morning sickness interfere in any way with her work. That added another notch to his admiration of her; he knew how difficult it must be.
This morning he was impatient for her to get to her desk. He wanted to share his exultation that things were going so well. Because she had contributed to it with her keen eye and smart observations. Not to mention her meticulous record-keeping. Another thing that pleased him was her handling of publicity. Her careful drip-feeding of snippets about the launch, her forward-planning of interviews and media site visits were beginning to create the low-level buzz he had hoped for. He had every reason to pay her that bonus—sooner rather than later perhaps.
He looked up from his desk as he heard her footsteps approach, dragging rather than tip-tapping on the marble. Alarmed, he leapt to his feet. Was she ill again?
But when she entered the room Dell looked more distressed than sick. Her face was flushed, high on her cheekbones, her eyes glittered, and her hands were balled into fists. ‘Sorry I’m late,’ she said, tight-lipped.
‘Dell, what’s going on?’
‘Nothing,’ she said.
‘That’s obviously not true.’
She gave a great sigh that wrenched at him. ‘I don’t want to bring my personal problems to work.’
‘Where else can you take them right now?’
That forced a glimmer of a smile from her. ‘Are you sure you want to hear this?’
If it had been anyone other than Dell, he would have beat a hasty retreat. Girl problems were something to be avoided. But she really didn’t have anyone else with whom to share her obvious angst. ‘Fire away,’ he said.
She stood by her desk, feet braced as if steeling herself. ‘I just had a horrible, abusive call from my ex-husband, Neil. He’s found out that I’m pregnant.’
‘How? You said no one else knows bu
t me and your doctor.’
Alex swore he could hear her teeth grinding. ‘The stupidest of mix-ups. The fertility clinic sent a letter to me at his address—which was my old address. Seemed they’d sent it to me at my rented apartment and it had been returned, even though I paid for a redirection order on my mail. So they sent it to the previous address they had for me. Needless to say I’m furious at them. And at the darn post office.’
‘Your ex opened a letter that was addressed to you?’
‘That would be typical—he always thought my business was his business. I... I used to think his controlling ways were because he cared. Boy, did I get to know better towards the end.’
Alex hated to see the bitter twist of her mouth. The more he heard about her ex, the less he liked him. ‘You said he was abusive?’
‘Furious. Shouting. Making threats. Said he refused to have anything to do with the baby. That...that the embryo should have been destroyed. That I...that I had no right to take it. That... I was utterly selfish to have done what I did. That I... I wasn’t thinking of anyone else but myself.’
‘I’m so sorry, Dell. If there’s anything I can do—’
‘Thank you but, despite how vile he’s being, he did have some right to be angry. I don’t regret undertaking the procedure but I knew it probably wasn’t the right thing to do. We weren’t married any more. Circumstances were entirely different.’
Alex wanted to draw her into a hug but he knew it would not be welcome. In spite of all his business expertise he honestly didn’t know how he could help her make the best of the complex and unusual situation she found herself in. But his thoughts were racing. He knew a lot of people in Sydney. People who could track down this guy. Keep an eye on Dell’s ex. Report back to Alex so he could make sure Dell wasn’t under any threat. He worried about her going back to Sydney on her own.
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