One Week in Greece

by Demi Alex

  I love you and want only good things for you. This situation is not that. There are many things to consider, things you’re not aware of, and things your young and optimistic heart can’t see. Give me the chance to explain my reasoning and motivation in person.

  I have instructed Raul to be ready for takeoff at five. Let me know where and when you would like to meet before we leave. I’ll be there. I’d really like you to bring your passport and return home with me.

  I do love you.

  Always,

  Your father

  “He loves me,” she said, probably to herself, and leaned back on Justin’s chest. “I know he does. But he’s wrong. This is best for me. You are best for me.”

  Justin tried his hardest to remain seated, not stand, and swing her in his arms. But mentally, that was exactly what he did.

  “Do you want us to meet with him?”

  “It doesn’t matter at this point,” she said, sounding calm and decided. “Paul won’t be back until seven, so obviously he can’t make it by five. We agreed to tell him about our relationship together. Anything else can wait.”

  “Yes.” He was back to monosyllabic answers and he didn’t care one bit. Tangling his fingers in her hair, he held the back of her head and looked into her eyes. “Yes.”

  Christo returned with three tall glasses of the iced coffee. The relief on his face was evident in his broad grin. “I’m guessing you’re okay with the letter.”

  “Shoot. I need to text him.” Bethany jumped up and skipped away. “Tell him we’ll see him in New York.”

  He was still her dad, and she still loved him. Justin would make do. “He said he did what he did because it was best for her. Wanted the opportunity to explain in person.”

  “He’s a manipulative dick,” Christo said, making Justin laugh. “But he clearly loves his daughter, and he’s not wrong about the fact that this isn’t an easy thing to deal with. You’re going to come up against a lot of nastiness from the outside. People will talk and it won’t be nice. But you only live once. I’d do the exact same thing in your shoes, my friend. No one will ever have the opportunity to speak negatively if I’m there. I’m with you.”

  “Thanks, Christo. I know. Appreciate it.”

  They drank their iced coffee in silence, both waiting for her to return, and going into action when she asked if their old room was available for them. Now that Rachel was gone, she wanted them to move back and for Sheridan to take the room next door—not our room, but my old room.

  “I like the way you say our,” Justin told her as they packed.

  “Good,” she cooed. “Because I like saying it.”

  * * *

  Sheridan stepped out of the taxi, happy to be on solid ground after the wild ride from the airport to the center of Athens. She turned in a full circle, taking in the city’s pulse.

  “Ancient meets classic meets modern.”

  While Hadrian’s Arch and the Temple of Olympian Zeus, built over five hundred years apart, had stolen her breath as the taxi had driven down the congested avenue, past well-known business awnings and eclectic hotels, it had been the National Gardens that had captivated her. A green oasis in a cement desert, the gardens promised hours of escape from the bustling traffic.

  She stood in Syntagma Square, about the size of a short city block, which was lined with as many cafés as trees, and sat smack in the center of centuries of architecture. While on a typical day she’d lose herself in the marvel of the living museum, she itched to get to her sister.

  “You’re beautiful. You look just like her,” Paul said, his tall, sexy, and very built form towering over her.

  No wonder Bethany had thought of jumping his bones from day one.

  “Except for the color of your hair and the few inches in height—”

  “Hey, you’re calling me short.” Her whole life everyone had pointed out how Bethany had the height, taking her seriously, and Sheridan had the fun and bubbly personality, dismissing her opinions as flighty. “My height has nothing to do with anything.”

  “Okay,” he drawled, raising his hands at his side in the universal gesture of surrender. “I was only commenting on how you resemble each other. Not on what a shortie you are.”

  “Hey!” She stuffed her hands in her jeans pockets and stretched tall…well, as tall as her five-foot-two height allowed. “I’m an inch shorter than the average American woman.”

  He raised a doubtful brow and grinned.

  “Fine. Maybe two inches,” she said, looking toward the top of the square to the Parliament building and the guards in funky white kilt-like skirts, standing perfectly still while an invasion of pigeons entertained tourists.

  “The Presidential Guard is known as Evzones, and while they’re part of the military, their duties are ceremonial,” Paul explained. “Today, they guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in front of the Parliament Building.”

  She recognized the building, knew it would take days to see all the monuments in Athens, and felt guilty for mentally scheduling a return trip when her sister was in such bad straights.

  “First, Bethany is just fine,” her sister’s sexy new guy said, as if hearing her thoughts.

  She looked up at him. And because of boring etiquette classes, Sheridan remembered to keep her mouth closed and not gawk. Hopefully her sunglasses did their job of hiding her admiration of that dizzying grin.

  “I know you’re not supposed to trust a man who says trust me, but trust me. She’s fine. She’s with Justin. And I wouldn’t have left them if I thought otherwise.” Paul placed his hand on her elbow and led her down the block.

  She knew Justin, trusted him, and loved him, except for when she’d hated him for abandoning Bethany. She sighed and stopped walking.

  “I appreciate you taking me under your wing for the day, but I need to go. I can find my way back to the airport and get to Mykonos. I don’t want Bethy to deal with my dad alone.”

  “She won’t deal with your dad alone.”

  Was he being arrogant or ignorant? Edward Michaels wasn’t a man to be put off. He functioned on his own agenda and no one else’s. He’d manage to get to Bethany.

  “Trust me,” he repeated. “Not only is Justin with her, but the three of us have agreed to be together when she talks to him about what happened. With the resort no longer an issue, the only thing they’d be dealing with is personal.”

  Shaking her head, she crossed her arms, and stared at an artistic window display. “He can be very convincing. You don’t know my father.”

  “I know Bethany,” he said, once again flashing that grin and distracting her. “Please trust me on this. We’ll only be a few minutes in the office. Maybe twenty.”

  Twenty wasn’t a few. And twenty minutes could turn into two hours.

  “I promise we’ll be out in enough time to watch the changing of the guard.”

  “Why do I need to accompany you? Isn’t it safe for me to wait at a café in the square?”

  In truth she wouldn’t mind getting out of the heat and into the air conditioning, but she didn’t want to appear nosy about his business. She’d been dying to know what the all-important documents he needed to collect were all about, but he hadn’t offered any information.

  “It’s safe,” he said, shrugging those broad shoulders. “It would make me feel better if you stayed with me.”

  Charming caveman. Protective, overbearing, insistent, but charming.

  Considering her phone was dead and she’d packed her charger in her luggage, she figured she’d deal with the air-conditioned space. But she hadn’t needed to worry about appearing nosy, because Paul insisted she join him in the attorney’s office, where he spoke rapid-fire Greek, tucked a massive dossier beneath his arm, shook the man’s hand, and hustled her back out to the street.

  It all took less than twenty minutes.

  Plenty of time. They watched the changing of the guard.

  “Do you l
ike honey as much as Bethany does?” Paul asked, checking his watch as the guards took their stations.

  “Yes.” What did honey have to do with the time?

  “Great. We’ll grab some loukoumades on our way to our next stop. I need you happy and feeling good so you can help me out.”

  Okay. So maybe Charming Caveman was a bit eccentric.

  “Loukouwhats?” She hurried to match his stride, but he didn’t really slow until they lined up before a small café that seemed to be straight out of the early nineteen hundreds.

  “Loukoumades are little balls of fried dough, infused with a honey-syrup, and loaded with nuts and cinnamon.” They made it to the counter, and he ordered two iced coffees and a serving of the sweets.

  “Frappé, light and sweet,” he said, handing her the plastic cup. “Let’s grab a table. We have fifteen minutes before the appointment.”

  “Paul, how am I supposed to help you if I don’t understand the language and have no idea what you want me to do?”

  “You’ll help just fine.” There was that grin again. “And what I want you to do is point, koukla. Be you and point.”

  Chapter Thirty

  Bethany glanced at her phone for the umpteenth time in half an hour. “They’re late. Should we check the flight status?”

  “Five minutes late. And I did check. The plane landed on time.”

  She wanted to shout…loudly.

  “I don’t get how you can be so calm,” she said. “He hasn’t called or touched base since that text. Neither one is answering their phone. What if something happened? What if something went wrong?”

  Justin shut down the laptop and walked to her. His large and sure hands untangled her arms from her body, and snaked around her waist. He fit his hips against her belly and lowered his head to the side of her neck, pressing his lips to the very spot that made her whole body tingle.

  “Do I have to take you to bed and make you relax again?”

  She laughed. “Is it such a hardship?”

  “Nope.” He slid his hands down her ass and to her thighs, lifted her against him, and settled her legs around his waist. “A man has to do what a man has to do.”

  “Stop,” she said, feeling the butterflies in her tummy take flight. “Paul and Sheridan will be here any minute.”

  “Paul won’t mind.”

  “My sister will,” she said, squirming down his length. “Wine. Outside. In the open. Now.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He reached for a bottle and two glasses, motioning for her to bring two more glasses and the corkscrew. “As you wish.”

  Way too relaxed, he winked and walked out the door to their table. She followed, handed him the opener, and enjoyed watching the simple act of J uncorking a bottle of wine. She enjoyed it even more when he poured a single glass, took her hand, and strolled to a chaise lounge.

  Sitting between his outstretched legs, his hand protectively draped over her, she inhaled the heavenly scent of the local wine and brought it to her lips for a sweet taste.

  “Again, just one glass. Are you a true romantic, wanting your lips where mine have been, or are you just stingy with glasses?”

  The taunt received exactly the response she’d aimed for.

  Justin curled a hand at the back of her neck, looked into her eyes, and brushed his lips over hers. “Have you missed the lack of a dishwasher?” Then giving her no chance to respond, he claimed her mouth, swept past her lips, and showed her exactly why she didn’t mind sharing a glass.

  A second hand moved from her nape up through her hair. “Exactly what I like coming home to.”

  Her heart leapt with joy at the only thing that could have made the kiss better. With a soft touch to the side of her mouth, Paul was there, his tongue stroking over theirs, making everything perfect. Just perfect.

  “Nice to know, but you’ve insisted to witnesses coming home with you,” Christo’s voice broke through the haze.

  Aware of their audience, Bethany lifted her head, and found Kosta pretending to shield Sheridan’s eyes, while Christo stood like a Greek god Mr. Clean, his shirt stretched to the max over his muscled chest, as he crossed his arms and looked down at them.

  “Sheridan!” Her heart overflowed with happiness at the sight of her baby sister, and she pushed through the sea of testosterone to pull her into an embrace. “I’m so happy you’re here.”

  “I’m here, sis. I couldn’t let you go through this alone.” Sheridan wrapped her arms so tight around Bethany, it was difficult to breathe. “I won’t let dad’s prehistoric beliefs make you miserable again. Never. Go for what you want, Bethy. Just go for it.”

  “I am,” Bethany said, pulling back and meeting her sister’s gaze. She smoothed back the beautiful golden waves of her hair and smiled. “I truly am. You don’t need to fight my battles with Dad. He’s gone.” She glanced at Paul. “And since I doubt he’ll be back any time soon, we’ll see him in New York when the summer is over.”

  He gave her a knowing grin, and her heart swelled with love. She returned her attention to Sheridan.

  “I’m happy you’re here so you can experience this beautiful place. Not to mention meet the Lallas men, who have enchanted your big sister in the most magical way.”

  Sheridan rolled her eyes and giggled as she glanced from Paul, to Christo, to Kosta.

  “You’ve already been exposed to their charms, eh?”

  “Sure have,” Sheridan said, and then turned into Justin’s waiting arms. “And I’ve missed you, you big lug. I’ve missed you so much.” She buried her face in his chest and balled her fists beside it. “I’ve missed my brother.”

  With a barely perceptible inhale, Justin hugged her close and dropped a kiss atop her head. “I’ve missed you more, missy.”

  Bethany’s life was complete. She had all she could ask for, and she sent up silent gratitude as she smiled at the love standing around her.

  “So what do you think of the Lallas compound?” Bethany asked, taking her sister’s hand and guiding her toward the table.

  Kosta had pulled up more chairs and had already poured the wine. He flashed that same grin his nephews had perfected, and motioned for everyone to sit.

  “There has been a slight change in that, my children,” he said, handing Paul a rolled canvas, and taking a seat.

  “Efharisto, Theo.” Paul tapped his hand over his heart in gratitude. He looked from Bethany to Justin, managing to speak to them with his eyes. He loved them. Needed them. And there was no doubt. Paul unrolled the canvas and placed the painting from the souvenir shop on the table.

  “Vaso’s Dream,” she said.

  “And our pool,” Paul added. He knelt between her chair and Justin’s. “I love you. You are my present and my future. You are my everything.”

  She and Justin shared a past. Justin and Paul shared a past. But they all shared today, and she wanted nothing more than to share the future. It was the three of them, together, as one.

  She glanced up at Justin, noticing Christo, Sheridan, and Kosta standing over his shoulder. Justin met her gaze, and grinned.

  “Very true.” Justin leaned down and brushed a kiss on Paul’s lips, then leaned across and did the same to hers. “I love you, too. You’re my everything.”

  Her vision blurred. She placed a hand on each of their cheeks. “I love you more.”

  “While the courts and church won’t let us marry or recognize our union in official capacity, our families do.” Paul reached for a thick folder. “You both know Theo offered me Vaso’s Dream as my own, and I’ve accepted on the condition that you both accept it as our own. It may be untraditional, but I’m asking for your hearts forever with our joint ownership in the resort.”

  Bethany sucked on her lower lip. “A proposal for forever in the form of the resort?”

  “Yes, baby. What’s mine is yours and Justin’s, forever.”

  “And what’s mine is both of yours,” she said, placing a hand in Pau
l’s and turning her palm up for Justin to take.

  Justin hadn’t pulled away, but his body had gone stiff. His dark gaze narrowed and his nostrils flared, and she shuddered. She knew all too well what was going on in his mind since he didn’t accept things from others.

  He’d worked twice as much and refused to compromise on anything. She knew he’d invested every dime Paul had in City Wings, which meant he’d also put everything he had into the joint venture. Paul had said he’d made them live in a dump until they could afford better. Meaning he hadn’t allowed Paul to pay for better.

  Releasing a soft breath, she closed her eyes.

  Trust, she thought.

  “With this resort, I thee wed,” Paul said, squeezing her hand.

  She opened her eyes as Justin squeezed her other hand.

  “With this resort, I thee wed,” Justin said.

  “With this resort, I thee wed,” Bethany repeated, pulling both their hands to her chest as their mouths met in the center.

  Applause drew her from the moment, and she smiled. “I never thought I could ever be so happy. I love you.”

  “I love you more,” Justin and Paul said simultaneously, standing and pulling the three of them into a tight circle, their hands clasped together.

  “Wait, wait,” Sheridan exclaimed, pushing three red boxes into Christo’s hands and shoving him forward. “I chose them. You do the honors.”

  Christo flashed that perfect Lallas grin and closed his fingers over Sheridan’s hands, bringing them to his lips for a kiss. “My pleasure, koukla mou.”

  Christo opened the ring boxes and removed three Trinity de Cartier bands. He touched them ceremoniously to the top of their joined hands. “As witnesses, we wish you love and happiness always.”

  As traditional in the Greek Orthodox Church’s wedding ceremony, Christo the symbolic witness and koumbaro, exchanged the rings three times between them, placed the wedding bands on their fingers, and joined their hands.

  “Marriage is not before man, but before God and your hearts. I’m honored to witness this union. I love you, Cousins.”