by Maya Blake
He shrugged. ‘I suspected we might be.’
That he was very much okay with it—had perhaps even wanted us to be photographed—was evident.
‘And has it achieved what you meant it to?’ I needed the reminder that this was all for a reason. For a definitive purpose which didn’t include getting carried away with fairy tales.
With a flick of his fingers he folded the paper and picked up his coffee. ‘If you mean are my business partners back on board, then, yes. But let’s not rest on our laurels just yet,’ he said.
Did that mean more socialising? More moments like those on the balcony? And why didn’t that fill me with horror? Why was my belly tingling with thrilling anticipation?
Questions and sensations stayed with me through a quick shower and lingered while I chose a bikini set, pulled a floaty spaghetti-strap sundress over it and slipped my feet into stylish wedge shoes.
Stepping out to join Axios and Andreos two hours later, on the landscaped lawn that led to the helipad, I noticed we were flying in a different, larger chopper.
Axios caught my questioning look. ‘This one is more insulated. To better protect Andreos’s delicate eardrums,’ he said, casting an indulgent glance at the baby nestled high in the crook of his arm.
Of course he would have a special helicopter that catered for babies!
With the sensation of having woken up in an alternative universe from which I couldn’t escape, I walked beside him to the aircraft.
The trip, unlike last time, flew by, and before I knew it we were skimming the beaches of Agistros, the azure waters of the island sparkling in the sunlight.
The villa was just as breathtaking as it had been a year ago, and this time, without deep trepidation blinding me, I was better able to appreciate it. Granted, there were other equally precarious emotions simmering beneath my skin, but just for today I let the dazed dream wash over me, revelling in simply being as Axios stepped out of the helicopter, reached to help me out and took control of Andreos’s travel seat.
Expecting tension, in light of the way I’d departed the villa the last time, I breathed a sigh of relief when the staff, headed by Agatha, spilled out with welcoming smiles. It was obvious that news of Andreos had travelled as they cooed over him.
When Agatha carried him off to the kitchen to supervise the picnic preparation, I drifted into the living room with Axios.
Dressed in the most casual attire I’d seen him in so far—high-spec cargo trousers and a navy rugby shirt—he nevertheless still looked as if he’d stepped straight off the cover of a magazine.
To keep myself from shamelessly ogling him, I drifted over to the set of framed photos on one of the many antique cabinets gracing the room. There was a slightly faded one of an old man, his distinguished and distinctive features announcing him as Theodore Xenakis. Ax’s grandfather. The man who’d been forced under duress to make an agreement that had changed lives—including mine.
Perhaps it wasn’t the best choice of subject matter to bring up on what was meant to be a lazy day by the beach. But after hearing Axios open up about his father, I wanted to know more. Yearned to learn what had formed the man whose name I bore.
Once we’d made our way down to a private beach, tucked into the most stunning bay I’d ever seen in my life, I found myself asking, ‘Did your grandfather ever live here on Agistros?’
He stiffened, but his tension eased almost immediately. ‘In the latter part of his life, yes.’
There was more to that statement. ‘Why? I mean, I’ve seen your family. I know you’re dispersed all over Athens, and on several family-owned islands. I also know that Agistros belongs to you. So why did he live here? Did he need care?’
For the longest time I thought he wouldn’t answer. When he did reply, his tone was low. Deep. As if remembering was painful.
‘Before his company fell on hard times my grandfather invested in real estate and gifted islands to every family member. Neo has an island twenty miles from here.’
At the mention of his brother it was my turn to stiffen. ‘I don’t think Neo likes me.’
Ax’s eyes glinted, a hard kind of amusement shifting in their depths. ‘He’s going through a...a situation.’
‘A “situation”?’
‘Something’s been taken from him that he wasn’t quite ready to part with,’ he said cryptically.
I frowned. ‘Someone’s stolen from him?’
‘In a manner of speaking.’
Recalling our conversation, I frowned. ‘A woman?’
Again, dark amusement twisted Ax’s lips. ‘Yes. And a formidable one, I hear.’
Realising he wasn’t going to elaborate, I pressed gently, ‘So...about your grandfather...?’
A trace of bleakness whispered across his face. ‘He left Kosima, his favourite island, for many reasons. But mainly because the strain of trying to save his company took a toll on his family, especially my grandmother. After she died we didn’t deem it wise for him to remain on Kosima by himself. So he came to stay here.’
I wanted to probe deeper, find out why the once booming Xenakis empire had swan-dived to the brink of bankruptcy three years before his grandfather had died. But I held my tongue because I suspected my own family had had a hand in the Xenakis family’s misfortune. Also, that flash of bleakness resonated inside me, his pain echoing mine.
Not wanting the day ruined by revisiting the animosity between our families, I stared at the stunning horizon, a different urge overtaking me. ‘I wish I could paint this,’ I murmured, almost to myself.
Ax turned to me. ‘When was the last time you painted?’
Unsurprised that he knew of my passion, I answered, ‘All through my pregnancy, and a short while after Andreos was born.’
‘Why didn’t you pursue your painting before?’
I shrugged. ‘There wasn’t much call for it on Nicrete.’
His silence was contemplative. ‘You wanted to do something with it in Athens. Do you still want to?’ he asked, a trace of guilt in his voice.
Not if I don’t have much time left.
‘Perhaps not full-time but...yes.’
‘I would like to see you paint.’
Something melted inside me and I couldn’t help my gasp. ‘You would?’
He gave an abrupt nod. ‘If you would allow it...very much.’
Again something tugged inside me, harder this time—a feeling of my world tilting, making me sway towards him.
To counteract it before I did something supremely unwise, I tugged my dress over my head. ‘I’m going for a swim.’
With every step from sand to sea I felt his gaze burn into my skin, heating me up from the inside out. Thigh-deep, I dived into the cool, exquisite water, hoping it would wash away the discordant emotions zinging through me.
This really shouldn’t be difficult. All we had to do was exist in the same space until I was absolutely certain Andreos would be safe and cared for, before I returned to Dr Trudeau in Switzerland to face my fate.
All I had to do was prevent myself from falling under Ax’s spell. Surely it wasn’t that hard?
Yes, it is. I feel more for him with every passing minute!
The weight of that verdict was so disturbing I didn’t sense his presence until the second before he wrapped a strong arm around my waist.
His hair was slicked back, throwing the sharp, majestic angles of his face into stunning relief. Droplets of water sparkled on his face, a particularly tempting one clinging to his upper lip, evoking in me a wild need to lick it off.
‘Andreos!’ I protested.
‘He’s fine,’ he said with hard gruffness as he pulled me closer, tangled my legs with his.
I looked over and sure enough our son was well-insulated by plump pillows, shaded by a large umbrella, happily playing with his rattle.
‘Calypso...’
My name was a thick demand I couldn’t resist. And when he pulled me into his arms and slanted his sensual lips across mine I gave in, my conflicting thoughts melting away under the heat of mounting passion.
Afterwards we returned and spread out on the blankets. A trace of trepidation returned, tingeing the closeness wrapping itself around us, a closeness I wanted to hang on to despite the uncertainty lurking in the future.
Because this version of Axios, who wanted to see me paint, who had opened up about his grandfather, was a version who could so easily worm his way into my heart.
* * *
On the Monday morning after our first trip to Agistros I arrived downstairs to find six high-spec easels and an assortment of expensive paints and brushes. Stunned, I blinked away tears as Axios presented them to me.
‘You...you shouldn’t have.’
He shook his head. ‘You’ve denied your passion long enough,’ he said. ‘A year longer than necessary because of me,’ he added heavily.
Next he organised special transportation for my mother to visit. Having not seen each other for a year, our reunion was tearful, her joy over her grandson boundless.
Seeing her, reassuring myself that she was all right despite the pain still clouding her eyes, lifted a weight off my shoulders. And that melting sensation returned full force when Axios set out to charm her—a ploy that worked to dissipate the lingering tension between them once and for all.
From my father I heard nothing. And, frankly, it didn’t overly bother me.
After that our lives fell into a pattern.
Weekdays were spent at the villa in Athens, with at least three evenings of the week spent at one social engagement or another, which inevitably made front-page news, while Saturday and Sunday were spent on Agistros.
It was almost idyllic—the only fly in the ointment Dr Trudeau’s increasingly urgent emails and the knowledge that now I was assured of Ax’s complete devotion to our son I had no cause to put my health issues on hold.
It was on one weekend a few weeks later, in the place we’d now designated our picnic spot, when he glanced over at me as he reclined on a shaded lounger with a sleepy Andreos dozing on his bare chest. Father and son were besotted with each other, the growing bond between them a source of untold joy to me.
‘I’m flying to Bangkok on Tuesday for business.’
Since he never discussed his business arrangements with me I met his gaze in surprise, unwilling to expose the sharp sting that had arrived and lodged in my midriff. ‘Okay...’
‘You and Andreos can come with me.’
The swiftness with which the sting eased was dismaying—and a little terrifying. Enough to trigger a waspish response. ‘Is that a question or a command?’
The flash of flint in his eyes stunned me. Hard on its heels came the realisation that I much preferred his blinding smiles. The sexy growls when he was aroused. Even his sometimes mocking tones.
Theos, I’d fallen into a highly dangerous state of lust, complacency, and a host of other things I didn’t want to name. One in particular had been gaining momentum, clamouring for attention I was too afraid to give it. It was there when I woke. It blanketed me before I fell asleep and teased my dreams. It was there now, pulsing beneath my skin as Ax’s gaze locked on mine and another blinding smile made an appearance.
‘It’s whichever you find easiest to comply with.’
For some absurd reason my heart flipped over even as I wondered whether he was asking me along because the thought of being separated from us for any length of time was disagreeable to him or because of appearances.
His expression was mostly unreadable, but there was something there. A touch of apprehension I’d never seen before. And, though it was highly unwise to latch on to it, I found myself leaning towards it, indulging myself in the idea that he cared whether I agreed or not.
‘How long is this trip going to last?’
‘It’s to finalise a new airline deal I’ve been working on for a year. It’s been challenging at times, so I expect both sides will want to celebrate after the deed is done. Prepare to stay for the better part of a week. Did you travel to Thailand on your trip?’ he asked, but his almost flippant query didn’t fool me for one second.
Axios was a master at subtle inquisition. Over the past weeks he’d dropped several questions unexpectedly.
‘No. My coin-flip landed in favour of Indonesia instead of Thailand, so I went to Bali.’
‘Then this will be your chance to explore another country,’ he replied smoothly, despite the trace of tension in the air.
Andreos chose that moment to make his displeasure at the charged atmosphere known. Axios absently soothed a hand down his small back, but his eyes remained fixed on me.
When I reached for him Ax handed him over. Then he stayed sitting, his elbows resting on his knees.
‘Will you come with me?’ he asked, his eyes boring into mine.
And because that undeniable yearning for more wouldn’t stop—because I craved this...togetherness more than I craved my next breath—I answered, ‘Yes.’
CHAPTER NINE
TIME IS RUNNING OUT...
The unnerving sensation that time was slipping through my fingers had arrived like a thief in the night and stayed like an unwanted guest, permeating my every interaction with Calypso. I couldn’t put my finger on why and nor did I have a clear-cut solution.
The sensation left me off-kilter and scowling as I climbed the steps into my plane two days later.
A lot of things I’d believed to be cut and dried had become nebulous in the past few weeks. The idea of marriage...of staying married, for instance...didn’t evoke the same amount of resistance it had done a year or even a month ago. As for being a father...
Thoughts of Andreos immediately soothed a fraction of the chaos inside me. My son’s existence had brought a deeper purpose to my life I wouldn’t have believed possible had I not experienced it for myself. The chance to pass on my heritage to him, to teach him about the sacrifices his grandfather had made filled a bleak corner of my soul.
As for his mother...
The warmth I’d enjoyed with her over the past few weeks, watching her joy in painting and simply basking in the unit she and Andreos presented had subtly altered, leaving me with more questions than answers. Even more acute was the feeling of exposure after revealing so much of myself and the anguish her family’s actions had caused mine.
Yes, but only one member of her family...not all of them...
My chest twinged with another sting of guilt. I’d learned from my grandfather’s mistakes, applied his good mentoring to my life and avoided the bad. Shouldn’t the same apply to Calypso? Especially when she’d been caught in the same web of greed as I had?
The urge to hash this out with her grew stronger. And yet the fear of repeating the mistakes of last year, driving her away, stopped me.
It didn’t help that over the last day or so she’d seemed under the weather, thereby curtailing any serious conversation I’d felt inclined to have or my reaching for that final resort of last resorts—tugging her into my arms in the dark of night and letting the mindless bliss of having her melt every fractious thought away.
Harmony and unstinting passion—it was a combination I would never have associated with her a few weeks ago, but I now craved to have it back.
My gaze fell on her as I entered the living area of the plane. She was chatting to one of the attendants, her alluring smile sparking heat in my bloodstream as she nodded to whatever was being said.
Unable to help myself, I let my gaze trail over her. The cream form-fitting jumpsuit caressed her luscious body from shoulder to ankle, its emphasis of her supple behind and lush breasts drying my mouth and reminding me that it had been three long days since I’d had the pleasure of her body.
T
he attendant departed, and as Calypso turned to sit I noticed the top buttons securing the front were left undone to reveal her impressive cleavage. My groin stirred harder and it was all I could do not to give a bad-tempered, frustrated groan.
I approached, dropping into the seat opposite her. She held Andreos like a buffer, her gaze stubbornly avoiding mine even though she was aware of my presence.
‘The silent treatment isn’t going to work where we’re headed. You do know that, don’t you?’
The blue eyes that finally deigned to meet mine were shadowed, her face still showing a hint of the paleness that raised an entirely new set of ruffled emotions inside me.
‘Don’t worry, Axios. I’ll put on the appropriate performance when needed.’
Even her voice had lost a trace of that passionate lustre that fired up my blood.
‘Are you all right?’ The words were pulled from a deep, needy part of me.
Her eyes widened, then she nodded abruptly and her gaze dropped to Andreos. ‘I’m fine. Just a slight...stomach ache.’
The unsettling sensation deepened, the niggling feeling that I was missing something escalating. ‘Did you take anything for it? I’ll get the attendant to bring you—’
She shook her head hastily when I reached for the intercom button, but I didn’t miss the shadow that crossed her face, the knuckles that whitened in her lap.
‘It’s... I’m fine, Ax. I think I’ll go and lie down with Andreos for a while after we take off.’
True to her word, the moment we reached cruising altitude she unbuckled herself, rose, and headed to the back of the plane with Andreos.
The urge to follow, to demand answers to the teeming questions ricocheting in my brain, was so strong I clenched my gut against the power of it.