“What is it?”
“Something that will make you feel better.”
“I told you I’m fine.”
“Granted you are not hurt, but your nerves are on edge and this will help calm you down.”
Her nerves were on edge because of him, she thought testily, and took the glass. His fingers brushed hers and she pulled away sharply almost spilling her drink. Leo gave her a slow, lazy smile as he settled casually on the settee beside her. Sam’s heart beat erratically and with a shaky hand, raised the glass to her mouth, taking a deep gulp.
The drink burned her throat as it went down, like liquid fire, and she sputtered and coughed as her eyes pricked with tears.
“What is it?”
“Ouzo. It’s a Greek liqueur. I gather you have never tasted it before.”
“No and I don’t care to again, thank you very much,” she replied tartly. She caught a glimmer of a smile on his face as he took the glass from her hand and placed it on the coffee table before them.
“Now,” he said sombrely, as he brought his dark gaze back to her face. “Why did you approach Lightning? That was a foolish thing to do after I warned you against it.”
The lightening bolt from her reading! She was the woman she’d seen who would be in danger. She tried to ignore the tantalizing effect his nearness had on her. “If it’s an apology you’re looking for, I apologise, Leo. I’m sure the last thing you want is an accident. How would you explain that to Toni?”
His face hardened. “Precisely. I want you returning back home in one piece.”
Sam tensed. Were they back to square one? Was Leo worried she would complain to Toni about him? Her spirits dropped. After the nice day had yesterday, she thought things were better between them.
“Why do you dislike me, Leo?” She asked suddenly.
He slid a sultry look over her flushed features and lower to her breasts as they rose and fell in anticipation to his response.
“Do I?” His chiselled lips twisted into a tight smile. “On the contrary. I find you are a very attractive woman, Sam.”
“I thought you said I wasn’t your type?”
“When did I say that?”
“At the airport.”
“As it happens, I find you very attractive and I have wanted to kiss you since we first met.”
“Oh.” Sam was both warmed and nervous from his admission. “Well, a…a kiss would serve no purpose.” She rose to put as much distance between them.
Slowly, he rose as well, his expression darkening. “And the more I get to know you, the more I want to kiss you.” He took a couple of steps and brought himself directly in front of her.
Sam looked up into his eyes and a myriad of emotions went through her. Confusion, excitement, fright. “Yes, well,” she said, hearing the catch in her voice as she took another nervous step back. “I’m flattered, but considering I’ll be leaving in a week and a half, sharing a kiss would be useless. Not…not to mention you have a girlfriend.”
He took a step toward her, his eyes growing darker. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”
Sam frowned. “Katina?”
He shrugged nonchalantly. “We see each other from time to time. That is all.”
He meant they had sex together from time to time, she thought with an uncharacteristic stab of jealousy. “Oh,” Sam said quietly and dropped her gaze to his black shirtfront. She felt his fingers on her chin as he gently raised her head. Her jitters grew and she delicately cleared her throat as she took a step back, effectively removing her chin from his clasp.
Leo visibly stiffened. “Why do you always do that?”
“Do what?”
“Pull away.”
“I don’t.”
“You do.” He ran a rough hand through his hair, his expression unfathomable. “What did they do to you?”
“Who?”
“The two men you dated. You mentioned them on the beach, the two men who hurt you.”
Sam drew her shoulders up. “No one hurt me. I was the one who ended those relationships.”
“Ah yes, because the cards told you to.”
“What’s wrong with that? And what makes you think the reason I don’t want to kiss you has to do with a broken heart?” She drew her arms around her. “I just don’t want to kiss you, Leo.”
His lids came down, hooding his expression. “The lady doth protest too much. Perhaps we should put that to a test?”
Sam blinked. “What do you mean?” She knew full well what he meant.
“Maybe I should kiss you to see if you respond.”
Sam gasped. “That has got to be the most ridicu—Oomph!”
Her body went still as his lips covered hers.
Leo’s hands crushed her body to his. He kissed her with a passion that chilled and thrilled her at the same time. Sam couldn’t move. She’d been kissed before, but never like this. His mouth was firm and warm as it tantalized and coaxed her lips apart. Her limbs thawed as his hands ran over her back and lower to press her body up against his hard arousal. She whimpered against his mouth and was dangerously close to fainting. Then, without warning, her body reacted to the passionate onslaught of his mouth and she slid her arms up around his wide shoulders up to his head.
Leo groaned against her lips and she opened her mouth. His tongue meshed and mingled with hers and she clung to him for dear life. She couldn’t seem to get enough of him and she moaned against his mouth. He groaned from deep within his throat, sounding more animal than human. An ache mounted in the lower regions of her body as she returned his kiss with a hunger she never knew existed in her. This was where she wanted to be, she thought in a daze. In his arms, close to him, experiencing all these wild emotions. She was losing control and her neat, orderly life unravelled before her eyes, but she didn’t care. She felt whole and safe in his arms. One. That little, three letter word felt right. One.
Sam moaned softly against his mouth as he dug his hands in her riotous mane, bringing her head closer to his. He groaned again and drew his mouth away from hers, his forehead resting on hers. They were both breathing hard.
“Before this goes any further, we need to talk,” he said hoarsely. “There is something I need to tell you.”
Sam was dazed. She didn’t want this moment to end. She wanted the kiss to go on, but something in his tone made her look up into his face.
Was this where she was going to get her heart broken? Was this where she was going to collapse on the stairs because she was stricken with grief? The reading she had done on him the other night in her room came tumbling back and she tried pushing it at the back of her mind.
“What is it?” She asked.
He grimaced and a hint of regret shadowed his dark features. “I don’t know where to begin.” He paused deliberately. “Maria mentioned to me on your first night here you thought you heard a wolf howling outside?”
“Yes,” she said huskily.
“Sam, that was—”
“Ah, se vrika, Leo.”
The cold, hard voice made Sam jump out of Leo’s arms. She spun around and saw a beautiful, dark haired woman wearing a short, pink, strappy dress exposing a lot of cleavage, standing by the door. Her dark, exotic eyes shot daggers at Sam. It wasn’t the anger the woman was directing at Sam that shocked her. It was the sound emanating from her throat. She was growling.
“We just arrived, Leo,” the woman said. “My family is in the drawing room with your parents.” She gave Sam a raised brow. “I see you have a guest, agapimou. Care to introduce us?”
Leo shot the woman a cold, annoyed look. “Sam, this is Katina Spanakis.”
“Pleased to meet you,” Sam said in a small voice, unable to forget the growling she heard. Images of the She-Beast she’d seen in her reading with Leo flickered in her mind.
Katina walked into the room. “The pleasure is all mine, Sam,” she replied coldly.
Sam sensed the hatred pouring out of the woman. Stifling a choke, Sam gave Leo a quick look.
“I…I’m going. I have to…” she said brokenly, making her way to the door.
Leo’s lips thinned. “I do not want you to go. We need to talk,” he said hoarsely, throwing Katina another irritated glance.
Sam shook her head. She had to get out of here. Katina’s dark energy was suffocating her. “We can talk later.” She glanced at the woman who was watching them in a smouldering, simmering silence.
Without another word, she made her way to the door. Behind her, she heard Leo say abruptly, “Actually, you and I need to talk, Katina. Now.”
Chapter 8
Sam trembled as she made her way to the kitchen, unable to focus on anything other than Leo’s kiss. His passionate embrace had effectively shattered any lingering resolve she may have had. Her inhibitions had fled, her doubts had disappeared, her connection to him had left her reeling.
She recalled how perfectly his mouth fit with hers, and a sharp jolt stabbed at her stomach. She released a pathetic sounding whimper. God, what he must think of her, she thought. He must have thought she was a lovesick schoolgirl the way she had clung onto him.
Sam took a deep breath as she opened the two-door, stainless steel fridge for bottled water.
“I’m such an idiot,” she muttered and took three gulps when she realized she wasn’t alone.
“Are you all right?” A young, feminine voice asked from behind her.
“What?” Sam turned around, startled at the unconventional sight before her. She stifled a gasp.
“I said, are you all right?”
The young girl must not have been more than fifteen, with jet black, short, spiky hair, thick black kohl eyeliner, and black lipstick. Sam cast a surreptitious glance at her attire and noticed the ripped jeans attached with huge safety pins, black tank top, and thigh high, grey army boots. This girl was making a serious fashion statement, only Sam didn’t know what it was.
One thing was certain, though, Sam instantly picked up on her insecurities, fears, and loneliness. This girl was deeply troubled and…sad.
“I’m fine,” Sam said after collecting herself from her initial shock.
“Why are you an idiot?” The young girl asked.
“Excuse me?”
“I heard what you said to yourself. Why did you call yourself an idiot?”
“Oh.” Sam pursed her lips. “I just did something really stupid and I…I always talk to myself when I do stupid things.” And this was a big one, she thought. According to her cards, heartbreak was just around the corner now. She was going to collapse in grief on the stairs.
She stifled a sigh. “I’m Sam.”
“Elena. I’m here with my family.”
“You must be Katina’s sister.” Beneath all that make up and rough attire, Sam sensed the young girl’s sweet disposition. “It’s nice to meet you, Elena.”
The young girl gave Sam a long, speculative look. “Has my sister met you yet?”
Sam nodded. “I met her in the library just now.” Sam tried to block the memory from her mind and failed.
“I gather she wasn’t too pleased seeing a gorgeous woman in Leo’s house.” Elena seemed smug. “Dinner should be interesting,” she murmured.
Sam could tell there was no love lost between the sisters and nearly hugged Maria for choosing that moment to make her bustling entrance.
“Ah, there you are, koritsimou,” she said, beaming at Sam. “I am going to the hospital to see Nitsa and the baby. She gave birth to a healthy seven pound girl. Would you like to come with me?”
Sam’s spirits lifted at the prospect. She had to get out of this house. “I’d love to.” She turned to Elena. “I’ll see you at dinner.”
“Can’t wait,” the young girl replied with a small twitch on her mouth that resembled a smile.
“Maria,” Sam said, “before we go, I need to make a call. Do you have a telephone book? I need to look up a number.”
“Of course. I have one here in this drawer.”
Sam looked up orphanages and jotted the only number she found with the pen and paper Maria had handed to her.
The older woman smiled. “You can use the phone in the hall.”
Sam smiled. “Thanks. I’ll only be a minute.”
Her call to Alek ended up being fifteen minutes. First she had to locate him, and then she spent ten minutes talking to him. He was such a sweet boy, Sam thought. It warmed her heart how happy he sounded to hear from her.
Everything was settled. After the hospital, she would take the Volvo and pick him up. Alek mentioned it would be easier if she picked him up at the main intersection near the orphanage and she took his suggestion because she didn’t know her way around. She described the grounds of the villa to him and mentioned they could capture the scenic splendour on canvas before dinner.
Alek couldn’t contain his excitement, especially when she mentioned there were horses they could sketch.
Sam put the phone down and went out to meet Maria. Spending time with Alek would take Leo off her mind—and after that soul-shattering kiss, her mind, body and spirit needed the break. She’d never felt like this for a man before and she wondered if it was pure lust or if she was in danger of falling in love with him. Her face flamed as she stepped out into the warmth of the mid day sun.
* * * *
The visit to the hospital was wonderful. The baby was adorable and Nitsa was so pleased to see Sam. She stayed with Nitsa for a couple of hours before she picked up Alek and returned to Leo’s house.
Sam smiled as she watched Alek’s expression after he opened his gifts from her and Leo. His eyes were curiously shiny as he thanked her in a gruff voice. The paint set was on his lap and he ran his hands reverently over it like it was a priceless artefact. She silently praised Leo again for his thoughtful gift.
She inhaled slowly, drawing an appreciative gaze around her. What a lovely spot, she thought. They were seated in the gazebo in the back of the house. She drew a warm gaze back at Alek and smiled.
“I’m so happy you like everything. I have a feeling that paint set is going to be put to good use.”
Alek looked down at his lap, his expression awed. “It’s amazing. I’ve…I’ve never had anything so perfect.”
Sam patted his hand gently. “You deserve it. To become the artist I know you’ll be, you need the right tools. Leo will be very pleased you approve of his gift.”
“I have to thank him,” he said shyly.
Sam smiled. “You’ll get the chance to over dinner.”
His eyes grew shinier, and he blinked. “Thanks for inviting me, Sam. I’m glad I met you.”
“Me, too.”
He lowered his head and Sam knew it was time to change the subject. The moment they shared was getting highly emotional and she didn’t know who was going to burst into tears first, her or him.
“So, how about we start on our drawings,” she said briskly, opening her sketch pad to a fresh sheet.
“Sure,” he said. “Oh, I almost forgot. I practiced the horizon the way you showed me.” Alek opened his dog-eared sketch pad. “I tried the same techniques you used for the light on the water. Here,” he added, handing her his pad. “Tell me…tell me if it’s any good. It was my fourth try.”
Sam gave his drawing an objective eye and sighed her appreciation. “Alek, it’s really good.” She smiled at him. “I can’t believe how talented you are and you’re only, what, sixteen years old?”
“I’m fifteen.”
“When I was fifteen, I couldn’t draw a box if my life depended on it. You have natural talent. I had to work really hard to hone my craft.”
“Do you just draw scenery, or can you do other stuff?”
“I can do portraits, too. I drew your portrait the other evening. Would you like to see it?”
His eyes widened. “Sure.”
She flipped her pad to the end where she had placed his picture carefully and showed it to him. “Here. Do you like it?”
Alek remained silent for a few moments as he stared
at it. “Hey, that’s me. Wow, I can’t believe all the people on the beach that day and I asked you for a pen. An artist.”
Sam laughed softly. “There’s are no such things as coincidences, Alek. We met for a reason.”
“I wonder what that reason is,” he murmured, staring at the picture.
“We’ll find out,” she said gently, “and I’m sure it’s a good one.”
He looked at her and smiled, his dark eyes dimming with sadness. “You’re leaving soon, aren’t you?”
She ruffled his hair. “And you are one young man I’m going to keep in touch with. Don’t you forget it.”
“Hey, you two.”
Sam and Alek both turned at the sound of the voice and saw Elena, decked in safety pins, army boots, black lipstick, and thick eyeliner standing near the entrance of the gazebo. Sam could have sworn the young girl had thickened her eyeliner since the last time she saw her and she heard Alek stifle a giggle beside her. She shot him an admonishing look.
“Alek, this is Elena,” she began, giving the young boy a look the gothic teen couldn’t see that said ‘behave’. “Elena, this is my friend, Alek.”
“Hey,” Elena said, her energy belligerent.
“Hey,” he replied.
“What’s that?” Elena asked, pointing to the sketch pad.
“A sketch pad,” Alek offered cheekily.
“Obviously. Are you two drawing?”
“Yeah.”
“Mind if I hang out and see?”
“Of course,” Sam said quickly, patting the seat beside her. The raw chemistry between the two teens was bouncing off her. “Come sit next to me. Alek, show Elena the beautiful pictures you drew.”
He passed Elena his sketch pad and she flipped through the pages, pausing every once in a while. When she got to the picture of the beach, she shot him a surprised look. “Hey, isn’t this the beach down by the port?”
Alek shrugged self consciously. “Yeah. Do…do you like it?’
Sam prayed the young girl would be nice.
Thankfully, Elena smiled, her teeth as white as snow against the black lipstick. “It’s awesome. Hey, you’re really good.”
Alek blushed. “Thanks.”
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