“If men like curvy women so much, then why are supermodels and skinny Hollywood starlets considered sex symbols?” Ellie gasped and brought her hand to her mouth. “Oh, I am so sorry, Mr. Deimos. It must be the ouzo.”
“Nonsense, it is an excellent question,” Nik said thoughtfully, pretending not to notice her discomfort. “One I have never understood. Personally, I have yet to meet a man who would choose a waif-like model over a healthy, voluptuous woman. Have you seen images of our Greek goddesses, the very ideal of femininity? Nary a stick was ever displayed in any Greek temple, I assure you. No, Ellie, as they say, ‘Meat is for the man, bones are for the dog’.”
Ellie hiccupped a laugh. “Why couldn’t I have been born in ancient Greece?”
The wistfulness cloaked in that rhetorical question was almost tangible.
Nik pinned her with his golden gaze. With each passing day, he had grown increasingly convinced she was, in fact, a lost daughter of Hellas. At some point, she had been born of this land. And now that she was here, he could already see the difference. The magic of Hellas called to her soul, and beneath all those layers of efficient capability, she was responding.
Perhaps he would reach out to his sister-in-law when they returned to North America. Psyche was the wife of his brother Eros, once a human princess who had been elevated to the goddess of souls. If anyone could confirm his theory, she would be the one.
Contacting her now wouldn’t be wise. Psyche and his mother, Aphrodite, were not on the best of terms. Thousands of years ago, Psyche’s stunning beauty had drawn away some of his mother’s admirers, and goddesses were extremely territorial about such things. As a result, Psyche and Eros made their home in the Rocky Mountains and only visited Greece when his parents weren’t going to be around.
Aloud, he said, “I think Greece suits you very well.”
Ellie flushed that lovely shade of pink again. After several moments, she said, “It is so beautiful here. Why did you transfer to the U.S.?”
He sat back as he considered his answer. He couldn’t tell her the truth—that he, like all immortals, had to change locations every ten years or so, lest people begin to notice he didn’t age. He had lived all over the globe, dividing up his life into tiny portions among the many nations of the world, though Hellas would always be his true home.
“Ennui,” he said finally.
“Ennui?” she repeated in disbelief. “Because too much wealth and power can get boring after a while?” She slapped her hand to her mouth again, her eyes widened in embarrassment.
Rather than offend, her incongruous comments amused him. It was refreshing to see her relax enough to speak what was on her intriguing mind. He would see to it that ouzo was served at every meal for the duration of their stay.
“Believe it or not, yes. There comes a time, Ellie, when money and prestige are no longer enough, and it becomes necessary to seek out other things.”
“Like what?” she asked, leaning forward in interest. It was hard to contain his grin when she looked at him like that, her eyes as big and wide as he had ever seen them.
He had been right to bring her here. Contrary to his initial plan, bringing her to Greece was not taking her out of her comfort zone, but rather bringing her into it. Already she seemed different, more comfortable, as if she belonged here. He didn’t think it was simply the effects of the ouzo. No, there was much more to it than that; he was certain of it.
“Adventure. Challenge. Romance.”
She thought about that for a moment, her delicate features softening in contemplation. “I imagine all those things would come relatively easy to a man like you, Mr. Deimos.”
“Not as easy as you might think,” he murmured. Thousands of years old, he had seen and done everything. There was little capable of garnering his interest anymore. One of those rare things was currently sitting across from him, pupils dilated and nearly falling asleep with exhaustion, yet too filled with curiosity and wonder to submit.
“Why do you hide your eyes, Ellie?” he asked suddenly, causing those heavy-lidded eyes to pop open. He had asked her the same question once before and had been politely told to mind his own business. He hoped now she was sufficiently at ease to answer.
“How do you know about my eyes?”
“Because I’ve seen them. First, on the day of your unfortunate accident, and then again the next day, when you came into the office wearing sunglasses and I asked you to remove them.”
She dropped her gaze and quietly admitted, “People stare at me when I don’t wear my contacts.”
He frowned. “And that is a bad thing?”
“When I was a child, people would gawk at me, or stop and ask my parents if I was blind,” she said quietly. “And the other kids, well ... Kids can be cruel.”
Nik cursed the woman’s lack of self-confidence, and cursed those who encouraged her to hide her unique beauty behind a mask of mediocrity.
“You have exquisite eyes, Ellie. While you are here, would you refrain from wearing your brown lenses?”
“I don’t know ...” she wavered.
“Please. Just while we are here. You should know that, in my culture, one with eyes such as yours is said to be favored by the gods of Olympus.”
“Really?” she asked, her eyes widening like a child’s.
“Really,” he said with a genuine smile. “Would you at least consider it?”
She thought about it, and then her features softened once again into something inherently feminine. “Yes, Mr. Deimos, I will.”
* * *
“First things first,” Nik said, looking Ellie critically up and down the next morning.
She had found him sipping coffee on the same terrace where they’d had dinner the night before, looking even more handsome in his casual, but undoubtedly expensive, slacks and shirt. The man could probably wear her grandfather’s old leisure suit and manage to make it look good. Wind-tousled golden hair and the hint of similarly hued bristles around his masculine jaw only reinforced that assessment.
“We must go shopping.”
“Excuse me?” she asked, looking down at her simple, modest cotton dress. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”
“Nothing, if we were still in New Jersey,” he said, waving his hand as his lips curled up into a sexy half-grin. “But when in Greece ...”
It was hard to be offended when he smiled at her like that. Ellie found herself smiling, too. Her boss was a totally different person in his native land. He smiled a lot, laughed often, and seemed much more at ease than he was at the office. While she respected, admired, and fantasized about that Nikolaos Deimos, this side of the man was much more likeable. This Nikolaos Deimos was ... well, he was nice.
Her smile continued as he ushered her to the sleek convertible sports car and proceeded to drive down the mountain at near breakneck speeds. As exhilarating as it was, Ellie breathed a sigh of relief when they made it safely to their destination—a quaint town of cobbled streets and specialty shops.
They spent most of the morning there, going from place to place. Nik conversed in fluent Greek with the shopkeepers, gesturing toward Ellie often. For lunch, he led her to a small café for a mouthwatering meal of grape leaves stuffed with a mixture of meat, rice, and cheese. By the time they left, the trunk was filled with bags.
“It is too much, Mr. Deimos,” Ellie said once again. “I really can’t afford all this.” She had been repeating the same two phrases throughout the entire day, but her objections had fallen on deaf ears.
“Ellie, enough. Your expense account is more than adequate to cover everything.”
She blinked. “My what?”
“Your expense account. Surely this was explained to you?”
She shook her head.
“Personal assistants at your level are given expense accounts. There are instances where you will be expected to travel, attend formal functions, and so on, that necessitate such things. Gods, woman, you did not expect to have to pay for all th
is on your own, did you?”
Ellie stared at him, stunned.
He reached over with his fingertips to push upward on her jaw, which had dropped slightly in the last minute or so. “Tomorrow, you will meet Helene. She is from our branch here in Thessaly, and she will take you to the corporate spa.”
* * *
“To a spa? Why?” Her spine stiffened, her muscles tensed. It was the kind of reaction he would have expected had he told her she was required to undergo a full and intrusive physical exam rather than a day being pampered and fussed over. Did this woman not comprehend the idea of self-indulgence?
No, he realized, she probably didn’t, and that saddened him.
Nik smiled patiently. “I have some family business to attend to, and I thought you would like a day to yourself.”
Long moments passed where those diamond-like eyes stared into his warily, as if waiting for the punchline. He counted it as a small victory that she had appeared this morning without those infernal contact lenses.
Finally, she exhaled and said rather shakily, “Oh. Well ... thank you. That’s very thoughtful of you.”
Had they been back in their New Jersey office, Nik would have felt compelled to offer an acerbic retort to remain in character, but here, it wasn’t necessary. Since Ellie was finally beginning to relax and come out of her shell, he didn’t want to do anything that might jeopardize that.
“You’re welcome.” He smiled.
Chapter 8
Ellie had never been to a spa before. The closest she had come was the occasional trip to a local strip mall salon with the twenty-dollar gift card she received from her mother-in-law every year for Christmas. The gift card was usually accompanied by an insult disguised as an innocent remark concerning her personal grooming habits. She had dutifully smiled and thanked her, anyway.
This was nothing like that.
The woman called Helene had arrived at Nik’s home in a sleek, dark green Jaguar earlier that morning. After a brief, murmured conversation with Nik, Helene then took Ellie in the opposite direction of where Nik had taken her the day before. Instead of going down, they wound their way up into the mountains.
Villages became fewer and farther between the higher up they went; the landscape, wilder and even more stunning. Eventually, there were no signs of civilization at all. No houses, no cars, no pedestrians with goats, donkeys, or various other four-legged travelling companions.
Suddenly and without warning, they turned off onto an even narrower road. Ellie had been so busy ogling the spectacular vista afforded by the elevation that she hadn’t even noticed it.
As Helene maneuvered expertly around sharp, serpentine curves with aplomb, Ellie was glad that Helene was the one driving; she would have been scared to death.
Within a few minutes, Helene pulled into a small lot. There was only one building that Ellie could see—a large, understated structure that blended right into the natural surroundings. There was no sign, but there was a bold outline of Mytikas etched into the black glass beside the nearly hidden door.
Helene escorted Ellie to the front desk, all polished black and lit by muted recessed lighting while soothing music played softly in the background. The whole place had a subdued, hush-hush feel to it, and Ellie found herself walking on tiptoes just so she wouldn’t disturb the quiet serenity.
Helene introduced her to another woman, Amaltheia, who was to be her personal consultant for the day.
“You’re not staying?” Ellie asked when Helene turned to leave. She had only just met the woman, and they really hadn’t spoken much, but Ellie had liked her instantly. Plus, experiencing new things was always a little easier with someone else.
“No,” Helene said with a genuine smile. Her English was excellent, but her words were rich with local accent. “I must return to the office. But I will be here to pick you up at the end of the day.”
“The end of the day?” Ellie asked, biting her lip. “Am I really in such bad shape that it will take an entire day?”
Helene laughed. “I like you, Ellie. I can see why Nikolaos is so fond of you.”
Nikolaos Deimos fond of her? When had that happened? Then she figured that Helene was probably just being nice. Ellie didn’t mind. Genuine or not, it was a pleasant change to have someone say something so kind.
Amaltheia took Ellie to a small, private room with exceptionally comfortable seating and a soothing tranquility fountain. Over some delicious tiny sandwiches and herbal tea, Amaltheia asked Ellie a lot of questions, most of which had to do with Ellie’s daily routine and personal preferences.
The woman had a soothing voice, like gently flowing water. She seemed neither pleased nor bothered by Ellie’s lack of a beauty regimen, but she did make a lot of notes on the high-tech tablet she held. Ellie recognized it as the same type of tablet she had seen the executives at Mystikos use.
When Amaltheia was satisfied, she nodded and showed Ellie to another private room where she was instructed to fully undress and don one of the fluffy white robes.
An hour later, Ellie had completely forgotten that cryptic statement about her boss’s “fondness” and the fact that Helene had left her here alone for the entire day. By that point, Ellie had pretty much forgotten her own name.
First, they had her soak in a heated pool of waters rich with restorative minerals and fragrant with healing oils until she relaxed. Then her entire body was scrubbed and exfoliated with a warm sugar scrub, followed by a milk and honey body wrap and scalp massage. As if she wasn’t already boneless, the next hour was devoted to a thorough deep tissue massage.
Feeling more like a liquid mass of warm goo than a solid human being, she required the assistance of one of the skilled technicians to get her to her next scheduled appointment. There, she poured herself into a cloud-soft recliner, where she was treated to a seawater pearl hydrating facial and a full leg and bikini wax.
The facial and leg wax she didn’t mind at all, but Ellie was caught off guard by the intimate nature of the bikini wax. She now understood the importance of melting her into a state of complete relaxation before attempting something like that. Nevertheless, the beautiful dark-skinned woman taking care of her assured her that she would be happy with the results, and Ellie figured if nothing else, she could count it as a once-in-a-lifetime, bucket-list type of experience.
Ellie seemed to be racking up a lot of those on this trip.
Still, it was hard to bemoan even that when the soothing oils were slathered over her body afterward.
One woman worked on her fingernails, another on her toes, while a third used fine threads to shape and arch her brows. Then, when her body had been fully pampered, she was taken to yet another room where a handsome older gentleman cut her hair into a chic, layered style and expertly streaked soft highlights into the dark strands.
To complete the look, her face was dusted lightly with a pearlescent powder, a soft charcoal liner and mascara were applied to bring out her eyes, and a dark rose tint was brushed over her lips to complement her similarly colored gel nails.
Helene blinked several times when Ellie finally emerged in the reception area. Then her mouth formed into a huge smile.
“Ellie, you look absolutely radiant. You had a good visit, I trust?”
Ellie beamed, feeling like a princess. The day had flown by, and for the first time in her life, she actually felt pretty. “Yes, I did.”
“Come. Nikolaos is anxiously awaiting your presence. We are to meet him at the restaurant in less than an hour.”
“Oh.” She looked down at her casual clothes. “Will we have time to go back to the house? I need to change.”
“I hope you do not mind, but I brought an outfit for you. Come, let us head to the dressing rooms.”
Ellie already felt “changed,” and in a good way. Then, when the designer sheath of aqua and silver slid perfectly over her smooth, buffed body, she not only felt pretty, she felt sexy, too.
Helene had thought of everything, fussing over
Ellie with matching silver chains around her neck, arms, and ankles, all of which contained one or more expertly crafted scalloped shells. She then helped her step into her matching heels and handed her a small silk handbag to complete the ensemble.
“Oh, my.” Helene smiled, shaking her head as she stepped back and took Ellie in.
“That’s oh, my in a good way, not a bad way, right?” Ellie asked, unable to completely shake off her lack of self-confidence.
“Definitely in a good way, Ellie.”
* * *
If Nik had any lingering doubts that Ellie was a daughter of Hellas, they were instantly swept away when Helene guided her toward the back room of the exclusive restaurant where he was waiting with several others.
All conversation ceased as everyone turned to see what had stopped him mid-sentence.
Ellie was beautiful. Radiant. A vision. Helene had selected an outfit in obvious tribute to his ancestry. The aqua, the silver, the shell designs—they were all symbols of his mother’s lineage.
He could not stop staring at her. And he was not alone.
Every other man in the room seemed to have the same problem, unable to take their eyes off her.
Helene guided Ellie forward with an amused look on her face. More than one of the men gallantly pulled out a chair for her, but Nik’s softly spoken command left no doubt as to exactly where she would be placed.
“She will sit beside me,” he said simply.
* * *
Ellie felt like Cinderella. She smiled shyly as she walked toward her boss, allowing him to hold her chair out for her.
Nik introduced her as his personal assistant, then proceeded to introduce the others gathered around the table. Most of them, Ellie realized, were members of upper level management in the Mystikos Inc. Had she not spent most of the day being drained of any and all tension, she probably would have been more panicked. As it was, she was simply enjoying the evening too much to allow anything to dampen it.
After a delicious meal and much pleasant conversation, Nik and Ellie returned to his house. They sat out on the terrace, sipping Greek wine and listening to the waves crashing against the rocks down below.
Immortal Dreams: A Mythological Romance Page 6
