The Greek's Blackmailed Wife

by Sarah Morgan

  Utterly enchanted by this new, demonstrative Zander, Lauranne pulled away from him wanting to hear more. ‘When did you finally realise you loved me?’

  ‘It crept up on me,’ he confessed, ‘but I had a fairly strong inkling when I found myself telling you all sorts of personal details that I never tell anyone and then being unable to leave you alone even for one moment. It may have escaped your notice but even when I was using the laptop I could have reached out and touched you.’

  She smiled. It hadn’t escaped her notice.

  ‘You are a major distraction,’ he said ruefully, ‘and I think with you by my side the business may well crash and burn. Telling Kouropoulos that we were staying married was a wild impulse that startled me as much as it did you. I think subconsciously I was asking you in public because I was afraid that if I did it in private you might refuse me.’

  ‘I didn’t think you meant it.’ Lauranne tipped her head on one side, her smile teasing. ‘So why did you walk away earlier?’

  ‘Because I didn’t trust myself around Tom,’ he confessed ruefully. ‘And because I thought you might want to take his advice and go with him.’

  ‘But you came back for me—’

  He gave a helpless shrug. ‘I decided that I’m not very good at self-sacrifice,’ he confessed. ‘You’re mine. I didn’t intend to give you up without a fight.’

  ‘If you’d stayed to fight then maybe Kouropoulos would have agreed to sell you the island,’ she said regretfully and a deep voice interrupted them both.

  ‘I would indeed.’

  They both turned to find Theo Kouropoulos watching them with benign amusement.

  ‘So is this marriage fake or real?’

  Zander looked at Lauranne and she smiled, everything in her heart shining from her eyes. ‘It’s real. Very real.’

  Zander pulled her back to him with a groan of all-male satisfaction, dropping a fleeting kiss on her mouth.

  Kouropoulos gave a grunt of approval. ‘In that case the island is yours.’

  Lauranne gave a gasp of astonishment and a delighted smile spread over her face. ‘Really?’

  ‘Really.’ He looked at Zander, a keen expression in his eyes. ‘I knew about your promise to your grandmother and I knew that you weren’t in a position to fulfil it for many years while you were building up the business so I, too, made a promise. I promised your father before he died that I would sell it to no one but you.’

  Zander looked stunned. ‘You spoke to my father about it?’ His voice was hoarse and Kouropoulos shrugged.

  ‘He felt very bad about what had happened and he wanted to make sure that one day the island would be restored to its rightful owner. He had faith in you. He knew you’d rescue his business and build it into something to be proud of.’

  Zander closed his eyes briefly. ‘All these years you’ve refused to sell—’

  ‘Because I made a promise to your father.’ Kouropoulos nodded, a satisfied expression on his face. ‘I was waiting for you to come to me. You took your time.’

  ‘Because you’d always refused to sell. But I kept an eye on the business and I could see that you were struggling. I was waiting for you to finally admit that you needed help.’ Zander stared at him. ‘And all this stuff about my image—’

  ‘Your father felt extraordinarily guilty that he’d ruined your trust in women. He wanted to see you in a loving relationship.’ Kouropoulos smiled. ‘Call me an interfering old man, but I thought I’d try a bit of manipulation and, by some sort of miracle and a whole lot of luck, it worked. If I needed evidence that the two of you really love each other, I just had it. The island is yours, Volakis. Welcome home, Zander.’

  And with that he turned and walked back up the beach without a backward glance, leaving them alone together.

  For several minutes Zander didn’t speak and Lauranne knew that he was battling with his emotions. So was she.

  ‘What a lovely man.’ Her voice was choked and Zander nodded, his expression thoughtful.

  ‘He almost allowed himself to get into financial difficulties and I could never understand why.’

  ‘Your father wanted to make it up to you,’ she said softly and he nodded, his voice rough with emotion.

  ‘I know that now.’

  ‘I’m so pleased.’ She lifted a hand and touched his face. ‘So what will you do with the island?’

  He turned and smiled down at her, everything he felt reflected in his eyes. ‘Exactly what I told Kouropoulos. I want it for my wife and family. We’re going to make babies, agape mou, and this is going to be their home.’

  * * *

  Exactly a year later Tom was a guest at a housewarming party on Blue Cove Island.

  ‘House?’ he grumbled, staring at the beautiful whitewashed villa in amazement. ‘You call that a house? It’s a mansion.’

  ‘It’s my home,’ Lauranne said softly, still unable to believe that she actually lived in this beautiful place.

  Builders and decorators had worked overtime to complete the villa so that the couple could move in as soon as possible.

  ‘So he’s treating you OK, then,’ Tom said dryly and Lauranne glanced across to where Zander stood, her eyes misty with love.

  ‘Better than OK,’ she said softly. ‘He’s wonderful.’

  Tom gave a grunt. ‘He finally seems to be behaving himself, I’ll give you that. Being with you seems to have mellowed him. He lets me talk to you now without setting the dogs on me.’

  ‘But not for too long.’ Lauranne chuckled. ‘He’s coming over now.’

  Tom tensed but Zander smiled and extended a hand, the perfect host.

  The two men chatted together about business and the building of the villa and then Tom made his excuses and backed away, leaving the two of them together.

  Lauranne looked at Zander and slid her hand in his. ‘Thank you for inviting him,’ she said softly, standing on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. ‘Your self-restraint is improving daily.’

  ‘Just as long as you keep the physical stuff to a minimum,’ Zander growled, stooping to kiss her lips. ‘Underneath my civilised exterior, I’m still Greek. Remember that.’

  ‘Am I really likely to forget?’ Lauranne smiled up at him and then looked at their new home thoughtfully. ‘How many bedrooms did we decide on in the end?’

  Zander shot her an incredulous look, obviously recalling the endless discussions with the team of architects. ‘If that is a serious question—’

  She kept her expression innocent, deriving the maximum enjoyment from teasing him. ‘It’s just that we’re going to be needing another one soon.’

  ‘We are?’ He looked at her blankly and she smiled.

  ‘For a very intelligent man you can be extremely slow sometimes,’ she said softly, taking his hand and placing it low on her abdomen. ‘We’re having a baby.’

  He stilled. ‘A baby?’

  She nodded, smiling at the stunned expression on his face. ‘And it’s going to be born here on the island, just as your grandmother was.’ She looked at him anxiously, her eyes full of love. ‘Are you pleased?’

  ‘Pleased?’ He looked at her and then grinned, staggeringly handsome and endearingly smug about his latest achievement. ‘Of course I’m pleased.’

  He scooped her into his arms, and strode towards the beach, totally ignoring the curious looks they were receiving from the other guests.

  ‘Zander—’ Lauranne closed her eyes in embarrassment ‘—you’re behaving like a caveman.’

  Zander smiled. ‘I’m Greek, remember? Behaving like a caveman is what I do best.’

  She peeped at him flirtatiously. ‘Actually I can think of something that you probably do better—’

  He set her down in the sand, away from the crowds of people they’d invited to their new home.

  ‘Can you now?’ His voice was husky and unbelievably sexy as he bent his head to kiss her. ‘Care to show me?’

  ‘With pleasure,’ she whispered, standing on tiptoe to receive hi
s kiss. ‘With pleasure.’

  * * * * *

  Now, read on for a tantalizing excerpt of Dani Collins’ next book,

  A VIRGIN TO REDEEM THE BILLIONAIRE

  Ruthless billionaire Kaine has just given Gisella a shocking ultimatum: use her spotless reputation to save his own or he’ll ruin her family for betraying him! But uncovering sweet Gisella’s virginity makes Kaine want her for so much more than revenge…

  Read on for a glimpse of

  A VIRGIN TO REDEEM THE BILLIONAIRE

  PROLOGUE

  “LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, we’ve had a surprise offer for the entire estate by Mr. Kaine Michaels. A figure has been accepted by the family for the house and all the contents. We will not be auctioning individual items. Thank you for coming, but no further bidding will take place.”

  “WHAT? No.” Gisella Drummond barely heard her own gasped words over the babble of discontent that rose from the crowd seated around her. They all let their bidding paddles droop in shock.

  She instinctively looked to the tall stranger who had appeared in the room moments ago. He had captivated her as he entered to confer with the officials on a small dais near the fireplace. He was sinfully sexy in a suede jacket worn with casual elegance over black jeans and a button shirt without a tie.

  Her first impression had been that his renegade appearance didn’t fit this setting at all. The Manhattan mansion was a gorgeous ode to French Renaissance style, full of antique furniture placed with care on fading silk rugs under crystal chandeliers. Marble columns held up the low ceilings, and heavy velvet drapes blocked out the view of Central Park. That man was too rough around the edges for such a pristine, refined space. Had he really bought it, lock, stock and barrel?

  Beside her, Mr. Walters cursed the man. He was one of her uncle’s longtime business associates, had asked after her family and had confided he intended to buy the house.

  Gisella was here only for an earring, but she was equally disappointed by this turn of events, probably more so. “Do you know him?”

  “He owns Riesgo Ventures.” Mr. Walters spoke with a disparaging sneer. “It’s a tech company out of San Francisco. If he thinks he’s earning any goodwill in this city with a move like that…”

  She was curious what else Mr. Walters knew about him, but through the confusion of people rising and talking, she saw Kaine Michaels was leaving.

  Urgency gripped her. She quickly excused herself and jostled as politely as she could through the milling bodies toward the door.

  For a second, she thought she’d missed catching him. He wasn’t exiting through the front doors of the entry foyer, though. His long legs had carried him up the wide, carpeted stairs to the gallery. He was moving along it with an auction house official hurrying to keep up.

  She trotted up after him and pursued them down the hall. They paused at a pair of open double doors. The official spoke to the security guard standing watch.

  “This is Mr. Michaels. He has just purchased the house and all of its contents. You can allow him to take anything he likes.”

  “Just the one piece,” he said, indicating something on the clipboard in the official’s hand. “The rest can go into storage.”

  “Mr. Michaels,” she called, wanting one piece herself before everything was sent to a remote, humidity-controlled facility.

  He glanced back at her, then drawled to the guard, “Actually, you can go downstairs and show everyone the door.”

  The guard gave her a hard look, as if he meant to include her in his sweep.

  She held up a hand. “I only need a moment.”

  Kaine jerked his head to dismiss the guard, then glanced at the official. The other man nodded and moved quickly into what looked like a sitting room. The jumble of paintings and sculptures wore numbered tags. So did a handful of furniture and other items. This was clearly the staging area for the auction.

  The earring was probably among that collection, practically within reach. Butterflies of excitement batted around her midsection.

  “Your moment is almost up,” Kaine said.

  She looked to him and lost her voice as she confronted his handsomeness up close. His dark hair was short and thick, his brows bold statements above golden-brown eyes. His swarthy cheeks were smooth, but underlined by a precise border of stubble along his jaw. A goatee framed a mouth too full-lipped and sensual for words.

  Men didn’t usually affect her. Not even very good-looking ones, but a funny squiggle in her midsection teased with intrigue, especially when his eyelids lowered in lazy, male appreciation.

  She extended her hand. “Gisella Drummond.”

  His relaxed demeanor altered. His expression tightened with dismay and he raked her with a more disparaging glance. It went down to her open-toed heels and came back to her snug top with the shoulder cutouts.

  When he met her eyes again, she felt the impact as though she had walked into an invisible wall, one that teemed with icy electrical currents. They wrapped around her and squeezed the breath from her lungs.

  He snorted in a way that suggested he couldn’t believe her gall.

  It was highly disconcerting. She was usually very well received by men. Not just for her various wealthy and respectable contacts, either. She was naturally blessed with the slender height and patrician bone structure seen in ads for swimsuits and makeup.

  Her beauty was as much hindrance as strength so she didn’t often use her looks for leverage, but this was battle conditions. She was on the verge of losing something she’d waited years to acquire.

  She tried to melt his sudden frost with a warm smile, but it felt forced.

  “I know who you are, Ms. Barsi.” He only looked at her hand, didn’t take it.

  She let it drop along with her smile. Her heart also seemed to slump uselessly for a moment before she gathered herself with affront.

  “I wasn’t trying to misrepresent myself. I use my father’s name.” Not that it should matter either way. Her family was complicated, but she was a Barsi in her heart, if not by blood. The Barsis were a well-regarded family here in New York. Counting herself among them was an honor.

  Yet it held no sway over him. If anything, her being one of them seemed to provoke a disdainful tic in his cheek.

  “Sir?” the official said, returning from the auction room. “You’re sure this is all you want for the moment?” He held a velvet box in his hands.

  “Yes.” Kaine moved into a nearby bedroom. His lip curled with distaste as he took in the canopied bed, the sitting area of ornate boudoir furniture and the heavy blue drapes framing a view over Central Park.

  Gisella followed, wishing she’d been able to leave work early enough for the guided tour. It was a one-of-a-kind home and prime real estate. Her parents had money, but no one in Gisella’s family was in a position to buy a house like this, especially if they didn’t love it, which Kaine clearly didn’t.

  The official handed him the velvet box. “I’ll have the paperwork ready for you to sign when you come downstairs. Will you consider private offers on anything?”

  “Everything but this. You can handle that for me?”

  “Of course, sir.” The official waited for Kaine’s nod of dismissal, then hurried out, leaving Gisella alone with him.

  Wait. He hadn’t bought a house to get one item, had he?

  Kaine tucked the velvet box into the pocket of his jacket without opening it.

  Gisella’s stomach swooped with dread. “What was that?”

  She moved with panic to where a makeup table and dresser top held a number of open jewelry boxes, all with numbered tags on them. She scanned for the earring she’d only ever seen in the catalog for this auction. Several pairs of earrings were on display, but no orphans.

  It wasn’t here. She scanned again, her sense of loss visceral. She was going cold with shock while a shot of adrenaline hit her heart, sending a stinging throb through her limbs. How could she be this close after so long and lose?

  “Was that an ea
rring?” She swung around.

  He gave her a blithe smile. I know who you are, Ms. Barsi.

  She was fully taken aback. A wild suspicion came into her head and out her mouth before she’d had time to absorb how ridiculous it was. “You did not just buy a house to get that earring!”

  “It was the most expedient means of getting what I want before anyone else.”

  Shock hit in waves. He really had bought the house for the earring. And there were other people after her grandmother’s earring? Enough that he’d gone after it this aggressively? That made no sense. It was one earring.

  “I don’t know what you’ve been told, but it’s not that valuable. It’s not worth a house. Not this house. Why didn’t you just bid on it?”

  “Buying the house serves other purposes. And I don’t have time to play game shows all day. Shall we?” He waved to invite her to leave.

  “No.” She put out a hand, used to having control of most situations, but she was utterly at a loss. It was the stakes, she told herself. She had been hunting that earring for more than a decade. She had been so sure she would take it home today and now her stomach was knotting with gross disappointment.

  No. She straightened her spine, mentally smoothing the wrinkles from her normally smooth, aloof confidence.

  “I’d like to make you an offer for it.” He’d said he would take some, right?

  On everything but this.

  His expression grew both alert and satisfied. He cocked his head slightly, gaze scanning her features, taking his time studying her brow and cheekbones, her jaw and mouth. Almost as though he was memorizing them.

  “Why do you want it so badly?” he asked. “If it’s not that valuable?”

  She licked her lips self-consciously while a scent of danger had her heart doing one of those skips that showed up in movies as a jag of returned life on heart monitors. Her whole body suffused with tingling heat. The air between them crackled.