by Jackie Braun
“Nick likes all of his mama’s cooking,” George said with a hearty laugh. “He gets that from me.”
“If he is not careful, he will get this, too.” Thea patted her husband’s stomach. More laughter followed, chasing away a bit of the strain.
“If you would like, I could share some of my recipes with you,” Thea said to Darcie, “including the one for bakaliaros tiganitos. It is not so hard to make, but you must soak the fish overnight or it will be too salty.”
“Thank you. I would like that.”
“Are you a good cook?” Sophia asked.
“Um, I...” Darcie had mastered the art of microwaving in college, and she knew how to whip up staples such as grilled cheese and spaghetti, as long as the sauce for the latter came from a jar. But her culinary skills didn’t go much beyond that since, at Evelyn’s insistence, Darcie and Tad had eaten most of their meals at his mother’s. In Darcie’s new home, wherever that might be, she was going to take the time to learn. “I plan to be.”
Yiayia’s eyes narrowed. Clearly, that answer hadn’t won Darcie any points.
“Do you cook for Nick?”
Before she could formulate a response, he explained, “We eat out whenever Darcie comes to town.”
“And where does she sleep when she comes to town?” Yiayia asked pointedly.
Darcie felt her face flame, but Nick took the question in stride. “She sleeps in a bed,” he replied without specifying whose. Since his grin left little doubt, she kicked him under the table.
Earlier, in the kitchen, they had discussed how Darcie and Nick met. Now, the topic turned to what she did for a living, what her family was like and the names of her siblings, brothers-in-law, nephews and nieces. Yiayia, of course, snuck in a question about how many children Darcie wanted. By the time coffee and dessert were served, Yiayia had determined two things. One, Darcie was too thin and, two, she must have some Greek in her, if only because she liked the strong coffee.
“I like the cake, too,” Darcie noted after taking a bite. It was topped with powdered sugar and lightly toasted almonds. “It’s delicious. What’s it called?”
“Revani,” Yiayia said.
“Revani,” Darcie repeated. Or so she thought. But Yiayia was shaking her head.
“No, no, no. Re-vah-nee.”
“Emphasis on the last syllable,” Nick supplied.
Darcie tried the word again, this time earning his grandmother’s nod of approval.
“I make this special for Nick. I will be sure to give you the recipe so you can make it, too.”
Darcie sent him a smile and asked, “Is this another favorite of yours?”
But it wasn’t Nick who answered.
“My brother is fond of all sweet things.”
Pieter stood just outside the door that led from the house. At least, Darcie assumed the man was Pieter. The family resemblance was there in the shape of his eyes and the athletic build. And if he was Pieter, that would make the woman standing beside him Selene.
OMG!
Darcie set down her fork and blotted her mouth on the napkin. Then she sat up straighter in her chair and sucked in her stomach. Selene was slender and petite. Darcie felt like an Amazon in comparison. And the other woman was drop-dead gorgeous with high cheekbones, delicately arched brows and sleek black hair. In short, she was Aphrodite incarnate. A glance at Nick confirmed what Darcie already knew: if he was over what had happened, he was doing a poor job showing it. His eyes had turned as hard as stone.
“Pieter! Selene!” Thea smiled nervously. “We did not think you would be here.”
“We finished our appointment with the caterer early and thought we would stop by for cake.”
“How did you know about the cake?” Nick asked.
“Yiayia called earlier and mentioned it.”
All eyes cut to Yiayia.
“I am an old woman,” she muttered with the wave of an arthritic hand. “I cannot remember what I say, who I say it to.”
Half of Pieter’s mouth rose in a resigned smile. “The only reason you are here is because you did not think that we would be. I guess I was foolish to hope.”
Nick said nothing, but that muscle started to tick in his jaw again.
“It does not matter. I am glad to see you, Nick. We both are.” Pieter curved his arm around Selene’s shoulders and she offered a tentative smile.
The tension built along with the silence. Darcie was the one who breached it.
“Pieter and Selene. Nick has told me so much about you both. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
“And you are?” Pieter asked.
“Darcie Hayes. Nick’s...Nick’s girlfriend.”
She’d already stepped in this mess with one foot. Why not both?
* * *
“You played your part well this evening,” Nick told Darcie once the two of them were in the Shelby and heading back to her hotel.
At times he had forgotten their bargain and actually enjoyed himself. That was until Pieter and Selene’s arrival. Seeing them together never put Nick in a good mood. This evening it had been tolerable. He had Darcie to thank for that.
“You weren’t half-bad yourself,” she told him. “If your car auction business doesn’t pan out you might consider a career on Broadway.”
She smiled, but her tone didn’t match the lighthearted comment.
“Is something wrong, Darcie?”
She fussed with the scarf’s knot under her chin. “Your family is really nice, Nick. I enjoyed meeting them all.”
“And they enjoyed meeting you,” he replied warily.
“I don’t like lying to them, Nick. Even if most of our lies were ones of omission.”
He nodded. “Most of them.”
The one that stood out had come from Darcie at the end of dinner: I’m Nick’s girlfriend.
Upon hearing that, Pieter’s expression had reflected not only surprise, but also happiness and hope. More than anything else from the evening, it was the hope that bothered Nick’s conscience.
“Sophia is something else.” Darcie chuckled. “But she only has your best interests at heart. All of them do.”
Nick saw his brother’s hopeful expression again only to banish it. “If that is so, they should be satisfied now. You made quite an impression on them.”
“I suppose.” She cleared her throat. Her tone was tentative when she said, “Your brother seems nice. Selene, too.”
Nick made a noncommittal sound and concentrated on driving, hoping Darcie would drop the subject.
She didn’t.
“They both seemed genuinely happy for you...us...well, you know what I mean.”
“Guilty consciences looking for absolution,” he muttered. But was that the cause? He decided to change the subject. “Are you really going to try the recipes my mother and grandmother gave you? Or did you just say that to humor them?”
“Oh, no. I meant it. I’m not sure where I am going to get salt-cured cod, but everything else looks pretty manageable.”
“They love to fiddle in the kitchen. I think they should have their own television program.”
“Cooking with Thea and Sophia,” Darcie offered. They both laughed. “I would watch it. I really do want to learn. I know the basics, but for the past six years, we pretty much ate all of our dinners at Evelyn’s house.”
“Evelyn?”
“Tad’s mother,” Darcie said quietly.
Nick glanced sideways. Darcie was staring at her hands, which were now folded in her lap. “What is a Tad? Or should I ask who?”
She ran a tongue over her teeth. “He’s my former fiancé.”
Nick nearly blew through a red light. He brought the Shelby to a stop to the protest of skidding tires. Giving Darcie his fu
ll attention now, he asked, “How recently former?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Pretty recent. We were supposed to get married last Saturday, but I called it off the week before.”
The breath left Nick’s lungs in a gust as he added two and two together and came up with four. “He is the reason you are now looking for a new place to live.”
“Yes. Tad got the cat and the condo in our breakup. I got...Greece.”
Nick’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “So this trip was to be your...”
“Honeymoon,” she finished for him. Her smile was tight, her laughter apologetic as he absorbed a second bombshell that he hadn’t seen coming.
He should say something, he thought, although “sorry” didn’t feel right, even if what she had just shared must have been painful. Endings always were. Briefly, he considered telling her about Selene and Pieter. She probably would welcome a little quid pro quo under the circumstances. But the words stuck in his throat. They drove the rest of the way in silence.
“Stop here,” she said when they reached her hotel. “There’s no need to park and walk me inside.”
He wanted to disagree. But the evening was over and it was time to say good-night. It was just as well. His emotions were all over the place. He didn’t care for the confusion. One thing he knew for sure, however, was that his interest in Darcie had not diminished one iota.
“What time shall we meet tomorrow?” At her puzzled expression he reminded her, “I said I would act as your tour guide. I intend to live up to my end of the bargain.”
“Oh. I’ll leave the time up to you.”
“I am an early riser, but how about nine o’clock?”
“All right. We can meet in the lobby again, if that works for you.”
He nodded. “Where would you like to go?”
“The Parthenon.”
Nick smiled. “Then the Parthenon it is.” When she reached for the door handle, he said, “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
She glanced around, her expression uncertain. “What?”
“A kiss good-night.” Unable to resist, he leaned over the gearshift and captured her mouth. As the kiss deepened, he regretted the car’s bucket seats. “Sleep well, Darcie,” Nick said, pulling back.
“Right. As if...” she muttered, getting out.
* * *
The phone in Darcie’s hotel room trilled at an ungodly hour. She pushed the pillow off her face and, eyes still closed, felt around on the nightstand until she found the receiver.
“’Lo,” she mumbled.
“Are you alone?” It was Becky.
Darcie rubbed her eyes. “Yes, I’m alone. Why wouldn’t I be alone?”
“You were supposed to call after your date with Mr. Tall, Greek and Gorgeous,” her friend reminded her. “When you didn’t, well, I thought...”
No need for Becky to fill in the blank. Darcie’s imagination had been busy doing that very thing for most of the night.
“Nick dropped me off at the hotel just after ten. I fell asleep soon after. Alone. Sorry I didn’t call. I was just too tired. Jet lag and all.” It was a handy excuse, but not the whole truth. The whole truth was Darcie hadn’t wanted to examine more closely the evening, its ending or the insane attraction she felt for the man in question.
But Becky wasn’t giving her an out this time. “So, how was it?”
“Nice. I had a good time.”
“Nice? A good time? Sheesh, Darcie. I called for details. Not the abridged version you save for your mother.”
Darcie chuckled at that. “My mother is never going to hear any version, abridged or otherwise, where Nick is concerned. I think she still may be holding out hope that Tad and I will get back together and there will be no need to deal with the stack of gifts she promised she would help me return.”
“Speaking of Tad, I ran in to him at our favorite coffee shop.”
“Tad doesn’t like coffee.” He complained the beverage stained his teeth.
“I know. Even stranger, he made a point of coming over and saying hello to me.”
That was surprising. Tad and Becky didn’t like one another, but over the years, they had brokered a truce of sorts—a truce Darcie would have assumed null and void now that the wedding had been called off.
“He asked if I’d heard from you.”
“He did not.”
“Swear. He wanted to know how you were doing.”
“What did you say?”
“I told him we’d talked and that you were having a fabulous time with a hot Greek man.”
“You did not!” Darcie exclaimed.
“Okay, those weren’t my exact words. But I did tell him that his bargain trip had turned out to be a bust and that you’d been stranded at the airport until a nice man came to your aid. Tad said he’d been trying to reach you on your cell. For that matter, I have, too.”
Darcie glanced toward her discarded purse on the chair in the corner. “I silenced the ringer before dinner with Nick’s family last night. I haven’t turned it back on. Did Tad say why he was calling?”
“No. He looked, well, like he was kind of lost without you.”
“Tad?” Darcie couldn’t help but be surprised. “I didn’t think he would notice my absence. He still has his mother, after all.” She shook her head. “That was mean. I don’t want him to be unhappy.”
“That’s because you’re a nice person, Darcie. Too nice. Tad took advantage of that. So, are you going to call him? I don’t think you should.”
“I won’t. At least not until I return home.” When her friend started to object, Darcie pointed out, “We have to talk, if only so he knows where to forward my mail. Besides, I’m the one who called off the wedding, Becks. That makes Tad the injured party.”
A snort came over the line. “Do yourself a favor, and don’t feel too sorry for him. Remember, he’s the reason you found yourself stranded in Greece.”
“Yes, but that’s turning out okay.” A grin spread over Darcie’s face.
“I knew it! Tell me everything about last night. And remember, no skimping when it comes to details.”
She still wound up giving Becky an abridged version of events, leaving out completely the arrival of Pieter and Selene at the end of dinner, and the awkward tension that had followed. Darcie didn’t want to more closely examine the feelings Nick stirred in her. It was easier just to leave it at mutual attraction. The timing for anything else was completely wrong—apparently for both of them.
As their conversation wound up, Becky said, “Have fun exploring the Parthenon. Hey, take a picture of Nick with your phone and send it to me. I want to see your hot man for myself.”
After they said goodbye, Darcie had less than an hour to get ready. The elevator doors slid open at the lobby with five minutes to spare. When she stepped out, the hot man in question was standing to one side of the reception desk. His mouth curved into an appreciative smile that turned her insides to mush. With one look, he made her feel beautiful, desirable and once again ready to toss caution to the wind. That was enough, she decided.
“Kalimera su,” she said when she reached him.
His brows rose.
“One of the few Greek phrases I know. Did I say it right?”
“You did. Good morning to you, too.” He kissed her cheeks, lingering long enough to make the greeting less platonic. “You look lovely, by the way.”
“You do, too. Not lovely, but...” Good enough to gobble up in a T-shirt that fit snugly across his chest. She coughed and forced her gaze back to his. “Um, ready to take in the sights?”
By way of an answer, he took her hand.
* * *
Growing up in Athens, Nick had been to the Parthenon dozens of times. He experienced it anew seeing it through Darcie’
s eyes. She was in total awe.
“It’s hard to believe something built more than four hundred years before the birth of Christ is still standing.”
“Not all of it is,” Nick pointed out.
“But enough of it remains to hint at its former grandeur,” she argued. “Those columns are massive. Haven’t you ever wondered how the ancient Greeks managed to get them up without modern tools and machinery?”
He grinned. “I am now.”
“I’m serious, Nick.”
“So I see.”
“There’s very little in the United States that dates back more than a couple hundred years. Yet here stands a temple, a stunning example of Doric-style architecture, I might add, that was designed by Phidias to honor Athena, the patron goddess of your city, and constructed more than two thousand years ago.”
“Your knowledge of the Parthenon is impressive,” he said.
“I read about it.” She started to laugh. “Over there.”
Nick turned to find a large sign listing the same facts Darcie had just spouted. He started to laugh, too, and then pulled her into his arms. He didn’t let her go. Both of them sobered.
“I like your sense of humor,” he said.
“It’s one of my better attributes.”
“I can think of other attributes that I prefer even more.” He slid his hands down her back and, even though he wanted to place them elsewhere, he forced them to stop at her waist. They were in public, after all, and surrounded by camera-toting tourists.
“You must mean my eyes.” She batted the lids. The eyes in question were laughing at him. “I’ve been told they’re a pretty color.”
“You are enjoying this,” he accused.
“Enjoying what?” she asked a little too innocently. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“I do like your eyes,” he agreed. “But they aren’t what kept me awake last night.” As intended, his bald assertion wiped the smile from Darcie’s face. Then he asked, “How did you sleep? Did you toss and turn?”
“I...I...” She swallowed.
“That is what I thought.”
Those blue eyes narrowed. “That’s not fair.”
