by Maggie Cox
His mother had naturally been curious about Natalie. ‘What’s she like?’ she’d asked excitedly. ‘Are you happy with her, my son?’
All Ludo had told her was that Natalie was a ‘charming, good-natured girl’ and that he was sure they would love her. He’d deliberately squashed down the wave of remorse that had crashed through him because he was inventing a scenario that wasn’t true.
For some strange, inexplicable reason, at the back of his mind the tentative hope had surfaced that some good might come of being with Natalie despite his deception. He hadn’t just enjoyed their nightly phone conversations, he had started to rely on them. She’d always been so reassuring, and if he’d had a bad day his spirits had been buoyed by the idea of talking to her. He’d never experienced such a strong connection to a woman before. And the memory of the sexy, ardent kiss that he’d shared with her back in his office a week ago had definitely got him believing that having her with him in Greece might help alleviate some of the stress that would inevitably come his way.
But he also knew it would take more than one kiss or a reassuring conversation to ease the grief and anxiety he was feeling about returning home again.
Finally, just before they’d reached the cosmopolitan Greek island they were heading for, Natalie had shaken him out of his morose mood with an unexpected comment.
‘As you know, I’m not undertaking this trip purely because I’m in love with the idea of going to Greece, or because I need a holiday. I’m doing it because you offered me a deal that was impossible to refuse. While I’m not exactly looking forward to playing your fiancée, I respect the fact that you paid my father a much more realistic price for his business than you initially offered. And because of that I fully intend to honour my part of the bargain. However, it’s a little off-putting that you don’t seem to want to talk to me. If it’s because you’re having second thoughts about bringing me with you, I want you to know that I’m perfectly willing to get on the next flight home just as soon as it can be arranged.’
It was as though she’d dashed a bucket full of ice water in his face. For one thing, it didn’t do his ego a whole lot of good to hear her confess that she wasn’t looking forward to playing his fiancée and was willing to go home if he’d changed his mind. Turning in his seat, he studied the troubled but defiant expression on the lovely face before him with a stab of remorse.
‘That is most definitely not what I’d prefer, paidi mou. Forgive me for not being a more amiable companion. It is nothing to do with my not wanting to be with you. It is purely a private dilemma that has been preoccupying me.’
Folding her hands in her lap across the pretty colourful fabric of her dress, Natalie lifted her huge grey eyes to his. ‘Is that dilemma to do with returning to Greece for the first time since your brother died? The last thing I want to do is distress you by asking you to talk about it, but don’t you think it would help us both if you opened up a little? I’m sure it’s going to seem very strange to your parents if I haven’t got a clue about what your brother was like or how you felt about him.’
Ludo stared. What she said was perfectly true. He now saw that he hadn’t given his impromptu plan nearly enough consideration. As painful and uncomfortable as it might be, he had no choice but to talk to Natalie about Theo.
Linking his hands together, he felt his heart race a little as he attempted to marshal his thoughts. ‘Very well, then. I will tell you something of my brother Theo. Where do I begin? He was a giant of a man—our very own Rhodes Colossus … Not just in build—he was six foot four—but in character and heart too. Ever since he went to medical school to train as a doctor he knew he wanted to specialise in taking care of children.’ He allowed himself a briefly strained smile. ‘So that’s what he did. He became a paediatrician. At the clinics he attended, or on the wards, the kids just loved him. More than that, when he told them he would make them better they totally believed him … as did their parents. More often than not he was able to keep that heartfelt promise. Pretty soon his services were in demand not just in Greece but all over Europe.’
Natalie’s answering smile was unreserved and encouraging. ‘It sounds as though he was quite a man. You and your parents must have been so proud of him.’
‘Everyone was. He might have been my brother, but it was a privilege to know him, let alone be related to him.’
‘Was he married? Did he have children of his own?’
The flush of pink that Ludo realised was a given whenever she was remotely embarrassed or self-conscious was very much in evidence again.
‘No.’ He hefted a sigh. ‘He used to tell us all he was married to his work. He may not have been a father biologically, but he was father to many children when they were in his care.’
‘I wish I’d been able to meet him.’
‘If you had, you would never have given me a second glance.’ The painfully wry comment was expressed before Ludo had a chance to check it.
Natalie’s perfectly arched brows lifted in bewilderment. ‘Why would you say that? You must know you have many appealing qualities—and I’m not referring to your wealth.’
‘My brother was admired for his kind and unselfish nature as well as his desire to help heal children afflicted by illness or disability. Compared to him, my own achievements are a lot less worthy and nowhere near in the same league.’
‘I can’t believe you mean that. Not everyone has the skill of creating wealth like you do, Ludo—wealth that no doubt helps create jobs and opportunity—and I’m sure a lot of people wish they had. I don’t doubt your family is as proud of you as of the son they sadly lost.’
‘My parents will tell you they are, but my brother was a tough act to follow. He was a son in a million … irreplaceable.’
Natalie fell silent. The sadness in her eyes took Ludo aback. He regretted being so candid with her. He had never craved anyone’s sympathy and never would, yet her unstinting kindness undid him.
Quickly searching for a new topic to divert her, he said, ‘I should have asked you this before, but how did your parents take the news you were coming on this trip with me?’
He was disturbed by the idea that she might have put herself in an awkward position with her family. He didn’t want them to give her a hard time over it. No doubt it would taint the experience for her if they did. Where he came from family were the number one priority, and he completely understood Natalie’s devotion to her own. Clearly she didn’t want to worry or shame them by taking off with a man they didn’t even know. Even her father had only met him that one time in his office, and the occasion would hardly have let him warm to Ludo in any way.
As he silently observed her, Ludo felt his heartbeat quicken at the increasing evidence of her thoughtful and caring nature. It didn’t hurt that she was rather beautiful too … To his surprise, the dour mood that had plagued him since the start of the trip lightened.
‘My dad was very worried at first,’ Natalie confessed. ‘When I told him you’d substantially increased what you paid for the business he feared you’d only done it to try and blackmail me into becoming your lover.’
Her porcelain cheeks suddenly acquired the most radiant shade of pink Ludo had ever seen. But, surprisingly, he found he wasn’t offended by the idea that her father had feared he was blackmailing his daughter, because he understood the older man’s natural concern. It would surely take a hard-hearted father not to be concerned. Ludo was pleased that Natalie had frankly admitted it, because it gave him the opportunity to set her straight.
‘I have been known to be ruthless in my bid to seal a deal, but I am no blackmailer, Natalie. Besides, does your father really think I’d need to resort to that in order to make you my lover?’ Gently touching her lips with his fingertips, he was intrigued to know her response. ‘I wouldn’t, would I, Natalie?’
CHAPTER SIX
HER EYES WIDENED to incandescent twin full moons.
‘Of course you wouldn’t. I’m quite capable of making up my own mind
about whether I take a man as a lover or not, without being coerced by the promise of money or—or whatever.’
Frowning and pursing her lips, she let her long hair slip silkily round her face, as though to shield her from closer scrutiny, and it made Ludo want to brush it back for her with his fingers. He would have done exactly that had she not started talking again.
‘I told him I thought that despite your wealth and position you were most likely a decent man. I told him you’d suggested that if I spent some time with you in Greece I could benefit from learning important business skills that would help me in the future.’
‘And you didn’t mention that I’d asked you to assume the role of my fiancée?’
Hectic colour once again suffused her features. ‘No … I thought it best not to mention that part.’
‘I’m not sure whether I should take your declaration about me as being “most likely” a “decent man” as a compliment or not. The way you said it leaves me with the feeling that perhaps you doubt it.’
‘I don’t.’
In her haste to reassure him Natalie automatically laid her hand over his. Never before had the simple touch of a woman’s hand inflamed Ludo to the point of wanting to haul her onto his lap and make love to her there and then, but that was what he felt at the sensation of her cool soft skin against his and the alluring drift of her pretty perfume.
‘Even though you said you didn’t want me to pay you back,’ she continued, ‘I haven’t forgotten your generosity in paying for my train fare. Not many people would have been so quick to help out a complete stranger, and that absolutely illustrates how decent you are.’
The tension in his shoulders started to ease. He wouldn’t normally care what a woman thought of his character if he was contemplating taking her to bed, but with Natalie he found he definitely craved her good opinion. The nightly phone calls they’d shared had played a big part in changing his attitude, especially when she’d talked about being concerned for family and friends, even the guests who stayed at the bed and breakfast. Her store of kindness knew no limits, it seemed.
‘I confess to being reassured. What about your mother? What did she think of you going to Greece with me?’ he asked interestedly. ‘Did you tell her who I was, glykia mou?’
‘Yes, I did.’
‘And what did she say?’
To Ludo’s great disappointment, she withdrew the slim hand that still lay over his and lightly shrugged a shoulder.
‘She told me to be careful … then she told me to tell you that she was very sorry to hear about your brother. She’d heard of him, you see. She told me about his reputation for being an incredible paediatrician and that the Greek community held him in the highest regard.’
Learning that Natalie’s mother was Greek had been one thing. But discovering that she’d heard of his brother as well as of his shocking demise was deeply unsettling. He was also disturbed that she’d advised her beautiful daughter to ‘be careful’. She could only mean one thing. Presumably, in her eyes, Ludo wasn’t held in the same high regard as his brother had been. No change there, then. His lighter mood evaporated like ice beneath a burning sun.
‘Hopefully that will reassure her that you are in good hands,’ he commented dryly, ‘even though it sounds like she mistrusts me. Why else would she warn you to be careful?’
‘Every mother who cares about her grown-up daughter worries about who they’re associating with … especially when it comes to men.’
‘Well, my beautiful Natalie, I will do my best to allay her fears and send you home completely intact.’
Smiling ruefully, he signalled to the male flight attendant standing nearby and without hesitation ordered a glass of Remy Martin brandy.
On their arrival at his stunning waterside villa, Ludo’s housekeeper Allena and her husband Christos came out to greet them. As he found himself embraced by two of the warmest hugs he’d had in a very long time Ludo was almost overcome by the couple’s genuine pleasure at seeing him again. It made him realise just how much he’d missed their familiar faces and unreserved regard.
They were a little more politely restrained when he introduced them to Natalie, but their smiles couldn’t hide their pleasure and curiosity. He didn’t doubt they’d heard on the grapevine that he was bringing his fiancée home. As a wave of guilt descended yet again, he filed it away irritably and refused to think about it. Wasn’t it enough that he’d fulfilled his parents’ wishes and come home?
After Allena had told him that she’d prepared something special for their dinner that night, and that there were cool drinks waiting for them out on the terrace, Christos lifted their luggage from the car and he and his wife transported it into the villa to dispatch it to their rooms. Relieved that he could have Natalie to himself for a while, in the privacy of his own home, Ludo guided her through the open-plan living room out onto the large terrace to take in the view. He couldn’t deny the sense of pride it gave him to know that she would adore it.
The shimmering azure sea glinting in the midafternoon sun just a few feet from the door was like a sheet of sparkling glass it was so still and perfect. And the warm scented breeze that blew in to caress her skin was infused with the most heavenly scent of bougainvillaea. With delight Natalie saw that the radiant red and pink flowers were generously draped over every dazzling white wall in sight. It was hard to believe she hadn’t wandered into a dream. For a long time she had yearned to come back to Greece, and to find herself here in this breathtaking idyll with a man as handsome and charismatic as Ludo Petrakis made the experience seem even more like the most incredible fantasy.
‘What a gorgeous view! It’s just wonderful! It’s even more stunning than I’d hoped it would be,’ she breathed, letting her hands rest on the sun-warmed railing of the stone-pillared balustrade.
Her companion smiled fleetingly. ‘Many people call it the Jewel of the Aegean.’
‘It must be,’ Natalie concurred.
Ludo shook his head. ‘Personally, I think that title should go to my island.’
‘What do you mean, your island?’ She wasn’t sure why, but underneath her ribs Natalie’s heart bumped a little faster. It was already racing due to Ludo’s enigmatic smile. Her only regret was that she wished his smiles weren’t quite so rare …
‘It is called Margaritari, which is the Greek word for pearl.’
‘That’s beautiful. And this island? It’s somewhere that you’re particularly fond of?’
His chiselled profile was facing out to sea as she asked him this, and a sudden breeze lifted some dark golden strands from his hair and blew them across his forehead. As Natalie stared, mesmerised, a muscle flinched in the side of his carved cheekbone and he went very still.
‘I was so enamoured of it that I bought it. Sadly, I am not so enamoured of it any more, since my brother died there in the boating accident.’
As she reeled from the shocking admission Ludo left her side to make his way to a cane chair positioned next to a slatted wooden table and sat down.
‘I hardly know what to say.’ Immediately she moved to the other side of the table, so that she could see his expression. ‘What a devastating blow for the accident to have happened on the waters of your own island.’
It was almost unbearable to think of Ludo being consumed not only by grief but also by guilt. Did he blame himself for the accident? Was that why he sometimes looked so troubled and didn’t believe he was as well regarded as his brother Theo had been?
‘It was … it is.’ He didn’t bother to try and disguise the painful emotion that gripped him. It was written all over his face. ‘I had often urged him to take a holiday and make free with the island for as long as he wanted. It is so private there that only people I personally invite are allowed to stay. It is a magical place, and I’d hoped it would work its magic on him and help him relax. He rarely took time off from his work and my parents often expressed their concern that he looked so tired.’
Restless again, Ludo shot
to his feet and strode round the table. He stopped directly in front of Natalie, and the look in his diamond-chipped blue eyes was so full of torment it made her catch her breath.
‘He finally took up the offer and went to stay there. One day he took a boat out and it capsized. It was hard to understand how it had happened … Theo was a good sailor. But I found out afterwards that there were strong gusts of wind that day. Apparently they must have caught the mast and turned the boat over before he could do anything about it. He was a good swimmer, but the coroner told us that if he had been particularly fatigued his reactions would have been slow, and that’s why he had been dragged under the boat and drowned.’
‘Ludo, I’m so sorry … really I am.’
‘A thing like that … a loss so grievous … the pain of it never goes away.’
It was a purely humanitarian instinct to offer comfort that made Natalie bridge the short distance between them and embrace him. At first she sensed his body turn rigid as the trunk of an oak, immovable, with no give or softness in it whatsoever. Her stomach sank to her boots as she thought she’d done the wrong thing. But before she could retreat self-consciously Ludo captured her shoulders and crushed her lips beneath his in a searing, passionate kiss that stole her breath and rendered her limbs weak as a new-born babe’s.
The leap of unexpected raw desire that shot through her in response was like a lightning bolt appearing out of a cloudless blue summer sky. She emitted a hungry groan that she could scarce believe was her. It was coupled with a delicious languorous ache that suddenly stole over her like a fever, and Natalie couldn’t help but kiss him back with equal ardour, loving the feel of his hard, honed body beneath her explorative fingers so much that she didn’t at first register his palm spreading over her breast or sense that he was aroused.
Stunned that she’d let things progress quite so far, she immediately started to draw away. But Ludo held her fast, lifting his head to gaze down at her with a sensual, rueful smile that made her heart thump hard.
