by Marian Tee
And one day, I want you to know you are loved, want you to know that no woman could ever love a man more than the way I love you.
Stavros sucked his breath in. There was something in her eyes, something that almost made him believe in the impossible. “Willow—”
Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit.
She had said too much without even speaking a word.
Spinning around, she walked away, leaving Stavros without a word.
Even knowing it would humiliate him, she did it. She had to. If she stayed a second longer, she would have given in, would have been weak and let him take her in his arms. They would have lived happily ever after, but the doubt inside Stavros would have never gone away. Forever and ever, a piece of his heart would remain scarred by the belief that she couldn’t really love him completely. Forever and ever, he would always believe he was the one who was lacking, the one who was at fault for not being capable of making his parents love him.
And she didn’t want that.
She would rather hurt herself over and over than let that happen.
When Stavros tried to stop her from leaving, she wrenched her hand out of his touch.
Stavros’ face was white. “Just let me—”
“No!” She screamed the word at him. She couldn’t, mustn’t let him speak. “Enough, okay? You’re being pathetic.” She didn’t wait for him to answer, didn’t allow herself to look into his eyes at that moment.
If she did, it would be all over.
This time, Stavros didn’t stop her from leaving.
Shiiiiiiiiiiit.
People began to talk around her.
Shiiiiiiiiiiit.
She badly wanted to turn around and throw herself at Stavros.
Shiiiiiiiiiiit.
Willow managed not to run as she made her way to the back exit of the club. But the moment the door swung shut behind her, she lost it. Her fingers were clumsy, her desperation evident as she spilled the contents of her bag so she could easily find her phone—
Ah. There. Her entire body shook as she plugged her earbuds in and connected it to the phone. Tears fell on her screen, fast and furious, forcing her to wipe the screen dry several times before she could unlock her phone and get to her player.
Play.
The song played.
She closed her eyes, willing herself to believe.
She cried as she listened, cried as she sank to her knees, cried as she told herself over and over that one day, she and Stavros would make every damn love song in the world come true.
One day.
Chapter Two
A few more minutes and she would be here. The thought had Stavros’ lips tightening with self-disgust even as excitement rippled through him.
He was alone in the airport’s second-floor lounge. All 10,000 square feet of it had been closed off to other passengers for Stavros’ private use. A waste of money in the eyes of many, perhaps, but for him it was vital. Thousands of people depended on him, their livelihoods dependent on how strong the world perceived him to be. For them, Stavros knew he could no longer afford to keep acting weak. For their sakes, no one was to know how one tiny woman had driven him to his knees.
Stavros’ glance turned towards the expansive windows. Outside the airport, the skies were a pristine shade of blue, without even a single cloud to mar its appearance of tranquility. Even though the airport was right in the middle of the capital, the presence of flora and fauna was ubiquitous. Nature at its finest everywhere was the kingdom’s slogan, and the airport’s landscaped grounds was proof of it, with trees shedding foliage made multicolored by fall and covering the roads like an endless intricately designed carpet.
It was a breathtaking scene, but Stavros was blind to it. He only existed at that moment for one reason, and he counted the minutes until that reason was in sight.
Willow.
The woman who had captured his heart only to destroy it, just like how his own mother had done.
Finally, the announcement came, and Stavros came to his feet in a lithe, graceful motion. His bodyguards swarmed around him the moment he left the lounge and made his way to the tarmac.
He waited, his heart beating harder with each second. By the time the plane had finally landed and the door slowly opened, Stavros’s powerful form was nearly vibrating with tension.
A small part of him warned it wouldn’t be easy, that what had happened back in Athens could happen again – Willow pushing him away, throwing his feelings in his face.
He knew that could happen again, but he didn’t care.
He was capable of letting her go as much as he was capable of stopping himself from breathing.
Willow was the last one to come out, and her face was wan and gaunt, making him frown. It was completely unlike how he had seen her the last time, where her lovely face was flushed and her eyes sparkled so brightly it almost looked like she had been feverish with pleasure.
He watched her descend the stairs with her head down, her knuckles turning nearly white with how tightly she was gripping her bag. She was a picture of misery and he couldn’t understand it. Why, he wanted to shout at her. Why do you look like this when you already have what you want?
He waited until she was on the ground before walking towards her, blocking her way. When he stood in front of her, forcing Willow to stop, he saw her freeze and he knew she knew, something inside her able to recognize his presence even without seeing him.
His resolve strengthened. Whether it was out of guilt or intuition, it didn’t really matter. The connection was still there, and he would damn well fight for it.
“Willow.”
****
It was almost like she was dreaming, hearing the voice she so loved say her name. Only when she heard it for the second time did she realize it was real—
Stavros.
He truly was here, and the thought had her torn between joy and misery.
“Look at me, Willow,” Stavros grated out.
Even now, his voice was stark with pain and anger, and she wanted to weep at the sound of it. I’m sorry, Stavros. She repeated the words in her mind. But it’s just not time yet.
Taking a deep breath, she squared her shoulders and lifted her head, thinking she would be ready—
But she wasn’t.
The emptiness in his beautiful eyes nearly broke her. It almost made her give up this seemingly impossible fight to make him understand that their love for each other could withstand everything. If it was only her who would be suffering, then she would suffer for as long as she needed. But it was seeing him suffer that was killing her.
She tore her gaze away, breathing hard, doing her best not to cry, as she demanded, “What are you doing here?” If she kept looking at him, she knew she wouldn’t be able to stand it.
“You really don’t know?” Stavros laughed, and the hollowness of the sound almost made her flinch.
Willow tightened her grip on her bag, using it to prevent herself from throwing everything to the ground and hugging Stavros to her.
She was ignoring him. And suddenly, he remembered the time he had practically done the same thing to her. That time he had told her it was over between them at the exhibit, and she had practically begged him to take her virginity. Had it hurt her this way, even if all along she had been pretending?
His jaw clenched at the memories, a part of him still refusing to believe that all of it had been planned. That all along she had been pretending with him. He looked at her and suddenly he couldn’t stand it.
“No more fucking games, Willow.”
It was the only warning she got before Stavros was cupping her face, forcing her to look at him. She panicked, gasping, “No—” but it was too late.
“I want you back, Willow—”
“No, shut up!” She couldn’t allow herself to hear him say that.
“In any way possible—”
“Let me go!” She struggled hard to be free from him, but it was impossible to go against his strength.<
br />
His face white at how hard she was trying to get away – from him – he continued doggedly, “So if you can’t love me—”
Her eyes squeezed shut. “Don’t say that,” she whispered brokenly. “Please don’t—”
“Then I’m going to buy you instead.”
Immeasurable pain lined his voice as he made his claim, and Willow’s teeth sank into her lip, knowing how much it had cost a proud man like Stavros to say the words.
Shiiiiiiiit.
She said the word over and over in her mind, and it was almost like a prayer as she sought for something to help her stay strong because it just wasn’t time yet. She could go to him now, but it would never be enough for either of them.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.
Bit by bit, it gave her the strength to wrench her wrist out of his hold. “I’m not for sale—”
He cut her off with a hollow laugh. “Not for sale?” he echoed derisively. “Who are you kidding, Willow?” His voice turned into a shout. “You betrayed me—”
“I wouldn’t have betrayed you if I had a choice!” She was shouting back at him. All the anger and the pain of the past few weeks had suddenly risen to the fore, and she couldn’t handle it any longer. She was so damn tired, so damn tired of playing the bad guy when all she wanted to do was throw herself into his arms and love him.
“You just don’t understand.” Tears clogged her voice even as she screamed the words.
“What don’t I understand?” Stavros gritted back. “Tell me! Do you think I haven’t realized the whole world’s already laughing at me? And I’m still here. Goddammit, I’m still here, and I’ve even sunk as low as wanting to buy you—”
“I don’t want you to buy me!” I want you to love me.
Her body shook at the effort to keep the words back – the words that her still-bleeding heart ached to say.
“Then what do you want me to do?” His hands clasped her shoulders hard, as if he wanted to shake the truth out of her.
She stared up at him, wanting to laugh and cry at the same time. A moment later, and she realized she already was, and it was uncontrollable. “If I could tell you, I would have.” She laughed and cried, and she just couldn’t stop.
Oh God, if she could only share the irony with him.
Stavros had whitened before her, and his hands on her shoulders tightened. “Stop laughing!”
“You’re so dense.” She laughed harder, cried harder. “No wonder your mother could run circles—”
Stavros’ hands fell from her shoulders.
And that was when she realized she had said the one thing she should never have said.
Her laughter died, her tears dried, but it was too late.
In front of her, Stavros was deathly pale, and his tone wasn’t quite even as he said, “I see.”
She tried to reach for him, anxious, but he shook his head and her anxiety turned into full-blown panic. “Stavros, I didn’t mean it that way—”
But she could see there was no reaching Stavros now.
He looked at her like he didn’t know her at all, and when he spoke it was as if she was dead to him. “I won’t ever bother you again.”
He turned and started walking away.
“Stavros, wait, please!” She tried running after him, but one of his bodyguards held her back. “Please, Stavros, I didn’t…” But Stavros was too far away to hear her now. Her voice died and her heart shattered anew.
Oh God.
Please just let him know how much I love him.
That’s all I ask.
Chapter Three
“You are sure this will do?” Willem de Konigh asked his friend skeptically.
The room that Stavros Manolis had chosen – and it was a room, not a suite, which the Greek billionaire was surely more used to – was one of the simplest in the palace, something ordinarily offered to visiting lower officials.
His friend smiled briefly. “It’s more than fine. I should be the one thanking you since I decided to attend the party without prior notice.”
“You know you’re always welcome here.” Willem’s tone was casual, but his gaze was keenly observant as he studied the way Stavros paced the length of the room. There was an unusual kind of tension about him, and Willem wondered if it had to do with the incident at the airport. His staff, trained to alert Willem about any major news concerning people in his life, had informed him about Stavros’ shouting match with the woman Willem himself had hired to work on his family’s autobiography.
When Stavros caught Willem gazing at him speculatively, the Greek tycoon only shrugged, and his voice was indifferent as he asked, “You heard about what happened?”
Not seeing any purpose in lying, Willem simply nodded, adding, “It’s also making its rounds in the palace as we speak.” He paused, hesitating. Full disclosure was one of his requirements for everyone in his employ, and Willow had told him everything. As a result, Willem had a conflict of interest, his concern for his friend at war with how he felt honor-bound to protect his employee from further harm.
“Whatever you and Willow do in your private time, I will not intrude, of course, but I do need you to treat her with respect and proper decorum in public. She is my employee, after all.”
“You don’t need to tell me. I don’t want to have anything to do with her,” Stavros said grimly. Willow Somerset was as poisonous as his mother, and it was time to flush her out of his system for good. His mind made up, he asked Willem, “Is Ingrid around?”
The mention of the Dutch heiress’ name made Willem raise a brow in speculation, but even so he answered, “She’s invited to the ball and since she’s never missed any of the royal events, I’d say you’ll see her around.”
“Good.” Stavros took out his phone and sent the woman a text message.
Sensing his friend’s need to be alone, Willem walked towards the door. “If you’re certain this room would be sufficient, then I’ll take my leave. I hope to see you tonight at dinner?”
“Of course. I’m looking forward to it.”
When he left the room, Willem saw his personal assistant waiting for him in the hallway. A 19-year-old intern and a family friend, Serenity was often teased as Willem, Jr. because of how she took after him in so many ways.
Taking one look at his face, Serenity murmured, “You have not informed him about the arrangements then.” She was referring indirectly to the fact that Stavros Manolis happened to be placed in the room right next to where Willow Somerset was staying.
“No.”
It would have been a frustrating answer for most people, but for Serenity, it was nothing less than what she expected from her aloof employer.
They began walking side by side, their backs straight, and looking more like siblings than boss and assistant with their identical blond hair and impeccably elegant taste in clothes.
As they entered the lift, Willem said, “Be sure Ms. Somerset is given a full tour of the palace. She’s been granted access to all parts except for the third floor in the east wing.”
“A full tour could take hours,” his intern commented. “She may end up missing the dinner entirely.”
“I’m aware of that.”
“You are worried about her, Mr. de Konigh?”
“Willem, Serenity.”
“Mr. de Konigh during work hours, sir.”
Shaking his head at her stubbornness, Willem let it go and instead answered her previous question, murmuring, “It’s more concern than worry. Also, it would be interesting to see what happens if their paths do cross.” One of the reasons why he and Manolis were such good friends was because of their disinclination for emotional relationships, which was why it had stunned him the first time he heard about the Greek billionaire having an affair with his own secretary.
What would make a man as rational as Stavros Manolis do something as illogical as conduct a workplace affair?
Her employer’s last words had Serenity glancing at Willem sharply, but when he looke
d her way, her usual mask of icy composure had fallen back into place.
“Something the matter?” Willem asked.
“Just reviewing my to-do list for today, Mr. de Konigh,” she lied.
“Willem.”
“Sir.”
As they stepped out of the elevator, her employer’s last words replayed in her mind. Interesting. Willem de Konigh thought Willow Somerset was interesting.
It was reason enough for Serenity to dislike the newcomer on sight.
****
“You are tired, Ms. Somerset?”
Not if you’re going to make me sound like I’m weak for admitting it, Willow thought. Shaking her head, she forced a smile as she lied, “Not at all.” But really, she was. She and Willem de Konigh’s PA-slash-snow-princess had been walking for three hours already, and they had only covered one out of three wings that made up Contini’s official palace.
Serenity flashed her a smile that almost made Willow shiver. Brrr. This woman sure hated her. “Perfect,” Serenity said. “We shall continue then.”
Willow swallowed back a groan. She was tired and hungry, dammit. Was this girl truly human or did she run on batteries?
“Coming, Ms. Somerset?” Serenity and her too-young-and-too-long legs had already gotten her up the next flight of stairs.
“Umm, yeah, sure.” Trying not to sigh in sheer exhaustion, Willow forced herself to climb the stairs, which was made tortuous by her three-inch stilettos. She had worn it just to make sure she’d make the right professional impression on the royal family. But if she had known she’d be facing off with a blonde robot – the real kind, it seemed, and not a fake one like Ashley – then she’d have worn good old sneakers instead. Why bother compete when you’re up against perfection?
By the time she reached the landing, Serenity was twiddling her thumbs, a bored look on her too-pretty face.
“Elsa, meet your evil doppelganger,” Willow mumbled under her breath.
The younger woman blinked. “Pardon?”
“You look so much like the girl from Frozen,” she said brightly.
