“I draw, too, but mostly superheroes. Wolverine, Cat Woman, Hellboy—things like that.”
“Cool,” Alek said, relaxing a little. “Sam draws people, too. Real people. Look at the picture she drew of me,” he said, handing it to her.
“Hey, that looks exactly like you.” Elena stared at the picture and then turned to Sam. “Can you draw me?”
Before Sam could say a word, Alek chuckled. “Yeah. Draw her.”
Sam didn’t trust that chuckle and gave Alek another admonishing look, but he wasn’t paying attention to her. He was staring at Elena’s black make up and spiky hair. So much for the brief moment where she thought they were being friendly, Sam thought.
She flipped her pad to a blank page and pursed her lips. She needed to do something fast if she wanted to avoid spending dinner with these two kids sparring with each other. She turned to the young girl.
“I’d love to draw you, Elena. Don’t move. It’ll only take me a few minutes.” She swirled her charcoal pencil across the white page, hiding what she was drew from Alek. Ten minutes later, she put her pencil down and announced, “Done.” She handed the pad to Elena.
The young girl’s expression was stunned as she stared at the picture.
“Let me see,” Alek said.
“Do you like it?” Sam asked gently.
“It’s…it’s beautiful,” Elena breathed softly. “Is that me?”
Sam nodded. “Yes. Minus the spiky hair and black make up. You’re very pretty, Elena.”
“Let me see it,” Alek repeated.
“Here,” Elena said.
Alek reacted the same way Elena did and Sam hid a smile.
Sam had drawn the real Elena, the one without the scary mask. Her short hair framed her elfin face and feathered her high cheekbones. Her dark eyes, almond-shaped and luminous, projected a young girl ready to bloom into womanhood. Her lips, all sweetness and soft, curved upward into a tiny, secretive smile, as though she said ‘look what I’ve been hiding’.
Elena laughed softly. “It’s great, huh?” She asked the still silent Alek.
He peered up at her, squinted, glanced back at the picture, and then back up to her, his brow getting knottier.
“It’s a pretty picture, isn’t it, Alek?” Sam asked innocently.
His gaze darted back to Elena. “Why do you wear so much black makeup? Are you into vampires, or something?”
Elena stiffened for a brief moment. “Something.” Ignoring him, she looked at Sam. “Do you really think this is me?”
Sam was still trying to figure out what Elena meant by something. She shrugged it off, realising she was never going to understand teenager lingo. “This is absolutely you.”
Elena gave Alek a guarded look. “So do…do you like it?”
“What a difference,” he murmured, staring at the picture. He shot an interested look Sam’s way. “Can you draw anyone else?”
“Sure.” Sam grinned and thought about those endless nights before bedtime with the kids back home at Somerset’s orphanage and how she entertained them. “We can play a game. I’ll draw someone we all know and you two have to guess who it is.”
“Cool,” Elena said, smiling.
Sam turned to a fresh page and started scribbling quickly along the sheet. She drew Maria, with rosy cheeks, wings, and a halo.
Elena giggled. “Maria!”
Alek frowned. “No fair. I don’t know who Maria is.”
Sam smiled at him. “That’s Leo’s housekeeper. You met her when you arrived, remember?”
Alek’s eyes lit with recognition. “Oh, yeah.”
Sam chuckled. “I drew her as an angel.”
“Draw someone else,” Alek said.
“Do Leo,” Elena said, grinning.
Alek grinned. “Yeah. Draw Leo. I haven’t met him yet.”
“But do it like Maria’s,” Elena added excitedly. “Make it funny.”
Sam chewed her lower lip as she stared at another blank page. Should she? She was afraid what her hand might do. When she drew, her creative instincts took over and there was no stopping her flow.
“Please,” Alek begged.
“Okay,” she relented after catching his earnest expression.
Feeling a bit warm around her cheeks, she put her pencil on the paper and drew the first image that came to mind, the one from her dream where he had transformed into a beast. When she was done, she held up the pad and the two teenagers squealed with laughter.
“And what do you kids find so amusing?”
Startled, Sam turned to see Leo standing a few feet away from her. She hardly noticed that Alek had immediately stopped laughing and was staring up in awe at the imposing figure of Leo. Elena, however, was still giggling into her hand.
Looking at him, all Sam could do was think about the kiss they had shared a few hours ago and her face flamed. Their gazes locked and she detected something behind his dark gaze she’d never seen before. Oddly, that word one popped into her mind and her breath caught. His look deepened, sending a shiver of delight up her spine and a warmth spreading throughout her body.
“We’re playing a game,” Alek offered shyly.
Leo directed his attention to the young boy. A glimmer of a smile hovered above his mouth. “You must be Alek. It is nice to meet you, young man.” Leo took a few strides forward, extending his hand.
Alek cleared his throat and jumped up, offering his hand awkwardly. “It’s nice to meet you, Leo. Thank you for the gift.”
“Think nothing of it, young man. It was my pleasure. Sam told me you are quite the artist.” He turned to Elena. “Your parents are wondering where you went off to.”
Elena rolled her eyes. “Thank God Sam was here. Otherwise I would have died of boredom.”
Leo’s gaze locked with Sam’s. “You don’t say. So, what is this game you are playing and what had you all rolling in laughter?”
Sam hugged the sketch pad to her chest and shrugged. “It was nothing. I drew a…a picture for the kids.”
“May I see it?”
She shook her head quickly. “It’s not very good.”
“If it had Elena and Alek laughing that hard, it must be good,” he replied in his deep, sultry voice.
Sam’s stomach flip-flopped. “No, really.”
“Sam, I could really use a laugh myself today,” he said.
She felt silly. What harm would it be showing him the picture? If it was a laugh he needed, who was she to deny him the pleasure? She looked up into his face as she handed him the pad and noticed for the first time how tired and tense he seemed. Her heart constricted in her chest and she silently hoped he had a good sense of humour.
Wordlessly, he flipped slowly through her pages and paused at Maria’s picture. He chuckled softly and then he paused at Elena’s picture and smiled appreciatively. It was when he turned to his picture, Sam saw him tense. She had drawn him as a Man-Beast. His handsome face was transformed with jowls and fangs and his body was massive, with bulging muscles and talons.
She watched as surprise lit his features. Oddly, she thought she detected a hint of fear as well, but it disappeared so quickly she decided she must have imagined it.
“Interesting, you see me as a beast,” he said.
Sam took the pad from Leo’s hands, unable to look at him. “It was all in fun,” she murmured.
Leo’s expression was unreadable except for a muscle clicking furiously along his jaw. He cleared his throat abruptly. “I came here to tell you all that dinner will be served in twenty minutes.”
Sam nodded up at him, barely able to look him in the eye. “We’ll be inside in a bit.”
“Good,” he said. “I will see you all in a little while.”
“Okay,” she said quietly, and watched him stride away.
“Phew,” Alek said. “He’s a scary, proud sort of man.”
Elena giggled, giving Sam a sly look . “And interested… er…I mean, interesting, too.”
Sam grabbed all of her
things, not bothering to remark on Elena’s obvious comment. Did Elena really believe Leo was interested in her? Sam wasn’t even certain he remembered their kiss. He strode away all cool and collected as though unravelling her life a few hours ago was all in a day’s work.
“Come on, kids. Let’s get back to the house,” she said glumly.
* * * *
Once they arrived at the house, Sam watched Elena disappear into one of the guest bedrooms. She turned to Alek.
“You can wait for me in the library while I get ready for dinner. I’ll show you where it is.”
He followed her into the spacious room and his face lit up one thousand watts when he saw all the books on Art at his disposal. Sam smiled thinking how much she had in common with the young boy.
Back in her room, she put on a pair of white silk dress pants, a pretty floral blouse, and slipped on her black and gold sandals. Sam was touching up her lips with a bit of gloss when she heard a knock at her door.
“Come in.”
It was Elena, her face completely scrubbed clean of all the black make up.
Sam smiled. “I love what you did with your hair.”
The young girl blushed. “I washed it to get rid of the gel.”
“It’s perfect.”
“Thanks.” Her gaze darted from Sam’s outfit to the few clothes strewn on her bed. “I…I was wondering if I could borrow something to wear,” she added, her hand touching one of her oversized safety pins on her thigh.
Sam was elated. “Sure. We look about the same size. Here. I have the perfect dress for you.” She picked up the white dress she had worn when Leo’s parents had come for dinner a couple of nights ago. “Do you like it?”
Elena’s gaze went to the pretty embroidered roses along the hem and smiled. “It’s pretty. You don’t mind?”
“Not at all. It’s my pleasure.”
Elena took the dress and made her way out the door, when Sam realised something. “Wait a minute. You can’t wear those boots. I have these pretty red sandals you can wear. You’re a seven, right?”
Elena nodded, looking relieved. “Thanks, Sam.”
“I’ll see you downstairs.”
“Okay.”
Sam smiled as she watched the young girl leave. Elena and Alek were so much alike. Both needed attention. Both needed love. One needed confidence with his talent, and the other needed confidence with herself.
* * * *
After all the introductions were made, everyone took their seats at the table and Elena made her entrance. Her parents were the first to react as they looked up and gasped.
Her mother, Eftihia Spanakis, a formidable looking woman with gold jewellery, impeccable make up, and a salon-styled chignon, smiled at her daughter. “You look beautiful. Where did you get that pretty dress?”
Elena smiled shyly. “Sam let me borrow it.”
Costa Spanakis, Elena’s father, grinned at his daughter. “You look very pretty, my girl.”
Sam shared a private look with Elena and her heart lifted with pleasure. The young girl glanced at Alek who regarded her silently. Slowly, a small smile formed on his mouth and he said, “You look like the picture.”
Elena shrugged, but Sam could tell the young girl was pleased. “I’m just trying this out.”
Leo’s mother smiled approvingly at the young girl. “I hope you stay with this look, Elena. A beautiful young girl should not have to wear so much black make up and wear army boots. Don’t you agree, Leo?” She looked at her son.
Sam glanced at Leo and was surprised to see he wasn’t looking at Elena or his mother. He was staring at her. Their gazes held and his eyes softened. Quickly, she lowered her attention to the meal Maria placed before her and willed herself to calm down.
“Anything would be an improvement from that awful style you had, sis,” Katina’s cold voice said, prompting Sam to look at her.
Elena took her seat across from Alek and ignored her older sister. Sam felt compassion for the young girl. Katina needed a lesson on sisterly love.
The delicious meal of stuffed tomatoes progressed from there, with the men discussing business and Leo’s and Katina’s mother discussing the upkeep of their homes. Every once in a while Alek and Elena would toss each other a shy grin, and Sam remained silent, feeling more and more uncomfortable with Katina’s baleful glares.
Sam glanced at Leo from time to time and caught him staring at her with a mixture of interest and admiration. Quickly, she took another sip of her wine and willed her head to stop spinning. She had to slow down on the drinking if she didn’t want to make a fool of herself tonight.
“When are you returning to America, Sam?” Katina asked once there was a lull in the conversation around the table.
All eyes turned to her. “Next Wednesday.”
Alek frowned. “That soon?”
Elena grimaced. “That sucks.”
“Elena!” Her mother admonished her.
Katina laughed coldly. “You can take the cook out of the kitchen, but you can’t take the kitchen out of the cook.”
Elena shot her a dark look. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Katina reached for her wine. “Your outside transformation doesn’t change anything. You can’t hide what you are no matter how hard you try.”
Elena’s face darkened and Sam cleared her throat as she raised her glass. “I…I want to make a toast. To this beautiful country. Thank you, Leo and Mr. and Mrs. Stefanos for your hospitality. I’ll never forget it.”
And she would never forget him, she thought as she smiled at him. He returned her smile with a look of amusement and raised his glass as his gaze shifted imperceptibly to the two sisters. Sam realised he knew she’d raised her glass to stop the inevitable battle Elena was going to start with Katina.
“You must return one day,” Leo’s father said.
Her heart stopped. She could never return. “One day,” she lied gently.
She caught Leo staring at her intently. His eyes were darker than ever and his mouth quirked as though he was trying hard to control some deep, dark emotion. Sam felt a thread of electricity run through them and she tore her gaze from his. His energy was palpable and she wondered what he was thinking about.
Maria arrived to take the dinner plates away and placed a salad in front of everyone. Sam caught Alek’s frown as he stared at his two forks. He picked up the dessert fork and Elena cleared her throat delicately. He watched her motioning slightly to the other fork next to his plate and he gave her a look that was both grateful and embarrassed.
“You work your way in from the outside,” Katina remarked under her breath.
Sam snapped an annoyed glance Katina’s way. From the head of the table, Leo said, “I am sure they are better things to teach the children, Katina, than which fork to use.” He gave Alek a wink. “Personally, I still get confused. If I had it my way, we would use one fork and one spoon.”
With a grateful expression on his young face, Alek smiled at Leo and Sam nearly drew back at the sudden rush of feeling flowing through her heart.
If she didn’t know any better, she was slowly but surely falling in love with Leo.
Chapter 9
Sam was relieved when the dinner ended. After a couple of aperitifs in the drawing room, Leo’s parents and the Spanakis family bade everyone good night.
Sam looked up at Leo. “I’m going to take the Volvo and drive Alek home.”
Leo nodded. “I’ll come with you.”
Fifteen minutes later, they were winding down a small road with Alek silent in the back seat. Sam peered out into the night. “Where’s the orphanage, Alek?”
“You didn’t pick him up directly in front earlier?” Leo asked.
Sam shook her head, giving him a sideways glance. “I met Alek on the main road. He thought it would be easier for me.”
“It’s the last building on this road,” the young boy replied in a small voice.
Leo drove to the front of the orphanage and put the
car in park. He and Sam stared up in silence at the dark, sad, neglected building. Sam glanced at Leo and caught his grimace. She turned around and faced Alek.
“Did you enjoy yourself tonight, honey?”
Alek nodded. “Thanks for inviting me.” He collected his bags and opened his door. “Thanks again for the paint set, Leo.”
“I am very pleased you like it, young man.”
Alek nodded and got out of the car. Sam’s heart constricted as she watched him make his way slowly up the steps to the front of the building. He paused at the top and turned around. Slowly, he raised his hand and waved good bye.
Sam blinked away the threat of tears and smiled as she waved back.
“Alek is a great kid,” Leo said as he drove away.
She nodded, unable to speak.
“He’s going to be fine, Sam,” Leo said quietly. “That boy is a survivor.”
They drove in silence to the house and once inside, he turned to her at the stairs. His expression was tense. “We still need to talk, Sam. Would you like to have a drink with me in the library?”
She was too emotional and decided against it. So many things had happened to her the past few hours, she couldn’t think straight. “Could I take a rain check? I think I’ll just turn in.” Apart from worrying about Alek, Sam realized she had a whole other worry to contend with.
Somewhere along the line, she had fallen in love with Leo.
He nodded slowly. “I understand. We will talk tomorrow. I am meeting Carlos Ventura at six. We can talk tomorrow night after he leaves.”
Sam nodded, unable to shake the strange sensation she had at the back of her neck at the mere mention of the casino mogul. “Good night, Leo,” she said softly.
“Good night, Sam,” he said, his gaze dipping to her mouth.
Sam turned and went up the stairs before she did something foolish like fling herself into his strong arms and beg for his soothing touch.
* * * *
Grim-faced, Leo went into the library and poured himself a drink. His gut tightened with concern for Sam. He knew she worried about Alek, and he wished he could do something to make her feel better.
And yet, he knew if they were alone, he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands off her.
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