“No he won’t, Stasio. He’s never fully accepted Ari. Knowing Theo is back in Ari’s life is only going to make him more unpleasant to be around. I won’t let him hurt my son.”
“I’ll try to reason with him one more time.”
“Thank you for that. I love you, Stasio.”
“I love you, too. If Theo is all the things you believe he is and he can make Ari happy, then I couldn’t ask more for you. When you never developed an interest in another man, I prayed Theo might come back to you.”
Her eyes smarted. The kisses they’d exchanged over the last few days might have rocked her to the foundations, but these were still early days in their tentative relationship. “I…I’m not sure about that, but I do know he wants to father Ari from now on.”
“Six years is a long time to be out of his life,” Stasio murmured, “but it’s never too late. A boy needs his own father if he’s lucky enough to have him.”
Stasio was talking about their father of course. Her brother was a saint. To have his blessing was all that mattered to Stella. Now that he knew everything, she felt free and couldn’t wait to see Theo tomorrow.
“Kyrie Pantheras?”
Theo was on an overseas call. “What is it?” he asked his secretary.
“There’s a courier from the court here with a summons. You have to sign for it.”
He’d been expecting it. Nikos Athas hadn’t wasted any time. “Send him in.”
Theo made his excuses to the other man on the phone and hung up. In a minute the courier entered his office. Theo walked over to him. “I understand you have a summons for me?”
“Yes. If you’ll sign and date it, please.”
After he’d written his signature, he was given the envelope. Theo closed the door and walked over to the window to open the document.
Pantheras vs Athas.
Now that Nikos was back in the picture, Theo had tripled the security on himself, his family, not to mention Stella and Ari. Nikos had tried to destroy them once before. It could happen again. He wouldn’t put anything past him and wasn’t about to take any chances.
Plaintiff Nikos Athas seeks a restraining order against Defendant Theo Pantheras who has proved to be a threat to Plaintiff’s sister, Stella Athas, and her son, Ari. You are hereby summoned to appear before the court at nine a.m., Wednesday, June 15, to answer to charges of manipulation and coercion with intent to harm. Failure to comply will result in your arrest.
Nikos must have been born with a twisted mind.
This summons was what the six years of hard work, sacrifice and preparation had all been about. Theo was more than ready to take on Stella’s brother. Since being with her again, heaven knew he hadn’t wanted it to come to this, but after bumping into Nikos on St. Thomas, their chance meeting had escalated the situation to a white-hot point.
Theo tapped the paper against his cheek. Stasio Athas’s name wasn’t on the suit. At this point he began to think he’d been totally wrong about Stella’s oldest brother. Stasio had been the one to take her to New York and look after her. He’d been the one to come to Ari’s rescue when he and Rachel had been kidnapped. Stella loved Stasio.
He moved over to his desk and phoned Nestor. “I just received a summons from Nikos Athas out of Costas Paulos’s office. Who is he?”
“The Athas family attorney. Read me what it says.”
After Theo complied, Nestor grunted. “I’ll answer it and be in touch with you.”
“Thank you. As you know, I don’t want a court fight. Do everything you can to prevent it.”
“That may not be possible. Costas is one of the best there is and could hold sway over the judge.”
“When I made inquiries, I was told you were one of the best, but whatever happens, keep me posted. I’ll be on vacation for the next ten days.”
“Enjoy yourself. You deserve it.”
“Thanks, Nestor.”
With that out of the way, Theo couldn’t wait to leave the office. He had plans for the three of them, plans he was praying would change his entire life.
The resort’s swimming pool resembled an aqua-blue lake. At one end was the giant slide Theo had told the boys about. Ari had been going down it all afternoon. Stella had taken quite a few turns herself and was worn-out. The hike to the top of the slide provided a work out all its own.
Theo never seemed to tire. He and Ari had thought up a dozen different ways to descend. Her boy was in heaven. If she didn’t miss her guess, Theo was, too.
Ari ran over to the stairs. “I’m coming down on my stomach next time, Papa!”
Theo grinned. “Be sure and keep your head up. I’m waiting for you!”
“This is the last one for today, honey,” Stella called to him from the sun lounger. “You and your father have your star-gazing class tonight. You need to eat dinner before you go.”
“Oh, yeah. I forgot.”
As he scrambled up the steps, Stella’s gaze drifted to Theo who stood at the bottom of the serpentine slide to watch for him. Every female in the vicinity had their eyes on him, but Theo appeared oblivious. He and Ari were having too much fun.
Stella had brought out a book to read, but she kept looking at the same page over and over again because all she’d done was stare at the dark-haired male no other man compared to. One day Ari would grow up to be every bit as gorgeous and arresting. It gave her a thrill to know she was with Theo, that Ari was their son.
Several females cast her an envious glance. One woman who’d walked over to this part of the pool in a minuscule bikini made a play for him, engaging him in conversation. Stella felt so territorial she wanted to push her into the water, but of course she didn’t do it. For one thing, Theo would know without a doubt her attraction to him had reached a dangerously strong level.
Close your eyes, Stella. Don’t look at him.
Ari’s life had become complete with the advent of his father’s vital presence. His unqualified show of love for their son should be enough for Stella. Theo’s private life was something else again.
They’d been here four days already. Once this vacation was over, she would get an apartment in the same neighborhood and life would get back to a new kind of normalcy. She’d go back to her work. So would he. Theo had talked about wanting a relationship with her, but they needed to go slowly.
In the meantime she had to put up with other women eyeing him. His kind of charisma brought the females running, just like the one with the tanned body and flowing blond hair still talking to him while he watched for Ari.
Since Theo seemed to be enjoying the attention, Stella decided she’d watched the spectacle long enough. After putting the book in her bag, she slipped on her beach coverup and headed inside the hotel where she wouldn’t have to undergo more torture.
Certain things had changed since six years ago when Theo had never done anything to make her jealous. But that was when they’d been young lovers hiding from their families in order to be together. Everything was different now.
As she let herself in the room adjoining Theo’s penthouse suite, a shaft of pain robbed her of breath because a part of her didn’t want things to be different. In her heart of hearts she longed to be in his arms again. She ached for that fulfillment he’d brought to her life while they’d shut out the rest of the world.
But you could never go back. She didn’t want to revisit all the pain that followed after he’d disappeared. Somehow she had to learn to survive with him back in Ari’s life, but maybe not hers! Much to Ari’s chagrin this special time with him on St. Thomas wouldn’t last much longer, but it would be the very best antidote for the illness slowly killing her.
With tears threatening, she hurried into her room with the intention of showering, but all of a sudden Theo burst in through the adjoining door. Ari ran in behind him and disappeared into the bathroom.
“How come you didn’t wait for us?” was the first question out of his mouth.
Stella was surprised he’d even noticed. “Yo
u two were having such a great time, I didn’t know how long you’d be.”
She heard him curse before he said, “You and I need to talk.” He sounded angry.
“What’s wrong?”
“How would you have felt if you’d turned around and discovered I was missing.”
“It’s not the same thing, Theo. You were talking to that woman. I didn’t know if it was about business or not so I decided not to disturb you.”
“That woman was a total stranger to me. When she invited me to a party, I told her I was married and my wife was right over there. Except that you weren’t anywhere in sight.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.”
“It upset Ari, too.”
By now her heart was thundering unmercifully. “I had no idea.”
“Next time give me a thought before you bolt.” In the next breath he was gone.
“Mom?”
She swung around to see Ari with a towel wrapped around him. “Yes?”
“I thought you liked daddy.”
Stella reeled. “You know I do. I’ve already told you that.”
“But you don’t love him like you used to, huh?”
His question trapped her. No matter how she answered it, Ari would internalize it and eventually tell Theo. “For now, why don’t we concentrate on you and your father.”
“I wish we could stay here forever.”
Unable to resist, she kissed his cheek. “I’ve never seen you have so much fun before.”
His dark eyes shone. “I love him.”
“He loves you.”
“I know. He’s going to take us sailing tomorrow. We’re going to stay out overnight and the next day we’re going to fish.”
“That’ll be exciting for you.”
“But you’ll be with us.”
“I don’t think so, honey. Your father wants some private time with you. Think of all the years you’ve both missed.”
His cute face crumpled. “Daddy says we won’t go if you don’t come.”
Was Theo worried that Ari might get frightened without her there? If he could have heard his son just now, he’d know the bond between them was so strong, he had nothing to fear in that regard. After they came back from class she would ask Theo about it and reassure him if necessary.
“I’ll talk to him later.”
“We’re going to eat dinner in his room. Come on. You can talk to him right now.”
“Not yet. I have to shower first.”
A few minutes later Stella rushed back into the bedroom and dressed in a pair of tan slacks and a print top in various shades of earth tones. She’d picked up a darker tan over the past few days. The new lipstick she’d purchased accentuated it. For the first time in years she felt as if she was on a real vacation with nothing to do but eat, sleep and play. She never wanted it to end.
In the past they’d always had to hide from everyone. Yet even after he’d disappeared, she’d never felt free. There was a gloom Nikos brought with him that had always darkened her world, but with Theo she felt free to be herself and Ari was a totally different child.
The more she thought about it, the more she was determined that as soon as they returned to Athens, she would start looking for another place to live. Stasio and his family preferred living on Andros. That left Nikos who could take over the family villa where he’d grown up. It would make him feel in charge. Maybe that’s what he needed.
When she walked into Theo’s suite, he captured her gaze. They both studied each other. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
“In truth you’re the most beautiful woman at this resort. I can’t believe how lucky I am.”
She tried to stifle her gasp of surprise, but she couldn’t suppress the surge of pleasure that curled through her body. Since it was Theo, he’d already noticed the signs, like the fact that right now her breathing had grown shallow just being this close to him.
He could read all the little clues that meant she was so aware of him, she was jittery. Of course she wasn’t fooling anyone, especially not him, but it was a game she had to play for self-preservation.
“I’m lucky to be with two such handsome men.”
“Am I handsome?” Ari wanted to know.
“Yes, just like your father,” she blurted before realizing what she’d just said. Theo simply smiled at her.
Stella looked away. “Um, this looks good.” She sat down next to Ari where Theo served them a light dinner from the cart sent up from the kitchen. So far they’d been eating all their meals in his room. She loved the intimacy, like they were a real family.
Theo eyed her for a long moment, seeming to assess her until she felt exposed. Her heart did a little kick she couldn’t control. “Did Ari tell you my plans for the next few days?”
“Yes. We were just talking about it.” If they all went sailing overnight, they’d be away from her brother’s long reach a little longer. Without hesitation she said, “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.”
“Hooray!” Ari cried.
There was a look in Theo’s dark eyes that told her he was pleasantly surprised. “In that case I’d like to leave early in the morning.”
“We’ll be ready. While you’re at class, I’ll pack.”
“I’ll see the galley is stocked with food. That was a luxury I couldn’t provide when we used to go rowing. Remember?”
“I didn’t know you went rowing with Daddy.”
Stella almost choked on the lamb she was eating. “Sometimes we did.” Ari had been conceived on one of those outings.
“Was it fun?”
Theo’s jet-black gaze shot to hers. “How would you describe it?” he asked her in his deep voice.
She couldn’t meet his eyes. “As I recall, it was a lot of hard work.”
“But the end justified the means every time.”
Theo…
Unable to sit there any longer, she got up from the table. “I think I’ll get started on that packing. Enjoy your class and come back safely.”
Stella couldn’t get out of his room fast enough.
Two nights later Stella stood at the bow of the sailboat, gazing at the view.
“That’s a sunset you don’t see very often.” Theo had come up behind her.
“It’s glorious.” She’d been marveling over a golden orange sky slowly fading into pink. He ran his hands up her arms, kissing the side of her neck. “Wh-where’s Ari?” When Theo came up on her like that, she couldn’t even talk clearly.
“In the galley finishing his ice cream. Why do you think I stole up here for a moment?” His hands caressed her shoulders.
“No, Theo,” she cried, “this isn’t the time—” But he wasn’t listening to her.
“You’re wrong. It’s the perfect time. Before I went away, you were my whole life.” He turned her around to face him. “Since I’ve been back, I’ve discovered you still are. Agape mou,” he whispered, finding her mouth, avidly kissing her lips apart. “I need to taste your sweetness again.”
His hunger for her made her forget everything else. All she knew was that his mouth set her on fire and she couldn’t stop what was happening. As his passion grew, she was engulfed in his arms, craving his touch. There was no one in the world who could make her feel the way Theo did. Her need to merge with him was overpowering.
He finally lifted his head enough to look into her eyes. “I can’t believe that when I flew to New York, you were there, too, having our baby. I should have been there for you.” She heard tears in his voice. “We were robbed of our lives for a long time. Now that we’re back together, I need this more than ever. Tell me you feel the same way….”
For a dizzying moment she felt their bodies meld. The chemistry between them had always been volatile. Right now it was as if they’d never been apart. “Obviously I’m not immune to you, Theo,” she confessed on a little moan of surrender, “but having told you that, it changes nothing. We’re not young kids anym
ore.”
“No. We’re a man and woman who’ve never been able to stay away from each other.”
She searched his eyes. “There are things we have to talk about.”
“I agree, but let’s enjoy the rest of our trip first. This is heaven for me. I want to make it last as long as possible. Don’t you?”
“Of course,” she admitted, “but—”
“Do you trust me?”
She felt him probing deep into her soul. “Yes. Otherwise I wouldn’t be here.”
“That’s all I needed to hear.”
Once again his mouth fused with hers. This was ecstasy. His lips roved over her face, capturing each feature. As she sought his mouth helplessly, she heard a sound behind them.
“What kind of fish do you think we’ll catch tomorrow?”
While she tore her lips away and eased out of Theo’s arms, he turned to Ari. “Probably some sea bass. It’s very tasty. If they’re not biting, then we’ll do some snorkeling.”
“Will we see a lot of things?”
“I’ll take us to a spot where the water’s so clean and pure, you won’t believe what’s swimming underneath.”
“Will it be scary?”
“Not where we’re going. Besides, your mom and I will be right there with you.”
“Yeah.”
“Now that we’ve dropped anchor for the night, come on and help me put the boat to bed.”
“A boat doesn’t go to bed, Papa.”
“Sure it does. It’s tired after working hard all day.” Ari giggled. No one was more exciting to be with than Theo. “We have to clean up any messes, fasten down anything loose, turn out lights. There’s a lot of stuff.”
“Will we be able to fish as soon as we wake up?”
“Yes, but it’ll be foggy so we’ll throw out our lines and see what we can catch until the sun burns it off.”
“How did you learn to fish?”
“My father taught me and my brothers. We had to go out very early to catch enough for my mother to cook.”
The Greek's Long-Lost Son Page 11
