He felt his eyes fill with tears once more and he fought them back. He would not be weak now. Cassia needed him and he needed to be strong for both of them. His tears would do nothing to help.
He took her hand and squeezed.
“Koúkla, I’m here...”
She looked so fragile yet still looked beautiful.
“Hang in there, okay? Be strong for me. I’ll be here. I won’t leave you. I’ll stay here and guard you and our baby.”
He kissed her cold fingers and brushed away the tendrils of hair from her face. Then, he stared at her while he prayed to whoever might be listening to give her a full recovery.
February 1, 2013
Athens General Hospital
Athens, Greece
It took five days before Cassia finally woke up.
Those five days were hell for her husband. Two days ago, she was already out of the intensive care unit and was brought to the largest suite in the hospital. Through it all, Nikos never left her side. He had Alex and Antonio bring his things and he asked James, his faithful assistant, to remain in the hospital as well.
When he needed to work, he worked beside her. He didn’t want to go because he didn’t want her to wake up without him in the room.
It paid off. When she opened her eyes, he was beside her holding her hand and reading a book. When her hazel eyes gazed into his, his heart missed a beat. When she finally smiled after looking around in confusion, he wanted to scream his joy to the heavens.
“How are you feeling, koúkla? Do I need to call the doctor?”
“I feel like I’ve been run over by a truck and that truck is still on my chest,” she whispered hoarsely.
She turned to him and her eyes were wide with panic. Her hands immediately covered her abdomen.
“Nikos, our baby?”
“Relax,agapimeni. He or she is fine but the doctor ordered you on bed rest for about a month after this.”
“Right now, bed rest sounds divine. And it’s a good thing I don’t need to be out of bed for my work,” she whispered.
“I’ll be right here. I’ll watch over both of you,” he said as he settled his hand over her abdomen.
“Hear that baby? Your papa will stay right here with us.” Cassia grinned. “Wait. But what about your work, Nikos?”
He turned around and waved to the direction of the table behind him. His laptop was there along with several papers. “I brought my work here,” he said with a shrug.
“How long has it been?”
“You’ve been asleep for a week.”
“A week?!”
“Shh...don’t stress yourself. You need rest.”
“I’m fine, Nikos. I promise I won’t overexert myself.”
“I nearly died of a heart attack the moment I saw you there on the floor. I will never allow that to happen again, agapimeni.”
His words made her smile. But then she remembered something else and it wiped all the happiness away.
“Is Hector—“
“He’s gone. It’s over.”
She closed her eyes in a wave of pain. She’d been with Hector for a long time and he was one of her greatest friends. But she never knew his past or how troubled he was. If only he told her, she was sure she could’ve helped him.
She couldn’t help feeling guilty. It was her fault that everything happened. She drove him well over his limit.
“Cassia, I know what you are thinking about. It’s not your fault. It’s his. He chose his path and what he wanted to believe in. He was rich, he was famous and he had you but he threw all that away for his revenge.”
Nikos cradled Cassia close, careful of the tubes still connected to her.
“I just can’t help wishing that I was able to help him, Nikos.”
“I wish that too. I never knew I had a brother.”
Then he just held her until she finished crying all her tears.
“What’s going to happen now, Nikos?”
“We’re going to start anew. We are going to forget everything that’s happened and get on with our lives. Soon, there’s going to be an addition to our family, Cassia. I want everything to be all set before the baby comes. We’re going to start with us. I’m going to fix us.”
She lifted her hand and traced his jaw.
“How are you going to fix something that isn’t broken?”
He drew in a sharp breath.
“I told you I’ve forgiven you for everything, Nikos. The past is all a lie and a big fat misunderstanding. What matters is what we have now. I have you and I’m not letting you go.”
Nikos grinned.
“I won’t give myself over,” he teased and his heart soared when she laughed.
“So what are we going to do after I’m out of here?”
“You are going to continue to rest. If the doctor says bed rest, I will chain you to our bed if I have to.”
“Okay. Let’s just say that I am cleared to go and that our baby’s fine. What happens then?”
“Then I guess we’d travel. We’ll go to Paris and you’ll have one of your fashion shows there. Then we’ll go to China and you can eat all the dimsum your heart desires. Hmm...then maybe to Hawaii because I know how much you love the beach. Or perhaps Bora Bora where you told me you wanted to spend a month?”
Cassia’s eyes were filled with tears by the time he stopped speaking. “You remembered all that?”
“Of course. How could I not?”
She squeezed his hand. “I like that. Promise me we’ll do all that?”
“As long as we still can,agapimeni. When you can’t travel anymore because of our little one, we’re going back to our island. I want my son born in Greece.”
“Son, huh? What if it’s a daughter?”
“It makes no difference to me if we have a son or a daughter. I just want him or her and you to both be healthy. If we have a son, I will teach him how to be an even greater businessman. If we have a daughter, you can teach her how to draw or paint and she could become a fashion designer like you.”
She gave him her widest smile.
“I told you I can be charming when I want to be.”
Cassia rolled her eyes. “Then you should have done that ten years ago. Maybe now, we’d have three or four children.”
Nikos laughed and held her close.
“That is my one regret. I should not have believed the lies your grandfather told us. I should have gathered evidence. I should have believed what Antonio told me before. But because of my pride and my anger, I acted out. I’m so sorry, Cassia...”
“Don’t be. I am a much better person now because of everything I’ve experienced.”
“Then I am thankful for those ten years but sad that I was the catalyst. I should never have treated you that way.”
“Yes. And you promised you’d make up for it every day of our lives.”
“Ne. I promise.”
He cupped her jaw and tilted her head up so her hazel eyes would clash with his green ones. He wanted her to remember this moment forever.
“S'agapo i kardiamoueinaidiki sou.”
I love you, my heart is yours.
Those were words he wanted to tell her for a long time now but hadn’t had the courage to. Now that he blurted it out, he couldn’t help feeling anxious as to how she’d respond.
Would she reject him again? Was everything going too fast?
“Have I won your heart now, agapimeni?”
“Yes. It’s been yours a long, long time ago. I love you too, Nikos.”
EPILOGUE
December 24, 2016 (Three Years Later)
Nikos and Cassia’s Home
Island of Skorpios, Greece
Nikos stood at the head of the table and began slicing the roast beef that his wife cooked for their Christmas Eve dinner.
His wife smiled and so did his two year old son, Theo. They were surrounded by friends and family. Costas was here and so was Stavros Demakis. Over the years, the two learned to be civil to each oth
er. They both wanted the same thing: to see their grandson. Cassia and Nikos didn’t allow them that privilege until they had settled all their disputes.
It took a long time but here they were.
Costas Andrade had been diagnosed with cancer a year ago. Now, he’d been told he only had about two years to live. So he began making amends. He apologized to Cassia and Nikos and explained everything he did wrong. He asked for forgiveness from Cassia and she told him he’d been forgiven a long time ago. But some things were never forgotten.
Then there was Alex and Isobel. They were married a year ago and they were now also expecting their first child. Beside them were Antonio and Elise with their son Anton who, by Cassia and Nikos’ opinion, had grown up fast. Beside Anton was their second son, Gabriel.
“Oh, I forgot the mashed potatoes!”
Cassia slowly stood up and wobbled to the kitchen. Nikos stopped what he was doing and assisted her. She had a difficult time walking now since she was seven months pregnant with their twins.
Nikos still couldn’t believe that miracle. He vowed he would protect Cassia and see her through all the aches and pains of carrying his twins, a boy and a girl. She complained all the time about how she had to pee and how it was so hard to walk and balance herself because her stomach was huge.
She always told him she felt like Atlas but was carrying the world in her womb instead of on her back.
Nikos listened to it all and he never complained. He even enjoyed giving her back and foot massages to alleviate her pain.
He shook his head as he realized how much his life changed. It was a full one hundred and eighty degree turn but he loved it. He wouldn’t trade it for anything else.
Finally after a few hours of mayhem, they were alone in their room.
“I enjoyed that but I would have loved it more if my back didn’t hurt so much. Theo is growing up and it’s hard to catch him in my state.”
“Don’t run after him anymore, agapimeni. You might slip and hurt yourself. Just watch him and let his nannies chase him for now.”
“I know. I can’t wait for these babies to come out. I want to see my feet again. I want to bend over again,” she laughed.
“They’re the last.”
She speared him with a glare.
Nikos threw up his hands and laughed.
“Let’s close it on an even number. Maybe four?Six? Eight?” he teased.
Cassia slapped his arm and glared.
“Are you happy you married me, glikiamou?”
“At first, no. Which bride in their right mind would want a groom drunk enough to fall asleep at his own wedding?” she teased.
Nikos held his breath as he waited for her to continue
“But you know, you wormed your way into my heart,” she added.
He exhaled.
“And you’ll never leave me, right?”
“What makes you think I won’t leave you? What if I get fed up by how you roar at me when you’re angry?”
Nikos grinned. “Because you love me...”
She reached up and cupped his jaw. “Yes, I do, my arrogant billionaire. The first time I laid eyes on you on that ballroom when you rescued me, you stole my heart”
His heart melted at her words. He reached for her and kissed her tenderly.
“Back to my question...you’ll never leave?”
“We’re shackled together until we’re old and gray,” she whispered against his lips.
Nikos took out some papers from an old envelope. It was the contract that their grandparents agreed on but it was they who fulfilled the terms.
Nikos got up and threw it into the fire. They watched as it burned to nothing but ash.
“I don’t need a piece of paper signed by two old men who thought they could play as gods and meddle with our fate to tell you that you are mine, Cassia. You’re with me for the rest of our lives, Mrs. Demakis. We’re not bound by a piece of paper worth billions but by our love for each other. I love you, agape mou.”
“S’agapo, sýzygos...” I love you, husband.
Cassia took a deep breath and continued.
“Our love is our new contract and it is beyondany price.”
THE END.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alyssa Marie R. Urbano is a Registered Nurse, blogger and a freelance writer from Quezon City, Philippines. She writes in an online publication site called Wattpad where her works were first recognized.Also, she is one of the Wattpad Filipino Ambassadors from the site. You can find her in this URL: http://wattpad.com/user/AerithSage or reach her as @AerithSage on Twitter.
EDITORS
Jamie Harris lives in Dundee, Scotland currently doing an MA in English and Creative Writing. He helps critique and/or edit stories in an online publication site, Wattpad, while writing his own excellent stories as well. You can find him in this URL: http://wattpad.com/user/words_are_weapons.
Ginyn Noble is a full-bred Filipino bouncing between Makati City, Bulacan, and her handsome beau's arms as her residences. She is currently working as a senior content writer for a white label SEO company with clients in the US, UK and Australia. Reach her as @ginynjanoble on twitter.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I want to thank my Editors: Jamie Harris and Ginyn Noble. This book is so much better after they shared their expertise with me.
Next, I want to thank my publishing consultants, Bronze Age Media. Thank you Tania Arpa and Mina V. Esguerra for helping me reach my dreams. Self-publishing is awesome and I am so glad that I found your website over the internet. I hope you’d be able to help more writers who are also aspiring to be published.
Also, thanks to my family who believed and supported me every step of the way. Didn’t I tell you every time you asked me to get off the computer that one day I will become published? This is it and thank you so much for everything.
Lastly, thank you to all my Wattpad readers! Special thanks to Lis (@SeriousMoonlight), Mae (@thelxiepia) Mela (@alem0007), and Suri (@funqueen14). You guys are among the first ones who believed in my writing. It is because of your friendship and encouragement that I am where I am today.
To all my other readers, thank you so much! Without you, all this wouldn’t have been possible. Thank you so much for reading my works and for all your votes and comments that truly encouraged me to be a better writer.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © Alyssa Marie R. Urbano, 2014. All rights reserved.
Table of Contents
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER 1 - MESMERIZED
CHAPTER 2 - SACRIFICE
CHAPTER 3 - BORROWED BLISS
CHAPTER 4 - ENGAGEMENT
CHAPTER 5 - WEDDING
CHAPTER 6 - NIGHTMARE
CHAPTER 7 - REALITY
CHAPTER 8 - CHANGE
CHAPTER 9 - BROKEN
CHAPTER 10 - REUNION
CHAPTER 11 - AUCTION
CHAPTER 12 - STRANGERS
CHAPTER 13 - DIVORCE
CHAPTER 14 - RESCUED
CHAPTER 15 - TAKEN
CHAPTER 16 - CAPTURED
CHAPTER 17 - CLOSER
CHAPTER 18 - ESCAPE
CHAPTER 19 - CHASE
CHAPTER 20 - FALLING
CHAPTER 21 - SURPRISE
CHAPTER 22 - HOPE
EPILOGUE
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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