He hadn’t known what to expect, but so far Fran had kept up with him, carrying her own backpack without complaint. She’d worn her hair up again to keep it out of her face. In jeans and a layered cream-colored top that her figure did amazing things for, he was hard-pressed to look at anything else.
“Are you ready to move on? We’ll ascend a gorge and then you’ll see the red top of the refuge.”
“How high up is it?”
“Two thousand meters.”
“Are we going to stay there tonight?”
“No. We’ll set up our own camp above it. You don’t know how lucky we are to see the mountain today. Usually it’s covered with clouds. That means we’ll see stars tonight.”
“I can’t wait!”
Neither could he.
She started off without him. He paced himself to stay alongside her as they headed for the spot he had in mind to spend the night. They’d bed down in the pines where the air would be fresh and cool.
Along the way she used his field glasses in the hope of spotting the wildlife that flourished on the mountain. After ten minutes of hiking she cried, “Oh, Nik—look at that huge bird!”
He understood her excitement. “I can see it without the binoculars. It’s a bearded vulture.”
“Bearded?”
“It has a mustache.” She giggled like a girl. “That one probably weighs ten pounds.
“I can see why. Its wingspan is enormous.”
“Three to four feet across. This is a protected ecosystem with multiple climate regions. Some plants and animals here aren’t found anywhere else in the world.”
Her face lit up. “I’m so glad we came here. I wouldn’t have missed a sight like this for the world.”
As far as he was concerned, the sight staring up at him had no equal. If there weren’t other hikers moving back and forth on the trail, he would have taken her in his arms and kissed the daylights out of her. “This is only the beginning,” he murmured. “Come on. Let’s get to our destination. I’m hungry. How about you?”
She laughed. “Do you even need to ask?” They headed out for the tougher part of the climb, but she proved herself equal to the task. Before long they reached the refuge where the climbers could have a meal and a bed for the night.
“One more drink of water will sustain us until we reach the sacred spot.”
Her lips curved upward. “Sacred?”
“It will be after we’ve christened it.”
“That’s an interesting choice of words,” she said with a half chuckle before draining the rest of her water bottle.
Nik watched her throat work. Her natural beauty caused every male in the vicinity to take a second and third look. One of the male hikers passing by muttered in Greek to his buddy that Nik had it made for tonight with the dark blonde goddess. Nik ignored him.
For one thing, if he’d been the hiker who’d seen Fran standing there with another guy, he would have wished he’d found her first. For another, he was too happy being with her to take offense at anything.
Again he marveled that despite the tragedy that had struck their family, despite Demi’s parentless state, despite the headaches of becoming the new head of the Angelis Corporation, being with Fran felt right and filled the gaping hole inside him. She brought a new sense of purpose to his life that had been missing.
Last night he’d fallen asleep holding the small Atlas in his hands, enchanted by her inimitable charisma and her extraordinary insight. He could wish he’d met her before she’d ever known her husband. But there was no use wandering down that pointless road.
The past needed to stay in the past. She was here now. That’s what was important, and she was with Nik. If she hadn’t felt the connection to him growing stronger every minute they were together, she would have flown to the United States today. For now he’d shoved his deepest fear to the back of his mind.
“It’s getting dark. Ten more minutes and we can call it a night. Let’s go.”
She followed him up the trail that had grown even steeper. “I’m surprised we’re the only ones not staying there.”
He smiled to himself. “They don’t have your sense of adventure.”
“Too bad we can’t climb Mount Athos next.”
Nik chuckled. “You mean the Greek mountain forbidden to women?”
“Yes, but it didn’t stop the French author Maryse Choisy. Kellie and I read the paperback she wrote.”
“Un mois avec les hommes?”
“That’s it! A Month with the Men. She sneaked into one of the monasteries on the mountain undercover to see how the monks lived. In her words, she turned one of them down. Kellie and I decided she broke his heart.”
“More like his pride,” Nik theorized.
“To find a woman there, he must have thought he was having a vision.”
Nik couldn’t resist adding a comment. “She must have found him unappealing, otherwise she might have spent a much longer time there and no book would have been produced.”
Suddenly the air was filled with the delightful sound of her laughter. It startled some squirrels who scrambled into the higher branches of a pine tree.
“Let’s be thankful we’re on Mount Olympus, where Zeus allowed both male and female gods to romp together in the Elysian fields.”
“That must have been something,” she quipped. “I always pictured those fields to be white.”
“When we’re up on top slipping and sliding on the barren summit covered in rocks, you’ll learn the truth. I’m afraid mythology has a lot to answer for,” he drawled.
“I guess I like reality better.”
“Good, because we’ve arrived at our reality.” He headed through the trees, far enough away from the trail so no one would spot them. Soon he came to a small clearing surrounded by pines. Excited to be here, he removed his pack. “In a few minutes I’ll have the tent erected and we can eat.” He pulled out the big flashlight and turned it on.
“Let me help.” After taking off her pack, she pitched right in. They worked together in companionable silence.
“I can tell you’ve done this before. You’re the perfect person to bring on a hike like this.”
“Coming from you, I’m flattered. The truth is, I used to camp with my parents and my younger brother, Craig. We usually took Kellie with us. She’s a great camper, too. Fearless. We’d go on lots of trips with some of our extended families who loved the outdoors.”
Nik digested everything before glancing at her. “I didn’t know you had a sibling.”
“He died at fifteen of leukemia. I didn’t think I’d recover from the loss, but time took the worst of the pain away. One day your pain over losing your sister will fade, too.”
The news sobered him. “Tell me about your parents.”
“Dad works for a newspaper and has his own political column. My mother still works as an administrator at the school district. I have a lot of aunts and uncles and cousins on both sides. It makes for a big family like yours.”
She’d experienced more than her lot of suffering. The death of a loved brother followed by an agonizing divorce... No wonder she had so much depth of character.
“Where have you lived since you’ve been on your own?”
“In a small condo.”
“Not with your parents?”
“No, but it’s near my parents’ home where I grew up.”
“You’re more independent than most of the women I know. I admire you for
that.”
“I could have gone back home, but I need my own space. So do my parents.”
They moved inside the tent to lay out their sleeping bags. He reached in another part of his pack for the picnic food they’d purchased before leaving Athens. Salad, fruit, sandwiches and a half dozen pastries.
Nik positioned the light so they could see while they sat across from each other to eat.
“Mmm, this tastes fabulous.”
He flicked her a glance. “Have I told you how fabulous you’ve been today?”
She had to finish chewing before she could talk. “I was just thinking the same thing about you. You’re so easygoing. After Rob, I—” She paused for a minute. “I’m sorry. I can’t believe I bring up his name so often. Forgive me.”
“What is there to forgive? You were married what, three years? It’s normal.”
“Maybe, but it’s rude to you and disrespectful to him.”
“A woman with a strong conscience. It’s one of the many things I like about you.” He popped some grapes in his mouth. “I’m curious about something. Did your parents name you Fran at birth?”
She reached for a morsel of baklava. “No. My legal name is Francesca, but I got kidded about it at school, so I went by Fran.”
He frowned. “You were kidded because of it?”
“It sounds too pretentious. I was named for my grandmother on my mother’s side.”
“How would you feel if I called you Francesca?”
“Why would you do that?”
“Because it appeals to me.”
“My parents only called me that when I was in trouble with them.”
One eyebrow lifted. “Did that happen often?”
“More than I’d like to admit. In the seventh grade I signed up for a dance class at a local studio with Kellie without thinking about it. When my parents got the bill, they couldn’t believe what I’d done. They didn’t get mad exactly. Dad said it showed ingenuity, but I was still in trouble for a while.”
Nik chuckled.
“And then there was the time we decided to skip our last year of high school and go to a finishing school in France. We wrote to this pensionnat as a lark, not thinking we’d get accepted because we applied to the school so late. Wouldn’t you know my parents got another letter in the mail, this time from Paris? The directrice informed them she was happy to enroll me in the school and would they please send $2,000 to secure my place.
“Once again I got called to my parents’ bedroom and they showed me the letter. I honestly couldn’t believe it and told them Kellie and I had just been fooling around.”
“But your parents recognized that indomitable spirit in you and they let you go,” Nik divined.
“Yes. They felt the experience would be good for me.”
“And was it?”
“Yes, after I got over a fierce, two-week bout of homesickness. We had the most awesome adventures of our lives and came back speaking adequate French.”
Intrigued, he said, “Did you inherit your candor from your mother or your father?”
“Both my parents, actually.” She wiped her fingers on the napkins they’d brought. Now that she’d finished eating, she settled back on the sleeping bag, propping up her head with her hand. “Since you’ve never married, tell me something. Have you ever lived with a woman?”
“No.”
“That sounded final. Then tell me about the latest love interest in the life of the famous Nikolos Angelis. Don’t scoff. Your legendary reputation precedes you.”
He laughed instead.
“Why didn’t you take her camping? I can’t think of a better way to get to know someone than on a trip like this.”
“Agreed.” After putting the leftover food in the bag, he stretched out on his back and put his hands behind his head. “Lena would have pretended to enjoy it for my sake.”
“So-o?” She strung the word out.
He turned his head to look at her. “So, I didn’t feel like getting to know her better. Does that answer your question?”
Fran sat up looking shocked. “How long did you date her?”
“Twice.”
“Does this happen with every woman after you’ve dated her twice?”
“Sometimes three, but most of the time it happens after one experience.”
“You’re not kidding me, are you?” she said in a quiet voice.
“No.”
“If that’s true, then why did you agree to bring me camping?”
He turned on his side and moved closer. “You’re an intelligent woman. You figure it out.”
“You’re starting to scare me, Nik.”
“Good. It’s time you began to take me seriously. Surely it hasn’t escaped your notice I’m attracted to you? I did everything I could to prevent you from leaving Athens. No woman has ever caused me to walk out on my family and my job to make sure she didn’t get away from me. You must know how much I want you.”
“You shouldn’t say things like that to me. Our relationship isn’t like any other.”
“I’m glad you’ve noticed.”
“Please don’t come any closer. We’ll both regret it if you do.”
He cupped the side of her face with his free hand. “Don’t pretend you don’t want the same thing,” he whispered against her lips. “I see it in your eyes. Right now that little pulse in your throat is beckoning me to kiss it.”
“No, Nik—”
But he couldn’t stop. Consumed by a desire so much greater than he’d known before, he covered her pulse with his mouth, relishing the sweet taste of her velvety skin. When it wasn’t enough, his lips roamed her features, covering every centimeter of her face until he found her quivering mouth. Slowly he coaxed her lips apart until she began to respond with a hunger she couldn’t hide.
Their low moans of satisfaction mingled as their kisses grew deeper and longer. Like water spilling over a dam, there was no holding back. Time lost meaning while they brought pleasure to each other. He couldn’t get enough. Neither could she. When had he ever felt like this in his life? Never.
“You’re so beautiful,” he murmured, undoing her hair so he could run his fingers through it. “Do you have any idea how long I’ve been aching to do this?” Nik buried his face in her honey-blond tresses. He couldn’t stop kissing her.
When he felt her hands slide into his hair, thrilling chills raced through his body. “Admit you want me, too,” he said, out of breath.
“You don’t need me to admit to anything,” she came back.
“But I want to hear the words.” He plundered her mouth once more.
“I’m afraid to get close to you.”
“Because your ex-husband hurt you?”
“It’s hard to build trust again.”
“So I’m condemned without a trial?”
“If that were the case, I would have flown home this morning.”
Nik sat up. “Don’t you know I would never hurt you?”
“I want to believe that,” she said in a tremulous voice.
Her husband had done a lot of damage. He could see this was going to take time. In frustration, he got to his feet. “I have to go outside, but I won’t be gone long.” He picked up the flashlight and unzipped the front of the tent.
“Nik—”
He swung around. “What is it?”
“Nothing. Just be careful.”
* * *
Fran’s heart thudde
d sickeningly for fear she’d offended him. She gave Nik five minutes before she left the tent to find him. Though the sky was full of stars, there was only a thumbnail moon. The darkness gave the surroundings a savage look. She walked around trying to get her bearings. “Nik? Where are you?”
“I’m right behind you,” came his deep male voice.
She whirled around and almost lost her balance. His hands shot to her shoulders to steady her, but he kept their bodies apart. “Explain to me what went on in your marriage that has made you afraid to be with a man again. To be with me,” his voice rasped.
“I—I lost my belief in him,” she stammered. “When you give marriage your all, and it fails, the fear that another experience could turn out the same way is immobilizing. It’s better not to get one started.”
Fran heard his sharp intake of breath. “You’re the most honest woman I’ve ever known, but you haven’t told me everything. I want to know what he did to kill your love.” His hands tightened on her shoulders. She knew he didn’t realize how strong he was.
“I can’t.”
With a withering sound, he let her go. She had to brace her legs not to fall down. After such a beautiful day, Fran couldn’t bear for there to be trouble now, but she was standing on the edge of a precipice. If she caved, she’d plunge headlong into a world where the risk of falling in love with this man would be too great.
She’d been playing with fire since agreeing to spend an evening out with him in the Plaka. Now she’d gotten burned around the edges. Better to escape him with a few scars than stay in Greece to see her whole life destroyed. This situation was no longer solely about Demi.
“Since I suggested this hike, I take full responsibility for our being here, Nik. I’d like us to enjoy the rest of the climb tomorrow. You’ve been so wonderful to me, I’d be a wretch if I didn’t thank you for everything. Do you think it’s possible for us to be friends from here on out?”
“No,” his voice grated. “The situation is murkier than ever and I don’t feel the least friendly toward you. But to honor my indebtedness to you for finding Demi and taking care of her, I’ll be your guide until we’re off the mountain. If you can’t open up to me, then so be it. I’m going to bed.”
Baby out of the Blue Page 11
