Illicit Night with the Greek

by Susanna Carr

  “Then you must come to my wedding,” he said, his eyes widening with enthusiasm.

  Jodie raised her hand to halt that line of thinking. “I don’t want to intrude.”

  “Intrude?” Dimos laughed. “That’s not possible. You’re family.”

  She wished it were true. She wished she didn’t have this need to belong somewhere. To belong with someone. She had always been the outsider. The burden. She was used to it, and at times wore the label like a badge of honor, but everything changed after her mother’s death. She wanted to be loved, accepted and part of a family.

  “You must agree,” Dimos insisted.

  “Jodie must agree to what?”

  She went still when she heard the low, masculine voice. Stergios Antoniou was here. She swallowed hard. He was standing next to her. Her pulse began to gallop as her stomach made a sickening turn. Her skin went hot and then cold but she refused to look in his direction.

  “I invited her to my wedding,” Dimos said with a touch of defiance.

  “I doubt there’s space,” Stergios responded.

  “I can make space,” Dimos promised Jodie. “It’s going to be on an island that Zoi’s family owns. It’s small, but not that small.”

  She nervously licked her lips as the panic swelled inside her. It pressed against her skin, ready to burst free. Every instinct told her to run but she stood as still as a statue. “I wouldn’t want to cause any inconvenience for you or your bride,” she explained huskily.

  “You won’t,” Dimos said with a lopsided smile. “I’ll go ask Zoi right now.”

  She watched helplessly as Dimos strode toward his fiancée. She wanted to run and hide but knew she had to be brave. At least appear fearless. From the corner of her eye, she saw Stergios’s crisp white linen suit. She forced herself to turn. Jodie looked straight ahead at his pale blue shirt. She tried to ignore how it emphasized the breadth of his powerful chest before she jerked her gaze to his face.

  Her breath snagged in her throat as her heartbeat roared in her ears. She stared at Stergios’s luxuriant black hair that fell past his chin. The shadow of a dark beard almost diminished the whitened scar on his upper lip.

  This was not the Stergios she’d known. She blinked several times, noting the bold lines of his cheekbones and nose, the slash of his mouth and his warm golden skin. She recalled how he’d once kept his hair ruthlessly short and had shaved twice a day. Now it looked as if he could no longer contain the wildness that rumbled through him.

  His dark brown eyes were cold as he callously assessed her and immediately found her lacking. “I don’t know what you’re trying to achieve—”

  “I wasn’t asking for an invite,” she bit out. “He offered and wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

  “Perhaps he didn’t understand what you were saying.” His gaze drifted to her mouth. “You’re not good at saying no to any man.”

  She swallowed the gasp of outrage and fought the driving need to fling the contents of her glass into his face. Damn it, her new and improved image was already slipping. She was never in control when she was around her stepbrother. She had to get away from Stergios or risk making a scene. That wouldn’t help her gain forgiveness from her father.

  “Don’t confuse me with the women you associate with.” Jodie turned on her heel.

  “Running away already?”

  She whipped around, wobbling to a standstill as she glared at him. Stergios had sounded disinterested and bored while she was a jittery mass of nerves. It wasn’t fair. “I don’t run away. That’s your signature move, stepbrother dear.”

  The muscle bunching in his cheek was the only indication that her barb had hit its target. “You know how to create a disaster and leave without a trace while everyone else deals with the aftermath. The merger had fallen apart after that night because Dimos suddenly didn’t want to get married. It has taken me years just to get the Antoniou-Volakis wedding to this point.”

  “I was banished.” She wanted to stamp her feet. This was bad. It was as if her hard-earned poise had disintegrated into nothing. “There’s a difference.”

  “Banished?” Stergios repeated with skepticism. “You’ve always been dramatic.”

  And you’ve always been cold and hateful. No, she realized that wasn’t true. Stergios had been tolerant the first time she’d moved in with the Antoniou family. He had been her only companion, her one true confidant. But gradually he had become distant.

  The more he was around her, the more he knew and learned about her, the more hostile he became. It had been a relief and yet agony when he missed her eighteenth birthday to work overseas on a project. He had returned a few months later but her joy had been brief and misplaced. It had become obvious that Stergios couldn’t stand being in the same room with her.

  “If you were banished, why are you working so hard to return to the family fold?” His tone was casual but he watched her with open suspicion. “You’re not the type to forgive.”

  Stergios knew her too well. Having one person understand her should bring comfort, but this man would use that knowledge against her. “I am here,” she said slowly, emphasizing each word, “to repair my relationship with my father.”

  “And that’s all?”

  No, this time she wanted Gregory Little’s concern and interest. She wanted to be a priority. She’d always wanted that from her father but she had tried to gain it the wrong way when she had been a teenager.

  Jodie lifted her head when she suddenly understood Stergios’s question. “Oh...you think I’m here to get revenge or to cause trouble. To stop this merger that you need so badly. I hate to disappoint you, but the Antoniou family isn’t worth my time.”

  One winged eyebrow arched at her statement. As if he couldn’t believe his family wasn’t everyone’s top interest. “You returned just when Dimos and Zoi are about to marry.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t get the family newsletter,” she said with exaggerated sweetness, “or I would have timed my visit better.”

  She was about to flounce away but Stergios easily read her next move. He grabbed her arm, his large fingers biting into her pale flesh as he held her still. Her skin went hot as she remembered the last time he touched her. She knew better than to look at him or she would betray her conflicted emotions.

  “I don’t trust you.” His voice was low against her ear.

  She shivered from his nearness. “I don’t care.”

  Stergios’s grasp tightened. “Stay away from Dimos.”

  “With pleasure,” she said in a hiss and forced herself to look into his dark eyes. “Now let go of me.”

  Jodie saw the turbulent emotions chasing across his face before he abruptly released her. She was uncomfortably aware how her skin tingled from his touch. “I have no interest in Dimos,” she continued. “I didn’t seduce him back then and I’m not pursuing him now.”

  “Why should I believe you? You’re a liar.”

  Her anger flashed wildly. Yes, she had lied in the past, but it had been a stupid and instinctual attempt to protect Stergios that night. She had made a sacrifice for him and he couldn’t see it, couldn’t appreciate it. The hurt and the injustice of it all rolled inside her. “And if I wanted to seduce Dimos, there is nothing you could do about it,” she slung at him.

  “I’m warning you, Jodie.” His voice was low and menacing.

  She pressed her lips together. Why did she say that? Why was she provoking Stergios? She knew better but she was unable to stop. “I could have had him in my bed like that.” She gave a satisfying snap with her fingers. “I certainly wouldn’t have picked a cold wall in a dark wine cellar.”

  They stared at each other, instantly trapped in the inconvenient memories. She shifted, her spine aching as she remembered the rough brick against her back. Jodie swallowed as she recalled how sh
e had laved her tongue against Stergios’s warm skin. She felt her cheeks flush as the echoes of their mingled gasps and incoherent words reverberated in her mind.

  She couldn’t think about that. Not now, not here, not ever. “I could have contacted Dimos any time over the years,” she declared in a rush. “And he would have dropped everything for the chance to have sex with me.”

  Stergios sneered with disgust. “So you know the power you have over him.”

  She did now, not when she had been eighteen. “I know the power I have over all men,” she said loftily. “Dimos is more susceptible than most.”

  “And why do you think that is?”

  No doubt he saw it as her fault. “I haven’t encouraged him at all, but warn me off again,” she said in a growl as she glared at him, “and all bets are off.”

  Stergios braced his legs as if he was preparing for battle. “You dare to threaten me?”

  “There is very little I wouldn’t dare,” she told him boldly as her legs shook. “I am here to be with my father. If you block that in any way, I will do everything in my power to stop the Antoniou-Volakis merger.”

  His expression went blank. There was no anger or repulsion. It was like a mask and that unsettled Jodie more than his cold fury.

  “It wouldn’t take much.” She knew she had to stop talking and yet she pursed her lips and made a show of looking around the party. “All I have to do is crook my finger and Dimos will—”

  “You have always been a destructive force.” His voice was just a rasp. “But I won’t allow you to destroy this family.”

  “I don’t care about the Antonious.” The family was simply an obstacle to her goal. She had to play nice with them if she wanted even a tenuous bond with her father.

  Stergios set his hands on his lean hips. “You need to leave and never return.”

  Jodie regretted saying anything to Stergios. He could prevent her from getting what she wanted. She wished she had planned a better strategy to meet with her father. She had been too impulsive, too impatient and too scared of getting rejected again. But she couldn’t show her uncertainty or Stergios would use it against her. She lifted her chin and met his gaze. “That is out of your control.”

  His smile chilled her to the bone. “It’s foolish of you to think that.”

  Dread trickled down Jodie’s spine. It was foolish for her to go toe to toe with Stergios. He was a dangerous animal who lashed out if he felt threatened or cornered. “I have every right to be here.”

  “And I have a right—a duty—to protect my family at all cost.”

  She’d always known that. It was one of his traits she had admired and it used to hurt that his protection hadn’t included her. “According to Dimos, I am family.”

  Stergios’s eyes narrowed into slits. “I have never considered you family.”

  Those words would have slayed her when she was fifteen but now they slid right off her. “It’s easier for you to think that, isn’t it?” Jodie leaned closer, refusing to show how his words, his presence, had shaken her. “Helps you sleep better at night.”

  The mask fell away and exposed Stergios’s wrath. A ruddy color seeped beneath his golden skin. His eyes glittered as he hunched his shoulders, ready to pounce. Jodie’s chest seized as she watched his upper lip curl, pulling tightly at his scar.

  “After all—” her voice trembled “—the great and virtuous Stergios Antoniou is supposed to be trustworthy and do what is right. He strives for excellence and discipline. Why, he would never have sex with a virgin without marrying her.”

  His jaw clenched and she knew his restraint was slipping. She had just made her most dangerous enemy very angry. She knew she should retreat and hide—no, she should beg for mercy, but the words kept spilling from her mouth.

  “He would never have sex with his eighteen-year-old stepsister, right? And then walk away without a backward glance.” The rejection had swamped her that night but she didn’t stumble over the words now. “Discard her and throw her to the wolves.”

  She saw the pure hate glowing from his eyes and she wanted to recoil. Did he hate her for reminding him of his moment of weakness? Or was it something more? Did he hate her because she continued to show him what kind of man he truly was?

  “But I know the real Stergios Antoniou,” she confessed, driven to finish what she’d started. “I saw it that night four years ago. You’re like every other man I’ve met. Threaten me all you want, stepbrother dear, but I’ll take my chances.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  “JODIE, WOULD YOU care for some more coffee?” Mairi Antoniou asked.

  “No, thank you,” she replied as she studied her father and stepmother from across the breakfast table. What should have been an intimate meal was more of a grueling interview. She had been prepared for that. Jodie wished she could spend some time with her father in private but getting him alone was proving difficult.

  She was, however, making progress. Jodie couldn’t believe she was back in the Antoniou family home. She’d never considered it a possibility. Yet, two days after she had been invited to Dimos’s housewarming party, she was eating a late breakfast with her father and stepmother while a maid was unpacking her suitcases.

  She should be celebrating. Relieved that the reunion with her father was going this smoothly, this quickly. Her instincts told her not to trust it and Jodie tried to ignore the negative voice in her head.

  Looking around the breakfast room, Jodie noticed it was still fussy and formal. She always found the ivory chairs uncomfortable and the large white floral arrangements overwhelming. She studied one of the many portraits of Mairi’s ancestors that covered the sea-foam-green walls. Once again, she decided that Stergios did not get his stunning masculine beauty from his mother’s side.

  Jodie’s gaze rested on a portrait of her stepmother. She wondered what it would be like to be surrounded by family and tradition. Some of the younger Antoniou generation found the family customs constricting but she would have found comfort and privilege in continuing traditions.

  Jodie looked down at her gold-rimmed china plate that had been passed down from generation to generation. Only a guest unfamiliar with the Antoniou household would think the breakfast had been planned as a feast to celebrate the return of the prodigal stepdaughter. But the family always had pastries, olives, cheese and tiganites in the morning. The small pancakes had been her favorite and she would often drown them with grape molasses, much to her stepmother’s horror. Today she avoided the tiganites and had been the epitome of good behavior.

  “I hope you will find your room satisfactory,” Mairi said.

  “Thank you.” It was the same room she had stayed in years ago. In the corner on a separate floor from the rest of the family. But that didn’t matter. She was going to accept what was offered and pass every test they gave. She would win the approval and love of her only living relative.

  “What are your plans for today?” her father asked as he set down his paper and rose from his chair.

  “I need to find a wedding present for Dimos and Zoi.” It had to be appropriate but impersonal. She didn’t want her gift to cause any speculation or a lecture from Stergios. Jodie winced. She wasn’t going to allow her stepbrother to influence her in any way.

  “And perhaps some clothes for the wedding?” Mairi suggested as she gave a pointed glance to Jodie’s bright green dress. “It will be very...conservative.”

  Jodie nodded. Mairi had shown remarkable restraint not commenting on her short hem or towering heels. What was considered understated in New York City was different than her stepmother’s opinions. She had to make some adjustments. “I understand.”

  “I’m sorry we have to leave just when you’ve arrived,” Mairi said as Gregory helped her out of her chair, “but your father and I have some business to attend to in the city.” />
  “Please don’t feel like you need to entertain me.” She didn’t want to be the center of attention. She wanted to show her father that she could seamlessly be part of his life without any trouble or work.

  “Make yourself at home,” her father said as he gave an awkward pat on her shoulder before he trailed after Mairi.

  Home. She grimaced as she felt a pang in her chest. This stately mansion had never been her home. She had arrived here the first time when she was fifteen after she had been kicked out of another boarding school. Jodie had felt as if she’d been on probation the moment she had first entered the vestibule. But it hadn’t mattered if she had behaved or caused trouble. She was always going to be sent away to another school, another country.

  Now her actions would make a difference. For better or for worse. One mistake and her father would disown her for good.

  Jodie rose from her seat and strolled into the entrance hall. She barely glanced at the marble grand staircase or the carved limestone walls. It was the silence that grabbed her attention. She forgot how quiet it was in this place even though Mairi liked having her extended family live under one roof.

  She linked her hands behind her back and walked outside onto the shadowy portico. Her eyes widened with pleasure as she surveyed the bold colors of the grounds, the scent of the exotic flowers and the sounds of a gurgling fountain in the distance. She sighed as the tension ebbed from her shoulders. It felt as if she had paradise all to herself.

  Jodie remembered spending many hours following the web of gravel paths to escape the house. She had frequently skinny-dipped in the large lake until her stepmother found out and put a stop to it. She also climbed the trees in the wooded area, daring to go as high as she could, often ignoring Stergios’s exasperation and words of warning.

  Jodie descended the terrace and noticed the garden had thrived in her absence. It took her several moments to recognize the changes in the landscaping. She suspected they were made in favor of the high-tech security features. Mairi could have hidden the cameras and emergency call buttons but the Antonious always needed to see what protective measures were being taken around them.