by Susanna Carr
“Wherever you go, I go.”
She peeked at him from under her lashes. When she saw his determined look and the clench of his jaw she knew she had a battle on her hands. “I said I would stay in Greece. I didn’t say I would stay with you.”
He stroked her hair away from her face. “You need someone to look after you.”
She couldn’t argue that after he had caught her from fainting and carried her to the nearest bed. “I’ll hire someone.”
Stergios tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Oxi, I want to be part of this pregnancy.”
She rose up and rested against her elbows. “And what will happen if we get married and I have the child? What becomes of me?”
He caressed the length of her throat with the back of his hand as he frowned. “What do you mean?”
Jodie bit down on her tongue. She hadn’t planned to voice those concerns but now they were out in the open. “You only want to get married so you have a legal claim on your baby. What happens next?”
“We raise our child.”
“Together? I doubt that.” She may not be part of Stergios’s social stratosphere, but she knew what happened when women married powerful men. “I’m going to be pushed off to the side. I’ll be the outsider. You’ll send me away and keep the baby.”
He gave her an odd, slanted smile. “I won’t.”
“And it would only be a matter of time before you and the baby forget about me.”
“Impossible,” he said as his hands rested on the mattress. His arms bracketed her and he lowered his head. “I want our child to have many brothers and sisters.”
Hope was a dangerous thing, Jodie thought as a lump formed in her throat. “What?”
“I’ve never liked being an only child.” Stergios pressed his mouth against her cheek. “I know you haven’t, either.”
She wanted a big family. She had often dreamed of a home that was bursting at the seams with children, laughter and love.
Stergios left a trail of soft kisses along her jaw. “A marriage is meant to protect your property and heirs. I will make you my wife if it means protecting my family but I have no interest in a paper marriage,” he said. “Once we marry, you will share my bed and have my children.”
His gentle, soothing tone couldn’t hide the fierceness behind his words. “How can you make a declaration like that?” she asked as she lay back down. “We aren’t even in a relationship.”
Stergios hovered above her and she saw the possessive gleam in his eye. “That needs to change immediately.”
“Stop.” Her heart pounded wildly as she pressed her fingertips against his mouth. “You can’t seduce me into marriage.”
The challenge flickered in his eyes and she held her breath. What was she doing throwing down the gauntlet like that? She knew she would promise him anything if it meant one more kiss, one more touch.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he said as he captured her hand and kissed her fingertips. “Now go to sleep. You need your rest.”
She snatched her hand away. “I mean it, Stergios. I won’t live with you and I won’t share a bed.”
“Ne, you will, pethi mou. Very soon,” he promised as he stood up. “You will give me everything I want and more.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
“ARE YOU SURE you want to do this?” Jodie whispered to Stergios as they walked through the cavernous museum to the Antoniou collection. Her black ball gown swished against her legs as they followed the colorful banners that announced the highly anticipated display.
“I have been looking forward to this event,” Stergios said as they entered the archway that led to the exclusive party. “The Antoniou family donated historically important artifacts to the museum and it will be on tour for years.”
“No, that’s not what I meant. I know you want to be here.” The pride had shimmered from him as they had entered the prestigious building and she didn’t want to do anything to diminish it. “Are you sure you want me to attend. With you?”
He stopped and studied her strained smile. “You’re nervous,” he said in disbelief.
Of course she was nervous! She didn’t want to let him down. Her spine grew rigid when she felt all eyes on her. Jodie swept her gaze along the crowd. They appeared reticent but at least they weren’t hostile.
Stergios splayed his hand against her back. The casual touch did little to calm her nerves. She still slept in a separate room. There were some nights when she wished she hadn’t drawn a line on their relationship. She was frequently tempted to move into his room and stake her claim but something held her back. She still wasn’t sure if Stergios’s solicitude was temporary or an attempt to lower her guard.
It didn’t help that he was wearing a black tuxedo that accentuated his lean, masculine body. Her mouth had gone dry and a wicked curl of heat had settled low in her pelvis when she had first seen him. His knowing smile had irked her but she still had difficulty dragging her gaze away.
“Just be yourself,” he said as he brushed his mouth against her ear. “Stay close to me if you’re feeling uncertain.”
She gave a choked laugh. “Okay, that’s not the advice I usually get.” It was usually keep her mouth shut and make herself scarce.
“Why did you want me to attend?” she asked. She felt like she was a curiosity and her presence would detract from the display.
He nodded at someone in the crowd. Everyone seemed to know him but they were too intimidated to draw near. “It’s an event that honors my family’s history.”
“I’m not family. We are not engaged and I’m not marrying you.” She was compelled to remind him. During the past few weeks she got the feeling that Stergios was playing a waiting game and believed it was only a matter of time before she acquiesced.
“But you are carrying my child.” He lifted her hand and pressed his mouth against her knuckles before he tucked her hand against his elbow. “I want everyone to know that you are under my protection. When your pregnancy is announced, they will know that I claim my child.”
“Wouldn’t it be better protection if you kept quiet about us?” she asked as she looked around the room and found everyone was openly staring at them. “No one has to know.”
He drew his head back and he studied her through hooded eyes. “Are you ashamed that I got you pregnant?”
“No!” She was stunned that he would think that. She wanted Stergios’s baby and couldn’t imagine sharing this bond with any other man.
His heated gaze drifted down her plunging neckline and leisurely traveled back up until it rested on her necklace. “Is it strange that I want to show you off?”
“Yes!” She looked away when he laughed and she fiddled with her earring.
Jodie immediately put her hand down. She didn’t want to damage the jewelry. When Stergios had presented the amethyst earrings and necklace in an old wooden box she knew they were heirlooms. At first she had declined wearing something of such sentimental value but Stergios had insisted.
Brushing her hand along the necklace as if she wanted to make sure it was still there, Jodie couldn’t help but stand a little taller while she wore the jewels. Stergios’s gesture had honored her. She didn’t want to look too deeply into what it meant or whether he’d have allowed her to wear them if she wasn’t carrying his child.
“My security team recommended I keep quiet about you,” he admitted.
“And you disregarded their suggestion?” Stergios had been very protective of her since she had returned from the hospital. His gestures often left her flustered or inordinately touched. “This event must mean a lot to you.”
“In fact, they wish you were inside the Antoniou estate right now so no harm will come to you,” he said as a waiter approached them with a tray of drinks.
“And your family wished I w
as home so I wouldn’t cause any trouble.” She gave a squeeze to his arm. “Don’t worry, I wouldn’t do anything to embarrass you.”
“I know you won’t. Your past antics were designed to be noticed,” he said as he reached for a flute of orange juice and handed it to her. “You didn’t want to be forgotten or ignored. You don’t have to do that anymore. You have my full attention.”
She felt the heat flood her chest and crawl up her neck. She looked away before it flooded her cheeks. Jodie’s hectic gaze collided with a familiar pair of brown eyes. She felt the bands of tension release from her rib cage when she saw the friendly face. “There are many people here who will remember my past,” she said with a wide smile.
“Recognize anyone?”
“Yes, one of the benefits of attending so many schools around the world is that I probably know someone at any high-society events.” She nodded to the brunette who waved excitedly at her. “There is Sofia Xenakis. I haven’t seen her since I got kicked out of our boarding school. We never had a chance to meet whenever I was in Athens.”
“Is her father Theodoros Xenakis? The media mogul?”
She heard the rare hitch of curiosity in his voice. “Yes, do you know him?”
“Of him,” he corrected with a grimace. “I’ve wanted a meeting with him for years but he’s a recluse. He doesn’t meet with anyone outside his inner circle.”
“Is that so?” She hid her smile against the fluted glass. She may not be part of Athens high society but that didn’t make her an impediment for Stergios and his business activities.
His eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Yes, why?”
Her smile grew so wide that her cheeks hurt. “I’ve been to his house in the Bahamas several times during school vacations. He’s a sweetie. Come with me and I’ll introduce you to his daughter.”
* * *
Stergios leaned against the stone museum wall as he typed on his cell phone, replying to an urgent message. He didn’t notice his cousin approaching until the man stood next to him. “Dimos,” he said by way of greeting. “I didn’t know you were attending. Is Zoi here, too?”
“I don’t have to be joined at the hip with my wife,” Dimos said with a scowl before he pointed accusingly at the center of the room. “What is she doing here?”
“Jodie is my guest for the evening,” he said as he pocketed his cell phone.
“Why?” Dimos broadly gestured at the crowd. “There are too many photographers and journalists here. You’re supposed to be courting the Diamantopoulos heiress.”
Stergios tried to remember what Aleka Diamantopoulos looked like. It had only been a couple of weeks since he had been pursuing the woman. He had found her docile and ultimately forgettable. He knew Aleka had been raised to marry a powerful man but it had taken a great deal of patience and energy to tamp down his natural aggression when she was around. He couldn’t show his true self or it would have frightened her.
Unlike Jodie, he thought as he watched her tilt her head back and give a bawdy laugh that rang in the pretentious museum. The woman had seen him at his worst and she didn’t walk away. She wasn’t afraid to disagree with him or prove him wrong. Jodie was also under the misguided impression that she needed to protect him. It was during those moments when she’d unwittingly displayed her loyalty.
Dimos winced as everyone looked at Jodie. “The Diamantopoulos family isn’t going to be happy that you brought another woman to this important event, even if it is your stepsister. They want to see you pander to their daughter. It’s a power play.”
“I am no longer pursuing the Antoniou-Diamantopoulos merger.” It was strange that he felt no regret. The alliance would have given him everything he wanted. But now his focus was on marrying Jodie. That pursuit filled him with anticipation.
Dimos’s shoulders slumped as he gave a sigh of disappointment. “Because you got Jodie pregnant?”
Stergios swung his head around in shock. How did Dimos know about that? Jodie wouldn’t divulge that kind of information. He studied his cousin and was immediately on guard. He didn’t like the flint of bitterness and envy flashing in the man’s eyes.
“Yes, I’ve heard,” Dimos said bluntly. “Your mother is trying to keep the rumors from spreading. It’s no use. People are going to find out.”
“Good.” He had a strategy in place to present Jodie to society in the best light.
“Good?” Dimos repeated before he took a fortifying sip of his drink. “How can you say that? I don’t know why you’re taking a public stand on this. You know, you’re not the first Antoniou man who has had children outside of marriage.”
Stergios arched an eyebrow. “Is there something I should know, Dimos?”
His cousin waved away the question. “You don’t have to throw out everything we’ve worked hard for just to acknowledge a child. There is no need to give the kid your name. Why support it when Jodie has money of her own?”
“You wouldn’t understand.” He would protect his heir even if it meant extending that protection to the mother of his child.
Dimos finished his drink in one gulp as he watched Jodie talk animatedly while she stood among a few socialites. “Oh, hell, no,” he said in a low tone as his eyes widened. “Jodie is wearing the Antoniou amethysts?”
Stergios nodded with satisfaction as he watched the violet stones twinkle from her ears and throat. Jodie was made to wear the amethysts.
“Well, there’s no hiding it now.” His cousin raised his hands in defeat. “No wonder all of high society is flocking around Jodie. Even the reporters will know what this means. You are telling everyone that she will be an Antoniou.”
But Jodie didn’t know that the jewelry was more than heirlooms. One day he would tell her that the stones were part of family legend and ritual. When he had draped the necklace around her slender throat, he had been declaring Jodie as his intended bride. He claimed Jodie as his own and now everyone knew that she was his.
“Does your mother know that woman is wearing the jewels?”
“Show some respect,” Stergios warned in a growl. “That woman is going to be my wife and the mother of my child.”
“Why are you doing this?” Dimos asked in a hiss. “Is she so good in bed that she’s twisted your mind?”
“You’ll never know. Is that what’s eating you up?”
Dimos cast a vicious glare. “Even I knew as a teenager that Jodie isn’t the type of woman you marry,” he said. “She’s the disposable lover. Try her once or twice and then discard—”
Hot fury flashed through Stergios and he grabbed Dimos by the tie. “Don’t.”
Dimos grappled at Stergios’s hand. “Let go of me,” he said weakly, glancing at the interested spectators around them. “People are watching.”
“I don’t care,” he said through clenched teeth.
“I’m not saying anything that hasn’t been said before,” he choked as his face turned bright red.
“That’s going to change,” Stergios announced as he let go of his cousin.
Dimos coughed as he loosened his tie. “Are you going to threaten every relative? You’ll be popular at the next family dinner.”
He didn’t need to be liked. He needed Jodie happy and content living in Greece. “I will do whatever is necessary for Jodie to be accepted.”
“That’s never going to happen,” his cousin predicted as he took a cautious step back. “You are going to be the laughingstock of all of Athens if you marry a woman like that. They will shun her.”
“Then give them a message from me,” he said in a chilling tone. “If you disrespect Jodie, you disrespect me. Hurt her in any way and I will come after you. Got that?”
“You’re making a big mistake,” Dimos said as he slunk away. “But you’ll figure that out soon enough. I just hope you don’t take the Antoniou family
down with you.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
A WEEK LATER Stergios cautiously approached Jodie’s bedroom as he planned his next move. He felt like he was flying without a net. What he said or did next could ruin all of the groundwork he’d covered so far.
The door to her room was ajar. There was a clatter of something hitting the floor and Jodie’s muttered expletive followed. Stergios tapped his knuckles on the door before he pushed it open.
His eyes lit up with appreciation when he saw Jodie. Her lime-green tank top and charcoal-gray yoga pants clung to her curves. She was stretching, extending her arm as she reached for something at the top of her closet. Wisps of her blond hair were escaping from her short ponytail. It took him a moment to notice the open suitcase on her bed.
His chest tightened. “What is this?” he asked in a low, dangerous tone.
Jodie jumped at the sound of his voice and whirled around. Her face was red with exertion and her eyes gleamed with anger. He suspected she could tear up at any moment.
“What does it look like?” she asked defiantly as she bundled up a dress and tossed it in the case. “I’m leaving.”
Panic flared deep inside him. Suddenly he was at her side and grasped her arm to stop her. “No, you’re not.”
“I have to,” she insisted as she shook off his hold. “I swore I wasn’t going to live like this again.”
“What happened?” He was glad he had followed his instinct and had arrived home early. He couldn’t afford the time off but he had felt his relatives’ seething anger just under the surface in the breakfast room this morning. He knew the Antonious resented Jodie’s presence but he couldn’t tell how it affected her.
This was his fault. He had not expected his family to question his choices. They hadn’t before but now they felt Jodie had seduced him down a different path. A mutiny was brewing. A week ago he couldn’t have imagined any of the Antonious dissecting his decisions. They used to congregate around him like devoted servants wanting to please their master.
Stergios never took their obsequious manner as his due. He knew they only wanted his advice, his help and his money. He had often found it irritating. Maybe that was why he found Jodie’s attitude a refreshing challenge.
