by Marian Tee
Score for the girl, Leon Arlotta thought in amusement.
The tableau that unfolded in the corner of the admissions center had interested Leon greatly, mostly because it was the first time he had seen Yuri Athanas with a girl who was neither his sister nor a girlfriend of one of his brothers in the Afxisi.
He had assumed the younger guy would reject the idea of having a known player like him take on the role as official school guide for his girl, but that showed how little he understood of Greek billionaires or, in this case, their sons.
About to walk past him, the girl stopped and said formally, “I will be with you as soon as possible, Mr. Arlotta.”
He flashed the girl an easy, lazy grin. “I’ll wait for you forever, Ms. Antoniou.”
Her extraordinarily pretty face remained expressionless. “I assure you, Mr. Arlotta. It will not take forever.”
And then she was gone.
Beside him, he heard Yuri murmur, “If I may speak with you for a moment, Mr. Arlotta?
He had known this was coming and only lifted a brow at the biker. “Am I supposed to refer to you as Mr. Athanas as well?” His voice was mocking. He might be dirt poor in these people’s eyes, but he didn’t give a damn. None of them intimidated him.
“Whatever pleases you, Mr. Arlotta,” was the polite reply.
Leon almost rolled his eyes. What was it with these two and their too-formal attitudes? “Let me make it easy for you,” he said, suddenly impatient. “You’re going to warn me off your girl because you’ve heard the stories about me. You swear to kill or ruin me or whatever other grave threat you can think of if I even look at her the wrong way.”
When he was done, Yuri Athanas said simply, “We can get to that later. What I have to say is more important.” Not waiting for Leon to answer, he continued in the same soft, courteous tone, “Kalliope Antoniou is my fiancée. I would rather you do not speak of this for her sake, but I won’t hold it against you if you do. It would only mean I’d have to request for a change of student assistant from Admissions. I don’t think you want that any more than I do.”
Leon’s jaw clenched, but he wasn’t surprised Athanas had found out about his scholarship and that he was largely dependent on his supplementary income from his work with the university.
When Leon didn’t speak, the biker resumed speaking. “My fiancée is a very special girl, Mr. Arlotta. She’s…different from the rest. You’ll see this for yourself when you spend enough time with her. As such, I like to be thorough when choosing the people whose company I trust her with.”
Blue eyes that were deceptive in their gentleness settled on Leon’s face. “When the school told me about assigning you to my fiancée, I admit to having reservations. In the end, however, your reputation for being honorable has worked in your favor.”
Leon was torn between feeling insulted or bemused. Also, Yuri Athanas was the only guy in college he knew who had ‘honorable’ in his vocabulary, much less have an actual need to use it in conversation.
“If you’re counting on me to kiss your feet in gratitude, you’re insane,” he said finally.
“Of course not.”
His gaze narrowed. “That’s truly all the warning you’ll be giving me then?”
The blue-eyed biker raised one brow. “Such as?”
“If I flirt with her…”
“Ah.” A flicker in those eyes, but it was gone too fast for Leon to decipher what it was. “What you do is your business, Mr. Arlotta. And if she chooses to flirt back, well, that is her business and mine.”
Bastard, Leon thought. What a fucking cold bastard. Kalliope Antoniou, for all her formal ways, was a waste on this man.
Leon Arlotta was helping Kalliope into one of the school’s golf carts by the time Helios, Kellion, and Andreus caught up with their friend. They stopped dead at the sight of the good-looking and rather notorious Italian playboy holding Kalli’s hand and Yuri simply standing on the steps of the admission center, doing nothing without it.
Was Yuri made of fucking stone? If it had been MJ, Helios thought grimly, that guy would have been on the ground and sporting a bloody nose…for starters.
The golf cart was driving down the main road now, and the officers slowly went to Yuri. “What the hell’s that about?” Andreus asked in his customary blunt fashion.
“Leon Arlotta has been assigned by the school to serve as Kalli’s official guide.” Yuri’s voice was perfectly even, and Helios would have been fooled by it if he hadn’t caught sight of the club’s vice president cracking his fists as he spoke.
“You do know,” Kellion drawled, “that the majority of freshmen hookups begin with those tours, don’t you?”
A pause.
“No. I did not.”
And then Yuri was striding towards his bike without a word.
Helios raised a brow at his friends. He’s jealous, isn’t he?
Andreus smirked in response while Kellion laughed out loud. “He probably doesn’t know it yet. The boy’s stubbornly in denial with those things, but…” The president headed towards his own bike. “That’s what we came out to see.”
In seconds, the three officers of the Afxisi and their beasts shot down the main lane, the sight of them driving in their famous V routine causing the girls they drove past to shriek and run after them.
For once, the officers of the Afxisi were without any of their real or rumored girlfriends. It was something to take advantage of, right away!
****
“You really didn’t notice anything, did you?” Leon Arlotta asked his companion two hours later. They were at the end of their tour, and not once had Kalliope Antoniou acted like she was aware that the officers of the world’s most popular underground racing club had been following them from the start like bodyguards on red alert.
And of course, where the so-called Heart Racers were, their multitudes of groupies followed. It had gotten so bad that eventually the security personnel of the school had to join forces with the private guards employed by Helios Andreadis, Kellion Argyros, Yuri Athanas, and Andreus Economou. Their main responsibility: to prevent the girls from mobbing those they loved (a.k.a. the bikers) and hated (a.k.a. Kalliope Antoniou, who turned out to be the mysterious girl who had been with Athanas in his recent visit to Athens).
None of this, however, seemed to have registered with Kalliope.
“What didn’t I notice? The architectural detail of the cafeteria?” she asked.
Leon was incredulous to see the heiress’ completely serious expression. “No—”
“Then perhaps,” she murmured thoughtfully, “you’re referring to the part where you spoke to me about the chef the university managed to lure away from the two-Michelin star restaurant in Dubai—”
“Are you deliberately fucking with me?” He had to ask.
The girl stiffened. “That kind of language is unbecoming, sir.”
Unbecoming? Who the hell taught this girl English anyway? Jane Austen’s ghost? Leon shook his head in disbelief. “You really haven’t noticed a thing.”
“If you tell me what I should notice,” the girl answered readily, “then I will not forget.” She then added matter-of-factly, “I am a fast learner.”
He beckoned her to come close to the windows and pointed at the crowd of starry-eyed girls waiting outside the cafeteria. “That.”
Kalliope followed his gaze. “Oh, them.” She shook her head. “Grandmother told me about them, and it’s alright. I understand their devotion to my fiancé. He is an easy man to love.”
While she, he thought, was not at all easy to understand. How could she say something so easily, and to a stranger? Leon was beginning to understand why the biker had warned him about Kalli being…different, and it was turning out to be a vast understatement.
“You know your boyfriend is here, too, right?” He almost gaped at Kalliope’s wide-eyed look. “Are you serious? What do you think those girls are here for?”
“For me,” she answered. “I tho
ught, because they’re fans of Yuri, they have realized that they must like me, too. After all, they love Yuri and Yuri loves me.”
This time, Leon mentally threw his hands up in surrender. There was no point – absolutely no point – telling this girl that life would never be that simple or straightforward. No wonder Yuri Athanas entrusted the heiress with him, Leon thought broodingly. The biker had known his so-called honor wouldn’t allow him to take advantage of Kalliope’s incredible naiveté the way other guys could.
“He’s here with his friends.” He turned towards the Afxisi’s direction so Kalli would see where the officers were seated. All of them, except for the more sophisticatedly dressed Kellion, were in shirts and jeans, but even so their uniform good looks and powerful auras made them appear like a postcard-perfect ad for a luxury denim brand.
“Oh, I see them now.”
“I gotta admit,” he murmured, “I was surprised Yuri Athanas let you spend time with me.”
Kalliope frowned. “Why shouldn’t I?”
“Jealousy,” he answered simply.
The girl repeated the word in a puzzled tone, and it was obvious she was mulling it over in her mind. Privately, Leon didn’t think there was anything to think about. Jealousy was an extremely basic reaction, and one either felt it or not. It was clear Yuri Athanas didn’t, and as such, it went to reason that he didn’t care that much about Kalliope Antoniou.
A pity, Leon thought, when she seemed like a nice girl, despite being different.
“Is he supposed to be jealous?”
Leon was reluctantly charmed by the lack of coyness in the girl’s question. “Yes,” he said finally. “If he cares about you, he should be jealous.”
“Then he’s jealous,” she decided.
“I just told you he couldn’t be,” he countered in exasperation. “Also, we’re on the last leg of our tour, and I’m duty-bound to finish telling you about the—”
Kalliope was shaking her head at him. “No, Mr. Arlotta. This is more important. Love,” she clarified gravely, “is more important than anything else. And I’m telling you that he is jealous.”
Stubborn girl, Leon thought. “I’m also telling you he’s not.”
“How do I prove to you he is?”
Deciding the biker needed a kick in his guts to be reminded of what he had but could lose, Leon looked at the girl with a hooded gaze. “You really want to know?”
****
“How does it feel to be at the losing end of the stick this time?”
Yuri pretended not to hear Kellion’s question, instead saying politely, “It might be a while before Kalli’s tour ends.” A lie, of course, since he knew to the exact second how long her tour was and the end was just five minutes away. That or as soon as Leon Arlotta stopped flirting with his fiancée, Yuri thought, whichever came sooner.
“I don’t think there’s any need to ask,” Helios drawled. “It’s written all over the boy’s face.”
Yuri rolled his eyes at the way the two insisted on calling him ‘boy’ even though he was only a few years younger than them.
He checked his watch. Four minutes.
At that moment, he heard Kalli’s laugh tinkle in the air, a silvery sound guaranteed to seduce anyone with a dick.
Everyone in the table stilled…except for Yuri.
“You don’t mind that?” Andreus asked finally.
“She just laughed,” he answered patiently.
“It wasn’t an ordinary laugh,” Helios said, “and we all know it.”
Before Yuri could answer, Kellion cursed, saying, “Well, this time she’s placed her hands on his shoulders, and she’s goddamn smiling into his eyes.” When Yuri didn’t turn around, Kellion snapped, “I’m not lying.”
Yuri slowly turned.
Ah.
It was the truth, indeed. Kalliope Antoniou had her hands on Leon Arlotta’s broad shoulders while the Italian hand clasped her slender waist with his large, strong hands.
Something blazed inside of him, but Yuri ruthlessly buried it before it could develop into feelings he had to acknowledge.
“You’re still not going to do anything?” Helios demanded under his breath when Yuri turned his back on the couple and returned his attention to his phone.
“They’re not doing anything illegal or harmful,” Yuri pointed out.
All three of his friends looked at him like he was insane.
“Is this a fucking act?” Andreus asked darkly. “You want to play the cool bastard for some reason?”
“I followed her here because Kellion said that school tours may cause something to develop between my fiancée and her tour guide. I came here out of concern to ensure he wasn’t going to push Kalli past her limits. That’s all.”
Kellion leaned back against his seat. “That’s all, huh?”
Yuri raised a brow. “Are you trying to make some kind of point?”
Yeah, Kellion thought. And my point is that I never thought your fear of falling in love could actually turn you into a heartless, pompous prick. But out loud, Kellion’s tone was deceptively casual as he answered, “Not really.” His eyes went back to Kalli. “Just that your fiancée’s about to kiss another guy.”
Now let’s see you handle that, Kellion thought.
Helios, whose thoughts ran in the same direction, decided to give the vice president one minute before his control vanished and he tore through the cafeteria to break the two apart.
Andreus, who knew Yuri a little bit more than the other two, mentally gave Yuri ten seconds.
Both of them were wrong.
Yuri was out of his seat in a flash.
Reaching Kalli’s side just before her mouth reached the other man’s, Yuri unceremoniously dislodged Leon’s hands and replaced it with his own. Kalli gasped, her eyes flying open, but he didn’t pay her any heed, only tightening his hold on her waist before lifting her off her feet and placing her behind him.
Then he faced Leon Arlotta.
The Italian returned his gaze with impressive equanimity.
Would it mean he was jealous, Yuri pondered seriously, if he planted his fist on the Italian’s too-pretty face?
Before he could make a decision, Kalli had stepped around him, making Yuri’s face turn hard. “Kalli—”
But she was looking at Leon. “I told you.”
The Italian gave her a mocking bow. “You win then.” His enigmatic gaze rested on Yuri for a moment before turning to walk away. Yuri’s urge to punch the other guy in the face intensified. He must have been mad, Yuri thought, to entrust Kalli with him. That man was too handsome for his own good.
Beside him, he felt Kalli’s fingers graze the sleeve of his shirt. “Yuri?”
“What,” he heard himself ask without taking his gaze off Leon Arlotta’s back, “were you two talking about?” But inside him, a mocking voice taunted Yuri about the real question he wanted answered but couldn’t make himself ask. Even now, he couldn’t get rid of the image of Kalliope Antoniou’s mouth a second away from coming into contact with the Italian’s.
When she didn’t answer, he swung around to face her. He expected her to look anything from guilty to furious, but she was none of those. Her beautiful face bore its usual placid expression, but the look in her gaze was decidedly soft.
A sudden realization hit him. “Why, you little minx.” Yuri shook his head. “You set it all up, didn’t you?”
Her lips twitched the slightest bit, but her voice was the soul of meekness when she answered, “Yes.”
She took a step closer towards him, and suddenly Yuri found himself surrounded by her scent and his sight blinded by the temptation of her soft curves.
Her violet eyes captured, enslaved, his. “Mr. Arlotta told me if you really love me, you wouldn’t have let me go with him.”
Leon Arlotta had a big mouth.
“I told him he was wrong. He told me if you loved me, you would be jealous and I said, then of course you would be. I asked how to prove it and he told
me I should laugh like he had said the funniest thing on earth.”
Leon Arlotta was a dead man.
“He also said I should touch him because no man in love liked seeing his woman touch another guy.”
Leon Arlotta had that right, but he was still a dead man.
“And finally, he said I should kiss him—”
He interrupted her sharply, “I don’t want to hear any more.”
Kalli obediently stopped speaking, but the way she looked at him was all womanly instinct. Now he knew. A woman didn’t have to be normal, Yuri thought dryly, to know when she had a man wrapped around her finger.
“Let’s go join the others?”
She nodded but didn’t move.
Remembering there was only one way to get Kalli moving, he offered his hand.
She took it.
As they walked back to his friends’ table, he said, “Kalli?”
“Mm?”
“Don’t make me jealous again.”
“I promise.” She paused. “But I also want to ask you a thing.”
“I won’t make you jealous either.”
She surprised him by shaking her head. “Not that.”
He frowned. “What is it?”
“Don’t lie to me.”
He stilled, which forced her to halt beside him. “Why would you ask me that now?”
“Because, a while ago, when it took so long to make you jealous, I was afraid.” Her gaze didn’t waver from his. “I started to think that you lied to me. That you didn’t really love me, and it…hurts…here.” She suddenly beat her chest with her fist, hard enough for him to immediately hold her wrist so he could stop her from doing it again.
Regret sliced into Yuri. He remembered Andreus’ question and wondered now if the other biker actually knew him better than Yuri knew himself.
He hadn’t allowed himself to even consider the possibility that he was jealous. He had wanted to play the role of a cool bastard because cool bastards didn’t feel pain.
And so he hadn’t, but he had ended up hurting an innocent girl in exchange.
