thought they’d taken it personally if she didn’t accept their find as a delight.
‘Thena can sleep in here,’ Nikos said, and his voice was as guarded as his expression. ‘She probably snores. Grown ups snore a lot. If you guys don’t mind, I’ll sleep down in one of the downstairs bedrooms so her snores don’t drive me crazy.’
‘I don’t think she snores,’ Nicky said doubtfully.
‘She has the look of a snorer.’
‘Hey.’ She was torn between laughter and tears. Laughter was by far the preferred option but tears were certainly close.
‘What do snorers look like?’ Nicky asked.
‘They have fat noses,’ Nikos said and looked up to the windows and stroked his own nose. ‘As opposed to you and me, Nicky. We have the Andreadis nose. Thin, straight and exceedingly handsome.’
‘I do not have a fat nose,’ Athena exclaimed.
‘Snub, I’d say,’ Nikos said indulgently. ‘Cute, but definitely not aristocratic.’
The conversation had suddenly veered away from snoring-away from bedrooms-which was definitely a relief.
‘I have your nose?’ Nicky was supremely unaware of the emotional undercurrents running between the adults. He was concentrating on himself, and on Nikos, and on this new relationship which he’d hardly had a chance to explore. ‘And I have your cowlick. And I don’t get seasick.’
‘So you’re a true Andreadis.’
‘But I’m Nicholas Christou.’
‘Christou’s your mother’s name,’ Nikos said. ‘If I’d married your mother you’d be an Andreadis.’
‘I like being a Christou.’
‘I expect you do,’ Nikos said easily but Athena’s mind had taken off again.
Christa…Christou…
She was Athena Christou. Something occurred to her which hadn’t had time to surface until now. But it hit her then. How had Marika felt about her daughter being named so closely after Nikos’s ex-girlfriend?
Maybe neither of them had ever thought of it. Maybe Marika had never seen her as a threat.
It was so long ago. Why did it still have the capacity to sting now?
‘So what do we do now?’ Nicky said, moving on.
‘Supper and bed?’ Nikos suggested and Nicky’s face fell. So did Christa’s. She’d been gamely following the conversation and she got this.
‘Play,’ she said very firmly, and Oscar wagged his tail in agreement.
Athena almost groaned. She was so tired she could hardly stand. The emotional strain of the last twenty-four hours was added to sheer physical fatigue. But, of course, Nicky had slept this afternoon and he hadn’t spent last night dancing. He was raring to go.
‘Tell you what,’ Nikos said, and he glanced at Athena with that careful, assessing look she was starting to know. And to fear? The look that said he knew what she was thinking. ‘How about we have a light supper and then I take Christa and Nicky down to the beach for a swim before bed?’
‘Is it safe?’ she demanded before she could stop herself and then could have kicked herself. For Nicky’s face registered alarm, and he moved fast to stand beside her.
And Nikos got that, too. ‘You needn’t worry,’ he said, gently but firmly. ‘Nicky, what happened this morning will not happen again. We have lookouts now, watching the island’s waters. And under this castle, down a secret little path known only to us, there’s a tiny cove, rimmed by reefs. The water inside the reef is calm and clear and is only just deep enough for swimming. It’s full to the brim with fish-no one’s ever been allowed to swim here and the fish show no fear. No boat can get over the reef to reach here. Do you trust me enough to take you there without your mother?’
And it wasn’t up to her. It was Nicky himself who decided.
‘Yes,’ he said, firmly and surely, and he moved confidently away from her side. ‘We trust Papa, don’t we, Mama?’
‘I…yes,’ she faltered and was saved from having to say anything more by the whoop of delight as Nicky took her yes to mean not only that she trusted in Nikos, but also that it was okay to swim after dinner. Without her.
It seemed Nicky was now a part of Nikos’s family, whether she belonged or not.
The kids went whooping out of the bedroom, up the last remaining flight of stairs to the parapets that capped the tower. Nikos stayed back. There weren’t words to express what either of them were feeling. Or maybe neither of them knew what they were feeling.
There were things to be said but neither of them knew where to start.
Finally he stood aside to allow her to precede him from the room.
‘He’s safe with me, Thene,’ he said softly as she passed him, and she thought, yes, I know he is.
Her son was part of Nikos’s family.
And she…she was jealous.
CHAPTER TEN
THEY had supper informally in the ancient kitchen at the back of the castle. It was big enough to feed a small army, Athena thought, but it was still…good. The ancient flagstones, the vast old range sending its gentle heat across the room, the scrubbed copper pans hanging from hooks, lavender hanging in bunches from the beams, windows open to let the sounds of the sea drift in, bird feeders hung in the windows…
‘This castle doesn’t look as if it’s been deserted for years,’ she said, puzzled, and Mrs Lavros nodded.
‘It hasn’t. Though Giorgos didn’t come here we’ve loved it. As we’ve loved the palace. We always knew you’d come home.’
‘And now you have,’ Nikos said gently and raised his glass to hers. ‘Here’s to you, our Princess Athena. Long may she reign over us.’
‘I’m not…I can’t…’ She caught her breath in panic. What was he saying? ‘We’ll be going back to the States…’
‘Not yet, Mama,’ Nicky said, and he sounded…scared.
As well he might, Thena thought frantically. Her little boy was frightened of leaving this island now. The only safe place for him was…by Nikos’s side.
She glanced up and found Nikos’s gaze on her, thoughtful, maybe even stern.
‘You can’t leave, Thena.’
What was she supposed to say to that? She couldn’t think of a thing.
‘I’m…I’m tired,’ she managed. ‘If…if you don’t mind, thank you, Mrs Lavros, that was lovely, but I’m really tired. Nicky, when you come back from the swim come and tell me about it.’
‘You’ll be asleep,’ Nikos said, teasing.
‘I won’t be asleep until I’ve made sure Nicky is safe,’ she said and suddenly she inexplicably felt like weeping. It was so hard. It was so, so hard.
Long may she reign over us?
That sounded awfully lonely from where she was sitting.
She didn’t sleep. Lying on the huge bed, looking up at the vast expanse of sky, it was as if she’d forgotten who she really was. She was nothing. Insignificant and lost. If she was confused before, she was even more confused now.
That was bad enough-but how could she sleep when Nikos…when the children were playing on the beach right underneath her windows? She got up and walked over to the window. Floodlights set up on the cliff face meant the sheltered little cove was as safe as in daytime. There were lights out on the water as well, tiny buoys floating on the swell. The bigger surf was caught and contained by the circular reef so the waves within were gentle, the light-buoys floating up and down in synchronisation with the gentle waves.
Christa had a rubber surf mat. She was holding on tight, floating in the shallows, giggling, watching her papa
