‘Come for me, Thea.’
A final thrust and she gasped, as if starved for air. He lost all restraint as Thea threw her head back and sobbed out his name like some prayer to the heavens. Then the brittle seam holding him together ripped wide and he tore apart with her.
They lay for a while, his forehead against hers. Their panting breaths filled the room. Then he scooped her into his arms, showering her with soft kisses. He made a silent promise. He’d keep Thea safe for as long as he had her.
She raised her head. Her eyes were unfocused, her mouth red and soft.
‘Christo...?’
She wanted answers he couldn’t give.
He stroked a tendril of damp hair from her cheek. The birds outside sang louder now, but the dawn hadn’t broken fully. They had a few more hours to rest. A few more hours and then she’d leave his bed and he must never do this again. How could he, when he had nothing to offer her? Until then he had time to revel in her touch.
The grief of how little was left stabbed at the heart of him. He cradled her to his chest. ‘Sleep, koukla mou.’ He closed his eyes as she softened in his arms.
CHAPTER TWELVE
‘I’LL BE GONE a week—perhaps more.’
And so he’d left her. Alone.
Thea had offered to travel with him, but Christo had refused. For the few days before he’d left there’d been no breakfasts together. Even at night he’d turned her away. Said there was no longer any need for the charade, that everyone accepted their marriage as a proper one.
The rejection twisted her inside, but it didn’t quell her desire. Nothing doused the fever he’d awakened. She dreamed of hard, entwined bodies, only to wake exhausted. Filled her days with thoughts only of him.
What had he done to her? This was like some illness. She couldn’t escape the memory of pleasure, of the fire he’d lit. It consumed her.
Thea wanted more. Much more. She understood their arrangement, but surely both of them could be adults and enjoy the time they had together?
It will burn you to ashes.
She didn’t care. The only thing that would soothe her was Christo. His body was like cool water on the flames.
‘When are you going to add another bird?’
Such a strange thing to say. Surely he couldn’t believe he’d hurt her after she’d cried out his name and lain sated in his arms? But he did—she was convinced of it. The way he’d avoided her before he left... Treated her with such care and reverence... Arranged full use of his yacht, warning the staff on his island that she may come...
But all she wanted to do was follow him around the world. Surprise him with some of the more exotic lingerie she still hadn’t worn.
He wouldn’t be able to resist. Because she had seen the fire in him too. The hazel eyes which darkened to jade whenever she was near. The kiss goodbye that had pretended to be a chaste brush on the cheek but had ended in his low groan. Still he had denied himself.
And yet she recognised that Christo was gripped by some strange sense of honour. She had to prove to him that she understood.
Sure, Christo had promised he would soon have enough information about her father’s illegal activities. Inviting him and her brother to the party had been a success. But she needed to repay Christo for the care he’d shown her, no matter what he said.
Which was why she was taking a risk.
She’d come up with a plan to go to her former home and look for more proof of her father’s link with Ramona Carvallo. The problem was, she didn’t know what to look for. All she could be certain of was that the house held answers, somewhere.
A dark shiver ran through her at the thought of crossing that threshold again, but she ignored it. She had to be strong for Christo. It was the only way.
Thea walked to the front of the house, where Sergei waited with the car. She slid into the back seat, her heart pounding in a sickening rhythm.
There was no need for fear. Her father wouldn’t be there—she’d checked. And the staff still had some loyalty to her. She’d been the one to buy them Christmas gifts and to care when their children were ill. In turn they’d cared for her as her father never had. Tito Lambros might pay them, but they didn’t like him.
Still, she needed a ruse in case he returned unexpectedly. It was a slim prospect, but she wanted to protect the people who’d been her only real family in that house as much as she protected herself. Everyone would believe her if she said she was looking for the necklace her mother had given her. She unclasped it from around her neck and dropped it into the pocket of her handbag.
The drive wasn’t a long one, but as Sergei pulled up at the golden gates and high white walls she was reminded how much she loathed the crass opulence of the place.
‘I’ll get out here. Wait for me around the corner in the side street. You’ll see a small wooden door.’
Sergei narrowed his eyes. ‘Are you sure, Mrs Callas?’
No, she wasn’t sure about this. The old, dark fears had begun to cloud her vision, chatter in her head. But she looked Sergei straight in the eye.
‘Yes. I won’t be long.’
She got out of the car. The heat of the day assaulted her, threatening to choke the air from her lungs. Thea pressed the buzzer and the gate opened. She stopped, took a deep breath and walked through, up the long, sloping drive. Each footfall took her closer to the house which held all her grief and tears.
When her mother had left, her world ended. Her father knew judges, lawyers. He’d fought
