Chapter 6

6

A n hour later he was parked in front of Paige's hotel, watching her come out the front doors. He jumped out of the car so he could take her suitcase. He paused to press his lips to hers and couldn't resist sliding his tongue between them, just enough to get a taste. The answering hitch in her breath made him wish he hadn't agreed to go to dinner tonight, but they were committed now and he grudgingly pulled away .

"I have a lot to tell you," he murmured, putting her suitcase in the back .

"I can't wait to hear all about it." She got into the passenger seat and looked at him expectantly. "Did you close the deal ?"

"Not exactly." He explained the way the day had gone. "And when I told them I already had plans tonight, they kind of called me on it. How mad are you ?"

"Why would I be mad?" she frowned. "I just don't know if I have anything appropriate to wear. I only brought shorts, T-shirts and that dress you saw yesterday. I don't have anything for an evening with people like that ."

"I guess we'll have to go shopping." He glanced over at her. "Will you let me buy you something for tonight ?"

She chuckled. "Since it's your fault I have to go, yes ."

He grinned. "Did you eat ?"

"Yup. I spent the second-best day ever at the Acropolis Museum. I could spend another few hours looking at the reconstructed pieces of the frieze from the Parthenon ."

"The second-best day ever?" he asked. "What was the best ?"

She grinned. "Yesterday, of course !"

"I'm not sure I can top it, because your first sunset at the Temple of Poseidon is pretty memorable, but I'd like to try ."

"You don't have to top anything," she said. "Just being together is nice ."

"I think so too." He reached for her hand. "How about we drive to my house, you can drop off your things, and then we'll go shopping ?"

" Sure ."

He nodded. "The house needs a lot of work, but the architecture and the view blew me away so I bought it anyway. I just haven't had time to get work done ."

"You know I don't care about that !"

"The kitchen is a disaster, but I don't cook ."

"Me either," she giggled. "I'm good at a lot of things, but cooking isn't one of them. Is that grounds for divorce ?"

He laughed. "Nope. Not for me, anyway ."

"Oh good ."

I t took nearly 40 minutes to get to his house with traffic but she was awed as they pulled into his parking space underneath the building. It was a white concrete square shape that appeared to have three floors, and she could see at least one balcony as well as some sort of rooftop space that was lined with a wrought iron fence .

"Is the whole house yours?" she asked in surprise .

"All mine," he chuckled. "Just remember, it needs work ."

"Are you trying to impress me, Mr. Lakkas?" she asked, her eyes twinkling .

"Well, Mrs. Lakkas, it's more like I'm hoping you're not overly disappointed ."

"Disappointed? You have a three-story house on the beach!" She shook her head. "It's gorgeous! And I'll bet the kitchen isn't that bad ."

He coughed. "Okay, sure. Let's go with optimism." He carried her suitcase and she followed with her small carry-on size bag. They walked up a short flight of stairs and he held open the door for her. The main floor was bright and sunny, but he hadn't been kidding about work being needed. The floors were bare concrete and the only furniture was a couch that looked like it had seen better days .

"There's no floor," she joked, giving him a bland look .

"There's a floor," he protested. "It's just not a pretty floor ."

"Window treatments ?"

"Why would I want to block my view of the sea ?"

"In case your wife was in here naked ."

He leaned against the wall and took his time looking her up and down, his eyes lingering on the swell of her breasts and long legs. "Then I'd buy window treatments…because the only person who gets to see my wife naked is me ."

She swallowed at the passion in his voice. Damn, sex was going to happen sooner rather than later and while she'd been fantasizing about it since the last time they'd done it, she wasn't sure she was ready for the intensity she could see in his face .

"Do I make you nervous?" he asked softly, moving closer to her but keeping a little space between them. "You don't have to stay here, koukla . We can do the nasty at your hotel ."

"It's not nasty," she whispered. "And yes, you make me a little nervous, but only because there's so much… everything …between us. My memories are of the most amazing sex of my life and I'm afraid …"

"You're afraid that you've built them up in your mind and now the real thing will be a disappointment ."

"It's just that every other person I've had sex with has literally been a total disappointment and I don't know why you weren't ."

He reached for one of her hands and slowly brought it to his lips. "Because it's us," he said, kissing the back of her hand before turning it over and pressing light kisses on her palm, her wrist and trailing them further up the inside of her arm. "But don't worry, I won't rush you. I'll wait until you're comfortable ."

She closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of his lips on her skin and remembering what it was like when he kissed her in other places .

"Come on. Let me show you the rest of this mess." He squeezed her hand in his and led her up more stairs .

"So that's all there was down there? A living room ?"

"Living room, toilet with a clothes washer—washing machine?" He frowned .

She smiled. "Yes. Your English is so good… I've always meant to ask where you learned. You had to have been already fluent to attend a university like Yale ."

He nodded. "Yes. My parents sent me to special classes to start learning when I was young—all three of us actually—and then I took it in high school and really excelled. I speak Spanish fluently as well, though I don't use it as often so I've forgotten a lot. I've been losing a bit of my English too, because I don't use it in business as much as I thought I would ."

"I used to speak Spanish too, but like you said, when you don't use it, you forget a lot. By the way, donde está el ba?o ?"

He laughed. "The bathroom is right over there. One of them anyway. Go ahead and I'll put your bags in the guest room ."

She paused, turning to look at him. "We both know that's silly. I'm a little nervous but there's no doubt what's going to happen ."

He kissed the side of her face. "Then the guest room will act as a dressing room for you, because I'm sure you like to spread out your clothes and makeup and such ."

She just smiled and shut the bathroom door behind her .

H e showed her the rest of the house, including his complete disaster of a kitchen. He hadn't been kidding when he'd said it needed a lot of work. The floor was also bare concrete and the sink consisted of one of those giant soaking sinks found in many American laundry rooms. The refrigerator was college dorm-sized and there were no cabinets or usable counters. There was half a counter with an empty cabinet underneath, a folding table against one wall that had a microwave on it, and nothing else except dust bunnies .

Paige gave him a sideways glance. "I can't even make excuses for this room ."

He laughed. "Maybe you could give me some suggestions on what to do with it ."

She arched a brow. "Refrigerator, stove, cabinets, countertops…tile? Maybe a dishwasher ?"

"That's all doable. The problem is time and details. What color cabinets? What type of flooring? Dark or light countertops? Is granite worth the extra investment ?"

"Oh, absolutely! Then you don't have to worry about putting a hot pan down—it has to be incredibly hot to burn or damage granite ."

"Good to know." He showed her a small dining room and then an odd little room off to the side that appeared to be an office in the making, with a desk, leather chair, file cabinet and bookshelves. There were boxes everywhere, though, and it appeared that other than a phone and a computer, the room wasn't fully functional. "I'd like to be able to work from home sometimes," he explained. "But again, I haven't had the time to get it set up ."

"Lots of potential," she nodded. "And there's a real floor !"

"It's odd—the hardwood floors were here when I bought it and it was the only room that had them. I had them buffed and cleaned up and they're beautiful. I was thinking of having them installed in the bedrooms too ."

They climbed up to the top floor where there were three bedrooms. The floors were bare, but the master bedroom and guest room both had area rugs and the master bathroom had beautiful ceramic tile. It was the only room in the house that could be considered finished, with a gorgeous tiled shower, the most amazing sink she'd ever seen—made from some sort of multicolored glass that incorporated every color of the rainbow—set atop a brass base, and stunning light fixtures above the mirror. There was a wooden cabinet against the wall opposite the toilet, undoubtedly a place for toiletries and maybe hand towels. It was aesthetically pleasing, modern and functional; it was obvious he'd put a lot of thought into it .

"So…" Her eyes twinkled with mirth. "The bathroom was important to you ."

He smiled. "The toilet was nonexistent, requiring me to squat over a hole in the floor to do my business ."

She wrinkled her nose. " Really ?"

He nodded. "The plumbing, electrical and this bathroom were my priorities because the water pressure was so bad, and the plumbing so antiquated that I got no water up here at all. And honestly, showering, shaving, using the facilities—those aren't optional. I don't have to cook. I don't care if there's concrete on the floor as long as it's clean. I'm not home enough to worry about the living room…but a few things had to be done before I could even move in. The floors will be next. Probably the bedrooms first, then the level with the kitchen, and the bottom story last .

"There aren't any closets," she noted. "I mean, this is like a built-in closet, but it's not what I'm used to." There was what looked like a big piece of furniture that took up one entire wall of his bedroom, with doors, shelves and drawers. It obviously wasn't built in, but something that had been added .

"We don't have the space in Greece," he said. "Although in a stand-alone house like this, I'm not sure why not. If I had the time, I'd like to remodel all of this to add one, but it seems prudent to wait and see if I get married, have kids…" His voice trailed off and he looked at her guiltily. "You know what I mean ."

"I do." She nodded, turning away so he wouldn't see the dismay on her face, and strode over to the sliding glass doors that led out to a balcony that overlooked the sea. "Now this is my absolute favorite spot in the house." She unlocked the door and stepped outside. The wind caught her hair, blowing it back behind her as she tilted her face up to the sky .

"This is 90% of the reason I bought it," he admitted, coming up beside her. "The location is perfect, the price was right and this view is sometimes the only stress relief I get ."

"I can see why." She leaned against him, sighing when he slid his arm around her waist .

"I never imagined you'd be standing here with me," he admitted .

"I never imagined I'd see you again." She looked up at him, searching his face. "Dear God, Apollo, what are we doing ?"

"I'm using every ounce of restraint and good manners I have to keep from throwing you over my shoulder and taking you caveman- style ."

She giggled. "Sounds like fun ."

He arched a brow. " Paige …"

"I didn't say no ," she said mildly. "I said I wanted to wait a little—take it slow so we didn't make the same mistakes twice. I absolutely didn't say no ."

"You kind of did," he pointed out .

"That was before." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "This is now ."

"Oh, hell, Paige." He bent his head and kissed her, surprised that he wanted to savor every minute of it instead of ravaging her the way he'd imagined in his mind .

She opened her mouth and let him in, luxuriating in the sweetness of his touch, the familiarity of the way his tongue swirled with hers and the ease with which they came together. When his hands traveled down to cup her ass, she let out a moan of frustration, wanting him desperately but also still wanting to wait .

"Honey, we can — "

"Apollo! Where are you?" A female voice speaking in English startled them and Apollo groaned .

"Who's here that speaks English?!" Paige stage- whispered .

"My sister," he sighed. He reached down to adjust himself, secretly glad they'd been interrupted because she needed something to wear tonight and he was almost positive once he got her naked, it would be a long time before they left the house. "Don't worry—you'll like Lena." He took her hand and tugged her towards the stairs. "Up here, Lena !"

They went down to the floor with the kitchen and found Melina standing there, a large garment bag in one hand. She smiled at Paige, holding out her free hand .

"Hi, I'm Melina Lakkas, the younger of Apollo's two sisters. You must be Paige ."

"It would be incredibly embarrassing if she wasn't," Apollo chuckled .

"Hi." Paige shook her hand, ignoring him. "Yes, I'm Paige Carter ."

"I haven't had a chance to tell you," he said to Paige, "but Melina knows the whole story. If there's anyone in my family I can confide in, it's Lena. So don't worry about that ."

Paige flushed a little, wondering what his sister must think, but nodded. "It's nice to meet you. This whole trip has been a bit of a whirlwind ."

"I'm sure," Lena nodded. She had the same green eyes as her brother and when she smiled, they sparkled like emeralds. "As much as I'd like to take you for coffee and squeeze every last girlie detail out of you, your trip has one more big whirlwind you have to get through first. Since time is limited, I thought maybe I'd bring by a few of my things—we seem to be built about the same—so that you don't have to go nuts looking for something to wear tonight." She looked at Apollo. "Can we use your room ?"

"Of course," he nodded .

"Come." Melina motioned with her head and started up the stairs .

Paige glanced at Apollo who nodded. "There's no guarantee we'll find anything that fits, so give it a shot ."

She turned and followed Melina, trying not to be too nervous. All they were thinking about right now was the dinner tonight, so Melina probably wouldn't bombard her with questions. The thought relaxed her a little and she stepped back into his bedroom with a smile .

Unprepared for a barrage of questions, her eyes widened as Melina began to speak and pull items out of the garment bag simultaneously .

"I knew," Melina began without hesitation, "that something had changed when he came back from college, but I thought it was a traditional college romance, a girl he'd had to leave behind for whatever reason. It's been three years, though, and although he has more female attention than any guy could possibly need, he's never shown any genuine interest. I have to admit it never occurred to me he'd gotten married, despite the circumstances." She pulled out a white linen pencil skirt with a matching bolero jacket with three-quarter sleeves. "What do you think of this ?"

"It's beautiful," Paige responded automatically. "But maybe not for a business dinner with clients. I think something with a little color and not a suit—that's too professional. I need to look classy but this isn't my company—I'm the date, not a business associate ."

"Do you love him?" Melina asked, nodding and tossing the suit aside as she dug through the stack of clothes on the bed .

"I, um, what?" Paige blinked .

Melina paused and looked up. "It's a simple question, Paige. Do you love him ?"

"I don't know," she said quietly. "I've never forgotten him and the moment we were in the same room together, the chemistry between us was so strong it almost knocked me over ."

"You're fair, so this would look stunning on you. Is it too sexy?" She held up a red, form-fitting dress that flared at the bottom and had spaghetti straps covered in rhinestones .

"It's not too sexy, but it depends on where we're going," Paige said, holding it up .

"Put it on and we'll ask Apollo ."

Paige grabbed it and disappeared into the bathroom, needing a moment to gather her thoughts. Did she love him? Absolutely. She couldn't say that, though. It seemed ridiculous. After a total of four days together, with three years in between visits, how did one build those types of feelings? She felt foolish just thinking it, much less admitting it. But if she didn't, why had she agreed to any of this? If she didn't have feelings that were intense enough to make her want to stay in Greece with him for two extra weeks, she could just go home in three days .

She stepped back into the bedroom and found two sets of emerald-green eyes looking her over .

"Yes," Melina nodded. "It's perfect for where you're going ."

"Where are we going?" Paige asked .

"Turn around," Apollo said .

She turned so he could see the back and glanced over her shoulder. " Yes ?"

"Yes!" He and Melina spoke in unison .

"So shoes are the only problem," Melina said. "What size do you wear ?"

"An eight," Paige responded automatically. "I don't know what that is in European sizes ."

"Let me look online," Apollo said, typing into his phone. "Hmm, looks like a 40 ."

"I'm a 39," Melina mumbled. "Sophia wears a 40, but she'd want to know who was borrowing her shoes and we probably don't want to tell her… yet ."

"Where can we go?" Paige asked. "It can't be too hard to find simple black or red shoes to go with this ."

"There are shops nearby that would have them, but they're closed now for the afternoon and won't reopen until 5:30 or 6: 00 ."

"It's after four now," Apollo noted. "We'll have a little time to relax and we can be there right when they open ."

"What time do we go to dinner?" Paige asked .

"We're meeting at 8:30 so we have a little time ."

"Maybe I should shower and do my hair now," she murmured. "In case it takes us a while to find what I need ."

"Oh, we have a few minutes," Melina said smoothly. "Let's sit and get to know each other ."

"Lena…" Apollo's voice held a slight warning .

She smiled up at him prettily. "Oh stop it—I'm not going to chase her off! God, nothing would make me happier than to see you married off and out of my hair ."

He burst out laughing. "Technically, I've been married three years and am still in your hair ."

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, but she wasn't here. Now she is…" Her eyes twinkled, further evidencing their closeness .

"We're only married legally," Paige said quietly, putting the dress on a hanger as she came out of the bathroom. "It's not like I'm moving to Greece ."

"You wouldn't consider moving to Greece?" Melina looked at her intently .

Paige started. "I don't know. I mean, it's beautiful here, but my job, my family—my whole life is in Las Vegas. I don't know the language here so I probably wouldn't be able to work or anything, and I'm not looking for a rich man to take care of me ."

"I know that, koukla mou ." Apollo reached for her, pulling her close. "Of all the issues here, that isn't one of them. I don't know everything about you, but I know that ."

"Honestly, that never crossed my mind!" Melina said quickly, noting how protective her brother was. "The chemistry between you is so clear—anyone can see the attraction—it seems that you'd be thinking of ways to make this work ."

"I…" Paige's voice trailed off. "I don't, uh…" She stared at Apollo helplessly .

"We haven't gotten that far, Lena," he said gently, surreptitiously squeezing Paige's waist. "The idea was for us to spend time together, get to know each other on a more intimate level and see what happens. What's the point of making plans when we don't know if we even have feelings for each other ?"

Melina snorted, standing up and starting to pack up the garment bag. "That's some bullshit if I ever heard it! You two are so far gone for each other you might as well have it tattooed on your foreheads. The only thing you should be thinking about right now is the logistics of how to be together. Everything else is already there!" She leaned over to hug her brother and then reached out her arms to Paige. She kissed her on each cheek and squeezed her tightly. "He's a really, really good guy," she whispered against her ear. "And he adores you—don't let him go ."

"Whatever you just said," Apollo grunted, "better not scare her away !"

" Skase! " Shut up ! She laughed, waved and bounded down the stairs .

" Efharisto! " Paige called after her .

"Your pronunciation is pretty good," he commented .

" Efharisto ." They laughed together before she hurried to lock herself in the bathroom. She didn't want to think about logistics or anything else; she wanted to make herself as beautiful as she could tonight and help him impress his clients. There was time to think of that other stuff after he closed this deal .