Beauty and the Greek (14 page)

The older woman looked amused. ‘He didn't mean wait literally; you do know that?'

Beth blushed and lied. ‘Of course.' Presumably there was such a thing as looking too eager and possibly standing in the same place waiting for an hour or more fell into that category.

‘Where is this beach? Do I follow the path…?'

‘Don't worry, I'll show you the way. Here, in two minutes? Oh, I think Anton is waiting to show you your room.'
She spoke briefly to the man standing at the bottom of the flight of curving stairs. ‘Yes, he'll take you up. Lucky you—you've got the VIP suite. Wait,' she added with a tight smile, ‘until you see the view.'

It turned out she was right about the view—it was absolutely breathtaking—but, conscious of her promise to meet the Greek woman, she did not spend long enjoying it.

Pulling on a towelling robe over her swimsuit, she went down to find Ariana waiting for her.

‘Won't Theo wonder where we are?'

‘Oh, he knows everything that goes on here. He's a sort of king of the island—everyone reports to him.'

 

The other woman was so friendly that Beth began to wonder if she had previously done her an injustice. The beach in question was every bit as pretty as Ariana had suggested.

Beth, who stared longingly at the turquoise expanse, was surprised when the Greek woman, who had already peeled off a floor-length silky kaftan to reveal a minuscule bikini and a taut, well cared for body, laid out a towel and arranged herself on it.

‘You're not swimming?'

‘No, you go ahead. I need to top up my tan.'

Leaving her companion, Beth walked out into the water; it was delicious and beautifully warm against her skin. She waded in waist-deep, waving back to the shore and the watching woman before she struck out.

Beth classified herself as a competent rather than strong swimmer but, she reasoned, as long as she swam parallel to the shore there would be no problem.

 

When they had told him both women had gone to the beach Theo was surprised, not alarmed. Then they had reluctantly
told him which beach—the one beach on the island that he still avoided.

Theo was walking down the cliff path when he saw her.

He hit the ground running. It was a desperate feeling to be able to see exactly what was happening but to be too far away to prevent it.

He broke all records reaching the beach.

When Ariana saw him the panic on her face might, in other circumstances, have been funny.

Theo, who was kicking off his shoes, did not waste time on words; his comments were brief but effective.

‘Too far this time,' he said. He added grimly, ‘Do not be here when I get back,' as he kicked his jeans away. ‘And if anything happens to her there will be no place you can hide.'

He did not bother looking back to see if she had followed his advice. He waded to mid-thigh before diving into the surf.

He could not see her but he knew that by now Beth would have felt the drag of the current; she was probably trying to swim against it.

Even a very good swimmer who did not know that the only way out of the current was to swim with it rather than fight it, then at the right moment duck under it, would have exhausted their reserves of energy trying to escape within minutes.

He was a good swimmer and he did possess the vital local knowledge. So, as he swam out to her, Theo did not allow himself negative thoughts. She would be safe, he would not allow any harm to come to her and he would not return to shore without her.

When she saw him, Beth was utterly spent.

She opened her mouth to call his name and went under.
She came back up a moment later, spluttering and choking and he was there. In her panic she clutched at him, sending them both under this time.

‘Relax, I've got you and let go of my neck—I need to breathe.'

Beth's panic receded but did not go away.

‘I'm going to drown,' she said, releasing her strangle-hold.

Theo ignored her doom-laden prediction, wrapped a strong arm around her ribs and flipped onto his back, pulling her on top of him. ‘This is my watch—no one is going to drown today. Do you trust me, Elizabeth?'

Beth felt herself relax—it was a no-brainer. ‘Yes.'

She followed his instructions, which amounted pretty much to do nothing besides not panicking, and a short time later he was dragging her out of the water.

Theo rolled onto his back, turned his head and looked at her as he said between pants, ‘You all right?'

She nodded and crawled a few more feet before she flopped, face down, onto the sand. She lay there for several minutes, eyes closed, dragging air into her lungs in shuddering shallow gasps before she could summon the energy to even whisper, ‘Thank you.'

‘You are welcome.' Theo hauled himself into a sitting position. Now she was safe, he allowed himself to think about how close a call it had been. Though thinking was not really an adequate description of his
visceral
response to the knowledge that he had nearly lost her before he had ever had the chance to say
I love you
.

‘Are you going to yell at me? Because I have to warn you that if you do I might well cry and it is not a pretty sight, as you probably remember.'

‘I remember everything,' he rasped. ‘I remember how you felt in my arms, how soft your skin was, how sweet
you tasted, how tight you were around me. I remember everything and I have not thought of anything else since that night.'

She felt his passionate words in her bones, hotter than the sun that beat down on them. Unable to shake the feeling that this was all happening to someone else, she opened her eyes and saw his dark face close to her own, close enough for her to see the individual lines that radiated from the corners of his eyes.

She lifted her hand to his cheek and whispered, ‘I remember too.'

‘You're a beautiful sight.'

Not an accurate statement, but Beth did not feel inclined to protest. She didn't protest when he put his hand behind her head and dragged her mouth to his either.

The kiss lasted a long time and when it stopped they didn't move, just lay there staring at one another and breathing hard.

‘You saved my life,' she whispered.

‘I love you. I would have saved your life anyway, not being the total scum you appear to think I am, but loving you made it a priority.'

Beth just stared at him, wondering if the near death experience had made her hallucinate. Things were turning distinctly surreal.

‘I don't think you're scum.' She thought
you're incredible
and felt her eyes fill with tears.

‘Good. I have problems expressing my feelings.'

He'd had to tell her because she'd nearly died without knowing and that would have been… Theo thought
she nearly died
and felt that icy-cold fist clutch in his belly.

The memory he refused to acknowledge surfaced and he sucked in a breath and thought
Niki died and I couldn't save him
.

She blinked and said, ‘You're a man; men don't express.'

Theo turned his head. Her hair, coated in sand, lay in a wet tangled halo around her face. His breath caught; she looked so beautiful.

‘But, by way of compensation, I'm an excellent kisser.' He proceeded to demonstrate just how good.

Some time later Beth lay on her back in the sand watching Theo through the mesh of her lashes as he retrieved his phone from the pile of his clothes and issued some instructions.

He walked across to her looking so incredible that the breath caught in her throat. He held out his hand. ‘There will be a doctor waiting at the house to check you over.'

Beth allowed him to haul her to her feet.

‘The thing you said about loving me…' She angled a wary look up at his face. ‘You did say that?'

‘I did.'

The tender smile playing about his lips made her heart thud. ‘And you meant it?'

‘Every word.'

‘I love you too.'

An expression of triumph blazed across his face as the tension left his shoulders. ‘Well, thank God for that.'

He sealed his mouth to her own and Beth felt the weeks of hopeless longing, the nights of pent-up hunger and frustration slip away.

When he finally stopped kissing her, Theo stroked her cheek with a tenderness that brought tears to her eyes, his lips just a whisper away from hers, his warm breath warm on her cheek.

It was the water that lapped around their feet that made him finally release her. Laughing, Beth ran a little way up the beach. She turned back, expecting to see him behind
her, but he hadn't moved. He stood there, staring out to sea with an expression on his face that drew her back to his side.

She laid a tentative hand on his shoulder. He turned his head and smiled, but the shadow in his eyes remained.

‘What is it?' she asked, brushing away the dried sand that clung to his warm skin.

Theo shook his head and raised her hand to his lips.

‘I know there's something.'

The breath left his lungs in a long sibilant rush as he turned his head and gazed back out to sea. ‘I nearly lost you today before you were even mine.'

Beth looped her arms around his waist and pressed her slim body tight against the lean hard length of his. She brushed away the damp fabric of his shirt and kissed his chest.

‘But you didn't lose me—I'm here.'

‘No, I didn't, not this time.'

The enigmatic response made her brow pucker. He pulled away slightly and she angled a quizzical look at his face. ‘This time?'

He took her hand and nodded. ‘Come, let's walk and talk. I'll be happier when the doctor has looked at you,' he admitted. ‘You can walk?'

‘I'm fine.'

They had reached the path before he began to talk but, when he did, the words spilled from him in a flood. Beth had the impression they were things he had needed to say for a long time.

‘You know I had an elder brother, Niki?'

Beth nodded, realising where this was going—his brother must have drowned and this had brought it all back.

His next words confirmed her suspicions, but it was worse—much worse.

‘Everyone knows about the tides on the beach.'

Beth thought about Ariana, lying there watching her swim out, and shuddered.

‘But we were kids and I never could resist a dare. Niki dared me. He didn't think I'd do it, but I did—I swam out. He swam out to get me but he got caught by the undercurrent too. I watched him go under and I couldn't do a thing about it.'

Beth's fingers tightened around his. The thought of him carrying this burden around with him made her heart ache—for the man he was and the boy he had been.

‘Niki tried to save me, but somehow I got out and he drowned. I killed him.'

Beth stopped dead and pulled him back to face her. ‘Of course you didn't—it was an accident.'

‘That's what they said, of course, but I knew different.' And he knew that every time he looked at him their father had thought that the wrong son got taken by the sea.

He had never said it but Theo knew he had thought it.

‘If I hadn't gone in…'

‘If he hadn't dared you? What ifs are silly. Things happen—bad things happen—but you cannot carry this guilt around with you. Theo, you were a child. It was an accident. You have to let it go, in time.' A wound like his did not heal overnight, not when it had festered away for so long.

Theo gazed down into her earnest, lovely little face and felt his heart twist in his chest.

Beth gave a tentative smile and wondered what he was thinking.

‘It is something I live with.'

Beth took the hand he held out and walked by his side, determined that while she was around she would try and lighten the burden he carried.

It was a long-term project and she didn't know how long she would be around.

So far, Theo had only admitted his feelings. There had been no mention of their enduring nature and he was not a man who did long-term relationships.

Beth pushed away the unanswered questions. The fact was, a week or a year, she intended to stay with Theo for as long as he wanted her because the alternative was unthinkable and, being an optimist, she could not dismiss the possibility that he might find she was enough variety for him.

T
HE
doctor pronounced her fit and, after a private conversation with her on another subject, he was able to offer her some reassurance and the promise that he would bring the necessary test kit with him the next day.

She emerged after the examination to find Theo pacing up and down a balcony with stunning sea views. Also, she realised as she joined him, an excellent view of the helipad.

‘Is someone arriving?' she asked, raising her voice above the mechanical noise carried in their direction by the prevailing wind.

He turned, a look of relief flashing across his face as he saw her standing there. ‘No, leaving.' In response to her raised brow, he added in a hard voice, ‘Ariana. I gave her her marching orders.'

Theo's expression softened as he took her by the shoulders. ‘What did he say?' he asked, tipping his head in the direction of her bedroom.

‘I'm fine… Theo, Ariana…'

His jaw tightened. ‘We will not discuss that woman.'

Beth ignored the instruction. ‘We have to, Theo. Did you ask her to leave because of the swimming incident? Because she might not have known; it might have been an innocent mistake.'

‘You think the best of people, which is not a bad thing,' he admitted huskily. ‘It is one of the things that makes you…' He stopped, his deep voice breaking. ‘But with people like Ariana…' He shook his head. ‘That is not a good idea, Beth. I blame myself.'

The lash of self-recrimination in his voice as he dragged a hand through his hair made Beth shake her head in protest. ‘Is there anything you don't blame yourself for?' she teased.

‘This is no joke, Beth. I brought the woman into your life.' There was dark anguish shining in his eyes as he cupped her face between his hands. ‘I knew what she was like, what she was capable of,' he confessed between clenched teeth. ‘Though I never imagined for one moment that you'd be in danger. You must believe that,' he said urgently.

‘Of course I believe you.'

‘The fact remains that I exposed you to danger. I used you. If anything had happened to you….' He closed his eyes on the nightmare images in his mind.

‘But they didn't, Theo,' Beth said, moved beyond measure by the pain in this strong man's face. Then, knowing she would not be able to shake the jealousy aroused by the stories that had circulated after the brothers' row, she blurted, ‘Do you still have feelings for her?'

He looked astonished by the suggestion but not, to her relief, particularly offended by her curiosity. ‘Beyond loathing, you mean?'

‘You didn't want Andreas to marry her.'

Theo exhaled a long gusty sigh and squared his shoulders. ‘Let me tell you a story about Ariana.'

He took her by the hand and led her off the balcony indoors, opening the door to a room that appeared to be
a studio. Beth lifted one of the canvases stacked against a wall and caught her breath.

It wasn't just the vivid colours of the seascape that leapt off the canvas but the raw emotion and startling beauty conveyed by the confident bold strokes of the artist.

‘This is extraordinary,' she gasped before lifting the one behind it—a different subject this time, a young boy's face. She frowned at the familiarity of the delicate features, then turned with a gasp to Theo. ‘Your brother?'

Theo gave a self-conscious shrug. ‘As I remember him.'

Her eyes misted. ‘You remember him with love.' It shone off the canvas. ‘You painted all of these?' Her gesture took in the stacked canvases along the walls. There were at least a dozen—more.

Again, he nodded.

She shook her head in utter astonishment. This man she loved was such a maze of contradictions.

‘You're talented, Theo, very talented. Why haven't I seen any of your work on the walls here?' She was sure she would have recognised the distinctive style.

‘I paint a little when I am here, but just for myself.' He studied the painting she held before turning it back to the wall and explaining, ‘My father did not approve of my artistic
pretensions
.'

‘But why?' she exclaimed. It seemed extraordinary to Beth that any parent would not encourage a child who displayed this sort of talent to explore his gift, rather than stifle it. His father should have been proud, not made him guilty of his talent, she thought angrily.

‘He considered it a distraction and not,' he admitted with a twisted smile, ‘manly.'

A choked little laugh left Beth's lips. ‘Your father sounds—'

‘He was a man of his generation and he had many good points; he was just not exactly touchy-feely. It was not until after his death that I began to paint a little again. Come,' he added, pulling a dust sheet off a chair and pressed her down into it. ‘You want to know about Ariana.'

‘Not if you don't want to—'

‘Six years ago, I ended our engagement.'

‘You ended the engagement!' she echoed. ‘But I thought…'

‘I ended the engagement. You know that her first marriage ended in divorce?' Beth nodded. ‘To cut, as they say, a long story short, I walked in one day and found her in bed with her stepson.'

Beth's jaw dropped.

‘My pride was hurt, Elizabeth, not my heart.' He took her hand and placed it on his chest. ‘That belongs to you,' he told her thickly.

‘Oh, Theo!' she whispered, looking up at him with shining eyes. ‘I love you,' she declared huskily.

‘There is more to my story. The boy's father was with me at the time. He was the intended audience—Ariana's petty revenge for being deprived of a property she particularly wanted in the divorce settlement. The woman is motivated by greed and revenge. I never loved Ariana. I was idealistic, young and confused lust for love. With you,' he added throatily, ‘I have both.'

Beth sighed happily and said, ‘Hold that thought.' She added, ‘What I don't understand is why you and Andreas fought over Ariana.'

He arched a brow. ‘This is news to me.'

Beth shook her head. ‘I know it happened; the place was buzzing with your big row.'

‘We had a
big row
, as you call it,' he conceded. ‘But
not about Ariana, although she was mentioned, but so were you.'

‘I was? You weren't fighting over me?'

Theo trailed a finger down her cheek. The loving expression in his eyes made Beth's heart skip a happy beat.

‘Would you like it if we were fighting over you?' he teased.

Beth was indignant. ‘What a thing to ask—of course I wouldn't…' She stopped, gave a grin and added, ‘Well, not exactly…
were you
?'

His grin widened. ‘Our conversation that morning left me with the distinct impression you wished it had been Andreas and not me the night before.'

Beth's jaw dropped. ‘How could you think that?'

‘How?' Theo stared at her incredulously. ‘You did say you loved him.'

For years Theo had dismissed Andreas's petty jealousies out of hand. Now, with the situation reversed—and there was nothing approaching petty about the dark emotions he was experiencing—he actually felt a lot more sympathy for his brother.

He had even restrained himself from pointing out such home truths when Andreas had confided that actually he might not be in love with Ariana.

Beth grimaced at the reminder. ‘I thought I was,' she admitted. ‘But I had no idea then that love needed passion and passion needed love and how rare it is to find the two in one place, or,' she added, lifting a loving hand to his face, ‘one person.'

‘The point is, I thought the one person was Andreas and I went to discuss the situation with my little brother in a civilised manner.'

Beth rolled her eyes and said, ‘Who threw the first punch?'

Theo grinned back. ‘Andreas did not take kindly to being told that a man who played footsie with one woman was not ready to marry another.'

‘I shouldn't have told you that,' Beth said with a wince.

Theo did not agree. ‘You should always tell me everything,' he rasped, adding weight to the suggestion by fitting his lips to hers and kissing her deeply.

‘No secrets?' she teased, emerging breathless and blissfully happy from the embrace.

‘None.'

She nodded her agreement.

‘Things actually did not get really nasty until I mentioned the fact that if he cheated on you ever I would crush him like a bug.'

Beth's eyes were round. ‘You actually said that?'

‘Not those exact words,' he conceded with a grin. ‘I gave you the censored version.'

‘Did you make him go to New Zealand?'

‘No, it was his idea. I think he was having some doubts about Ariana and he wanted some space to review his options.'

Beth bit her lip and lowered her eyes. Was that what Theo would be doing in a few months' time? She pushed away the intrusive thought—why worry about an unknown future when you could enjoy today?

‘I actually think,' he mused, ‘that Andreas waited so long to decide he was dumping Ariana because I told him to.'

‘I react that way when you tell me to do things.'

‘Not always,' he said. ‘There have been moments when you seemed
very
eager to please me.'

When he took her hands and pulled her to her feet she came willingly. The wicked gleam in his eyes made her
flush, then shiver when he slid his hand up her body, stopping only when he reached her breast.

Her little cry of pain made him drop his hand and look at her with concern. ‘You were lying—you are injured.'

‘No,' she promised him. ‘I didn't lie. It's fine—I'm just a little tender there.'

He watched her lightly touch her breasts and frowned. ‘Why would you be?' He stopped, the colour draining from his face as he stared at her. ‘You mean you are…'

His eyes dropped to her flat stomach and he swallowed hard.

‘No need to panic just yet. I'm not one hundred per cent sure, but it is possible.'

His eyes lifted to her face. ‘But you think you are?'

Beth stole a look at his face and was comforted to see that he didn't look too bad, considering the shock she had just delivered. She expelled a gusty sigh, nodded and said, ‘I'm sorry.'

He stared at her. ‘Why would you be sorry?'

‘Well, it's not like you planned for this to happen.'

Theo took her chin in his hand and forced her face up to his. ‘I did not plan to fall in love with you either, but it is still the best thing that has ever happened to me.'

The simple statement brought tears to her eyes.

‘Some things are meant to be.'

She studied his face warily. ‘So you wouldn't mind?'

‘Mind?' he echoed. ‘I'd be delighted.'

Beth felt the last cloud vanish from her horizon.

‘You do realise that a baby with us as parents will no doubt be brilliant and gifted and very
very
beautiful?' he told her, his eyes gleaming as they swept her face. ‘And this settles it—why wait? We could get married next week, actually,' he mused, visibly warming to the idea. ‘Tomorrow.'

‘You want me to marry you?'

He looked amazed by the question. ‘Well, that's a given, obviously.'

‘Not to me. I thought you wanted an affair, but marriage…? It didn't even cross my mind,' she admitted. ‘You're not saying this because of the baby?'

He shook his head. ‘I want to commit to you. I want to do that legally and for keeps.'

Beth gave up on trying to blot the tears streaming down her cheeks—there were too many. ‘Theo—' her husky voice was shaky ‘—a woman likes to be asked.'

Without a second thought, he dropped down onto one knee. ‘Elizabeth Farley, will you do me the honour of being my wife?'

She pressed a finger to the dimple in her chin, sniffed and pretended to think about it. ‘Well, let me see…' She let out a whoop of protest as he leapt to his feet and, with his arms banded around her hips, lifted her high in the air.

‘Put me down, you idiot!' she shouted as he whirled her around.

‘Not until you say yes.'

‘All right, yes, I will marry you.'

A fierce predatory grin spread across his face. ‘Right answer,' he said slowly, lowering her but keeping her body very close to his as he did so. When her feet hit the floor, his hand stayed on her bottom.

‘Do I get a prize?' she asked huskily.

‘You get me.'

‘Nice, but do I get a prize?' she teased.

‘Actually, now you mention it, I do have. Wait there.' He vanished through a door and returned a moment later carrying something long and cylindrical. ‘More a wedding present.'

Frowning her puzzlement, Beth slid the papers from the document case and opened them. She stared at the plans,
not really understanding what she was seeing, then she suddenly recognised the shape of— Her startled gaze flew to his face.

‘This is my house, though not actually mine any more. I just sold it,' she informed him. The sale had gone through earlier; she had received the agent's text on the journey there.

‘I know.'

She shook her head. ‘I don't understand.'

‘I bought the house for you. The architect who drew up the plans has worked on a lot of period properties, but obviously he will incorporate anything you want. Maybe the nursery could be—'

‘You bought my house for me?'

Theo watched with alarm as her lips began to tremble and her luminous eyes filled afresh.

‘If you prefer to live somewhere else—'

Beth blinked back the tears misting her vision and, reaching up, she took his face between her hands. ‘I would live anywhere with you, Theo,' she declared with a smile that took his breath away, ‘but this is probably the loveliest thing that anyone has ever done for me. But when you bought it you didn't know I would be coming.'