Page 15 of Greek's Temporary "I Do"

She passed a hand over her face and hauled herself unsteadily to sit on the side of the bed, surprised by the cool touch of platinum from her wedding ring glancing over her skin.

Married. She was, for all intents and purposes, now married to Leander Liassidis.

Only it wasn’t Leander who was here with her, but his twin brother.

Not that it mattered. Because as long as the press continued to believe that it was Leander with her, then she still had a chance to make this marriage believable. And as long as it was believable she could still save Incendia.

That thought kept her going while she showered and dressed in a long cream muslin dress, reminding herself that Leo wouldn’t much care how she looked. She walked out onto the balcony of her room, the view of the Mediterranean Sea a dramatic display of sheer beauty, glittering like diamonds on silk rippled by the wind. Raising her face to the sun, she inhaled the sea salt and rosemary that always reminded her of Greece.

Her heart said home, but her head chided her for being fanciful.

What part did Greece play in her desire to be a successful CEO and businesswoman? To prove herself worthy of her father’s name? What part did Greece play in her life when everything she knew now was in England?

But that wasn’t true, was it? Not any more. Kate would soon be in Borneo, and Helena would be alone. But she told herself that it would only give her more time to focus on Incendia. On its future success after she had ensured they passed the financial review at the end of the year.

She sighed and prised open her eyes, the sound of something down below drawing her attention. There, powering through the gentle waters of an infinity pool that merged so well with the sea beyond she’d not even seen it, was Leo.

Dark head of hair, seal slick, and powerful muscles undulating across his back, his arms parted the water like a sea god. The glory of his easy movements, the breath he took with each alternate stroke, the backs of his thighs, the cut of his calf muscles, defined, solid, slid through the water with enough grace to barely mark the surface of the pool.

Her cheeks warming and her pulse flaring, she could no longer deny her body’s response to him. It wasn’t anger that made her heart pound painfully in her chest. It wasn’t resentment that caused heat to burn through what little common sense she had when it came to him. The effect Leo had on her was overwhelming. The throb between her legs, the dampness even. No one had ever made her feel this way.

But the person she wanted to be with, to give herself to, would do more than make her body sing. They would make her feel loved, cherished, wanted because she was enough, just as she was.

And that could, she assured herself, never be the man currently in the pool below. Because the cold and aloof Leo Liassidis only wanted one thing from her: her shares. And once he got them he would leave her life, just like he had before—without a backward glance or a second thought.

Leo had devastated her teenage years and she wouldn’t let that happen to her twenties. So she would stay out of his way until she couldn’t avoid him any more.

Leo hauled himself from the side of the pool for the second day in a row, after eventually realising that, no matter how many times a day he swam, no matter how many laps he did, it wouldn’t resolve the frustration that had plagued him for the last two days.

Helena’s absence suggested that she was hiding from him. Which, if he were being honest, suited him just fine. He’d taken several meetings online both the day before and earlier that afternoon but, despite insisting that very little needed to be changed, his assistant had, for the duration of Leo’s absence, taken it upon himself to ‘lighten his load’.

And he didn’t like it one bit. Over the years he’d developed a routine that he was happy with, that worked for both him and Liassidis Shipping. Full days and ferocious focus to the exclusion of all else was what had saved the company once, and what ensured that it was still at the top of its field today.

Leo rolled his shoulders, relishing the ache brought by his morning swim as he stood there staring out at a view that looked similar to the one from his parents’ island. He hadn’t been back there for quite some time now. Before, he would have blamed it on work. But was that true? Or had he just been trying to avoid his brother?

Whether it was Helena, seeing his parents at the wedding, or a strange mixture of both, his memory was tiptoeing around things he’d rather forget.

‘Have you made your decision?’

‘Yes, Patéra. I’m going to work at Liassidis Shipping.’

At eighteen, he’d been so excited to accept the mantle his father was willing to pass on. Wanting to make him proud. Wanting to work with his brother, to stand by his side as they became men.

‘And you, Leander?’

‘I...’ He’d not even been able to look Leo in the eye. ‘I want to take the money.’

Leo clenched his jaw, braced against the memory of that day. But, in truth, it wasn’t that moment that had been the fatal blow to his relationship with Leander. It had been the days, weeks, months of daydreams leading up to it. Of his brother pretending to support his plans for their future. The years of believing that he and his brother shared one thought, one desire, one goal.

And none of it had been real.

It had been him alone in that daydream. And him alone to bear the weight of the damage caused by Gwen three years later. By that point, he hadn’t even expected or wanted Leander to come home to help. But it had also been him alone to pull Liassidis Shipping back from the brink of absolute disaster.

And it had taught him an invaluable lesson. If he couldn’t rely on his twin, he couldn’t rely on anyone. And he’d honed that independence into a skill. That way, he didn’t have distractions, he didn’t leave himself or his company open to other people’s incompetence or betrayal. No. It was far better for him to go it alone.

Leo shook off the water from his hair and dried himself with a towel when his mobile beeped. He stopped to check the message.

We have the gallery event.

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