Page 23 of Arrogant Arrival

The whole house shakes again, causing my shampoo bottle to fall off the shelf. “Jolene!Are you okay?”

I hurry out of the shower. “Yes. I’m coming.” I grab a towel and wrap it around me as I rush out the door still dripping wet with soap suds on me. “Let me grab–”

“We don’t have time, Jo!” Jim grabs my hand and leads me toward the stairs. He lets go of my hand, allowing me to go first down the staircase. We begin hurrying down. I don’t even have time to put clothes on, so yeah, this is awkward. The stairs are marble and I’m still soaking wet, so it shouldn’t have come as a shock when I slip and skip two steps, busting my ass on the landing.

And I’m naked. In all my naked gloriousness, I’m spread eagle on the stairs during an earthquake with my pretend Greek boyfriend. I couldn’t write this story if I tried.

Jim hurries to my side and wraps the towel around me. “Are you okay?”

The whole building shakes again. “Yeah, could’ve been worse. The ceiling could’ve fallen on me.”

That’s when I notice the front door is open.I wish the ceiling would’ve fallen on me.Yia-Yia is making her cross sign again, but for some reason, I don’t think it’s for everyone’s safety from the earthquake. It’s apparently for my naked soul. We get outside and of course, Jim’s entire family and then some are all there. I wrap the towel tightly around me as I embarrassingly look around. It seems that the entire neighborhood is gawking at me. I turn to Bianca who offers me a sympathetic smile. I return with a close-lipped smile, my face a mask of shame, “I was in the shower.”

She nods. “I guessed that.”

I can’t help but notice that Dex willnotlook my way. I fidget and turn to Bianca again. “I fell coming down the stairs.”

“I also saw that. Are you alright?”

“No. I’m really not. But my pride is wounded more than my ass. Far more.”

Jim grins. “I don’t know why. I mean, you have a great kolo. Hey, and at least you shaved.”Surprisingly, I feel slightly better. At least I was well-groomed when my vagina made her Greece public debut.

I notice the ground hasn’t moved any more. In fact, I don’t think it’s shaken the entire time we’ve been outside. Someone yells something in Greek, and everyone goes back to their houses. My jaw drops. “I almost died from humiliation and falling down the stairs, and that’s it?”

Martha frowns at me, “Did you want destruction? People to lose their homes…their lives? Be grateful that’s all it was.” Ouch. She doesn’t wait for my response.

Jimmy gives me a sheepish smile. “Earthquakes are common in Greece. Sometimes, for the little ones, we don’t even leave the house.”

“I didn’t want destruction… it’s just. I don’t even know. I guess if I’d known it wasn’t going to be that serious, I wouldn’t have literally busted my ass to get out here so fast.”

Speaking of…I’m still standing out in the street in only a small white towel. I hurry inside and up the stairs. I’m pleased to report that on the way back up, I only slipped once and hurt my knee. But nobody saw my tush this time, at least.

So I’ll take that as a win.

After I get dressed, I go downstairs to find a stunning brunette sitting on the couch. Martha is serving her a cup of coffee and a plate with cookies on it. Martha beams at me, “Jo, this is Voula. She’s an old family friend.”

She looks younger than me, so not sure howoldof a friend she is. “Hello, Voula.”

“Yia sas Jo. Welcome to Greece.”

“Thank you.” I go and sit on the chair next to the couch.

“Have you had a chance to explore the country any?”

Before I can answer Voula, Martha chimes in. “Only swimming at the beach behind the condo. Not sure what Jimmy plans on doing with her while they’re here.”

Voula smiles at me. “I was planning to go out this afternoon with Jimmy. Maybe he can bring you along. I wouldn’t mind.”

Excuse me?Martha chuckles and playfully pinches Voula cheek. “You always were such a sweet girl.”

Jimmy enters the room, and his thick, dark eyebrows rise at the sight ofsweetVoula. He looks to his mother, back to Voula, to me, and then back to his mother. He’s wearing a light blue button-up, the top buttons are open, exposing his collar bone and part of his strong chest, the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, and dark navy slacks. He isn’t wearing shoes, and I can’t figure out why his bare feet look sexy. I think I was out in the sun too long. He raises his chin and strolls into the room with his hands in his pants pockets.

“Yia sas Voula. Surprised to see you.”

Voula smiles and bats her eyelashes. “I hope it’s a happy surprise, Jimmy mou.”

Jimmy mou!I dip my chin and tilt my head so I can still look up at him and bat my eyelashes, “Jimmy mou, didn’twehave plans tonight? I’m afraid Boula here is in for a surprise.”

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