Page 48 of Below Deck Billionaire
Theo rolled his eyes at his brother’s hyperbole and Kelsey thinking Tiffany needed any kind of protection. He’d never met a woman more self-reliant. ‘She’s not going to get hurt. She knows the score here. It’s just for show. Just for Dimitri.’
‘And what about you?’ Ari asked. ‘Do you know the score? Because it seems to me you’re crossing a lot of lines you’ve never crossed before. What if you get hurt?’
Laughter cascaded from Theo’s mouth even if he was touched by his brother’s concern. For all their smack talk, they were close and there wasn’t anything they wouldn’t do for each other. ‘No one’s getting hurt. It’s two days then everything’s back to normal.’
But even as he said the words, his skin itched. Could things ever truly get back to normal when she had another month on theNeridaand she was back below deck as the second stew? And he was left with her perfume on his sheets and visions of that sexy ass cheek taunting him as he fell asleep in the bed where she’d lain for two nights?
Another sigh from Ari. ‘If you say so.’ Which, unsurprisingly, wasn’t terribly comforting. ‘What are you going to do about keeping Dimitri quiet?’
Theo laughed. ‘You want me to feed him to the fishes?’
‘I’m being serious, Theo.’
‘You’re overreacting. It’s not like they court the paparazzi or either of them are on social media.’
‘No, but he has a phone. Are you ready to explain to Pappou that you’re engaged?’
Well, fuck. Ari made a good point. That was the last thing he wanted. This fake scenario needed to stay contained to the boat. ‘Fine. I’ll talk with him about keeping it under his hat.’
‘Thank you. And just… be careful, okay? You’re in unchartered waters, brother. Mind the rocks.’
Theo opened his mouth to assure Ari once more, but the phone cut off in his ear. He only wished Ari’s words of warning were as easily cut off. Prior to knowing Tiffany, Theo would have had no problems dismissing them. But they resonated a little too closely now.
And the strangest part? Theo was weirdly unconcerned.
* * *
Over breakfast, Theo managed to extract a promise from Dimitri to keep their news quiet for the moment. Theo had assured him once they were back from Crete in two weeks they’d work on making a public announcement, but explained that he wanted that time with his new fiancée without becoming the paparazzi’s number one target.
Given Theo’s history with the paparazzi, Dimitri understood that the first pics of the happy couple would be highly coveted and was immediately contrite about spilling the beans to Ari. Helena, frowning at her husband in disapproval, said she would ensure Dimitri kept his mouth shut.
Theo felt slightly guilty knowing that there wouldn’t be an announcement and, with the deal already signed, Dimitri would have no legal recourse. But he’d cross that bridge when he got to it.
After that awkwardness, the day flew by. Between wandering around Hydra and enjoying lunch in a taverna with Dimitri and Helena and some more afternoon cruising followed by an impromptu fishing session during which they’d all caught a fish, it was dinner time before he knew it.
Maria had prepared their freshly caught fish, steaming them gently in lemon and butter so that it melted in their mouths, and they were now playing a friendly game of Biriba. Tiffany hadn’t heard of the popular Greek card game but, as it was similar to rummy, she picked it up quickly and, with her croupier skills, was soon wiping the floor with them.
‘Theo,’ Dimitri chided him, ‘your fiancée is kicking your ass.’
Theo laughed. She was kicking all their asses and being utterly magnificent in the process. He supposed a less secure man might have found it an insult to his masculinity, but he just found it a huge fucking turn on.
‘It’s not the first time his ass has been kicked by a woman,’ Tiffany said with a smile, side-eyeing him for an exaggerated moment before leaning in a little to address their guests. ‘Do you want to know about the time he was given an old-lady ass-kicking?’
Helena laughed and clapped, winking at Theo as he rolled his eyes. ‘We are all ears.’
She regaled them with the story then, embellishing it even from the version that Hugo had told and, if he didn’t know differently, Theo would have sworn she’d been there as a witness. Or at least been around long enough in his life to have heard it a hundred times.
Which was entirely the point.
She was legitimising their relationship more succinctly than any display of PDA, although there was that as well. Touching his forearms, sliding her palm onto his thigh, leaning into him as they’d sat together at lunch, using a paper napkin to wipe away a smudge of yoghurt on the side of his mouth. And he’d returned the favour, touching her often too, until it had felt like the most natural thing to do.
The sizzle wasn’t natural though and even less so as it built with each casual caress. It was hot and exciting. Electric. His skin alive with the static of her touch, his pulse thready with the echo of it. And he knew she felt it too, by the hint of huskiness in her breath and the prickle of goosebumps erupting beneath his palm.
By the time their guests finally retired, his entire body was humming with it.
‘You can use the bathroom first,’ he told her as she brushed past him into the suite, the mix of fragrances from her shampoo to her perfume to the champagne forming a heady mix that made him want to push her against the door, bury his face in her neck and inhale.
Striding far away from that temptation, he toed off his shoes and socks near the couch as the door to the bathroom opened and closed. The linen and pillows from last night had been neatly folded and stacked on the left cushion by Tiffany, he assumed, as he’d told Kelly not to bother servicing the suite whilst his guests were on board.
