And Mykonos. The island was such an integral part of him it was impossible to define. And her genuine pleasure in all its quaintness and quirks had spoken to him as they’d walked to his place yesterday. Her enthusiastic appreciation for the authenticity of the island, beyond the touristy flash of Chora, had been refreshing.
Other women he’d brought to the island had wanted to shop in the boutiques or hang out at all the in places. The popular beaches and the buzzy bars. And that had been fine because he enjoyed that too.
Or he had, anyway.
Until Tiffany’s delight in the backstreets, in their riot of colour and their clashing contrasts between old and new, had made him see it through fresh eyes again. And the way she’d smiled at the locals who had greeted him, and been so utterly at home in his favourite little local taverna, had cemented the feeling that shegothim.
Understood him in a way that no other woman had. Him. Plain old Theo.
Not Theo Callisthenes, the billionaire. Not Theo Callisthenes, the CEO. Not Theo Callisthenes, the playboy with the black Amex and the superyacht.
Theo, the kid who had grown up listening to old Greek men spinning tales of mermaids. Theo, the teenager who had fucked up and hurt one of his closest friends. Theo, the uni student who’d been attacked by an old lady with a frilly pink umbrella. Theo, the man who loved his family so deeply he liked being surrounded by framed reminders.
And that was big. And new.
She’d said last night that she’d been swept away in the fantasy of it all, and he’d admitted he had been too, and the fact they’d both been feeling the same thing had been the straw that broke the camel’s back as far as the dare had been concerned. What had started as a physical need for her had become, in that moment, something else.
Something bigger. Something she hadn’t been able to explain. But he’d felt it too. That moment hadn’t been about sex, it had been about connecting.
With Tiffany.
And that drove him from the bed because he didn’t know the first thing about connecting with just one woman. Spending time with just one woman.
But he knew he wanted to.
* * *
Ten minutes later, Theo was stepping onto the terrace where Tiffany was still at the railing admiring the vista. He passed the table and flashes of last night replayed in his head. The table, the shower, his bed, the pool. Then back to his bed before their hunger had been slaked and exhaustion had dragged them into a deep slumber.
He didn’t know how he could want her again so soon and so urgently – but he did. It was more than that though; the desire to see her on his terrace was just as urgent. Summoning all his willpower, he slipped in beside her – not behind.
‘You look like you belong here,’ he murmured.
Because it was the truth. He’d thought that yesterday as he’d watched her tapping away on her keyboard, pausing occasionally to stare at the sea. And last night as she’d eaten spanakopita and laughed at his jokes. And definitely right now, standing barefoot in yesterday’s dress staring at the view as if trying to commit it to memory.
She startled a little and he wasn’t sure if it was because she hadn’t heard him approach or because his words had discomforted her.
Quickly recovering her poise, she smiled at him before grabbing his hand, unfurling his fingers and placing the opal and diamond ring in his palm.
‘Thank you, Theo,’ she said as she curled his fingers over it. ‘For everything. For all of this.’ She gestured to the view and villa. ‘And for Mikey.’
Theo frowned, alarm spiking his pulse. Why did this sound like goodbye? ‘Are you… leaving?’
She nodded. ‘I think it’s best.’
What? Wait… No. ‘Because of last night?’
‘Uh huh. And the day before that. It’s been amazing but it is all a fantasy, and I thought I’d be okay going back below deck, but after all this’ – she gestured to the view – ‘I think it’ll just be too weird. And I think the rest of the crew will pick up on the vibe and it’ll be weird for them, too. I know I still have a month left on my contract but?—’
Theo, his brain grappling with this surprise turn of events, interrupted with a dismissive wave of his hand. ‘Don’t worry about it.’
‘Thanks.’
Thanks? She seemed so… calm while a deep pit of what the fuck tore wide open inside him. ‘Where will you go?’ Which wasn’t what he wanted to ask but seemed the most obvious thing in the situation.
‘I’m not sure. I want to finish my book so I’ll probably look at some long-term housesitting gigs. I joined an agency after I left Oceanós.’
‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘You should stay here.’