Page 57 of Theseus Discovers His Heir

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

HE FOUND HER in the pool with Toby.

Her lips widened into a huge smile when she saw him. Then a quizzical expression formed as she noticed his set face and the smile dropped. She had learned to read him very well.

Toby had no such intuition. ‘Daddy!’ he cried. ‘Look! Mummy’s helping me swim. Come in with us!’

Theseus stiffened.

Daddy?

His son had called him Daddy.

It was the one word he’d been waiting to hear. He’d been content for Toby to call him Theseus, hadn’t wanted to upset the apple cart by demanding a title he’d done nothing to earn. Rather like his title of Prince, he mused darkly.

He hadn’t been at Toby’s birth, and neither had he been there for the first four years of his life. And it was all his own fault for not seeing what his heart had known from the start—that Joanne Brookes was the best person he’d ever met.

And for that reason he had to let her go.

For her, he would cast aside his selfishness and actually do something for the benefit of someone else. To hell with the consequences.

He stepped to the pool’s edge and smiled at his son. I love you, Toby Kalliakis. I will never abandon you. I will always be there for you. Always.

The words went unsaid.

‘Chef is making cookies,’ he said to Toby. ‘If you get changed, they’ll be ready for you to eat.’

‘Can I, Mummy?’ he asked eagerly, wriggling in Jo’s arms.

Her eyes were fixed on Theseus, but she nodded, wading to the edge of the pool and lifting Toby onto it.

Elektra wrapped a towel around him and scooped him up.

Jo’s heart shuddered and juddered. Something was badly wrong. She could feel it in her bones.

Please, not his grandfather...

Climbing out of the pool, she reached for her own towel, her heart juddering even more when Theseus made no move to hand it to her.

She wrapped the towel around herself and followed him to the poolside table. A jug of fruit juice and two glasses had been placed on it. He poured them both a glass and pushed Jo’s towards her.

‘Have you packed your bags yet?’ he asked heavily, looking at the jug rather than at her.

‘Yes. We’re ready to go. Is there a problem with the apartment? It won’t be a problem staying here longer. To be honest, Toby and I both love it—’

‘There won’t be an apartment,’ he interrupted. ‘Jo, you’re going home.’

His words made no sense. ‘What are you talking about?’

‘Our wedding is off. You and Toby are going back England.’

No. They still made no sense.

‘What are you talking about?’ she repeated.

He lifted his gaze to meet hers. Unlike the stunned incomprehension that must be clear in her eyes, in his there was nothing. Nothing at all.

‘I was wrong to insist on marriage. You conceived a child with Theo the engineer, not Theseus the Prince. None of this was your doing. I’m the one who lied about my identity and made it impossible for you to find me. For me to ask you to give up the rest of your life after all the sacrifices you’ve already made... I can’t do it.’ He kneaded his forehead with his knuckles. ‘I’ve caused enough damage. I won’t be a party to any more. You deserve the freedom to live your life as you want, not in a way that’s dictated and forced on you.’

‘Where has this come from?’ she asked hoarsely. ‘I don’t understand. Have I done something wrong?’

‘No.’ He laughed without humour. ‘You’ve done everything right. It’s me who’s done everything wrong, and now I’m putting it right.’

‘But what about Toby?’

‘Toby needs to be with you. I will recognise him as my son. He can come here for holidays. I’ll visit whenever I can. We can video call.’

‘You wanted to be a real father to him. You can’t have a hug with a computer. It isn’t the same—it just isn’t.’ She knew she was gabbling but she couldn’t control it. ‘Toby needs you. Wherever you are is where he’ll be happy—whether it’s here or in England.

‘My wealth is mine to do with as I like while I’m alive.’ He dug a hand into his pocket and pulled out a folded envelope. ‘Here. It’s a cheque. Maintenance for the past five years...for when you had to struggle alone.’

She took it automatically, having hardly heard him. Her head was cold and reeling. She thought she might be sick.

This had to be a joke. It couldn’t be anything else.

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