Total pages in book: 247
Estimated words: 234281 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1171(@200wpm)___ 937(@250wpm)___ 781(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 234281 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1171(@200wpm)___ 937(@250wpm)___ 781(@300wpm)
DAMEN LEVENTIS WAITED wordlessly for Stavros to climb the last few flights of stairs leading to the topmost row of seats in the stadium. Made entirely of white marble, the stadium was the only one of its kind. It was also historic for being the place where individuals battled for personal glory and honor in the world’s first modern Olympics.
That fact appeared uppermost in Stavros’ mind when, upon reaching Damen’s side, he remarked blandly, “Should I have brought my fencing sword, Damen?”
A mirthless smile slashed Damen’s lips. “If that is your roundabout way of asking if I am giving up Mairi to you, then yes, you should have. But a fistfight would also do anytime.”
Both men’s faces were impassive as they considered each other’s words.
“I respect your claim to her,” Stavros said finally, “but I need to speak to her. Surely that is not asking much?”
An ironic laugh almost escaped Damen. Not much? It was obvious Stavros had never been in love. Perhaps he thought he had been with Mairi – a fact that bothered him immensely – but no, it had not been love. If it had been, then Stavros should know that anything that involved his woman and another man was too much.
If Stavros had been in love with Mairi, then surely he would know and understand the driving need inside him to keep Mairi under lock and key and prevent any other man from seeing her. She was the most beautiful girl to him. In his mind, it was always only a matter of time before a man in her company would fall in love with her.
Mairi Tanner, with her hopelessly optimistic ways, had made him – Damen Leventis, the man who supposedly did not feel – believe in love. What more the men who already knew the joy of giving one’s heart to another?
“She is still stressed by what happened.” It was a lie, of course. Stress didn’t seem to be a word that existed in Mairi’s vocabulary. Many times, Damen marveled at how happy she seemed, just because she was with him. It was a humbling thought, and one that made him even more possessive of her.
Stavros nodded curtly. “I understand. But I do intend to speak to her soon. I have searched for her for a very long time, Damen. I treasure our friendship, but I will not let it stand in my way.”
Damen inclined his head in acknowledgment of his friend’s words. “Just know,” he said softly, “that I feel the same way. You have been a good friend to me all these years as well, Stavros. But it is Mairi who is most important to me.”
They did not speak after, simply nodding at each other in understanding. To anyone else, they would have appeared almost like twins, both of them bearing a strong resemblance to the gods their ancestors worshipped. Whereas most men used fancy clothes and expensive haircuts to emphasize their superiority, both men were dressed in conservative dark suits, the kind that the expert eye would recognize as hand-sewn creations that cost more than an average person’s annual wages.
Power clung to their hard strong bodies like second skin, and for those who knew the story unfolding between the two Greek billionaires, the realization that both men – out of the millions of women who would do anything to have their attention – wanted the same girl and a rather ordinary one at that, well – it was the stuff that dreams were made of.
IT WAS SIX IN THE MORNING when Damen got back to his home and he went straight to his bedroom, where Mairi slept peacefully, dressed only in his shirt and panties. It made his heart ache. She had once told him that she had a hard time sleeping when he wasn’t around and to comfort herself, she would wear his shirt just to have his scent close to her.
Seeing her legs bare was enough to have Damen hard. It used to surprise him, the way his body was so quickly aroused by almost anything that had to do with Mairi. He had never felt like this with any woman – and he had bedded so many. But then, he had never fallen in love with any of them.
Only Mairi had captured his heart. It was thus no longer so strange that she owned his body, too.
Damen spread thick blankets over her, and Mairi immediately huddled under it like a child. The unconscious action had Damen smiling. All the women he had dated had been calculating, always wanting to have their wares on display, even in their sleep.
Kissing her on the forehead, Damen quietly left their bedroom and went to his study, wanting to check his emails before joining Mairi in bed.
He worked through his emails steadily and only one of them made him pause. It was a report from the private investigator he had hired, succinctly written and pointing to one clear fact: Ioniko Vlahos still wasn’t seen dating any other woman.