Truths and Lies Duet

“Kostas,” he croaks. “Please.”

Ignoring his pleas, I grab the small bottle of jam and begin smearing some all over my toast with a knife that would go to better use cutting this motherfucker’s throat.

“Kostas,” he says once more.

“Noon, Niles. I suggest you not waste another moment with your sunshine. Your world is about to get really fucking dark.”

I’m waiting inside my office that overlooks the bay when Father decides to grace me with his presence. He walks in, his features impassive. It’s a much different look than from earlier where he was almost gleeful. Rather than sitting across from me, he walks over to the open door to the veranda.

“You know everything I do is for a reason, agóri mou.” My boy. Not anymore. I’ve long grown into a man—a business partner. Someone worthy of being told about a plan before it’s enacted, not after. To say I feel betrayed is an understatement.

“Of course, Patéras.”

He turns to regard me, a wistful smile on his face. If he wants to play a game of calling me his boy like he did when I was six or seven, then I will take to calling him Father in the same way I would at that age.

“She is beautiful,” he mutters. “At least you have that.”

“At least.”

He lets out a heavy sigh. “I didn’t do this to anger you, Kostas.”

No, this was all about his beef with Niles.

“Then what was it about?” I demand, my voice cracking, a clear indicator of how pissed I am.

“Niles owes me in ways you’ll never understand,” he practically growls. “Giving up his daughter to my son is—”

“Much more difficult than just killing him,” I grit out. “Why not kill him and be done with it? Why drag his family into it?”

Father shrugs and steps out onto the veranda, silently indicating he wants me to continue the conversation out there. With a frustrated sigh, I rise from my leather desk chair and stalk after him. He leans over the railing, staring out onto the sparkly bay that’s dotted with sailboats.

“It’s too easy,” he tells me with a shrug. “Niles deserves to pay in every way he can.”

“But why?”

Rather than answering, he remains seemingly lost in thought. I’m growing bored of this nostalgic power games shit he seems to be playing.

“Do I really need to marry her?” I ask in an exasperated tone. “For how long? When will this be over and I can go back to the way things were?”

Father turns my way, his features dark with hate. “I don’t mean for you to think of this as a punishment, Kostas. She’ll be a wife in name only. Keep whores on the side if you wish.”

My lip curls up at his words. He says that as though he truly believes that. If I’ve learned anything from my father, it’s that loyalty is everything. His marriage to my mother is solid and unbreakable, bordering on obsession. If Ezio Demetriou can keep his dick in one woman for nearly four decades, then so can I.

“Until when?” I ask, ignoring his words.

“As long as it takes to satisfy me.”

Selfish fucking bastard.

I’m used to him treating everyone, even Aris, this way, but not me. It’s a brutal blow that I’m at a loss for how to get over.

“Don’t look at me as though I’ve killed your puppy,” Father snaps. “She’s one woman. A beautiful woman you’ll no doubt enjoy every second with once you break her in. Hell, give me some grandkids for all I care. But I need this transaction to take place. I want to destroy Niles.”

“Why?” I bark out. “Why do you hate that weasel bastard so much? I get it, he’s fucking weak. But why? You’ve always been straight with me.”

Father shakes his head. “Every man has secrets he holds onto. My hate for Niles is one of those. Just trust in my judgment. Do what you have to do when it comes to Talia, but make sure you dangle her in Niles’s face whenever you can. Don’t let her charm her way off this island. You’ll marry her, and I’ll continue to torment her father in every way I see fit. Are we clear?”

“Absolutely,” I growl, fisting my hands, barely keeping my anger in check. “Perhaps you should go home, Father. I have important matters to deal with.”

“You’ll understand one day, Kostas.”

Unlikely.

“Of course, Father.”

He sighs and exits the veranda, slamming the office door closed on his way out. I look up and watch a plane jet across the bright, cloudless sky. After a few moments, I make my way back inside and place a call to a Greek jeweler. My beloved fiancée will need an engagement ring.

Jesus Christ, I could kill my father over this shit.

A sinister part of me, though, takes silent pleasure in the fact I’ll soon own the gorgeous, innocent blond. She may be a Nikolaides, but soon she’ll be a Demetriou. I have a feral need to chase this woman much like Pluto did with Proserpina, so I may pin her down, shove her pretty dress up her thighs, and sink my cock into her warm depths. I love when life imitates art.