Greek Tycoon, Inexperienced Mistress

Lindy sipped her wine. ‘How did it happen?’

‘I went to see Krista to end the relationship and tell her about you,’ he admitted levelly. ‘The maid assumed I was expected and let me into Krista’s apartment, where I found her and a selection of her friends enjoying a cocaine party.’

Lindy froze, and stared at him in consternation.

‘I’d often found her very moody, and I was blind not to suspect that drugs were involved. I’m fiercely anti them,’ Atreus breathed grimly. ‘That was the moment that it hit me in the face—I had let the love of my life walk away and had then wasted my time trying to idealise a woman who couldn’t hold a candle to you. I was ashamed I could be so out of touch with my own feelings that I hadn’t even appreciated that what I felt you was love and respect and friendship, and all the other things that a successful marriage needs to thrive. I had it all and threw it away!’

Shocked as much by what he had told her about Krista as by being told that he loved her, Lindy set her glass down and wrapped her arms round him. ‘No, you didn’t. I started asking questions and you just weren’t ready for that. It all blew up in our faces.’

Atreus dealt her a rueful appraisal and gripped her hands hard in his. ‘Don’t be kind to make me feel better. I don’t deserve to feel better on that score. You had to leave for me to appreciate you, and if I’d lost you for ever I would only have had myself to blame for it.’

‘Do Krista’s family know about the drugs?’ Lindy asked awkwardly.

‘When I saw her at the wedding she promised to tell them, because she needs to go into rehab.’

‘Was that what you were talking about when you both looked so serious?’

‘I know that once she tells her family she’ll get the support she needs. If she doesn’t, I’ll do it for her. Now, can we talk about us instead of Krista?’

Her eyes softened. ‘Of course.’

‘Thankfully,’ Atreus murmured, dark golden eyes clinging to her animated face with warm appreciation, ‘I got a second chance with you through Theo being conceived. And second time around I’d learned what I needed to know. I knew exactly what I wanted and what I was fighting for—your love.’

A rueful laugh fell from Lindy’s lips. ‘You never lost my love. There were weeks when I thought a lot of bad, unforgiving thoughts about you, but I still loved you underneath.’

Atreus sank down on the sofa on the patio and scooped her onto his lap. ‘And…now?’ he queried tautly.

Lindy helped herself to his wine, because her own glass was out of reach, and kissed him with joyous abandon. ‘Can’t you tell how I feel? I’m crazy about you.’

‘Crazy enough to apologise…’

‘You wanted to make me grovel!’ she condemned.

‘It was the fate you deserved,’ Atreus told her. ‘I was devastated when you pushed me away on our wedding night, agapi mou.’

Her eyes stung with sudden ready tears of remorse, for she could tell by his voice that he had indeed been knocked back hard by her rejection. She kissed him again, more than willing to make up for that mistake. They became entangled on the sofa, and as things heated up they headed back indoors to the comfort of their bed, where they made love, exchanged lovers’ promises and jokes, and lay together feeling very blessed to have found each other…

Almost three years later, Atreus and Lindy hosted a weekend party on Thrazos, to celebrate their third wedding anniversary.

Sergei and Alissa had sailed in on their latest yacht, Platinum II, and Atreus and Lindy, Jasim and Elinor had been given the full tour of the fabulous brand-new craft. The men had stayed onboard longer than the women and children, while Atreus had manfully withstood Sergei’s teasing about his own small craft, saying that he had to be the only Greek shipping tycoon alive without a huge yacht.

‘I hope Atreus doesn’t go off and buy a bigger yacht now. You wouldn’t believe how competitive men are about them,’ Alissa lamented. ‘I bet you anything that if Atreus does buy one it’ll be larger than Platinum II.’

‘I don’t think so. Atreus likes to sail a yacht single-handed. If he bought anything bigger than what he has now, he would need to take a crew out with him. He also likes speed, and sometimes races her.’

‘I can see Sergei liking that,’ Alissa quipped with a grin. ‘I might like it too—more exciting than football.’

Well aware that Alissa was not over-enamoured of her husband’s favourite sport, or his ownership of a football club, Lindy laughed. ‘But it’s much more dangerous,’ she warned.