Claiming My Bride of Convenience

I raised my head, infuriated that a member of staff should accost me in this way. Daisy scooted up to a sitting position, her face flaming as she adjusted her dress.

I straightened my tie, glowering at the young man. ‘It had better be for good reason.’

‘It is your grandfather, sir. He has just sent a telegram to the hotel. He requires your presence in Athens immediately.’

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

I GAZED BLINDLY out at the city streets as the limo slid through Athens’ notoriously busy traffic. Next to me Matteo was glowering at his phone as he scrolled through emails, his jaw tight, his expression inscrutable.

Everything had changed since last night, when Matteo had received his grandfather’s telegram.

‘What does the old bastard want now?’ he’d drawled as he’d glanced at the scant few lines. ‘Just to see if I’ll still come running when he crooks his finger, no doubt.’

‘Perhaps it really is urgent,’ I’d suggested tentatively. I felt as if I were swimming in deep water, having no idea of the emotional currents that swirled around us.

‘Of course it’s urgent,’ Matteo had said scornfully. ‘It always is with him. He’s assembled the board—I have no choice but to go.’

‘Do you have to do what the board says?’

‘I have controlling shares, but if it’s something to do with the business I need to know. We’re done here, anyway.’

He’d walked away from me without looking back, and I hadn’t been able to help but wonder if his words were a portent—not for the business, but for us.

We’re done here.

But things had felt as if they were just beginning.

And yet since that wretched telegram arrived Matteo had completely withdrawn from me, barely offering me two terse words together. I understood that he was focused on his grandfather and his business, but our relationship felt too new and fragile to be treated like this and survive.

Perhaps he wasn’t intending it to.

All the old doubts plagued me as they had before—despite all we’d shared, all Matteo had shared. I’d finally felt as if he were being honest and vulnerable with me, and when he’d told me his grandfather didn’t matter I’d chosen to believe him. How ill-timed that only a few minutes later his words were shown to be a lie.

How much else was a lie? How much of this real marriage was real at all?

Despair lapped at me like cold, dark water as I gazed blindly outside. I had no idea what was going to happen next.

‘Where does your grandfather live?’ I asked.

Matteo didn’t even glance up from his phone as he answered. ‘On an estate on the outskirts of Athens. We’ll be there shortly.’

I nodded, too miserable to try to make conversation. It seemed every time we made some progress in our relationship we were knocked back again. Could I keep living this way? Did I have any choice?

Twenty minutes later we pulled up on the circular drive in front of an imposing and austere villa, its windows shuttered tight. I’d never thought a house could look unfriendly, but this one did.

A dour-faced butler met us at the door, Matteo striding ahead while I instinctively lagged behind, unsure where my place was in this fractured drama.

‘Mr Arides wishes to see both of you immediately,’ the butler said in Greek.

‘Immediately?’ Matteo glowered. ‘He calls, I jump?’

‘He says it is urgent, sir.’

‘I’ll decide what’s urgent. My wife and I would like to wash off the dust of travel. We’ve been in the air for fourteen hours.’

Matteo brushed past the man and I had no choice but to follow.

Up in a soberly decorated guest room Matteo stripped off his suit and headed to the shower without so much as speaking to me. I sank onto a sofa and stared around miserably, unsure whether to rally or cut my losses.