The Renegade Billionaire

“You believed in me. That was the support I needed to get me through. She’s going to tell both sets of parents. The lawsuit will be dropped. We made our peace.”

Her eyes shimmered with tears. “How’s your leg?”

“It’s fine.”

“That’s good.”

He couldn’t take much more of this. “When are you and your father leaving?”

“Dad’s already gone.”

His heart lurched. “I don’t understand.”

“He finished up at the mine and now he’s on his way to Brazil.”

“But when I stopped by your office earlier, the receptionist told me you’d resigned and wouldn’t be coming back. Why didn’t you leave with your father?”

“I decided I’d rather stay here.”

The blood pounded in his ears. “Why?”

“I’m tired of the tour business and would love to get a job working in an office or in a plant. You wouldn’t happen to have a job opening for me, would you? Maybe a chauffeur? I’m not particular. I thought I’d rent an apartment in Panagia. It’s my favorite village. Since Dad left the car with me, I have transportation now.”

Stavros didn’t know her in this mood. “Andrea—enough of your teasing. Why are you here?”

She moved closer to him. “You mean you really don’t know?”

“If I did, I wouldn’t be asking.”

“I want to be near you. I love you until it hurts, but you already know that.”

He did know. “But your father—you idolize him.”

“That will never change, but another great love has come into my life. There’s room for both.” She smiled that beautiful smile.

Stavros couldn’t swallow. “I want you more than anything else in my life.”

“But in what capacity?”

“In all the ways you can think of,” he exploded.

“You mean like employee, friend, girlfriend, lover, confidante, nurse, cook, housekeeper? What?”

“I mean wife.” The beautiful word reverberated against the walls of his office.

“I’d give anything to be your wife. Are you asking me?”

“Andrea—” His voice shook. “You’ve worked this out with him?”

She lounged against the edge of his desk. “We had a heart-to-heart the other day. He says he’s lived the life he wants. Now he wants me to live the life I want. He says if I?

?m happy, then he won’t worry about me and we’ll always work things out to be together when we can. And in between times, we’ll talk over Skype.”

Stavros was incredulous.

“I think he feels like Tevye from Fiddler on the Roof, who wanted peace in his life, but in order to achieve it, he had to marry off his daughters first. Dad will go on leading his own life and wants me to lead mine. I believe him. He’s going to be back in a month to see how I’m doing before he flies to Denver. Naturally he’s anxious to meet you. I told him you’re the smartest man I know next to him. That really got him going.”

“You’re being serious now.”