Husband By Request

“Not even Perrier water?”

“No, thank you.”

Taking her at her word, he carried a small glass of retsina to his desk and sat down. She watched him take a few swallows.

“All right. Now tell me why you’ve entered enemy territory. Does your husband know you’ve come to my office?”

“No. This is strictly my own idea.”

Theo sat back. “Go on.”

“I’m here to learn the status of your marriage to Olympia.”

Her question must have shocked him because his brows met in a distinct frown. “You don’t know?”

She shook her head. “I left the courtroom after the opening statement at the trial and went straight to the airport to book my flight to Sarajevo. I never knew the outcome of the trial. I didn’t want to know anything. Once I was back with my parents, my attorney drew up divorce papers and sent them to Andreas on several occasions. But he never signed them.”

“All this time he has refused you a divorce?” Theo sounded incredulous.

“Until two days ago, when he sent Paul to Sarajevo. It seems he now wants to be free. I decided to fly back with Paul and have a meeting with Andreas before I signed anything. To my surprise I found Olympia on board the Cygnus with a little baby. She made no explanations or excuses. In fact she didn’t say anything except that she was expecting Andreas back from Athens shortly. That’s why I decided to come to you, to learn the truth of the situation.”

He leaned forward. “You would believe me after I ruined your husband’s reputation in court?”

She wanted answers, but wasn’t prepared for his blunt speaking.

“Yes. I always believed you and I were friends. As horrible as I thought it was to make everything public, I think you must have loved Olympia a great deal to have been in that much pain. Please, Theo—tell me what’s going on?”

Lines marred his features. “I haven’t seen Olympia for months, so I have no idea. If you’re talking about the trial, neither she or Andreas admitted to an affair. She testified that she’d been shopping in the Plaka and became ill. Because I was out of town she called Andreas, who told her to go to his nearby flat and wait for him. What she didn’t know was that I had lied about being away. Without her realizing it, I followed her that day and caught them together. She was in his bed.

“The judge heard my testimony and didn’t buy the weak excuse either. In the end he granted me a divorce. Olympia’s been a free agent ever since.”

> Dominique was the one in shock now. If Olympia had been divorced for a year, why had it taken Andreas so long to decide he wanted his freedom?

She searched his aristocratic features. “Did you know Olympia was pregnant at the time?”

“Yes.”

Gearing up her courage she asked, “Whose son is Ari?”

“Mine,” Theo answered baldly. “After the baby was born, a DNA test was done, confirming I was the father.”

The unexpected revelation swept through Dominique, leaving her limp with relief. She bit her lip. “If that’s true, is there any possibil—?”

“None!” he declared, with enough force that she believed him. “With hindsight I realized Olympia had married me because she couldn’t have Andreas. From early on it was clear that she had deep feelings for him. Though she’d always denied any involvement with him, I never believed her. Finally I got the proof.”

Andreas had always admitted Theo had found them together.

It isn’t what Theo thinks, he’d said.

Dominique struggled for breath. What if it really hadn’t been what it looked like and there was another explanation?

“Your husband tried to defend the situation by telling the court she’d been attacked by food poisoning, but I know what I saw. My wife never looked healthier,” he muttered. “Since it isn’t in me to spend the rest of my life living a travesty of a marriage, I took them to court. Because news of the pregnancy came out during the trial, and paternity couldn’t be proven until the baby was delivered, the judge came down on my side and only granted Olympia a modest monthly sum in the final divorce decree.”

“I see. What about Andreas?”

“I didn’t demand monetary compensation from him, if that’s what you mean. The damage to his reputation was enough.”

Dominique shivered. He sounded so cold-blooded, but she had to remember what he’d been through.