The Maid's Best Kept Secret (The Marchetti Dynasty 1)

‘Maggie! Pose for us!’

‘Who are you wearing?’

Thankfully an award-winning actress appeared behind her and their focus shifted to her.

When they got inside the noise faded and was replaced by chatter and pulsing music. The store was cavernous—more like a gallery space than a shop.

Maggie was still clinging to Nikos’s hand. She let go, embarrassed. ‘I wasn’t expecting them to call out my name. It feels weird that they know who I am.’

He looked at her. He was darkly sophisticated tonight, in a dark blue suit and white shirt, no tie. Shirt open at the neck. ‘They just call out your name to get a reaction. You’ll get used to it.’

She didn’t really relish the thought of this kind of experience becoming a regular feature in her life. But she shelved her concerns. More than any other event they’d been to, this one was seriously star-studded. Actresses, supermodels, politicians... She’d even spotted a very popular ex-American President and his wife.

She sensed Nikos tense beside her, and then a familiar face appeared. ‘Maks!’ she said.

He bent towards her to give her a kiss on the cheek. ‘Maggie, how are you? Still putting up with my brother?’

Maggie heard the mocking tone in his voice—not unlike his brother’s. ‘Well, it has only been a couple of weeks...’

He looked from her to his brother. ‘Nikos.’

‘Maks.’

Maggie lamented the tension between the brothers. It made her heart ache to see how similar they were, to know how much they’d missed out on not growing up together.

Maks said, ‘You didn’t show for the board meeting today.’

‘I was busy.’

‘Luckily for you the wholesome pictures circulating of you and your new family seem to have done wonder

s for our stock prices.’

Maggie was confused. ‘Pictures?’

Maks took out his phone and showed her a tabloid news site. There were pictures of them in Hyde Park from only a few hours ago, underneath a headline: Reformed playboy spends afternoon with new family. How long before he gets bored?

Maggie felt sick.

Nikos said something to Maks that sounded like a snarl and took her hand, pulling her away. They moved into the crowd and Maggie desperately tried to push out of her mind the insidious suspicion that Nikos had engineered that trip to the park specifically for a photo opportunity.

She’d seen the way he looked at Daniel. The way he was bonding with him when no one was watching. She had to give him the benefit of the doubt and trust him. Give them a chance.

He stopped a waiter and asked her what she wanted to drink. She pasted a bright smile on her face. ‘Just sparkling water, please. I have to feed Daniel later.’

Nikos took champagne. ‘Okay?’ he asked.

She looked up. She longed to ask him if he’d gone out with her today knowing they’d be photographed, but at the last second she said, ‘Fine.’

After that they were sucked into a round of introductions and conversations that Maggie did her best to keep up with. But she couldn’t deny she was tired. Travelling with a small breastfeeding baby was catching up on her, and at one stage, when Nikos had been spirited away by an assistant to meet someone, she couldn’t hide a huge yawn.

‘I don’t blame you—these events bore me to tears too.’

She turned to find Maks beside her. He looked at her assessingly.

‘Nikos seems different...less distracted. Maybe you and the baby will be good for him and the business. I’m sorry I showed you those pictures, it was unecessary.’

Maggie made a face. ‘That’s ok, I probably would have seen them anyway. What about you? Do you want a family?’