‘Thea…’
The older woman huffed, ignoring Kallie, banging open and closing cupboards randomly. Kallie could remember that she’d always done that when she’d got angry or upset when she’d been younger. It had made her laugh and she’d teased Thea about it at one time.
She went up and put her hand on Thea’s arm. ‘Thea…please. Can we talk?’
Thea finally let Kallie lead her over to the table. But she wouldn’t look at her. So Kallie started anyway, and haltingly told Thea exactly what had happened that night. Right up to when Alexandros had thrown the newspaper at her feet the next morning.
She wasn’t even really aware she’d stopped until Thea looked at her and said quietly, ‘Eleni?’
Kallie nodded silently.
Thea sighed heavily. ‘I think I do believe you. I knew that girl was a bad egg—’
Kallie dashed away wetness she hadn’t noticed on her cheeks. ‘But—’
Thea was indignant. ‘Look! Even now you jump to defend her—what is wrong with you? You have to tell Alexandros.’
Kallie shook her head. ‘I can’t, Thea. I promised I wouldn’t and he’ll go after her.’
Thea snorted. ‘Her? Of course he wouldn’t, that’s just the problem. It was you he always cared about, not her, that’s why she did it, and why he was so angry with you…’
Kallie didn’t believe it. He hadn’t really cared about her at all, that had been obvious in the way he’d been so quick to judge her.
‘Thea, I can’t tell him.’ Kallie explained about Eleni’s fragile mental and physical health.
Thea gave her a withering look. ‘Please, that girl is just a manipulator.’
‘But, Thea, can’t you see? How can I take the risk of telling Alexandros when he could very well decide to punish her…or her family?’
‘That was always your problem, Kallie, you were too nice…and too naïve. It was always you he cared about…that was where the problem started. Eleni was jealous.’
Kallie winced. Was Thea right? Wouldn’t he want to punish Eleni? She couldn’t take the chance that he wouldn’t. Some dark emotion was rearing its ugly head and she didn’t want to look at it. No matter what Thea said, she had to protect Eleni.
Thea got up to make them both some coffee and changed it to green tea when she saw how Kallie paled at the smell. Her unconscious concern told Kallie she was on the way to being forgiven. The relief was immense. Thea came back.
‘Child, you have no idea what happened to him after that…you think it was just the break-up of the engagement?’
Wasn’t that bad enough?
Kallie shrugged awkwardly. ‘I know he must have loved her…’ Despite what he had told her before.
Thea laughed. ‘Love? You can’t still be that naïve surely? He didn’t love her. He was being forced to marry her by his mother in order to save Kouros Shipping. He had no choice in the matter. When his father died and left him in control, the old cronies didn’t have faith in him. They started to sell out, the company came close to bankruptcy. That merger was his only hope.’ She looked at Kallie carefully. ‘Didn’t you know about this?’
Kallie knew she wasn’t going to like what she was going to hear, and shook her head. ‘No. He only told me a few times that he wasn’t sure how he felt about taking over the business…’ She smiled tightly. ‘He used to tell me that he wanted to do a degree in fine arts.’
That was so far removed from the man today that Kallie couldn’t even believe that he had said it once. Thea brought her back to earth with a crash.
‘Which you confided in Eleni, and which she obviously then leaked to the papers, along with that photo…’
‘Oh, God…’ Kallie had never read the whole piece, she’d been too heart-sick.
‘Yes. They vilified him, the golden boy of the shipping world who never wanted to go into the business, he wanted to go to art college! With the merger and engagement falling through, the company going down the tubes, Alexandros had to work twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week to bring things back…But he did. And no one would dare remind him of it today.’
Unmistakable pride shone from Thea’s face. The past took on a different hue immediately. The person that Alexandros had become when his father had died had been born out of great responsibility and necessity. Not a greedy desire to make money. Kallie felt ill again. She looked at Thea with stricken eyes.
‘My parents…they threw him out of the house. I’ll never forget it.’
Thea nodded. ‘I thought so.’ She shook her head at Kallie’s look. ‘No, he didn’t tell me, but I knew something bad had happened over there. He never mentioned your family again. And, in truth, you, your parents, your cousins were all the family he really had.’