Daisy gasped when she saw a lavish white villa, spread out across the edge of the beach, overlooking the sea.
“This was your childhood home?” she breathed, turning to him. “You were the luckiest kid alive.”
His eyes seemed guarded as he gave a tight smile. “It is very beautiful. Yes.”
Parking in the separate ten-car garage, which was almost empty of cars, he turned off the engine. After taking their luggage from the trunk, he led Daisy inside the villa.
They were greeted by a tiny white-haired woman who exclaimed over Leonidas in Greek and cried and hugged him. After a few moments of this, he turned to Daisy.
“This is Maria, my old nanny. She’s housekeeper here now.”
“Hello,” Daisy said warmly, holding out her hand. Maria looked confused, looking from Daisy’s face to her belly. Then Leonidas spoke a few words in Greek that made the white-haired woman gasp. Ignoring Daisy’s outstretched hand, the housekeeper hugged her, speaking rapidly in the same language.
“She’s thrilled to meet my wife. She says it’s about time I was wed,” he said, smiling.
“Maria helped raise you?”
His expression sobered. “I don’t know how I would have survived without her.”
“Your parents weren’t around?”
“That’s one way to put it.” He turned to Maria and said something in Greek.
The white-haired woman nodded, then called out, bringing two men into the room. They spoke to Leo and then took their suitcases down the hall.
Leonidas turned to Daisy. “You must be hungry.”
“Well—yes,” she admitted, rubbing her belly. “Always, these days.” She bit her lip. “And I didn’t eat much at the reception last night...”
“We can have lunch on the terrace. The best part of the house.”
He led her through the spacious villa, which was elegant and well maintained, but oddly old-fashioned, almost desolate, like a museum. She asked, “How long has it been since you’ve visited?”
He glanced around the music room, with its high ceilings and grand piano, its wide windows and French doors overlooking the sea. He scratched his head. “A few years. Five?”
“You haven’t been home for five years?”
“I was born here. I never said it was home.” He looked away. “I don’t have many good memories of the place. I was away at school from when I was nine, remember. I’ve hardly come back since my parents died.”
She knew he was an orphan. “I’m so sorry...how old were you?”
“Fourteen.” His voice was flat. No wonder. It was heartbreaking to lose your parents. Daisy knew all about it.
Her voice was gentle as she said, “Why did you choose this place for our honeymoon?”
“Because...” He took a deep breath. “Because it was time. Besides.” He gave a smile that didn’t meet his eyes. “Doesn’t every bride dream of a honeymoon on a Greek island?”
“It’s more than I ever dreamed of.” She nestled her hand in his. “I’m sorry about your parents. My own mom died when I was just seven. Cancer. And then my...”
She stopped herself, but too late. Their eyes locked. Would the memory of her father always stand between them?
He pulled his hand away. “This way.”
Leonidas led her outside through the French doors. Daisy stopped, gasping at the beauty.
The wide terrace clung to the edge of the bright blue sea, with a white balustrade hovering between sea and sky. On the walls of the villa behind them, bougainvillea climbed, gloriously pink, between the white and blue.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, choking up. “I never imagined anything could be so beautiful.”