What was he even doing here? She shot him another surreptitious glance from beneath heavy lashes. She would never have put Nikos down as the sort of man who would attend this type of do—even if it was a charity event. But then she would never have thought he was the kind of guy to rip her life apart the way he had. To be capable of such abject cruelty. She had no idea who Nikos really was at all.
What she did know was that she had totally lost her heart to this man. To the gorgeous Greek Adonis who had waited on her table that warm summer’s evening in Crete three long years ago. The handsome, charming, captivating stranger who had walked along the beach with her, taking her hand, kissing her under the stars, turning her upside down and inside out there and then with a crazy sort of love that she’d thought only existed in stories.
That summer had been the most wonderful time of her life. And the hurt that had followed more excruciating than she would ever have imagined possible.
So why was she surprised that he would frequent this sort of event? He was certainly wealthy enough. In fact, he could probably buy out most of these guys and scarcely make a dent in his multi-billion-dollar fortune.
Kate had watched his meteoric rise to enormous wealth from afar. The carefree, laid-back guy she’d fallen in love with, who hadn’t had two cents to rub together when she’d met him, had become a billionaire businessman almost overnight. In the blink of a red-rimmed eye.
Whereas, of course, her fortunes had done the reverse. Her family’s well-established confectionery business, Kandy Kate, had been crippled by a series of bad decisions since her father had died. But Kate was absolutely determined that was going to change. She was going to save Kandy Kate if it was the last thing she did. Because it was her father’s legacy, named in her honour. It had meant everything to him. And for that reason it meant everything to her.
‘Hey, baby, I’m dying of thirst over here!’
More raucous laughter around the table snapped Kate back to the job she was supposed to be doing.
‘Get that pretty little ass of yours around here and refill my glass.’
‘Yes, sir, of course.’ Silently seething, Kate cautiously sidled around the table, keeping her back to Nikos as best she could.
‘Whassup, honey? You scared of me?’ The man stretched out his arm, snaking it around Kate’s waist to pull her closer. ’Cos you know, there ain’t no need for that. I’m nice as pie. You ask anyone.’ More drunken hee-hawing. ‘Why don’t you come sit on my lap and I’ll show you just how nice I can be?’
Taking a step back, Kate gripped the neck of the champagne bottle tightly enough to throttle it. It was a poor substitute for what she would have liked to throttle, but it would have to do.
‘I’m not paid to sit down.’ She feigned a light-hearted remark through gritted teeth.
‘No? Well, I’m sure we could make it worth your while. Whaddya you say, guys?’
The man lurched forward, knocking Kate off balance so that she stumbled, falling towards him. She tried to right herself, to pull away, but he was too strong for her and before she knew it he had tugged her firmly down onto his lap, spreading his legs to accommodate her, his alcohol-soaked breath belching into her face. And when he adjusted his position, pressing her down onto his crotch, she genuinely thought she was going to be sick.
No job was worth this. No amount of money would compensate for being treated like a piece of meat.
For God’s sake Kate, she told herself, dragging in a breath, have a bit of self-respect.
But she mustn’t make a scene. The last thing she wanted to do was draw attention to herself—not with Nikos across the other side of the room. Extricating herself as carefully as possible, her stomach roiling as her movement only served to arouse her captor more, she put the champagne bottle down on the table and started to lever herself away from him.
‘Oh, no, you don’t.’ He pulled her back down, his foul breath in her ear. ‘I’m just startin’ to enjoy myself. You can probably tell...’
* * *
From the other side of the glittering dining room, Nikos narrowed his eyes, turning in his chair to get a better look. Something about that young woman was very familiar, making him stare long and hard. Making his pulse beat faster too, if he would but admit it. It couldn’t be...could it?