The Greek's Nine-Month Surprise

She turned back to the view of the cove. All the while, she kept repeating those five words like some sort of mantra. It helped calm her nerves. Or so she wanted to believe.

She took in the colorful sky and the gentle lapping of the water. This was the kind of setting for a romantic movie where the hero and heroine walk off into the sunset. She inwardly groaned. That would never be her and Niko.

About to admit her mistake, she spun around to tell Niko that she’d changed her mind, but he was already gone. Whatever she did this evening, she had to keep her wits about her. Nothing good would come of repeating that toe-curling kiss. Nothing at all.

Still, her mind dwelled on that moment at his bungalow when he’d held her in his arms. Her heart picked up its pace. She’d never been kissed with such passion. No one had ever made her feel as if she was the only woman in the world for him—

No! No! No! she scolded herself. It didn’t help when she recalled how delicious it was having his lips pressed to hers. She had to resist the temptation. She had to.

Somehow...

CHAPTER FIVE (#ulink_1368b553-34aa-5c24-b9d7-eb69a96b9251)

SINCE WHEN DID he take orders?

He was the boss. He handed out the orders.

Niko glanced at Sofia. What was it about her that had him continually making exceptions to the rules?

The shorts and polo shirt he now wore were the only casual clothes he’d brought with him. To be honest, he wasn’t quite sure what had possessed him to toss them into his suitcase. It must have been the fact that he liked to be prepared for any occasion. Although there was nothing in his suitcase to prepare him for a discussion about his baby—his baby—the words echoed in his mind.

“Niko?” Sofia’s voice drew him from his thoughts.

Had she been speaking? He hadn’t heard a word she’d said. That wasn’t like him. He was good at multitasking, especially at business meetings. He could respond to emails on his phone while listening to a presentation and never lose a beat. But when he was around Sofia, he had problems staying on task.

“What did you say?”

“I asked if your business meeting went well.”

He nodded. “It would have gone better if I’d been able to close the deal then and there.”

“Why couldn’t you?”

He didn’t want to get into any of that now. They had other things to discuss. “That’s not important.” He stopped walking and turned to her. “We need to talk about your situation.”

“You mean my pregnancy.”

“Yes. That.” She said it so easily, as if she’d already come to terms with it all. Was it possible she was happy about it? Could that be? “What are you planning to do? Because if you need—”

“I don’t need anything. I already told you—I’m keeping it.”

He frowned. “I don’t know what you thought I was about to say. And I don’t want to know. However, if you had let me finish, I was going to ask if I could help with your medical expenses.”

He wanted only the best for her and their baby. Her vehement devotion to keeping their baby struck him. How had she become so attached and protective in such a short amount of time? It must be different for mothers, because he was still struggling to wrap his mind around the whole baby issue. A baby. His baby. It still didn’t feel real.

Curious about her acceptance of the situation, he asked, “How long have you known that you are pregnant?”

“I told you—I found out this week.” She turned and started walking again, farther from the resort.

That’s right. He vaguely remembered her mentioning it earlier that day, but he’d been too shocked for it to stick. “If it’s all new to you, how can you be so certain you want this baby? It’s going to change your entire world. Nothing will be the same.”

“The timing might not be the best, but I always hoped that someday I’d be a mother.” Her hand moved to her abdomen. Then, as though she realized what she was doing, she lowered her hand to her side. “But I understand that just because I feel this way doesn’t mean you feel the same way. And...and I’m okay with that. We can say our goodbyes and—”

“Hold on. I didn’t say anything about saying goodbye.” She was the mother of his baby—the Stravos heir. Like it or not, their lives were intricately entwined.

She turned to him, her eyes flashing with surprise. “So this means that you, um...want to be involved with the baby?”

That’s what surprised her? “It is my baby—”

“Our baby.”

He was going to have to work on that. He wasn’t used to sharing anything with anyone. As an only child, he hadn’t had the luxury of a sibling. As an adult, he’d never ventured into a committed relationship. So sharing was a new concept to him, but he would excel at it just like he did with everything he tackled in the boardroom. And by the stubborn look on Sofia’s face, he didn’t have any choice in the matter.

“How can you be so sure that being a mother at this stage in your life is the right thing to do?”

She glanced at him. “You really want to know?”

There was so much about her he wanted to know, but this was a good starting point. “Is it wrong for me to be curious?”

“No. But I’ll warn you, it isn’t what you’re thinking. I don’t want the baby because of who its father is. I want this baby for itself.”

The conviction in her voice had him wanting to believe her. But could he trust her? “You still didn’t answer the question.”

She sighed. “It all started when I met who I thought was the most wonderful guy. He was cute and charming. In fact, he ticked all of the boxes in what I thought I wanted in a man. He was a hard worker with a bright future in his uncle’s construction firm.”

“I take it he wasn’t all you thought he’d be?”

She shook her head. “At the time, I worked as a housekeeper at the Glamour Hotel in New York. A lot of times our schedules didn’t line up, so we’d go long stretches without seeing each other. As time went on, he seemed to work longer and longer hours.”

Niko could relate with her ex. It was easy to get caught up in one’s work. He did it all the time. But something told him there was more to Sofia’s story than she’d revealed so far.

“My family immediately loved Bobby. My mother was anxious to plan a wedding, and at the time I thought it was what I wanted, as well.”

“Families sometimes have the best of intentions, but they aren’t always right.”

“Are you referring to your grandfather?”

Niko nodded. “He sounds a lot like your mother, except for the part about planning a wedding. That would have never happened.”

“Because he believed it’s women’s work?”

“No. Because it would have taken time away from his work.”

“Anyway, when Bobby was home, he was too tired to spend quality time with me. My mother, with her eye on the wedding ring, assured me all was fine. Couples got busy, and we just had to work extra hard to find time to spend together. So I gave up my apartment and moved in with him.”

Not that Niko wasn’t interested in her background, but he suddenly felt as though this conversation was going much deeper than he’d ever anticipated. The more she opened up to him, the closer they became and the harder it would be for him to keep his distance. “But what does any of this have to do with you wanting a baby at this stage?”

She frowned at him. “I’m getting to it if you’ll just give me a minute.”