The Santorini Marriage Bargain

‘Don’t you think you should speak to him?’ he asked quietly. ‘His defection was a turning point in your relationship. You need to tell him that; you need to make it perfectly clear that he has no part to play in your future— unless you’re hoping that—’

‘You think I haven’t tried?’ she cut in crossly. ‘His mobile phone’s always turned off. He never answers his house phone either. I’ve even tried going round, but there’s never anyone at home.’

‘So the whole thing is still an issue between you?’

‘I suppose so.’

‘How about your wedding plans?’

‘I’ve cancelled them,’ she announced firmly.

‘And your friend, the one whose flat you shared,’ he persisted. ‘What does she have to say about the matter?’

Rhianne’s eyes flashed a furious blue. ‘She’s uncontactable as well—if there is such a word. It’s my guess they’ve run away together, gone into hiding somewhere. And if she can’t be decent enough to speak to me and apologise, then I never want to see her again.’ Her voice rose until she was speaking far more shrilly and loudly than she realised, verging on the hysterical.

Zarek immediately took her into his arms—and, foolishly, Rhianne didn’t stop him. The whole issue had been building all week. Not being able to contact either of them was too frustrating for words. She could have thrown herself into the Thames for all they seemed to care.

‘You are right, Rhianne,’ he said gently. ‘They are not worthy of you. Why don’t you come to Santorini with me.’

Rhianne felt her heart stop beating. Everything around her stilled. The world grew silent. And then, just as suddenly, she felt a roar in her ears, and she clutched the back of her chair for support.

‘I think you know what my answer will be,’ she said coolly. ‘I like working for you, Mr Diakos, and I like the job, but as for anything else, it’s out of the question. I’ve learnt a huge lesson, and I am nobody’s fool. I’m grateful for the job, but if you want more from me, then I’m afraid I will have to quit.’

She snatched up her bag and would have walked out of the door if he hadn’t crossed the room in double-quick time and grabbed her arm.

‘I have no ulterior motive.’ His voice was icy-cold now, his eyes, more grey than brown at this moment, were like flint. ‘How could you think like that? I didn’t have to come to your rescue. I could have left you lying right there in the road. Your attitude sometimes makes me wish I had.’

‘Then you shouldn’t make improper suggestions,’ she shot back, trying unsuccessfully to snatch away.

‘Improper?’ He turned her to face him, gripping both her arms, effectively making her his prisoner. ‘You have no idea what you’re talking about. And if this is all the thanks I get for helping you out then perhaps it would be as well if you did leave.’

He let her go, but he didn’t move away, and Rhianne found that she couldn’t move either. For some reason she was transfixed to the spot, her eyes locked into his, her wild heartbeat echoing in her ears.

‘The offer to come to Santorini was because I thought you could do with a break. There won’t be much work for you here in my absence, and I didn’t want you to spend time worrying about your broken love life.’

Rhianne began to feel slightly foolish. ‘I appreciate your concern, but I really will be all right.’

‘Do you still want to quit?’ he asked, his tone quieter now, but his eyes remained hard as they looked into hers.

She shook her head. ‘I’d be a fool. Good jobs are hard to come by.’

‘So I’ll see you when I get back?’

She nodded.

He fetched a card out of his pocket and scribbled something on it. ‘This is the number of my private cell phone. If you need me, just ring, even if it’s only to talk.’

Rhianne’s fine brows lifted, and her eyes widened. He sounded as though he really meant it. ‘I don’t think I’ll be doing that.’ Nevertheless she took the card and slipped it into her bag.

It was not until she got home that the full implication of what he had done hit her. He was, in fact, offering her a lifeline. He still thought she was cut up about Angus’s defection—which she was but was bravely trying not to show it—and he wanted to act as her—counsellor. She could ring him and talk things through; that was what he was saying. He clearly felt involved after the accident. First he had taken her home, then he’d given her a job, and then offered her a holiday in Santorini.

She was sorry to hear his father was ill—it was not going to be a pleasant visit. And she’d done the right thing in refusing to join him. He’d need to spend time with his family, he wouldn’t want or need her hanging around. It was not as if they were friends—they were nothing more than acquaintances, really. They’d met by accident, and now she worked for him. Full stop. That was it. Nothing more, nothing less.

When Rhianne went in to work on Saturday morning, she was half afraid that Zarek might ask her again to accompany him to Santorini, and she didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed when he never mentioned it.

Instead, he was in full business mode, and she felt none of the electricity that had passed between them. It could have been in her imagination, of course, but somehow she doubted it. Zarek was too masculine, too gorgeous, not to let it intrude into his everyday life.

She imagined that most women would fall at his feet, and she probably intrigued him because she was different. It wasn’t that she didn’t see what a striking man he was—she saw everything—but she had no intention of getting involved with him or any man. She’d lost her trust in men. And Zarek was so incredibly sexy that it would be easy to fall for him—and she couldn’t afford to do that. Not to be tossed to one side again when he had finished with her. Admittedly, some affairs lasted, some marriages were happy and lasted, but they were the exception rather than the rule. She had no intention of becoming another statistic. Once was enough.