The Kristallis Baby

Her silky black hair hung loose past her shoulders, swinging alluringly in time with her step. He wanted to slip his hands under that shimmering black curtain and brush it aside to expose the naked skin of her back, to reveal the zip that ran skin-tight down her spine.

He imagined easing that zip down and running his hands all over that sexy body, teasing and caressing her, removing all her clothes until she was naked and ready for him. He knew she wouldn’t be a passive lover. He longed to look deep into those green eyes as she writhed beneath him, as he took her to the brink of ecstasy.

Suddenly he realised she was almost at the door. Pushing his erotic thoughts about her aside, he stirred himself to follow. He knew where she was going, but it would be wise to keep her in his sights.

Carrie picked up her denim jacket and sporty backpack from an alcove by the front door, then stopped and scanned the room for Lulu. She was desperate to get out of there, but she couldn’t forget about her friend—especially when she had been so upset earlier. She spotted her almost immediately, hurrying down the staircase looking determined, in freshly applied make-up and dressed to kill in a slinky silver cocktail dress.

‘I’m really sorry,’ Carrie said, as soon as Lulu reached her. ‘I couldn’t get the phone.’

‘Don’t worry about it,’ Lulu said, sounding remarkably calm considering her previous histrionics. She was looking across at Darren, who was talking and joking with a group of men. ‘I’ll get it myself. He can’t have listened to the message yet, or he wouldn’t be looking so happy.’

Then, without another word for Carrie, she walked across the room towards her husband. Carrie looked after Lulu for a moment, hoping everything would turn out all right, but she couldn’t stay any longer. Apart from her desire to get as far away from Nikos Kristallis as possible, she had to hurry—because she was already late picking up Danny. She turned and left through the front door.

The blast of cool air on her face felt good, and she took a deep breath as she hurried down the marble steps of the swanky London town house to the street below.

It was a relief to be out of there, away from the piercing gaze of Nikos Kristallis. She’d felt his eyes burning a hole in her back all the way across the room. She shivered, imagining the predatory intensity in his expression as he’d watched her walking away from him.

She set off down the street quickly, her heels clicking on the pavement as she walked. Her fingers were surprisingly shaky as she buttoned up her denim jacket, and she had to resist the urge to look behind her to see if Nikos Kristallis had also left the party.

Why was he in London? Had he come to finish off what his father had started at the funeral? Maybe he wanted her to sign legal documents saying she would never pursue a connection with the Kristallis family?

She shook herself sharply and forced herself to put it all out of her mind for now. She couldn’t be upset when she picked up Danny. It wouldn’t be fair on him.

It was a long walk to his nursery, but with any luck she’d be able to hail a black cab. She turned the corner onto the main road and, amazingly, the first taxi she tried for pulled over. She gave the driver directions and climbed inside, suddenly uncomfortably aware of his eyes on her exposed legs. No wonder she’d got a cab so easily.

A few minutes later she paid the driver and jumped out into the crowd of London commuters hurrying along the pavement. She ducked into a doorway and pressed the buzzer.

‘It’s Carrie Thomas,’ she said into the metal grille. ‘I’m so sorry I’m late.’

With a long low buzz the lock released and she was into the building. Up one flight of stairs, and another security door later she was into Danny’s nursery.

‘Danny!’ she cried, dashing over and picking the baby up.

Tears suddenly pricked in her eyes. It felt wonderful to hug him tight. She was sure she couldn’t love him any more than she did, even if he was her own son.

Nikos Kristallis had wasted his time coming to London. Leonidas had always said he never wanted Danny to have anything to do with his Greek family. He had even made Sophie promise that if anything ever happened to him she’d never let them get their hands on him. Now, after meeting Cosmo and Nik, it was easy for Carrie to understand his reasons. And the least she could do for Sophie was to keep the promise she’d made to her husband before they were killed.

‘Sorry I’m late,’ she said, kissing the top of Danny’s head and looking over his tousled brown hair into the face of the nursery assistant who had been sharing a picture book with him.

‘That’s all right,’ the girl said. ‘We’ve been having a nice story—haven’t we, Danny?’

‘You’ll find the penalty for a late pick-up added to your bill, Miss Thomas.’

Carrie winced at the sound of the nursery manager’s voice, but she plastered a smile onto her face before she looked round. She could hardly afford the nursery bill as it was.

‘I’m sorry, Mrs Plewman,’ she said. ‘I got held up.’

‘Hmm.’ Mrs Plewman was unimpressed, making no attempt to hide her disapproval as she took in the short skirt of the sparkly red dress and the high-heeled sandals Carrie was still wearing. It was lucky she’d buttoned her denim jacket up to hide the lowcut front. ‘I’m not running a charity here, Miss Thomas. Make sure it doesn’t happen again. I’ve got my staff to think about, you know, but I’ll waive the penalty payment just this once.’

‘Thank you very much, Mrs Plewman. Have a nice evening.’ Carrie swung Danny’s bag onto her back, along with her own backpack, and retrieved his buggy from the cupboard in the hallway. She couldn’t wait to get home, to the safety and comfort of her flat.

Nik stood outside the building, frowning as an unexpected knot of anticipation twisted deep inside his gut. It was an unfamiliar sensation. He was about to lay eyes on his orphaned nephew for the first time—but why should that make him feel so unsettled?

He’d tried to picture the baby, but he just couldn’t imagine what he was going to look like. He must have seen hundreds of babies in his life, but he’d never really looked at one properly. It would be very strange, returning to Greece with a child.

At last he saw Carrie Thomas emerge from the building, a dark-haired baby balanced on her hip and a folded buggy in her other hand. She glanced up and down the street, but the crowds of passing commuters hid him from her view.

His eyes fixed on the baby, his dead brother’s son, and a peculiar numbness crept over him. That baby was his family. That baby was all his estranged brother Leonidas had left behind.

He started walking mechanically across the wide London pavement towards them, watching Carrie open the buggy with a practised flick of her wrist and snap the safety catch into place with her foot. All the time she was holding the baby tightly, engaging his attention with a constant stream of chatter and smiles.

‘In you go, Danny,’ she said, securing the child in the seat with the harness. ‘Off we go—tube or bus? What do you think?’ She glanced down the street at the queue by the bus stop.

‘We still need to talk,’ Nik said, coming up beside her.

She gasped in surprise. But the change in her body language made him sure she had recognised his voice before she looked round.

‘Anyone would think you were stalking me!’ She flicked her silky black fringe out of her eyes as she turned to him.

Nik looked down at her upturned face. Her almond-shaped eyes were a dazzling green, framed by arching brows and accentuated by long black lashes. He saw no sign of any make-up, and her flawless skin was incredibly pale, but it was lit somehow by a shimmering vitality.

It suddenly struck him as odd that she wasn’t wearing any make-up. Surely that natural look didn’t usually accompany the style of outfit she was wearing? But then, the denim jacket buttoned up to her chin and the sporty backpack seemed somewhat incongruous, too.

‘You left before we finished our conversation,’ Nik said.

‘I don’t have anything to say to you,’ Carrie said. She looked so cool, standing there, but he knew from experience that her nubile body was anything but.

‘Really?’ Nik asked coldly. ‘Tell me, why did you steal my brother’s baby?’

‘I…I…’ Carrie stammered. She gripped the handles of the buggy tightly and took a step backwards across the pavement. ‘I didn’t steal Danny.’

She stared at him with wide, frightened eyes, suddenly looking even paler than before, if that was possible. She looked genuinely shocked by his words. Maybe she hadn’t expected him to cut to the chase so quickly.

‘What else would you call taking a baby that doesn’t belong to you?’ Nik asked. She couldn’t really be surprised by his question, could she? In a moment she’d probably recover herself and start spouting a prepared speech in her defence.

‘Babies don’t belong to people!’ Carrie gasped. ‘They belong with the people who love them.’

‘They belong with their family,’ Nik said, hearing an edge of menace in his own voice as he took a step closer to her. ‘And, like I said, you stole that baby from his family.’

‘I didn’t steal Danny,’ Carrie said. ‘When his parents were killed in the accident no one else wanted him.’

‘No one else was given the chance,’ Nik said.

‘Your father—’

‘My father is dead,’ Nik interrupted coldly.

She drew in a sharp breath and stared up at him with puzzled green eyes. He had clearly startled her again, yet as he watched an expression of genuine sympathy passed across her face.