Wedding Party Collection: Here Comes The Groom: The Bridegroom's Vow / The Billionaire Bridegroom

The question brought him back from plaguing thoughts. “I have a fairly good idea.”

“Shall I unzip the bag for you?”

“Under the circumstances, I think I’ll let my secretary do the honors when she wakes up.”

“Is it for you?”

“I’m afraid so.”

His nephew grinned. “She certainly doesn’t know you very well if she thinks she can get you to wear a costume to the fair.”

You’d be shocked if you knew how well she reads my mind, Leon. That’s the problem. That’s why she’s managed to get under my skin without my realizing it.

“It’s the thought that counts,” Dimitrios muttered. “I presume your mother is up.”

“Hours ago.”

“Then let’s find her. On our way out, would you mind hanging the costume in my closet?”

“I’ll do it right now.”

It couldn’t be six in the evening! But it was.

Anxious to find out how her host was feeling, Alex sprang from the bed, incredulous that she’d slept so long again. Her body clock was completely off kilter.

Luckily she’d had a shower before going to bed. Once she was dressed in one of her matronly suits, it was her hair that took time to fix. While she stood in front of the bathroom mirror, she remembered leaving her glasses in his bedroom.

Alarmed because anyone looking through the lenses would know they were clear glass, she realized how vital it was to get them back as soon as possible. It would provide her with a good excuse to check up on Dimitrios at the same time. But before she did anything else, she needed to make a couple of important phone calls.

To her chagrin, Michael and his friends weren’t in the hotel room. She left a message welcoming them to Thessalonica. After explaining that she’d have to stay at the villa another night because her boss had met with a minor accident, she assured Michael she’d be in touch tomorrow morning.

With that done, she phoned her parents, who were greatly relieved to know she was all right. Word of the plane mishap that had injured Mr. Pandakis had even made the news in Paterson.

She didn’t let on that she hadn’t spent the first night at her hotel. Though she knew her mom would understand if told about the unusual circumstances, it would still worry her. It was better to say nothing until she could leave the villa.

She hung up with the promise that she’d phone them sometime tomorrow. She hoped by then she’d be at the hotel.

With the calls out of the way, she left the guest room and went down the hall to his suite. She knocked, wondering if he was inside.

“The door’s open.”

Hearing his deep voice made her heart leap. She pushed on it and entered.

He was sitting on top of his bed with his back against the headboard, listening to the news coming from the television. Her gaze traveled from his sandaled feet to the white sailor pants and royal blue knit shirt. The kind with the short sleeves and ribbing that looked good only on a man with some muscle.

She swallowed hard because Dimitrios’s arms were darkly tanned and as powerful looking as his legs. If she could paint him like this she’d entitle it, Zeus Reflecting.

Embarrassed to be caught staring, she reached for her glasses, which were still sitting on the coffee table.

He’d improved a great deal since morning. His color had returned. She was pleased to see that the bruised look beneath his eyes had almost disappeared. It made her wonder at her temerity in touching him as she’d done last night.

With a flick of the remote, he turned off the television and studied her. “You look rested, Ms. Hamilton. Come all the way in. Dinner will be here before long. In the meantime, we have work to do.”

She reached for her briefcase and walked over to the coffee table. “You must be feeling better.”

“I’m getting there. You said you’d made a copy for me of the countdown of events.”

“Yes. But should you use your eyes yet? Reading might be bad for your headache.”

“I’ve read the morning and evening papers from cover to cover and feel none the worse for it.”

He sounded out of sorts. Some people didn’t have as hard a time as others staying down while they were convalescing. Dimitrios was one of those others. Her boss was about as happy as a restless panther trapped inside a cage, going around and around the bars looking for a way to escape.

She dove into her briefcase and found the wanted item. “Here you are.” After putting it on the bed next to him, she pulled out her laptop.

Once she’d set the computer on her thighs and turned it on, she brought up the file in question. “If you want to start, I’m ready to make any changes.”

“Bring your chair closer so we don’t have to shout at each other.”

Alex wasn’t aware they’d been shouting. In fact he’d just spoken to her in a low voice, and she’d been able to hear him perfectly. But she did as he suggested.

Lifting her head in anticipation of what he would ask to be added or deleted, her attention was caught by the sight of a gold scepter lying across the quilt next to the footboard of the bed. She hadn’t noticed it when she’d entered his bedroom.

Her questioning gaze darted to her boss. He, in turn, eyed her with a complacent expression that didn’t fool her.

“I found I wanted to see it,” he confessed, “so I sent Leon to the hotel this morning. Michael met him in the lobby with it.”

Uh, oh.

Had Dimitrios learned there were two actors staying there, as well? Not that he would have cared. It was just that she hadn’t mentioned the others, and she didn’t want any unnecessary talk to go on.

“Your doctor wasn’t kidding when he said you made a terrible patient. If I’d known you were going to be so bored today, I would have asked Stavros to come over and keep you company.”

Still worked, up she added, “Something tells me you were the kind of little boy who sneaked a look at your Christmas presents long before it was time to open them.”

“Guilty on all counts.”

Alex took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. “What do you think of it?”

“I haven’t seen it yet. Leon hung the garment bag in my closet. I thought I’d wait until you unveiled it before my eyes.”

“Considering you went to such lengths to get it, I’m puzzled you would show that much forbearance.”

“Some surprises are worth savoring.”

She was stunned that he would have bothered with any of it.

“To be honest, I haven’t seen it myself. I gave the seamstress a sketch months ago. It wasn’t ready until the last second, so Michael picked it up for me.”