Playing by the Greek's Rules

‘Don’t remind me.’

Nik caught his driver’s amused gaze in the mirror and gave him a steady stare. Vassilis had been with him for over a decade and had a tendency to voice his opinions on Nik’s love life. It was obvious he thoroughly approved of Lily.

‘It’s true that if you turn up as my guest tonight there will be people who assume we are having sex.’ Nik returned his attention to the conversation. ‘I can’t claim to be intimately acquainted with the guest list, but I’m assuming a few of the people there will be your colleagues. Does that bother you?’

‘No. It will send a message that I’m not broken-hearted, which is good for my pride. In fact the timing is perfect. Just this morning I embarked on a new project. Operation Ice Maiden. You’re probably wondering what that is.’

Nik opened his mouth to comment but she carried on without pausing.

‘I am going to have sex with no emotion. That’s right.’ She nodded at him. ‘You heard me correctly. Rebound sex. I am going to climb into bed with some guy and I’m not going to feel a thing.’

Hearing a sound from the front of the car, Nik pressed a button and closed the screen between him and Vassilis, giving them privacy.

‘Do you have anyone in mind for—er—Operation Ice Maiden?’

‘Not yet, but if they happen to think it’s you that’s fine. You’d look good on my romantic résumé.’

Nik leaned his head back against the seat and started to laugh. ‘You, Lily, are priceless.’

‘That doesn’t sound like a compliment.’ She adjusted the neckline of her dress and her breasts almost escaped in the process. ‘You’re basically saying I’m not worth anything.’

Dragging his gaze from her body, Nik decided this was the most entertaining evening he’d had in a long time.

* * *

‘There are photographers.’ As they pulled up outside the museum Lily slunk lower in her seat and Nik closed his hand around her wrist and hauled her upright again.

‘You look stunning. If you don’t want them all surmising that we climbed out of bed to come here then you need to stop looking guilty.’

‘I saw several TV cameras.’

‘The opening of a new wing of the museum is news.’

‘The neckline of this dress might also be news.’ She tugged at it. ‘My breasts are too big for this plunging style. Can I borrow your jacket?’

‘Your breasts deserve a dress like that and no, you may not borrow my jacket.’ His voice was a deep, masculine purr and she felt the sizzle of sexual attraction right through her body.

‘Are you flirting with me?’ He was completely different from the safe, friendly men who formed part of her social circle. There was a brutal strength to him, a confidence and assurance that suggested he’d never met a man he hadn’t been able to beat in a fight, whether in the bar or the boardroom.

Her question appeared to amuse him. ‘You’re my date. Flirting is mandatory.’

‘It unsettles me and I’m already unsettled at the thought of tonight.’

‘Because you’re with me?’

No way was she confessing how being with him really made her feel. ‘No, because the opening of this new museum wing is a really momentous occasion.’

‘You and I have a very different idea of what constitutes a momentous occasion, Lily.’ There was laughter in his eyes. ‘Never before has my ego been so effectively crushed.’

‘Your ego is armour plated, like your feelings.’

‘It’s true that my feelings of self-worth are not dependent on the opinion of others.’

‘Because you think you’re right and everyone else is wrong. I wish I were more like you. What if the reporters ask who I am? What do I say? I’m a fake.’

‘You’re the archaeologist. I’m the fake. And you say whatever you want to say. Or say nothing. Your decision. You’re the one in charge of your mouth.’

‘You have no idea how much I wish that was true.’

‘Tell me why you’re excited about tonight.’

‘You mean apart from the fact I get to dress up? The new wing houses the biggest collection of Minoan antiquities anywhere in Greece. It has a high percentage of provenanced material, which means archaeologists will be able to restudy material from old excavations. It’s exciting. And I love the dress by the way, even though I’ll never have any reason to wear it again.’

‘Chipped pots excite you?’

She winced. ‘Don’t say that on camera. The collection will play an active role in research and in university teaching as well as offering a unique insight for the general public.’

As the car pulled up outside the museum one of Nik’s security team opened the door and Lily emerged to what felt like a million camera flashes.

‘Unreal,’ she muttered. ‘Now I know why celebrities wear sunglasses.’

‘Mr Zervakis—’ Photographers and reporters gathered as close as they could. ‘Do you have a statement about the new wing?’

Nik paused and spoke directly to the camera, relaxed and at ease as he repeated Lily’s words without a single error.

She stared at him. ‘You must have an incredible short-term memory.’

A reporter stepped forward. ‘Who’s your guest tonight, Nik?’

Nik turned towards her and she realised he was leaving it up to her to decide whether to give them a name or not.

‘I’m a friend,’ she muttered and Nik smiled, took her hand and led her up the steps to the welcome committee at the top.

The first person she spotted was David Ashurst and she stopped in dismay. In answer to Nik’s questioning look, she shook her head quickly, misery and panic creating a sick cocktail inside her. ‘I’m fine. I saw someone I didn’t expect to see, that’s all. I didn’t think he’d have the nerve to show up.’

‘That’s him?’ His gaze travelled from her face to the man looking awkward at the top of the steps. ‘He is the reason you’re hoping for a personality transplant?’

‘His name is Professor Ashurst. He has a wife,’ she muttered in an undertone. ‘Can you believe that? I actually cried over that loser. Do I have time to get my notebook out of my bag? I can’t remember what I wrote down.’

‘I’ll tell you what to say.’ He leaned closer and whispered something in her ear that made her gasp.

‘I can’t say that.’

‘No? Then how’s this for an alternative?’ Sliding his arm round her waist, he pressed his hand to the base of her spine and flattened her against him. She looked up at him, hypnotised by those spectacular dark eyes and the raw sexuality in his gaze. Before she could ask what he was doing he lowered his head and kissed her.

Pleasure screamed through her, sensation scorching her skin and stoking a pool of heat low in her belly. She’d been kissed before, but never like this. Nik used his mouth with slow, sensual expertise and she felt a rush of exquisite excitement burn through her body. Her nerve endings tingled, her tummy flipped like a gymnast in a competition, and Lily was possessed by a deep, dark craving that was entirely new to her. Oblivious to their audience, she pushed against his hard, powerful frame and felt his arms tighten around her in a gesture that was unmistakably possessive. It was a taste rather than a feast, but it left her starving for more so that when he slowly lifted his head she swayed towards him dizzily, trying to balance herself.

‘Wh-why did you do that?’