“To whom?” From what I knew, Kat was single.
“I saw Santo last night. Theoí mou! He looks even better than when we dated. The sex was horrible, but this man will inherit Olympus Motors one day. My future, my life, will be secured with him. My father will be proud. All I need is to get him alone tonight, since I’m ovulating.” She adjusted her cleavage, making sure it was perfectly visible. “His Aunt Irida has always loved me. She’s the one who invited us tonight.
“Wow. That’s… super romantic.”
A knock at the door interrupted whatever response Kat would deliver. The door swung open without waiting for an answer, and her mother appeared in the doorway.
“Katalina, darling, the car is waiting. Your father is becoming impatient.” Her accent was thicker than Kat’s.
Towering gates opened for us as the family’s driver navigated the long drive, lined with exquisite topiary. The massive estate gleamed white against the deepening blue of the Aegean sky. It was a stunning example of contemporary design while holding true to the spirit of its Greek origins, as reflected in the stone colonnades, statuary, and fountains dotting the grounds.
The car pulled up to the front entrance, where a small receiving line had formed. Two elegant older women with silver hair stood at the archway greeting guest.
My heart stuttered.
There he was. Chrysanthos. The same man I’d dragged from a car three days ago.
What was he doing here?
He looked different dressed in a tailored charcoal suit, his blonde hair slicked back, the small bandage above his eyebrow the only evidence of our roadside encounter.
Of course he cleaned up like a Greek god. Why wouldn’t he?
Our eyes met instantly across the terrace. His gaze locked onto mine, then drifted down my body before returning with the faintest smile curling at his lips. Neither of us looked away.
My stomach fluttered as the same electric connection from the roadside surged between us. The memory of his lips against mine flashed unbidden through my mind, sending heat through my body. Since the encounter, I’d thought of the kiss often.
“That’s Santo’s grandmother and great-aunt,” Kat whispered, nudging me with her elbow, breaking the moment. She nodded toward the elderly women standing near him, oblivious to the silent exchange that had just occurred. “They adore me.”
My brain struggled to connect the dots as we approached the entrance, but my eyes kept drifting back to him. He was still watching me unabashedly.
“Katalina, my darling girl!” the shorter woman exclaimed, reaching for her with both hands and pulling her into a kiss on each cheek. “Look at you, still so thin. Are you eating enough?”
Kat’s usual exuberance dimmed noticeably as we approached, her personality shifting into something more subdued. She walked with grace, her movements more refined, her smile polite rather than dazzling. This was a Kat I’d never seen before.
Kat’s parents stepped forward for greetings and air kisses. Throughout the introductions, I remained aware of Chrysanthos’s eyes still on me. Then Kat turned to him and everything clicked into horrifying place.
“Santo,” Kat said. She leaned in to kiss his cheeks, but he barely inclined his head toward her, his eyes still fixed on me.
“Katalina,” he acknowledged. Then, without waiting for her to continue, he stepped forward. “We meet again, aggelé mou?”
Annoyance flashed across Kat’s face before she composed herself. “You two know each other?”
Chrysanthos stepped even closer, completely ignoring Kat’s presence now. “She saved my life,” he said simply.
Kat’s eyes darted between us. “What is happening right now?” Her voice had lost its cultivated softness.
“Your friend pulled me from my car after an accident,” Chrysanthos explained without taking his eyes off me.
“Tia, you never mentioned this.”
“Ah,” said the woman with the kind eyes — his grandmother. She clasped my hand in both of hers. “So you’re the one who pulled my grandson from death. What a brave and beautiful thing you did, child.”
“Seriously, it wasn’t a big deal. I just… did what anyone would’ve done.”
“But they didn’t,” Chrysanthos said softly. “You did.” The invitation in his gaze made my body tingle in places it shouldn’t.
The other woman, slightly taller, stepped forward. Her eyes scanned me briefly, not unkindly.
