‘Really?’ demands Bobbi. ‘I work in show business,baby, and at a certain point, classy women know to put it away!’
‘Oh yeah! The fashion police are coming for you, sister,’ Julia shrieks. ‘What are you wearing? A pink gingham dress made for someone much younger!’
India winces. ‘So much for women enabling other women to get along in the world,’ she whispers to Keera.
‘They’ve both been drinking,’ says Keera suddenly. ‘That’sthe magic ingredient.’
‘Not drugs?’ asks India.
‘Nah. They’d never have got them on the plane. Wine or vodka, something for the flight.’
‘That makes sense. No wonder they’re riled up.’
Suddenly, Christos appears. He’s not dressed in his usual chef’s whites and, instead, looks like a very handsome bear in an aqua linen shirt and chinos.
‘Ladies, we don’t often get such beauties here,’ he says in a soft purring voice and steps between Julia and Bobbi.
He has clearly switched on some hitherto unseen charm button, because the smiling chef and adoring husband of Adriana is gone and in his place is a veritable Valentino of Villa Artemis.
‘I am Christos, one of the owners of this fine hotel, and I am so delighted to welcome you both, such elegant ladies, here to Greece. The birthplace of goddesses bows before such beauty.’
Keera winces. Overkill?
But both her mother and Julia seem to be buying it.
‘Hey, you cannot keep the good ones to yourself,’ says a chocolatey deep voice, heralding the appearance of Alexei.
He’s panting slightly and again wearing his yoga outfit of tiny grey yoga top and spray-on Lycra shorts that leaves nothing to the imagination.
Keera’s sure that Alexei is kept away from the hotel’s female guests on purpose and, now, she can see why.
He’s changed from bendy, calm yoga man into a sensual flesh and blood Greek statue who’s left his fig leaf at home.
He is clearly on a mission to seduce – or to pretend to seduce.
He reaches her mother first, takes one hand in both of his and kisses her on each cheek, continental style.
From their vantage point, Keera and India can smell his aftershave. He must have sprayed the whole bottle on himself before he left the studio.
Another man appears behind Alexei, younger and nearly as handsome, wearing no shirt to cover his muscular bronzed chest, just shorts and flip-flops, and with leaves bewilderingly in his hair.
‘Stavros,’ says Christos joyously, expertly diverting Stavros over to Julia. ‘We need your help in the bar. These ladies deserve a long, slow, comfortable cocktail to help them recover from their journeys. Where did you say you came from?’ he purrs to Bobbi, putting an arm around her.
‘Most recently Nevada,’ says Bobbi, unable to move from Alexei’s side because his big arm is encircling her cosily.
‘I bet you need a little rest. You don’t look as if you’ve come all that way,’ he adds admiringly. ‘You’re fresh as a daisy.’
From her hiding place, Keera sees her mother bloom under Christos and Alexei’s attention. It’s award-winning stuff.
‘I’m actually here to see my fiancé,’ insists Julia.
‘She’snothis fiancé,’ says India, shocked.
‘I think they are on a retreat today in the mountains,’ lies Christos. ‘You ladies need a retreat beside our infinity pool.’
‘Retreat is boring,’ says Stavros, staring deeply into Julia’s eyes and running a hand up and down her arm, from her shoulder to her wrist.
He’s not as good as Alexei, Keera thinks, but he’s going to be, very soon.
