When he saw her walking toward him, he smiled.
“Geiá sou, Skye.Ti káneis?”
How was she?
She was so many things, none of which she knew how to put into words.
“I’m…” Instead of finishing her sentence, Skye shrugged.
Andreas nodded.
“I am the same,” he said.
A furious yapping startled the two of them.
“Éla re,” Andreas grumbled, opening the door of the truck. “I brought Filiá with me.” The wiry little dog hopped down, strutted importantly to Skye for some attention, then scampered off into Victoria and Adam’s front yard. They were both outside. Victorialooked wan and puffy eyed. She was wearing pink Crocs, Bermuda shorts, and a tank top with “Venice Beach California” printed across it. Adam, meanwhile, was stripped to his waist, a shovel in his hands that he’d already used to dig several large holes.
“Still hunting for buried treasure?” Skye asked. Adam pulled a face.
“Not so much as an earthworm yet,” he said with a sigh.
Victoria bent to stroke Filiá.
“Oh my word,” she said. “She’s darling. Is she yours?”
Andreas and Skye exchanged a look.
“She is not mine,” he said, “but she can be yours. If you are willing to take her…”
“Sure we are,” Victoria said over Adam’s tentative: “Maybe.”
“She belonged to my friend Karolos,” Andreas explained. “He unfortunately died during the earthquake.” He glanced at Skye. “It was an accident.”
“So she’s an orphan?” Victoria cried. “The poor little thing.”
Filiá rolled over onto her back, paws in the air, tongue lolling out from the side of her mouth.
“I think she likes you,” Andreas said. “She never behaves this way for me.”
“Come on, gorgeous.” Victoria clicked her fingers, and the dog promptly leaped to attention. “Let’s go and see if there’s any leftover chicken in the fridge.”
Adam watched them go, his smile lingering.
“Thank you,” he said. “That’s the first time I’ve seen her looking properly happy in a while.”
“Perhaps she and Filiá can mend each other’s broken hearts,” Andreas said, his eyes drifting to Skye once again.
“Righto.” Adam raised his shovel. “Better get on.”
“Where is your mother?” Andreas asked as Skye followed him back toward the truck.
“I woke to find a note saying she’d gone for a swim with Joy.”
“So you are alone?”
Skye turned in a slow circle, her arms outstretched.
“Do I look alone to you? I moved from one of the most overpopulated cities in the world to this tiny Greek village, and I’ve never felt less alone in my life.”
