Selene watched Bea for a moment longer than usual before she reached for her hand. “Kopela mou,” she said, glancing at Leon. “Would you ever want to call us Mama and Dad? Only if you’re comfortable, of course.”
Bea froze. She hadn’t even realized she’d been waiting for this. Her vision swam.
“Your parents are far,” Selene added. “And it’s been twenty years since we had a daughter under this roof.” Her voice cracked at the end.
“I’d love that,” Bea whispered, gripping her bread.
Leon cleared his throat, but the gravel didn’t quite hide it. “Then it’s settled. You’re ours now, too.”
Selene squeezed Bea’s hand, sniffing discreetly. “We need fruit,” she said briskly, collecting herself.
“And wine.” Leon rose. “This oil deserves proper company.”
As Selene passed behind Bea, her fingers brushed the halter strap tied behind her neck. “This is new.”
“It’s so comfortable.” An impulse buy from a Santorini stairwell. “I should’ve bought two.”
“It’s very flattering,” Selene observed, reaching for the knife. “And it shows off your back. It looks much stronger than before you left.”
Bea made a choking sound that could only be described as profoundly compromising. Her fingers fumbled for her phone under the linen.
BEA: Your mama said my back looks stronger
BEA: RAFAEL
BEA: We both know what made it that way
BEA: SHE SHOULD NOT KNOW
Selene returned offering apples and kiwi, and Bea nodded mutely to both. Leon had uncorked a bottle of red and was giving it a moment to breathe.
Her phone buzzed. And buzzed. And buzzed again. Probably Rafael being no help.
Group Chat: Basketball War Crimes
RAFAEL: Wrong thread, baby.
CLAIRE: I’M SCREAMING
CLAIRE: WHY IS YOUR BACK STRONGER
LAURENT: I have a theory.
LAURENT: Do we credit the training regimen or the trainer?
Bea smothered the phone beneath her leg. She realized she hadn’t actually replied to Selene.
“There were a lot of stairs,” she blurted.
Selene paused mid-slice. “Stairsare what improved your back?”
She concentrated on breathing. “Mm.”
Then from the doorway,hisbaritone. “It wasn’t the stairs.”
Rafael crossed the threshold with the calm confidence of a man who knew exactly what he’d done.
Leon poured, mouth twitching. “You’re looking stronger too, son.”
