“I’ll tell her to bring her boyfriend so you won’t be alone.”
“What, like a double date?” He grimaced. “I’m not into that stuff. And I have zero interest in talking to your friend’s boyfriend.”
“He’s not just some random guy. They’ve been together for two years.”
“Yeah? Then something’s wrong with him. Forget it.” He opened the door.
“I’m sorry, what does that even mean? Two years is a long time?” she asked, pushing herself up from the mattress.
He paused, hand still on the handle. “For me, it’s a century. You knew what I was like from day one.”
“Yeah, I don’t have a problem with it. I’ll tell them we’re meeting. If you don’t like it, we’ll leave early.”
All he wanted was to stand under cold water and wash his body clean. It was easier to let her have her way than listen to her nag for the next week, or however long he planned on sleeping with her before moving on.
Meanwhile, Ody and his girlfriend had returned home after sushi. They sat curled up on the couch, him half watching TVwhile she texted a friend. “Put the phone down, moro mu,” he said, using the nickname that had mostly replaced her name, meaning baby in Greek.
“One second. I’m talking to Katerina. She’s asking if we want to go out tomorrow, the four of us, with this guy she’s seeing.”
“A guy she’s seeing? Wasn’t she with someone named John?”
“You’re behind. She broke up with John a month ago. She’s been seeing this new guy for like a week now, but he’s making her life difficult.”
“Why?”
“He’s one of those guys who doesn’t want anything serious. He replies to messages whenever he feels like it, and he doesn’t treat her very well. From what I can tell, he’s kind of an asshole.”
“Baby, didn’t we say we shouldn’t judge people, especially if we don’t know them?” he said gently, looking at her with his green eyes, her weakness.
“Yeah, but...”
“And she wants the four of us to go out?”
“She thinks maybe if we all hang out together, he’ll open up a little. They always end up in bed, and then he leaves right after. She believes that if they start going out with friends, he might change.”
“Baby, tell your friend one thing.” He turned toward her. “You don’t change a man. If he’s not right for her, she should find someone else.”
“Oh please, like men don’t change,” she teased, stroking his golden-brown hair. “You weren’t this sweet when I first met you.”
“You said it,” he said with a smile. “A man only changes if he wants to. Never by force. But tell Katerina we’re in for tomorrow. Okay princess?”
“Yay!” she exclaimed and started typing.
“Time to put the phone away.” He took it from her hands and hovered over her.
Smiles spread across both their faces before he pressed his lips to hers.
The next afternoon, Ody picked Anna up from her house. He opened the passenger door of his dark blue Toyota Yaris and gestured for her to get in. She smiled, her brown doe eyes warm, and fastened her seat belt, her light brown hair falling past her chest.
Mano climbed onto his black Yamaha R6, a spare helmet secured to the back seat, and headed to Katerina’s place. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and they rode off toward the Panathenaic Stadium, where they were meeting her friend and her boyfriend.
Ody and Anna arrived first.
A few minutes later, a black sports bike pulled up near the entrance.
Two people got off and started walking toward them.
Ody’s gaze caught on the jet-black hair and the broad, muscular build of the guy beside Katerina. In black cargo pants and a fitted compression shirt, his build was impossible to miss.
