He gave her a measured smile. “Thank you.”
A little seed of hope grew inside her. What if his parents weren’t so bad after all? They’d always wanted the best for him, in their opinion. Sure, in the United States, parents didn’t meddle in their adult children’s lives this much, but maybe the Rhodes had well-meaning intentions even if she disagreed with their tactics.
“Anything to drink?” she asked.
“Father,” Theo said, joining them. Surprise flickered in his eyes for a second, but he quickly composed himself and casually nodded at his father. Theo’s hair was still damp from what she imagined had been a strenuous workout session, a tank top and black shorts showing his hot body. “What brought you here?”
Bacchus answered in Greek, then quickly blinked and switched to English. “I wanted to talk to you. Now I’m up for it. I apologize if I’m being indiscreet, but there are no secrets between family.” His father gave her a long glance, then his gaze darted back at Theo. “Talia’s father called me yesterday. He’s ready to set a date.”
Her blood turned into frozen custard. Shit. She shouldn’t be part of this conversation, by any means. She wasn’t family. Yet, panic stilled her in place, keeping her from willing her body to move.
Theo squared his shoulders, responding in Greek, and she didn’t need to speak the language to detect the curtness in his voice.
“I should leave you two alone,” she butted in, touching Theo’s elbow. Why stay and make things worse? His father nodded at her. He probably didn’t like this situation any more than she did, yet it needed to be done. She chewed on her lower lip.
Theo put his hand around her waist. “No, stay,” he said in a bossy tone. He drew in a breath and looked at his father. “I’m sorry, but I can’t marry Talia. I was waiting until you recovered to have this conversation.”
His father’s eyes widened. Then he withdrew and shook his head. “You can’t be serious.”
Her heart twisted in her chest. The promise she’d made to his mother stabbed at her, but she hadn’t done anything to convince Theo to cancel his agreement to marry Talia. Did that count? Confused, she tried to move away from him, but Theo tightened his hold on her. “I am. I’ll meet with Talia myself and talk to her about my decision. It’s the least I can do. I understand I’m letting you down, but I’ll have to live with it.”
“What about the stocks? If there’s no marriage, we won’t get power over the company. Horace will still rule,” his father said, agitating his hands.
“Not if we stop him. It’s a long shot, sure, but one I’m willing to take to get him prosecuted.”
His father paced the area around them, rubbing his forehead. “It’ll never happen, son. Even if it does, that doesn’t mean his supporters will sell their share to us. Hell, he can still keep his stocks even in jail—all he needs is someone else to manage them.”
Jail? What the hell were they talking about? She pulled away from Theo’s hold, eager to get a grip on the conversation. “Your uncle may go to jail?” She’d heard about his uncle’s wrongdoings, but if he’d been caught mishandling money or making any other illicit business decisions, why hadn’t Theo mentioned it to her?
His father’s expression sobered, and he massaged his temple. “She doesn’t know, does she?” he said, enunciating the pronoun, gesturing at her.
Is he talking about me? Amaya cleared her throat. A feeling of dread brewed in her stomach, unsettling it. She turned to Theo, who looked away from her. “What is he talking about?”
Theo peered at her, the muscle on his jaw jumping. “I’ll explain to you later.”
“All right,” she said, touching her belly to will away the nausea. He’d told her his uncle Horace was rumored to be stealing from the company and worse. Maybe he’d finally pay for his transgressions.
But, if that was the case, why couldn’t Theo’s father accept Theo’s decision to not marry Talia?
The question sank in her, and she swallowed. He’s not marrying her anymore. She’d been so overwhelmed with the argument, she hadn’t given that nugget of information much thought. Was it because of her? Or was it because Theo had realized he didn’t want to marry anyone period—he preferred to continue to be a bachelor.
Anxiety ran through her. She fidgeted with the tie of her robe, too restless to keep composure. Would there be a chance for them? His mother would never approve of her, even if Theo did.
“This marriage has been arranged for a long time, son. You know what’s involved. As lovely as your friend is,” his father said, making a hand gesture in her direction, “it would be a shame to put an end to what could be a perfect union because of an impulse.”
Theo lifted his eyebrow, his face hardening. “Trust me, it’s not an impulse.”
“I beg you to take some time to think on it. I met with the international lawyer I told you about, and he said it’ll be very hard to find evidence and to extradite your uncle.”
“We’ll see.”
Bacchus stood in front of him, perching his hand on his waist. “What do you mean, you’ll see? He didn’t commit murder in Athens, for crying out loud. He did it across the world. No wonder he never traveled there again. Do you understand the time needed to get wheels in motion?”
“Wait. Murder?” She glanced at Theo’s profile, this time not willing to let the bullshit go. If he insisted she stay, he had to fill her in.
His father lifted an eyebrow. “You better tell her. I’ll go on my way and leave you two alone.”
“Tell me what?” She straightened her shoulders, folding her arms over her chest.
